The End is Nigh: Deadlands

Here I begin roughing out the basic shape of the skull cave/mesa. As my batteries were dead in my hot wire cutters, I opted to give my jewelers saw a try and it worked like a charm, especially on the 3″ foam that would have been too thick for the hot cutter I have. I also used a hobby knife where it was more appropriate for the job.

At this point I am not concerned with the MDF base as I will cut it once the final footprint of the mesa is determined.

I then begin roughing out the next two layers and forming the cave opening.

In the next layer I cut a spot, with the hobby knife, for the skull to sit and adjusted it for a height that was pleasing to the eye and would allow the top of the skull to be relatively flush with the top of the mesa.  I also cut a piece to help fill in the large gap behind the top of the skull. The other gaps will eventually be filled in with the Celluclay.

Once that was done I carved in the top of the cave just below the skull.

I then focus on roughing in the shape of the back and sides of the mesa.

At this point, it’s important to note that none of the layers have been glued together. This allows me more freedom in forming the overall shape. Once I have the look I want I will start gluing the layers and skull in place so that I can move on to more precise carving.

It is also the time to decide if I want to expand the cave into the mesa and make the top removable to allow for gameplay inside the cave itself, like a couple of the smaller terrain pieces I have, or just use a map or separate, much larger, cave system board for taking the action underground.

The primary drawback to making the cave playable is the unsightly seam created when the roof is made to be removable.

For those paying close attention, you might have noticed I not only went ahead and removed that tooth in question, but also another from the rear of the mouth. You know…to give it just a bit more of that ragged look.

Once again that was performed with the jewelers saw and cleaned up and shaped with files.