Sulfurous Fields Rock Spires

Careful flying low when you head south over the ridge.

So, I totally spaced taking "in progress" pics for these.  I had a lot on my table at the time and got into a spot where I needed to photo several projects...and then I started doing this on the side as an experiment.  I neglected to take any photos of the work while I was doing it, but to make up for it I'll tell you how I made them.

Tall and short spires dot the landscape near the fumaroles.

I had a few lengths of styrofoam that was about 3" wide square...but several feet long.  I cut one section out and decided to see if I could make some convincing "spires".  I wanted these to be as if they are forming out of the mineral deposits left by the surface geysers, and have some strata to them.  No doubt these formations are of interest to science-minded parties.

VTOL support is almost a necessity among the tall, dense spire clusters.

Using my wire foam cutter, I simply cut the striations in the blocks after I chopped them down to even smaller sizes - about ten to twelve inches tall.  I decided to place them on foamcore bases, for the same reasons I've done most of this.  That is, I wasn't sure how it would turn out.

Infantry and weapon systems will find the spire clusters favorable positions to get up to all sorts of mayhem.

I had some small styrofoam cube as well, and decided to sculpt them into smaller formations.  They were about the same dimensions, just cubed.  For the larger spires, I used toothpicks to anchor them to the foamcore while the pva attaching them dried.

Somewhere near Kadarasto...

After they were all attached, both the tall and short stacks got covered in a layer of PVA to help strengthen the surfaces and protect against spray propellant.  Some Krylon Flat Grey Primer was applied after it was dry, and that provided the basic texture and color.  I used the same concrete finish and Vallejo Black Lava as with all the Sulfur Fields stuff I've done.  Some Astronomican Grey highlights on the textures finished them off.

Evil magic gathers in dark and lonely places...

It helps that they can be used for pretty much any game set on the table, since they are natural features.  In many ways, they serve the same purpose as forests on other tables.  Certainly this was the feature I was missing on the table...it feels more dense, more complete with everything down.

Watch where you step, there are wyvernroosts amidst these crags and spires...

These were done very quick, and definitely add to the new table.  In fact it was so quick, I was finished with them before I even remembered I was supposed to take pictures.  It's just one of those projects that went easy.  I was just happy I remembered to make it compatible with all the pieces I had made so far.

Powered-down 'mechs can power-up quickly to surprise low-flying patrols.