"How Do You Base for Snow?" Topic

What technique do you use for figures which will be used on a snow-covered battlefield?

* I paint the base white
* I use white sand as flock
etc.

When I do (rarely) I use a white flock

Normally, flat black (my normal basing).

Nearly every unit that will be used on snow will also be used on a non-snow terrain. I do have a few arctic based figures. For those:

White paint with metallic blue wash and gloss sealant.

I don't. Ever. Every time you start down such a path, you wipe out most of your terrain and all your troops and have to start over. My people fight in desert or temperate zone, with Barsoom and indoor/urban reserved for select groups of 28mm figures.

The reverse is equally feasible, of course: Leuthen, Eylau, Stalingrad, the Ardennes, Hoth and Barsoom's north polar regions. But to do both requires twice the figures and terrain without adding to the tactical variety.

I'm in agreement with the analyses of etotheipi and robert piepenbrink.

Everyone's original base is painted a mottled dark gray, with grays ranging from dark charcoal to medium neutral gray. If the base is textured, I may add a black wash and a medium tan drybrush, which seems to work pretty well for the all-climate all-terrain base.

If the figures need stability, I will glue them to piece of clear plastic cut from a blister pack. I don't think I'll ever cut the metal bases away from the feet of my miniatures, because the dexterity demands will be stressful, and I do this part of the hobby to relax.

I use baking soda and PVA glue over white tile grout cheap and I think it works quite well.

I was painting for the Winter War, and went to town. Figured my Finns in snowsuits probably wouldn't get much re-use, unless I branched into the Continuation War.

Grey primer coat
Mounds of flex-paste on either side of the base, leaving a path
Sprinkling of Maus Mix's winter flock – might no longer be produced – down the path
Sprinkling of Woodland Scenics across the entire base, more for texture than color.

I build up the ground to base level with lightweight spackle, paint it with diluted Payne's grey, drybrush with white paint and dip in Woodland Scenic's Snow.

For 1/ 144 Ardennes, I paint bases white, then randomly streak dark brown and dark green. I then use the Woodland Scenics adhesive, and apply Woodland Scenics snow.

I did both sides for 3 of the big scenarios in Spearhead. They look fantastic!

Glengary: you can mix the paint into the spackel and thus the spackel will take on the color of the paint, thus saving a step in the work process.

I just use my normal earth/grass bases on my snow cloths. The players seem to be able to see past the incongruity, and most (mechanised) snowy battlefields are a mixture of snow and churned mud in any case.

Earth textured base, heavy dry brush with off-white and a few long grass clumps, then talc stuck on with PVA glue.
I only have a few troops on snow bases – the guys with skis for WW2, mainly, who look a bit silly with no snow.

I don't. Never found the need to make a winter only base.

x42

I use clear plastic bases with clumps of snow flock on them

They tend to work equally well on snowscapes and standard terrain (which just gives a 'half thaw' appearance.

Phil
P.B.Eye-Candy/Winter

I find candy sprinkles (jimmys) are equally convincing on snow, desert, or temperate terrain.

Don't base anything with "snow" … But along time ago I used baking flour.

If I was going to do snow I'd probably use Woodland Scenics …

Some great looking work there guys !