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I've decided to make a Warhammer table. It'll be the size 4x4 in feet. 1 feet equals around 30 cm.

I'm thinking to use plywood for the table. I'll use plywood that's somewhat thick - I don't want it to bend. I've read that it can be a good idea to make smaller 2x2 boards so that you can mix them up and make different terrain if the current one bores you.

So, how can I make this board interesting? I saw somewhere someone using a material that they burned with a torch to make a river, this seemed really cool. Is there any way I can make this with plywood?

Do I paint it with normal paint and then put sand all over it, and then make points/areas with grass? I'm considering a winter theme too.

Is there some alternate material that's better to use than plywood?

Any help is appreciated!

Maybe if you're into variation you can make alternative mats for the table. Using hardwood store supplies I made a desert themed wargaming mat for my kitchen table that can be rolled up and put away.

This way you can have different mats for your table that can just be rolled up when you're done.

Okay last table I made was 4x6 and set it up so i could use 2x2 boards on it and made it fairly light in weight..I started with 1/4" thick(5mm) Pegboard..with a light weight frame of 1"x3" ~(20mmx60mm) around the edges and an under frame of 2"x2" ~(40mmx40mm)lumber with a piece of 1/2 inch (12mm) high density foam on top ..covered in a simple cloth ..Note several of my conversions are aaproximate only ..but i went light weight for each of movement and storage and no legs as i just sit it ontop of a banquet table)

Just enough lip after foam and cloth that i could place 2'x2' pieces of terrain on it ..

 OrkaMorka wrote:
Maybe if you're into variation you can make alternative mats for the table. Using hardwood store supplies I made a desert themed wargaming mat for my kitchen table that can be rolled up and put away.

This way you can have different mats for your table that can just be rolled up when you're done.

Any idea on how I can make a mat? I've looked at pre-made mats on gamemat.eu, but the price is very steep. It's 50 euros + 25% taxes to get it into my country.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

morfydd wrote:
Okay last table I made was 4x6 and set it up so i could use 2x2 boards on it and made it fairly light in weight..I started with 1/4" thick(5mm) Pegboard..with a light weight frame of 1"x3" ~(20mmx60mm) around the edges and an under frame of 2"x2" ~(40mmx40mm)lumber with a piece of 1/2 inch (12mm) high density foam on top ..covered in a simple cloth ..Note several of my conversions are aaproximate only ..but i went light weight for each of movement and storage and no legs as i just sit it ontop of a banquet table)

Just enough lip after foam and cloth that i could place 2'x2' pieces of terrain on it ..

So I'll make a frame with edges which is as high as the 2x2 "tiles", so that the frame can hold them together, and this way I can move them around freely?

I checked out the "Realm of Battle" battleboard that GW sells, but it's really expensive.

 Ivara1 wrote:

 OrkaMorka wrote:
Maybe if you're into variation you can make alternative mats for the table. Using hardwood store supplies I made a desert themed wargaming mat for my kitchen table that can be rolled up and put away.

This way you can have different mats for your table that can just be rolled up when you're done.

Any idea on how I can make a mat? I've looked at pre-made mats on gamemat.eu, but the price is very steep. It's 50 euros + 25% taxes to get it into my country.

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/644361.page

I made one myself with cheap materials. Cloth paint mat (comes in huge sizes for about 10$), some caulking, cheap $1 paint, playbox sand (super cheap), and a bad of unscented non clumping kitty litter ($4).

The most expensive part for me was the the caulking, at about $20 for several tubes.

I love table making projects, post photos from start to finish! It's easy man just take snapshots with the phone.

 PrehistoricUFO wrote:
I love table making projects, post photos from start to finish! It's easy man just take snapshots with the phone.

Ye, I'll see what I can do! I'm not very craftsy, so it'll probably be very simple, even though I want it to look very fancy.

I think I'm going for 4x6, how will that be in tiles?

If Europe hasn't banned Styrofoam

Try and get 1 big sheet of pink or blue extruded Styrofoam insulation.

Tape up the edges and glue + Sand the top.

You can add some eye bolts to one side so you can hang it on the wall to keep it out of the way.

80% playable but will eventually deteriorate. but is so dirt cheap that you can just replace later.

I recently made a history project ( medieval castle and moat) with my son and used Celotex 50mm High Performance Cavity Wall Board this is great stuff light weight easy to cut and shape in to board squares( not unlike the costly realm of battle) and most of all CHEAP. Just use duck Tape on the edges to seal it and pva to seal the rest where you have cut in to it and paint to your own specifications . It is available from most builders merchants (wickes, Homebase, B&Q etc) in the uk however Imsure it would be available in Norway from your local hardware store or builders merchants.
Best of luck

You want to make sure your table is suitably reinforced. All it takes is one person leaning a little too hard to send everyone's minis crashing to the floor in one awful heap.

I wouldn't put any permanent terrain features on the board, and stick with a felt mat and modular terrain pieces. You don't want to get bored with your board and have no way to change it.

If you want to get fancy, put a raised lip around the edge of the table to prevent models and dice falling off. Nothing slows down games like having to stop and hunt down the lost dice.