<![CDATA[Latest posts for the thread "How much of what kind of Terrain?"]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/69.page JForum - http://www.jforum.net How much of what kind of Terrain? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883322.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883322.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain? GW ruins) and an obstacle and it seemed like a pretty good amount of terrain, we both were able to move around pretty well, even with vehicles.

I played a mostly melee BA army with an ok amount of shooting, he played sisters with a little melee and a lot of shooting. Both of us discussed the game after it was over and felt the terrain was pretty fair.

You could use other terrain but LoS blocking terrain seemed nice.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883329.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883329.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain?
You want one large piece with either of these traits in every 15x15 square.

Dense applies to area terrain, which must be >3" tall.

Obscuring can be applied to Obstacles or area terrain, but it needs to be >5" tall.

Then a smattering of smaller obstacles; some will have light cover, some will provide heavy, some will provide both.

Before any scenery goes on the table, you may want to set up some hills for variety, but not 100% necessary.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883333.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883333.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain?
1. Don't count pieces. Pile your terrain up in a corner of the board and see how much of the board it actually covers- 25-33% is optimal. For a 44x60" table, this means you want around 165-220 square inches of terrain.

2. If a piece of terrain isn't at least 6" long in one of the horizontal axes, it's functionally decorative for 40K. I do a mix of sizes but try to ensure they meet this minimum (eg sandbag lines are at least 6" long, forest bases are at least 6x4", buildings/ruins are at least 6" one one of their walls, and so on).

3. Use a mix of types- around half of the terrain should block LOS, at least for general play. Too much LOS-blocking terrain makes for a maze-like game and too little LOS-blocking creates a wide-open no-man's-land, both of which can be fun but aren't what the core rules are based on. Try to vary area terrain vs one-dimensional terrain (like sandbags), traversable vs non-traversable, occupyable vs non-occupyable.

From there, you can figure out exactly what sort of theme you want to go with, and then pick out types.

So, worked example, if you want to do urban, I'd suggest a mix of:

-Ruins (LOS-blocking, can be occupied)
-Free-standing walls (LOS-blocking, block movement, can't be occupied)
-Rubble piles and craters (don't block LOS, impede movement but provide cover)
-Sandbag lines (don't block LOS, don't impede movement, provide cover)

That gives you two types of area terrain and two types of 'line' terrain; and of those two block LOS, two don't block LOS but provide cover, and one of the LOS-blockers can be occupied to act as cover. This gives you variety and makes the battlefield really meaningful and impactful to gameplay, rather than window-dressing.

It might sound like a lot of work, but once you've decided what you want to use, it's quick to build up and paint.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883348.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883348.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain?
 catbarf wrote:
I follow three golden rules for terrain.

1. Don't count pieces. Pile your terrain up in a corner of the board and see how much of the board it actually covers- 25-33% is optimal. For a 44x60" table, this means you want around 165-220 square inches of terrain.

2. If a piece of terrain isn't at least 6" long in one of the horizontal axes, it's functionally decorative for 40K. I do a mix of sizes but try to ensure they meet this minimum (eg sandbag lines are at least 6" long, forest bases are at least 6x4", buildings/ruins are at least 6" one one of their walls, and so on).

3. Use a mix of types- around half of the terrain should block LOS, at least for general play. Too much LOS-blocking terrain makes for a maze-like game and too little LOS-blocking creates a wide-open no-man's-land, both of which can be fun but aren't what the core rules are based on. Try to vary area terrain vs one-dimensional terrain (like sandbags), traversable vs non-traversable, occupyable vs non-occupyable.

From there, you can figure out exactly what sort of theme you want to go with, and then pick out types.

So, worked example, if you want to do urban, I'd suggest a mix of:

-Ruins (LOS-blocking, can be occupied)
-Free-standing walls (LOS-blocking, block movement, can't be occupied)
-Rubble piles and craters (don't block LOS, impede movement but provide cover)
-Sandbag lines (don't block LOS, don't impede movement, provide cover)

That gives you two types of area terrain and two types of 'line' terrain; and of those two block LOS, two don't block LOS but provide cover, and one of the LOS-blockers can be occupied to act as cover. This gives you variety and makes the battlefield really meaningful and impactful to gameplay, rather than window-dressing.

It might sound like a lot of work, but once you've decided what you want to use, it's quick to build up and paint.
^I endorse this post and method, in particular the "Three rules of terrain." That's a great set of guidelines.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883369.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883369.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883393.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883393.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain?
Terrain too small to qualify for the former two must be the latter, otherwise it will essentially have zero effect.

Breachable, Scaleable, Defense Line, and Unstable Position are game-usability rules. Throw them on any terrain piece that seems like it should qualify for them.

Exposed Position is a realism element. if it seems silly that someone would gain cover by being on top of a piece (usually because it has a big, flat top) then make it an Obstacle and make it Exposed Position. Area Terrain should never be Exposed Position unless it's something like a ruin with a large flat top but an area underneath a unit could hide.

]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883403.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883403.page GMT How much of what kind of Terrain?
Terrain too small to qualify for the former two must be the latter, otherwise it will essentially have zero effect.

Luckily, in the advanced rules section of the BRB, GW has stated that terrain with no listed cover get Light Cover by default.
Also, because saves can be allocated to models in cover (like, if 1 model is in cover, and 9 arent, saves can be allocated to the one in cover), this actually can make what was previously useless scatter terrain actually pretty handy.
Say you have a bunch of small crates or barrels: They're obstacles, and even if you don't assign them any cover type, they still provide cover to models within 3" behind them. A couple crates can actually shield a small squad pretty effectively!

I also advocate for just giving pretty much every piece of terrain the following by default (exceptions for like, barbed wire): Scalable, Breachable, Defensive Line, and things with 'walls' Defensible. Most of those rules only really come up when they need to exist, so it doesnt make much sense to not have them.
A forest doest care if it doesnt have scalable, but if you forget to give it to a 2 story building, then technically your opponent can drive a tank on top of it.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883801.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/790531/10883801.page GMT