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Bog me Down I've always thought that it would be very cool to have some swamp terrain. I have images of dead or dying trees, stagnant water and discolorations of the surrounding area, making it look a little diseased. Well, I've been thinking about it for a long time, it's time to get the job done so I can play with it! Size Matters Typically, swamps count as difficult terrain, slowing movement without necessarily blocking line of sight (which separates them from forests.) Much like forests, they need a distinct base to delineate where the difficult terrain starts and stops. In addition, there are size constraints to consider. Too big a terrain piece will block up too much of the board and rarely be used. Too little won't block enough area to be a real inconvenience, and won't provide as much in the way of modeling opportunities. I would recommend using a size between about 6x9 and 8x10 for a swamp. If you really want larger swamps, I would instead split them into several chunks for greater flexibility. If you only want it to be a little swampy, just use one of them. If you want to recreate Dagobah, where Luke meets Yoda, then use 6 or 8 of them. One final note about the base: Remember that you will be most likely using some sort of liquid for the water. Choose a base material that will not warp, or make sure you have something to keep it from warping. I'm using some foamcore I had laying around. It gives a lightweight, sturdy base for the terrain. I've seen people use wood as a base, and that gives you a very robust terrain piece, but it can also get pretty heavy and it can still warp. When modeling a swamp, there are quite a range of ideas to choose from. The idea of a swamp, to me, calls up images of stagnant, brackish water with algae and things floating in it, plus a diseased rotting all around it, with dead trees and dying foliage, maybe even a dead animal or some bones as well. Unsavory, unhealthy, unwelcoming. Some frogs or crocodiles might also go well, but be careful to not let them make the place look more wholesome. First off, water. You really need to have water to have a swamp. While you could just use a felt circle or just a section of paint to represent the water, it really loses something. Even stinking, foetid swamp water has a bit of reflection and the best way to do this is by using something a little bit shiny. In addition, all but the most brackish or polluted water is slightly translucent, so using something that can be seen through, at least a little bit, is also a big deal. I had considered using some of my Minwax Polyshades resin for this, as it looks pretty nasty when it dries in clumps, but still retains its liquid look and shininess. Unfortunately, it also requires a very long time to set, even in a fairly shallow layer, so I have decided to go with practicality. There are several products out there, including a couple of varieties of resin, that would fit the bill, but there is one a bit closer to home that works fine. White glue. It's cheap and easy to find, it cleans up fairly easily (a piece of cake compared to resin!) and it dries translucent. If you do it in thin layers, it will dry quickly and you can even put stuff in between the layers. While partially submerged items come to mind, you can also put a coat of paint or stain or something between the layers for a more exotic effect. If your paint is not also translucent, I would recommend putting another layer of glue over it, to give a better illusion of depth. In the water or on the water, there are various things you can add to help the illusion that this is a swamp, just remember that a little goes a long way here. Algae is a good example. A bit of flock or a sludge of paint and glue can be added on top of the water. On the other hand, if you have too much algae, it may look more like a ground cover or simply bad grass, rather than something floating on water. Various tiny twigs and rocks can be partially submerged (or totally if you use a translucent enough "water" for them to be seen. In addition, fungus never looks out of place in a swamp, whether it is a nasty foaming blight, or simply some poisonous looking toadstool mushrooms. Dead and dying trees will also add to your ambience, just be careful not to use too many or your swamp will suddenly become a forest. The types of trees and additional foliage will depend on your type of swamp. Will you use standard, deciduous trees that are simply decaying, or will you use more weeping willows and vines and Spanish moss? Ferns can be a good addition, and you may be able to find tiny ones, or simply make your own. If you take a strip of mesh or screen material, and cut a single line from it, leaving the crossed parts of the lines attached, then run your finger or a tool along it to make the crossed parts all bend in one direction, you've got a fern stalk. A few more painted in a clump will give you some cool fern plants. If you want to make your own trees, please see my update on forests and hills for more details. For weeping willows, you'll need much longer wires to get the right effect, though. Vines, moss, lichen, or simply scrub bushes will also help build your mood, just don't turn it into a jungle. Similarly, a few dead animals or a skeleton help the effect, but more than one or two starts making it look more like a battlefield or graveyard than a swamp. A great touch would be to partially or completely submerge a skeleton, or leave a body facedown, halfway underwater. Creepy! If you use wildlife of some sort, make sure it doesn't brighten up the place too much. I prefer my swamps gloomy, and a brightly colored frog sunning itself doesn't make me think gloom. On the other hand, a camouflaged toad, all warty and bloated, makes a great little addition to the overall feeling of unhealthiness. A partially submerged crocodile also helps add to the dangerous look of the place, and would allow you to occasionally use the piece as a Carnivore Lair type. (The rules are in the main 40k rulebook, but the idea is that the terrain has a chance of eating models that come too close, pretty wicked, huh?) Okay, now we've got plenty of ideas about what to do, let's lay it out a little bit and get to work. First off, most of the base should be water, or it will end up looking like a small pool. If you cover about 2/3 of the base in the swamp water, you'll be doing pretty good. Make it a little off-center, so most of your non-water area is on one side, where you can put your modeling to the best use. The dry area is where you should put a tree or two and most of the foliage or scrub you use, plus any mushrooms or other fungus. This would probably also be the best place to situate a toad as well. Leave it either well camouflaged, but in the open, like on a rock near the water, or make it stand out a little bit more, but place it partially under some foliage. The idea is to make it blend in to the surroundings, but let it's presence subtly effect the viewer. The water itself should get a couple of submerged or partially submerged stones and some algae. The water would also be the best place for a body, whether skeletal (fully submerged would probably be creepiest) or still with skin (This would be best as a partially submerged piece, layer the water around it to leave some sticking up through the surface of the water.) Spackle or putty makes a good mud shore for the swamp, and will keep it from running all over the place if you pour too much at once. A bit back from shore, it would probably be a good idea to use some flock and/or static grass. The whole piece will benefit from using lots of browns and a bit of green (preferably tinged with brown) as well. Dark brown mud with black inside recesses like footprints works well. Using a bit of brown on top of or mixed with green also helps the flock and the foliage look a bit rotted as well. Using a brownish tinge on the water helps as well. If you add a bit of red or black to the brown, it will look even better. (By adding it, you can literally mix it in, or you can put down a layer of brown and lightly drybrush or wash the added color on top of it, depending on your preference. Alright, now I've finally got the swamp I've wanted all this time. Way cool! If you try your hand at building some of the terrain I've suggested, please let me know, I'd love to hear about it and see your pictures. On the other hand, if you want to buy some waterfront property, let me know too! If you enjoyed this, email me and let me know |