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Now then. I've come back to the hobby after at least a decade away. It started with some Fantasy Flight boardgames and has led back to 40k proper. One thing I recall from 1st/2nd edition was using anything as los blocking terrain. As a kid I had this big red plastic robo-dinosaur thing we'd plonk laid down in the middle of the table; was top. Looking at online photos of other battlefields now and I see a single tree count as serious terrain. Madness.

Anyway, to save my pennies to build up an army I've begun toying around with making my own terrain.

Here are some images of work in progress - tips and suggestions welcome!






(Other soft drinks are available)

There's a long and storied tradition of using found items (fancy term for garbage ) for terrain, so you've definitely got a good start. However, what's the reason for covering everything in newspaper? It just looks odd for industrial type terrain unless you're planning on corrupting it. The stacks and piping should be smooth-sided and the building lightly textured. If you're going for a weathered surface, the saturated newspaper might be a bit heavy-handed.

The Coke can is pretty cool, in a 2nd Edition sorta way. Once you get it painted, it'll probably look like an older Armorcast resin piece

Just a friendly warning. Using aluminum cans for terrain is really sketchy. One serious bump, or any pressure on the walls of the can what so ever can dent it in a big way. Sometimes those are happy accidents, and sometimes is ruins the piece.

Thanks for the replies, appreciate it.

 the_Armyman wrote:
There's a long and storied tradition of using found items (fancy term for garbage ) for terrain, so you've definitely got a good start. However, what's the reason for covering everything in newspaper? It just looks odd for industrial type terrain unless you're planning on corrupting it. The stacks and piping should be smooth-sided and the building lightly textured. If you're going for a weathered surface, the saturated newspaper might be a bit heavy-handed.

The Coke can is pretty cool, in a 2nd Edition sorta way. Once you get it painted, it'll probably look like an older Armorcast resin piece

The papier-mâché felt right at the time to bond everything. You're right though, it does leave a clear texture. I went back over with large pieces to smooth it out. It looks better and I'll paint creaves/cracks in to make them more natural where possible.

I sprayed the can yesterday. Citadel spray doesn't cope well. Should probably have used car spray or something I'd expect to be heavier. After a few top ups it looks fine. Going to paint the cardboard strips in rust metal and give a fuel/gloop look to the liquid running out. With a bit of paint it should look table top ready.

 matphat wrote:
Just a friendly warning. Using aluminum cans for terrain is really sketchy. One serious bump, or any pressure on the walls of the can what so ever can dent it in a big way. Sometimes those are happy accidents, and sometimes is ruins the piece.

Thanks. For this can a bit of additional damage would suit it but I'll keep that in mind before going bonkers with a landscape of aluminium.

Nice, reminds me of my first terrain when starting back in 2nd Would like to see those painted!

Instead of a tin soda can, I use tin vegetable cans, much more sturdy to work with. I'm not sure what effect your going for the with 3rd grade art project technique, maybe like a desert building like the Skywalker ranch? I'm curious to see how it turns out.

are you planing on painting the newspaper?

 Murenius wrote:
Nice, reminds me of my first terrain when starting back in 2nd Would like to see those painted!

Here's a photo via my phone of the can;

 jabbakahut wrote:
Instead of a tin soda can, I use tin vegetable cans, much more sturdy to work with. I'm not sure what effect your going for the with 3rd grade art project technique, maybe like a desert building like the Skywalker ranch? I'm curious to see how it turns out.

It certainly was a bit of Primary school art class inspiration. I want some pillow lining as smoke out of the top chimney to add a little life to it. I'm not sure what colour to aim for. I know what I'll do is paint on cracks, pipe warping, weathering damage on all the creases etc to provide some context.

jewels wrote:
are you planing on painting the newspaper?

I am. It's been primed black. Might borrow a friends army grey and do a coat from an angle. Not entirely sure yet.

 jabbakahut wrote:
Instead of a tin soda can, I use tin vegetable cans, much more sturdy to work with. I'm not sure what effect your going for the with 3rd grade art project technique, maybe like a desert building like the Skywalker ranch? I'm curious to see how it turns out.

+1 to this, I have 2 large baked beans cans that were repurposed into being a chemical storage facility for my home table. Nice big LOS blocking centerpiece!

Getting started is the main thing. Scratchbuilding terrain is a craft skill that you learn as you go along.

Textured paint is my big tip. There are sprays that give a rough, stone effect. Hammerite gives a craquelure effect that can be fun on metal items. Mixing sand or acrylic media into acrylic paint can create various effects.