Aggro84's Gothic Horror Thread

[aggro84]

So all of this talking about EotD terrain got me thinking.
I broke out my terrain and took a look at it today for some brainstorming and observations.

I currently have three main scratch built buildings and a few outbuildings



I originally had walled bases for all of them. Shown here:





They were warping pretty bad, so in an effort to repair the warping, I completely destroyed them.  

But looking at it now maybe it wasn't such a bad thing. It's nice to able to place the buildings closer together or arrange them in different configurations.





This was just a cool close up photo.  



One of the nice things I did was make all the roofs and levels removable. Here's a photo of the buildings spread out.



On the first floor.



Another first floor shot.



A second floor shot.



Here's my outbuildings. The small one was my original test piece.



I bought this building for a few bucks. looking at it next to the other buildings it's way to small and of no use sadly.





Finally this is a building are started several months ago but never finished.
It looks pretty funky. I must have been drinking.  

[Sterling Moose]

Nice.  I like the old bases, the ones you got rid of, but maybe they were a bit on the thick side.  The pavement and the gas lamps looked good.  The new building could be spruced up by overlaying card 'bricks' over the current frame.

[aggro84]

Nice.  I like the old bases, the ones you got rid of, but maybe they were a bit on the thick side.  The pavement and the gas lamps looked good.  The new building could be spruced up by overlaying card 'bricks' over the current frame.

I didn't get rid of them. I accidentally destroyed them. 

So now I'm left wondering what to do now.

The foam buildings look pretty good. They are cheap to make and I like being able to remove the roofs and levels.
If I stick to this style, I'll need to make some more brick walls and possibly make new bases for them.

On the bad side. Some of my cuts were really wonky. 
Foam isn't the easiest stuff to work with. Also, they are really fragile. They constantly need touching up as the edges rub off and little chips are created just during normal packing and unpacking.

There's some pretty nice MDF stuff being made these days. The prices aren't typically bad, but generally you can't separate the levels.

I'm curios to see what Skrapwelder comes up with in his new resin buildings venture. 

[Commander Vyper]

If you move to foamboard completely invest in a good metal ruler, sharp blades and lay off the grog when constructin, () you'll poduce some nice clean vic buildings. either print clad them or plasticcard. I like your first buildings, but a bit too charactured for me.

The Commander

[Laughing Ferret]

I like the look of those buildings! nice & moody look to them

[Major_Gilbear]

Well, if you enjoy making terrain, then I'd suggest you continue to do so rather than buy the MDF stuff - especially if it enables you to make it how you want.

I would move over to using Foamcore or Depron for your constructions though; the insulation foam you use is notoriously delicate.

Finally, if you're starting again, I'd suggest making the brickwork smaller/finer; either print and clad or use embossed plasticard as Commander Vyper suggests, or emboss the material directly yourself (if Depron; if Foamcore, it's doable but more work). I would also think about making the windows less "medieval-fantasy" too. This would give the buildings a more obviously Victorian/brownstone/industrial revolution feel, and would be more in keeping with most Victorian/Steampunk/VSF settings.

[Van-Helsing]

I like them!

They remind me of the old Universal Horror Movie sets! (which to me can only be a good thing)

[Mason]

I really like your buildings, they have a great character all of their own.
The fact that you have made the interiors usable is an added bonus.

I vote that you continue in your current style, as mixing styles may not work too well.
I can see where the other opinions are coming from with their suggestions, but as you already have several great buildings, it would be a shame to waste them.
Regarding the foam getting damaged: Maybe giving them a coat of Wood Glue mixed with your undercoat/primer layer before painting them would both seal them and give them a little more strength.

Regarding your new plastic building: That quite obviously does not match your own work too well.
Just pack it up and send it to me.
I will save you from wasting your time with it!
 

[Whiskyrat]

I like the look of your buildings - very "Gothic Horror and as you built them you can add to them as you become inspired. :-)

Regarding your new plastic building: That quite obviously does not match your own work too well.
Just pack it up and send it to me.
I will save you from wasting your time with it!
 

@Mason - a Public Service announcement?

[aggro84]

If you move to foamboard completely invest in a good metal ruler, sharp blades and lay off the grog when constructin, () you'll poduce some nice clean vic buildings. either print clad them or plasticcard. I like your first buildings, but a bit too charactured for me.

The Commander

and

Well, if you enjoy making terrain, then I'd suggest you continue to do so rather than buy the MDF stuff - especially if it enables you to make it how you want.

I would move over to using Foamcore or Depron for your constructions though; the insulation foam you use is notoriously delicate.

Finally, if you're starting again, I'd suggest making the brickwork smaller/finer; either print and clad or use embossed plasticard as Commander Vyper suggests, or emboss the material directly yourself (if Depron; if Foamcore, it's doable but more work). I would also think about making the windows less "medieval-fantasy" too. This would give the buildings a more obviously Victorian/brownstone/industrial revolution feel, and would be more in keeping with most Victorian/Steampunk/VSF settings.

Yeah, I didn't want them to be too Victorian looking so I could use them for different genres. They really are more of a fantasy/ creature feature style. I appreciate all the advice especially the foamcore / plasticard advice (except for Vyper's no grog suggestion.   )

I like the look of those buildings! nice & moody look to them

I like the look of your buildings - very "Gothic Horror and as you built them you can add to them as you become inspired. :-)

I like them!

They remind me of the old Universal Horror Movie sets! (which to me can only be a good thing)

Thanks Laughing Ferret, Whiskyrat and VanHelsing for the input and kind words!  

I really like your buildings, they have a great character all of their own.
The fact that you have made the interiors usable is an added bonus.

I vote that you continue in your current style, as mixing styles may not work too well.
I can see where the other opinions are coming from with their suggestions, but as you already have several great buildings, it would be a shame to waste them.
Regarding the foam getting damaged: Maybe giving them a coat of Wood Glue mixed with your undercoat/primer layer before painting them would both seal them and give them a little more strength.

Regarding your new plastic building: That quite obviously does not match your own work too well.
Just pack it up and send it to me.
I will save you from wasting your time with it!
 

Thanks buddy! Let me check with someone first and if they don't want it I'll send it to you.  

[aggro84]

Any good tutorials for Foamcore, Depron, Embossed Plasticard brick work buildings out there? 

[Papa Spanky]

http://trainscape.blogspot.com/
This guy does some amazing work in those mediums. You might need to translate the site tho. As for your buildings , I think they look great without the bases.

[Oldben1]

Firstly, I think your buildings look really cool, vey atmospheric.  Reality is not always the best, your buildings have a certain 'bent' quality that makes them spooky.  I just finished a ton of pulp cairo terrain.  Did Cairo actually look like that?  Not really but it looks good.  I've used some plastic card bricks and so long as you find the right glue it works really well.  It also stands up better than styrofoam.  A Lot of my early Mos Eisley terrain needs to be constantly repaired.  The problem with this site is the amazing quality of work.  It really pushes you.  I did something with my bases/sidewalks but I used painted matting instead.  I hovers only slightly above the board.


You could always go the Plasticville / r oute like me.

[aggro84]

http://trainscape.blogspot.com/
This guy does some amazing work in those mediums. You might need to translate the site tho. As for your buildings , I think they look great without the bases.

Bookmarked! Thanks a lot. 

Firstly, I think your buildings look really cool, vey atmospheric.  Reality is not always the best, your buildings have a certain 'bent' quality that makes them spooky.  I just finished a ton of pulp cairo terrain.  Did Cairo actually look like that?  Not really but it looks good.  I've used some plastic card bricks and so long as you find the right glue it works really well.  It also stands up better than styrofoam.  A Lot of my early Mos Eisley terrain needs to be constantly repaired.  The problem with this site is the amazing quality of work.  It really pushes you.  I did something with my bases/sidewalks but I used painted matting instead.  I hovers only slightly above the board.

You could always go the Plasticville / r oute like me.

Thanks Old Ben! I'm actually planning on making some middle eastern style terrain similar to what you did. There's a timeless quality to those building that work in just about any genre. 

[Mason]

@Mason - a Public Service announcement?

Of course!
 

Firstly, I think your buildings look really cool, vey atmospheric.  Reality is not always the best, your buildings have a certain 'bent' quality that makes them spooky.  I just finished a ton of pulp cairo terrain.  Did Cairo actually look like that?  Not really but it looks good. The problem with this site is the amazing quality of work.  It really pushes you.

I thoroughly agree with Oldben 1.
Your buildings have a distinctive character of their own, hence they work in so many different ways.
The 'suggestion' of Victorian makes them work in that period.
If you build too realistically, it just limits what you can use your scenery for.

A Lot of my early Mos Eisley terrain needs to be constantly repaired.

Oldben 1: That is one of my planned projects for next year.
Do you have a link to any pictures of yours?
I really like your stuff and am looking for ideas.
 

Thanks buddy! Let me check with someone first and if they don't want it I'll send it to you. 

 
I was being cheeky, but if you do want to sell it on then I am definitely up for it.
Cheers!