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Anyone have any experience playing on the Realm of Gaming Boards? Wondering if they are good to play on. I was thinking that dice would bounce all over the place on a plastic surface, although I like the idea of being able to switch terrain around and maybe use the FW squares down the road. Anyway, is the Realm of Battle set worth the money?
I was taking a look at some of the compatible squares that FW makes and they are really well done.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/12 03:59:48
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I don't have a ROB board, but I've played on one. However, I backed the SWM boards, and I have two.
The ROB board has a much greater variation in height than the SWM board. While that means that it looks freaking sweet to see those big hills, it also means that you have NO choice but to use those big hills in every battle. Those hills can be challenging to deploy on, and challenging to move models across. With the SWM boards, you can add a hill, or ten, but don't have to have any. However, you have to supply your own hills. If you don't want to do that, the ROB boards are your best choice. If you are comfortable buying or making your own hills, SWM give you a lot more flexibility.
There is no river tile on the ROB board. This means that, short of something which will look weird, like an elevated river, or fake (like blue felt on the tile), you can't do a river on that board. The Rolling Fields tile set includes multiple river sections, so you can easily include that common terrain feature. The riverbed is dry, so you can have a dry riverbed, or add water effects to your liking.
The ROB boards are bigger. This means that they are quicker to set up and take down, but it also means that you have less variation in what you can do with them. The smaller SWM boards give you a much greater flexibility.
The flexibility of the SWM boards is greatly increased by the fact that there are WAY more styles. You can buy a single board, or multiple boards of different styles. I'm assuming that later they may release 'board expansions' that aren't 24 tiles, which makes it even easier to customize your board.
The ROB has had a very few expanions (one tile expansion, one urban board) and several Forgeworld expansions. SWM has quite a few options already available as complete board options, and will likely release more in the future. That's another point of flexibility for them.
The ROB board are VERY durable, and they come with a very nice carrying case. The SWM boards are durable, but they ARE thinner, so technically less sturdy. However, unless you plan on standing on them, I wouldn't worry about it. The SWM tiles come with a rather basic box, instead of a nice carryall. HOWEVER, that box is very big, so you can put foam spacers in between your tiles (or bubble wrap, or whatever). That means that your painted tiles won't get all scratched up. The ROB board carryall doesn't really do ANYTHING to protect your tiles from scraping each other.
The SWM tiles are generic. That's a bland way of saying that they don't have SKULL PITS. If you like SKULL PITS, then the ROB board is the board for you. The SWM tiles will easily work for many different games, and many different scales. I'm using rolling fields for a desert board, but it could easily be used for plains, or snow, or whatever. I'm using it for both an Old West game, and Warhammer. The ROB boards have a distinct Warhammer character (SKULL PITS) right out of the box.
The SWM boards are cheaper, with no substantial reduction in quality or durability. Technically, you get a nicer carrying case with the ROB board, but it (in practice) is less protective. the SWM board is still less expensive (you could buy some hills!).
The ROB boards are compatible with Forgeworld ROB tiles. The SWM tiles have a different thickness, so they will only be compatible in special circumstances (some urban tiles match up nicely with some FW tiles). If compatibility with FW tiles is important, you need the ROB board.
The ROB boards are nicely made, and very high quality. However, unless you want SPECIFIC features on those boards (SKULL PITS, permanent hills, compatibility with FW), I would 100% recommend the SWM boards. I'm super pleased with mine, and I feel like they are a nicer product in every way.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/12 05:39:29
As for the ROB boards, played quite a few times with them, they are very good. the slopes are difficult at times, but that a minor issue.
The hills can also be set to sides/coreners where the battle is not going to focus, if you don't feel like having them around every single time, though having a hill on the center, or even on the side, is pretty good gaming-wise, and ads alot of depth to the game by itself.
can neither confirm nor deny I lost track of what I've got right now.
I've got a RoB board and one of the additional forge world tiles to mix it up a bit. I also have a zuzzy cityscape mat, and I must admit I find myself using that a lot more often than the RoB.
I also got the RoB board for a Christmas present, I doubt I'd have spent all that money to buy one for myself. However, it is really good quality. Really sturdy and being able to rearrange the hills gives more than enough variety to how you set up the table. I rarely have issues with models sliding on the hill, and I've just spray panted mine in a couple of coats of matte grey and white to make it look snowy. The only issues I have is when using already wobbly models like the old metal Chaos raptors on the slopes, but that's more a fault of the mini's than the board.
If I wasn't lucky enough to have a dedicated room for my gaming I think the RoB would be by far the best (and probably my only) board. Being able to pack it all up easily into one bag is incredibly helpful.
Pros:
1) It's a good sized board that can be constructed in a good number of ways - allowing you to build it to give different scenarios and themes.
2) It's a sturdy board that really adds to the atmosphere of the battle
3) You used to (and may still be able to) buy them at a discounted price as I did from some independent retailers
4) The board is detailed well and fits the 40K aesthetic
5) It packs away nicely into a dedicated bag (with strap) and, while bulky, is easy enough to store away.
6) You know the board is the correct size for a game
Cons:
1) Skulls, I hope you like skulls because there are a few large pits full of them. You can model these out (as I am currently in the process of doing) but still.
2) It can be a bit tricky to clip the board pieces together - especially once you've connected three together and the fourth has to clip on two sides simultaneously.
3) It takes a reasonable amount of time to set up and clip together.
4) Painting - you'll be doing this for quite a while to do a decent job (assuming you decide to avoid the grassy-hills-of-joy flocking experience and go for something that's actually 40K grim-dark)
Some people complain about dice rolling on it - I've not found this a problem because I roll them in a Tupperware box that I leave on the board - give it a try, you won't lose die, you won't have cocked die and you won't risk knocking models over either
Thousand Sons: 3850pts / Space Marines Deathwatch 5000pts / Dark Eldar Webway Corsairs 2000pts / Scrapheap Challenged Orks 1500pts / Black Death 1500pts
I play on a ROB board once a week. A few thoughts:
The hills on the board are high enough that it is strategically disadvantageous to not use them for long-range LOS (I am thinking of my AM Vanquisher Leman Russ here). Those same high hills are also difficult to place smaller miniatures (troops) upon. It is not impossible but the occasional game piece will slide or tumble.
I play, sadly, on an unpainted board because the owner seems disinterested in painting it in thr near future. Unpainted, it is not all that stunning in appearance.
Dice certainly bounce harder on the ROB, and I concur that a bucket or box approach is generally best.
Not all panels fit together, so there is a limit to the number of configurations you can use. Otherwise, you will have rather sheer cliffs from half-formed hills.
I like my RoB board a ton. dice don't bounce around too much on it, especially when it has grass down on it. I don't clip the board pieces together; the clips are finnicky and it fits on my table well enough as is. You can paint it in a weekend; all you need are a couple colors, some larger brushes, and a lot of flock, which is cheaply available from Woodland Scenics.
i played on ROB a few times, the store sometimes bust it out for us.
Honestly even painted.... the hill is just too slippery put models on, especially wobbly models like Hormagaunts. The worst part for me though, was the sound that the dice makes when it hits the ROB. I don't know.. it just sounds REALLY annoying.
As for the ROB boards, played quite a few times with them, they are very good. the slopes are difficult at times, but that a minor issue.
The hills can also be set to sides/coreners where the battle is not going to focus, if you don't feel like having them around every single time, though having a hill on the center, or even on the side, is pretty good gaming-wise, and ads alot of depth to the game by itself.
Sorry, SWM is Secret Weapon Miniatures, who makes the Tablescape gaming boards (someone referred to them as SW, but that makes me think Space Wolf).
For posters who have touted the variety of the ROB board, they aren't wrong. You can put the six tiles in a lot of different configurations. However, even the most basic SWM board has 8 different tiles, and some have 16 different tiles (all have 16 tiles, but some have duplicates). Without purchasing an expansion set, the ROB set has 6. Even with the most basic Tablescape board, you get WAY more variety than the starting ROB board.
The hills on the ROB board are nicely done, and if you want those hills, it's a no brainer. However, you have hills on 4 of the six tiles. Sure, you can place them all in the corners to 'minimize' the hills in some ways (until somebody puts artillery up there to rain down death on you). But if you have lots of your own terrain to use (defense lines, fortifications, woods, etc), those hills reduce the potential surface usable for those pieces. It's not 100% in the favor of the SWM boards. Some of their tiles also have enough height variation to prevent the usage of some scenery, but I feel like they have more usable, flexible flat space than the ROB does. I still like being able to actually put my hills (all Citadel hills, from various eras, ironically enough) where I want them, rather than having to lock them in place during board assembly.
Neither board is bad, but I really wouldn't buy either one until you've looked at BOTH (at least on the internet), and thought about what YOU want from your gaming board.
Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
Ustrello wrote: Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
The ROBB would be good for a fixed display with all of its detail and height variation, however they're less good for gaming. Dice rolling sounds grating and the hills are awkward for models, which tend to slide down.
You're better off getting 2-3 FAT mats and putting the rest of the money you save into terrain. For gaming hills should be tiered, which makes it very easy to work out LOS and movement (though they don't look realistic). The mats are easier for rolling and moving and rearranging terrain. The grass and alpine mats look good and are generic enough to handle most terrain variations. The mats are a great gaming experience.
"Bringer of death, speak your name, For you are my life, and the foe's death." - Litany of the Lasgun
Ustrello wrote: Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
The ROBB would be good for a fixed display with all of its detail and height variation, however they're less good for gaming. Dice rolling sounds grating and the hills are awkward for models, which tend to slide down.
You're better off getting 2-3 FAT mats and putting the rest of the money you save into terrain. For gaming hills should be tiered, which makes it very easy to work out LOS and movement (though they don't look realistic). The mats are easier for rolling and moving and rearranging terrain. The grass and alpine mats look good and are generic enough to handle most terrain variations. The mats are a great gaming experience.
I might also suggest one of the urban combat ones also
Ustrello wrote: Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
The ROBB would be good for a fixed display with all of its detail and height variation, however they're less good for gaming. Dice rolling sounds grating and the hills are awkward for models, which tend to slide down.
You're better off getting 2-3 FAT mats and putting the rest of the money you save into terrain. For gaming hills should be tiered, which makes it very easy to work out LOS and movement (though they don't look realistic). The mats are easier for rolling and moving and rearranging terrain. The grass and alpine mats look good and are generic enough to handle most terrain variations. The mats are a great gaming experience.
I might also suggest one of the urban combat ones also
I love the urban mat myself. Only issue is that the city blocks outlined can make some terrain arrangements look weird. I wish it were a bit more generic city rubble and less like a grid layout.
"Bringer of death, speak your name, For you are my life, and the foe's death." - Litany of the Lasgun
Ustrello wrote: Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
The ROBB would be good for a fixed display with all of its detail and height variation, however they're less good for gaming. Dice rolling sounds grating and the hills are awkward for models, which tend to slide down.
You're better off getting 2-3 FAT mats and putting the rest of the money you save into terrain. For gaming hills should be tiered, which makes it very easy to work out LOS and movement (though they don't look realistic). The mats are easier for rolling and moving and rearranging terrain. The grass and alpine mats look good and are generic enough to handle most terrain variations. The mats are a great gaming experience.
I might also suggest one of the urban combat ones also
I love the urban mat myself. Only issue is that the city blocks outlined can make some terrain arrangements look weird. I wish it were a bit more generic city rubble and less like a grid layout.
I actually got the urban combat two which is nice because it is less of a grid and printed on a slant
@ DaButcha -- thank you very much for the detailed description
I was actually looking at the Sector Imperialis RoB board, not the outside one. I'm not a fan of the outdoor ones, because we have lots (TONS) of terrain that we can put on mat to move things around.
@BoomWolf -- SWM = Secret Weapon Miniatures. I think it's just secretweaponminiatures.com. They make awesome stuff, and I've ordered tons from them. Very reliable company.
@TheSilo -- no dice rolling on gaming boards, man. Roll 'em in a tray on my tables Especially when you've taken tons of time to paint them and all, it's just a treat playing on.
@Ustrello -- this is the one I was thinking of. I can pick it up for just under $270 USD (new), which is not a lot more than the SWM boards $250 USD, so cost is not really an issue. My bigger issue is that I want to set up one permanent (more or less) table for urban, it's a lot of work to paint it up, and I want the best gaming surface. It will only be for 40k.
Ustrello wrote: Well frontline gaming has really nice mats for around 80 and you could pick up mantic games terrain for another 80 and spend 140 less on the ROB board and still get a decent set of terrain.
The ROBB would be good for a fixed display with all of its detail and height variation, however they're less good for gaming. Dice rolling sounds grating and the hills are awkward for models, which tend to slide down.
You're better off getting 2-3 FAT mats and putting the rest of the money you save into terrain. For gaming hills should be tiered, which makes it very easy to work out LOS and movement (though they don't look realistic). The mats are easier for rolling and moving and rearranging terrain. The grass and alpine mats look good and are generic enough to handle most terrain variations. The mats are a great gaming experience.
I might also suggest one of the urban combat ones also
I love the urban mat myself. Only issue is that the city blocks outlined can make some terrain arrangements look weird. I wish it were a bit more generic city rubble and less like a grid layout.
I actually got the urban combat two which is nice because it is less of a grid and printed on a slant
I went with the Alpine myself (You can see pics of my setup in the "Post your Gaming Table" thread down the page) and vastly prefer the FAT mats to my previous 2x2 boards set up. They are great to play a game on and I too am looking at one of the Urban ones for an alternative set up.
BlaxicanX wrote: A young business man named Tom Kirby, who was a pupil of mine until he turned greedy, helped the capitalists hunt down and destroy the wargamers. He betrayed and murdered Games Workshop.
I own a ROB board and I've played on the new city board. The original is pretty good, but the new one is terrible with the gutters. It might as well be city of cocked dice, impossible to roll on that table, but more flat though.
Arschbombe wrote: The board is a neat idea. It looks better than flat mats and can be rearranged to give different looks.
In my experience rolling dice on it is a nightmare and models tend to slide around if it's not flocked on the slopes.
Overall it's OK, but terribly over-priced (like most GW products).
Disagree it is overpriced for what you get. You look at SWM Tablescapes and they are $40 cheaper. You can always go that route - but essentially they are priced in the same range.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
NakedSeamus wrote: I own a ROB board and I've played on the new city board. The original is pretty good, but the new one is terrible with the gutters. It might as well be city of cocked dice, impossible to roll on that table, but more flat though.
Forge World City tiles are better imho.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/13 06:00:45
Arschbombe wrote: The board is a neat idea. It looks better than flat mats and can be rearranged to give different looks.
In my experience rolling dice on it is a nightmare and models tend to slide around if it's not flocked on the slopes.
Overall it's OK, but terribly over-priced (like most GW products).
Disagree it is overpriced for what you get. You look at SWM Tablescapes and they are $40 cheaper. You can always go that route - but essentially they are priced in the same range.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
NakedSeamus wrote: I own a ROB board and I've played on the new city board. The original is pretty good, but the new one is terrible with the gutters. It might as well be city of cocked dice, impossible to roll on that table, but more flat though.
Brother SRM wrote: I like my RoB board a ton. dice don't bounce around too much on it, especially when it has grass down on it. I don't clip the board pieces together; the clips are finnicky and it fits on my table well enough as is. You can paint it in a weekend; all you need are a couple colors, some larger brushes, and a lot of flock, which is cheaply available from Woodland Scenics.
I'll second this. I love painting these boards. I just use house paints for doing it and you are 100% right about the flock. I can paint one of these up in about 4 hours with the flocking taking another 2 or so.
Brother SRM wrote: I like my RoB board a ton. dice don't bounce around too much on it, especially when it has grass down on it. I don't clip the board pieces together; the clips are finnicky and it fits on my table well enough as is. You can paint it in a weekend; all you need are a couple colors, some larger brushes, and a lot of flock, which is cheaply available from Woodland Scenics.
I'll second this. I love painting these boards. I just use house paints for doing it and you are 100% right about the flock. I can paint one of these up in about 4 hours with the flocking taking another 2 or so.
I have 10 of them. You can just mount a piece of wood underneath it with liquid nails. Effort is worth the amazing results.
Automatically Appended Next Post: I will add that the one problem with all of these boards is the storage room needed for them.
The SWM ones are nice as they are 12" by 12" each so make it a bit easier to store in their boxes. The FAT Mats are nice too for storage purposes.
I own or have used all of these options so I am speaking from direct experience.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2014/11/13 06:09:03
I have played on one and dug it, its less than great for rolling dice, and does need flock/texture of some sort for the hills, but its a well made item, breaks down into a convenient size and can be transported. I bought one recently on Bartertown for $220 shipped and it will be washed/painted/flocked soon, with the terrible skulls filled in with water effects. I also have a Zuzzy urban mat on order that will fill in for urban battles. The FAT mats are quite nice and great for rolling (several of my friends have them) but I wanted something with more detail so I went for the RoBB and textured Zuzzy.
Having had a good look around for a battle board I will be buying Realm of Battle as soon as I have some spare cash. Compared to others on the market it is reasonably priced, if not cheaper than most others. It's good quality and, yes, I love the skulls. More skulls will be needed.
Apologies for talking positively about games I enjoy.
Orkz Rokk!!!
If you like SKULL PITS, then the ROB board is the board for you. The SWM tiles will easily work for many different games, and many different scales. I'm using rolling fields for a desert board, but it could easily be used for plains, or snow, or whatever. I'm using it for both an Old West game, and Warhammer. The ROB boards have a distinct Warhammer character (SKULL PITS) right out of the box.
can neither confirm nor deny I lost track of what I've got right now. 
Thousand Sons: 3850pts / 
Space Marines Deathwatch 5000pts / 
Scrapheap Challenged Orks 1500pts / 
Black Death 1500pts
2500 points
1000 points 
Especially when you've taken tons of time to paint them and all, it's just a treat playing on.
10000
4000
3000 