Tabletop gaming – from war games to TTRPGs like Dungeons & Dragons or Pathfinder – is a great way to spend time with friends and family, but I can tell you from personal experience that it’s even more fun when you have your own custom-crafted terrain to play on. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned veteran, crafting your own terrain is a great way to add a personal touch to your games and make them even more immersive. Plus, you’re almost guaranteed to wow your fellow gamers!
I’m going to walk you through the basics of getting started with tabletop gaming terrain crafting – from choosing the right materials to painting your finished pieces. By the end of this post, you’ll be well on your way to creating your own amazing terrain pieces!
Choosing Your Materials
The first step in crafting tabletop gaming terrain is choosing the right materials. There are a wide variety of materials that you can use, each with its own advantages and disadvantages.
Some popular materials for tabletop gaming terrain include:
- Foam board: Foam board, or foam core is a lightweight and inexpensive material that’s easy to work with. It’s a good choice for beginners, since it’s pretty forgiving if you make mistakes. Particularly, the stuff found at Dollar Tree in the US is great.
- XPS foam: XPS foam is a more rigid material than foam board, and it’s also more durable. Since it can support more weight, it’s a good choice for more complex terrain pieces. Just look for the pink or blue foam sheets at your local big box home hardware store. (There’s also a denser kind of foam available in Europe.) You can order smaller pieces here, but buying full sheets is more economical.
- Wood: Some people like to use wood for tabletop gaming terrain. It’s durable and, of course, can be made to look very realistic. But it is – especially right now – more expensive than other materials, and it takes a lot more skill and expensive tools to work with.
- Plasticard: Plasticard is a sheet material that is often used for model building. I’ve never used it, but by all accounts, it’s a good choice for small, detailed terrain pieces.
- Papercraft: This is something else I haven’t tried my hand at, but papercraft seems to be a great way to create terrain pieces that are lightweight and easy to transport. There are tons of templates available online that you can use to create your own papercraft terrain.
Once you choose your materials, you need to gather your tools. The basic tools that you’ll need include (the links below are my Amazon Affiliate links):
- A utility knife
- A hot glue gun and glue sticks
- White glue
- A ruler or other straight edge
- A pencil – any kind will do
- Craft paints and brushes – inexpensive ones are great to start out with
Building Your Terrain
Once you’ve gathered your materials and tools, you’re ready to start building your terrain. The first step is to create a plan for your piece. This will help you to visualize the finished product and ensure that you have all of the materials and tools that you need.
Once you have a plan, you can start building your terrain. The specific steps involved will vary depending on the material that you’re using and the design of your terrain piece. But here are some general tips:
- Start by cutting out the basic shapes of your terrain piece.
- Use hot glue or white glue to attach the pieces together.
- Sand any rough edges – if you’re using a sandable material.
- Paint your piece.
- Weather your terrain piece to give it a realistic look.
Painting and Weathering Your Terrain
The final step in crafting tabletop gaming terrain is painting and weathering it. This will help to bring your terrain piece to life and make it look more realistic.
There are a lot of different ways to paint tabletop gaming terrain. You can use acrylic paints, enamel paints, or even spray paints. The specific paints that you use will depend on the material that you are using and the desired finish. For example, it’s not generally a good idea to use spray paints on foam because some of the chemicals in the spray paint can melt the material.
Once you’ve painted your terrain piece, you can weather it to give it a more realistic look. Weathering can be done using a variety of techniques, such as dry brushing, chipping, and rust effects.
Conclusion
Crafting tabletop gaming terrain really is a fun and rewarding hobby. If you follow the tips in this post, you’ll be well on your way to creating your own amazing terrain pieces. So what are you waiting for? Get started today!
Here’s an easy project to get started with.
Here are some additional tips for crafting tabletop gaming terrain:
- Get inspired by other terrain builders. There are tons of great resources available online and in hobby stores.
- Don’t be afraid to experiment. There’s no right or wrong way to craft terrain! The most important thing is to have fun and be creative.
- Share your work with others. There are great online communities – like the Tabletop Crafters Guild – where you can share your terrain builds with other enthusiasts.
I hope this has been helpful! If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment below.