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Trench Starter Set | |
Product # | 710 |
Manufacturer | |
Suggested Retail Price | US$27.00 |
Back to Showcase
Revision Log | |
18 December 1999 | converted to Miva |
7 October 1999 | redesigned |
4 October 1998 | linked to painting article |
29 September 1998 | page first published |
Editor in Chief Bill figures out the stats for his Army Racing Team under the Road Rage rules.
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©1994-2024 Bill Armintrout
Comments or corrections?
Tim DuPertuis of Armorcast was kind enough to drop me a Trench Starter Set, part of a series of terrain pieces (in the Terraform product line) that allow you to create extensive trench systems on the tabletop. (I'm told Tim had a truly massive display set up for a scenario at GameCon '98, but I wasn't able to stay for the evening events.)
The pieces are made of polyurethane resin - off-white, slight odor, very nicely finished with flat bottoms and no major defects. Most resin products are subject to pitting (due to air bubbles in manufacture), but the pits here are infrequent and quite small. The resin seems to be sturdy enough for regular use, not apparently brittle.
The starter set comes with five trench pieces:
The pieces are intended to mate with each other - but, since each piece is completely finished, they can also be used as standalone sections. This means that you could use the starter pieces to create a single section of terrain (two gun pits and a connecting trench), or use each piece individually to create five strongpoints.
No scale is stated, though it is clear that these terrain pieces are for use with 25mm (and perhaps larger) scale. The trench floors are covered with rough planks, while the inside walls are composed of a finely lined material (could be painted as corrugated metal or bamboo) supported by regular struts. The style is too modern for most historical periods, but works fine for science fiction.
The box also includes two instruction sheets. The first sheet provides basic instructions common to all Terraform products: how to prep the pieces, priming and painting tips, how to repair them if necessary, and a warning not to leave the pieces for prolonged periods in the back of your car (the heat could warp them).
The second sheet is specific to the trench terrain system. On one side are diagrams showing how the various pieces (including two pieces not included in the starter set: T-intersections and bunkers) can be combined together to create different configurations. The back of the sheet provides ideas on how to add trenches to your favorite game system, covering such combat systems as tanks, walkers, cycles, aircraft, mortars, etc. The suggestions also make the point that you can decide whether the pieces represent underground trenches on your tabletop, or if the trench walls are considered to be aboveground.