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Other Stuff => Workbench => "Build Something" Archiv => Topic started by: cahrn on January 24, 2020, 06:40:49 PM

Title: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on January 24, 2020, 06:40:49 PM
Something I've been kicking around for a while is making a section of ruined wall and a watchtower or two to go with it. It's not a terribly interesting or original idea, but in general my group has plenty of ruins terrain and I don't want to make something that would be redundant on our tables. My current plan is to make two bases. One large base with a length of crumbling wall and a tower in the center, and another base with a partially collapsed tower. I also hope to make each piece playable for various skirmish games, and keep them generic enough for use in both historical and fantasy settings. I have a simple plan sketched out that I'll update this thread with later once I get settled on some decent base sizes to start laying things out with.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Burnin Coal on January 24, 2020, 08:10:33 PM
Sounds good...I look forward to seeing what you come up with
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on January 28, 2020, 04:49:08 AM
As I referenced in my previous post I sketched out a quick plan before I got started to keep some dimensions in mind. Given that I've already deviated from said dimensions a little bit I'm not going to bother posting my plan. However, a few minutes spent cutting up some EPS insulation into stone brick sized pieces gave me enough material to start on a ruined tower foundation. The tower has a roughly 4"x4" footprint and will have a partially destroyed platform for miniatures to perch precariously on. I'm not sure what the total height will be, but I'll have to experiment with what looks and feels right as I keep adding to the structure. A second larger base is planned after I complete this base. Here's an in progress photo below.
(https://i.imgur.com/fdlzqgQ.jpg)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Burnin Coal on January 28, 2020, 05:12:48 AM
A promising start...shall enjoy watching your progress
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Blackwolf on January 28, 2020, 06:37:07 AM
Indeed, looks good!
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: ichwillauch on January 28, 2020, 04:17:49 PM
I like it!
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on January 28, 2020, 07:32:19 PM
Thanks, there’s quite a lot left to do but so far I think it’s working out well enough. On the next piece I definitely need to build a better substructure, but on the more collapsed sections it isn’t really possible. I’ll probably need several thousand more bricks, too  ;D
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: AKULA on January 29, 2020, 06:57:31 PM
A great start

 :)

I’ll probably need several thousand more bricks, too  ;D

I feel your pain  lol
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on January 30, 2020, 01:43:28 AM

I feel your pain  lol

Honestly there's nothing too bad about the whole process, but waiting for glue to dry in the winter slows the rate at which I can build. A friend suggested I should use tacky glue, but I haven't been to the hardware store to pick any up yet.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on January 30, 2020, 06:13:12 AM
Here are a couple shots a bit further along with the tower construction. The one high side will be built up a bit more with a single large arched window. Then it will be on to the bigger piece, and of course actually painting and finishing the pieces.
Various views:
(https://i.imgur.com/xt3xHi2.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/xzCRiAQ.jpg)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Hammers on January 30, 2020, 07:07:29 AM
Splendid!
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: ichwillauch on February 01, 2020, 07:58:00 AM
This looks very good, like a medieval ruin should look like.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: vodkafan on February 01, 2020, 09:35:47 AM
. I’ll probably need several thousand more bricks, too  ;D

Get Gunbird to make the bricks for you! He's an expert!
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: AKULA on February 01, 2020, 09:38:24 AM
Terrific

 8)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Gunbird on February 01, 2020, 02:15:20 PM
Get Gunbird to make the bricks for you! He's an expert!

Hey now, I would not go that far. That and I'm running out of stock as the builders nabbed my sheets to insulate part of my roof, so I'm on the hunt for new sheets myself.

Carn: Nice build. Did you strengthen the wall by adding a few pins through it and bricking it over?
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on February 01, 2020, 04:48:19 PM
Thanks for the kind words, everybody.

Did you strengthen the wall by adding a few pins through it and bricking it over?

I did not. I applied quite a liberal amount of watered down PVA glue and allowed it to flow through the various cracks. The result is surprisingly sturdy. Having two courses of brick certainly helps in that regard, too. I'm working on a second base with a more intact tower and I plan on using a more solid framework to help keep it a bit more square, and also give a better foundation to the whole thing.

Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Gunbird on February 01, 2020, 09:03:07 PM
Thanks for the kind words, everybody.

I did not. I applied quite a liberal amount of watered down PVA glue and allowed it to flow through the various cracks. The result is surprisingly sturdy. Having two courses of brick certainly helps in that regard, too. I'm working on a second base with a more intact tower and I plan on using a more solid framework to help keep it a bit more square, and also give a better foundation to the whole thing.

Fair enough :) I tend to to the extra mile with strength, having built scenery for a shop when I started out in wargaming and seeing how hamfisted people are with stuff that is not theirs <sigh> Still building it like that to this day :)

Looking forward to the rest of your stuff :)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on February 02, 2020, 04:52:10 AM
Fair enough :) I tend to to the extra mile with strength, having built scenery for a shop when I started out in wargaming and seeing how hamfisted people are with stuff that is not theirs <sigh> Still building it like that to this day :)

Looking forward to the rest of your stuff :)

Thanks. You're completely right about general use terrain for a shop. The LGS my friends and I game at has a big collection of rather tired badly beat up terrain. Between three or four of us we have quite a large collection of terrain for personal use. Given we've all collectively built/purchased/painted it we take quite good care of it. With this in mind I know I can build things that might be a bit more fragile otherwise; though the pieces still need to stand up to normal gaming use.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on February 28, 2020, 05:31:32 AM
I haven't updated this thread since the beginning of the month. The piece I had previously shown in progress photos of has been complete for some time. I started a slightly larger second ruin pictured below a few weeks ago before I ended up busy with a number of other priorities. I'm back on track now and hope to wrap things up early next week for a submission before the deadline day!

(https://i.imgur.com/6xSBV8u.jpg)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Codsticker on February 28, 2020, 03:52:17 PM
More great stonework GB. I look forward to seeing it all completed in a week and a half.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: AKULA on February 28, 2020, 11:18:03 PM
Looking really good  8)

I look forward to seeing it all completed in a week and a half.

 :o

Is that all we’ve got left ???
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: syrinx0 on February 29, 2020, 04:12:56 AM
Definitely has that real look.  Nice ruin.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Codsticker on February 29, 2020, 07:28:03 AM
Is that all we’ve got left ???
I think so- midnight March 9th I believe.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on February 29, 2020, 05:09:56 PM
I think so- midnight March 9th I believe.

Yep, midnight March 9th. Not sure what timezone but I plan to be done by the 8th anyhow. At one point or another I had the idea I might be able to do a third ruins base but I think I'll can that idea for now.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Overlord on March 02, 2020, 11:48:15 AM
Brilliant stuff so far.  I love the look of the first ruin.  Getting that random appearance for the stone blocks is hard to acheieve.  Yours look excellent.  8)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on March 06, 2020, 04:53:03 AM
Probably the last update from me before the deadline. Everything is more or less in place on this piece. Once the glue sets up overnight I'll go in tomorrow and bulk out the piles and walls with more sand and stones. Fortunately painting is a relatively quick process. Anyhow, the picture below is more or less what I'll be painting sometime Friday or Saturday. It's definitely suffered a bit from the different sizes between the batches of bricks, but given it's meant to be a ruin I don't really mind the sagging walls and whatnot.

(https://i.imgur.com/VnrPHoa.jpg)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Codsticker on March 06, 2020, 06:10:33 AM
Looks great- I can't wait to see it painted. I like the sagging walls- it suggests the gravity of thousands of years has taken it's toll.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on March 06, 2020, 07:26:51 AM
I like the sagging walls- it suggests the gravity of thousands of years has taken it's toll.

Exactly, always convenient to be able to hand wave mistakes like that  :D
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: OSHIROmodels on March 06, 2020, 08:27:05 AM
Looks good  8)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: cahrn on March 06, 2020, 08:31:10 AM
Looks good  8)

The same can certainly be said about what I've seen from the other participants thus far. I have to admit that the wrecked/ruined theme was on the bottom of my list in terms to desirability, but now that I'm nearly done with my build I can definitely say that it's been fun.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: AKULA on March 06, 2020, 09:42:30 AM
Great job  8)
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Hammers on March 06, 2020, 09:44:46 AM
That looks great.
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Daeothar on March 06, 2020, 01:08:41 PM
Very pretty indeed 8)

Once properly painted and finalized, this will be a beaut!
Title: Re: BSC2020 cahrn ruined wall and watchtower
Post by: Hammers on March 13, 2020, 12:17:27 PM
Brilliant stuff so far.  I love the look of the first ruin.  Getting that random appearance for the stone blocks is hard to acheieve.  Yours look excellent.  8)

This. Working with XPS masonry is a new technique to me. I have not quite mastered the texturing technique and the block seems so flimsy and  unsubstantial when you build with them. But I find that white glue and glalc do wonders to fortify the foam. The pillars in my gallows are strengthened with threaded rods but they take also take quite some handling after being prepped with glalc.

Anyway, Codsticker has really mastered the material in this build. (Perhaps we should start a lodge of Free XPS masons?)