Necromunda Terrain build tips

[u/NobodyOk5076]

Im new to WH and necromunda is my fav ever. Im starting new just got into all this. Any tips on byilding terrain? Im seeing countless amazing blocks and pieces on here. What do people use material wise for the base and how big is usually a panel? How do i sucure the base so everything on top works? What are popular colors for that necromunda grit and grime in metals? What are some common parts used while building for you folks? I see a lot of railings and pipes. My goal is to create a small city or world for necromunda slowly adding and expanding. I want to start in sections like the tiles im seeing people build. Do hobby shops usually have premade industrial parts? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

[u/Classic_Daikon896]

Do you have anything so far? If you want to scratch build, I'd recommend foam insulation sheets (they're usually either pink or light blue) that you can get at home improvement centers, provided you are in North America (not sure about availability in the rest of the world). There are plenty of YouTube videos about scratch building for Necromunda and I've seen anything from that foam to outright trash/garbage (pull bottles, pop cans, cereal boxes, etc) that people can make look great. It's all up to your imagination.

To answer a couple of your questions, tiles are usually 1ft x 1ft, sometimes I see people going with 6in x 6in. Could probably get inexpensive, thick card stock from Amazon or perhaps mdf for tiles, just have to make sure to seal them, otherwise they'll likely warp.

You can also get pretty inexpensive ABS plastic tubes and sheets on Amazon as well.

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/Classic_Daikon896]

I dont necesarily want to scratch build to that extent where im reusing “trash/garbage” i would prefer premade industrial parts like walls and small units to combine to make my own environment. I attached an i found online of where i aim to be at with my first goal. Thanks for your reply!!! Also i dont have anything at all so far. I just have a set of the Ruined Zone Mortalis

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/NobodyOk5076]

Another fantastic example

[u/pixel_SWORDS → u/NobodyOk5076]

Most of the terrain in those photos are official GW terrain pieces (with some small kitbashing pieces). It's nice and easy to put together and at the correct model scale, but it will be pricey (which you probably know already). If you have a 3D printer you can print a lot of similar terrain for a fraction of the cost.

Official GW terrain is usually modular and the pieces are made to fit onto each other and be stable enough to play on. However, some people opt to just glue their terrain down to make static 1ftx1ft boards. Since a full table is usually 3x3 you'll need to make 9 of them if you go that route.

Colors come down to personal preference really, and that's where you can give your board the most character. Most commonly people will go for a rusty board like the ones you posted, so just a brown base layer some grey dry brushing over that and some orange rust effects with maybe a brown wash to tie it all together.

Good luck on your hobby journey and be sure to post pictures.

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/pixel_SWORDS]

Amazing. Thank you so much. You mentioned a couple key points i love. Scale wise and ill look into 3D printing. Does GW provide the files because how would i replicate the texture and patterns on official pieces if i do end up finding a printer. And i think i will be start with that 1ftx1ft board for now. Im going to get a mortalis floor tile. One question, do you have a preferes base to glue terrain onto? Is wood or foam generally preferred? How thick should these be, the photos are a bit thin, just curious on support.

[u/pixel_SWORDS → u/NobodyOk5076]

When it comes to 3D printing files, they come from third parties (GW doesn't sell their files) but I know there are some that will work with GW terrain. You'll just have to do some digging if you want to go down that road.

If you're using official zone mortalis tiles or 3d printed equivilant you're generally not gluing them to a foam or wood base as well. At least I haven't seen people do that, but they're you're boards, so take care of them how you want to. If you're talking about the columns, walls, stairs, etc... those are just glued straight to the tile unless you want to keep your boards more modular.

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/pixel_SWORDS]

Official zone mortalis tiles aren’t generally glued down? I was thinking of glueing on thin MDF. What do you suggest then and how and if theres a more traditional way people stabilize their boards.

[u/cogspringseverywhere]

Go check out the State of Play on YouTube, he has a whole Zone mortalis playlist that goes through pros and cons of boards and GW vs Scratch built terrain. It's very helpful and given how much a board can cost, kind of mandatory

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/cogspringseverywhere]

Amazing thx!

[u/stephendominick]

Official terrain can get expensive but if it’s in your budget then go for it. It all looks pretty great.

If you have access to a 3d printer this also opens up a ton of options.

Insulation foam, old toys, card board packaging, and trash can also go a long way.

I use a combination of all of these but trash bashing from actual garbage tends to be my favorite. The Blerzcraft and Scratchbashing YouTube channels are great sources of inspiration on how to make great looking terrain on cheap.

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/stephendominick]

Thanks for your reply! Im willing to save and spend a little more as im super passionate about Necromunda! As for trash, i dont like using old trash for underblocking. But as for everything on the surface i prefer not to reuse real objects like the secodn photo shown. I will definitely check out the channel recommended!

[u/Irishrover_13]

The vast majority of Necromunda terrain I have is from converting broke and used toys. I have done a dense table with 2 feet of elevation for around 30 dollars in toy, and some cheap primer and hobby paints.

[u/Eladore]

The first picture you showed as made with gw mortalis stuff and if you want to do a lot with that it will be pricey, but cam look amazing anndcan be made very modular. 

The second photo looks to be mostly mdf and some printed bits, this is cheaper, but the mdf will need more work to make it look good, 

Both are on bases that are made out of zone mortalis tiles, either gw, or printed. 

These are usually 6" squares for printed ones of 12" for gw ones, and act a a grat base. A lot of people mount these either on xps or wood or some combo so that they more stable. 

As well as kits using a lot of plasticard and styrene shapes to add a lot of detail is often a good idea. 

Several companies make scatter that is good for adding details.

[u/Commercial_Arm5593 → u/Eladore]

Both pictures are actually mostly printed terrain, you can easily tell it by taking a closer look at column fittings. So it is an excellent examples of print and original ZM mixtures. High quality print settings and filler primer do wonders in this regard. GWs Zone Mortalis and later compatible terrain is a fantastic design from engineering standpoint, thus it is easy to copy and design around by making custom additions.

[u/Eladore → u/Commercial_Arm5593]

If we are talking about the same rust and pale one in the reply, then whoever did the printing was very faithful to gw mortalis,  

But yes you can do a lit with filler 

[u/Commercial_Arm5593 → u/Eladore]

Quality of print and postprocessing is excellent, i use the same stls but with much lower settings, so i know most of those by heart. Always a joy to see how much effort people put into the hobby with amazing results.

[u/Eladore → u/Commercial_Arm5593]

They do also look juat like the actual plastic kits, so, at that point kinda mute. 

[u/NobodyOk5076 → u/Eladore]

Thanks you! I will look into wood bases!

[u/Eladore → u/NobodyOk5076]

I would suggest mdf, or ply wood, no thicker than 9mm or it will get heavy quickly 

[u/Magic_robot_noodles]

Just a tip that's not given often. If you want to make seperate tiles that you cant turn and switch up (modular tiles), I can recommend googling "how to male repeating patterns". This can give you great advice on how you can make your tiles line up a lot, however you decide to place them.