Terrain Tutorial: Build anything with this idea!

Grab your foamcard, folks, and strap yourselves in for the ride.

Desiderata:

* Hot glue gun
* Ruler
* Pencil
* Sharp knife
* Small pins
* PVA glue (and water)
* Sand
* Paint
* Brushes
* Basing material - as ever, behold an old DVD in the following pictures.
* Some spare bits of plasticard
* Superglue & polystyrene cement
* Cardboard

1) First mark out the measurements for your box on your foamcard. Maybe it's a power sub-station, a square bunker, a supply building, a colony habitation module or an armoury. It might be square or rectangular or some other polygonal shape. What I have marked out here is a small rectangle. It fits onto a CD/DVD. See Fig. 1.

2) Cut up the bits of foamcard, and glue and pin them together. You'll want a bit of cardboard for the roof of your building. That way, if your measurements re a little off, you can easily rectify any visual problems, cracks, and so on. See Fig. 2.

3) Glue it to your base. See Fig. 3.

4) Add on a few little details. I've knocked up a door for one side and a ladder for the other, allowing units to climb up or down the side of the building during a game. Apply dilute PVA glue to the uncovered areas of the building, then scatter sand atop that. Once it's dry add another coat of dilute PVA atop that. See Figs. 4&5.

5) Make sure all your sand and glue is secure, and slap a load of paint on the model. You can add static grass, clump foliage or whatever you like. Your building's ready for the table. See Figs. 6&7.

You don't just have to use a square or a small rectangle. The other week I showed how to build a stone watchtower, and that uses the very same principles that this tutorial does. All you need to do is alter the dimensions. Until next time, folks, happy gaming!