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Post by tauster on Apr 13, 2018 21:40:57 GMT
Just re-watched Hellboy II: Golden Army and man is there a metric ton of roleplaying inspiration to be found! Spoilers ahead. You've been warned. You have living ruins that act as gates to a forgotten city in the fey world. That counts as two ideas. No, make that three.  You have a wonderful troll with a cute name...  ...with a mago-mechanic fist!  A great villain whose motivation is totally understandable and whom you can absolutely sympasize with.  And he has a classic weakness. Btw: I absolutely love this variant of elves. Dark, deadly dangerous, elegant, powerful but still fading from the world. Beautiful even in death. Feels so much like a classic, the whole race.  More classic creatures. This guy seems to have sprung straight from an old D&D Monster Manual.  And new ones that whose designs are the work of a genius:  Epic fights. Like that giant plant monster with tentacles. Tentacles! *drools*  Oh and that critter is not a simple monster that you just kill and reap the XP. You will feel bad for killing it even if you have no other choice. That works great as a roleplaying encounter, provided your players don't remember the scene or if they do, keep to themselves so they don't spoil the fun for the rest. Youtube has at least two clips that feature the Forest God scenes (sadly not the speech of the prince about the creatures death).  Such a creature shouldn't be too hard to craft. You could even make several versions that get progressively bigger: You start with a small (i.e. human-sized) plant miniature, then after a few rounds swap it against one that is the size of your hand. After you put the third plant-'miniature' on the table (a foot high!), your players will become paranoid and take note of that giant cardboard moving box you've put conspicuously in the corner of the game's room before they arrived (empty, but they won't believe that). Steampunk devices, usable for the party. And wonderfully weird steampunk characters. Steampunk was my first love before crafting roleplaying terrain and monsters. I've amassed a veritable hoard of materials, but I never got very far with actually making stuff. I still have that weakness for brass and gears, leather and lenses though.  Not to forget fighting an army of undying giant metal warriors. What an action-ladden encounter. Perfect for players who love cinematic combat maneuvers.   It gets even better: duelling on giant moving gears. How cool is that?  I sooo want to make a terrain set of giant gears! Actually I have a few ideas in mind. There's a CNC milling machine at work. Shouldn't be too hard cobbling together a gear set for it and let it cut a few truly massive gears from scrap material. And then there's those fitness foam rolls. Not sure what they cost but even a cheap used one would work. Actually a used one with a few dents and scratches would look even better.  I could easily go on with that list for a while (I didn't even mention the Troll Market for example), but I'd either bore those to death who have seen the movie or spoil the fun for those who haven't seen it yet (shame on you! ). Go watch it, or re-watch it - and then craft some cool stuff!  |
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Post by tauster on Aug 22, 2018 19:51:29 GMT
Radish seed pods collected from my boy's giant radish (it had an over 15cm long tuber, about 4cm in diameter. Believe it or not. We were not allowed to eat it, so it grew a huge plant and about a hundred of those seed pods. I kept some for crafting because those shapes are just pure crafting gold.
I was smiling ear to ear when I put them aside, because things like that is exactly how this thread started years ago. 
What would you make out of those pods?
1) Add wings, legs and small eyes --> giant stirges. Goblin miniatures could probably ride them, so add a magnet on the belly and put them on a fly stand.
2) Put them upright for weird fruit pods. Add gnarly roots all around.
3) Make a large tree and use them as hanging fruits.
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Post by sgtslag on Aug 24, 2018 20:48:58 GMT
Perhaps insectoid demons/devils? Giant Wasps? Cheers!
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Post by erho on Aug 24, 2018 21:42:24 GMT
Mutant hummingbirds if you want a jaunt into the "unbelievable"
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Post by tauster on Aug 25, 2018 19:38:07 GMT
I just got, once again, into the topic of crackle paint. This stuff is absolutely cool and can be used in so many ways in roleplaying terrain (desert ground, lava, cracked ice,...), but crackle paint is too expensive to be used on large terrain pieces, let alone whole boards. Sure, for small miniature bases you can use the expensive stuff (see here for an example), and you'll get a great effect. Still that's 6€ for a very small amount, and I don't feel like shelling that out if there's a DIY alternative.
Elmers Glue with acrylic color above
Acrylic color mixed with coffee grounds. My favourite of the two. Love the rough texture!
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Post by tauster on Sept 16, 2018 10:22:42 GMT
No idea what that flower is called, but we've had it in the garden forever:
A few years back I made some flying critters out of those thorny petals. It's a classic speed build: fill with hotglue from below, put a scrap piece of metal or a magnet in the glue, paint.
I plan to do some more, playing with different color schemes. A steampunk vesion with tiny gears would be nice...
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Post by Sam on Sept 16, 2018 17:31:55 GMT
How well do they hold up? I would think they are fragile. Look like some type of giant leech.
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Post by tauster on Sept 16, 2018 17:38:05 GMT
How well do they hold up? I would think they are fragile. Look like some type of giant leech.
I filled them with hotglue underneath, and that stabilized them well enough. Haven't used them in a game yet, but they've been standing in my cabinet for some years now, fallen out several times and didn't take any damage so far.
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Post by margaret on Sept 16, 2018 18:00:51 GMT
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Post by tauster on Sept 16, 2018 18:13:06 GMT
Thanks for identifying the acanthus! The bergenia's stem can't be used, it is far too brittle. ...but. I'll try to soak it in PVA glue and see what happens. Maybe they get hard enough to be painted and used as decoration, but honestly I doubt it. Fall is coming, so we'll soon see. |
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Post by tauster on Sept 25, 2018 20:36:06 GMT
My Gnome Gear-o-mancer (i.e. cleric of Nebulun/Gond) needs a proper spellbook, so I'm making him a proper prop. ...and a few steampunkey knickknacks: Lego Bionicle parts (the claws and chields), some steampunk jewellery beads & pendants, and some parts I made myself (the large gear in the center, and it's two 'ears' which are parts of an old electric razor. I made molds of them and cast hotglue and/or milliput copies). The butterfly is from a cake decoration silicone mold, cast in resin.
A bit of paint... ...and it is ready to be glued on, almost. The claws and the gear will get some rust, and I'm still not sure whether or not I'll age some of the coppery/bronce parts with verdigris.
The book will hold my dice bag and more props of my character. I don't think I'll have it finished for tomorrow's game, which would have been cool, but I want this thing to be pure eye candy and not being done half-assed, so I'm taking my time. Heck, I even considered making a velvet or leather cusion inside, for a second or three. |
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Post by tauster on Sept 27, 2018 18:40:24 GMT
Radish seed pods collected from my boy's giant radish (it had an over 15cm long tuber, about 4cm in diameter. Believe it or not. We were not allowed to eat it, so it grew a huge plant and about a hundred of those seed pods. I kept some for crafting because those shapes are just pure crafting gold.
I was smiling ear to ear when I put them aside, because things like that is exactly how this thread started years ago.
What would you make out of those pods?
1) Add wings, legs and small eyes --> giant stirges. Goblin miniatures could probably ride them, so add a magnet on the belly and put them on a fly stand.
2) Put them upright for weird fruit pods. Add gnarly roots all around.
3) Make a large tree and use them as hanging fruits.
...it just dawned on my that I should make molds of those. No idea why I hadn't thought of that before. First, I think they will take moisture very badly and second, with molds I can cast hundreds of them, either with hotglue or resin. Much better than the brittle originals!
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Post by margaret on Sept 27, 2018 20:40:38 GMT
Good idea to make a few molds. Usually the pods will eventually split open to release the seeds.
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Post by tauster on Sept 27, 2018 21:14:36 GMT
Not all survived being encased in the mold mass, come caved in and became useless. I could make ten molds, and hopefully when the mass has cured, I will get the pods out without leaving remnants behing inside the molds. Most of the pods have a 'waistline' so they will be difficult to get out...
We'll see tomorrow!
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Post by tauster on Sept 28, 2018 19:08:01 GMT
Need a large cannon for your steampunk or scifi robot? Use cellular conrete dowels! WÜRTH's GB14 has a great cannon-like shape and a cool triple symmetry. Other brands offer the same basic shape.
Smear some silicone around it, let it cure and fill the mold with hotglue if you want the thing solid.
Add a LED ball at the end and wow your table with a glowing monstrous cannon:
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Post by tauster on Sept 29, 2018 8:45:01 GMT
The spellbook prop is finished. Or at least good enough to show off at game night. I might add a thing or two later on, but for now I call it done.
Glamour shots:
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Post by tauster on Oct 27, 2018 18:30:12 GMT
I guess there's a time in any crafter's carreer when Dragon Eggs enter the wishlist...
You can find probably hundreds of examples online. I had four styrofoam eggs left, and after I finally found them on the attic,...
...my boy and I split the loot. He gets three and I get one...
I was quite surprised how well the texture rolling pins work. As this isn't a flat tile, you should end up with visible 'seams' between the rolls, but that's hardly visible. Maybe it will get wors after the paint is on, but so far they look promising:
Another one is textured with hotglue. Number four (my egg) will get a flat black baseing, a dark metallic blue overcoat and some silver and/or golden sprinkles, finished by a glossy sheen. At least that is the plan.
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Post by tauster on Nov 3, 2018 13:06:19 GMT
This was the first year I planted sunflowers around the house, and I was instantly a huge fan of them. I collected the seeds for next year and dried the root balls on the oven. after they were dried, I once again tried to beat out most of the dirt and loose ends. This is a huge mess, because the extremely fine dry roots break off almost instantly, and when you're done, the root ball looks dissapointingly scrawny. Still, they looked very much like messy hair - the reason I kept them in the first place. I glued eyes on (cotton balls), added pupils... ...and made hotglue mouths on a non-sticky surface like wax paper... ...that where painted dark red (Khorne Red) when hardened. Since I couldn't decide how to place the mouths, I glued some scrap metal bits on the stalks and small flat neodyms on the back of the mouths so I can rearrange them. When the ...ahem... lipstick is dry, I'll share some pics of this merry troupe. I haven't seen this idea before, so maybe this time I'm not just the usual shameless copycat but came up with something genuinely new. Not very likely, but one can hope. [update] ...aaand the finished thing, together with the Halloween tin cans: |
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Post by tauster on Nov 25, 2018 14:32:37 GMT
I discovered these beauties last week, just in time to order three large packs of balls and break out the black ink pen. I also ordered the movie, 7 times, to go with the balls into the pre-xmas parcels for friends & family. They are fun to make, quick to finish, and not overly expensive, i.e. ideal for small presents. Not sure about their novelty; I haven't seen them before until a few days ago, so maybe these balls are a relatively new thing. If not, at least nobody in my circle of friends has ever mentioned them (and I haven't seen them on trees anywhere).
I ran out of white balls (bought 40 in total; my boy painted a few for himself, his girlfriend and our own tree), so I might have to order even more... Oh and yes, they are addictive, kind of. You have been warned.
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Post by tauster on Jan 25, 2019 14:31:24 GMT
After Wyloch repeatedly used an airbrush in his tutorials, I finally caved in:
I ordered an airbrush beginner's set, where 120€ get you a compressor, two sets of airbrush and all the essential accessories you might need (cleaning tools, adapters, etc)
...plus a bottle of 99,9% isopropanol (I would have bought it in the local drugstore but they seem to have only 70% in stock),
...plus a translucent plastic container,
...plus a bathroom fan for ventilation, although I havent installed it yet because I am not sure If I really need it when spraying with (nontoxic!) acrylic colors.
The bright LED light I still had around the house (bought it years ago but never installed it anywhere).
Compressor and airbrush were dead simple to connect, and done in about 10 minutes. What took me the longest was freeing up the space on and under that desk. It was full with junk non-essential crafting materials, much of which was dumped in the trashcan.
So far I haven't sprayed a single drop of color so far, but I'm pretty hyped.
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Cheers!