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Cave Evil
It's hard to see, but I used a fine point black sharpie to draw hexes in the centre area. I put a few coats of acrylic spray over it all and finished with a quick matte spray. With all the cards sleeved everything barely fits in the box. Actually the rulebook puts the contents just over:
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Hex Sinister wrote: Nice, Hatchling. I've been considering plexi as an alternative... I have no idea where to start or even how much that would cost. Hmm, it wouldn't be portable like yours...
Cheap poster frame would do the trick for stability. Doesn't help on the portability factor, but it wouldn't require any mounting or adhesives.
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- Dr. Mabuse
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Next up I've scoped out minis for the Necromancers.
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Dogmatix wrote:
Hex Sinister wrote: Nice, Hatchling. I've been considering plexi as an alternative... I have no idea where to start or even how much that would cost. Hmm, it wouldn't be portable like yours...
Cheap poster frame would do the trick for stability. Doesn't help on the portability factor, but it wouldn't require any mounting or adhesives.
Damn, that's a great idea. Hmm.
Dogmatix, just curious - do you plexi by chance?
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Hex Sinister wrote:
Dogmatix wrote:
Hex Sinister wrote: Nice, Hatchling. I've been considering plexi as an alternative... I have no idea where to start or even how much that would cost. Hmm, it wouldn't be portable like yours...
Cheap poster frame would do the trick for stability. Doesn't help on the portability factor, but it wouldn't require any mounting or adhesives.
Damn, that's a great idea. Hmm.
Dogmatix, just curious - do you plexi by chance?
Yep. I just picked up the remaining bits I needed to cover the full 3 Days of Gettysburg campaign map--44"x38" worth of quarter-inch plexi Can't beat it, though I would always suggest that you spend the big money on 2/10ths or thicker plexi. It's expensive, but it's pretty much guaranteed to lay flat and smooth out folds and cover gaps. This is particularly useful with cardstock maps because the folds can be kind of permanent "speedbumps" that are so very not stack-friendly.
Thinner plexi is a lot cheaper, but it has a tendency to lift when used with maps printed on heavier stock [or just having sharper folds]
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Quarter inch sounds pretty thick. Does it create any spatial distortion (sorry, I can't think of the right word I'm looking for). Like, is it hard to tell what hex stuff is in if you're looking at it from an angle?
May I ask what you paid for that? (shit, I gotta run out hth door, bbl).
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Hex Sinister wrote: I figured you did =)
Quarter inch sounds pretty thick. Does it create any spatial distortion (sorry, I can't think of the right word I'm looking for). Like, is it hard to tell what hex stuff is in if you're looking at it from an angle?
May I ask what you paid for that? (shit, I gotta run out hth door, bbl).
No problem with refraction or distortion, though glare can be a bit of a drag if you have bare high-watt bulbs directly overhead. I've got opaque diffusers over the light cans in my basement, so there's no "spotlight effect" or any other issues with visibility.
24x48 sheets of .220"-thick run around $50; smaller sizes run between $20 and $40. Of the generally available stock sizes, 30x36 is probably the all-'round most useful size, but I had to go with 1 24x48" and 2 18x24" sheets because the campaign set-up I'm playing is T-shaped, thus requires some screwing about to cover adequately. The recessed surface of my game table is exactly 48" and the plexi is actually between 24.25 and 24.5" wide, so 2 long sheets wouldn't work. The biggest pain in the ass is the fact that most hardware stores [and none of the ones around here] don't cut plexi in-house and the thick sheets are a HUGE pain in the ass to cut for the uninitiated [among which I count myself]--a mix of stock-sized sheets to get the right coverage may look a little goofy but it was FAR less hassle. All the sheets sit flush against each other and are too heavy to shift around and create chasms during play, so it works for me.
(I've also got a couple of "dent pullers"--basically 3" suction cups--that I slap down on that big-ass sheet to enable picking it straight up and to move it around without disturbing the stuff beneath because it's a drag to get it all in place and then discover that you slid one of the maps out of alignment while setting the sheet down. However, if you're just looking at 1 "normal"-sized sheet over a single map, you'd have absolutely no need).
A 30x36 sheet will work for most 1-map/small 2-map wargames; I think an 18x24 would work for most other games. I much prefer putting a slab of plexi down because counters move like a dream and it also allows me to write directly on the play surface with a dry erase marker [like marking last moved stack or last action if I get interrupted during solo play]. It's great for things like crayon-rail games, too.
As I mentioned, heavy/thick plexi or a nice poster frame provides a more stable playing surface. It's not as big a deal for something like Cave Evil's generally large/heavy bits, but for games with lots of small bits, it's pretty crucial.
When I finally finish getting this campaign game set-up, I'll post a couple of pictures so folks can see my absurd (but wonderful) gaming table in all its nerdy glory. [This is one of the very few times I'm actually going the extra OCD mile and trimming the 1,000 counters in a game as I had a hard time punching this one--lots of "near splits" and fuzzy, bent corners. I think it's also driven partially by wanting the first game on my spiffy new GeekChiq table to be "extra good-er". My cousin, the M.D./shrink in LA, would undoubtedly say there's a Freudian quality to that...and he's probably right. You do, after all, only get one shot at "the first time" ]
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- Notahandle
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Notahandle wrote: I took a different approach when buying some 3 or 4mm plexi three years ago. Went for six A3 and sixteen A4 sheets (one A3 and two A4 bundles), figuring that'll cover anything. All kept in an A3 Leather Art Portfolio which means they're portable, if heavy.
The "window pane" approach. Clever. 4 of those sheets would work for just about anything. The one significant downside with the thick sheets is that the edges are unfinished and can be prone to chipping if handled roughly. The thinner sheets, on the other hand, seem to scratch and scuff more easily. Six of one/half-dozen of the other, I guess. And now I'm obligated ("to love & mock..." was apparently one of our wedding vows) to go upstairs and let me wife make fun of me for the unbelievably geeky ability to dash off a quick 4,000 words devoted solely to the qualities of plexiglass as a gaming surface.
And, since I've done such a fine job of derailing this thread, let me remind everyone that Hatchling's CE board is cool as hell. Oh, and he's WAY handier (or "arts & craftsier" anyway) than I could ever be.
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Dogmatix wrote: I'll post a couple of pictures so folks can see my absurd (but wonderful) gaming table in all its nerdy glory. [This is one of the very few times I'm actually going the extra OCD mile and trimming the 1,000 counters in a game as I had a hard time punching this one--lots of "near splits" and fuzzy, bent corners. I think it's also driven partially by wanting the first game on my spiffy new GeekChiq table to be "extra good-er".
Say what? You got one of those fancy gamer tables? Damn. Get clipping so we can see some pix!
And thanks for all the info. Interesting stuff.
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Dogmatix wrote: And now I'm obligated ("to love & mock..." was apparently one of our wedding vows) to go upstairs and let me wife make fun of me for the unbelievably geeky ability to dash off a quick 4,000 words devoted solely to the qualities of plexiglass as a gaming surface.
Heh! And "you're clipping WHAT??". My girlfriend thinks I'm a freak because I'll be in the kitchen boiling my plastic soldiers and stuff. But the barrels are bent! I just can't stand it. I just boiled my entire War of the Ring set... Hey, even she admits they look cooler now!
Yeah, sorry for the derail Hatchly
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I have two 18"x24" sheets of it that I also carry in an artist portfolio. Of course, I basically never get to use it, but it's in arsenal and ready. Back when I actually got out to game it used to live in my trunk. Those two sheets cover almost everything I need it for and are way more portable than the equivalent 24"x36" or bigger.
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I like the window pane plexi idea.
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Also, what campaign are you playing?
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