Frostgrave on a Budget (Statue Fort Finished 2/6)

[theironsoldier]

I've been lurking for a while, and wanted a big first contribution. I have very little space or money so I have been trying to get a modular Frostgrave set with what I already have and what I can find. I have a lot of miniatures, but no terrain.

My first project was to make a set of modular ruined walls that can be endlessly rearranged to make new boards. They turned out quite well.

I didn't take take an WIP pictures, so I will explain the process. I started with a box of off-brand box of Jenga blocks. I scored them with my razor saw to make the illusion of individual blocks, and then used a hobby knife to rough up each block and add more cracks. I then glued them together in various configurations. Black base coat, with about 4 shades dry-brushed gray of various shades.





I also added some decorative moulding that a local hardware store was throwing away. If I can get my hands of some more of this I will make some more stones. I would also like to get some thinner pieces to make floors and ledges.

In hindsight, I would not have made the 3-tall blocks. 2 are more than enough to be over the head of a 28mm figure.

If you have power tools you could make piles of these in no time at all. As it was, it was pretty time consuming using only hand tools. I wouldn't recommend it unless you are broke like me!

[theironsoldier]

In the above pictures you can see my more ambitious project: a fort built on a ruined statue.

The statue came from a charity shop, the wood bits are coffee stir sticks, and the base is scrap MDF and foamcore.



The statue was painted white and then broken up into bits. Washed with various blacks, grays, and browns for weathering, and then dry-brushed white.



I build the platform out of stir sticks and painted it black. Dry-brushed various shades of brown. I wanted to leave it very dark for a bogwood type look. The various bits of the statue will be used to make part of the wall, and the head will get a spookier treatment.



Started the base using a piece of MDF and foamcore I had lying around.



Starting the palisade on the base. This will be painted to match the platform.

The figure is from the Russian company Tehnolog. If you need really cheap figures, these are pretty nice. I will make a post about them at some point.

[Eric the Shed]

great stuff...love the jenga walls

[Nooblord]

Nice one.

Here's a tip for making cheap piles of rubble. Make a rectangle out of lego blocks (or anything really) and place on some plastic sheet. Pour in cheap polyfilla mix till it's 0.5 - 1 cm deep. Before it's fully dry (like a soft cookie) remove from the mould and break up into chunks. Do the same but this time leave it till it's a bit harder and cut with a knife to make blocks and slabs. Distress the blocks with a knife and file/sandpaper. Glue the chunks and blocks onto a card base, add PVA/sand mix, drybush and bingo!

[theironsoldier]

Thanks for the support! I will try the poly filla idea.

Here are some more pics of the statue project. The palisades have been painted, and I added the ruined pavement. This was made with 1mm cardstock squares dry brushed gray.

The next step is to add and paint sand.





The square recess is for the statue base.

[Xintao]

Looks like your off to a great start. LOL, looking at the statue all I could think of was "Mom is gonna be pissed when she gets home".

Hmmm, charity shops and statues...must visit, great idea.

[theironsoldier]

Eric, I should add that your blog was a huge inspiration. I have all these bits lying around the flat that were "someday" going to be something. After spending some time going through your stuff I realised it was time to GO!

[Jockjay]

Great stuff i recently tried making some terrian, http://theirgamingodyssey.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/rageagainst-styrene-filling-in-name-of.html a cautionary tale. Your work is awesome!

[theironsoldier]

I read your blog about terrain! I got a kick out of it, but sure know the feeling of failure. Learning from your mistakes, I have tried to keep moisture at an absolute minimum.

[Calimero]

You’re up to a great start indeed. Will you add some wood pillars to the platform? As it stands, it kind of look like it "float" around the statue.

Anyhow, that’s some great looking terrain already!

Cheers!

[theironsoldier]

More updates on the Statue Fort. First, I have thought about adding pillars to give the platform more realism, but I want the whole thing to come apart and I can't think of a good way of adding them with that in mind.

Added and painted sand. I wish there was more contrast, but its a good first attempt.

The broken pieces are not secured yet. I haven't decided if I should pin them. It would mean drilling holes in the plaster which makes a big mess. I wish I had a dedicated workshop!

I plan on adding snow, which should give it more contrasts.

[Azzabat]

When you say you want it to come apart, is the statue going to lift off the base, or the fort lift off the statue?

[theironsoldier]

Both, the statue is in two sections, and the fort completely comes off as well. The idea was that it could be easily stored and moved.

[Grenlar]

Amazing job.  Your pieces are top notch.

[Azzabat]

Mmm, I was gonna suggest putting some diagonal braces from the corners of the bottom plinth up to the corner of the wooden platform to stop it looking like it's floating, but I assume the 'break' in the statue is at this point,.