One of the most important aspects of making your models look their best is very often overlooked. A well-done, scenic base can add a lot to all the hard work you put into your paint jobs, and can really make characters, and unique personalities stand out on the battlefield. Not only does it make them look better, but it will help you and your opponent identify who’s important on the table at a quick glance. A creative base will assist in setting a time and place for your models as well, which will give the viewer a sense of place, time, and situation that the model is in when captured in sculpture. Think of a scenic base the background of a photo; without the Eiffel Tower in the background, it’s not Paris; it’s just another city. Painting your models to look like they belong in a forest is one thing, but making them look they’re actually in a forest is entirely another.

What we will cover in this first part of the article, is building and constructing many different thematic bases. I will cover several kinds of bases; Standard Rock n’ Flock, Lava Break-up, Lava Flow, Forest, Cracked Earth, Junk Pile, and Swamp. I didn’t want to focus on only one kind of base for this article. Since a wide array of several, simple, and easy to make base building basics could cover a good portion, if not all, of the different kinds of basing that would help anyone build a base for nearly all of the factions across Warmachine, and Hordes. I hope to give the reader enough understanding of basic basing that they will be able to create any number of base types after we’re through. A lot of these bases can be slightly modified to create even more types of thematic basing, but with these basics covered, feel free to let your imagination run wild. The Swamp base can be slightly modified to make water, lakes, or streams. The Junk Pile can be modified to build wreck markers, or sewage drain pipes…there’s a lot you can do with a few simple techniques under your belt, and that’s what we’re going to go over in detail.

Part 1, or ‘Build It, and They Will Look Cool.’

I have decided to build 7 differing bases; Three Small, 30mm bases, Two medium, 40mm Bases, and Two 50mm, Large Bases.

First, we’ll need some materials;

1. Cork Tiles, Thin and Thick, which can be found at Michael’s or any craft store for very little. I have three 1′x1′ thick tiles I’ve been using for two years, and haven’t even gone through a single whole tile. It’s a pretty good deal for less than 5 bucks.

2. A bits collection. I save everything from my models. I have three baby food jars with sticks, twigs, brass rods and tubes, styrene beams, rocks, old model parts, and extras. Reaper makes several kits of adventurer supplies, treasures and more, which are excellent for basing, and kit-bashing.

3. Static Grass, Fine Leaf Foliage, and some Clump Foliage, all made by Woodland Scenics. I use Games Workshops pre-mixed static grass; Scorched Grass, and Glade Grass blends. It’s more expensive, but it comes in pre-made blends, and two tubs will last years if you’re only using it for basing models. The larger Woodland Scenics containers are more economical if you’re building terrain, or tables.

4. Some CA Glue, and some White Glue. There is little difference in brands of CA glue; I use an extra thick formula because it stays where I put it. Any thinner, and it tends to run all over the place (thin CA glues have an odd attraction to fingers….). I use Mod Podge for my white glue. It’s a craft glue that can be found in large plastic jars that will last for years, and can be thinned very easily. It’s really cheap too.

5. And lastly, some modelling sand. Again, I use Games Workshops modelling sand, because it has a good variety of sizes pre-mixed in the tub. Woodland Scenics is more economical, but doesn’t come pre-mixed in differing sizes. A tub of GW stuff will last years if you’re only using it for basing.

The three 30mm bases are going to be (from left to right); Rock n’ Flock, Lava Break-up, and Cracked Earth.

The two 40mm bases are; Forest (left), and Lava Flow (right).

The two 50mm bases are; Junk Pile (left), and Swamp (right).

What I have done first, is break up a cork tile into large chunks, and positioned it on my bases. Try and leave the edges rough, and if you’re using a corner piece, break some chunks off the edge so it doesn’t appear man-made or uniform. The easiest solution to fill the slot in the bases is to find a chunk or two that covers the gap completely. Then you don’t have to fill anything with putty, or worry about materials falling through the base. It’s better to leave a little bit of the cork hanging over the edge of the base, as it has a rougher, and more natural feel. For gaming purposes, try not to leave too much overhang, since the lip of the base is where you’ll be measuring from. If it’s for display only, then let it all hang out as far as you want! Also, make sure there is enough space on the top of the cork to secure your models, and to give them a place to stand.

When building bases with cork, I will either put a pin through one foot of my models, and CA glue that to the cork, or I will make an indent with the pewter tab in the cork, hollow it out, and glue the tab right into the cork. I leave the tabs on models that have very little surface area on the feet; my Black 13th was mounted this way, since the models are so tiny, and I didn’t want to risk drilling such tiny feet. With warjacks, I will cut a large hole into the cork, fill it with putty, and CA glue the pins in the feet into the putty. This will reinforce the ‘jack enough so that it won’t break off easily, since the cork is pretty fragile to hold heavy metal warjacks. The plastic warjacks won’t need putty under their feet.
Once you have the cork in a position you find appealing, cover the bottom of it with a thin layer of CA glue, and secure it to the base. Make sure to give it at least 20 minutes to dry before doing any other work on the base, or you might destroy the bond.

When positioning the cork for our Forest, and Junk Pile, you want to leave enough room at the front, or back of the base to add trees, rocks, and/or junk.

The Swamp Base requires a bit more work than the rest, as you must first cut the middle of the base out, leaving just the curved lip. You’re essentially making a base ‘ring’. Use a sharp kitchen knife for this, as a hobby knife will surely break cutting through the thick plastic, and you risk cutting yourself as well. A hobby knife is surgically sharp, and can sever ligaments and tendons very easily. Be careful with this step; place the base flat on your cutting mat, and push the knife directly downwards. Pull it out, and do the same again until you get all the way around the base. Don’t turn it on its side, or cut towards your body, otherwise you risk serious injury. Take your time; making a good base isn’t done in 5 minutes.

Don’t worry about making it a perfectly smooth cut. The important thing is to get the middle out.

Once the middle of the base is removed, clean up the jagged edge with a hobby knife. Again, be careful with this step, and shave off small bits by cutting away from your body; keep the ring flat on the table, and move the base ring instead of your knife. Keep the hobby knife along the edge with the point down, the sharp side facing away from you, and the point secure in your cutting mat. This will give you control, and less slippage, which is what can cause injury.

Now, grab the back of a clamshell blister pack.

If you don’t have a lot of these laying around after buying models, then what are you doing with them? Throwing them away? One of the most useful things a modeller has at their disposal is blister packs; they’re good for so many things!

Next, cut a corner of the blister plastic large enough to glue the base ring to. Leave lots of overhang around it, and CA glue the base to the blister plastic. I didn’t use styrene in this step for two reasons; blister plastic is thin, cheap, and durable, and it won’t melt, like styrene when CA glue is applied to it. Let the CA glue cure at least 20 minutes before moving onto the next step.

After the glue has finished curing, use a hobby knife and follow the circumference of the base ring, deeply score the blister plastic. Bend it in several places along the ring’s edge, and it should snap part of the way off. You may need to keep scoring with your hobby knife for several passes before it will snap off for you.

Once the base is completely cut-out, you’ll be left with a recessed base; the base ring will be now raised above the bottom of the base, which will allow you to pour water effects inside. Clean up the edge of the blister plastic with your hobby knife so it’s smooth, and flush with the base ring. Pick out two or three chunks of your cork tile, and arrange these with gaps in-between, CA glue them into the recess, and set aside to cure 20 minutes. A photo will follow in a few more steps.

As we let that dry, we’ll get our Junk Pile and Forest Bases ready to be built.

To build a Junk Pile, and Forest base, I have selected a few choice bits from my bits jar. For the Junk I’ve picked out two bits from a sci-fi ship pack that were extras, a couple rocks, some brass tubes, styrene H-beam, styrene sheet, and some broken plaster chunks. For the forest; a large twig, a couple mushroom tops (made with left-over putty; just roll a cone shape between your fingers, and flatten out the bottom, set aside to cure. I have a whole jar of these, as they’re great little additions that everyone loves), a piece of fine leaf foliage, and a resin tree stump. I didn’t use all of these materials, because you want to strike a good balance that isn’t going to overpower your glorious paint job. You want to have the base interesting, and for it not to be overdone, or too crowded. Do a dry fit, and holds things where you think they will look good, and to get a rough idea of what you’re going to use from your chosen bits.

Next, I mixed up some putty, and added some to the junk pile’s front, the back of the forest base, smoothed some onto the top of the base we’re going to sculpt into Cracked Earth, and rolled a few balls and stuck them on our Lava Flow base. When working with putty, I coat my fingers and hands with vaseline. It stays on you, and you can work for a long period of time before you need to re-apply it. It’s also the best lubricant for putty, and I find it works better than water for your tools as well.

The Cracked Earth; (bottom left) roll a snake of putty, and stuff it in the tab slot on the underside of the base. Smooth it over so that it’s flush with the plastic. Take a ball of putty, and squish it flat in your palm, and flatten it out on the top of the base, making sure to only be slightly higher than the small lip on the top. Smooth out any fingerprints with a well lubricated thumb. Set aside to harden for about 10 or 15 minutes.

The Forest; (top right) place a blob of putty where you want your twig to stand as a tree. In this case, I chose the back, so it can provide a frame for whatever miniature we decide to put on it. Flatten in out with your sculpting tool once you get the twig in there. It’s all right to leave it rough, as we’ll cover it with sand anyways. Once your ‘tree’ has been inserted, we can put our mushrooms under it. The mushrooms are finished by drilling holes on the flat side with a pin vice (be careful not to go too far, or you’ll go through the top!) and gluing a piece of brass rod into it. Next I chose a place for the resin tree stump in the front, and CA glued it into place.

The Junk Pile;(top left) I rolled a couple tubes of putty, and placed these on their sides, in the front of the base that was left open, and flat. I began inserting the bits, and brass tubes into it. What’s good about this method, is that if you don’t like the appearance, you can always move things around and shift them for a good 30 minutes before the putty starts to cure.

The Lava Flow;(bottom right) the rolled balls of putty were placed randomly on the flat surface of the base. Some were grouped, and one left by itself. These will become our lava bubbles later on.

As I arranged the Junk Pile, Forest and Lava Flow bases, my Cracked Earth base had some time for the putty to cure a little. You want it a bit stiff, so it isn’t really soft, and moving all over the place as you score and carve it.

The first thing to do is score it lightly with your sculpting tool. Try and keep it random, and non-uniform for the most natural look. Otherwise, it’s going to look more like cobblestone instead of dry, cracked earth. Start by scoring large areas first, then divide those larger areas in a non-uniform fashion. You don’t need to press really hard, as all we need right now is a basic outline of where we’re going to sculpt.

Once we have the basic outline of cracks, we can add more definition by carving them a little deeper into the putty. Use just the tip, and don’t try to cut the lines into the material. Simply press the side and tip of your sculpting tool into the scored lines. This won’t stretch or deform the shapes you’ve already outlined. Once you have your cracks sculpted, if you want to add texture, lightly stipple the surface with an old toothbrush. I didn’t in this example, and left the surface smooth. We can add texture with a simple dry brush of our paint in Part 2 of the tutorial.

Once I had arranged all of the bits for the Forest, and Junk Pile bases, I was left with a few things left over. Some styrene, rocks, and the fine leaf foliage. Like I mentioned earlier, you don’t want to over-do it, and crowd your base. So, back into the bits jar they went, for use in future projects!

Now we move onto the sand and glue, which is our last step of building the basic base. It’s fairly simple. Some bases will get completely coated with sand, and others will only get sand in certain places. Try and visualize what will look best, but in most cases, where you placed your bits will dictate where sand should go. All but the Cracked Earth, and Lava Flow bases got treatment with sand.

The Lava Break-up (left) was covered completely in a 50/50 mix of white glue and water, then shaken in the tub of sand. If some areas were missed, apply glue to those areas, and give it another shake. Make sure the Lava Break-up is completely covered with sand.

The Lava Flow (right) is filled to the lip with pure white glue. Let it dry, and cover again. Chances are, it will need about 3 coats of white glue to build up the proper thickness. You want the level of the glue to be at most, a millimeter below the inside lip of the base. This will become our lava. Make sure all of our balls of putty are completely covered with glue.

The Forest and Rock n’ Flock were covered liberally with sand, but not completely. As above, I covered selected areas with a 50/50 white glue/water solution, and gave them both a good shake in the sand tub.

The Forest (left) had the flat areas, and the putty under the tree covered with sand. I brought some onto the top to break up the surface, and provide a rougher, more natural look, instead of bare rock or dirt. This also helps provide some visual interest. The Rock n’ Flock (right) was given the same treatment.

The Junk Pile (left), and Swamp (right) bases were almost completely covered in sand. A 50/50 water/white glue mix was use for the Junk Pile, and pure white glue was used for the swamp. I filled the gaps in the junk, and covered a good portion of the bits with sand to give the appearance of this being an older battlefield, with scrap metal and parts littering the area. The Swamp base needs a good thick layer of glue and sand to give the bottom some structure, and to make our cork chunks look like moss-covered humps instead of hard dirt, or rock. Shake the Swamp base really well, and make sure the entire inner region is covered with glue and sand. If any areas are missed, re-coat with glue, and shake in the tub again.

Now that we know how to build a thematic base, how about painting it? I mean, our Lava Flow, and Lava Break-up don’t exactly look like either just yet, do they? That’s what we’ll cover in Part 2 of Base Building Basics. Next up in my series of Tutorials: Base Building Basics – Part 2: ‘Paint It and It Will Look Even Cooler!’

Tags: Bases, Basing, Materials, Modeling, P3, Painting, Privateer Press, Thematic bases, Theme bases, Tutorial