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So, in a rare departure for me, I've, almost by accident, developed a back story for my Freeblade Knight - the pertinent but being that he hails from a heavily forested planet.

Consequently, I've decided to base him striding over the trunk of a fallen tree.

Thing is, I've no idea where to start! I've used small bits of real wood on 30mm bases as details before, but my concern is with something this degree larger the texture of real wood might make it look out of scale (ie like I've just stuck a bit of wood to the base, rather than a small recreation of a large tree trunk)

Any suggestions for species of wood which scale down well? (Bearing in mind my UK status, I'm in a rural area, so have access to many different tree species, but redwoods or baobab are not on that list!) or alternate materials/techniques which convince the eye?


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Well, as copious answers haven't been forthcoming (not a surprise, my P+M threads are always v specific) I've been outside for a wander, and cracked it!

So, if anyone has read this and thought "I'd like to know the answer" then I have it.

Mature Ivy. Not new growth, so you can't just pluck stuff off the edges of the plant, you have to dig a bit, but older growth gets thick and woody, and has smaller off shoots which work perfectly as a large trunk with heavier branches at 30mm scale.

I was lucky to have a pile of it that has been cut down recently, so could really take my pick and find the right piece, so I've now rinsed it off, will coat with some watered down PVA once dry, and then with the use of various scatters and other basing materials, have every confidence it'll make a wonderful, and convincing, fallen tree.

Yep, a lot of woody herbacious plants and weeds work well. Ivy and grape vines make for fairly interesting trunks. Their natural surface texture is pretty good too.

In addition, many weeds end up with a thick enough "trunk" and branches, plus you can pull them up for a fallen tree with roots attached look. You can find them pretty easily from along fencelines. Take note of your area as many weeds are irritants, and you might be in for an unpleasant surprise. Otherwise, pull the weed and trim off the tap root. Wash off the dirt and hang to dry. After it is dry, trim as needed and give it a good coat of varnish to help increase durability and protect it.

Actual wood, junipers, cedars, dwarf spruce and the like scale well. You can get them without too much difficulty if you contact landscapers. Juniper in particular was a very popular shrub which is now not as popular so often ripped out. Nurseries also have plants which are uprooted for different reasons. Because of the growth rate of many decorative shrubs you can get very convincing trees, that are actual trees, just very small while still looking the part of a tree and not a sapling.

Depending on how big you want to go, you also have Woodland scenics and the like. They have tree armatures up to about 8 inches tall, and the metal ones have molded root flares and very good surface detail. Plastic ones are a bit smaller, and not as finely detailed.

For those without easy access to weeds and other materials who want something other than cast materials, hit up model train stores. Brands like SuperSage are little more than dried weeds and the popularity of narrow gauge logging railroads makes for a large variety of commercial materials being available.

Thanks Sean

I guess I can now add plant stems to the list, along with interesting packaging and small mechanical or electrical components, of things I will now accumulate in drawers "just in case!"