Base, the final frontier

[barkel]

Do you base?

If so, do you base extravegantly?

If so, where do you get your inspiration?

Until recently I did not base at all. About 6 months ago I started viewing this site and I realized that if I wanted to go to the next step I\'d have to start basing. Now, I\'ve gotten to be such a perfectionist about it that I am no longer satisfied with a typical base. I can\'t settle for flock.

Flock is fine for a regiment. For my miners I used large pebbles to look like heavy rocks. And for a recent Orc shaman I used Tyme to look like straw or grass from open plains. And on a recent Fanatic I used various spices to represent leaves.

These ideas were ok, but they just didn\'t have the life I want them too. They didn\'t add that extra zing that puts the model in a visible world and brings it to life.

In the back of the GW Orc/Goblin book there is a Goblin shaman stepping from a rock. I copied this idea for my Night Goblin shaman. It actually worked very well, but you can only have so many heros stepping from rocks before you begin to wonder if stepping from a rock is a hero prerequisite. Does it say in the Hero Handbook to Good Leadership that you must step from a large rock at the beginning of every battle. I supposed I could have some heros stepping from a tree stump, but that really doesn\'t solve my delima.

So, I\'m wondering, where do you all get your ideas for basing? Or do you base at all?

barkel

ps. I have toyed with the idea of doing full dioramas for my heros and just doing a very simple base that matches. This way they will not look out of place on the gaming table (not that I play a whole lot), but when I\'m done they can return to their nice little chaotic, war-torn world. Does anyone do this?

 

[mouse]

Junk Galore

Start collecting junk such as small rocks, pebbles, twigs, ice-cream stick, toothpicks (unused of course!), wires, chip-off concrete, foams, etc.

View a lot of pictures and formulate your own ideas from it. Jot it down before it escapes to la-la-land.

Read. Authors descriptions are often additional help to getting ideas.

Otherwise, your good old imagination is your best tool to having a unique and wonderful base.

If all else fails, copy shameless!!

 

[finn17]

Funky base

A real easy solution, although it is not cheap, is to use some of the ready cast bases from such traders as epicast, forgeworld, GW (inquisitor), heresy and the like. I wouldn\'t generally use these for a \'special\' figure, but for slightly lesser stuff they are a fantastic improvement over the usual affairs.

 

[Errex]

Well, I usually try to get a base that is suitable for the character I\'m painting. My latest three projects were based as follows.

Jain Zar;( july of 2002). I saw her as if stepping out from some ruined aline temple or such, so, I made some stone blocks from styrene sprue, half a round plastic base and added some small cuttings of plastic card. The overall shape is somewhat like a sliced champignon, but I added a bit of flock and some small pebbles to convey it was an outdoors location.

Monique de Noir; (december 2002). Somehow, a grassy base didn\'t seem to fit the character for me, so, I chose to base her over flagstones made from plastic card. there\'s actually not much to be said, \'cuz the base is composed only of a big round GW base, the bits of plastic card and a small pewter skull. Sometimes, less is more...

Spider Centaur; (WIP still). Again, following the fluff, and outdoor location seemed not so good an idea, but also, I didn\'t feel like trying my hand at sculpting stalagmites, so i opted to do a small diorama base of an underground cript. As with Monique, most of it is just glued plastic card bits, but this time i played around with some more elaborate geometric shapes, plus the addition of some items I had lying around. As it stands, currently, it\'s still a bit too dull for me, but I\'m planning on adding some more colorful touches soon.

So, to sum it up, try and imagine how the character would look if it were coming for you, and pay attention tho the ground he/she is threading...

 

[supervike]

Originally posted by mouse
Start collecting junk such as ... toothpicks (unused of course!)

Why qualify that with \'unused?\'



used ones may have value as well!!

Actually, I like the idea of the mini having a finished base that fits nicely into a larger diorama. I have seen these done quite a bit on the site, maybe someone can share a link to a good example.

Anyone caring to share tips on how they do that would be appreciated as well.

 

[tabithatan]

Originally posted by barkel
Do you base?

If so, do you base extravegantly?

recently I am gettin to the habit of makin fancy \"stands\" for minis I like a lot...... it looks nicer in the cabinet anyways

Originally posted by barkel
If so, where do you get your inspiration?

movies and fantasy books

Originally posted by barkel
ps. I have toyed with the idea of doing full dioramas for my heros and just doing a very simple base that matches. This way they will not look out of place on the gaming table (not that I play a whole lot), but when I\'m done they can return to their nice little chaotic, war-torn world. Does anyone do this?

I jus did something like that for a friend who likes collecting LOTR stuff..... the diorama is at http://www.coolminiornot.com/index.php?id=20704

I just did another one... will upload as soon as I get the pic taken....


Now to think about it I shoulda made the figures detachable.... but didnt think of it at that time cos me friend does not play tabletop wargames....

I think collecting bits of stones and stuff from here and there does provide good base material that looks realistic....

but fur me.... nothing beats making stones, rocks, trees, water from scratch...... It sorta gives me some kinda satisfaction....... being able to materialise scenes from me daydreams.

But I\'m kinda new at this and probably the other guys here can tell ya a lot more....

 

[Chrispy]

I\'m not very consistant in my basing. I just do what I want and think fits. Usually if I want something to look mean and gruesome, I put various body parts strewn around the base, such as in my Gauntfield the Scarecrow. You\'ll also notice, though that on that base is nothing much else but freehand. I like doing freehand basses, but it\'s hard when something\'s on a rocky surface or such.

I made an article a while back for using spices for a more natural look, but agian I do that as needed. The hardest base I\'ve done is my Emperor\'s Champion and that wasn\'t all that hard, I just had to wit for the milliput to dry. I had it on a bigger base and decided that it wasn\'t quite right, so that\'s how I got the perfect flat bottom on it.

It\'s all practice and what you want really, try some things on seperate sheets of cardboard or plastic to see how they look if you\'re not sure. And body parts. Lotsa body parts...

 

[tabithatan]

thats one great lookin Emperor\'s champion ya have there Chrispy.....=)

did ya do the rocks out of milliput? They sure look rock hard ... I kinda thot milliput was soft and rubbery.........

 

[Chrispy]

Thank you, but quite the contrary, tabithatan, Milliput has the consistancy of pottery clay. It also dries to the hardness of a peice of pottery. I like it a bit better than greenstuf because of this, as I am an art student and used to working with clay. It\'s also very good for rocks, because half hay through drying you can take a knife and give it cracks, chips, and lines that simulate age. Greenstuff is the rubbery stuff and it can\'t be sanded too well. Only problem is the type of Milliput I got is the bigger grain and not too good for fine details like GS is. But Milliput comes in a bigger pack and it holds up better on it\'s own, so I use it for bases and weapons.

 

[Big Mean Elf]

No Base means U not Finished yet...

I always base my work.

It is the frame to the painting,it is the Plastic thing a 6 pack comes on,it is butter on a backed potato,it is Windex on dirty windows...you have to base a figure,imho...



I normally use epoxy to make crators or sand and gravel to make a war torn or naturale looking land scape.

I have a big box full or flock,tea leaves,balis,sand,pre-made leaves,and spices.

I also use a lot of bits from GW and also Plastic products,like T beams and I beams...

lol

Yep I base......all my stuff!

 

[Ukko-LOurs]

(well, they are orcs ... used toothpick would be apropriate)

I personaly, latly, find my new ideas in books and at my local \"miniature Train and model\" shop.

It\'s a cold mine for materials and ideas, at almost 1/2 the price of your game workshop stuff and lot better quality.

You can even find bunkers and accesorys for war grond that are right size and fits for GW size.

You can also buy a old cheap tank and cut parts and add it to your base!

 

[JonG]

Echoing the Elf, you just have to base the mini. In my opinion it really isn\'t finished otherwise.

One minor gripe I have is with the use of unpainted flock/gravel. Sometimes it can just look totally the wrong scale if it isn\'t painted/drybrushed or whatever. But maybe that\'s just me.

 

[Big Mean Elf]

BME & JonG Paint Grass

Originally posted by JonG
Echoing the Elf, you just have to base the mini. In my opinion it really isn\'t finished otherwise.

One minor gripe I have is with the use of unpainted flock/gravel. Sometimes it can just look totally the wrong scale if it isn\'t painted/drybrushed or whatever. But maybe that\'s just me.

> I left that out,yeah Paint static grass,I just put it on when I`m doing the sculpted rocks,bullet holes,ect....it gets primed right aloung with the rest of the figures components.

:]

 

[kittykat23uk]

I base my minis most of the time. I especially like snow and foresty type bases.

http://www.coolminiornot.com/browse.php?do=browseimg&submitter=kittykat23uk

Above is a link to my gallery- that might give you some ideas.

Regards

Kat

 

[JimG]

Since we are on the subject, I have started work on some scenic bases so that the minis are removable.

How do people get the circle so perfect and so close to the base????

 

[Dragonsreach]

How do people get the circle so perfect and so close to the base

Answer: A) 25mm Forstner Bit in a drill press.

B) use a 25mm base to keep the place for where you are working and work up to and around it with filler/sand etc then remove the base when its set.

Ps used the 25mm round base as an example.

Hope it helps.