Friday, January 7, 2011

From 15mm Virginia to my first 10mm Spanish Countryside!

 Hey all!

Well, I am all finished up with my super secret ACW project, and so am moving to get that scenery off of the table and get out my newest 10mm Napoleonic scenery, which is meant to represent Spain!

First up was taking down the ACW stuff. 

It is entertaining to take it all apart... it is always fun to see the table come apart, piece by piece, field by field, until you are left with just the felt and eventually just the under-foam!  Below is a shot of the table early in the deconstruction phase...


Below is a shot of my fences, all stuck into their piece of storage foam... this doesn't count the snakerail, of course!


Here is a shot of the table once everything is gone, but the flock isn't yet vacuumed up.  It is funny to be able to see the roads!  Once you DO vacuum it all up, it DOES leave just the slightest impression of the roads, which ends up looking GREAT... it just gives you other colors that you can barely see through the full coat of flock!


Speaking of the flock, here is a shot of what I use... it is a big mix of several different types, including both coarse and fine, a few different colors, and even some ballast and the like.  The trick is that every time you dustbuster it up after a game it just gets better and better, and more and more subtle and full of different shades!


And here is my box of bushes (a few trees made their way in) for 10-15mm.  These guys are key, especially for my European battlefields, where I don't rely so heavily on fences.



So!  Here is the new table layout... meant to represent Napoleonic Spain!  The table has a few roads leading in and out, including a good crossroads at the center that will serve as a good objective.  We tried to cut on the number of trees and forests a bit, as Spain is a bit more arid than, say, France or Belgium.  We also experimented with NOT surrounding a few of the fields with bushes.


Here is a shot from the other side.  From this angle you can see the main man-made structures on the field... a large, somewhat informal orchard right at the crossroads, a very small farmhouse nearer the camera, and a larger farm compound with its own fields and orchards on the far side of the road.


Here is the first shot of the smaller farm.  The building and walls are from Timecast.  I put them all on a plastic base, plastered and sanded, and then flocked.  I am able to flock it into the table, which completely hides the edges and really makes for a nice look.  This house has a small vegetable garden out back.



Here is another shot of the small farm, this time from across the road.  Note the small path leading from the back of the house to the garden, and the longer one leading out of the photo, where the orchard at the crossroads is.  You also get a good look at my new creation, the grape vines... I think they help to give the table a very Spanish feel.




Speaking of the orchard, here it is!  You can make out the path leading from the small farm compound to the orchard. You can also see the fields on the near side of the street, and the huge boulder right at the crossroads itself! 




Here is the larger farm compound that is across the table from the farm shown above.  It is a larger house and a barn, both from Timecast.  I actually plastered the house myself, leaving exposed brick in certain spots to match the barn.  Behind the farm you can see some fields, and also a small orchard.



Here is a shot from the other side of the larger farm compound, where you can really see the fields.



Here is a closeup of the farm compound... I feel like by flocking it into the table you really don't see the edges, which looks nice.



And finally, here is a shot of the separate orchard, which for this set-up we put near the large compound.  I think the walls really turned out pretty good, and help tie it all together.  I can't wait to see some troops fighting through this place!




So!  That is the latest table... over the next day or so I'll generate a pair of forces to fight over this table!  I plan to not only have them enter at random SPOTS on the table, but at random TIMES, so it should be an interesting game!

5 comments:

Andyroo said...

Love the table as always...

Do you just loose lay / sprinkle the flock onto the table?

If so how do you stop it sticking to you / figures?

Andrew

JM said...

Very nice looking table.

Author said...

Hey ADB, Josiah!

First I put down the fields/woods/buildings.

Then I just sprinkle huge handfuls of flock on afterwards.

I'll be honest, it has never really stuck to anything... it is fairly dense, and I put it on pretty generously, so usually it just sticks to itself!:)

I cannot recommend it enough... it just makes the table look so complete and sharp.

One nice thing; I got a dustbuster for free, which I use for sucking up all the flock when I switch over the table!:)

Author said...

Oh, and do you guys think it looks more like Spain than some of my previous tables? I tried real hard to make it look different.

anthony said...

I think the sparse trees are a good idea, and the balance of terrain looks okay, though I always imagine Spain as a little hillier and drier. And I have to wonder whether all those farms need a water source?

As usual I love what you have done with your room and table, and in the next week as I move into my new place I should thank you in advance for the inspiration.