Switch Theme:

Pre-painted 15mm urban/modern terrain?  [RSS] Share on facebook Share on Twitter Submit to Reddit
»
Author Message
Advert


Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you:
  • No adverts like this in the forums anymore.
  • Times and dates in your local timezone.
  • Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance.
  • Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely.
  • Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net.
If you are already a member then feel free to login now.




Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





Hey guys. I was wondering if anyone had any tips for quickly acquiring a good amount of 15mm prepainted terrain, in particular buildings, but also modern road-ways? We're just starting Team Yankee, and while I am thinking their Battlefield-in-a-box stuff looks pretty decent, there seem to be VERY few buildings available, which would quickly get repetitive if I had multiples of them.

Does anyone else, in mdf, or any material, make pre-painted terrain at a remotely decent price? Any super-secret tricks? (I know we assembled a gorgeous Frostgrave: Ghost Archipelago table our of aquarium terrain)

11527pts Total (7400pts painted)

4980pts Total (4980pts painted)

3730 Total (210pts painted) 
   
Made in us
Major




In a van down by the river

Don't overlook the rest of the Battlefield in a Box line; even though Team Yankee is "modern" and some things would look out of sorts, the houses and such from WW2 aren't going to look horribly out of place in Europe circa 1985. Plus things like churches and cathedrals pride themselves on looking the same hundreds of years later.

4Ground does a great series of pre-painted MDF kits for both WW2 (see above about some architecture not being radically different) and modern buildings like power plants. More effort to put them together and they can be somewhat pricey, but they also provide a nice "hobby break" in terms of something to build.

Sarissa Precision is another MDF maker I've heard good things about, but I've not purchased any of their products so other than saying "I've heard they do good stuff" I can't provide more insight.

For State-siders, NWS Wargaming carries both of them, but I don't think they always have tons in stock so it can be a special order situation. Always had pretty decent experience ordering from them though.

On random tips I've found useful for terrain, railroad shops can give you some pretty good "generic" terrain like trees and the like that are quite a bit more budget-friendly that dedicated wargaming pieces. Perhaps not quite as tough since they're not intended to be moved around as much, but probably sufficient enough. Art supply stores like Michael's will often have them and coupons on offer to be a bit more budget-friendly. Sometimes you can find buildings in HO scale that will work as well, but that's going to be somewhat variable. Still, a think to keep an eye out for.

For crop land, this doormat from Target is pretty awesome. It's got a decent non-slip backing (since, it's a doormat) and it slices up fairly easily with a utility knife. Then you just glue some flock (Woodland Scenic's Harvest Gold blends in pretty well) around the bottom to hide the black backing and presto. One mat and a couple hours of gluing will get you probably as many fields as you want for around $20 total. You can see some in action in my WW2 setup here: https://imgur.com/a/PedAu

Looking forward to hearing about other's tips though; not sure there's such as thing as "enough" terrain.
   
Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





The 4Ground stuff does look nice, and the price is often cheaper than Battlefield in a Box for a chunkier terrain piece. In the long run I suspect I will end up owning pieces from quite a few different companies.

Its on the cheap side, but I did order a set of 15mm buildings from Plastcraft's Coloured series. They're just plasticard, but I own a lot of it for Infinity and it has always served me well. Plus it didn't decimate my budget so I can further expand our actual Team Yankee armies.

11527pts Total (7400pts painted)

4980pts Total (4980pts painted)

3730 Total (210pts painted) 
   
Made in us
Major




In a van down by the river

I do love 4Ground, but the Battlefield in a Box stuff from a durability standpoint is noticeably better. That's *thick* resin versus MDF; I do always worry about things falling on the 4Ground stuff and smashing it. From just that perspective the BiaB stuff is often worth it along with the little things like being designed with FoW/TY base sizes in mind. On the flip side, I do like having to DO something, and the 4Ground stuff scratches that itch nicely. That laser-cut MDF smells nice (mmmm, burnt wood) is also a plus. The ruined versions of buildings, while very cool-looking when finished, are fiddly little to assemble. Worth it, but in the moment you will wonder.

I did get a set of plastcraft EWAR houses a while back. They look nice on their own, but they don't blend particularly well on the table with the other stuff. Not a show-stopper and your attention will mostly be on the game, but there's something to be said for the actual grit of MDF versus the printed grit of a a sticker (essentially) on PVC. They also aren't quite as easy to work with multiple floors as the other two I've mentioned, who both have nice modular floors to just lift off. They're a good value still, and they probably straddle the line between MDF and Resin on toughness. They'll likely come apart if calamity strikes, but I don't know that any parts would readily snap like some of the thinner parts of MDF (don't ask how I know). I'd use them for a game I was travelling to without reservation; they're pretty light and can bounce around without issue meaning you don't have to pack them *quite* as carefully (a handy trait to speed things up).
   
Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





Oh, i've seen the BfiaB stuff and love it. Don't get me wrong.

For context as you know from the other thread, we're LONG time minis gamers, but have never played anything 15mm. As such, we've had a decade to accumulate tons of beautiful 28mm terrain, and also a smattering of stuff for Epic (so tiny, tiny scale). As such we're starting from scratch here, and after spending $500 this week alone on starting our two Team Yankee armies, i'm just looking to cheaply get a solid "babies first table" up and running.

If we enjoy the game, and gaming at this scale, everything will eventually be improved to the good stuff. ;-)

11527pts Total (7400pts painted)

4980pts Total (4980pts painted)

3730 Total (210pts painted) 
   
 
Forum Index » Historical Miniature Games: WW1 to Modern
Go to: