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Post by onethatwas on Nov 3, 2012 18:18:13 GMT -5
So here I am, not even past my first 24 hours of having joined this forum, and I want to contribute as much as I can to the DM's Craft in the form of ideas, tips, or whatever else. I know DM Scotty and others are just as helpful with their ideas, if not more (After all, I don't have the technological drive or know-how to make a Youtube Video or set up a forum like this lovely one we're all looking at now), but I absolutely love the ideas that DM Scotty started out with and feel the best way I can thank him for coming up with such neat ideas is to set forth my own ideas and creativity.
To that end I figured having a thread where I can post my own thoughts and creativity would be a good start until I have the means (and technology...yes, I am a caveman) to post up pictures.
Feel free to put out a question or two here (I will of course also look all over the place for anything I can helpfully contribute to), but in the mean time, a few odd thoughts:
Metallic Paint. I know DM Scotty promotes the idea of the wonderful stone texture paint, but it should be noted that metallic paints can be used too for various effects also. Consider, for instance, that you may be DMing a steampunk genre game and you want to convey a factory floor feel. The usage of mettalic textured paints can give a whole different feel to a tile.
Modularity! Alot of the tiles made are almost always going to have some modularity and can be used in a variety of scenarios, but think about ways to make a tile more modular, like: -"Entance/Exit Coverings." Each tile has what is generally denoted as the "entrance/exit" or "Door," right? Take a thin strip of wood (Coffee stirrers anyone?) and paint it to match the carboard wall, cut it to match the opening of a doorway or exit space, and you have a removable wall that can be used to either open up space for doorways, or placed to close off the opening, changing the actual potential for a tile.
-standardized openings. Make each entrance/exit the same size. Seems obvious, but it bears saying.
-hole covers. Save that scrap of cardboard you cut out for a hole/pit! Paint it the same, and if you want a room that's similar to one already made, without the hole/pit, well, cover it up! Saves a bit more cardboard and effort.
-Design single level rooms so that a second level can be added easily just by crafting a fill in floating tile. it reduces the permanency and sturdiness of a glued down, multileveled tile, but if you plan ahead to make a single level room multileveled in the future, it makes the process a bit easier when you get to that point.
So, just a few small pointers for now. Obviously if any ideas pop into my head I'll share.
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Post by hasbinbad on Nov 3, 2012 20:08:36 GMT -5
Rad post, can't wait to see more from you! Please feel encouraged to start a post for your pictures in the gallery section!
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Post by onethatwas on Nov 4, 2012 3:18:57 GMT -5
Reposted from elsewhere:
Regarding Traps
Simply because I love Kobolds (Or anything really that seems to be an easy challenge but is maddeningly difficult when certain situations are right), I designed a dungeon that was essentially one big trap. A few ideas Follow:
1) Craft: Basketweaving. Wicker crafted floors make for EXCELLENT pit traps, especially if the entire floor is riddled with hidden pits underneath the wicker. Obviously, paint the floor to look like a wicker woven mat from wall to wall (like some oriental buildings have), and when the PC's hit a section with a pit underneath, place a pit marker. Garaunteed to make your PC's nervous about walking on wicker floors ever again ^_^
2) Greased ropes. Easy to craft, not easy to spot. Simply get a bit of twine and have it anchored from a wire armiture or something similar. Have something nasty underneath the rope (a bottomless pit for instance. Or a pit filled with otyughs. Crocodiles are yesterday...)
3) Swinging Axe/Sword trap: Using a simple mouse-trap style spring (Read: Not from an actual mouse trap! Try clothes pins instead at the very least), you can almost certainly set up an actual trap that functions. However, even simple representations can work. I'm sure inspiration can be wrought from DM Scotty's video about a spear trap here.
4) Scree! As in loose, sharp edged rock. On a slope. Again, easy to represent. Not so obvious as a trap...especially if there is a barricade of spears at the bottom of a steep incline underground, where visibility is near zero.
5) Never underestimate the fear inspired by a room that is magically darkened. Especially if the PC's can't dispell it (A light spell of a higher level must be cast to overcome the darkness...). A Darkmantle somehow managed to intimidate PC's well beyond the limit's of it's CR rating simply because they didn't know how many enemies were in the room, what other nasty surprises I had, etc. And all you have to do is paint the tile Matte Black.
6) Falling blocks/rolling boulders. Easy answer: Wooden blocks/balls found at your hobby store. Have fun.
With traps, keep in mind that sometimes a very simple idea can make for a very good trap. It also inspires interesting solutions. For the wicker trap, My PC's decided after spending hours agonizing over distributing their weight along the wicker by crawling (made the dungeon crawl quite literal) to burn the wicker. Which caused another hazard: Smoke. They overcame it in the end, but it was an interesting problem for them.
Also note that some traps don't need to be portrayed visually. Poisoned doorknobs would be hard to portray with paint on such a small model, so don't bother.
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Post by dm1scotty on Nov 4, 2012 10:12:19 GMT -5
Reposted from elsewhere: Regarding Traps Simply because I love Kobolds (Or anything really that seems to be an easy challenge but is maddeningly difficult when certain situations are right), I designed a dungeon that was essentially one big trap. A few ideas Follow: 1) Craft: Basketweaving. Wicker crafted floors make for EXCELLENT pit traps, especially if the entire floor is riddled with hidden pits underneath the wicker. Obviously, paint the floor to look like a wicker woven mat from wall to wall (like some oriental buildings have), and when the PC's hit a section with a pit underneath, place a pit marker. Garaunteed to make your PC's nervous about walking on wicker floors ever again ^_^ 2) Greased ropes. Easy to craft, not easy to spot. Simply get a bit of twine and have it anchored from a wire armiture or something similar. Have something nasty underneath the rope (a bottomless pit for instance. Or a pit filled with otyughs. Crocodiles are yesterday...) 3) Swinging Axe/Sword trap: Using a simple mouse-trap style spring (Read: Not from an actual mouse trap! Try clothes pins instead at the very least), you can almost certainly set up an actual trap that functions. However, even simple representations can work. I'm sure inspiration can be wrought from DM Scotty's video about a spear trap here. 4) Scree! As in loose, sharp edged rock. On a slope. Again, easy to represent. Not so obvious as a trap...especially if there is a barricade of spears at the bottom of a steep incline underground, where visibility is near zero. 5) Never underestimate the fear inspired by a room that is magically darkened. Especially if the PC's can't dispell it (A light spell of a higher level must be cast to overcome the darkness...). A Darkmantle somehow managed to intimidate PC's well beyond the limit's of it's CR rating simply because they didn't know how many enemies were in the room, what other nasty surprises I had, etc. And all you have to do is paint the tile Matte Black. 6) Falling blocks/rolling boulders. Easy answer: Wooden blocks/balls found at your hobby store. Have fun. With traps, keep in mind that sometimes a very simple idea can make for a very good trap. It also inspires interesting solutions. For the wicker trap, My PC's decided after spending hours agonizing over distributing their weight along the wicker by crawling (made the dungeon crawl quite literal) to burn the wicker. Which caused another hazard: Smoke. They overcame it in the end, but it was an interesting problem for them. Also note that some traps don't need to be portrayed visually. Poisoned doorknobs would be hard to portray with paint on such a small model, so don't bother. Nice ideas, thanks for sharing.
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Post by onethatwas on Nov 16, 2012 2:17:13 GMT -5
This isn't entirely relational to the art of dungeon tile crafting, but over time I have slowly developed some props for my gaming sessions, or at least some on the fly accents that make my games a little bit more enjoyable when it comes to enhancing the feel. After browsing over some of the videos again, I saw the one about the leather note prop, which made me think I should post up some simple props I've used. So here goes: First and foremost, hobby/craft stores are your friend, obviously. I have hobby lobby, and at one point I found these relatively cheap wooden boxes crafted to resemble books, with the compartment in the binding. A little bit of wood stain and two coats of paint later (a cream color followed by a sort of sickly greenish grey color loosely brushed over it to make the pages "pop") and I had the beginnings of a wizards book. I crafted the decorative book corners with card stock (which wasn't easy...all that premeasuring, ugh) and painted them a metallic color after gluing them to the book, and then a few index cards later and I had an actual spell book. Total cost (when the breakdon of each item was accounted for, as well as usage of the liquid products...yes, I did do all that math), and it turned out to be about 7 dollars total for one book (The actual stock of product was a bit pricier though ) Then I thought, hey, if I am going to make a wizard spell book, why not a scroll? This one was easy. Again, hobby lobby. Dowels, and end caps (They sell shaped wooden bits that fit nicely onto the ends of dowels, but other things could be adapted certainly). I also bought a short bolt of cloth. Cut it to fit, get the length you want, and then glue the ends to the dowels. Viola. Simple, easy and decorative scroll, only missing the paper. Need an outfit to look more medieval during your games? Thrift stores usually have long sleeved white workshirts for cheap. Get some tea bags, boil them up, and dunk your white shirt into it, let it boil for a bit, then let it cool, take the shirt out, and let it air dry. You can wash it, but the stain may come off a bit. I'd suggest going with an oversized shirt so you can wear it tunic style with an old looking leather belt or some such. Also, don't be afraid to take scissors to something like this...first, it's usually pretty cheap, second, you can make it look more old fashioned if you change out those modern day buttons for old fashioned bead toggles, and rough up the edges to give it a more peasant style look. Need alchemical products? Dead bugs may be a bit macabre, but with the right jar, vial, or bottle (spruced up a bit for the sake of making it look era specific), and you have a good start. soil makes for really good grave dirt (The darker you can find it, the better), and food dye does wonders (as do gummy worms, if you don't mind needing to change out the bottles contents occasionally). I also happened upon an interesting one: get a ball of twine (That old hempy stuff) and pull the fibres apart. Tie it off on the end, and you have hags hair so, just some really simple, not TOO expensive ideas to enhance your gaming experience. Have fun.
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Post by dm1scotty on Nov 16, 2012 13:43:28 GMT -5
Great ideas...keep it going.
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Post by onethatwas on Nov 19, 2012 13:27:27 GMT -5
A short one for now: Easy stand in bushes/shrubberies
What you need: Various sized paper clips (Larger ones make larger bushes). Preferably coated with plastic in a green color. Fishtank faux plants and/or floral decorative leaves 9The smaller you can get the leaves to appear, the better).
That's it. These are great for tossing down some plants on a tile piece or on the table to add greenery to your balles. They don't even really need bases, or glue (although glue makes them sturdier). If you want, you can glue them down, and they make for quick, easily crafted bushes on a forest tile.
Take the paper clip, and pull the two ends apart slightly, until the paper clip looks like a V. If desired, use a needlenose to kink up the paper clip *slightly*. Paper clips in particular break easily, so don't over do it if you choose to do so at all.
If desired (or needed...paper clips don't always come coated in plastic, and green may not be available), brush over the paper clip with a brown or green shade to give aesthetic value to the actual paper clip.
Take the fish tank plants off the sprue (floral plants/leaf garlands also have a sprue most often than not, although the quality varies depending on where you buy the floral plant/leaf garland), and thread the tank plants base slot (The part you pulled off the sprue itself) through the paper clip until it goes over a bend. Glue here if necessary (And paint over the glue in your prefered paint color).
Now, take the "branches" of the floral plant and/or the leaf garland and weave them through the paper clip until you have the effect desired. Apply glue again (if desired), paint to add depth (and to coat over the glue), and your done. In it's most basic form, this whole process should take you no more than 5 minutes (or as long as it takes for the paint on the paper clip to dry plus a minute). Any more complications (glue) obviously makes this take longer, but not meaningfully so. Have fun.
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Post by onethatwas on Jan 14, 2013 5:10:09 GMT -5
It's been awhi;e since I've posted here, but I have a few ideas springing about, so here goes:
-I took an idea from DM Scotty (The vid where he makes stamps), and thought that, for my own crafting, I would have to cover much larger areas, and taking the time to craft a very large stamp, paint it, and then make sure I can fit it within the perameters of my tiles...not so much a good option. Then I also have the issue of agonizing over the small stamps and using them to meticulously stamp in my desired pattern across the area of my tiles...still not a good idea.
Obviously this isn't needed for all tiles, but it is necessary for me for some.
So anyways, I developed an elegant solution. Takes a bit of forethought, but has excellent results: Take a wooden spool (preferanbly of a decently large size) and place the foam texture stamp on the cylinder. Insert a dowel of the correct size, and viola! easy way to make a long ribbon of visual texture with a patterned stamp.
-I recently crafted some fountains for my dungeon, and, on a whim, I made them modular (so that I could use them for a puzzle). I basically made the fountain (using whatever method you may feel is appropriate) except, instead of having the water painted on, leave those pieces off, and either design some card inserts that have a variable range of liquid representations (Blood, clear water, something else...) that can lay on the area you want for the water , OR, you can do what I did and make the bottom in such a fashion that you can insert sleeves that have the same function as the inserts.
That is, if you leave the bottom off, and then glue on a card stock peice that leaves an area open to slide in a card painted like your liquid, like a pocket protector fits into a pocket (Strange, but that is the best analogy I can think of right now), then you're good to go.
Now obviously different fountain models will need different solutions, but it's an idea.
-I recently came to a point where I had crafted more than enought tiles, and I needed to make some filler pieces to give my dungeons color and interest. So I made some super quick things using wooden discs:
--I took some wooden beads (bought at Walmart for another craft I did for Halloween) and glued them to the wooden disc. Insta torch holder just needs paint if desired...I thought they looked pretty nifty without paint)...and when flipped, they make great Tavern tables. yay modularity!
--Floor Traps!!! I drilled a small hole into the disc in the center, painted them over with black and then gave them stone texture on one side, and now I have a floor trap (or, if necessary, a semi flimsy torch or flag holder). leave the disc on the floor in a corridor (I made like 10, so I can liter the foor with these discs, but corridors make for the best places to put them) and if the PC's decide to walk on them, then they can serve as a spear trap from the floor, or a flame trap (I made torches with smaller poles for this purpose specifically). Just inster the toothpick/flame/other object you could craft to protrude from the drilled hole.
On the other side I am leaving some of them black to look like either an opened pit (I'm painting the edge to look like some stone structure) or even a well or a vat of unknown liquid. so I can do either one-the trap or the well/pit. The well/pit does look a bit odd with a hole in the middle, but it's not too much of an issue.
And finally: I decided to make some set down wicked looking trees, but wasn't really sure which way to go. I though of doing the ideas suggested by DM scotty, such as the forest terrain tiles or the 2.5D tree, but didn't have the money for the terrain trees at the hobby store, and I felt the 2.5D trees just weren't my cup of tea.
But then I remembered DM scotty doing a video on how to make stalagmites, and decided to give that a try instead. I go the TP roll, twisted it up....then I went outside and grabbed some trigs from the ground and off of a few dead branches on trees in the neighborhood. I left some of the areas on the TP roll open at the top to insert the branches in, and, after some extensive gluing (The trees with twigs require a bit of work to get the twigs to stay on as branches) I ended up with some extremely wicked looking trees.
Seriously, I now have a forest that my PC's will dread entering into (I decided not to bother with foam or moss flocking for the leaves and left them looking dead and withered...I can add aquarium plant bits for the leaves if I desperately need them).
Also, in honor of the Hobbit, I also made a spider web out of a paper plate, which i can set up to be supported by the deaad trees. And now I have Mirkwood. Yay!
Anyway, hope these ideas help inspire others to do the same. Again, sorry I can't get pics up....Being a bit of a technophobe and/or technologically handicapped (And also not owning a camera) makes it a bit difficult.
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Post by dm1scotty on Jan 14, 2013 10:03:07 GMT -5
thanks for these ideas. I have another vid in the pipe that is very similar to the method you used to make the tree =)
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Post by onethatwas on Feb 5, 2013 12:33:02 GMT -5
Another one:
I tenmd to run alot of outdoor adventures. Dungeons aren't really my gig (Could be that I'm a little claustrophobic myself, so I tend not to think about being in closed, confined, dark spaces often), so of course I've been making alot of things that fit into outdoorsy types of games. After making a few tiles that can represent height variations (Glue two card board pieces together to make a sort of a hill), I thought that doing that much work to tiles that are already kinda slap-dash put together (Seriously, cut two ovoid shapes that don't necessarily match, one smaller than the other, and glue...then go....wow, no brainer, right?) was a bit much. Why not just make the single level tile, paint it up a bit, and then set another seperated tile on top any time I need a height variation, like a hill, grassy knoll, whatever?
It's alot like having a much more personalized version of Heroscape terrain....just stack it up, and you've got a hill. And the cool little trees I made fit perfectly onto them, so that's even better.
So, just another idea for now.
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Post by dm1scotty on Feb 5, 2013 12:46:45 GMT -5
good ideas for the hills
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