Lendro Furioso's WIP

Hey, everyone! I've been lurking for some time now, and working on and off on scenery for a Mordheim table. I thought I'd post my stuff, while it's not nearly as great as the work I see here, I figure a little feedback might help and encourage me.

Now, before I get to the pics, you should know I have a major constraint: storage space. This means I initially had to discard all notions of making big, beautiful, based buildings I see around here and go for more practical constructions that I could disassemble. This way I can keep a table of terrain on a shelf, even if the terrain isn't as beautiful or detailed as some. I use foamcore, a lot of balsa, and 2mm thick card. It's not corrugated, so there's no warping--I also glue balsa for wooden floors, as well as thicker support beams on the later buildings. What I do is simply build the corners to join, and make slotted holes for the floor to pop into. The result is surprisingly sturdy (I dropped my first test building on the floor and it didn't come apart). To prevent these slots from tearing I cover the floor slot in PVA glue; the buildings are to be textured with wall filler, so they're covered as well. Here goes; a simple house:




And here's the final result:



This is one of the first buildings I made, around a year ago. I have since build a few more, discarded some and kept others. My plan in time is to completely replace these early builds: I have learned a lot by making them, at the expense of their quality, of course. I primed the timbers in an attempt to get the table a bit more play-worthy (when we began, none of us had any terrain, so we just used stuff as we were making it), but everything is essencially unpainted. Some more buildings:



And ready for storage


As you can see, the construction method has its drawbacks: namely the corners are uneven and the joints are visible. This is something that can be remedied somewhat by painting and more exact construction...

One more, my test at a jetty with mixed results; my inclusion of a balcony ended up throwing the construction out of whack, and on its side you can clearly see the wall slanting. Still it's good enough for (our) tabletop atm, so I keep it around. I've since devised a way to make a house come apart even with a jetty and be more solid in construction; I will try it as my next building project, a row of three houses.




Once again, torn apart and ready for storage:



As you can see, none of the buildings are based, so one of my next concerns is to build a proper gaming table with cobblestone. The plan later on is to make sections of rubble I can drop anywhere, as well as make rubble floors for the buildings I decide to keep, giving the entire thing a much more realistic feel.

Well, that's it for now. I have a few more buildings like this, but I think you get the general idea. I've been working on a corner ruin, more detailed than any of this, and I'm testing out plans for a tower. In the meantime I've also been making tiny things, mainly out of balsa wood. I'll post them later today.

VERY NICE looking buildings...I really like the tall one. Having them capable of disassembly is a clever idea; our magokiron has a foldable variant on that; you could, if interested, check them out here: https://boringmordheimforum.forumieren.com/t1553-magokiron-s-buildings

DeafNala wrote:

VERY NICE looking buildings...I really like the tall one. Having them capable of disassembly is a clever idea; our magokiron has a foldable variant on that; you could, if interested, check them out here: https://boringmordheimforum.forumieren.com/t1553-magokiron-s-buildings

Thanks for the praise. I'm familiar with magokiron's work--like I said, I've been lurking for some time. His buildings are exquisite, but I find the engineering behind them quite difficult. Perhaps it's just me. So far, I've found my method works well enough, and like I said I think I will produce better results from now on... We'll see.

The tall building needs something else IMO. The top is too bland, and the facade doesn't make much sense for a Tudor style building. I also need to finish the chimney, making out the inside, and of course texture and paint the whole thing. I'll likely work on a similar piece for the back, and eventually a rubble base to account for all those missing walls.

My latest building, still a WIP:





The pictures aren't great, but I put a lot more detail into this one. So far, I'm quite happy with the result. I've been working on some kind of system to get a roof going in this kind of thing, I'll see what I can come up with. In the meantime, here are a few bits and bobs I've built these past couple of days:

Some walkways and ladders:


The ladders are spaced so figures can stay in mid-climb, as demonstrated by Aenur, my metal tour guide. I've also scored their backs so they don't just slide off buildings and are angled in such a way as to allow the miniatures to climb.

Next up, a few barricade-type things to provide cover on the streets: a pillory, a hand-cart and a test of mine, it's supposed to be a pile of bricks made up into improptu cover. We'll see if I can get it painted up convincingly.






And finally, my well. Wells are a big part of Mordheim, and so I wanted to make one. It is entirely scratch built, made from pieces of cardboard, balsa, and bitz from an old, half-build F-15 model I had lying around. I did a lot of filing for the handle, and scratch-build the bucket as well from a piece of tanker of said F-15. I'm very happy with the way it's turned out, and will attempt to finish it with a thatched roof (although I have to run a test piece first, since I don't want to ruin the model). The top part isn't attached yet since I will want to paint separately. While there is no rope yet, the mechanism is fully functional.






All in all, I'm very happy with these small pieces: the well in particular. It's a bit big, especially when put next to my skaven, but the scale fits the buildings (we use 3" tall buildings for easier access to the table). I usually use Aenur to test-fit since I don't have any humans, and the elf says it's all good, if a bit on the large side. I'll be making some more small pieces like this, since I've found I really like carving balsa up! I may try my hand at a full-fledged cart, a few sign-posts (including one to put next to the pillory, enunciating the crimes of the prisoner) and maybe some furniture. Cheers!

Awesome looking buildings, and i too like the idea that they can be seperated when you dont need them, believe me, i know about that problem called " i dont have enough space!", floedebolle

The wheel barrow, well, & bucket are really cool...making the little extras is one of my favorite activities. NICELY DONE!

Top job! I love the woodwork on your latest building. The stock and wheelbarow are great and characterfull, they'll be fun to have on the table and play around.

Lendro - some great stuff there - I really like the 'accessories', they really make the terrain come alive. Please post more!

Thanks everyone for the praise!

@floedebolle: yeah, apparently everyone has lots of storage space. I actually have everything tucked away inside a large lacquered box; right now it even holds my BB board and minis

@DeafNala: making the little bits is one of my favorite parts. I plan on doing a great deal more, though I have to keep focused on my priorities: a table of terrain! Next month I will likely attempt to tackle a play surface, which my group needs badly and will make a huge difference with my unbased buildings.

@smokezombie: the woodwork on that took forever. You'll notice I didn't try to do the other side of the building: it took me hours to get all of those bits of balsa to line up. I'm quite happy with the work, though.

@The_Ferret: your wish is granted, here are a few more bits and bobs I made in the course of this week. It's not much, but I haven't had a whole lot of time to work on this despite being on vacation!


Just a table and some crates. I've been trying to work out how to do a bunch of crates quickly (say, a dozen in an afternoon) and I think I may be getting the hang of it: the square one didn't take too long. I may try to do a bunch in a while, they're great filler for the table. I've also tried my hand at barrels but gave up: they always end up looking terrible. I've given up and will eventually order two sets of Renedra Wargames barrels. They're cheap and they look pretty good from the picture. I'll probably order two sets and have more barrels than necessary to use in-game.
The table was thrown up very quickly but I like it. I've been working on a way to do some stools or chairs, but worst case scenario I can make a couple of benches.





I enjoyed making this barricade a great deal. I started out with the post on the left and just kept adding pieces until it felt right. I got some aquarius stones a while back and I decided to pile up a few of them, like the defenders incorporated some rubble into their barricade. It needs to be properly based, of course, and I still plan on adding some bits, maybe a shuriken from my skaven or somesuch, but I have to raid my sprues.


And finally, my attempt at wyrdstone counters. They're the same aquarius stones you see above, but treated with a hammer until I got some jagged bits. The second one needs basing, and you should disregard the paint job on the larger one: it was just a test to see if I could get any detail into the stone, but I'm going to redo the whole thing for sure. I imagine wyrdstone more as chunks of rock than as crystals, so that's what I tried to do. I think they'll turn out ok.

The crates are awesome, much better than my ones, what process did you use?

smokezombie wrote:

The crates are awesome, much better than my ones, what process did you use?

It's actually quite rudimentary. The inside is just some 5 mm thick foamcore glued together. You could use anything with the desired measurements, really, but it's what I had lying around. I then cut some 2 mm thick balsa wood for the sides, top and bottom (making sure to account for the extra width of the added balsa on top, bottom and two of the sides). I used an elastic band to tie it all tightly together. While the PVA glue dried, I cut the strips from some leftover 1 mm balsa (the 2 mm version comes out too thick; I tried). With the top, bottom and sides set and dry, I scored them with the side of an x-acto knife to make the effect you see: it's not very straight, but I'll do better on the next run. Then I just glued the new balsa strips onto the sides, making sure to overlap the side of the 2 mm balsa and it's done. I used superglue for this part to avoid messy globs of ink. Does that make any sense?

What I meant by doing them "quickly" is that normally my balsa wood is cut to each space individually, which takes a long time. This way I can cut up a bunch of strips and then just get on to put it all together. I'm reasonably happy with the overall effect; and I'll be doing more crates with different shapes and sizes when I get the chance.

Ohoy!

Some very nice stuff here, cool buildings and some awsome little detail stuff!

Hey again! It's been a month, but I've not been entirely idle... I built and immediately trashed a horrible-looking tower, which was a failed test at detailing stonework. My project for the board (which is really my priority) has had to be put on hold for the moment, but I've decided to try my hand at painting some of the things I have lying around.

In the meantime, not all of my tests were complete failures: I managed to make a door with a working hinge. It's a small piano-type hinge cut in half, actually, I built the door around it after it was installed. It's the same blue house from my first post, now complete.


A shot with Aenur sneaking into the house.



Next is a painted building, also present in the first post (though only the timbers were painted). I'm not good at painting, but I'm trying. I looked at a ton of buildings and saw lots of tutorials, and managed to apply roughly nothing of that I learned. The photos aren't very good either, I couldn't get much natural light. Anyway, here it is.





The outside is actually not as white as it appears (though it is pretty white-ish, since I was going for a Tudor-style white-and-black building). I tried to make the inside water and/or fire-damaged, not sure about the results. Still, it's one of the few painted things on my tabletop at the moment, so it'll do, I guess.


And of course, they both still flatpack:

Nice, and so practical! In true the Ikea spirit, everything fits in a flat box

I never got a chance to comment on your Oh-So-Cool accessory pieces...EXCELLENT STUFF, especially the trestle table. The latest building is a FINE piece...having it disassemble is AMAZING! VERY WELL DONE!

some incridebly cool stuff here! simpel but effective! well done!

the little bits and bobs will look great once painted! I wished I could be bothered to make such stuff

Wow it all looks great! I love the fact you can take them apart for storage

Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

@HarryMason: yeah, I guess you're right, it is kind of an IKEA concept

@DeafNala: thank you again! I'll be making some more furniture if my plan to make a storefront with oriel windows goes through. I will nevertheless make one or two more tables to put up since I think the buildings look really empty. My stools were a failure, and I think chairs will be too small, but I will make long benches to accompany the tables.

@Captain Bernhardt: yeah, I'm kind of afraid of painting the pieces because I like them Like I said, I'm a pretty terrible painter, but I'll get around to it these next few days, just need to warm up to the concept a little more. These things aren't hard to make at all, and I really think they add a lot of atmosphere to the table, as well as playability.

@BurnTheWitch: yeah, like I said in the first post I don't have much storage space. The building method isn't perfect: you can clearly see gaps in the corner walls that I dislike. I think I've found a way to permanently get rid of them, though, and will try it on my next building (I'm also gauging the possibility of transforming my latest corner building in the same way). We'll see if it works.


In the meantime, I got a small book about timber-framed buildings from TheBookDepository. So my next tudor-style buildings should be a bit more accurate in terms of architecture! I'm also teeming with ideas of stuff to do with plasticard, so I guess I'll have to get some. Thanks for the feedback, I'll keep posting.

Well, it's been along time since I've posted anything, partly because of a general lack of time, and also because I got into this huge project building a Blood Bowl pitch (which is sadly still not completed--these things tend to grow and grow...). Despite not playing any Mordheim, I can't seem to keep from slowly building a table, so without further ado, here are some updates!

First off, a pillar for my little fountain. The statue is temporary, not because it's a BB star player, but because it's Prince Moranion... I'm having doubts about the pillar though. It's made with two lids off some vitamins and a sawed-up tube from ATM machine paper. Took me a whole 3 minutes to complete. What do you think?


Next up I have a small cart I whipped up this afternoon. I was going to break the axle and pin one of the wheels underneath it, so they're not glued yet, but I think I like it this way. I may end up doing some torn sacks of grain or somesuch for it.





I've also been doing some work on one of my first buildings (the large on in the first post). I fixed the corners (there were gaps if you care to notice the first pictures) and added window panes (done with car mesh; I actually think these will paint up nicely), did some work on the floor and finished an interior chimney. I found there's a special place in hell where your sole purpose is to cut up and glue tiny bits of cardboard to make bricks. I'll be avoiding that in the future...



Chimney detail:


The fireplace actually turned out ok I think. I may wreck some more windows, still undecided on that. You can't tell from my crappy photos but the whole building is textured with wall filler. Now all I need to do is prime it and paint it! Of course, it still comes apart, as in the first post, though the fireplace does add some dimension. What do you think?

WELCOME BACK! It may have been awhile, but it looks like you've been productive in your time off. The Fountain & Cart are really cool; AND I love the way you did the windows on your likewise cool house. FINE WORK...try not to wander off again.

Great stuff man, that cart is a small piece of art. That fountain looks really cool!

Theo

i'm really liking the fountain as well ^_^

Nice work Lendro! You've tackled some of the things I have been contemplating like fountains and wells! The buildings look great. I noticed in one of your earlier posts that you were worried about buildings not being square. Take a look at some real period buildings - a lot of those are not exactly square either. Keep up the inspiring work!

Wow, you are a source of ideas

Thanks for the kind words, guys! I've (again) had very little time to work on my buildings this past month or so, although I've not been idle. I've been doing some painting, on the building plus a few of the small pieces, but nothing is complete, so I have no new pics at the moment. Still, the building's facade is almost painted, now I need to get cracking on the inside and the chimney. I've also tried building a gibbet (cage-style) but it turned out way too big: Aenur could have easily slipped through the bars! I need to restart, but I think it will look good once I rebuild it in a smaller scale.

@Theorox: I was indeed happy with the cart. I just need some more practice on painting wood be confident enough to pain the piece. I realized my hand cart was also on the large side (it's just a little smaller than the cart) so I decided to paint that as a test and see how my techniques go. Need to buy some Vallejo washes to get it down, though.

@izmerul: I have decided to texture the whole fountain with wall filler to give a stony look. It occured to me, though that there is no water coming out of the thing, so I'm contemplating ideas on where to place some water spouts. Any thoughts?

@The_Ferret: my worry was not so much about the buildings not being square. If you notice the first post, the large building had one of the corners completely open. Since this is a Tudor building that would be a corner beam, so no way it would be like that. The problem is fixed, though. The well is sadly far from finished, I need to find a way make a realistic thatched roof. I don't like the towel solutions I've found online, so I'll probably end up making it with actual strands tied together. I hope to pull it off, because I truly like the piece...

@Drenengar: thanks for the kind words.


I'm also planning out my next building entirely in my head. If it comes out as good as I want it to, I will be quite a leap in terms of the construction method. See, I aim to build with as much quality as a glued building, but still have it collapse for storage. There will always be some restraints as to what I can accomplish, but I'm aiming higher and higher with each one. So, no update for now, but I will keep working, and will post something tangible as soon as I have it. Cheers!