Let's Make Modular Wargaming Trench Terrain

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In this Let's Make Special, we condense all the information from the modular wargaming trenches project into a single tutorial. Covering all the relevant information you need to a make an awesome 6ft modular trench terrain system for your wargaming table.
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[@terminalvelocity3132]

Legend has it he's still cracking on.

[@ianrandall482]

As shore as the sky in England is Grey, and the weather is wet. The man is cracking on.

[@anonsenpai6533]

An absolute legend. The most enthusiastic and positive content creator in the wargaming community. Always a treat to watch your work.

[@Admu1984]

Now THAT was a masterclass!

[@BrianSurratt]

I've always been impressed by the way you interact with the camera. Make me feel like I'm in the room, even with the transitions between cameras. This video really delivered on that sense of engagement.

[@MS-uy9to]

Can i just say that i think your incredibly underrated. Love your videos and never stop making them!

[@argos4444]

totally agree

[@mikepalmer2219]

Thanks for the bit about the warping and how to prevent it. This helps me out a lot.

[@lupus224]

Fantastic work! I love the fact that they are not dry in the bottom ( they never are in real life). While I was a soldier we dug a hole in the corner of the trench ( like a tube going toward the ground), to kick the grenades in case of a push.

[@aztecjaguar6571]

Your advice to "Be a Grey Knight and fight the (MDF-PVA) Warp" has made my day - thanks for the awesome Videos Mel! And maybe one day I will final make my Imperial Trench System Modular Terrain Board. The 10 years I've been vaguely thinking about building it have been, of course, not lazy procrastination, oh no, but the "strategic planning" phase of the project.

[@verrezen]

I admire your work, mate! One question: trenches usually had scharp angeled intersections to keep blasts contained. I guess they are not very practical for wargames. What do you think?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Doable but each section was 10ft long (enought for a section) with a right angled turn. When you factor in width for playability, if you want that 1:3 playable slope, you'll need at least 26" base depth and there's no room at the back for the bunker or firepit. So not really viable for this build but if you want to do that, forget sloped scatter and do a full board build mate.

[@jaquejaque9893]

I was watching stuff about krieg yesterday. Today, I see this in my recommended and I couldn't be happier.

[@caitlynnellens1260]

I am so impressed. Your passion is infectious. Do more of these builds and videos, please.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks buddy!

[@dansolo4483]

Spots not lines. Best advice i've heard in a long time. Great tip!!

[@robertmoe5943]

I love your work. The only thing I didn't car for were the craters. Perfect circles don't appear in nature so that is why I think they stand out to me. On a hill the blast would be more of an oval. Even a fresh blast has to contend with rocks and inconsistencies in flat ground. Water would make the loose dirt run down, back into the hole. When you do your putty if you get the top and bottom wet and run your thumb down, it gives a good effect when you add your dirt. When you have two craters close together, you won't have a defined ridge between them. The new strike blows out into the old one. I don't want to sound like I am complaining or being over critical. I love your work, I just thought I would share. You could have a few that were more circular to show fresh strikes.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I covered that in depth in the second vlog mate but it got cut from this condensed version

[@jeffwalther]

I concur, the bomb holes don't look right. Otherwise fantastic work!

[@FIRSTNAMELASTNAME-zt4kf]

And it was when he said "and bottles of ports in the officers mess" and I chuckled I realized I'm a nerd who has learned to much..... Also I wish I had the patience (and space for that matter) to do something like this its absolutely amazing.

[@jordanalexander4293]

It would be awesome if you could mold the basic terrain segments and cast them in resin and add the overhanging features after.

[@JeriDro]

he has the type of British accent that I like, what region is it from? I don't care for the others

[@stevenq4859]

Add some damn ads, you deserve it.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

One at the start and one at the end bud, that'll do ;-)

[@Inquisitor_Vex]

TheTerrainTutor #notallheroeswearcapes

[@stuarthayes3788]

Love the trench, I used all your techniques to make one for my 10mm Pendragon 1st World War Infantry. I found the sandbags look like chewing gum but overcome this by pressing a cloth tea towel on them for texture (I did try using chewing gum for sand bags but you end up eating them!!) You are the best Terrain maker on the web! I am even used to you using "yeah" 1,000,000 times in a video. :-)

[@BlackDogBlues4961]

Lots of great tips and tricks here. Thanks once again Mel. Look forward to trying some of this out on some tropical bastions.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks mate

[@SIXITHS]

This could be easily combined with your method of making hills out of cork bark, to add small areas of cover and detail to the sloped approach to the trench, looking like areas of exposed rock.

[@IshanDeston]

Seeing all those green... i am once again reminded that i would love some Middle East type of landscapes... maybe some desert stuff. It would have been interesting to see how you would do a desert area for those trenches.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

It's on the list mate

[@IshanDeston]

Meh.. you just had me go through all your playlists, type up a reply telling you which ones i looked at and only just now i realize you mean the "to do" list. Anyway, i am really looking forward to it. I am really curious how you gonna do the sand and the different shades when you can't flog things. Maybe, if i could suggest, it as video for Christmas time? Because the main reason i am curious about it, is because i am working myself through a big terrain scenery piece for my mother christmas decoration.. you know some Bethlehem type of scenery. And i am curious how you'll do the sand. I mean, i am right now pretty much sifting birdsand and throwing paint at it to shade it differently. Meh... sorry, don't want to chew your ear off :) Anyway.. looking forward to it :)

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Well at least you know what videos I have done mate :-D

[@eldonevans2618]

You should work for the imperial war museum or Bovington, awsome!!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

A friend of mine does, he does Bov's 1:1 scale stuff

[@deifiedtitan]

Can tell you've been watching Luke Towan with your new techniques there, Mel. Looking great, nice job.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Which techniques?

[@davidcollins2648]

Next video needs to be how to build a new wing on your house for cheap to house all your model builds.

[@russellbrinthaupt949]

"Now just brush some pva glue on the seams of the foam board. Cracking!"

[@simorris6222]

Wow I have been looking for a more professional way of making modular terrain for Dungeons and Dragons as well as fantasy TT gaming. You have absolutely nailed it, thank you so much, your choice of materials and well explained techniques make it look so easy. Happy gaming.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Hope it helps you mate

[@ukspeedy1048]

I genuinely thought i was in the room tbh the way he speaks makes you feel like your standing in that room with him lol. His terrain is belter n all.

[@Project_Servotopia]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, I get it now... I had pulled this up on my PS4, which may give me a nice big image with a good sound but it doesn't show the description when you play it. I was like "hold up, this is beginning to sound really familiar!" :D

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Now that's funny!

[@franksmedley8619]

Hello there TTT. I have a low cost, simple solution for sandbagging. Something that will make you slap your forehead and exclaim: 'why didn't I think of that'?? Chicklets. The small, pillow shaped, candy coated pieces of gum. Yes, CANDY. All you need to do is to buy several bags of them, dump them into slightly warm water to dissolve the candy coating and rinse off and allow to dry. When they are mostly dry, you just press any tightly woven cloth across one flat side to make the 'linen bag' texture and allow to fully dry. While they are mostly damp, you can place them into position and flatten them with a fingertip, allowing the next layer to be laid flatly atop the first, onwards and upwards, layer by layer until you get the desired height. The last layer is the one where you flatten the bottom of each piece and press the linen into the surface to get the right texture. Densely spray with a 50-50 mix of white glue and water to hold everything in place, and once dry, glue the structure into place in your terrain piece. Base and paint as normal, and you're done... for a Much lesser cost that the material you used, and for less effort.

[@frankblaker8294]

You’re just getting better and better!great pace, natural and clear speaking, full of understandable info. NOT waffle at all. I loved the rationale for sloping walls in trenches.

[@yegoodoneson3477]

Mate what a fantastic video. Completely enthralled from start to finish, your skill is incredible.

[@David_Fury]

Sir? You know what? God Bless you. This channel is Amazing. Such quality. Truly inspiring. I'll be taking notes.

[@Gorbaswe]

Love the channel! :D So great tips and detail! Just going in for some warhammer 40K and this will help tons to build my own scenerey :) Cheers from sweden! :)

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Glad it's helping you buddy!

[@macavitymacavity126]

Great stuff, I miss some water pools in the craters as the pva wash hinted. But if I get the space I will replicate it as you did, love it.

[@obriwan1648]

Is this a new trench vid add-on I see?! Everything I ever wanted in a vid ty so muchhhh mel!!!

[@jasonesler2716]

Incredible! Awesome job! So talented! 👍🏻

[@Buggyismellow]

Yes!!! I've been wanting this since I've started! Thank you

[@tomasxfranco]

Looks awesome, it's great to see how passionate you are and how you document it all for the fans. The only thing I might have added would be a bit of more contrast to the craters, like some dry-brushed highlights, a dark wash, and some loose sand or rocks to break up the monotone grey a bit.

[@ShroudedSciuridae]

I've learned a TON from this channel, yeah, seriously I could watch everything you make.

[@alper8825]

Wowow this looks amazing i wanna do a smaller version of this so it fits in my room thank you!!!

[@mikepalmer2219]

Lol. Love all your bits of humor you get in through out the vids you make.

[@dist0rted320]

I love his voice, it reminds me of Moss from the IT crowd.

[@joellekarma]

Your videos have been so helpful. I am making an On30 layout. it kind of looks like 1880s to 1915 but it is a fantasy layout and I am adding hints of Nausicaa of the valley of the wind to it. I have added windmills and now I am working on the petrified fire monster and other things. I really liked this video you posted.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Hope it helps you mate

[@joshjohnston7388]

Good edit, Mel!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks matey

[@rustedrains976]

Outstanding build and great video! Wonderful work.

[@user-xp9cs6ut9n]

looks amazingly amazing, ever tried a notched trowel with maybe green drywall mud or something similar, let dry cut and sand to shape?

[@user-xp9cs6ut9n]

lol, talking sandbags here

[@polito96]

Hi Mel, love your work. Never come Ted before. I saw an older video showing how to make barbed wire. I found that pipe cleaner, those furry wire things they sell in packs. Just burn off the furry stuff and that leaves a great looking twisted wire that looks like barbed wire. Thought I'd share.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Clever crafting matey

[@gooey2137]

nothings better than a little trench foot in the morning!

[@mactire2702]

I just saw this video the other day, yesterday I started my first terrain piece!

[@jeffreygiven4713]

outstanding video.... you said the word "yeah" 1,179 times.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

its a verbal tic, a type of Tourette's

[@thomaswilliams2723]

This is some awesome work man, definitely inspired me to get back into custom terrain, and ingenious idea about the saps m ate, could bring some interesting concepts to the game, especially if you made a little snipers nest that you could place out in no man's land that was "connected" to it. But still, excellent work

[@TheTerrainTutor]

that'd be awesome mate

[@celticwanderer89]

Just like watching art attack! Love the content

[@jeanmarcgalzy7747]

Salut mon ami Félicitations pour ta vidéo J'adore ton travail 👍 Hello my friend Congratulations for your video I like your job I enjoy watching your video this is a pleasure for the eyes Congratulations my friend 👍

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thank you!

[@pmuk4]

great stuff you do TheTerrainTutor, love the vids

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Cheers mate

[@kraftwerkVS]

You are such a good guy!!! I like you very much. I wish to live in England to meet you! Greetings from Greece.

[@peterfryer9245]

Have really enjoyed your vids and learned lots - thank you

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Glad you enjoyed them buddy!

[@kenjones3715]

Just found ya, love ya work mate!, well presented and explained with an endearing enthusiasm.

[@philRminiatures]

Creativa and awesome job as usual...Congrats!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks buddy

[@mariorossi7225]

the work is wonderful, a work of art as usual, but I'm not really sure if there was plenty of grass around the trenches...

[@dennishover4803]

I enjoyed the video. That said, I collect and display my toy soldiers. I make dioramas for this purpose. The toy soldiers are nice on a shelf but you put them in a diorama and wow! I wish you had populated your wonderful finished diorama with soldiers and displayed them at the end of the video. Maybe next time. Great job. well done!

[@dreaddev]

Inspirational and brilliant!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks!

[@mevl4822]

Thanks for the great video..awesome work!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Hope it helps bud

[@primafacie5029]

Awesome work and teaching

[@Cadia541st]

love this project, looking to do something similar myself, where do you get the insulation from

[@damopaladinbecton6789]

Wow... that is amazing. You make it look so easy lol

[@Christopher19990]

Great job! What you use as "filler" ?

[@sugarsammy7209]

Good stuff. Must've took forever to get it finished.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

A while matey

[@stuarthayes3788]

Just bought your book. Wasnt cheap so I hope it turns up. Great Video just what I wanted to build so I can play "blood-and-valour"

[@TheZombiemiltant]

Amazing work and a wonderful tutorial!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Thanks buddy

[@JimBCameron]

That was absolutely wonderful to watch, I'm going to give it a go. Can I ask one thing? I've been binging on your vids & you have a wealth of knowledge on model making etc. I noticed you didn't dry brush or do any subtle sponge highlighting on this piece, can I ask what your thinking was behind that?

[@medwaymodelrailway7129]

Great video

[@RottenMechGaming]

Epic foam cutting action.

[@CrippledBeardedGypsy]

So I need to ask a (really silly) question that may or may not be relevant to this video, but I am new to building my own terrain and I'm wondering what exactly PVA glue is? whenever I ask around stores I always get the same "are you crazy?" look from people and it's really annoying so if anyone could tell me an exact brand to buy or just any help in that department would be great. And good work on your terrain builds, Mel! I've found several of your videos not only helpful, but also inspirational for making my own stuff!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

craft glue, wood glue, paper glue, elmers are all pva glues mate

[@leejohnson5539]

Looking 4 inspiration as not done models for years since I was a nipper nd never a diorama nd urs is amazing so off t spend some pennies on bits all tho will make alot me self but thank you will look for ur site as wanna learn more but u got me now been wanting to do a WW11 scene as made farm buildings etc b4 long time ago but yea thanks you ur ace lol

[@garryeckert5929]

Great mate

[@Annie.xx-xx]

Amazing video . Thank you so much 😊 🌲🪨🏰

[@sootycat1601]

legend.

[@TheOldmancrazy]

lol im starting to sound all arty.i love it!!keep up the great vids.ive learned heaps from you!!

[@angeloperini7524]

Sorry,MDF thickness is 6 MM? Many thanks for answer.

[@artsyork3915]

Superb video.

[@Longo556]

Amazing!

[@richardbezzina8449]

looking good

[@TheLizzardlicks]

bloody awsome again mel thank's mate

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Pleasure mate

[@albrechtwilhelm1174]

WoW epic

[@readhistory2023]

Yeee haw! Thank you Mel!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Pleasure matey

[@craigallison2801]

Inspirational Mel! How long does something like this take you? You make it looks so easy its really hard to get a sense of time investment in the video!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Without all the filming and youtube stuff, probably 40hrs mate

[@Ian_KH]

Lovely!

[@CaptainBipto]

Great video Mel! What do you think is the right ratio of buildings and scatter terrain for a 28mm sci-fi skirmish game? The gaming area will be a 4 x 4 board.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Depends on what sort of environment you want to build, inner city or middle of the desert?

[@CaptainBipto]

Thanks for the reply Mel. I was thinking of an urban setting.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Have a look at my TWZ build mate, that'll give you an idea

[@jasonvieau3699]

Just wondering where I can ask you a question regarding terrain bases and If you've already covered them in a different video from your terrain bases basics video

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Ask here mate

[@bigdav123456]

How would I go about Scaling this to 1/35, Obviously not all of it, but say the Middle section?. Cheers.

[@cheshire4856]

59:07 Does anyone else think that looks like a snowy cobblestone street?

[@MarshalG1110]

What do you use for barbed wire? Thanks

[@aureliomanalo]

Have you done any Dungeons and Dragons type tiles?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I leave that to the crafters mate, try TheDMGinfo or Black Magic Craft mate

[@kennethburke3149]

Just found this video. Quick question if I might. What was the total lapsed build time for this project?

[@johneberts2918]

This was great wonderful job

[@A_Random_Death_KorpOfKriegsman]

The EMPEROR APPROVES THIS MESSAGE

[@achannel1136]

This is so cool you have earned a new subscriber

[@Redrik666]

Ok I can't help it but.... You look and sound like Lentulus Batiatus from Spartacus. I keep expecting you to start bringing out gladiators

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I've always seen myself as more a Crixus character, but not the worm Batiatus!

[@rstainsbury]

Mel, where is the jablite high performance board from, please?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

B&Q mate

[@rstainsbury]

TheTerrainTutor Ta!

[@MurderHoboRPG]

Are you going to jungle these up so you can use em in your Big Bad Birma Build?

[@katebird7026]

How would you do a trench that has a lower profile to it (less of, more of a gentle a slope to the trenches, more of a dugout maybe ? Thanks from a Clueless Mum