"New Terrain Board: Alien Archaeological Dig Site?" Topic

Hi everyone,

I'd like to do a new terrain board. Maybe even 2x2, of an archaeological dig site that has alien artifacts in the middle.

This would probably be a "colony" planet, or something like that.

Do you guys have any ideas or images that you think would work for this?

Thanks!

there was a couple of great cgi shots in Babylon 5 crusade of ancients cities and ruins

Depends on what kind site you want:

1) alien vessel crash site;

2) ruined city with recognizable structures with some still intact;

3) ruined city with just enough visible to show something was there;

4) a broken-down research/mining site.

Well you could make a building and fill it with foliage and then bury it in some styrofoam. Make a roof with a smaller entrance hole. Advanced civilizations would probably make buildings that could withstand the test of time but they would still be buried over time. Add a few creepy alien skeletons or something as well.

Other then that, I'd probably just make one like you'd see on earth. It would be multipurpose then. SCifi it up with high tech gadets and sensors and stuff. Like a civvy with some ground penetrating radar like thing and little robots hauling dirt.

How much time and effort are you willing to put in…?

I'm thinking more like a broken-down research/mining site.

I was thinking of a monolith type thing in the center, dug out, with gantry ways and colony buildings scattered about.

How much time and effort are you willing to put in…?

Somewhere between none and a bit

Maybe put some mundane stuff right next to the pit as a juxtaposition. What were the colonists extending or building when they found the artefacts (assuming the site isn't the reason for the colony)?

I live in an ancient town and whenever there is a development in the city centre, construction has to wait until the archaeological work has been done. So, you end up with an excavation with Roman and Dark Age stuff being pulled out with a McDonald's or a car park right next to it.

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If it happens to be a location where a colony is already in existence, then chances are that the archeologists will be dependent on what the massive commercial mining or building operations are digging up by mistake.

If a large site is identified in distant areas, whatever structures pop up around the site will be few and mostly dedicated to the project – likely very temporary container hab and lab units. Of course, there will be supply vehicles coming in and out of the little "settlement". They might look a lot like these:

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The below ground portion will likely resemble mining tunnels, if the usual large open pit areas there prove risky due exposure to the elements:

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If the atmosphere is not breathable at all, then everything, including hab and lab units, will be below ground.

If terraforming of the planet is already underway then the look of the digging settlement will evolve as surface conditions improve:

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Dan

Something ala Ghosts of Mars?

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Dan

Great links, thanks guys!

You could also check the deadspace movie (or game) for pictures of their site. If I remember right they are digging up a monolith thing when everyone gets all zombiefied.

Look up Gobekli Tepe and you'll find cool stuff like this:

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Dan

What if I went with an ancient crashed spaceship?

There was an old white dwarf with an inquisitor table of an archeological dig. It had a toy crane, some catwalks made from card and mesh, a power generator made from an engine and some landraider displays, and a stargate cut from foam.

"What if I went with an ancient crashed spaceship?"

I love it!

So, buried in soil or in ice?

Dan

Hmm… Ice would be awesome…

But I think I might stick to desert, since that'll match my figures' bases.

Man, I've always wanted to do an ice board too.

Harold, my son

Give in to the "dark" side …

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I bought one of these for that purpose:

Dan
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‘IMPACT' The Battle for Wolf Ridge Action Game has four hard plastic terrain boards that clip together with scattered spaceship debris and canyons which would make a great looking alien archaeological dig site game board which when put together is around two foot square. The only issue would be texturing and filling in all those circular static areas and movement grooves but once that was done you would have the makings of a great looking games board, you can buy the plastic boards or the whole game for cheap on E-Bay. Zac

Great idea… I wonder if I thick layer of paint and sand would cover those up enough…

We have a friend staying with us now. He is handing in his doctorate in Archaeology. I tried to draw him into the discussion but he is being slippery about it. (maybe if someone mentioned Pratchett, that could lure him into high jacking the thread)

From when I was doing Archaeology I would suggest the Battle for Wolf Ridge Action Game looks like a dig site covered in test pits but if possible to square them up (as per current practise.)
Or maybe connect a few as a test trench (as per one Europeans practise I worked with).

The raised heaps could be the spill heaps from the excavations. As always, one seems to find features/artefacts partial exposed under where the crew has dumped their spill. (One dig we had to move the spill heap three times for that reason.)

Go with me on this…

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The link should take you to the Laura Ashley home furniture web page (YES) and the Large Cream Wall Flower tile. Use the image zoom facility to see exactly what cool effect it has.

How about painting that up and coating with clear varnish to produce a hive-type archaeological dig site? It works in my head. Similar to the GW Tyranids spore nests (Battle of Mac-something).

If you go ice make some ice fields out of pencils. Super easy and cheap.

Ohhh…. that's pretty slick…

Regarding The battle for Wolf Ridge plastic game boards, i think a small tub of poly filer or sparkle would be the best bet for covering over those impressed circular areas as it cheap, easy to apply and i think you would need quite a bit of it. Then when that is thoroughly dry i would give all the boards a watered down mix of PVA white glue and then sprinkle fine sand to evenly cover all the boards and finally paint to finish in your chosen colour scheme. :) Zac

I have an eclectic bunch of Alien/ET type ruins in my 6mm sci-fi terrain inventory including some Stargates … I like the idea/concept/paradigm … link link link link link

Dropzonetoe,

Those pencil crystals look absolutely amazing!!! They could easily work as basalt columns.

Dan

Hmm Mr. Harold, wherever did you get this idea? Anyway it's a good idea, and I know you'll produce something amazing!

Those ice crystals are great and making them out of pencils is pure genius. I would personally paint them up as rocks, because they look exactly like the hexagonal basalt structures of the "giants causeway" in Ireland.

Very nice idea with the pencils.

Just a thought, could the dig site be both an alien ship in front of an alien structure at a door way, the ship could have been trapped by a landslide, kind of gives the player two directions to go in ;D

Hmm Mr. Harold, wherever did you get this idea? Anyway it's a good idea, and I know you'll produce something amazing!

Those ice crystals are great and making them out of pencils is pure genius. I would personally paint them up as rocks, because they look exactly like the hexagonal basalt structures of the "giants causeway" in Ireland.

Who knows! … just trying to think of different terrain boards. I always have liked the idea of an alien dig site…

Hope these may help…

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Those are very cool links, thanks!

There's always the Lunar anomaly site from 2001 for inspiration.

I have similar idea.

Haven't build much (I get hole made from GW crater set, and some of the siding and vehicles).

But when i see alien artifact I know one.
This is the One I decided when Ive seen what I bought my wife for a suggested gift last Christmas :>

Although its largish..

Cacique Caribe

I have half of Eldar tank scenery piece in a style you want to do.
Although its from my cheap times, so its made from strap (styrofoam and some paper).
I haven't think about using it in 15mm.. until this.

AWuuuu, please take pics before and after!

Dan

What about this, as an ancient derelict escape pod or shuttlecraft?

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Just give it a grainy texture and paint in gunmetal and other gray shades.

Dan

Sounds great~!

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Work well to add quick lighting, I use 3 Jade one in my UFO, for It Came From Beyond the Still, as they fade up then fade back down, nice and slow.

Three in the ship started at different times gives a nice pulse that is lacking a real pattern.

If you pull them out of the plastic ball they are quite small. No Wiring, just pull a tab to start and slide any plastic back in to stop.

@ CC
the hacked off squirt gun could make a nice shuttle for a "Farscape" game

That would be so cool!

Dan

Bit late but thanks for the kind words!

Quick tip but I cut my pencils by hand. If you don't have a jig set up make sure to not mix the cut pieces or the cut angles will be all over the place and grouping gets to be harder.

Might make a few of them as rocks too just to see how they look!

And I did just that!
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This is my promised 10+ years scratch build broken eldar tank piece.
With 15mm for scale
Its spot on size wise as GW original.

Beautiful piece. And excellent for 15mm alien wreckage.

How did you make that tank piece?

Dan

Simple cardboard glued over skeleton cut from styrofoam.

I was dirt broke student then and I was experimenting with scratch building Eldar tanks.
I have to finish the base and made some kind of turret for it.

Heh – i think that air intake part is a dryed paint from the lid of the 90 ties GW paint bottle :)

Now all you need to do is make it look thousands of years old, without losing too much of the awesome alien detail in the process.

Dan

Mr. Harold

Did you get to finish your project? If so, how did it turn out? Got pics?

Thanks

Dan