"Post Apocalyptic: Charred/Burnt Ruins?" Topic

I was about to start something inspired by Mongo's awesome tiles . . .

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And then it dawned on me . . .

QUESTION:

Would today's nuclear bombs really leave ruins in that color?

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I don't think the the black and white photos of Hiroshima show such a level of blackening and vitrification, but I could be wrong.

Dan
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Would not the level of blackening and such be determined by the proximity of the location to ground zero for the explosion? Areas further away from ground zero would have been level by the compressiona nd shockwave while those closer in would also have faced the direct heat and energy release of the explosion? Different looking terrain based on the distance from the impact?

Jeff

True. Could be.

Maybe the Hiroshima photos I've been looking at all of this time (like the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome) aren't really from ground zero.

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Dan

You're right I didn't research this hard enough ;oP
I kind of just wanted to get a sort of "burnt out" look. Like during a zombie apocalypse when there would be fires and stuff from all the chaos and rioting etc. I don't know Dan, I don't typically put that much thought into too much of what I do. It's all just toys to me.

OOh! I will say if you use the square MDF tiles from an art store like I used for the bases, be sure to Prime them or seal them before doing anything to them. Mine warped just a bit when after covering them in glue and texturing. I was told pre-priming/sealing would prevent this. It's great material otherwise though.

Mongo

Mongo,

You've got to be kidding! I'm still thinking of following YOUR amazing example, for sure!!!! I think it definitely conveys the right feel for an early Post Apocalyptic terrain (before Nature begins to reclaim it).

I just wanted to know if that's what a real atomic/nuclear/hydrogen bomb would do.

Thanks so much,

Dan

I don't know, it's hard to say. Most photos taken of the bomb sites are in b&w. Buildings that are left somewhat in tact don't seem to give me the impression of charring or any kind of color altering heat or force. So it makes enough sense to me that a red brick building would still show that color. I don't know. I prefer my apocalyptic gaming to have a more disease/zombie based origin though ;o)

Mongo

Hi Mongo, is this what you used?
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I am also working on doing a city table, so I am looking at all of my options for the boards…

Your layout looks VERY cool man.

Joe

No. 2 son recently visited Hiroshima – from asking him, the areas in the bomb blast were very, very blackened – in fact, silloueted areas where people were unfortunate to be standing beside a wall look quite pale in comparison

That being said, this was from an air-burst of a fission warhead with a 13 kT yield – by current strategic standards, a very modest yield – the results of a fusion explosion might be still very black, but possibly with a lot less left standing (depending on distance from epicentre)

All you looking for the burnt of it just happened or one hundred years later?

Weather, dust, dirt, grime, vegetation, etc.

If you are looking for a fun texture/color, then setup your board, tiles, etc. then spray with a heavy coat of gloss clear (it is much more sticky than the matte), while it is still wet take the ashy residue/blocks/bricks from the BBQ grill picture place on the surface with a chaotic hand, let set up, spray another heavy layer of gloss clear, let set, test surface for pockets of ash, pop these like zits/boils, tap all excess ash off (reserve for another use), crack the pockets, and seal again with gloss…once completely dry wash with a thinned paint/ink.

While you are doing this it is good to keep the usual suspects handy:

scoopable cat litter (fresh and unused)
sand
dirt
grit
pebbles
aquarium rocks
small sticks/grass (dried)
etc.

@ Battle Miniatures Emporium

Those are exactly it.

@ Battle Miniatures Emporium

Yep. Those are precisely the tiles I'm going to use when I do "the Mongo thing". :)

@ Terrement

Will do. Thanks.

Dan
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True true…but what most do not realize is the same radiation from said neutron bomb would also destroy the stability of many other things besides us…plastics, electronics, wood, porous materials, etc.

I think it would be a bit of a nightmare either way…but makes for interesting terrain :)

"do 'The Mongo Thing' "~ I actually use that phrase to describe something else I do…but I don't want to get into that here ;o)
Mongo

"Do The Mongo Thing"

I don't know, Mongo, I think it has a nice ring to it. :)

Plus, your terrain is the paramount example of what I want mine to look like. The textures, accessories (cars, buildings) and the sectional style are perfect.

Dan

Cool my man, real cool, thanks Mongo.

Right Dan, cool Bro.
I am working on buildings and other stuff besides my sculptures, so no need to buy Tiles yet, but I sure have racked my brain on just what to do for the final boards.
Now I have it settled.
I want to have depth for Man Holes and Subway Accesses, and was going to use Foam Board, aka: Blue Boards, glued to floor tiles.
The problem with that was cutting the darned foam to PERFECLY line up…lol.
With MDF I can just stack it or buy it in thicker stock, and drill and cut my holes…and it will all line up pretty like, since the boards are the same size.

Love that Mongo, I do indeed.

Joe

Just remember kids, seal your MDF first so you don't get warping issues! MONGO AWAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!

LOL

Dan

I second Dan's declaration of Laughing Out Loud.
Mongo

I'd think that the bomb's aftermath would cause a lot of secondary fires that would help give the blackened look.

One day, I would love to build a couple of pieces like this:

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However . . .

In the meantime, I hope this means we are going to see another nice charred terrain board:

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Dan

That being said, this was from an air-burst of a fission warhead with a 13 kT yield – by current strategic standards, a very modest yield – the results of a fusion explosion might be still very black, but possibly with a lot less left standing (depending on distance from epicentre)

13kt is a DUD by modern standards. Wikipedia talks about ~375kt for the W88. 13kt is only 3.5% of intended yield.

The big problem with most people's modern-day building ruins is that skyscrapers will just collapse outright if they take enough damage. See pictures of OK City and the World Trade Center.

Look at the picture od southern Manhattan after the collapse, then add in wide scale fires. Figure anywhere that suffers that sort of catastrophe is gonna be a burnt grey and blak pile. I have had the joy of supervising Fire scenes that are under investigation, and it always is the smell that truly gets me. And the black particulate matter everywhere…

So I would say it really depends how long the incident. How long it takes for a mold and fungi to set into anything soft and dirt like….

The other thing that is always not what is destroyed, but what survives.

Infojunky,

You mean like this?

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Dan

Yah right after the incident…