My first 3D Terrain Sculpt - Vegsundvaag's Lair - Jade Regent Spoilers

[Osprey71]

I've always been a big fan of detailed battle maps and 3D terrain, but I had always used card stock.

I finally decided to try my hand at a full 3D sculpted terrain and since our group was just coming up to tackling a white dragon in its lair, I just couldn't resist.

Here is my progress so far:
Vegsundvaag's Lair Album

The sculpting work is over half complete, then it will be on to painting.

This has taken way longer than I anticipated and I'm finding I really need more tools to get the job done more efficiently. I've got about 15 hours into the project so far.

Granted, I think this was a little ambitious for my first project.

Interested in feedback and suggestions.

[Fake Healer]

Very nicely done. I love the use of dots instead of a grid or +'s at the corners of the squares...it makes the floor look more natural and clean. I usually do similar stuff for the larger/more memorable battles in a campaign and I like how you did this. Did you use a wire knife or carve it with an exacto knife?

[Osprey71]

Thanks.
For the rough layout, building up the layers, I used a long utility knife. The sculpting was done with a set of cutters from Hot Wire Foam Factory, mainly their Freehand Router which has a shape-able rigid wire. The router makes quick work of the sculpting process and creates a natural ice look with little effort.

For the floor I used the router, shaving off layers, and a sanding block to smooth it out.

[Osprey71]

I never got around to posting the final images of this. It was a huge hit at the game. I have a couple of pics at the game and several mock-ups afterwards.

Final Vegsundvaag's Lair