Editor’s note: Yep, going to try and write more posts as I start ramping up my hobby activities again. As much as I like the weekly update for gathering it all together (which is not stopping), getting smaller posts up keeps the heartbeat going and I don’t lose myself worrying about making 10,000 word updates.
I am beginning to wind myself to play some more Ultramodern games but the first step is building up my terrain collection. Luckily I’ve got the 3D printers to help me – that said, the Resin is currently busy printing for friends but the FDM printer (after I got my settings redone following a PC reset) is up and ready for work. I’ve been printing a few things from Modern Miniatures that hit the store a few weeks ago after a successful Frontiers campaign. Seeing as Shyluz and the Tsardom are very much inspired by Eastern Europe, the elements from these sets are very handy for exactly what I need.
In terms of my mental picture of the Shyluz/Tsardom border region, I can see a lot of woods among the rolling hills and mountains. So for this reason, some signs of forest management are always a good call. These log piles and stumps are some of the little things that fill out the more open areas on the table, offering some cover while also breaking up the base mat underneath. Both of these can be printed as FDM and SLA (or Resin) but I went with FDM for the speed and cheapness. This does require sticking the two log halves together (and then frantically shaving down the join to make sure it looks alright that I did after the picture). I can see these being pretty ever present – even if you’re not fighting over a sawmill, a few log piles will end up in other locations.
The other element from today was printing off the Bunker Entrance. I’m sure every Tarkov player recognises this (along with all the screaming you’d have when you realise it’s locked). I’m planning on using this for some elements of the upcoming ChargeReal scenario book (more details coming soon on that), as these bunkers link down to old Tsarist military locations underground in several of the locations. The fetching purple colour is due to me using up a reel of filament my Sister bought for me for a project but seeing as I plan to paint it, it won’t matter in the end. I do like the separate door piece in this set, which was a literal 10 minute print job on the Neptune 4
The next step will be to break out the paintbrush and get all of these painted up and ready for the table. I do need to create the forces as well, but terrain is something I need to break past a mental block with and just paint them up when I get them.
