Miniatures with flaming weapons, that's he rolls.

The man behind “Miniature Madness – Super Picture Post” and “Show Me The Gaming Props!” answers some questions about how he creates some of his game props.

One of the biggest questions we get when people see pictures of your 3D maps is, “How long did it take to make that?” So, how long does it take to create some of these items?

Most of the props take one to three hours. My two big props took considerably more time. The three tier dungeon where the players had to go from bottom to top took about eight hours. The last prop, the Horned Hold, took almost twenty hours. Now, I work graveyard and I have to keep a regular schedule so on my days off I stay up all night. I made the Horned Hold on my two days off while my family slept the night away. After having made a few different props it’s going a lot smoother and faster. For most of my games, I probably won’t be spending more than one or two hours on a prop.

It has been mentioned that you use foam board for some of your creations. What are the primary items that you use when creating a 3D terrain?

Foam Board – Goooood. Foam board is the bread and butter of props. I use this more than anything else. For a quick prop, one that doesn’t get much thought or one that is going to get covered up completely by terrain, I use white foam board (available at Wal-Mart, Office Max, Office Depot, and several other stores). Shop around. Sometimes you get some that are cheap or on sale. On the other hand, for a cool prop that is going to have part of the board exposed, I’ll use black foam board. It’s just better looking and I’m all about looking better. Be careful though, black foam board is slightly more expensive.

Graph Pads. Office Depot and Office Max (and others I’m sure) sell these 3×3 foot pads of paper that are already lined in one-inch squares. It’s around $20 but well worth it.

Toilet paper rolls. Yep. Start saving them. With very little work they become great pillars.

Boxes. Boxes from small presents, tissue boxes, small boxes from UPS, anything. They can be turned into cool terrain or buildings.

In addition to the necessary components listed above, what tools do you use to create 3D terrain?

Pens, ruler, scissors, tacky glue, box cutter, and a table or mat that you don’t mind scratching up from the box cutter.

Some of your terrain looks like it was printed from a PDF. What source do you use to create your castles and terrain?

I think most of it is from Fat Dragon Games. They make GREAT stuff and I’m very happy with their price. I’m not one for banners and advertising but if RoleplayingPro were to advertise something or provide a link, I would say Fat Dragon Games. Print that stuff out on Cardstock Paper (not normal printer paper). Any scrap booking store or perhaps office store sells it. Maybe even Wal-Mart. I don’t know the wife gets it for me.

Are your maps done after one use, or do you use them multiple times?

If I put at least an hour into a prop, it will definitely see use again. It’s too time-consuming and costly to make them one-shot deals. Besides, I don’t have a big house, so storing fifty props is not an option. You will find that your players won’t mind at all if they climb the same tower in different adventures, or storm the same keep in two different regions. If they do mind, kick them out of the group.

If a game master wants to create 3D terrain quickly, easily, and inexpensively, how would you recommend they do this?

Use items from your house. Pretty soon you’ll see what things you need to save: Toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, small boxes, rocks from outside, etc., etc., etc.

The very first use of 3D maps we used was for Spycraft. They were simple maps that I drew ahead of time and then put matchbox cars on the map. Heck, we’ve used books to designate buildings and dice cases to show storage crates. I think a cell phone substituted as a speeder skiff. That’s it, that’s all you need.

Finally, do you have any tips or suggestions for game masters looking to create 3D maps for roleplaying miniature battles?

Yes, and as cliché as it sounds, I’m going to say it. Start with the basics. You will save soooo much time if you build simple things first. I’ve sat there, in front of my table, staring at my supplies for over an hour while trying to figure out what to do next. So start with the simple props, even those are cool. My first real prop was the second level of a warehouse (very simple, very basic). I was very happy when the players thought that was the coolest thing ever.