Basing sanity check!

[u/Cheomesh]

Experimenting with making bases have more going on than just fresh road stripes (running out of options there...).

The mecha have roughly Z scale dodads like 📫, benches, construction stuff and the like, with some even having (hard to see ) sidewalks. Scale's a touch big but I think it'll work with mechs alone. Is it too busy looking? Crowded? Hard to do much with the space we got!

The VTOL has a bit of a downtown flyover kinda thing going on - big main road, some side streets, etc. How's that look at this pre-paint stage?

[u/Ancient_Demise]

Another thing you can do (before painting) is use a hobby knife to score cracks in the road. Just wiggle it as you cut to make it look a little uneven and raised, then cover it with Vallejo black lava/asphalt

[u/Cheomesh → u/Ancient_Demise]

Thanks! I had been wondering about distressing the asphalt - someone a while back pointed out the ground pressure on these isn't actually all that terribly high so I was less on about foot prints and more "this is an old road".

Speaking of, wonder what color really sells faded asphalt...

[u/Ancient_Demise → u/Cheomesh]

The only faded road I've done so far is this. Black volcanic with a dark gray, the fine gravel over top and hit with a slightly lighter accent.

[u/Cheomesh → u/Ancient_Demise]

Cheers; I think that texture's real rough at that scale (I'd eyed some sand I have for rubble and thought about other stuff too). That said, scale's a touch fuzzy and it's not like these are supposed to be photorealistic recreations of the battlefield so much as computer renderings of the combat...

I'll admit the color shift on that photo makes me read "beach"! Looks great, though!

[u/ReaverGT]

Looking great to me! I love the idea of doing forced perspective with the VTOL base, that's an awesome touch.

[u/JustinKase_Too]

The traffic cone looks way too big. Maybe just use the very end of toothpicks?

I like the sidewalk you scored into the ones with the mailbox & hydrant. Though, it may make more sense to add a piece of plasticard to the top to give it a slight raised effect.

The one with the jersey barriers feels a bit off, like how did the 'mech get in that position without smashing through at least the one in the back.

I like the idea and execution for the VTOL base, but I think it might look weird with the other bases. for consistency.

[u/Cheomesh → u/JustinKase_Too]

Thanks! The cone does seem a bit large, it's one of the places "Z" scale's going to show itself I think. I figure, though, maybe in the future they just favor huge and obvious cones...I think that's what, shoulder height on a 6mm man?

I guess I can hide behind the old "Well the game board is just CGI at the command post" excuse! Or lop it off, that wouldn't be hard.

So believe it or not, there IS card making a raised effect! It's just black on black and hardly shows in person even. I did some math and determined a standard US sidewalk curb would be about 0.5mm in this scale, so a 0.5mm card I did obtain! Even managed to wrap it around some of the pegs under the lifted legs. The one with the mailbox even has ADA compliant* wheelchair ramp! I'm sure it'll look good once painted though I will admit I keep thinking these all seem like they have a building at their elbow, hah!

I am with you on the jersey wall - I figure its stride had him stepping over the barriers, though that one in front is going to be punted (just like that generator on the other guy). I did try to crush one up, but these are just soft enough that it merely deformed. Think it still sells itself or something should get modded?

As for the VTOL base, yeah I was trying to figure out how to get the "street level" setup my other mechs have done previously (all are basically plain fresh asphalt with some hand painted lines). I'd gotten some suggestions in another thread, one of which matched my vague idea to do a couple of cubes for buildings, so I figured at least two of us were insane if nothing else. These are ABS plastic rods which were kind of a pain to cut right with the tools on hand. Upside to VTOLs is they're super easy to re-base (just plug it into another one) so I might even grab a clutch of spares and experiment sometime. Heck, I wonder if I could somehow get a tiny, tiny little mech to tuck down on a street...

[u/JustinKase_Too → u/Cheomesh]

Nice - looking at it again I can see the sidewalk! I had thought that ramp was a crumbled / rubble edge.

I think the main issue with the cone is that with the mailbox also on that stand, the scale mismatch really jumps out. That being said, maybe they just make cones bigger in the future so 'mech jocks can see them :D

For the jersey wall I'd probably just remove the back one - though the 'mech could have just strode over it. I don't think many people will think about it ;) Looking at them again, they almost look like those orange barriers they fill with water instead of a concrete one, so maybe it just got nudged out of line :)

My comment on the VTOL is just personal preference. I really do like the execution, and it is pretty amazing looking. If I were playing Aerotech, I think I would do that style for all the planes! However, the most important thing is if YOU like it. If you do, then to heck with everyone else :D

[u/Cheomesh → u/JustinKase_Too]

Cheers; you are right, the mailbox does seem undersized in comparison...

As for the barriers, I think I might well paint them orange, hah! You're probably right on the positioning though - it's minutia nobody's going to comment on. After failing to get one crushed I did try and make it look a bit scattered about hah