Hirst Arts Projects

In both miniature games and some rpgs terrain is always an issue. It can be quite time consuming or expensive. So, over the last few years I've collected a number of Hirst Arts molds. These are rubber molds that take in plaster. I currently use Excalibur plaster which is dental plaster that doesn't meet the standards for dental works. Basically the company gets to sell their 2nd tier plaster to modelers for less. I made a number of ruins and basic shapes. I even used it in my wedding cake top...

The current project was to use a number of the tiles to build three different dungeon terrains. I had cast a number of them over the years. I decided to put them on pink insulation foam so I could make pits and such.

This is the cavern terrain pre-painted.

Some more pieces. The lego L helps keep the walls straight.

I mostly went with basic designs with this test run. I did decide on this one fancy wall.

So, next I picked some pain to try. I went with house paint, Behr. First some Egyptian Nile for the cavern base. The paint was slightly thinned to get in all the crevices.

Then came some heavy dry brushing of sand stone

Some close ups (sorry not great light in the garage)

Overall, I like the look and effect. The painting is quick and gives a nice look and terrain. The main time issue is the casting. However, you can do stuff in between sets. Of course with school coming again not a bad activity for a break in grading.

For the fieldstone dungeon I went first with mahogany for the base coat. 

Then a drybrush of puddle for the stonework.

Once again I like the effect with just a little time of painting. I might add a few different color stones to enhance the fieldstone effect. 

Next step will be to start building the more interesting rooms and painting the gothic dungeon. Overall, a nice easy project just takes a little while.

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