On the beach...

Hey there,

I've finally cracked on with some terrain preparation for my pirates (they still haven't arrived, so I'm settling for the native creatures and temples for the time being). I had bought two sets of palm trees and a moss ball (usually for aquariums) a long time ago - both mentioned here:

https://boringmordheimforum.forumieren.com/t5383-jungle-ruinsand-lustrian-stuff-i-ve-made - which you can get from here:

Palm trees (tall):
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TDT13-20pcs-Layout-Model-Train-Palm-Trees-Scale-HO-13CM-/160672657904?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item2568d631f0
Palm trees (short):
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TDZ3-40pcs-Layout-Model-Train-Palm-Trees-Scale-HO-N-3CM-/310354760943?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item484295d4ef
Moss ball: http://www.rosewoodpet.com/catalogue/detail.aspx?pid=429&gid=28983&pg=RLPEAGupcjn26YUB0cF7MQ%3d%3d

Also, since I had already tons of lizardmen and other reptilian creatures alike, the time felt right to kick-off with the project (yet another one in hundreds that I've started!).

First, with the bases:

I used foam board and cut it into several bits, with all sorts of sizes and shapes, for variation.



Then, I put PVA glue on it and based it with sand.



After it dried, it was time for some colouring. I used Wilko's tester pots.
So, the colours were:



Nutmeg spice (same as GW Calthan Brown) - for the base;
Coffee (GW Vomit Brown) - for the first highlight;
Milky Coffee (GW Dheneb Stone) - for the last highlight.



Then it was time to place the vegetation. I had two types of palm trees and some bushes from the moss ball. One word of praise for a moment: moss balls are great. Each ball has a minimum of 50 bundles of bushes and each bundle has 4 plants. So, I cut each plant from its bundle so it could be placed anywhere within the base.
As for the palm trees, they were perfect, as they come with a small appendix at the root, which can be cut and then used to fit the base in a steady way.



As for the base itself, the reason why I decided to go for the foam board instead of a card board, was that I could create more stability when placing the trees and bushes on the bases.



So, the first step was to pierce a few small holes on the base (I used a compass for this, but anything will do, as long as you don't pierce all the way down through the base). Then I made sure the bushes and trees would fit the holes. Finally, I put a bit of superglue on the root of the bush or tree and stuck it in.



Before moving on from this, I placed a few ruined statues to give it some character (the ruins are from Scibor - http://sciborminiatures.com/en_,shop.php?=872).



Some of the bases were left with a bit of space in the middle so they could accommodate models that could be hiding.



With that out of the way, I moved on to work on the board. The colours of my actual board are quite versatile for lots of different terrain, but not that suitable for a beach or desert. Fortunately, I still had a wooden board left which was big enough to cover half of the whole board. The other half would be covered by sea.
So, I placed the blank board on top of the big one and worked on it.
Since sand would take a long while to dry and stay firm on the board, I went for an alternative route: a stone effects can. I sprayed it all over and used a hairdryer (when my girlfriend wasn't looking) to speed up the dry process (2 minutes, altogether). I only covered a few patches and not the whole board to give some variety in texture.



In the end, the "stony bits" left by the can were enough to simulate real sand, with the advantage of being much sturdier and durable than actual sand.

It was time for the painting. I basically went for the same colour scheme as the one for the bases (Wilko's Nutmeg spice, Coffee and Milky Coffee). Needless to say, the tester pots are the best thing in the world for this kind of task. They're cheap and big enough to do the job. And in the end there's still loads left.







Et voilà!



Finally, they have a place they can call home...

Anyway, it was time to test the waters (literally!).



Since I was mad enough to get the infamous GW Dreadfleet (which I still haven't even assembled, let alone played), I thought I could try the sea mat that came with the game as a seascape for my board. Fortunately, it actually worked quite well (not perfectly, but hey ho....). I placed it over the other half of the board - which is lower - and folded it so it could fit in with the "sandy" board. Folding the mat was also useful as its back is light blue, which could represent the waves crashing on the shore.






The sea mat itself was quite a revelation. It can cover a big portion of the board if necessary, but it also looks quite realistic. And it even gave me the idea of placing some of the bases with the palm trees on the sea mat as little islands.



From there to figuring out that I could also give the same use to other pieces of terrain, like GW's Eternity Stair, was only a small step (no pun intended).



Bloody hell, this was a crazy long post. Sorry about that! I hope at least it was useful.

Joao

This post gets a 5 Yaarr! rating from me!



LOVE IT!

I really like the idea of using the Dreadfleet sea. So simple but so effective!

Very well done board. The Dreadfleet mat looks great. Is the Infinity thingy as is or converted?

Thanks a lot for the comment, Kurgan! Really appreciate it. You're right, the seamat is super effective!

Von Kurst, the Eternity Stair is exactly like that, without any conversions made to it. I had assembled it a while ago, but didn't know what to do wit it. It was only when I started using the seascape that I realise that it could work as an island. In fact, the other pieces they have from Storm of Magic and even the temple of skulls can all make great islands to scatter on the sea.

Joao

The only problem is that I want to buy the Eternity Stair now!

That is REALLY COOL! The way you have the Sea Mat rolled on the landward edge gives a nice surf effect. The jungle/oasis pieces look TERRIFIC...for the jungle board I did for a friend, I made removable center sections (trees) for the clear/hiding spot; under the center tree he'd tape a label with what was hiding there.
I LOVE the islands...I'm starting to make some for my water covered table. All VERY WELL DONE!
Keep us posted as things develop.

Great project! It was brilliant to use the textured paint for the gameboard. The Dreadfleet mat looks excellent, also. I ve the paintjob on the minis, too. What are they and who makes them?

Thanks a lot for your feedback!

DeafNala, thanks a lot for the idea for the removable trees and hidden tokens. That is definitely one of the things that I am planning of making at some point. I don't usually play the conventional wargame, but rather have quest games (a bit like bringing Fighting Fantasy gamebooks to life through miniatures and terrain).

Luckyjoe, the minis are Toad Thunder-Warriors, from Alkemy. They are now out of production, sadly... every now and then they appear on eBay, so it's a question of keeping an eye on it.
I have 5 more minis from this range to paint, so they'll join the toads at some point.

Speaking of which, here are other models that I use for my swamp creatures - who will also be "living" in the jungle/oasis:


Crocs (from the Hordes, Minions range)


And the frog warriors, from Splintered Light Miniatures (yes, they do need the canoe to travel, as they're not used to the high seas).

Joao

COOL PHOTOS! The Tower looks TERRIFIC with the sky backdrop.
Aren't Splintered Light's minis 15mm?

Thank you! I need that backdrop for my photos these days, as it's too dark and wet to go outside and take pictures with natural light...

Anyway, the Splintered Light minis are 15mm scale, and the frogs are literally 15mm tall. But that's fine, as I want my amphibians to be considerably smaller than the big fellas.

Here's a picture for comparison (there's a GW Lizardman on the right):



Joao

They look good together. The G.W. Lizard Lad isn't quite as nice a casting as the others, but fits okay. A friend gave me some Eureka Frog Cavalry; they'd look good with the Alkemy & Splinter Light Fellows.

Oh, yes, Eureka! I'm waiting for those models to arrive to Europe in more accessible prices than they are at the moment. I love their amphibian army, indeed!

http://eurekamin.com.au/index.php?cPath=87_126_191&sort=3a

Joao

Hopefully they'll have a Eureka UK like our US version:
http://www.eurekaminusa.com/catalog.aspx?c=Pond%20Wars%20by%20Kosta%20Heristanidis&cid=110&pageIndex=0

Well, DeafNala, this talk about Eureka got me interested in their minis again.

So, last night I got these from them:





I bought two turtles from each pack, so let's see which ones they send. A reptilian/amphibian warband wouldn't be the same without turtles, right?

Joao

COOL! I have a certain fondness for turtles...there are quite a lot of them hanging out in our local creek. Captain John got the War Turtle from Eureka as a Christmas present from our friend Andy the Historian ; the Turtle Lads manning the Beasty are 15s...the smaller size would fit well with your varying height idea.
BTW, I also like having a variety of statures & builds within a War Band; in a World that is home to basketball players & jockeys, it seems more natural that everyone is not the same.

Yeah, I quite like turtles and variation is definitely something that I'm aiming for this little warband. And various sizes is also a plus - you're right, it's more realistic to have all sorts of heights and weights.

As for updates on scenery, here is the latest: Dreadfire Portal. Like the Infinitly Stair, I had only a vague idea on how I could use this terrain piece (maybe in a dungeon?), so it's quite good that it works as an island too. I wanted to give it a greenish kind of tone and a bit worn out too, so I left the ornaments as part of the rock formation, as opposed to paint all the gold and silver bits.

Here are some shots:







Joao

Yep. That works for me!

I really like your islets...it gives me some ideas for the skulls I picked up years ago.They remind me of the closing scene from the original Planet of the Apes , when Charlton Heston stumbles across the Statue of Liberty jutting out of the surf.
Your color choice are EXCELLENT. VERY WELL DONE!

Dreadfire Portal looks great! The stone effect is ecellent.

Hy Joaos,

until now i don´t know how to use the new terrain Stuff from GW (espacally because i dont like Storm of Magic) but your Idea to use them as Islands i like a lot.
I also like your warband they have their very own charakter.

If there are more pictures of your inspiring Table please share.

Very cool stuff! Makes you wanna break out your gaming gear tight away and play!

Hey guys, thanks a lot for the great comments. I've managed to do a few more extra bits in the meantime (nothing substantial, though):


A ruin (one of the many spare parts of GW's Witchfate Tor), which in this game can be what it's left of a ruined watchtower, for example...


Goblin Idols. I got these two fellows in a gothic shop in London, where they had loads of little statues like these for super cheap prices, so I couldn't miss the chance. I painted them today to blend in with the rest of the temple/ruins.


The little warband are my orclings, who will be menacing whoever gets near their sacred place.

Joao

Those statues fit in perfectly, great stuff!

Superb stuff, the scenery on the sea idea is great, it's all working very well. Bravo!

VERY IMAGINATIVE! The statues & tower ruins look GREAT...embellishments like that really give a gaming board a flavor all its own.
I like what you did with the Orklings; they're different & work well with the scenery.