Materials

**Marley117** · 09-25-2009, 11:40 AM

I have been playing 40K off and on for the psat ten years (yea since I was ten!) and never really got into terrain that much. I am finally getting serious, restarted, new army, all that, and I am wondering....any tips?

My first big question is..where in the heck do you get the pink/blue foam you see everyone using? I can't find it anywhere!

**tesral** · 09-27-2009, 08:35 PM

Big Box home improvement stores. It's polystyrene foam ridged insulation.

Oh,and do not paint it with spray cans. It melts. Give the stuff a good coat of craft acrylic or cheap house paint and then you can do anything.

As to the house paint base coat look for light colors that were rejected in the custom mixing area. They usually go for far less than the retail price. You're just using it to protect the foam, color is not a big concern.

Rule One of making terrain is do not think hobby store. Everything is material if you look at it right.

**Skunkape** · 09-28-2009, 07:47 AM

Originally Posted by Marley117

I have been playing 40K off and on for the psat ten years (yea since I was ten!) and never really got into terrain that much. I am finally getting serious, restarted, new army, all that, and I am wondering....any tips?

My first big question is..where in the heck do you get the pink/blue foam you see everyone using? I can't find it anywhere!

Fortunately for you, you live far enough north that places like Home Depot and Lowes should carry it in your area. I never had access to it without paying shipping charges about $10 per piece until I went on vacation this past June. We were up in New York state and I made sure to pick up 2 4x8 sheets of the stuff!

Would have gotten more but I really didn't have the space to bring more back home with me!

Anyway, I'd go to YouTube and search for 40k terrain, there are quite a few people out there who are making tutorials!

**Marley117** · 09-28-2009, 08:41 AM

I did, but I also just wanted to get some ideas from you guys here. Just wondered if you had some 'pro tips' lol

I will definatly be going to Lowes and Home Depot. I actually found the answer to my question right after I posted here. Just going tonight with my friend who plays 40k as well.

My problem now is choosing an army I like. When I played before I played Space Marines. Now I started over and have an Ork army, but after playing Black Templars a few times ( and neither of us really winning or losing on skill but luck) I realized I want to play something more tactical than RUN AND GET IN CLOSE COMBAT! Plus....rolling 80 attacks with Ork Boys who assault and only doing 8 wounds and then watching all but 2 save....is kinda disheartening. Or seeing an entire Nob squad killed in one turn.

So I was thinking Catachans. I still have the no armor, but that isn't a big turn off. They can actually shoot!

**tesral** · 09-28-2009, 11:28 AM

Originally Posted by Skunkape

Fortunately for you, you live far enough north that places like Home Depot and Lowes should carry it in your area. I never had access to it without paying shipping charges about $10 per piece until I went on vacation this past June. We were up in New York state and I made sure to pick up 2 4x8 sheets of the stuff!

You can't get ridged insulation in Florida? The Heck? What about keeping that air conditioned air in and the heat out?

Speaking of which I need to get a two inch chunk. I want to build an N gage model railroad.

**Skunkape** · 09-30-2009, 07:46 AM

Originally Posted by tesral

You can't get ridged insulation in Florida? The Heck? What about keeping that air conditioned air in and the heat out?

Speaking of which I need to get a two inch chunk. I want to build an N gage model railroad.

You would think, but for some reason, they think we only need fiberglass insulation!

**Marley117** · 09-30-2009, 09:00 AM

My new question...in your opinion should I stick with 40K or try out Fantasy? I am going to play Catachan Imperial Guard if I play 40K (I think) and Lizardmen if I play Fantasy.

Pros cons? Ideas?

**Skunkape** · 09-30-2009, 12:12 PM

My opinion, stay with 40k. Reason, I like sci-fi wargaming better than fantasy, that's really it.

Now, I want to also add in, what is it that you're looking for? If you want to do sci-fi wargaming, then of course you want 40k, but if not, then Fantasy. But you were asking our opinions, so that's what I gave with my first statement.

**Marley117** · 09-30-2009, 12:16 PM

I like both, but I want something a bit tactical too, which to me 40k lacks. I mean it is tactical to a point, but just seems like it is everyone running and gunning, with Space Marines pretty much dominating everything else.

**Skunkape** · 09-30-2009, 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by Marley117

with Space Marines pretty much dominating everything else.

Heh, yeah, I see that mostly myself. Makes life tough for my Necron army when I'm mostly fighting Marines.

**Marley117** · 09-30-2009, 12:51 PM

I play orks, and they are pretty much destroyed as well by my friends Black Templars. Only time I won I was pretty unorky and made him charge me while I waited in cover and picked off everything with my looted wagon lol.

It's why I wanna start a Catachan army. We agreed I could use the old Catachan rulebook, so at least i'll have a fighting chance.

**WhiteTiger** · 09-30-2009, 03:08 PM

I played orks once against the Imperial guard but this was using old 3rd or 4th edition rules and you didn't have to take hardly any minimums and you could load up on vehicles. In short, I got decimated and never played them again. I went back to my Trusty Space Marines.

**Marley117** · 09-30-2009, 07:15 PM

Well I like Catachans. They have the same combat (more or less) as orks, plus their Ambush ability!

Very deadly.

**MarshamSane** · 10-01-2009, 03:29 AM

How did your orks loose verse Bts?

and chans ar okay for guard. cadians are my flavor, personally.

I play eldar, orks, guard, marine, chaos, and tau.

personally the only army I've ever had a problem against with my guard is nids.

Orks have never lost a battle, eldar lost once, tau are about 50/50.
I'm not too keen on the marines, but I ownt 1250 of them just to toy with in for fun games. Same with the Chaos.

Been playing for 3 years. Won a few local tourneys with the guard and eldar. thats how I won the tau army.

for IG I would make one suggestion prominent: Basalisks.
templates, pieplates, and 3" drops are your bread and butter. the mighty flashlight is a miraculous weapon, but slightly unreliable in many situations. make good use of cover, restrict enemy option by tactical aplication of your artillery. use the sentinels as infiltrators or flankers to eliminate crucial targets.

As for fantasy or 40K, I prefer 40K, though I have a high elf army as well. too many rules and too often do the rules for fantasy change for my liking.

anyways marley you know me feel free to ask anything bout the guard. they were my first and favorite army.

**Marley117** · 10-01-2009, 11:26 AM

My orks lost against Black Templar on the ASSAULT! I assaulted him, killed two...he attacks first, kills half my squad. It makes no sense. He has higher strength, better armor, and just outlasts me. I hit on 4's, wound on 5's. Then he makes all the saves. Plus I just have terrible luck.

The only thing i've had luck with is my looted wagon owning his Dreadnought. He always looses that, and his Terminators can never deep strike right. He always messed up and has to roll on the mishap table.

I am really feeling the fluff behind the Catachans though. I like the tough army personna, which is why at first I wanted to play Gaunt's Ghosts, but I could never really find rules for them. Straight up Cadain isn't for me. I am not a tank person, which is why Catachans appealed to me. Only Sentinals and then setting up organised ambushes. Course I am modeling the crap out of them to take off their stupid heads. -grumbles-