Multi-game modular Battle Board!!!

As I've written about many times before here on Creative Dungeoneering, I'm a big fan of modular Dungeon Terrain and wargaming boards.

I like the versatility, and for my small and not-often-used-enough gaming space, the storability of it.
But with my love of a bit of Warhammer 40K, and a growing Black Templar army, I am finding need to have a more adequately sized battle board for weekend skirmishes with the despicable Tau and Ork kind kind friends and family are somewhat partial to.


Herein however, lies the catch with wargaming boards:-Too large and you spend all your time in the movement phase.
-Too small and there is no tactics, movement, or strategy (or less of it) inherently required as your into close combat before the first move. Now running Black Templars, this is perfectly fine, as this is where my little zealots excel.



But for the enjoyment of not only the other players, but also the usability of the terrain for more than just Warhammer (primarily larger-scale Dungeons & Dragons modular dungeons or outdoor wilderness miniature terrain), I needed a board with enough space that additional modular features could be added later; buildings, ruins, mountains, forests, rivers, etc.

So this means that essentially, featureless terrain needed to be included, or terrain that would likely be eventually covered by something else. I needed flat sections.
So the trick then was creating a board that could offer some creative usability but also the interest to potentially serve as a basis for future adventures, both Sci-fi and Fantasy based.

Materials:

I work in a creative department and acquire a lot of extra materials made of what, in the industry we refer to as gator board. Essentially thick foam core with heavy-weight paper backing on both sides. Most of these are done for advertising examples, wall art, photos, etc. In this case the piece I am using is roughly 48" x 48" and about 1/2" thick, with a heavy-weight photo paper on one side (a juice advertisement) and a slightly-lighter weight black paper backing, sandwiching the foam core in between.

The smaller example pictured here shows the two varying sides, but any foam core board could work. The key is the thick paper on the bottom side 'supporting' or creating a 'base' for the foam core. This could easily be replicated with even better material, such as cardboard or even wood.














 

Creating the terrain:

To start creating the terrain features on my larger piece, I used a set of odd tools including an old serrated butter knife (crucial that it be serrated), a Play-Doh putty sculpting tool, and even more odd and tricky to find, a vintage walnut cracking pick. This stainless steel tool is my go-to tool for everything from pushing glue to creating bubbles, and is featured in just about every terrain tutorial I do here on Creative Dungeoneering.

I started with simple pencil markings of a rough area where I wanted 'terrain features' like the  trench, craters, and cracks. The hardest part was resisting too much creativity. Less is more here. Remember, that open space and 'blank surface' area is going to work perfect later for adding additional modular features and using this for multiple types of terrain.

I started by scraping away the paper backing and into the foam using my trusty walnut pick, and then slowly peeling away each piece with the putty tool and knife.

 One one corner, where the crater was at its deepest, it actually compromised the structural integrity of the photo paper beneath.
This required reinforcing the foam and strengthening up this edge corner. One fo the best things I have ever found to do this is standard Shoe Goo putty, for shoe repair.  

Once sealed up, the corner was adequately strong and the essential detail of the board was finished. But resisting adding more was a constant struggle! 

Next was measuring with actual models to ensure that the trenches and craters were adequately sized and would work for game play. 

The trenches were only about base-deep, so they didn't provide "cover" in war-game terms, but enough of a drop that they do create a terrain 'feature' which gang augmented with additional modular items such as rocks, foliage, trees, etc.

Surfacing:

For surfacing, especially for larger flat, or open areas, little works better, and faster, than standard textured spray paint. I somehow feel like I'm cheating when I do this, and it's not cheap, about $10 a can. And this board took an entire can. But it works fast, it works well, and it really looks pretty good when all is finished. 

It is also somewhat durable, textured, and easily accepts accent colors and paint finishes to add additional colors and textures, giving the surface more depth and character. 

The standard stone gray available at most craft and hobby stores is so great, in that it can, like in this application here, be used for both Sci-Fi and Fantasy based terrain and cover creating anything from a cracked alien planet to a forest floor, dungeon cavern base, or even a city scape surface. 

I used the Citadel Skulls pack to add some small individual terrain features that again, could work for just about any terrain or location other than snow or desert.

The small skulls gave the board character and a bit of mystery for war-game play but could just as easily be game hooks or dungeon dressings for fantasy and RPG use too.



I also added hues of purple to the cracks, surfacing, and edges of the holes and trench.

This served the purpose of adding a bit of character to the board and most importantly, matching with all other modular terrain I use in this same style. Again, it's all about versatility and storability.

Because I intend too sue this with fantasy table-top gaming as well, I wanted my current modular terrain to match as seamlessly as possible with the battle board, making this piece even more versatile for sue in both Warhammer and Dungeons & Dragons. I am a huge fan of the Gale Force 9 Caverns of the Underdark set, and they are done primarily in a gray-blue-purple hue.

Adding complementary colors to the Battle Board here will make this a fantastic piece when coupled with those as well, either as additions to Warhammer alien terrain, or for a D&D mega-dungeon-total-party-kill-Drow-battle-royale...
 

A Proper Templar SCA Shield...

I have a love hate relationship with the Templars. Mostly love. Deep and long suffering. Since childhood. I do not, however, like how they are often portrayed in Hollywood. And this seems to seep into SCA combat a bit as well.

In an on-going effort to improve the historical accuracy of my current kit, albeit within the necessary guidelines of SCA combat, I have recently taken on a project to make the ultimate SCA Templar shield.

Not only did I want this to be thick wood, as historical as I could find, but covered in canvas and sewn with bolts and leather strapping. And resisting the desire to add colorful heraldry, I went with the standard Templar Black and white (pictured above from period manuscript resources).


The main catch to the shield was creating this look while still making one that could meet the requirements of SCA combat. This meaning edging, adequate hand protections and durability (as time will tell).

I started with a standard Museum Replicas wooden shield, wanting to purchase a pre-made shield and then add to it from here to create a more beefy SCA adequate version. This shield is made with heavy wood and padded with durable canvas. I purchased one unpainted, as I wanted to match the black to the same black used on other heraldry and shield applications already in-use. (*And really, how hard is it to paint a single horizontal black rectangle? Save the cash and buy the unpainted version in the same size).

 Once painted and sealed, I went with a black leather cowhide  edging over thick closed cell foam concussion padding (from Master Erik-Munitions Grade Arms)                         Concussion padding?

Yes.
Concussion padding. I had a lot of extra left over from helmet  padding, & its thick, black, pliable, and takes a lot of abuse. I lined the entire shield in 1/4" thick black closed cell foam anti-concussion helmet padding, sealing it to the edging with small strips of black duct tape. This would then be covered over by the leather edging anyways, but still kept this to the minimum, both for weight and appearance.

After the foam padding was lined all the way around (and I do mean ALL the way around-even down to the very tip), I measured, sized, and cut the leather in strips that were long enough to overlap the front of the shield onto the back.
3 strips, with a bit of overlap.

I wanted to really make this edging tough, so I used black Shoe Goo brand sealant at the edges to ensure the leather stayed glued to both the shield and the foam, and sealed the edge gaps at the corners and the bottom point. This creates a thick rubbery layer of protection, blends well with the more matte leather cowhide edging, and adds a bit of protection all the same time. Remember though, this was done with the desire to really create a beast of a shield, not a lightweight fighter. Time will tell how I did though.

After the leather was cut and sealed down flat, the tough part came: keeping it that way. In the past, I have used round-head furniture tacks to varying degrees of success, but after seeing one fly out and almost get stepped on by a fellow fighter, and having to constantly replace ripped out tacks, I needed a stronger option. I found small black tacks that looked a bit like small forged iron nails and hoped these would work a bit better, as they have no real head to speak of once in place.
These were pounded into the leather and the wood of the shield at regular intervals, and when finished, provide a fairly seamless, if not almost win-noticable finish to the edging.

The compression on the edging is about 1/8" when really pushing, so it will be interesting to see two this plays out with regards to standard SCA rattan sword pressure.

Our current Master of defense is one fo the best teachers I have encountered, but seems able to break just about anything he puts his mind to. It was his hefty stroke that snapped the bottom point off my last heater (another repair tutorial on that coming soon maybe...) so facing him will be the ultimate test of this shields usage.

  

The next area to tackle would be the hand coverage for the back of the shield hand strap. 

On my previous heater shield, I had created a leather hand covering that works fantastic, but it needed a bit more sculpting and shaping as well as strapping. 

This was done with thick leather, and sandwiched with even thicker plates of leather in between, with a soft suede leather undercoat and a single 4-finger strap overlapping the main shield strap. This provides a good solid guard for the fingertips should a wayward blow come crashing down behind my shield onto the fingers.

Once completed, dried, a nd dyed to match the black leather, it was tooled with some crusader symbology, a nd riveted into place, then atatched to the main crossing shield handle straps with standard screw bolts to allow for removal if needed and because riveting at that angle seemed nearly impossible.

The result is a strapped shield that covers the bulk of the hand, especially when coupled with a  good leather vambrace. In some kingdoms Marshall's may require a demi-gauntlet on the shield hand as well. Mine does not thankfully, so I can shave a bit of weight and flexibility on the left arm. 

Total weight for the shield is just over 8 pounds, and the final look is clean, simples and hopefully, strong.