Thursday 27 December 2018

Building a Modular Set of 2.5D Dungeon Tiles

One of the things I've been asked about on several occasions, is what kind of tiles (and how many of each) would I recommend someone build if they are just starting out.

Well, if you check back to THIS POST you can see the kind of thing that I made back in 2014, but I've gone on to build tiles of all kinds of different shapes and sizes since then ...and if it turns out that they don't join up properly when I'm designing an encounter, I just make an additional piece that fills any gaps ;) (as that's the beauty of this system - the tiles are so quick and easy to build that you can do something like that in a few minutes).

However, if you're looking to build a modular base set to get you started (or to expand upon the stuff you've already built) then I've had a bit of a rethink - and gone ahead and added a second page of the floor texture to the original download ...just to make something like this a little easier.


And, as you can see, this new version has a  ½" tile around the edges ...as this will cut down on wastage when you follow this particular method.

Anyway, on with the tutorial...


OK then, in the picture above I've illustrated how you can cut up eight different sheets to get the most out of each printout (note that some of them are the same except for the fact that they have been rotated - and this is so that the texture appears different on tiles of the same shape ...the corner passages for example).

So, once you've got those glued to some cardboard (or foamcore, etc.) and cut out as shown above, the next thing you'll need to do is add the walls to the areas I've shown in the diagram below.


And, as you can see, this should provide you with a good number of rooms and passages to get you started, and allow you to build a few basic dungeons ...like the one pictured below.


From here you can expand on your tile set in whatever way you like ...maybe adding a few smaller 4x4 rooms, or even gluing a couple of the original floor textures together to make a huge chamber ...the choices are endless :)

* * * 

Anyway, I hope this was a useful article for anyone interested in this kind of thing, and I'd also like to point out that all of the textures I've made thus far can be found over on THIS PAGE (on DriveThruRPG ...they're PWYW - so grab 'em for free, or pay as much/little as you like).

Monday 17 December 2018

Almost a year on YouTube

So, it's been almost a year since I embarked upon my YouTube journey (how time flies) - so here's a little 'year in review' type video ...along with few words on what's coming up:

Sunday 16 December 2018

Rusty Metal

I just thought I would do a quick blog post to show off some of the stuff that I'm working on for the next set of textures (which I'm tentatively calling 'rusty metal' ...but if you can think of a better name, let me know in the comments ;) ).



And, as you can see, these textures should allow us to build things like cages, levers, lifts, boilers, and so on ...though I expect people will find all manner of uses for these.

Anyway, the pdf and video(s) will follow along just as soon as I can get around to filming, editing, and all that nonsense ...but here's hoping you like how these are shaping up!

Thursday 13 December 2018

Crafting Encounters : Room 1

Back in August I mentioned (over on the YouTube channel) that I was thinking of putting a few 'encounters' together which utilised some of the print & paste dungeons that I've been making.

Similarly, on the odd occasion I've also mentioned how I've used some of the 'rooms' that I've drawn for the Patreon campaign (like the 'troll hole' from back in June) in my games.

Well, I recently had the idea of combining all of these things (i.e. the print & paste terrain, the VTT maps, and D&D 5e dungeon encounters) into short booklets that can be downloaded from the DMsGuild ...and I'm pleased to say that the first one is now available:


Each booklet will be little more that a single encounter (that can be slotted into an existing adventure -or- used for inspiration when designing your own), with the first part detailing the encounter itself, while the second part runs through which bits of terrain you'll need to build (with links to the corresponding YouTube videos).

Furthermore, I'll also be including VTT map tiles* of the same rooms (that are compatible with all of the other tiles from the Patreon campaign) - so that we can also use the tiles when playing online (though this first encounter might need to be changed a little if you're not gaming in person ...as you'll see when you read through it).


However, I will admit that this first one is a bit of an experiment (to test the waters so to speak), so if you do pick it up (it's a pay-what-you-want booklet over on the DMsGuild) I'd love to hear what you think ...and also be sure to let me know if you'd like to see more of this kind of thing.

That being said, there is nothing revolutionary on offer here ...just an encounter ...in a dungeon ...all statted up and ready to go!


*note that I'll also blow these up to miniatures scale for those that play in person, but don't have the time/inclination to build the 2.5D terrain pieces - so hopefully, all bases have been covered :)

Monday 10 December 2018

December's Patreon Map(s)

This month's (VTT) map is that of a throne room or great hall - which I've split up into three separate parts ...as seen below:

And the reason for this is so that we can utilise as many of the middle sections as we like (or even leave it out altogether) to make rooms of various lengths.


So, if you want to get your hands on the full size version of these maps, you can find them (along with all the other tiles I've drawn thus far) in THIS ALBUM. And if you'd like to support the project, feel free to head on over to the PATREON PAGE, and check out the different reward levels.

Wednesday 5 December 2018

Encounter Rooms? (D&D)

A little while back, I mentioned (over on the youtube channel) that I might start to share some of the D&D encounters I've used (or have ideas for) that utilise some of  my 'pay-what-you-want' dungeon terrain.


Well, a few folks seemed interested in that idea - but I haven't had time to get around to anything like that as of yet (as just filming the tutorials is more work than you'd think).

However, I was wondering ...instead of doing them as a video series, how about I supply them as $1 (or pay-what-you-want) booklets over on the DMs Guild?

They'll probably not be all that regular, but I'll include pictures of the tiles in action, a list of all the things I've built (or modified) for the scenario, and maybe even create a similar VTT map to tie it in with the Patreon maps as well (for folks who play online).


Sound like a plan?