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Any ideas for making a long (30+cm) river using still water? I can't buy vallejos other water products. Can I make a riverbed out of rocks and barks, make some basic streams of hot glue and then add 2-3mm still water? Would that make a convincing river?

I haven't used vallejo's still water though I hear it's quite good. Is it that you're worried about running out of it?

I also haven't made a river, my water projects currently all revolve around swampy or marshy areas.

However, I should think if you were to make your river bed, paint it up with a variety of blues (which will add a depth look to the whole thing), as well as adding various logs, rocks etc as part of the river. Once all that is dry, do a layer of the still water, maybe 1 to 2 mm deep. Read the particular instructions of course, that's just the amount I use with my version of still water, as it is best to do a little at a time. Once that's fully cured, which usually is no more than 24 hours, you can apply more if required.

I'm not sure, but I think with hot glue what you will run into problem wise is that is not really going to form peaks for you. Do you have access to a Medium gel paste? Something out of the painting area of most art stores. If you can find one that will dry clear, but retain some peaks, you may be able to sculpt peaks that way, giving you a more flowing effect on your river. You would likely need to add some blue ink, not a lot, but some, to be able to get colour into the medium. Painting colour on is not likely to look as good.

Anyway hopefully that gives you some help, maybe play with it a bit and let us know how it goes?

Hot glue can be a tricky beast - it likes to trap air bubbles and, if it doesn't cool very slowly, tends to develop a milky finish. Less that ideal for simulating water, whether still or flowing.

If you're trying to conserve materials, I'd suggest trying to make your river as shallow as possible, using paint to give the illusion of depth. With a properly painted base, a 1/8" deep layer of a given water effect is as convincing as a 2" deep channel filled with subtly tinted version of that same water effect.

If you feel up to a little bit of time/monetary expenditure for the sake of experimentation, I'd suggest painting some test pieces to try and get the proper look, then coating them with clear, glossy products of varying viscosities: gloss varnish, acrylic gloss gel medium, crystal clear silicone sealant, etc.