Easy terrain for a small table

[Delvian]

Hey folks

I've been doing lots of research on the right way to get a nice Malifaux table. I want some pre-made terrain that will do a fine job now for not too much money. Then later on, once I'm used to the system & painted a fair bit (whilst continuing my other miniature games), ill expand my table for greater variety.

With this in mind, I'm eyeing up 4ground and Sarissa. I already know there is a lot of info about Sarissa on this forum, but not as much on 4ground. So what I'm asking is does anyone have any experience with 4ground terrain (in particular their renaissance range).

How big are they, would 2 or 3 buildings do for a small to medium size table? and most importantly, how does the scale fit with Malifaux? It's 28mm, whereas the Sarissa is heroic. How much of a problem is this?

Obvious answer would be to go for Sarissa, but I really like the 4ground because its more versatile. Initially I'll get a few trees & make a small village in the woods kind of table, but later on when I expand it would also look great in a city kind of table...

If anyone can help, particularly with the scale issue, or to suggest an alternative, I'd be very grateful

[Webmonkey]

I'd say get pre-made buildings and trees and such from your local hobby store. Usually designed for model trains and the like. It's a fast way to get a decent looking table. But if you just need terrain to learn to play around,.. then simple cardboard boxes can represent buildings.

[Alfndrate]

I would also suggest picking up Gale Force 9 and Pegasus Hobbies terrain stuff too... decently cheap, pre-painted, good quality, and ready to use out of the box

[Delvian]

Webmonkey, I did want some terrain that will last though, so I can expand later on. Then I can have a varied table that could be a village or a city or woods, perfect for a narrative campaign

Alfndrate, they look great thanks. I like the giant stone crystals from gale force 9. Worlds biggest soulstone?!?!

[sassylady]

I love Gale Force 9 a lot and the stuff is great & really good quality. I have also used Pegasus. It's nice too once you get it together. I've struggled a little with some things but its worth it for the price and how they look when finished.

[Gadrean]

Hi Delvian, if you dont mind doing a bit of painting i've got some nice scatter scenery from Tiny Worlds Wargaming. I've had walls, rocky outcrops and crates from them and its all solid resin so it should last reasonably well.

Im a big fan of the Pegasus wizards tower as well. I havn't got one yet but it looks like it would make a great centre piece.

[Serigala]

I can vouch for the Heroic Sarissa. I have their large and small buildings, and also the stable, church and hotel. All them have removable rooves (and in the case of the 2 storey buildings top floor can also be removed) making the models very playable inside and out. Though we rarely choose to use the insides of the buildings, it is nice to have the option.

I have developed the rest of our terrain to match a desert or Old West town theme, so have cactus patches and sandstone monoliths on sandy boards (this again makes the hills very playable as rocky ledges look more natural than stepped hills). Another club I go to usually plays the same buldings interspersed with trees to good effect. You'll never get a Victorian town look, but you can create an Old West town easily enough, which would play just the same way. I played a game on Thursday with nine buildings giving two separate 'streets'.

The Sarissa models are also very storable and they stand up well to the rigors of club use.

I did see a comparison of 5 different Old West MDf including Sarissa buildings in this blog:

http://wargamesandrailroads.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/28mm-old-west-laser-cut-buildings.html

[Delvian]

Thanks Serigala. The fact that you upgraded the Sarissa table to a town is just what I'm after, and that it looked good with trees. If I go the Sarissa route I was thinking of a Canadian logger kind of environment (hopefully the Sarissa would just about pass for this with the wood finish), then having a Wild West town and a desert, so 3 tables in total.

[Heisler]

I have only worked with 4Ground's 15mm buildings, but they are really nice. The only issue you might have with 4Ground is that they don't do any western buildings. The majority of their line is WWII although they do some very nice Renaissance and ECW buildings. Your problem with these is they are going to be very, very European looking and really don't fit in well with the western motif.

I have some pictures of the 15mm 4Ground kits on my blog:

http://wargamesandrailroads.blogspot.com/2012/10/review-4ground-15mm-europe-at-war.html

[harbinger]

Seriously just make your own. I have zero artistic ability and was able crank out usable buildings at a fraction of the cost. Imagined what someone with just a tadbit of skill could do.

http://www.wyrd-games.net/showthread.php?36564-crapy-pics-of-terrain-lt-image-heavy-gt&p=467176#post467176

[Heisler]

Mostly its a matter of where I want to spend my time. Personally I want to spend my time painting than scratchbuilding scenery. Now I have three buildings planned out that I will be building because no one makes something that's close. They will be signature buildings and those I want to make. Its just a matter of where you want to spend your time.

[harbinger]

Describe what you after.

[Delvian]

I'm after buildings with an interior. Ideally 4ground, but I'm not sure on the size & scale (they are 28mm).

I would like a kit to start with, easy to go up just to get going. Then later on I can expand by adding more for a city, and building trees & area terrain myself for a village in the woods kind of look.

I'm starting Malifaux with someone who has never played Wargames before. I wanted some scenery because I really think it will add perspective and be more exciting for a new player. That being said, I don't want to fork out loads of money (hence just 2 or 3 buildings) or spend loads of time making it all myself until I know that my gaming partner is going to enjoy it! You can pick up buildings from 4ground and Sarissa for £9 (like $15)

[Heisler]

4Ground doesn't make any western style buildings, their 17th Century European buildings are quite nice. I'm not sure that I would be that concerned with the scale. Pretty much all you are going to find on the market are buildings designed, more or less, for 28mm miniatures. Interiors are relative, no one really does interiors beyond an engraved floor, although the Knuckleduster/Tri-City Laser buildings do have some that come with interiors like their saloon and general store. I think being able to use the inside of the building is good enough for gaming purposes. I think your best bets are Sarissa and Battle Flag, although the Battle Flag buildings are more expensive. Battle Flag does some extra detailing that you won't find on most of the buildings from other Manufacturers. I have not seen anyone producing pre-painted western buildings.

[Patchwork]

You might check out your local pet shop for aquarium decor. Lots of it is the right scale, is inexpensive, and pre-painted.

[Kalkris]

For natural terrain, I second Patchwork's suggestion for sure.

As for buildings, I'm not sure what to say. unpainted terrain can be painted, even in a rudimentary fashion, and work just fine. If you want to put in very little effort in buildings besides paying, you may have to go big on the purchase, or otherwise go unpainted... Some companies might be rather steep with painted terrain (although to be honest, this isn't quite my area of expertise).

Best of luck!

~Lil Kalki

[Spifferson]

I think it is ideal to have some mid sized pieces that can easily be rearranged between games.

In my area I have seen the AT-43 shipping containers used but they are harder to find these days, personally I settled on a modern military kit from the hobby shop. I have also bought a couple of civil war "officer's tent" plastic toys from the big box craft store.(use a coupon)

http://reigningreplicas.com/collection/collectionproductlist?collection_id=17&group_id=5&productid=650704

The tents are a good example as you can create a theme just by arranging them differently, say circled vs. spread out.

Edited February 15, 2013 by Spifferson

[jmp_mydog]

There's a large number of prefab western style building available at the moment as well as several commission painters that do custom terrain as well. Might be just what you're looking for.

Here's some of my favorites:

http://www.burnindesigns.net/2012/10/welcome-to-rock-ridge.html

http://www.twilightemporium.net/online-store/

http://store.gcmshop.com/c/127/28mm-wild-west

[Guest]

you can check out the buildings I make, specifically for Malifaux

http://dragonartmodels.com/productsbuildings.html

[suxxess]

As an owner of quite a few diffrent laser-cut Western houses from Sarissa, GameCraft, 4Ground and Battleflags here's my opinions.

As a first buy I would strongly recommend the Street with no Name kit from Battle-Flags. While In my opinion their other stuff is a bit on the expensive side this deal is really worth it. You get four medium sized buildings small enough to be just an other house and detailed enough to represent some more noticeable establishment with the right sign added. Also with only £5 battle-flag offer cheap international shipping.

For variety I've got western houses from Sarissa (my first buy), outhouses and wagons (a superb add-on for the table) from 4Ground (availible in my LGS). A good thing with these three producers are that they match up perfectly color- and size vise.

Also if you don't want to paint or not want to paint more than a few details i would advice strongly against GameCraft, the use a yellowish MDF which looks a bit of. Also GameCraft-stuff have a bit smaller details (ex. doorways and the wallplanks) than the other mentioned ranges. That said their stuff are well done and really nice as long as you bother to paint it.

[Heisler]

I'm going to resurrect this thread a bit because 4Ground now offers a line of western buildings. For some side by side comparison shots go here:

http://wargamesandrailroads.blogspot.com/2013/08/28mm-laser-cut-western-buildings-side.html

For some idea of how they go together check this link for my construction photos for the Side Street Building:

http://wargamesandrailroads.blogspot.com/2013/08/building-4ground-dead-mans-hand-side.html

And here for a 2 Story Main Street Building: http://wargamesandrailroads.blogspot.com/2013/08/building-4ground-dead-mans-hand-main.html

Brigade Games sells them in the US: http://www.brigadegames.com/Western_c_482.html

Or Great Escape Games in the UK (these were designed for their Dead Man's Hand Wild West Games) and they have some package deals: http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/deadmanshand.html

Or directly from 4Ground (also in the UK): http://www.4ground.co.uk/