Post-Apocalyptic Greenhouse Scratchbuild, Part 3 – Basing

I enjoy basing. Often times, more than painting! So, when I got the finished (but unbased) greenhouse from Jon, I was excited. I wanted to give it a basing treatment worthy of the time he put into it. I forgot to take pictures of a few steps, so I will do my best to describe them.

The first step was to get some texture on the base. I used Liquitex Resin Sand. It is cheap enough and comes in a large container. Liquitex makes two versions of sand texture. Resin Sand has larger grain, giving it a coarser texture. No need for primer... this stuff sticks great! After it dried (36 hours or so since it was thick in spots) I painted it all over with Games Workshop Dryad Brown.

Next, I gave the whole base a wash of black and brown. Then, I drybrushed progressively lighter shades of brown and grey. There are at least four layers of drybrushing here.

I used the same wet mud technique as I did on my Wreck-Age Stakers to help these sections pop.

I added the resin water in thin layers, letting each one dry before adding the next. I added some patches of dried mud (no water) in various other spots around the base.

Next, I covered it all up with static grass! It is thinner in some spots, so the depth of the painted texture shows through. I added some individual leaves as well.

I wanted to get a natural look inside of the greenhouse. I splattered watered-down PVA on the tile floor, and sprinkled the leaves from high above it. Once the floor was littered in leaves, I blew into the greenhouse through the doorways to clump them in the corners.

I added static grass to some of the brick areas, as well as some individual leaves in random spots. There are also some small shrubs and some wild flowers.

Here you can see one of the finished "wet" spots. Isn't that hose awesome?

This is the wet area around the water tank.

I kept the back side of the greenhouse simple, adding some moss and vines. Just out of the picture is a large log, made from a small stick. No painting necessary!

Here is a close up of one of the vines. I think this is my favorite picture!

In one of the far corners, I made a shrub from some lichen. I gave this a black and brown wash.

I am very pleased with this addition to my post-apocalyptic terrain set. Look for it on the battlefield very soon!!

-- Josh, Chicago Skirmish Wargames club member