"Any 15mm "Western" Outer Planet Towns - Like Firefly?" Topic

If so, how "Old West" did you go?

In other words, was it mostly an Old West town with a few tech pieces and metal containers here and there*? And did you incorporate any Asian/Chinese pieces?

Did you buy most of the structures or make them? Did you buy HO scale?

Got any pics for us? Any other tips?

Thanks,

Dan
* I imagine that would make it more versatile, if you wanted the option to have a real Old West game at a later time.
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I see what you mean. Although I don't game sci-fi, I sure love watching it. Really dig Firefly. Have it on DVD. It's truely a shame it had such a short run.

I do some firefly gaming in 15mm but I've had trouble setting up terrain in 15mm in general… Buildings are expensive even in this scale and scratchbuilding is slow and I'm not too good at it… I've looked at paper terrain but haven't committed yet.

I'm interested in suggestions… Low price non paper or simple terrain projects in particular…

At one time I was considering buying a bunch of shallow 1" tall carboard or plastic boxes with separate lids, and then adding styerene clapboard on the sides, with a tall front side.

These are a little too low, but they illustrate the more or less the type I was thinking of using:

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Hmm. I may need to revisit that crazy idea. If only the interior dimensions were more like 3" x 2" x 1".

Dan

Those would be good for putting "wallpaper" on… They're cheap, too.

And they are hard polystyrene, which means they should take Super Glue just fine.

If these had separate lift-up lids instead of hinges they would be just what I was looking for, and the perfect minimum height too (optimum would be a 1.25" interior height):

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What do you guys think?

Dan

For an open air restaurant, or bar, you could make or purchase some tables and chairs, and add those little Chinese drink umbrellas to them.

They're probably good for keeping work areas cooler, on a hot, sunny, desert-planet as well.

And a few of these running through Main Street:

Dan
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RTJEBADIA, use the freeware paper buildings as templates for your platticard/posterboard/whatever buildings. Works like a charm.

Does something like this look doable to you guys?

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And I must find me a good 15mm figure for "Badger", fancy hat and all:

Dan
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Once again CC, your ideas are probably going to cost me some money.

I think you are better off going with the cardboard box over the hinged plastic. If this is for Firefly type gaming, I think of it as more skirmish/simple RPG so you are going to want interiors. The plastic hinged boxes would end up being a pain – plus I find the plastic a little brittle. I store miniatures in a larger version and the corners get little cracks with minor transport. Hinges have broken off as well. Lifting off roofs would be easier with the cardboard boxes.

I would (will?) go more wild west. I have been looking for as excuse to get a couple of the Blue Moon 15/18mm wild west sets (fairly reasonable if your in the Old Glory Army). Make some SF/asian "accessories" that stay on with magnets (old west accessories to cover the magnets) and you get double duty out of the set.

I'm a sucker for double duty.

Time to revise the Historicon buy list!

Martin

LOL. I hate the hinged plastic boxes too.

That's why I was looking at the ones with separate lift-off lids, but can't seem to find the ones I would like.

Thanks,

Dan
PS. I absolutely LOVE your idea of using magnets!

Of course, places like Eavesdown Docks (on Persephone) didn't have an Old West look at all:

In contrast, the settlements in the Outer Planets had a definite Old West look about them:

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Dan
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I may be wrong but I think most craft stores have paper "shoebox" style boxes. I think they come in different sizes. Should be perfect for what you're wanting.
If you use paper buildings you could just cut and glue to the sides of the boxes. One could even use the boxes to store all the little bits and bobs a town would need.
Lovin' the map CC. Might have to steal parts of it….

I wonder what the typical stages were in the development of an Old West frontier town:

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Dan

I've just found this drawing and immediately thought it could be a doable project, with SF accessories here and there:

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What do you guys think? Would that work on a 2' by 4' board?

By the way, this would make a cool SF horse, don't you think?

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Dan
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I think there would be plenty of room on a 2' by 4' board to pull of a small town like that and to have some terrain left on the outskirts of town.

Perhaps one or two buildings could be more metal or "sci-fi" and create a nice contrast. Maybe even a modest space-port outside of town?

Thanks! I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to even place a minimal town in that space.

Well, I've gone ahead and ordered a few "Western" buildings in HO scale from ebay. I might cover some of their surfaces with styrene corrugated and other metal surfaces, just to create that new-old blend.

Can't wait to see how the HO buildings look when I get them.

Dan

Just get some of the GZG bits like solar panels, comms dishes etc.
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You can leave them loose. Just add to any old west building when you want to SF it up a bit. And you still have the building for actual old west games.
These are good to drop on a roof as well.
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I think 2' by 4' is just right for that town and a little surrounding terrain. I think adding in SF elements subtly will be the key to making it work, though, or else it ends up just looking like a western town.

Here is something that may help, may keep cost down as well then a lot of HO buildings, you will have to resize them for scale for size

erichotz.com/whitewash.html

rescaleing them by reduseing size to 50% just found this info on their site

Could also mix in a few of these:

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there are potentially plans for Asain inspired buildings too.

Western style building from whitewash and then doctor them up using the information in this pfd

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@ CC you had this posted on another thread.

Its the way I would go myself, little more work, but it would keep cost down, I would build the the main buildings just as basic boxes or container like, this way I coud use them for other gaming needs and use detachable western store fronts, (flat magnets as an idea) which I could store flat when not needed

Might need some thing to fill up those buildings

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War Monkey,

That last link has some really nice stuff! I've already added them to my shopping list.

And, about the second to last link, I forgot where I had posted it. Thanks so much for finding it!

Dan

Well thinking it's a space town on the edge of civilization you have to have some space junk just laying around on the sides of the streets and in the alleys

It would be so cool if someone came up with piles of tech junk, like broken computers and other advanced devices!

Dan

About tech junk piles . . .

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By the way, looks like the Syfy show "Defiance" has a mix of buildings too (based on a game?):

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facebook.com/TrionWorlds

Dan

Here are some old but cool suggestions:

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Dan

I was poking around on the site that clkegels posted and saw this and the locamotive engine with some wires and bits could work up to be an old ships engine part

could be a town for Firefly or PA

note the train in the background

Ghost of Hefei has these signs posted for free down load on their kickstarter, for the china town part of town

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add some paper lamps like these

scroll down about have way
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Wow!!! Cool suggestions there.

Thanks so much.

By the way, where did you find the fort-like settlement pic three posts back?

Dan

Google? town post apocalyptic
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Here You go this might inspire you

This site has free printable stuff
imperiuswargaming.wordpress.com
cardboard boxes, and shanties which one could use the sheet metal stuff to cover other paper moleds, and the boxes make for great frieght stuff just get some square wood dowels and wrap them around the wood I would think

P.S. there 28mm so you would have to resize them

OK what is depending on size of gaming table space port at one end and sea port at the other

Amazing stuff.

And those "Oilrush" pics are truly inspiring, specially for this other gaming concept:

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Dan

Well I was just thinking that for those who play RPGs it would make for a great base to play from, wharf at one end town, couple of barges a SCI-FI style ship or two, maybe a small waterway for a couple of small boats and a walking bridge, in the middle the main town with a couple of skyways maybe, an elevated railway cutting thru with a means to load freight different sections for different groups or aliens and the space port at the other end landing pads and all the equipment and freight, scrap yard containers and alike . Adds up to lots of gaming options and plots
I know it's all base on the gaming area one has to use as well, My self I have a 3'x6' table so yes it would be tight may have to play different sections of this kind of town at time
For me it's sounding like a great project to work on.

of interest

Guys,

For making debris piles in the corridors, check these out …

Plastic canvas pieces (granny grating), 7, 10 and 14 mesh:

Lego bits:

Scrap polystyrene pieces and plasticard punch outs:

Bits from pens, mechanical pencils, screws and screw anchors:

Assorted pieces from drawer organizer, drink stirs, brand new (unused) ear scope tips, and lots of other scrap:

Cookie trays that will be chopped for their moulded bits:

LOTS more pics:
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So, what do you guys think?

Thanks,

Dan
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I really like what you have going on there, can't wait to see what you come up with

Okay, I know this is in 28mm but seems likely to be used in 15mm
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could be worked ino a town of sorts

this for CC

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hope this is helpful

Sweeeet!!!

Dan

One more I just came across

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here's a town rather old looking but could be one that could be in Firefly

boards.420chan.org/fo

Do you mean Old West, i.e. shanty towns that are built with common victorian materials and stylings. Or the the stylized Old West that gets built now?

I tend to go for the nuevo Shanty town/favela/interstitial Slum look over the ritualized "Old West" in that in a SF game modern materials will be more prevalent than the victorian materials. Lots of prefab buildings for the substantial buildings instead of the brick/wood of the old west.