This is one of my earlier projects, a nice bridge over a river.

[url]
http://s1174.photobucket.com/user/jschw ... sort=3&o=0 [/url]

http://s1174.photobucket.com/user/jschwengler/media/picture016_zpsbgrqcocu.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1

http://s1174.photobucket.com/user/jschwengler/media/picture015_zpsyn0ztpeh.jpg.html?sort=3&o=2

The bridge and its instructions are Hirst Arts. The hills/sandbars are insulation foam covered with sand, Woodland Scenics dirt flock and GW static grass. I just use copious amounts of white glue to stick it all down. The water is drywall gap filler, painted using dollar store acrylics. The painting instructions are in the Fellowship journey book (Yes, it's that old). The bridge itself is made of good old PoP and wood glue. The base colour was matched to GW dheneb stone. It was then drybrushed with white acrylic.

All the flocking you see as bushes, etc. is various Woodland Scenics products. (I always buy the tree canopy, 'cause you can rip it into any size you like then.) Aside from enhancing the final project visually, they cover all the air bubbles and parts where the castings didn't quite line up. The best part is, no one ever knows. (Take notes, friends. )

As you can see, Hirst Arts tends to cast large. The other buildings I've made are MASSIVE. A foot long is not uncommon for a building. Not particularly historically accurate, but fun to stage battles in. Aside from bridges, this mold makes nice decorative panels for Gondor buildings and massive arches for fortresses.

Eventually there will be more modular Anduin, and I might try some white glue to seal it and make it shiny. I don't like above ground rivers, they are a geographical abomination, but they make for fun games and are infinately replayable.

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"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'nice doggie' until you can find a rock." -Will Rogers

As DMS said on your WIP thread, copy the img url and delete everything before and after the [IMG] and your picture will be in-bedded in your post.

I too am a big fan of Hirst Arts and enjoy your bridge. The only thing I have against HA bridges is he does steps vs ramps. To do ramps you need to do cardboard and pieces on top like he did on his rubble bridge. I agree that the models using HA ends up being massive, especially if you do ramps at a moderate grade and want to do more than a single arch on the bridge - but I feel the effort is worth it and it ends up being a nice piece on the game board. Just a pain to store.

If you haven't done it before, try some aging on your blocks before assembly. If you take the pieces that will be on top and on the ends and put them in a paper bag and shake real well, they will get a nice worn look to them that I believe adds to the overall look. It is just hard to take nice new blocks and intentionally wear them down. Make sure the blocks are dry first before you shake them and have a cloth to wipe the dust off before gluing and painting them.

Again, nice bridge and I look forward to seeing what else you make!

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"Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer."

Nice bridge. A bit too clean for my tastes. Perhaps some cracked blocks, some ivy or growth, a highwater mark and things like that.
Maybe some dirt on the flooring and some rubble would improve the look.

The advantage of Hirst Arts blocks is you can make your own designs.



Some examples with laser cut wood photo frames converted into railings. I have a 3D print railing from Shapeway in progress.

Ramps vs steps some of the parts from #74 are useful for ramps

http://www.hirstarts.com/molds/m74.pdf

http://www.hirstarts.com/molds/m263.pdf


#263 and new 4 bot molds have in spired me to start casting for a Hobbit Town bridge and Mill.

4bot

http://www.4botindustries.com/#!tudor-c ... er-1/usah3



A WIP post using 4 bot cavern floors.



The shapeway 3D print on the left.



Hobbit Inn using 4 bot cast wall on center. I have been using more wall on center tiles because I have been working on Black Plague and Massive Darkness tiles.



You can see that the large monsters take up more room.

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"the same as a duck you must be made of wood"

Some pretty neat buildings you made too. I didn't know about the 4bot molds, so thanks for sharing!

I like to think horses galloping up steps is possible, and would look cinematically cool. It would really be more of a lunge, kind of like a whole bunch of mini jumps. Wargs could certainly tackle them anyway. It does present a gaming problem, that's for sure. I'm planning to invert some blocks used to make the stairs to set the models on. I really don't think horses would fight on steps. Maybe they have to use their entire move to get up it?

Personally, I like to think not everything Gondor owns is derelect. It took me a lot of time to sculpt back in the railings and decorative boxes. Rest assured, Arnor is a different story. The tower is far from level or straight. (Sadly, I was trying for both.) Oh well, the fact a large part of Middle Earth is ruins is certainly a plus for me!

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"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'nice doggie' until you can find a rock." -Will Rogers