"Scratch built ridge/hill for Senlac Hill " Topic

I'm looking into making a ridge/hill for my Anglo-Saxons and Normans (1/72nd) however, I've never made scenery before.

I've watched a few youtube 'how to' clips (mainly model railway scenery) but could anyone point me to (post a link of) a tutorial or two for making a long hill?

Many thanks

There are many ways of making hills for wargames.

1. Grab a few books off your shelf, lay them down in a line and throw a green cloth over them.

2. Go to a DIY shop and buy some polyurethane foam. Cut into suitable sized pieces, bevel the dges if desired and then flock to taste.

3. Cut up a corrugated cardbaord box into hill shaped pieces. Successively smaller pieces will give you a "stepped" hill structure. Paint a suitable colour using cheap acrylic paint and flock if desired.

4. Buy ready made hills. There are several manufacturers.

link
PDF link
PDF link
nirya.be/snv/thill.html

There are many more, just Google "making hills for wargames".

If you want something more permanent and have access to a few tools, I like to use MDF board from the local hardware supply store. I usually use 3/4" or 1" thick pieces which I cut with a jig saw at an angle and in the rough shape I want the hill in. I cut these pieces in levels as they will be attached together to give the shape of a step hill. After cutting each level to shape, I use a dremel to sand the edges and make it look more organic and gentle sloping. When I am happy with that, I glue the levels together. Once the glue is dry, it gets a coat of paint, usually earth colored and then it gets flocked and sealed. It is a simple, relatively cheap, and easy process. The hills are a heavier than stuff made out of foam but they look good and practically last forever.

Cardboard is the easiest to work. Foam really needs a foam cutter, but makes good hills right enough, but it's best for step hills. I spackle the sides of my sloped cardboard hills with LIGHTWEIGHT spackle (not the regular plaster kind), give them a coat of sealer, paint them green and flock before the paint dries. Do a coat of thinned matte varnish after everything dries to glue the flock on.

The real problem, IMHO, is getting a good map of the battlefield with useable elevations. I took a crack at it once, never was satisfied with what I found. Do a report when you finish, I'd be keen to see it, at least.

You want a long ridge, you could try our modular hills designed specifically to make ridges – link (the figures are 28mm ECW)

They come ready for use as you see them in the pictures in our catalogue:
link

Thanks for the link!