Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Old West => Topic started by: Coolfrood on September 16, 2019, 05:19:17 PM
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A while back I was in need of a new terrain/mini project, and I stumbled upon the Dracula's America ruleset. A couple of months later, I'm starting an old west campaign in the flgs (giving out a demo here and there helps) using the standard rules, so no ghouls and monsters for now (that may change once the campaign ends).
I've always been more interested in making scenery and boards than painting the rank-and-file, so I'm happy to present Blue Creek, a small settlement not too far from notorious Deadwood...
(https://i.imgur.com/I9EPEQI.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/aQxe9Qo.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/KkJNwgI.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/5fokjoR.jpg)
I used extra thick foam to create the board, so it could be double-sided. I made a swamp side as well to mix it up. Scenery is about 90% finished, as soon as I have a day or two I can call it a day.
(https://i.imgur.com/TKaEup9.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/P24qSz4.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/BgHMUQk.jpg)
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Absolutely wow. :-* I really love your gaming terrain.
How did you do the stunning water effects? What product did you use?
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That's a two-part epoxy/liquid plastic I picked up from a craft store. The upside on the stuff is that it doesn't shrink, and mixes easily with ink. I'll have a look if I can find the brand online. I made some pics of the building if anyone's interested.
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Welcome aboard.
That's a great double-sided board; the town really looks the business for gaming and the swamp is going to be fun to wade through.
Always interested to see how the terrain is built. Looking forward to seeing more phots.
RMZ
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That looks fantastic. Water effects are spot on. What did you use for them?
Greg
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Like your settlement - though the dentist must spend a lot of time very lonely in such a small locale. lol
Also like your various bits of cover/terrain. Though I was a bit startled to see so much up on a roof. Seems a bit out of place. Then again, there was this married set of college professors at school who kept a blanket up on the roof - and who knows what else - for intimate encounters together. It was the theater department, however, so not as startling as you might think. ::)
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Love it! Thanks for sharing. I really like the terrain choices since so many boards are desert based, seeing something different is refreshing. I especially like the muddy tracks. The scene would fit very well in so many parts of the west especially the mountain west or the Sierras. And that swamp, looks like a great place to hide a body.
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Glorious set of boards. I hate you!
Hope you get some amazing games on them.
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Yes, that’s very Deadwood. Love it. Great job :)
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Wow. That looks great.
And what a way to introduce yourself to the forum.
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Thanks everyone! :) Deadwood was indeed my main inspiration, I thought about using a deep cut mat (we use one at the flgs and it's pretty great), but I wanted some texture. Also, no painting of MDF buildings (that overhead shot with the loot on the bar was for a scenario btw ;) ). I may add Sarissa's dilapidated southern mansion in time.
I've found a link for the expoxy I used. It's from a dutch company though, so it might be difficult to get a hold of if you're in the US. https://www.craftemotions.nl/en/craftemotions-epoxy-clear-plaster-resin-500-ml/a46683 (https://www.craftemotions.nl/en/craftemotions-epoxy-clear-plaster-resin-500-ml/a46683)
I'll see if I can post some wip pics when I'm home tonight.
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Wow, what a lovely board! :-* :-* :-*
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Agree with every else - lovely boards. The trees on the town side are nice in setting the scene too.
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Very impressive, could I ask for a shot of the town side without any houses and trees on it?
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I'll dump some pics of the building process as well. These were mostly quick snaps with my phone during construction, so the quality isn't that great sometimes.
Step 1: the boards. I chose really thick styrofoam/insulation boards because I wanted to cut and shape without worrying they would break.
(https://i.imgur.com/xCsf5V5.jpg)
Some screws and woodglue to bond those together, as they were only about 24 inches wide.
They were a bit too long though, so I'll add a lesson you hopefully didn't learn in the past; cutting those with a styrofoam cutter is nasty work, invest in some sort of saw.
Step 2: masking the joint (both sides, I made a road/thoroughfare on the badlands side) with wood filler, also generously apply wood filler to the sides because the cuts are crooked. I used large planks of balsa wood to cover up the sides and give a bit of an edge so flock and foliage can be applied and won't be damaged when I turn the board over. At a later point, due to the rather crude sawing, let's say those planks don't line up perfectly. I also started cutting out the creek and swamp bits (using a straight foam cutter).
(https://i.imgur.com/ChjmtAR.jpg)
Lesson learned; get some sort of saw-like device to finish up the boarding properly.
Step 3; apply basecoat and fill the creek with decorative grit. I didn't take a picture, but because I carved out the swamp side too deep, I used plaster to bring the level up a bit. This was a bit tricky, and had some unexpected consequences later.
(https://i.imgur.com/mxj7mwA.jpg)
Step 4; add cheap, textured craft store paint in random splotches to break up the terrain. Basecoat that.
(https://i.imgur.com/aIhF3w2.jpg)
Lesson learned; go online and try to find a cheap bandsaw or something.
Step 5: Wash the basecoated brown bits, and add flock. Spray entire surface with hairspray or matte varnish to seal the flock and bits of foliage added. Then pour in the resin. I added some dried twigs and flock to the river bed as well.
(https://i.imgur.com/i5gO6X7.jpg)
IMPORTANT LESSON LEARNED:
- always flock and seal BEFORE pouring. If you don't, the resin might get a matte shine or turn white, and "bleed" through unsealed flock adjacent to where you're pouring.
- glue any debris in your river or pond with a clear glue or clear-drying wood glue. Otherwise it'll float to the top.
- put a cover on your stuff after the pour so dust won't adhere to the surface (the resin I used had a drying time of 24 hours, though after 12 it was pretty solid and non-sticky)
-It's better to work in thin layers while pouring, otherwise it'll take longer to dry. And you'll have a chance the deeper crevices won't dry at all.
Swamp side pre-pour:
(https://i.imgur.com/gpQuKFI.jpg)
I used a dark green for the swamp bed, with black for the "deeper" bits. This'll shine through and give a bit of a depth effect. I added aquarium (or rather terrarium) plants to edge of the swamp, so they would be submerged a bit. I used a toothpick to tease the resin in hard to reach areas. An ancient pot of GW green ink mixed with some Agrax Earthshade gives a nice green swampy feel.
Post-pour:
(https://i.imgur.com/2X0RClX.jpg)
apparently the paint didn't seal the plaster in completely, and it leaked through, causing these white clouds. Fortunately, it doesn't look too bad imo.
That's about it I guess. It was a fun process, and I learned a lot building this board.
Total build time was about a month (not including scenery), because I have the luxury of an entire attic to myself and don't have to clean up everything between steps. So it's easy to spend a couple of hours here and there after work and leave everything to dry.
The colour of the swamp water might not be 100% realistic (and the flock might be a bit too bright also) but I didn't want to end up with a board that'd be too drab.
A quick edit for spelling and hitting the post button too soon
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A simple power jig saw will cut wood nicely though a plain old cross-cut saw works just fine - practice a little with scrap wood if you haven't much experience cutting wood, draw on your mark in one direction only until you get a solid start and only then get going with the back and forth sawing motion. If using the jig saw, rig up a "fence" to cut a straight line - but you will still have to battle the likelihood of the blade bending while cutting, bit of a PITA. Or use a manual powered (muscle) jig saw, they work just as well but slower. I use an overarm radial saw and a table saw plus my electric jig saw but a lot of people don't have the space for such tools.
There is - or was - a Stanley brand saw with a handle and pretty low teeth to length ratio (big teeth) that I use for cutting insulating foam but it is still a great mess. If you are going to buy any kind of power tool get a really good shop vacuum for cleaning up the horrendous mess that results from cutting foam. Very serious. And never - EVER - buy beaded foam!!! And don't let anybody give you any neither. An even worse mess by a factor of ten or more.
A recommendation if you decide to travel a similar path for a future project where you need a 'deep' river: buy a thin sheet of the insulating foam and use a 'cookie cutter' approach to cutting it to shape and then glue it to your thicker 'core' board. That will yield a nice flat interior to work with - much easier to seal and then paint before pouring any resin.
Hope that helps for future projects and feel free to ask questions for any clarification if needed.
I applaud your use of deep sides for this project to allow it to work double sided. A very nice touch.
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Thanks for the advice! I'll probably invest in some sort of a powered jigsaw (or bandsaw if I can find one at a decent price), that'll be handy around the house as well.
I'm thinking about my next project, that'll probably involve some precise cutting as well. I'm a bit sorry I didn't get one before starting the project though, the insulation material I used does get a nice clean cut when using a bandsaw. But like all things in hindsight I would've used a different type of wood for the sides as well.
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Another visit to the thread and took note of the lovely little mud puddles in front of the church (third photograph). That's a tremendous little bit of added detail. Grand kudos, to you, sir.