It’ll just be an inexpensive cardboard box with foamboard dividers. Now, to keep these roofs from being damaged in transit (such as the Shorehammer Convention this December), I’m going to build a special storage box for for them. You may not notice it consciously, but I think your subconscious will find the roofs more believable. So everything is glued down-anchored “in” the sand. Well, I’m of the opinion that the human eye can spot details down to the width of a human hair, so I think you can spot when something is resting atop something-particularly when the surface is as irregular as a sand-covered roof. Now, some might question my decision to glue the details down on the roof. I’m simply trying to create a look that, when you walk up to the game table, you go “Ah! Look at that dusty, backwater town set on a lonely desert planet.” There’s a balance to be achieved, although I’m not articulate enough to explain it any better than that. I wish I’d found this product before I put sand down on the roof.

This unpainted air-conditioning unit is a terrain piece from the Dropzone Command game.

Although I want people to notice the details, I don’t want each individual detail to be too bright or colorful, or the town will lose its “dusty” feel and the details will distract from the overall impression of the town. I painted the roof details with bland and muted colors: lots of grays, for instance. The next day I used a brush to spread glue over still-bare areas of the MDF and sprinkle find sand on it.Īfter that dried, I spray-painted everything with primer and began painting. It only took a few minutes to cut out new MDF -board roofs on my table saw, and a few more to glue down my “scatter terrain” to the roofs. So that’s what I did.Īs you’ll see from the photos, this was a simple terrain project. What if I cut out new roof panels out of MDF board, glue down some satellite dishes and solar panels, and then put down a layer of sand to represent gravel? Wouldn’t that instantly give gamers the impression of a more high-tech setting? Most would work perfectly well in a game set in Ancient Egypt, although one of their more “modern” buildings has an air-conditioning unit on the roof.Īs many of these roofs are removable (so you can put figures inside), it occurred to me that I could add to the sci-fi “vibe” of the town if more of these roofs have a high-tech look. Many of my buildings were manufactured by the Miniature Building Authority (MBA) and, as most of their buildings are meant for historical gaming, most have bland, gravel roofs. The rounded tank and pipe are plastic odds and ends found in my bitz box. This roof is a mix of dental-cement castings made with Hirst Arts molds.

Star wars mos eisley scenery