While rummaging through the various dealer booths at the most recent Cold Wars convention, I came across some new flex terrain being sold by Battlefield Terrain Concepts. I had been looking for some new swamp terrain for some time, after getting tired of using the scratch built ones I made a long time ago. I wanted something flexible, easy to transport and somewhat rugged. The latter was the main driver. While I was always happy with my sratch build swamps, I was not happy with them constantly chipping and needing repair!
What I came across were three different packs of swamp and some packs of simple rough terrain (small, medium and large). Looking at the terrain, is was clear that this is what I had been looking for! The pieces came in a greenish grey latex and was very detailed. I decided to forgo the larger packs and picked up one of each of the small packs and a medium pack of swamps. I decided the rough could double as additional swamp terrain, as long as I painted it to match.
The price was reasonable (under $10) for each pack. I had since tried to see if I could find the items on the BTC website, but they have not updated it in years (this is the one annoying thing about this company). However, if you call they, they will sell it to you and even mail you a part list (obviously old school gamers!). Alternatively, if you happen to live on the East Coast of the US like I do, you can see them at any of the HMGS conventions.
Being textured latex, the terrain holds paint quite well. You can paint them up and bend them to your hearts content (just make sure you use water based paints!).
I did not want to spend too much time painting the sections (it is terrain after all), but the crisp detail ensured I did not just slop the paint on either! I started with a base coat of Krylon Dark Brown spray paint. This doubled as both the primer and the base color. Next I pained all the rocks grey. I then covered all the pieces with a thin black wash and let that dry. Once the wash was dry, I drybrushed the brown and grey up two shades. I added a wet brush of dark green to all the foliage areas. I also painted all the puddle areas dark green. Once the paint was dry, I added some flock to all the foliage areas using PVA glue. I let that set over night and then sprayed all the pieces with some Krylon Matt coat finish. Another night I went back and hit all the puddles and some random low areas with gloss coat, using a brush to show off all the wet areas. Let that sit and all done!
I was really happy with how fast I was able to get the pieces done and end up with a decent look. Setting aside the time waiting for paint and glue to dry, I spent only one full evening combined working on the terrain. Now I have exactly what I want for the gaming table!
I cannot say enough about these items. Not expensive, easy to paint and durable. They are what almost any gamer who needs scatter terrain is looking for. While they are not as easy to buy as they should be (BTC really needs to step up on their website), they are worth the telephone call or email! I give them five soggy boots out of 5. A great buy!
- Manteuffel