WW2 1/48th scale buildings and terrain
Guys-
It looks like a slow time for folks this summer, so I thought I'd post something I was working on and just finished. Its a Soviet work house for more of my 'East Front' (and more than likely, Stalingrad) games.
I did it using 1/48th scale parts and materials (though the core of it is foamcore, not balsa wood etc. like the pros use.) I'm not a 'fine scale' modeler (like some of my buddies are) so i do not profess any accuracies or great skill. I build my stuff to the best of my abilities and with an eye that they are in the end, gaming pieces, not dioramas. As you can tell from the photos, the roof comes off, the 2nd floor as well down to the first floor. I made it so folks could use the building defensively in a game with several rooms to 'fall back to', but still have room for the figures and our big hands to move them in and out (we have allot of big hands in our group!)
I also placed a shot with 2 VFM™ figures alongside a 1/48th Tamyia model of Rommel as well as one of my remaining Foundry™ field police models to show the scales. The Foundry model is more a of what folks call a 'true 25mm' figure, and it is a bit smaller (all are based on the same slot bases so the comparisons are good.) The Tamiya™ AB-41and the Hobby Boss™ T-34 are 1/48th scale as well.
I am currently working on more of these types of buildings using these or similar materials. I find that they are quite a bit more expensive, and this is why in the past, I steered away from them. But I am liking the results. I just hope it will work with my other pieces I have built and not looked too out of place. As my other pieces are more 'game terrain' (more about looks and usability in a game, plus durability... allot less focus on 'true' scales and the like.) This was my first attempt at making something out of 'true 1/48th' scale stuff. Here's hoping! (wince)
Hope you all enjoyed.
I look forward to hearing about other's modeling/game terrain that they used in their games.
Ciao!
-Tony
WOW. Nice work, Tony. That house is terrific. Really nice job on the fireplace and chimney too. You rarely see someone take the time to paint the mortar a white-ish color after they've washed the bricks or stones. Love the weathering of the floors and doors.
VERY nice. It's important to use enough detail to get the "wow" factor, but not so much as to make it unusable for gaming. You've got it just right!
Thanks Dean, That really means allot.
I know for many guys, we do not get to show off our models and terrain as much as we'd like to due to (1) once the game gets going, there is really little time to actually 'take in' the models and terrain as much as we might want to.(I've always wanted to ask guys how they did certain things, paints etc. but mid game its kinda not the time and the place) (2) just not making it to allot of game where we can show off particular items. Some stuff just never really sees the light of day while other models keep getting pulled out at every game. (My King Tigers have only hit the table once. My Stugs III have been in half the fights we did.) I thought I might share stuff as i do it, so to allow for this 'moment' to happen, so to speak. I know there must be many of us here that have some great models, techniques etc. they want to share.
AS for the floors and the like, thanks. I know there is more weathering that needs to be done, but what I have certainly is a start. The trick for me is, to do enough without going over board. I wanted some chipping on the sills and the like, but I didn't want it to look like a 100 year old unused building. Its a thin line between 'worn and used' and 'decrepit and about to catch fire'.
The floors themselves are all made of wood planks made of .. coffee stirrers. Pretty funny, eh? I'm always trying to make sure I keep it all as cheap as I can .. while still making it look cool. The most expensive part of the whole model was the 1/48th scale plastic windows and doors. The stairs were a cast I made in resin years ago. The window panes (which were a pain to put in) were made of the plastic sheets my girl's Barbie dolls are packaged in. (And my kid is 16 now, so thats how long I keep things around for gaming projects!) I'll be doing some more heavily ruined versions of this building next. (Many of the work houses were in rows in Stalingrad, so I'm stuck doing a few 'repeats' to get the 'look' right.)
I look forward to hearing or seeing any stuff you all have.
I'll be posting more shots of stuff I have here. I have a PILE thats slowly coming together...all of it in preparation for next years HUZZAH! ...but I'll prolly wanna run some 'tests' first at our next Club game date in ... what October?
TTYL...Tony
Tkindred -
Yea.. you're totally right. The thing with this all is that delicate balance between having a usable (and durable) model that can stand up to the rigors of being pack, unpacked, moved, handled etc. that wargaming IS, but get enough 'wow' factor as you say, so as to make it more than just a 'place holder' in the game. I used to make things as durable as possible, but that often made things a bit .. er .. too utilitarian. I mean, it still looked cool, and functioned very well for gaming, but my piece lacked the attention I felt, later, they needed. As time has moved on, I've tried to get things to be more of a compromise between the two.
There is some incredible models out there that professional modelers have done (we even have a few of these 'fine scale' modelers in our group here.) but they were never meant to be handled let alone played with. One of my old sayings was "If you can't bare the image of it broken on the game room floor, you prolly shouldn't game with it." because more than often, thats what ends up happen at some point to at least a few items. So getting that durable, but still cool looking model is a trick for sure.
-Tony
Tony,
Yes, we will have a game day in October.
I use coffee stirrers as well. Great stuff. They make appearances in my Old West town. I once stopped by a Starbucks and asked if they had some for a project I was doing with kids, and they gave me a whole case...and yes, there really was a project with kids!
That building looks very good. Congrats on an effort well done!
Gamespoet-
Thank you. I am looking forward to making it to CRG (sometime!) and actually getting to roll dice with you ..and hopefully sooner than later, ... on some of this terrain. :-)
Wayne has a real nice collection of stuff, so we all should have some great fun on some great looking tables.
Looking forward to it.
-Tony
