Playmats and Terrain?

[plark]

What playmats does everyone use for playing at home? And what's are some good places to buy terrain and what kind?

[paradoxstorm]

I use home made stuff.  Lots of instructional videos on youtube if you like to make your own.

[dancater]

Lots of companies make nice play mats now a days.  I'd say Frontline Games FAT Mats  and Deep-Cut Studios Mats are my favorites, Deep-Cut in particular have a nice range of 3'x3' durable mats which fit Malifaux field size perfectly.

Terrain wise there is huge varieties with corresponding variations in price and quality.  Ebay has many private builders posting, many companies make everything from tress to hills and swamps (Galeforce9 used to do some great pieces I use), Plasticraft games and others do Malifaux style buildings and such and places like 4Ground, Table Top World, MicroArt Studios and others do nice resin or laser cut MDF buildings.  Then of course some terrain pro's will do custom work as well for a price.

Essentially ranging from some books, a few bits of sponge and a small sheet at the cheapest end to custom terrain tiles and pro crafted and painted terrain pieces its price which is your limiting agent and not availability if you have an internet connection.

[Rathnard]

I have one 3x3 FAT mat and I've got another on the way. My gaming club also bought another 15 FAT mats late last year and they make a huge difference to how the gaming table looks. I'd absolutely recommend them, but if you're looking for alternative products I'd suggest you go for anything that's on a mouse-pad type material. It's non-reflective (v. important) and very durable. I've seen mats with deployment zones etc marked out, but that's not a feature I'm interested in. They're only useful for as long as you play the one game applicable to those markings, and so long as that one game doesn't change editions. 

 

In terms of terrain, I've been slowly building up a collection of Western-style MDF houses and scatter terrain. There's alot of companies that sell such things. The ones I have thus far came from Aetherworks (an Australian store) and Microart studio. I also have some of the scatter terrain from Wyrd's own range, and some Renedra plastic tents, both of which are quite nice. 

Finally, I've made some trees out of pipe cleaners twisted together and glued to a base. They're not finished, but if I actually get my act together they should end up looking quite nice!

 

For what it's worth, if you know of any companies at Gencon who sell flat-packed terrain (eg. MDF or plastic buildings/scatter terrain), I'd like to know. As per above I'll be looking to expand when I'm there.  

[Shadowopal]

I have owned mats from 3 companies: 2 mousepad and about 15 from Mats By Mars (vinyl). My needs are a little different as I run large tournaments. But the qualities I look for in my mats are the same I would use at home:

Durability, spill proof, clear marking when needed and subtle when you don't, easy to store and variety. All the mats I have owned have most of these qualities. But the mousepad mats are lacking in spill proof , subtle markings and easy to store (to some degree). If you are only going to own one mat, it obviously wont take much space. But be careful of storing them in heat. I left one in the trunk of my car in summer heat for a weekend and the foam backing had turned to dust. This may vary from company to company. Just saying be aware. I have stored vinyl mats in the trunk  in heat with no issues. Multiple mousepads are bulkier and heavier than vinyl. I carry all my vinyl mats in 2 drafting tubes over my shoulder and barely notice them. 15 mousepads would not be possible in one trip.

I also found the deployment and scoring markings to be more pronounced on the mousepad mats. But again, i only bought from two companies so others may be more subtle. If you don't mind the markings jumping out at you during games, then this will not be an issue for you.

The mousepad mat that was not destroyed by heat had a regular coke spilled on it and became sticky even though I stopped the game and tried washing it right away. It absorbed both drink and soapy water. I dont use that mat anymore either. 2 mousepads cost me 100 dollars without shipping. Not happy to lose that much money. It will keep me away from mousepad. But if you and your opponents are less clumsy than I, they may work for you.

[JoeJones]

I own a Mats by Mars vinyl mat with Malifaux grid markings (deployment, scheme & strategy zones) and Western buildings & rail cars from Angry Mojo Games. I am very happy with both mat & terrain.

 

The Malifaux group at my FLGS has 2 mousepad-type mats and several Mats by Mars, along with a bunch of assorted terrain - both purpose-designed gaming terrain and other items (aquarium scenery, holiday decorations) repurposed to gaming terrain use. 

[-Loki-]

I've got a double sided mat from playmats.eu and Plastcraft terrain (which I direly need more of). Both sides have M2E deployment and scheme and strategy markings.

This is one side (their dark island mat).

This is the other, their victorian pavement mat.

[Omenbringer]

I either use mats I have made myself or 18" x 18" vinyl floor tiles, both are cheap and easy to make (especially if you want to make more than a few). With that said the expanding crop of vinyl mats are beginning to catch my eye, particularly now that the cost is almost as low as what it costs me to produce my own. Aside from the companies already mentioned I might recommend a look at Game Matz, one of my regular players got in on their kickstarter and they are definitely nice. As a bonus they are also fairly inexpensive. They offer both regular Vinyl mats and their "Pro Mats" which have the rubber backing.

[edopersichetti]

On 7/17/2016 at 8:31 PM, dancater said:

Lots of companies make nice play mats now a days.  I'd say Frontline Games FAT Mats  and Deep-Cut Studios Mats are my favorites, Deep-Cut in particular have a nice range of 3'x3' durable mats which fit Malifaux field size perfectly.

Terrain wise there is huge varieties with corresponding variations in price and quality.  Ebay has many private builders posting, many companies make everything from tress to hills and swamps (Galeforce9 used to do some great pieces I use), Plasticraft games and others do Malifaux style buildings and such and places like 4Ground, Table Top World, MicroArt Studios and others do nice resin or laser cut MDF buildings.  Then of course some terrain pro's will do custom work as well for a price.

Essentially ranging from some books, a few bits of sponge and a small sheet at the cheapest end to custom terrain tiles and pro crafted and painted terrain pieces its price which is your limiting agent and not availability if you have an internet connection.

I am looking for a good mat also but I'm a bit doubtful...both of the companies you mention make beautiful rubber-backed mats but FLG mats don't have the Malifaux grid and Deep-Cut Studios have a grid, but it is not 100% complete (lacking the larger circle used for Turf War, for instance). So great mats but not 100% perfect for me.

On the other hand, Mats from Mars has a perfect grid, but seems to only produce Vinyl mats - which I would really rather not.

I even checked some companies in Europe, there's quite a few, but none of them seem to have the perfect fit: they either have no grid, or an incomplete grid, or aren't neoprene (rubber). 

So...I'm still looking and I would appreciate some guidance like the OP!

[edopersichetti]

On 7/18/2016 at 7:52 PM, Omenbringer said:

I either use mats I have made myself or 18" x 18" vinyl floor tiles, both are cheap and easy to make (especially if you want to make more than a few). With that said the expanding crop of vinyl mats are beginning to catch my eye, particularly now that the cost is almost as low as what it costs me to produce my own. Aside from the companies already mentioned I might recommend a look at Game Matz, one of my regular players got in on their kickstarter and they are definitely nice. As a bonus they are also fairly inexpensive. They offer both regular Vinyl mats and their "Pro Mats" which have the rubber backing.

Hi! I had seen those: in fact, they seem the only ones that fit my needs (rubber backing with an accurate grid) but I don't think they're inexpensive at all: the rubber ones are 70$ each which is insane considering that most other companies range from 25$ to 45$...

What material do you make your own with? I'm very skeptical about the Vinyl (a la Mats by Mars, for example) as I find them a bit too shiny and they seem more flimsy than the rubber ones.

[edopersichetti]

On 7/18/2016 at 7:05 PM, -Loki- said:

I've got a double sided mat from playmats.eu and Plastcraft terrain (which I direly need more of). Both sides have M2E deployment and scheme and strategy markings.

This is one side (their dark island mat).

This is the other, their victorian pavement mat.

These look nice and they are very cheap, especially considering they are rubber/neoprene - but I can't get over the fact that the grid is incomplete. It might seem petty, but if you have a grid, you might as well have a good one (there is a larger circle that is used for Turf War since there is a 30mm marker on the center).

[-Loki-]

2 hours ago, edopersichetti said:

These look nice and they are very cheap, especially considering they are rubber/neoprene - but I can't get over the fact that the grid is incomplete. It might seem petty, but if you have a grid, you might as well have a good one (there is a larger circle that is used for Turf War since there is a 30mm marker on the center).

The larger 6" circle is there. You can see it on the pavement mat.

This is a double sided PVC mat, not neoprene. But yes, quite cheap until you put in shipping.

[Adran]

1 hour ago, -Loki- said:

The larger 6" circle is there. You can see it on the pavement mat.

This is a double sided PVC mat, not neoprene. But yes, quite cheap until you put in shipping.

What edopersichetti is saying is it doesn't have the 6"15mm (I hate mixing units like that) circle that is actually the turf war scoring area. 

[H4ml3t]

I was skeptical about  vinyl mats until I went to a tournament that used them and saw them in person. I now love my Mats by Mars mats--the quality and durability are great and the grid is there which is super useful but it's subtle enough to not be distracting. Just my .02

[edopersichetti]

9 hours ago, Adran said:

What edopersichetti is saying is it doesn't have the 6"15mm (I hate mixing units like that) circle that is actually the turf war scoring area. 

Yep, this. I actually found it quite useful, for example in Henchman Hardcore where you have to score Turf War and pretty much just that

I'm inclined to for for neoprene/rubber as I like that it won't curl or get ruined very easily - I just don't know if I can pay 70$ for it

[Paddywhack]

On 7/18/2016 at 4:05 PM, -Loki- said:

I've got a double sided mat from playmats.eu and Plastcraft terrain (which I direly need more of). Both sides have M2E deployment and scheme and strategy markings.

I love their mats, but the first one I got I tried to get double-sided with markings on both and they didn't match up properly with the markings. At first I marked it out on each side and cut off excess, but the mat was then a weird size with black taped edges. I just said screw it and cut it so one side is accurate. I can't use the other though as the markings are wrong. Your's looks correct though. Did you order one of the pre-made double-sided?

I find their material, which is different than most other companies, lays flat much easier than my Vinyl mat.

For terrain I really like 4Ground's prepainted stuff. Impudent Mortal has some nice stuff for MDF, but I really like their Rust set, which is MDF with stickers, so it's kinda pre-painted (https://www.impudentmortal.com/product-category/terrain/28mm-terrain/rust/).

I also like this company, again prepainted stuff (seeing a theme?), though they do take a while, they list their soonest ship time on the front page, and the buildings are a tad on the small side (though I would argue that helps gameplay): http://crescent-root.com/pages/Product/28mm/28mm.html

[-Loki-]

3 hours ago, Paddywhack said:

I love their mats, but the first one I got I tried to get double-sided with markings on both and they didn't match up properly with the markings. At first I marked it out on each side and cut off excess, but the mat was then a weird size with black taped edges. I just said screw it and cut it so one side is accurate. I can't use the other though as the markings are wrong. Your's looks correct though. Did you order one of the pre-made double-sided?

No, it was a custom 2 sided mat. None of the pre-done Malifaux mats were what I was after.

 

5 hours ago, edopersichetti said:

Yep, this. I actually found it quite useful, for example in Henchman Hardcore where you have to score Turf War and pretty much just that

I'm inclined to for for neoprene/rubber as I like that it won't curl or get ruined very easily - I just don't know if I can pay 70$ for it

Never noticed that. Not sure it's ever come up when we play Turf War, but I'll remember it for future games. I'm sure if you ask they could put the extra circle on there.

The PVC they use doesn't take long to flatten out, and as long as you keep it in its tube you couldn't have any problems with damage.

[Paddywhack]

20 minutes ago, -Loki- said:

No, it was a custom 2 sided mat. None of the pre-done Malifaux mats were what I was after.

Well, now I'm annoyed. I got a custom mat too, but the centers were off by about an inch, so each side had lines slightly off. It was also not cut down to 3x3, but had extra. If I order from them again I'm going to ask about that. 

[Omenbringer]

On 1/29/2018 at 10:41 PM, edopersichetti said:

What material do you make your own with? I'm very skeptical about the Vinyl (a la Mats by Mars, for example) as I find them a bit too shiny and they seem more flimsy than the rubber ones.

Sorry for the delay in response.

For my mats I use cotton drop cloths like these below for my foundational layer (provides strength, pliability, and texture increases adhesion).

They are available fairly inexpensively at the DIY stores and one will provide multiple mats. A 9' by 12' seamless cotton drop cloth made from 8 oz Canvas runs for about $25.00 on Amazon.

I wash and dry mine before applying the next layer to remove any unwanted "mystery" coatings and also improve adhesion ability by fluffing up the fibers. If you have creases you can apply the iron to it to smooth them out but I don't find it necessary usually.

This next step gets messy so be careful where you do it. I apply a line of Paint-able Latex Caulk and work it into the canvas to form a thin layer that just starts to obfuscate the canvas texture beneath. This takes some time but is made easier by a smooth trowel. These are what I use:

It might be worth buying a contractors pack if you plan on making a few mats as you will use at least a tube and a half on each one. They should cost about $2.00 per tube. A smooth trowel looks like this:

See if you can get one in plastic so you decrease the risk of cutting the canvas cloth when working the caulk in. The cost about $6.00 though can get more expensive if you want a long blade instead of a smaller one.

Once you have that first layer on, let it sit for a day to insure the latex is fully dried. Now you could just leave it like this and apply a thin acrylic paint to it but I like more mat with a little more feel to it. I apply another layer of the caulk (slightly thicker than the first) and this time, instead of smoothing it out with the trowel, I use a ball of crumpled aluminum foil to dab and pull up on the caulking. This introduces a slight spiky texture that does a fair job of mimicking grass without being delicate or distracting. You will need to replace the ball of aluminum periodically. You can also try using a sponge, but it didn't work for me when I used it (the sponge clogs easily and you then have to clean it, too much work when the aluminum ball works better.

Again give the mat at least a day to dry. Before applying paint roll the mat up to see if it cracks. If it does try and reseal it with a bit of caulk.

When you paint the mat apply one to two thin coats and then seal it with a spray on matte sealant.

It isn't difficult and if you go in with a group you can keep the cost down to a very reasonable $10-15 per mat.

Hopefully that helps. If you want I can post pictures of mine later.

[edopersichetti]

17 hours ago, Omenbringer said:

Sorry for the delay in response.

For my mats I use cotton drop cloths like these below for my foundational layer (provides strength, pliability, and texture increases adhesion).

They are available fairly inexpensively at the DIY stores and one will provide multiple mats. A 9' by 12' seamless cotton drop cloth made from 8 oz Canvas runs for about $25.00 on Amazon.

I wash and dry mine before applying the next layer to remove any unwanted "mystery" coatings and also improve adhesion ability by fluffing up the fibers. If you have creases you can apply the iron to it to smooth them out but I don't find it necessary usually.

This next step gets messy so be careful where you do it. I apply a line of Paint-able Latex Caulk and work it into the canvas to form a thin layer that just starts to obfuscate the canvas texture beneath. This takes some time but is made easier by a smooth trowel. These are what I use:

It might be worth buying a contractors pack if you plan on making a few mats as you will use at least a tube and a half on each one. They should cost about $2.00 per tube. A smooth trowel looks like this:

See if you can get one in plastic so you decrease the risk of cutting the canvas cloth when working the caulk in. The cost about $6.00 though can get more expensive if you want a long blade instead of a smaller one.

Once you have that first layer on, let it sit for a day to insure the latex is fully dried. Now you could just leave it like this and apply a thin acrylic paint to it but I like more mat with a little more feel to it. I apply another layer of the caulk (slightly thicker than the first) and this time, instead of smoothing it out with the trowel, I use a ball of crumpled aluminum foil to dab and pull up on the caulking. This introduces a slight spiky texture that does a fair job of mimicking grass without being delicate or distracting. You will need to replace the ball of aluminum periodically. You can also try using a sponge, but it didn't work for me when I used it (the sponge clogs easily and you then have to clean it, too much work when the aluminum ball works better.

Again give the mat at least a day to dry. Before applying paint roll the mat up to see if it cracks. If it does try and reseal it with a bit of caulk.

When you paint the mat apply one to two thin coats and then seal it with a spray on matte sealant.

It isn't difficult and if you go in with a group you can keep the cost down to a very reasonable $10-15 per mat.

Hopefully that helps. If you want I can post pictures of mine later.

That's badass. Yes please, pictures would be great!

[Paddywhack]

Sounds great, but man that sounds like a lot of work.