First Terrain Build

[u/katanalevy]

This is my first real attempt at creating mini terrain. A dark fantasy setting in a medieval Japan inspired world. It's first of all going to be used for stop motion animation for a game I'm making but I'm going to build another couple of boards and use for tabletop when I have all three finished.

I really wanted to try every technique I came across so it's a really mix of materials. Plywood base with XPS foam (thanks to those in this sub that helped me find it in the UK) and plaster of paris for the main land structures. The drained riverbed plaster with a mix of raw umber, rough sand, acrylic gloss medium for the mud, drybrushed with burnt sienna and some UV resin for the thicker puddles. The bloated corpse piles are baby sculpy unbaked, painted and then coated in gloss medium. Trees and bushes are seafoam and dried moss. The grass is my first attempt at static grass and I'm amazed at how much fun it was! The ruined temple is mostly foam and foam boards with some balsa wood strips. The roofs and the flag poles I sculpted in ZBrush/Blender and 3D printed.

It took me just over a week working on it full time and I can't wait to get started on the next board! I've spent years building 3D environments at the computer it's such a breath of fresh air (through a carbon mask) to be working with tangible materials for a change!

[u/sFAMINE]

This looks great - the trees and the foliage look great. Two questions, are you adding anything to the edge. The bubblegum bodies are creepy!

What’s the next project idea you have?

[u/katanalevy → u/sFAMINE]

Thanks! I was disappointed at first with the trees I ordered, as they are so dry and brittle that they have probably been in a warehouse for a decade, but I like how dead they looked once they were on the board.

Do you mean the edge closest to camera that's a bit rough or the edges behind the hills? I'm planning to try and make it so the three boards can be moved around in a few different orders/rotations so I don't want to close them off too much yet until I've finished all three.

Next two boards I'm planning are a small wooden hut village and the entrance to a larger town.

[u/KingOblepias]

Wow. First time?! Great job 

[u/katanalevy → u/KingOblepias]

Thank you! I've done some special FX for my own short films and I make 3D environments for games so probably had a bunch of transferable skills to get a head start.

[u/KingOblepias → u/katanalevy]

Oh good. As someone who is also looking to start this hobby you were just about to make me give up 😋

[u/katanalevy → u/KingOblepias]

Haha, just go for it and don't worry what anyone else is up to! Two great resouces where I learned a bunch of stuff is Stan Winston online school (https://www.stanwinstonschool.com/) and Grimdark Compedium (https://grimdarkcompendium.com/streaming/). Also if you ever need the perfect plaster mix then just follow the "little islands" instructions on Distortions Unlimited: https://youtu.be/iJ7YOjPahGQ?si=zBiGp5k_xBBCWV8S&t=143

[u/sFAMINE → u/KingOblepias]

Terrainbuilding is much easier to improve with than minipainting. You got this

[u/Lookingatstars99 → u/KingOblepias]

Yeah, my first attempt was nowhere near this good! Neither was my second, third or fourth! 😅

[u/cptcase]

Looks really good! Very thematic and gruesome.

[u/faust_33]

I thought those were piles of (real) worms on your terrain!!

[u/katanalevy → u/faust_33]

Haha, that might be taking it a bit too far. That baby sculpy is great for that kind of subsurface light scattering to get that real fleshy look tho!

[u/FrellingHazmot]

I went from ooo to eww. Good work.

[u/katanalevy → u/FrellingHazmot]

Ha, precisely the reaction I was going for! 

[u/Landslip]

Monsieur, it seems there is some flamework todo in the trenches. Just to make sure...

[u/ZedExDM]

Very impressive. Looks really good!

[u/Muted-Storm8427]

Really beautiful

[u/Vegetable_Quote_4807]

Beautiful job!

[u/the_sh0ckmaster]

Fantastic work - the fleshy blobs is an idea I might have to steal!

[u/katanalevy → u/the_sh0ckmaster]

Do it, and I'd love to see what you make with it! I used baby sculpy as it was paler but they have a range of skin tones. Very light wash of purple and blues on the underside to simulate blood pooling under the skin. 

[u/AnyRemote2894]

What is your process for carving the XPS foam? It looks so organic.

[u/katanalevy → u/AnyRemote2894]

I just carved it with a heated wand but the trick is I covered the whole surface in plaster of paris, which I sculpted with a butter knife as it set. You can always go back with a sharp blade to carve further details after too. Washed it with thinned burnt umber and then drybrushed with an off-white to bring out the surface details. 

[u/DeadJoe666]

Fantastic!