"Fast, easy terrain for bases" Topic

You've seen better but not this easy. I used Golden's Extra Coarse Pumice Gel, applied with a small paint knife. When dry, painted with brownish drab, then drybrush with lighter olive drab, finish with a few grey rocks painted in. It passes the two foot test. Yeah, you can see the figure bases but who cares?

Figures are QRF/Freikorps French Chasseurs a Peid 1870, 15mm. Bases are Wargames Acessories galvanized steel.

Save yourself a step by mixing earth color paint into the Pumice Gel BEFORE spreading it around. Drybrush when it dries.

Not my cup of tea, but whatever makes you happy.

I don't mic the paint in first because then I might have excess that doesn't go back in the container. I'm cheap – uh, thrifty, that is.

Skip the Golden pumice gel and use fine potting soil, one bag will last you years. Mix it with cheap dark brown acrylic paint and white glue, thin with a little water if necessary, and spread it on as thick as you like. It will dry with texture and depth that helps hide the miniature bases. I borrowed this idea from Mateus, who posted this basing tutorial on his blog.

I save a step over Mateus, too, and just sprinkle on flocking and rocks and ballast while the dirt mixture is wet. It holds on fine. After the dirt mixture dries, I knock off any loose flocking and I'm done. It looks great, and the wet mixture is so cheap I'm not afraid to throw away the leftover when I've flocked all the bases in front of me. It is, literally, dirt cheap.

- Ix

I really like my basing method because it is a tad slow. I paint the base a dark color (doesn't matter what color – green, blue, black, brown) and let dry. Coat with white glue and dip in sand. My sand is free as I live near a beach :-) Let dry overnight.

Paint the base with a brown ink wash and let dry overnight.

Drybrush with a tan or brown then add flock/grass.

For some reason i really enjoy the mindless multi-day nature of basing.

This is my basing method. I use Liquatex Resin Sand Gel with black paint mix in along with some sand and other bits.

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Maybe not as quick as other methods, but it works for me.

Some "other bits"? Like flowering plants? And painted hats and weapons? And PAINTED AND FLOCKED TREES?!?! LOL! Your modesty is admirable, sir, but I think you understate your level of effort just a bit. :-)

- Ix

Admiral, I subscribe to the adage that spectacularly painted figures look terrible on crumby bases, while average painted figures (like mine) come to life on excellent basing.

Yes, there is a lot more work involved. But compare the pictures. Is it not worth it?

Besides, it what I'm good at. I can't paint worth a damn.

I gave up painting the sand many years ago when I discovered builders sand – a pleasing mid brown with a rough texture and with pebbles etc already mixed in.

Stick it on with PVA, maybe a light drybrush, slap on some patches of static grass and job done.

Admiral, I subscribe to the adage that spectacularly painted figures look terrible on crumby bases, while average painted figures (like mine) come to life on excellent basing.

So do I. I've acquired a lot of my figures by buying cast-off collections, and most of them are mediocre paint jobs at best. It's amazing how much better poorly painted figures look when standing on a nicely flocked base.

As if to prove my point – if the figures in your photos are mediocre, I can't tell. You did a phenomenal job basing them.

- Ix

I use Golden's Coarse Pumice gel (GPG) for all my figure basing and a lot of terrain basing.

"I don't mic the paint in first because then I might have excess that doesn't go back in the container. I'm cheap – uh, thrifty, that is."

Always mix with some paint before application as this will mitigate any tell tale white cracks and or chips. BTW one of the advantages of GPG is that it quite flexible after it has dried and when applying it it adheres to almost any surface (similar to glue).

I keep extra colored (usually earth brown--after I dry brush with different greens) pumice gel in a empty GPG jar (after thoroughly washing it) but any clean jar with a tight fitting lid will do. That way you always have some basing gel ready to go. My jar of brown pumice gel lasts many months.

@Yellow Admiral – thanks for the potting soil tip! I tried it out and it works like a charm. So simple and obvious that I never thought of it.

Cheers,

Christopher

Me too. Reading a post by Mateus showing his technique was a facepalm moment for me. What could look more like dirt than actual dirt? So obvious, yet I never thought to try it. Duh!

Do you have any pictures of the change to potting soil?

- Ix

PS: Don't use cheap bulk herbs or spices as grass. Your miniatures will smell like food, and become susceptible to rot and mold. Don't ask how I know that…