After last week's look at the idea of a new Gotham gaming board I thought I'd move on to possible terrain for said board.
Many of the example Batman boards you see are made up from Sarissa Precision 'City Block' mdf terrain. It's rather close to what you would expect downtown Gotham to be like and is certainly one of the best options available at a reasonable price.
My only worry is that it would start to look a little samey, so you'd have to mix up these building with some more 'unique' pieces.
As an alternative, I was pointed to a Kickstarter for mdf terrain – Warehouse District by Impudent Mortal – which I found very inspirational. I have no intention of pledging for this particular kickstarter but there are some cracking ideas here and the style of terrain could be easily replicated in foam board… with a bit of time.
I did post the link to the Arkham City Limits facebook group to share this new found gem but was promptly flamed by other members then had the post deleted because promoting Kickstarter is against the rules. Needless to say I am no longer a part of that group!
If you can't share inspirational terrain links with fellow gamers, kickstarter or not, without being shot at then it's not really an open-minded group. It seems that there are some downsides to being made the official Batman facebook group!
Talking of foamboard, the other option is to go pure DIY. The piece above is along similar lines to the Warehouse District stuff, and didn't take that long to make.
However, at a time when time is at a premium, making one's own terrain may not be the best use of it. Time vs money.
And where money is no object, Knight Models will be releasing (eventually) some official Gotham buildings… maybe not for a 3x3ft board though!
Don't forget to check out Bull's Fun Fair terrain building as he creates a Joker themed gaming board!
To be continued…
As well as their City Block range, you should take a look at their Gaslamp Alley range to mix up buildings a little. By mixing up the heights and window types you should be able to avoid it looking too samey.
ReplyDeleteWarbases also have some buildings which may be useful, as do Sally 4th. Fenris Games have a building and various other items which could be handy.
I do like the Gaslamp Alley stuff, plenty of character. Only issue I have is that it's a little too English looking and doesn't have any flat roofs. The pub on the corner might be worth an investment.
DeleteWill have to check out your other suggestions, thanks :)
Amera Do some great stuff for very cheap, I reviewed the ruined factory they make on my blog a little while back.
ReplyDeletehttp://paintstationforge.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/amera-future-zone-factory-z233-review.html
for the prices they charge its comparable to buying the foam core and gives a realy good starting point. The ruin may well look fine in 32mm even though it was made for 28mm, at the worst you may want to cut the doors a little bigger and give them new frames. Just depends on the amount of work you want to do, since the ruin was less than a tenner I couldn't complain.
We did have some Amera stuff at my old gaming club and I wasn't a fan, but having looked again at the site there may be something there as a starting point for sure. I especially like the Industrial Building and the Ministry Building – the kind of thing that could be quite a time sink DIY.
DeleteSome splendid thoughts Mike, but I was sorry to hear about your unsavoury encounter with the Facebook group! There are some interesting architectural bits and pieces over here that might prove useful for scratch building: http://fenrisgames.com/shop#!/Arkham-Avenue/c/4298015/offset=0&sort=nameAsc
ReplyDeleteSome really good pieces there. It just brings home how small the boards will be so we won't need much to fill them. I think that height could be an interesting angle.
ReplyDeleteThese are some nice ideas but Gotham to me is very Tim Burton Gothic and the City Block range doesn't convey that for me. But the addition of the Pegasus Hobbies Gothic building kits would give a Batman board that feel.
ReplyDeletehttp://pegasushobbies.net/catalog/Peg.-Gaming-Accessories/c2/p145/%234923-Gothic-City-Buildings-Large-Set/product_info.html
http://pegasushobbies.net/catalog/p147/%234925-Gothic-City-Buildings-Small-Set-%232/product_info.html