Cardboard Ruins

by Craig Hardt Every so often on the terrain discussion forums this question comes up: "I need to fill my entire gaming table for Wargame X for a gaming session in two wee s but I don!t have any money to spend" What do I do#" $o solve such a dilema I decided to set about finding a pro%ect that met the following criteria: &" easy enough for the beginning terrain builder '" creates a lot of terrain quic ly (" is fun and useful on the game table )" ine*pensive to build+ yet durable ," uses common tools and materials found around the world -" can be reused in a variety of gaming worlds and settings .ote that "lots of detail" or "historically accurate" is not on the list" $his is a pro%ect meant to cran out as much useful terrain as possible on a low budget and tight schedule" I decided that if I could only build and use one type of terrain it would be ruined buildings" /cross all gaming worlds+ fantasy settings and far future sci0fi lands there are almost always buildings" 1mall ruined walls can be used as barricades+ the individual buildings rearranged into fire bases+ create ruined city bloc s+ or recreate a medevial village ravaged by war"

Materials and Tools

2or those who might be using this as a guide to their first terrain pro%ect I!ve included everything you would need" $his is by no means a set "recipe" and you!ll want ad%ust the tools and materials to those you already have on hand" Corrugated Cardboard 0 If you can find it use the double0 corrugated cardboard in heavier shipping bo*es" 3oo at the cross section and you!ll see two layers of corrugation" When the double0 corrugated isn!t available I find it is worth the time to ma e my own by gluing two layers of single corrugated cardboard together" 1ingle0corrugated cardboard can be used but I feel it loo s less substantial in the finished buildings" $he picture on the right shows the double0corrugated cardboard cross section4top5 and single0 corrogated cross sections4bottom5" Thin Cardboard 0 $his can be found by saving product bo*es from brea fast cereals+ crac ers6biscuits+ bac s of notepads+ etc" Plastic Tubs and a Plastic Spoon 0 $hese are needed for mi*ing glue+ filler and paint"

3/4" or wider masking tape 0 $ape is used to cover the e*posed corrogated edges and to add strength to %oints in the buildings" Paint 0 /t the minimum you!ll need blac and white paint" 7lac will be the primary base color and using blac and white you can archive a variety of shades of grey to do the dry brushing with" /ny dar color will wor for the base coat" I was luc y enough to find pints of acrylic blac + medium grey and light grey paints at the hardware store in the mis0tinted section for a few dollars per pint so chec your local store" Mini Hot lue un !and lue Sticks" 0 / small glue gun is actually quite ine*pensive and will save a lot of time" $he hot glue holds very well+ hardens fast+ and can be used to fill gaps" 2ind a model mar ed "low0temp" so you can use it with styrofoam and the lower temperature glue also won!t burn you as easily" #hite <lue" lue 0 /lso nown as 89/ glue+ Elmers:tm; <lue+ Craft <lue+ Weldbond+ or $ac y

Sand 0 I collect mine at a local beach" Hardware stores also carry ,= pound bags for a few dollars" >ou could substitute the sand with sawdust or even dried dirt from the garden" Read$ Mi%ed &iller 0 $his is sold in tubs for repairing holes in walls" $he powdered filler that you %ust add water to is cheaper but ta es time to mi*" I also found that I would over mi* too much filler and have to throw the e*tra away" $he pre0mi*ed tub saves time+ is consistently mi*ed and you can use %ust a little at a time" Medium rit Sand Paper 0 ?se to sand the edges of the base 4if you use wood5 and the finish of the buildings" 'tilit$ (ni)e 0 @on!t try to cut corrugated cardboard with one of those small "X0/cto" style nives+ you %ust can!t get enough leverage+ and buy the heavy0duty blades if you can" Metal Ruler 0 / metal ruler is a great investment and will guide the heavy blade of the utility nife for nice straight cuts" / metal edged wooden ruler could be used but I recommend finding a &'"0&-" metal ruler with the anti0slip cor or rubber bac ing" Multi*Paintbrush Set 0 $here are some very ine*pensive brush sets out there with a variety of siAes" Ba e sure that you get a large &6'" 0 &" brush with the set and they have relatively stiff bristles that can ta e a lot of wear" I do not recommend watercolor brushes 0 these are much too soft" >ou could get away with using a single &" brush for this entire pro%ect but the smaller siAed are nice to have" Spra$ Sealant !+ptional" 0 If you can afford it get some matte finish acrylic spray sealant" $his will protect all your hard wor from chipping and only ta es a few minutes to spray a group of buildings" ,ase Material !+ptional" 0 / well based building loo s good+ adds weight+ the building will be level+ adds structural integrity and protects the finished building from damage" >ou can design ruins to be free standing without bases to cut costs but for a few dollars you can get enough basing material for your whole gaming table" /ny material of your choosing could be used as a base but I prefer &6C" hardboard as it is heavy+ strong+ and resistant to warping" B@2 is also a popular choice" >ou!ll need at least a hand saw and some "C" clamps to cut the hardboard if you decide to use some" Hardcore terrain builders have a %ig0saw handy for cutting out bases"

Planning
2or this e*ercise I!m going to create three different e*ample buildings: &" a ruined wall '" the classic ruined corner (" a multi0level ruin

Walls are nice to have on hand when setting up a table to fill in gaps and provide cover in blan areas where you don!t want a full building" Duined corners have lots of cover value for their small siAe and usually have an area for models to fire from an elevated position" 3arger ruins ta e the longest to build but also can give you the best places to fight over" 8lacing a critical ob%ective inside a large building is always fun" 2or your own pro%ect you!ll save time by creating several buildings at once" Duins don!t require a lot of planning but you do want to thin about the types of games they will be used for" I li e to have at least (" between floors so players can more easily reach in and move their models 4and for easier painting5" Eeep an e*ample model on hand so that doors+ windows+ and areas of cover are large enough to accommodate the types of models you!ll be using" 1torage is also a factor 0 don!t ma e the buildings so large that you can!t store them easily" In the first part of this article we discussed the various tools and materials that we would need" In this section we!ll cut out our parts and assemble the basic structure of the buildings"

,ases
$he first tas is to roughly design the building!s siAe and cut out the base" 1ometimes I!ll %ust cut out some bases and then create buildings to fit them" 2or my three buildings in this e*ample I!ll need a long+ narrow base for the wall+ a triangular shaped base for the ruined corner and a rectangular base for the multi0level ruin"

Cutting +ut the Parts

Fnce the bases are ready it is time to cut out the walls from the corrugated cardboard" 1ince these are ruins you don!t have to be e*act but you do want things to line up more or less" ?sing the metal ruler layout your design and ma e sure to cut out items such as windows and doors before gluing the walls to base" Fnce the parts are cut out they usually don!t loo quite "ruined" enough" ?sing the utility nife hac out chun s of cardboard along the edges and remove the first of the two layer of cardboard to create indentations"

-ssembl$
With the wall and floor sections cut out ta e the hot glue gun and mas ing tape 0 it!s time to assemble all the buildings" >ou!ll need to cover the e*posed cardboard edges with the tape and then assemble the floors and walls" 1ome parts should have their edges covered first before gluing so you can reach them more easily" $o cover the edges lay a piece of mas ing tape along each e*posed edge" If it has lots of curves along the edge+ ta e a pair of scissors and cut slits in the tape as shown in the photo to the left" When you fold over the tape it will go around corners much easier after you!ve cut the slits" /s you finish covering the edges on each piece start using the glue gun to put the walls and floors together" /s the buildings start to ta e shape the thin cardboard can be added for some e*tra details on the buildings" I!ve hot0 glued some window headers in the two windows in the multi0level ruin" $hese really stand out later when the building is te*tured and painted" >ou don!t need to spend a lot of time placing these+ %ust put a few here and there to add variety to the ruins" Here is the ruined corner fully taped and assembled" In this case I!ve attached the ruin to the base since I can still reach every surface with the base attached" $a e care not

to attach the base too early if doing so will ma e the ne*t steps difficult or impossible" It may not loo li e much now but in Part 3 I!ll show you how to add the te*ture to hide the tape lines and it!ll start to loo great" >ou might not want to attach your building to a base quite yet if you can!t access parts of the building with the base attached" >ou!ll need to reach every inch of the building to apply the te*tured finish and for painting"

Having completed the basic construction in the previous part of this article we will now add a layer of filler to hide the tape seams and add a rough+ ruined0loo ing te*ture to the buildings" $his same te*turing technique wor s well on foamcore and 1tyrofoam pac aging buildings as well"

-ppl$ing the &iller

$e*ture 1tep &: <rab your tub of filler+ the 89/ glue+ and a &" brush" Bi* some filler and 89/ glue together using about a &= to & ratio of filler to glue" $his ratio may depend on the type of filler you are using 0 %ust add enough glue to get a thic + smooth te*ture" 1coop up a large blob with the brush and smac in onto a wall or floor of a building" If you get some filler on the base+ that!s FE because we!ll be adding a sand te*ture to the base in 8art )"

$e*ture 1tep ': ?sing the bush+ spread the filler out into a thin+ even layer" 2or a really rough te*ture use more filler in an area or for a smoother finish use hardly any at all" 7e sure to wor in into all the little noo s and crannies" @on!t try to apply filler to the entire ruin at once 0 wor in sections doing steps & 0 ( of the te*turing process in small areas" If you do too much at once some of the filler will dry too soon and you won!t be able to do step ( properly" $e*ture 1tep (: .ow for the fun part" While the filler is still wet+ use the brush in a stabbing motion to te*ture the filler" .otice

how in the picture the brush is aggressively pushed into the filler" @on!t be afraid to push too hard+ you can always add or remove more filler if you don!t li e the effect" /fter you finish a building set it aside to dry and start on the ne*t one" Fnce they!re all dry the ne*t step is to sand the filler te*ture"G6tdH

Sanding the &iller

$he result of all the brush stabbing is a lot of fragile pea s that loo a bit strange and will brea off too easily when handled" / quic once0over with the sand paper+ however+ and all the little pointy bits will be gone and you!ll be left with a nice te*ture" >ou can also vary the amount of sanding to leave different te*tures on different parts of the building" 2or e*ample+ in the images below we see a window header before and after sanding"

.otice how the area around the header was left relatively rough and I sanded the header itself down to a smooth finish" .ow the header stands out more and loo s as if it may have been made of a different material" I li e to use medium or even rough gauge sand papers since they add additional grooves and lines to the filler!s te*ture" E*periment with different amounts of sanding and see what you li e best" >ou can!t go far wrong+ these are ruins after all 0 you can always add more filler" In the final part of this article we will paint and finish the pro%ect" Having te*tured our ruin in the previous part of this article+ we will now add a sand te*ture to the bases and paint the buildings"

Sand Te%tured ,ase

/ rough sand base loo s more or less li e small rubble+ is easy to apply+ very durable+ and paints quic ly with dry brushing techniques" 1tart by brushing a thin layer of 89/ glue over the entire base and add a generous layer of sand" /lso add the glue6sand te*ture on floors or any other areas you want to use it" 8at the sand down lighlty with your hand and then gently pour off the e*cess" 3et this dry for about & hour and then tap the bottom of the building while holding it up0side0down to release any loose sand" $he final step is to coat the sand with a layer of ,=6,= water and 89/ glue mi* to seal the sand te*ture"

Painting
$he first step+ and most tedious+ is to give all your buildings a solid+ dar undercoating 4blac in this case5" $his can be sped up by using spray paints but these need to be used outdoors and can ta e overnight to dry properly" Even with the spray paint it it hard to get into all the little noo s6crannies and you may need to touch up with brush0on paint" / tip for getting the paint into all the tight spaces is to thin the paint with plenty of water" Fnce the base coat is completed the painting goes quite quic ly because from now on it!s all dry brushing" $he first color+ dar grey+ is heavily dry brushed over the blac undercoat" In the picture on the right you can see a wall with a blac undercoat and then in the picture below 4left5 what a wall loo s li e after the

dar grey has been applied" $he ne*t step is to follow up with a light grey drybrush 4below right5at which point the te*ture really starts to stand out"

Fne final painting detail I did on these buildings was to add scorch mar s" $his is done by carefully drybrushing blac paint in limited areas on the ruins" $he last tas 4optional5 is to spray the buildings with some acrylic matte sealant to protect the buildings during gameplay"

&inished.
In the image below my 1 aven warband search amongst the ruins of Bordheim" $he three e*ample buildings constructed in the course of this article are shown in the foreground with additional cardboard ruins in the bac ground"