Making Urban Wargaming Boards

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In this video, I take you through the whole process of creating the urban zombie apocalypse boards I did for the Turf War Z project. I go through creating the boards, roads, pavements (sidewalks) along with all the painting, detailing and weathering technique.
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[@roblindsay3422]

For a concrete effect, I stumbled across something quite nice while I was making my gaming table: in a bowl, mix up some fine sand, grey paint, pva glue and polyfilla, it forms a kind of paste that can be painted onto a surface, keys well and cures like rock, quick drybrush with light grey and a thin black wash makes it really pop. The PVA stops the polyfilla from cracking and gives it a little bit of flex

[@hampusnorlander2002]

"If it dries whilst it's still wet, yeah you're gonna have problems" -Mel 2017 You're absolute gold mate

[@TheTerrainTutor]

A true melism

[@jaraxel888]

These boards look absolutely incredible!

[@timppako]

You're a treasure trove of inspiration Mel! Keep up the good work!

[@Hobbyrepubliken]

Loved it. But I have to say I'm not a fan of the clump foliage on the road. It doesn't look like it have spread naturally.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

yeah, could have done better on that part

[@VaSoapman]

The only real issue with it is that it is too regular. So it ends up having the same effect that the 1 inch grid does. You might be able to do something with grit and paint to make the current look less jarring.

[@lucioluciolucio85]

Agree, clump foliage seems too much schematized. Should be more on the road borders (first grass always growns on the borders) plus some different foliage with a random scheme on the road, but all considering is a nice piece of terrain

[@Hobbyrepubliken]

Yeah that was what I was thinking. It looks to regular, zooming in on one piece and it looks ok.

[@hazed1009]

lucioluciolucio85 a good source for inspiration on doing a random natural look is some of the model railway dioramas you can find on utube, there's some cool videos on how they do it - one I liked was about making natural looking cracks on California roads (highway look tar filled cracks) I think terrain builder wanted to show a quick solution to a build rather than present some masterpiece of realism, he's quite capable of doing much more like adding longer grass and more detail check out the Normandy beach one ;) I agree tho the clumps need something to naturalise them if you're after a show board once you add old bins and burned out cars and rubbish this would look fantastic I think, oh don't forget the OBLIGATORY shopping trolleys strewn about hehe great work terrain builder and again it does inspire us to have a go so thanks for that

[@nicholasiannitti9277]

Just starting to take my 40K gaming hobby from models only to terrain building as well...these videos are phenomenal! Thank you for the level of detail provided!

[@banjoman87]

Love the outcome! This tutorial is especially timely for me since I just started in on a modular urban terrain board for Warhammer 40k (using 2 foot square expanded foam insulation boards as my base instead of the MDF). I was running into problems making my roads and concrete look good, so I'll definitely be following your tutorial for those!

[@michielkruijff895]

I love this channel. Your demeanor makes this just so pleasant to watch and follow. Well done!.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

thanks!

[@Brenneke]

Been part of the playtest team for TWZ for the past year, it's a lot of fun, and it's going to look spectacular on this table. Inspiring stuff, Mel.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Can't wait to see games on it

[@mikepalmer2219]

I am currently working on a lot of terrain for a 40k apocalypse city board. This video has given me several ideas. Thanks so much for making this video.

[@JERRYSAUTOS]

I would've never thought to use sand paper for pavement this vid helped alot

[@michaelmanning5379]

Tar roofing tiles makes good tarmac. It's easy to distress and you can cut in pot holes and cracks. Nit pick: each corner should have two thin white lines (the crosswalk) and a fat white line that reaches only to the centre - the stop line.

[@timothycollins2985]

Very interesting. I may use this idea to make some tiles for a Stalingrad board

[@jasonmyersOU812]

This is a beautiful bit of work mate. Well done!

[@bryanatocalagarrison4519]

Great work, Mel!

[@thysvandenbos1324]

Love your work, Mel!

[@johnparks7489]

Using masking tape can allow color bleeds under the edge. (Not likely with air brush though) To avoid this paint a first coat with the same color as the masked off area first. This seals the edge and any bleeding will match the main color. Once dry then use the line color. You could use a matt spray if needing to preserve the dry brush color like in these boards.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Oh nice tip mate, I went for the airbrush to avoid the bleed I've had in the past so well happy with that nugget of info :-D

[@SmallBEANville]

"Giving it a little wiggle" should be a universal term used for various scenarios now. Lol! Great job on the video, and keep them coming!

[@Papahoodoo]

Looks to nice. Those roads are in better shape then all the roads in my city lol.

[@mrmatt2466]

Definitely not English roads 🤣

[@cristagc3259]

como siempre, estupendo. Muy ilustrativo.

[@frankjandris6972]

got a yank here who loves your videos. inspired me to make a diorama for one of my tank models.

[@TheSuburbanScumbag]

Great job Mel. Really good job mate

[@Tk5869]

Wonderful

[@funnyandrandommoments1796]

You have a talent!

[@miryamgn91]

Nice Angron on your wall, great videos mate, keep it up

[@newtpondskipper]

Great stuff.

[@philipadubose]

very nice work.

[@ruaridhmackenzie3215]

HANDY HINT: Notice the way Mel removed to tape at an side angle? well he does and it's far better to do that than to pull straight up which increases the chances or pulling whatever is stuck down off!

[@JupiKitten]

Ruaridh Mackenzie Good to point that out. Second nature for me personally, but very likely not so for everyone especially people who are new to the hobby or art projects in general.

[@Whiskyjumper]

Very nice! Excellent tutorial. I want to try this for The Walking Dead: All out War. Thank you!

[@darkpath6234]

Epic as hell Mel.

[@Eduardoalbaladejomendez]

great job,mate !

[@travishardinger7018]

Thanks for doing this video, I have been wanting to do a table for Batman by Knight Models. All I need is the time to do it.

[@familyofgamers777]

Awesome tutorial!

[@JaeEffSea]

should use a marker pen and draw cracks on the road. dark grey rectangles on the road and a black border would look like road repairs.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I'll try that next time bud, thanks for the heads up

[@paulcoy9060]

That is the mark of a very confident local government, to initiate "road repairs" during a Zombie Apocalypse / Gang War Uprising.

[@JupiKitten]

Pretty sure he's talking about making the roads look old and worn and covered in patch repairs from BEFORE the apocalypse, just sayin'...

[@josdijkstra5937]

Awesome!

[@villth]

now i want to make new table :) great video 👍

[@jonathondaniels2127]

This is ace. Bit heavy on the greenery for my taste but some great ideas to take away. Thanks.

[@mr.han-nah1119]

Thank you great video so informative.

[@simoncoad2736]

great looking board, would love to play on it :)

[@hardasanut]

Looks like great general purpose television show city block tiles! For a grittier or more cinematic Los Angeles look, they can definitely be a lot more weathered and faded, even before the apocalypse. Most details could apply to other settings too, but I live in L.A. and I don't want to presume for other settings. I guess the highlight is that most Los Angeles roads, including residential and commercial areas, tend to look like pale gray base with 1x1 to 4x8 foot sections near the curbsides that are mostly cracked or bumpy/wavy/sagging re-repaired asphalt, or quickly-patched raised flat steel rectangles or darker patches of newer asphalt, or are rarely open potholes showing fresh dirt underneath. There are also very common features besides flagstones and gutters, such as storm drains (where gutters go), Stop signs or traffic lights, and faded red no parking paint on corner curb edges wherever there isn't a wheelchair ramp. Driveway ramps are also pretty standard even where building sizes prevent car access, making a ramp unnecessary (old driveway, newer bigger building). These are all features that can give a realistic, well-used look, as well as visually breaking up the terrain and providing natural spots for foliage to grow, including in the middle of the road once an apocalypse ends regular foliage-crushing road traffic. Parked cars would also be much more familiar than none, and in an apocalypse they would be in various stages of being stripped for parts or burned out. The areas where the older style of buildings appear would have much worse roads (and even in richer neighborhoods, only the downtown business areas and suburbs have fresh looking darker pavement). Most roads, including many going through residential areas, have radially-cracked areas and potholes (showing exposed earth) from where bus and utility truck tires roll over daily, especially where the underlying ground is crap, then selected raised and lowered wavy/bumpy parts where road patches (and multiple repatching) may have been done (and frequently have failed). Anywhere from 6x6 inches real to 12x16 inches real, about 1-3 inches deep, and even the larger ones sometimes get ignored, or the repair quickly re-sags. Those would also probably be natural places for wild foliage to grow in after a few weeks of having no traffic roll over it. In the past decade or so there are also occasionally long lines of patched asphalt, about 1-3 inches wide that go across the street where cable or something has been laid down after cutting into the pavement. The main pavement except in the richest parts of the city do end up a splotchy light gray even after a rain, although repairs and patches are darker shades. It is also authentic (if desired) to have a slight curvature to the road where the road center is raised between corners, and the intersections and curbside edges sag or dip by comparison. For terrain making for games, bumps and sags, and cracks, potholes, and signs of hasty repair may be unnecessarily complex, but they would provide realistic detail as much as artillery craters, hillside groove variation, and subtle terrain textures provide for rural and wilderness areas. Personally, I'm probably just jealous of how driveable that road looks, even with the foliage as applied! As for color and detail, occasional rainbow-sheen from motor oil patches would not be surprising, and authentic features include storm drains near the corners (don't dump in them, they lead to the ocean--except trash does accumulate there, and probably body parts in the apocalypse too), which should have covered horizontal grates but open vertical openings in the side of the curb. Then there's old faded portions of red no parking paint on top and side curb edges near the corners. Corner ramps for wheelchair accessibility are also common features. And there are also occasional 2x2 foot metal plates and covers in the sidewalk, but even larger semi-permanent 4x8 foot rectangles on the road itself for emergency repairs or road work in progress. The never ending road work. As for less-permenant terrain pieces, and likely outside the scope of this particular video, either Stop signs or traffic lights are required, and parking meters and speed limit signs would definitely be welcome, familiar clutter. Parked abandoned vehicles in various stages of being stripped down are also assumed to be part of the post-apocalypse scene (but almost zero intact bicycles), it is rare in L.A. for a road that size (it looks scaled to fit at least 4 trucks side-by-side) to not have roadside parking. 1-2 palm trees, or streetlights, or electric utility poles may also be placed on each terrain piece if desired, but each one would have to replace a flagstone since they are sunk into the earth below the sidewalk level. Plain bus benches may also be found near the corners. And I believe that about covers the gamut of possibilities found in most of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

[@hardasanut]

On a different note, your buildings are much more flattering than most real Los Angeles main street buildings. There is a distinct lack of two-story strip malls, parking lots/structures, gas stations, and squat fast food restaurants or diners haha.

[@dealthagar]

Wonderful tutorial mate. Given the apocalyptic game I'm working on, these boards (or my variation of them) will be coming out of my workroom soon.

[@grimalldi4526]

Awesome Vid

[@davehaag8175]

Keep coming back and watching this video..wish you would do some more city zombie style stuff

[@TheTerrainTutor]

We'll get back to it eventually mate

[@SquidChild]

Also, I've had good luck (with smaller road projects) using Grease Pencils / chinagraph pencil in the UK when adding road lines. It's pretty good when texture is involved and you want a weathered look. A word of warning though: It's a LOT more permanent than paint. Practice with some scrap pieces to get a feel for how they will look first!

[@danielheaford321]

They Look amazing :)

[@martinthewarrior5016]

very nice! looking forward to the rest of these vids :-)

[@deanlarge1671]

Lovely, simple techniques. Loving how simple stuff can be so effective and it proves that people like me can build beautiful terrain! I'd love to see some feudal Japanese scatter terrain and buildings. Just starting test of honour and wanted to really go for authenticity without breaking the bank.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Getting quite a few requests for that

[@deanlarge1671]

I'll be quietly optimistic then and stand poised with kit to hand!

[@ValkristAncamacil]

ooh yes Japanese themed urban setting would be very nice indeed. (would be even better with the Infinity game in mind ;) )

[@kierandavies1432]

Love the channel. I have been toying with the idea of trying to start scratch building, as I'll health has for me to leave a building career, so watching a ton of these interesting vids from various youtubers. So thank you for that. A couple of tips used in the building trade you probably already know but I'll share anyway. I hear you mention warping. Mdf loves absorbing moisture as you know, to keep this to a minimum, prime or seal all areas...even the areas that will be covered. 70% standard emulsion paint to 30% water will do the job. Another quicker but more expensive way is to use moisture resistant Mdf (green coloured in the uk). You mentioned your initial base coat of paint was spreading around. As you're probably aware this is due to a shining surface with little for the paint to key into. A light rub over with a fine grit sand paper will provide a key without showing any scratches. Another idea, but wether it is valuable as a tip or not I'm not sure. Here goes anyway. If you are trying to creating razor sharp detail lines on a paint job using masking tape, and you need super crisp clean edges. Once you have mask your area, paint the edges of the masking tape with the same colour of the area you've just masked. This seals the tape and eliminates any bleed under the tape of your final colour. Keep up the great work.

[@scalescenics1005]

Amazing!!!!!!!! 😲

[@coolsskin]

this look epic!!!

[@pingASS_]

Yeeees tutorials wooohooo

[@rakshasutton1933]

i know i been away for a while am looking forward to this one bud

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Welcome back bud

[@khullain-paints6135]

Awesome video. Looks really, really good when complete. I personally would have weathered it a tad more. Maybe added some weathering pigments, a few splashes of blood etc. All in all though looks really beautiful (well as beautiful as zombie infested L.A can look). Would love to have a game on a board like that :D

[@e-4airman124]

order the book you are sooooooo Goooood.

[@butlersmodellingpaintingan3974]

outstanding :)

[@wyzzer16]

Great video, Mel. I'm not sure if it's been asked before, but I wondered if the foam board still had its paper backing on it, or if you peeled it off.

[@MrKrisSatan]

I had to give you a thumbs up for using the Wright's pie tin as a water cup lol

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Proper Stoke

[@MrKrisSatan]

I moved to Scunthorpe from Kidsgrove a few years ago and I still crave Wright's pies and oatcakes lol

[@agerrard680]

I'm going through this build - thanks for the excellent vid. I'm having trouble with the black wash though, it leaves a lot of unnatural staining and / or blocks the lines of the engraving so they no longer show clearly 😞.

[@lazynihilist203]

Great video, great concept. I really enjoyed the specifics of techniques. The only detractor for me was the spottiness of the greenery on the ending product. Again, it looked great on the close-ups and I'm probably just being a stickler here. Natural degradation of roadways, you end up with long cracks stemming from potholes so you do get some clumps, but most of those clumps will cause bushing only in a few larger areas then around the weak points in the roadway, namely the sides and curb areas. Drainage ditches also tend to grow up. Well, more words than intended already, a guess the root of what I'm getting at is a suggestion to go with a handful of long narrow bushy areas near the edges of the roadways and only a very few clumps in the middle of the roadway itself where the plants would have broken through weak points. This is for the actual road, the sideways looked spectacular hands down. Cheers mate! Keep up the great work :D

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Think I'm with you on the grass

[@robertozaneli]

Nice video 😄😄😄

[@ionceateapinecone]

32:58 That good kush

[@xxTONIGHTYOUxx]

awesome video bud, please keep them coming! after 17 years away from war gaming I've decided to get back into the hobby and start playing the walking dead game, so this video is so on point for me at the moment. Are you planning on doing more of this urban apocalypse style? also what buildings are they?! they look good!!! cheers.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Checkout this weeks vids, another one live in 2hrs ;-)

[@gervisprantl1711]

This Streets look like the streets in our Town after the annual horsemarket. Horsecrap everywhere.

[@robgates456]

I like the look, but here's a couple nit picks. Others have called out the foliage on the street, which to me would look more natural if it were growing from cracks. My main call out would be the paint lines on the street, for two reasons. Reason one: the closed white square at the intersection doesn't look like any legitimate U.S. street iconography, so it throws my eye off. Second, the post apocalyptic foliage growth is on point (except for in the street as I said above), but the street paint is too bright and fresh-painted to match! I've learned so much from watching your videos, but I felt like those needed to be said.

[@mscorie07]

Drinking game: Take a shot every time he says “yeah”. You’ll be so shmammered by the time the video is over.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Watch your liver!

[@WhiskyLima]

I actually just tried that and finished a can in about a minute flat ha ha

[@SuperAshai]

Really nice job... until the grass tufts. They looked a bit 'laid out' and could be mistaken for vomit. Lots of helpful techniques learned though and the sandpaper roads is a nice idea. I would love to see you do a series on sci-fi boards and terrain from war torn planets.

[@speedrob]

You had me at zombie...

[@Mighty_Matlock]

your narration, voice and camera shots 100% reminds me of 'Art Attack" great video nonetheless

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Gotta love a bit of neil b matey

[@FelipeBudinich]

You say that like it's a bad thing :) (personally I love his presentation style)

[@dimligloing]

Very nice especially getting the colour of the sidewalks the way you did. Have to agree that there is too much foilage on the road looks too spotty. An additional effect might be to try and simulate litter as well, any ideas how that might work?

[@nlcstudios8460]

You should show a vid with the buildings added

[@TheTerrainTutor]

That's out Tuesday mate

[@redgreen09]

think of rapty in blue and NY NY as do it will see more

[@simonknibbs5867]

I always like your stuff. How about some textured paint on the roads and what is the terrain piece you are most proud of?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Textured paint could work. need to play. The volcano I made with my daughter that they set off IN the classroom :-D

[@simonknibbs5867]

I was trying to think of a way to add plaster to a road, wait until it was starting to solidify then roll over it with some kind of texture on a roller. I think it would just be a complete mess though.

[@ooftaZone]

Would hitting the sidewalk with heatgun/hair dryer make it easier to push in the foamcore?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I have no idea, give it a go and let me know how you get on bud

[@kayb9979]

Love the tutorial! How would you go about putting cracks in the road?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Pen or dremmel, depends on the size of the cracks mate

[@kayb9979]

OK: thanks for the reply. I've been trying to work myself up to a "Dalek Invasion of Earth" scenario. Ten years of neglect would undoubtedly include cracked roads I think.

[@briansmith1633]

You didn't show how the wash went on the flagstones. :(

[@ianbarrett6705]

Hello there! I know I'm way behind on this, but I had a question regarding my current Modular City Block. Would you recommend painting the underside of the boards as you do with your Scatter Terrain, or your Tree Clusters?

[@thephalanxconsortium309]

Ever considered masking the area and using sandstone texture spray for the asphalt?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

It's an option but I prefer cutting and layoing the roads, more control that way

[@uncertainsage]

Great video but we don't use curb stones or flag stones in LA just poured in place concrete. sorry couldn't help nit-picking

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Google images failed me :-(

[@ratactical657]

Hey love the vids, me and my son are going to make a similar board to use at home would hard board 6mm thick be strong enough?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

I'd go 9mm min for 2x2 mate, 6mm ok for 1x1 ;-)

[@Kinolens]

could you do a video about cobbled roads please :) thought people who make ww2 dioramas such as my self could use it. thanks

[@Hobbyrepubliken]

Skipper nifty It's in the link about roads at the start if this video I believe

[@zethnar]

Off the top of my head, follow a similar technique to this tutorial but instead of the sand paper use either cobblestone plasticard (if cost isn't a factor) or use thin foam-core then draw on the cobblestones much like he did the pavement blocks and cracks for the sidewalk.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Check the lets make playlist, already done mate

[@Justdaggers]

Are there any videos of the process of making those buildings?

[@crownedwinter1157]

I like this idea, but now I'm gonna have to scale it down to 1:64 for #autokill and #gaslands... 😁

[@SquidChild]

How did you re-darken / make the final paver lines on the sidewalk? Did you do a black wash over them?

[@Komomo69]

Beautiful and inspiring! Just curious, how much does foamboard cost in the UK? In Sweden, it's a bit expensive. Also, is the foamboard polystyrene?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Yes and it's about £4 per A2 sheet

[@brookerogers7703]

Hi Mel, great video! I followed your instructions on the video but have found that the sandpaper has wrinkled overnight. Has the tape slipped? Too much glue? Crappy paper?!

[@lukerazor1]

Really nice. Any tips for pristine sci-fi boards? It's for Infinity so I'm going for space station loading dock kinda thing. All I seem to find is 40K irradiated warzone ideas.

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Skip the weathering, skip the touch of yellow, nice and pristine for you mate ;-)

[@rogerwhite9484]

Beautifull Board ! TY for the tutorial as the sandpaper streets are an excellent Idea & I need 2 do an urban board to do a vehicle version of Necromunda .

[@darthcusm]

What is the width of the sandpaper? How does it scale with cars/minis at 28-32mm?

[@agerrard680]

Hi, great video. I copied your design and it looked very good. Unfortunately I used thinner MDF (lighter) and I found that the boards had warped so they no longer fit straight. Any suggestions how to flatten them back out?

[@davehaag8175]

On a off note, I'm curious as to what you and other terrain builders do to store all thier boards when not being used? Racks? Leaned against the wall? Just looking for ideas

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Bakers bread tray racking ;-)

[@ValkristAncamacil]

Hi, How did you mix the concrete paint? How much yellow did you add?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

a tiny touch, say 1 to 30 ratio

[@TredHedJon]

Hello all, can someone tell me the width on the sandpaper roll? Looks lie maybe 4 inch? 6 inch? I am finally getting around to starting this project and would like to get measurements going Thanks!

[@cwbwoodchip]

Hi what size sandpaper did you use. The boards look great also thanks

[@TheTerrainTutor]

150grit belt roll

[@cwbwoodchip]

How wide was it

[@Lumanil]

Will you do a video for a board which connects city and countryside ?

[@TheTerrainTutor]

At some point yes but who knows when mate

[@JupiKitten]

Mel I could kiss you! This is exactly the sort of video series I've been looking for! Thank you!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

You're welcome mate

[@comingvengeance2725]

Mel: How did you handle hiding the seams between the sandpaper pieces on each board? Cheers!

[@TheTerrainTutor]

Roadmarkings mate

[@thomas_jay]

Silly question but why did you go for a four 2x2 and not eight 1x1? The later would give more modularity. Is it for the ease of construction or fewer "moving parts" (the boards) while gaming?

[@AdrianKramarzyk]

where are palm trees Mel? and please support Mel guys!

[@fraenkybalboa]

Hi! nice video! my english is unfortunately not that good, so i wanted to know: is it in a 28mm scale, or bigger / smaller? cheers, fraenky

[@davidbrightman4384]

What’s the foam board thickness please