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Yay been waiting ages for a table pic of your Xeno jungle.

So I took this hill:


Used a manticore to measure out a template of reasonable size on the top:



And chopped it down to size:


Then I butchered it into shape, cutting grooves into it here and there:





Used my rasp to smooth the shape:




And a sanding block to soften it all:







Put wood glue and rocks in the grooves:







Then, using this beautiful mix of various sized shake:


I textured up the hillside and hilltop:









And black craft sand to smooth out the top and add filler to the sides:



Followed by my now ubiquitous poop base color:


That's as far as I've gotten with that so far. Next up is a mountain of pictures showcasing my gluing-styrofoam-to-a-sheet-of-masonite skills. These will be the foundations of a ruined city:









This is just packaging styrofoam:


More will be revealed with time. Thanks for looking and have an awesome day! C&C always welcome.

That's looking interesting indeed. What do you seal your sand etc with?

 inmygravenimage wrote:
That's looking interesting indeed. What do you seal your sand etc with?

Thanks, inmygravenimage. I use a 70:30 mix of wood glue to water. Sometimes I add an equal amount of paint (7 parts glue, 3 parts water mixed till the glue dissolves completely, and then 7 parts paint or thereabouts). It depends on what my resources are like at the time (mostly meaning how much base color paint I have). In the case of the poop brown I have a huge tub of it, but I only have a small amount of the indigo color I used to base coat the much taller rocky crags.

Sorry to keep you waiting so long, JoeRugby, but here finally are pictures of my alien jungle terrain all sprawled out on a regulation 6x4 table. Enjoy:


















C&C always welcome. Thanks for looking and have an awesome day!

I realized I will be making some buildings in the near future, so I decided to build a prototype and a tutorial walk through at the same time. I didn't get very far, but I'll post what I have so far.

I started with a scrap piece of foam core from which I had cut a 2" by 3" rectangle out of already. I figured I'd cut at an angle and have a perfectly aligned two story building:


Not so perfect:


So I used the short piece as a straight edge and measuring device:




Much better:


I decided I wanted floors so I used one wall again as a straight edge and tool:


Exactly the width of the foam core:


In case there was any confusion in the future:


And then the first floor and roof, too:


Then I thought to use a T-square for measurements. I used to have a 12" one made of plastic, but I couldn't find that one. So I was forced to use the T-square I used in college. Sigh, it's a bit long:


Anyway, I aligned both pieces and marked where the lines of the first would be on the second:



And then used the longest T-square to extend those lines all the way across the foam core:


Then I aligned both pieces to mark the join:



Then I used a 40k scale space marine and a Dreamforge Eisenkern as reference for the width of my windows. I decided on half inch width (that's roughly 5cm):



I also decided to have the windows start 3/4 of an inch from the corner and each be a 1/2 inch away from another (it was just easier):


The trick with straight lines is to make measured marks at 2 or 3 locations on your piece:


And then align the T-square at a factory-straight edge to link them:



Then again, I used the Marine and Eisenkern to determine where the bottom sills of these windows should begin, being sure that their bases sit on the line I determined would be the floor and not the bottom of the foam core sheet:



Measure twice and all that:


I compared using Imperial measurements and Metric to see if one was easier than the other:



Turns out they both sucked. So, I just settled on the closest arbitrary number and duplicated the measurement for the second floor, keeping in mind the thickness of the floor:


Then extended the sill marks on both floors:


And used Marine and Eisenkern to determine the height of the windows. The Eisenkern is slightly shorter than the Marine, so I decided to use the Marine's head as the ultimate deciding factor for height:


(that first mark)

(and then the second)



Duplicating the marks across and on both floors:





Window tops drawn in:


And then, so I don't drive myself bonkers later when I have cut those windows out, I erased the lines between the windows and colored in the windows themselves:




It's almost starting to look like a real building! Also, this was to fix in my brain whether or not I needed to extend the windows on the other wall more than the 3/4" that I had on the other wall. The outer view convinced me of no, that extra 1/4" wouldn't be necessary because the join is meaningless on the exterior (it'll make more sense much later):



Next I marked the window widths on the other wall and the starting and ending heights for same:



Then T-squared the heck out of those marks:




And then made extra marks for more windows because the first wall was shorter than the second. Whoops:


Viola! The second wall windowed up:



That's it for part one. I just want to advocate for the proper use of the T-square. You want it to hang off the edge of your table or work surface, but still remain flush with the edge of the piece you are working on. For me, I used a cutting mat to prop up the foam core. And here I illustrate how when the measuring tool sits on the same level as your piece it isn't flush to its surface (there's a miniscule gap that can affect your measurements):

And flush (in my case there's still a tiny gap, but it isn't substantial enough for my pencil to escape under. Plus when I apply pressure to the T-square with my hand this gap virtually vanishes):


Anyway, thanks for looking. Have an awesome day, and, as always, C&C is always welcome!

The table layout looks great. Nice variety of shapes and colours.

Good tutorial too.

 Dr H wrote:
The table layout looks great. Nice variety of shapes and colours.

Good tutorial too.

Thanks, Dr H. I thought the table looked a little flat, so I'm thinking of building some more dynamic pieces. As I sell most of this terrain and rarely get to use it, I rarely see it all on the same table. Makes me want to get more uniform with my colors and introduce some more ambitious designs. Any suggestions from the audience?

some rocky outcrops with the plants growing out of them would be cool

 kencotter wrote:
some rocky outcrops with the plants growing out of them would be cool

Thanks for the feedback, kencotter. Do you mean like the craggy pieces I've done before except with plants aplenty? Or, hmmm, now that I think about it I could probably do something new that fits that criteria, too.

Awesome, keep the ideas coming folks!

That board looks beautiful! Lovely colours. I think a water feature would fit in nicely with all the plants maybe.

Nice stuff. One of these days I’ll make terrain. But it always get shuffled down the To-Do list.

 ckig wrote:
That board looks beautiful! Lovely colours. I think a water feature would fit in nicely with all the plants maybe.

Hmm, like a swamp? Or a stream? Or a lake? I suppose all of those options would work. Thanks for the feedback, ckig.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Nevelon wrote:
Nice stuff. One of these days I’ll make terrain. But it always get shuffled down the To-Do list.

Yeah, I know what you mean, Nevelon. For me it's conversions that often take a back burner. I do both, but I feel like I need to focus on one or the other, for months at a time. Thanks for the feedback.

yeah like the rocks you done already with plants would be awesome

Ambitious designs...hmm...

...Look to nature?
Scour the internet for pictures of what you want to see on the table and then do it.

Nature has produced more interesting/weird/wonderful things than imagination can do many a time.

Plants on rocks sounds good for the time being.

 Dr H wrote:
Ambitious designs...hmm...

...Look to nature?
Scour the internet for pictures of what you want to see on the table and then do it.

Nature has produced more interesting/weird/wonderful things than imagination can do many a time.

Plants on rocks sounds good for the time being.

Good advice. If any body else has ideas please feel free to contribute them any time. I still have in the back of my mind the Mushroom request from kenderthistle from way back on page 11. I haven't forgotten about you! I've just been very, very busy.

Anyway, continuing with the building tutorial, I moved on to the actual cutting of things. After all that careful measuring and lining, I just cut out the windows freehand. I don't know why I prefer it that way, I just do. Anyway, be sure your exacto blade is fresh and sharp before cutting. I lightly cut the surface first, letting the blade do all the work. It's always okay to go over your cuts again and again until they've completely penetrated the foamcore. For me that's usually 3 or 4 strokes per line on the rectangle I've drawn. Also, I'm a righty, so these are "fake action" shots. I did the work with my right hand, then posed my left and took the picture. However, I really do cut stuff pinky out because my little finger helps keep my hand steady as I cut (as I drink a lot of caffeinated beverages which makes minute stability all but impossible for me):


I also press and pull slightly on the part that's going to be cut out with my free hand while I cut. It just seems to make it easier for the pieces to separate or my blade to slice:


I test my technique and steadiness on one window to begin with, finishing all the cuts on the front of the piece until I can feel the blade moving easily all the way through (this typically means the exacto has cleared the paper on the other side):


Then I flip the piece over to check where my lines are and clean up the cuts from there:



It's important to make sure your blade closes the shape and cuts all the way to the corner. Don't worry about perfection at this stage of the production, there's plenty more to come that will cover your mistakes later. And believe me you will make plenty of mistakes. Don't sweat it:


Once I'm satisfied with my cuts I grasp the foam core with one hand, positioning my index and middle finger on the window's frame so that when I push the "blank" out of the hole I've cut the pressure of my fingers doesn't damage the sometimes delicate frame:


Then I use my thumb to "walk" the blank out. Basically this means applying pressure to first one end and then the other, and alternating this pressure until the blank pops out. The action vaguely resembles waddling or walking, so hence the term:




Sometimes this method causes the blank to snag in a corner like it did here:


No worries. Just turn the piece over and reverse the process to free it, walking it out the other side:



Tada!


Once I know how the first window reacts, I do all the remaining floor by floor:







It's almost starting to look like a real building!


Also, always remember to save your cutoffs for later. You never know when having a small chunk of foamcore will come in handy for debris, a wedge, or what have you:


Thanks for looking! C&C always welcome. There's a lot more of this to come, fyi, so stay tuned folks. Have an awesome day.

I'll admit, I dislike working with foamcore, such a PITA, but your tutorial is great and I hope it inspires others to give it a go

 Ruglud wrote:
I'll admit, I dislike working with foamcore, such a PITA, but your tutorial is great and I hope it inspires others to give it a go

Thanks, Ruglud! I like it because it's cheap, comes in easy to work with sizes, and responds well to basic tools, but I understand that not everybody would like it.

Also, thanks for the feedback. Here's an update on the hills I've been working on. First up is the large hill, which dried in the interim between my visits. I touched with indigo first:



Then red oxide:


Overbrushed in pink:


Then picked out a few stones in grey and red:


And finally white overall:


And then flocked in stages:






Tomorrow the above hill will get sealed and grassed just like the ridge and wolfshead hill did last time. For some reason I didn't take any pictures of the hill, but here's the ridge. It doesn't look a whole lot different, but what evs:



I also did some work on another "cd crater":



And here's a picture of what my glue mix looks like before I actually mix it:


More replies equals more updates. Thanks for looking. C&C always welcome.

Forgot to comment on the hill - that's an excellent build / tutorial... really impressive mate and looking forward to the updates

Thanks, Ruglud! I found a picture of the wolfshead Hill with static grass on it. All I took was one picture for some reason:



Thanks for looking, there will be more later or tomorrow to show/see.

Smart looking hill, I like all the textures that go into it,

That static grass mixes well with the other texturing. The hills look like something from the Northernmost latitudes, with the dark soil. Nicely done.

 SJM wrote:
Smart looking hill, I like all the textures that go into it,

 Red Harvest wrote:
That static grass mixes well with the other texturing. The hills look like something from the Northernmost latitudes, with the dark soil. Nicely done.

Thanks for the feedback, guys!

Here's where I last left the shanty:


I had left over paint on my palette and decided to put it to good use. Here are the results:










After several coats I went a little crazy with a blue wash:







And then a brown wash, along with some overbrushing of the base in blue and red:











Then added some grey to the frames and roof:














Then drybrushed the whole thing with a whitish pink:







Added some flock:






ANd some static grass:




Tada! Thanks for looking and have an awesome day. C&C always welcome.

Terrain is all looking good! grassy knolls, rocks and hills, and the shanty too!

Ruined building will be nice as well.

Thanks, shas!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
The cd craters got some love, too.

I overbrushed them with blue (while my brush still had some off white paint on it, but eh):




And then red:


And then pink:


And then I wanted the centers of the blasts to be a slightly different color than the rest of the pieces, so I did them first in a medium grey and then in a 2:1 mix of grey and off white (as shown below):




Of course you can see above that I also picked out some rocks in grey and red, and finally treated them with white:


Followed by a teensy tiny amount of flock:


Here they are resting together with the shanty:

To all who were wondering, this is what my glue to water ratio looks like before I mix it:

So I did some work on these hills:




I also trimmed the end bit on that last one a tad (it was leaning off the edge of the base):


Starting with the piece above, I broke out the air dry clay and set to work. I rolled "noodles" of clay and pressed them into the gaps at the base where the styrofoam met the masonite:





And then covered the whole thing:





Then applied large aquarium stones:






I did similarly with this slanty one, by first adding this cast off piece of foam:


And then coating it in clay:





Then added rocks in a variety of places:





And then again with the last (for which I have far fewer pictures):





And then rubbed pulverized walnut shell all over them (again with not enough pictures for some reason):





Here you can see I also sealed them some:


Anyway, that's it for now. Thanks for looking, have an awesome day, and C&C always welcome.

Well you are really knocking it out at the moment. Brilliant work. All looks amazing. Love the table of jungle shots. And the tutorials are spot on. Great stuff.

 Camkierhi wrote:
Well you are really knocking it out at the moment. Brilliant work. All looks amazing. Love the table of jungle shots. And the tutorials are spot on. Great stuff.

Thanks, Cam! Good to have you back.

Looking good! And very useful.. if I ever decide to try my hand at terrain