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Thanks for all the excellent replies!
I didn't even know GW did a battlemat, I'll definitely make a point to check it out next time I'm in store.

All I need now is source some decently priced GW tap water to fill my GW water tub ;-)

Firstly I third the backing of the Kickstarter! Without getting off the ground they will never be able to produce all the cool additional products they have planned lol.

Don't know about less expensive, but one that hasn't been mentioned yet is this mob:

http://www.3t-studios.com/

They're on Dakka and have done some impressive work in the past. Probably outside budget though.

If I had the space for a table at home then I'd go RoB. Solid, sturdy and easy to pack away. It's a bit limited in how you arrange it but it's a properly done board.

Most of the boards linked to look too home made. I guess that's ok if that's what you want, but I much prefer the clean lines of manufactured scenery to anything home made.

The Games & Gears stuff looks ok.

 Lorizael wrote:
If I had the space for a table at home then I'd go RoB. Solid, sturdy and easy to pack away. It's a bit limited in how you arrange it but it's a properly done board.

You still need a table to put it on. A battlemat and a box of terrain is even easier to pack away since the mat just rolls up, and a box of terrain won't come to nearly the size of the RoBB box.

 scarletsquig wrote:
Erm - Games and Gears kickstarter.

Back it!

Can't believe no-one has mentioned it so far in this thread.

It was mentioned but with a "probably won't be backed" caveat.

Well, the DIY route is a solid option, if I can manage to attach some photos, you can see the 6'x4' table I've got using three pieces of MDF at 2'x4' each, plus the 2"x4" legs I made using metal bits from Lowe's that were a fair amount cheaper than buying saw horses, plus I cut the legs so the height would be to my choosing. I hate tables that are too low for me. I've also got some pics of the terrain I built using a cheap foam cutter from eBay, white glue, flock, and acrylic craft paint. I bought one sheet of insulating foam from Lowe's for less than $20, and I've used maybe 25% of it. I just need to pick up a grass mat from woodland scenics or whoever. I also have a 4x8 table I built using a piece of insulation foam sandwiched between two thin sheets of plywood, making it light and stiff (but kinda huge), like a big wargaming surfboard covered in grass mat. FWIW, I'm a terrible painter and everything can be built pretty easily, I'd just recommend using the foam cutter in a well ventilated area, and doing a little geometry to determine the best length for the uprights for your table. Excluding the saw, the materials for the 6x4 table were a little over $100, and I have a ton of foam, paint and flock left.

No one is saying that DIY isn't great. Sometimes, however, people
do just want to buy their stuff.

 -Loki- wrote:
You still need a table to put it on. A battlemat and a box of terrain is even easier to pack away since the mat just rolls up, and a box of terrain won't come to nearly the size of the RoBB box.

Exactly. Once you have a RoBB you still need something to put it on, so cut out the middle man and just use the table you would have put the RoBB on, save yourself a ton of money and get the excellent Battlemat (like both Loki and I have) and use the money saved to buy some terrain.

I agree with HBMC, don't invest in the RoBB unless you have somewhere to set it up constantly.

Go for the cheaper battle mat if you don't have a 6x4 table to setup on.

And i always approve of building them yourself, its not too expensive and they can look fantastic.

 Lightcavalier wrote:
http://www.zuzzy.com/rl-tf-001_terra_flex_gaming_mat.html

This lacks the built in hills etc of the real of battle, but it is a good 6x4 rubber matt, textured to the terrain you choose. can even be used unpainted if you want. (at least the cityscape one cant)

Unless you don't mind paying $70+ USD, and then waiting for 3+ months for your Zuzzy mat to be shipped, I do not recommend this game mat producer. They are great, but the wait, with poor to no communication about the delay is unacceptable. I would recommend a Hotz felt mat instead.

That's the biggest thing that's kept me from ordering a Zuzzy mat in the past - the long ship time and no communication. Walking a lot of sales there, people.

I did score a couple of Ziterdes hard foam boards on clearance, still waiting for them to be shipped. I'll only have two boards (2' x 2') so I either need to buy at two-to-four more, make my own, or just use these two for display boards. I'll try and do a review after they come in.

 VermGho5t wrote:

 Lightcavalier wrote:
http://www.zuzzy.com/rl-tf-001_terra_flex_gaming_mat.html

This lacks the built in hills etc of the real of battle, but it is a good 6x4 rubber matt, textured to the terrain you choose. can even be used unpainted if you want. (at least the cityscape one cant)

Unless you don't mind paying $70+ USD, and then waiting for 3+ months for your Zuzzy mat to be shipped, I do not recommend this game mat producer. They are great, but the wait, with poor to no communication about the delay is unacceptable. I would recommend a Hotz felt mat instead.

Yeah, a lot of that is old stories though. I got my shipment from zuzzy in nine days - to the Netherlands.
Communication is nonexistent but really, at their prices? just order and see when it turns up. It seems they've (he's?) managed to get production and fulfillment where they need to be by now.