The new molds look great Bruce! I cannot wait to see how this activates the community and what amazing builds folks post in the coming months.
Thank you for the new board as well; I hope removing some of the noise drives some traffic back.
Working on Cryptstone
Re: Working on Cryptstone
Watched your youtube videos about the bridge - looks fantastic.
It's NOT denial. I'm just very selective about the reality I accept. -- Calvin (Calvin and Hobbes)
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CrimsonUdder
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2024 3:15 pm
Re: Working on Cryptstone
Bruce, how well do the new molds #20 & #24 match the Low Wall Dungeon mold #350?
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brucehirst
- Site Admin
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2024 11:03 pm
Re: Working on Cryptstone
They're actually fairly close. The texture on mold #350 is what led me to go ahead with molds #20 and #24.
The differences are that the bricks on mold #350 are not randomly recessed and the bricks are slightly less in height than 1/4".
The differences are that the bricks on mold #350 are not randomly recessed and the bricks are slightly less in height than 1/4".
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CrimsonUdder
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2024 3:15 pm
Re: Working on Cryptstone
Do you plan to create additional molds to match new molds #20 & #24.
For example, doorways, windows, arches, pillars, floor tiles etc.
For example, doorways, windows, arches, pillars, floor tiles etc.
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brucehirst
- Site Admin
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2024 11:03 pm
Re: Working on Cryptstone
Yes I do. This is the texture I wish I had started with at the beginning of the whole mold making thing. My overall plan is this:
I have a large project in the background of my mind which kind of fuels the projects and directions of this next series of molds. This project is to make a modular board which could be used for a game such as Warhammer Quest. The theme will be an elaborate crypt almost as an underground city. Inspiration comes from my early readings of Lord of the Rings when I was a teenager (long before the movies), mostly centering around what I pictured when reading about the paths of the dead.
I've had sketches about how to construct the dungeon for many years now. It's similar to what RogaDanar had posted at viewtopic.php?t=12 except that the walls will be moved to one side of the floor tile instead of in the center. This gives more room for deeper decoration on the walls. With one side of the walls being flat, it's easier to push other walls up against them at any point.
If you're familiar with Warhammer Quest, it has room tiles with no walls connected by doorways. The final room is the objective room which you are trying to reach and defeat. With my version you can set walls around the floors (or not) to divide up the rooms and give a good overall 3D vision of the crypt. Wall sections can easily be added or removed if they get in the way and they can also be objectives as well. This also follows the same type of format I came up with for the Gloomhaven game by putting walls around the hex tile floor sections.
Anyway, the trick is to create a series of molds following this theme. I have a large variety of decorative block types planned but they need to be put onto molds so that you can build a project with each new mold. Pieces will include stairs, arches, recessed arches, crenelations, base trim, pillars, doors, decorative braces, buttresses, bas-relief panels, decorative strips, arrow slits, statues, decorative panels and a ton of other blocks.
I'm hoping to have designs for the next project which will be akin to the Wizard's Tower. This will incorporate some of these blocks above in combination with the basic block mold #20. Although I'm not entirely sure if that will be the next project or not, It really depends on what comes out of the design process. You might wonder why I started with a bridge as my first project. It's because large arches were included in the list of blocks needed for this series, I had them finished and it's the only simple project I could think of that uses large arches.
In other words, I'm using the "swiss cheese" approach to the grand design of the crypt blocks. Sometimes I'm sketching up pillars or have an idea for a statue. Sometimes a design for a door will pop up. I'm currently trying to come up with a reasonable design for crenelations that aren't too over the top so they can be used for regular castles as well as a dead king's fortress. As I come up with new blocks I have to figure out what kind of project they could be used for. Hopefully a fairly simple project that doesn't scare people away from the hobby but also demonstrates how the blocks can be used. When I get enough blocks made that can be used for a good looking project, that will be the next mold.
I'm hoping that by the end of the series I'll have all the decorative blocks I need for the Warhammer Quest crypt. I'm getting pretty old but my plan is to focus all of my attention on this, chipping away at it while trying to enjoy the design process. It's funny but you would think that by now everything would have already been created by someone else. But I still don't see what's in my head out there for sale.
I have a large project in the background of my mind which kind of fuels the projects and directions of this next series of molds. This project is to make a modular board which could be used for a game such as Warhammer Quest. The theme will be an elaborate crypt almost as an underground city. Inspiration comes from my early readings of Lord of the Rings when I was a teenager (long before the movies), mostly centering around what I pictured when reading about the paths of the dead.
I've had sketches about how to construct the dungeon for many years now. It's similar to what RogaDanar had posted at viewtopic.php?t=12 except that the walls will be moved to one side of the floor tile instead of in the center. This gives more room for deeper decoration on the walls. With one side of the walls being flat, it's easier to push other walls up against them at any point.
If you're familiar with Warhammer Quest, it has room tiles with no walls connected by doorways. The final room is the objective room which you are trying to reach and defeat. With my version you can set walls around the floors (or not) to divide up the rooms and give a good overall 3D vision of the crypt. Wall sections can easily be added or removed if they get in the way and they can also be objectives as well. This also follows the same type of format I came up with for the Gloomhaven game by putting walls around the hex tile floor sections.
Anyway, the trick is to create a series of molds following this theme. I have a large variety of decorative block types planned but they need to be put onto molds so that you can build a project with each new mold. Pieces will include stairs, arches, recessed arches, crenelations, base trim, pillars, doors, decorative braces, buttresses, bas-relief panels, decorative strips, arrow slits, statues, decorative panels and a ton of other blocks.
I'm hoping to have designs for the next project which will be akin to the Wizard's Tower. This will incorporate some of these blocks above in combination with the basic block mold #20. Although I'm not entirely sure if that will be the next project or not, It really depends on what comes out of the design process. You might wonder why I started with a bridge as my first project. It's because large arches were included in the list of blocks needed for this series, I had them finished and it's the only simple project I could think of that uses large arches.
In other words, I'm using the "swiss cheese" approach to the grand design of the crypt blocks. Sometimes I'm sketching up pillars or have an idea for a statue. Sometimes a design for a door will pop up. I'm currently trying to come up with a reasonable design for crenelations that aren't too over the top so they can be used for regular castles as well as a dead king's fortress. As I come up with new blocks I have to figure out what kind of project they could be used for. Hopefully a fairly simple project that doesn't scare people away from the hobby but also demonstrates how the blocks can be used. When I get enough blocks made that can be used for a good looking project, that will be the next mold.
I'm hoping that by the end of the series I'll have all the decorative blocks I need for the Warhammer Quest crypt. I'm getting pretty old but my plan is to focus all of my attention on this, chipping away at it while trying to enjoy the design process. It's funny but you would think that by now everything would have already been created by someone else. But I still don't see what's in my head out there for sale.