Obtainium Pt.2

Last time I showed off a bit I got from a vendor. This time the parts are going to cost you but they are well worth it. Tech Deck, the company that sells finger skateboards has a full line of terrain for them. All of it is modular, really durable, highly detailed, affordable and best of all scaled perfectly for use on the terrain table. The bits start at $5 but I have gotten large sets for $20 but on clearance for as low as $7.

So what kind of board could you build with them? They work perfect for a training ground board. If you have ever seen Starship Troopers, Appleseed ExMachania or S.W.A.T. you will remember scenes of troopers running through make shift city buildings or hills. Mimicing that look is reall easy with these sets. In this setup give them a quick coat of grey paint, a wash and drybrush and you have a full table set in a few hours. The modular design means that every game can be different. It also adds that vertical element that so many tables are missing.

What if you want a more rustic, dirt mound look. Turns out they have those also. They are part of their BMX trick line. That should get you going, so next stop the toy store.

Obtainium: terrain edition

obtainium (noun)
1. any item, found or obtained for free.
2. materials used to create art work such as assemblage, mixed media or sculpture that wasn't bought new, but obtained in other ways, such as second-hand, dumpster diving, chance findings or donations.


Building good terrain relies heavily on obtainium. In most cases it is found as raw materials like foamcore, craft sticks, etc. Other times it comes as finished products by companine like GW and Woodland Scenics. Sometime obtainium comes in even stranger forms. 

I got this from a vendor that sells industrial AC units. This is the perfect start to a 40k generator building. Scale wise it is just the right height, large enough to hide things behind but not so big as to dominate a table. The model comes appart you can see all the details. These kinds of models are great and strangly easy to get. Mine was a gift but if you talk to the people at your local heating/AC shop they usually have old models collecting dust that they are willing to part with. Other places to check are big box hardware stores. They get in alot demo/display models for sales that get thrown out after the sale is over. 

The parts are out there, you just need to obtain them.

Terrain Project - Got to love toy store finds

With Adepticon quickly approaching I need to build a display board. The problem is I was stumped for an idea. I could do another simple one like the magnetic one but I wanted something a little more unique. While shopping for some stuff at Target I went through the toy department and came across this. The Tech Deck Street Tour Love Park set. This thing blew me away. It is the perfect scale and has all the little details that make it the best base for a larger project.

Out of the box it looks great. It is made from a heavy weight plastic and it modular so it will attach to the other Tech Deck sets. The seams are tight and with a couple of exceptions not noticeable. The cement areas have a slight texture to them and there are worn areas that look natural. The steps are wide and easily fit 60mm bases without tipping. The pylons at the top are the perfect height for troop sized figs to stand behind.

Now for the numbers. The piece is roughly 16 inches wide, 13.5 inches deep and 2 inches at the highest wall.

For more details and additional looks at the piece check out my YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/lathanm

Terrain Update

Started painting the barrels. This time I am trying the the salt weather technique. We will see how this turns out.