beemoney19
First Post
I'm already neck deep in making four miniatures of the Aspects of Kazit Gul for the big finale of Dead in Thay. One of the other DM's mentioned he saw someone build an actual Bloodgate Nexus, and having a compulsive need to top people I've never met before, I've decided to build the Phylactery Vault. The general build overview will be below the question, and feel free to critique my entire plan as I won't be gathering materials let alone starting it until the 15th of June.
Question: For the 12 Phylactery Sepulchers that must be breached, I'm thinking of using papercraft techniques, though I've never done any papercraft before. The simplest way would be seemingly to create a basic triangular pyramid, and done. But the illustration on the map depicts a structure that is slightly more complicated, with sliced corners and edges, so the structure has 6 actual faces. How does one go about designing and laying out a custom papercraft pattern or model? Is it mostly freehand and guestimate the angles? Are there preferred types of paper? I'm not a strong artist, and excel more in medium-scale fabrication and design, with fine details being a weak spot.
Overall plan (PROBABLE SPOILERS FOR PLAYERS?):
[sblock=OVERALL]
The main idea is to create four separate floors out of foam. So far I can't find sheets at least 2 ft wide that aren't a half inch or thicker, basically insulation. I was hoping for foam core board, to be easier to cut, and a tighter fit all around. After cutting the four triangles at 2 ft a side, and then cutting the edges to a 30 degree angle for the final assembly, paint a white marble effect on all sides, then, on the play side, lay out a 1" grid for miniature use. An unfortunate accident in college while building a set gave me the idea to first lay out the grid in black ink, and then paint the marble over it, so the grid shows through. I will test both methods on some scrap before making a final choice on the full scale. I was also thinking about chalk line, but that looks too messy and expensive.
I then want to use either Cinders Ballast or Lump Coal from Woodland Scenics to affect the black marble rubble on the edges of the floors, probably using the Scenic Cement to lock it in. It looks like wood discs from a dowel, 3/4" or 1" thick, painted with the white marble effect, about a half inch tall would be the best bet to create the pedestals, but I don't have a saw or a shop to really do much woodworking. As I type, it occurs to me basic checker pieces might do nicely. (It seems committing my thoughts to text has helped already!)
The easiest way to do the pools would be just a dark paint job, a murky purple and black. but I am also intrigued by using Realistic Water, also from Woodland Scenics. I've never used it before, so not sure how practical/effective it would be given the price. It alone is almost as much as the other supplies specced out so far!
I will likely need to hand paint the black gates onto the floor.
After construction of each floor is completed, and the Sepulchers added, I would then assemble the four pieces into the larger pyramid vault structure, then use hinges to hold in place, being sure to use the ones with removable pins! The final affect would be a smooth, white marble pyramid that opens to show the inner surface the fight actually takes place in, with the floors removable to be taken to separate tables. I haven't done real math, but each side is 2 ft long, and folded up, less than 2 ft tall.[/sblock]
Thoughts? How crazy is this?
Question: For the 12 Phylactery Sepulchers that must be breached, I'm thinking of using papercraft techniques, though I've never done any papercraft before. The simplest way would be seemingly to create a basic triangular pyramid, and done. But the illustration on the map depicts a structure that is slightly more complicated, with sliced corners and edges, so the structure has 6 actual faces. How does one go about designing and laying out a custom papercraft pattern or model? Is it mostly freehand and guestimate the angles? Are there preferred types of paper? I'm not a strong artist, and excel more in medium-scale fabrication and design, with fine details being a weak spot.
Overall plan (PROBABLE SPOILERS FOR PLAYERS?):
[sblock=OVERALL]
The main idea is to create four separate floors out of foam. So far I can't find sheets at least 2 ft wide that aren't a half inch or thicker, basically insulation. I was hoping for foam core board, to be easier to cut, and a tighter fit all around. After cutting the four triangles at 2 ft a side, and then cutting the edges to a 30 degree angle for the final assembly, paint a white marble effect on all sides, then, on the play side, lay out a 1" grid for miniature use. An unfortunate accident in college while building a set gave me the idea to first lay out the grid in black ink, and then paint the marble over it, so the grid shows through. I will test both methods on some scrap before making a final choice on the full scale. I was also thinking about chalk line, but that looks too messy and expensive.
I then want to use either Cinders Ballast or Lump Coal from Woodland Scenics to affect the black marble rubble on the edges of the floors, probably using the Scenic Cement to lock it in. It looks like wood discs from a dowel, 3/4" or 1" thick, painted with the white marble effect, about a half inch tall would be the best bet to create the pedestals, but I don't have a saw or a shop to really do much woodworking. As I type, it occurs to me basic checker pieces might do nicely. (It seems committing my thoughts to text has helped already!)
The easiest way to do the pools would be just a dark paint job, a murky purple and black. but I am also intrigued by using Realistic Water, also from Woodland Scenics. I've never used it before, so not sure how practical/effective it would be given the price. It alone is almost as much as the other supplies specced out so far!
I will likely need to hand paint the black gates onto the floor.
After construction of each floor is completed, and the Sepulchers added, I would then assemble the four pieces into the larger pyramid vault structure, then use hinges to hold in place, being sure to use the ones with removable pins! The final affect would be a smooth, white marble pyramid that opens to show the inner surface the fight actually takes place in, with the floors removable to be taken to separate tables. I haven't done real math, but each side is 2 ft long, and folded up, less than 2 ft tall.[/sblock]
Thoughts? How crazy is this?
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