Creating a fantastic looking battlefield helps add a real theme to your battle and helps to strengthen the mission being played. One of the games that I enjoy a lot for this is Bolt Action. Creating a small town, with roads in and out, then adding the visible effects of war (tank traps, bunkers, and craters). This instantly sets the scene for different missions.

One of the games that I enjoy a lot for this is Bolt Action. Creating a small town, with roads in and out, then adding the visible effects of war (tank traps, bunkers, and craters) instantly sets the scene for different missions. One of my favourites for this is attacker and defender based missions, trying to invade a town, or desperately holding off the enemy’s force.

The size, shape, and style of buildings have a massive impact on battles. This particularly comes in handy when playing Warhammer 40K using one or two aircraft (something I enjoy), using tall buildings adds new challenges to the way I play my games because you can’t shoot down what you can see!

Creating your own battlefield can be done in several different ways, as there are several companies that now make and sell scenery meaning you can plan a great battlefield without a huge amount of time. One of the most popular styles that I use is laser cut MDF buildings as they are quick to build, well designed, and you can purchase many of these pre-painted, so you don’t have to spend time painting buildings when you could be painting models instead! All I add to this is some battlefield vegetation (lots and lots of trees!), alongside a gaming mat, and your war zone is ready in a few minutes.

When I start building and painting a new army, one of the things I like to plan ahead is how the model's bases will look on the table top, and what theme I should go for. This can really add to the appearance of your army. Whilst working on my Imperial Guard army, I used the Imperial Sectors bases from Games Workshop to theme the army as a Planetary Defense Force. Keeping this idea up, I used a heavy weathering effect around the tracks and underside of all my tanks in order to add further to the theme I wanted to create.

So, when you are next getting ready to play a game, or preparing a new army, give a little thought to where you would like to fight- creating a theme will make your army look amazing!

Have fun creating a theme for your battles :)

___________________________________________________________________________

ASSOCIATED PRODUCTS