Physical Terrain Identifiers

[TrawlingCleaner]

My gaming group is having a few issues remembering what each terrain piece is identified as and the rules that come along with it (Dense, defensible etc).

 

Has anyone come up with a solution to this? I don't want to write what the terrain piece is on it, but was thinking maybe scale posters or grafitti? Maybe something 3d printed to signify what it is?

 

I've seen suggestions of cheat cards but they're easy to be hidden under models or moved around.

 

 

Any ideas would be great!

[Cerberus1775]

In my historical games I would add "natural" identifiers to terrain bases to mark terrain.   Such as; Three trees on a base designates heavy woods, two designates a standard wood and one designates a light wood.  Mark out the areas, place a couple of the correct scenic bases and Bobs your uncle.  

 

This is more problematic, I realize,  for industrial ruins as this weeks game a building might only give light cover while next week it is the 40K version of "Pavlovs House".   My realistic suggestion is to  paint a particular color on a building.  The color corresponding to the level of cover.  For example white, yellow and green could be the colors you choose to designate the cover levels.  This week any building with white or yellow is heavy cover, while the green buildings are light cover.  Next week green and yellow can represent heavy cover while white is light cover,

 

You can mark them with graffiti or signage in the appropriate color, while an interior wall or two is still intact enough to retain its paint.  That way inside or out, buildings and their cover, can easily be identified.  While the buildings themselves remain flexible enough to be used in multiple ways.

[Xenith]

If you use a lot of manufactorum terrain, then GW already makes a set of datacards for those pieces:

 

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Battlezone-Manufactorum-Terrain-Datasheet-Cards-EN-2020

 

I'd suggest making a set of reference cards like this for your terrain pieces, assuming theire standard? Even then, there are generic rules for 'ruins', 'woods' 'craters', etc in the rulebook, it wouldnt be too hard to make datasheets for each archtype, then say which is which before the game?

[ValourousHeart]

For my games I tend to keep the BRB opened to page 264-265.  My LGS is a GW, so all of the terrain is GW kits, so those pages work as a really easy guide.

 

 

If your typical table is like mine you are going to have these three types of terrain for 75-90% of your collection:  RUINS, RUINED WALLS, and INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURES.  These also tend to fall into small (RUINED WALLS), medium (INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURES), and large (RUINS) sizes and so create a nice assortment of visually distinct terrain features.  But have a number of overlapping or alternative rules that are fairly easy to keep straight, if you just keep in mind what the terrain piece is.

 

-- ALL THREE - are Breachable and Defensible.  This means that infantry can crawl through windows and doors (breachable).  And infantry fight better if charged (defensible), +1 to hit with either melee or overwatch (pick one)

 

-- FLOORS - Both RUINS and INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURES have floors.  Infantry and units with FLY can get to the upper floors (scaleable).

 

-- NO FLOORS - RUINED WALLS don't have floors, so you can't stand on top of it (unstable position).

 

-- LIGHT COVER - RUINS get light cover.  Standard cover rules for the past several editions.  Improve armor save by 1 vs shooting.

 

-- DENSE COVER - It is harder to hit units hiding in INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURES and RUINED WALLS, -1 to hit.  Think of large industrial machines blocking shots, or in the case of ruined walls, the floor above has crashed down and is now making the walls that much thicker.

 

-- DEFENCE LINE - RUINED WALLS will tend to be placed like barricades, this means you can fight if both units are in base to base contact with the wall.  Everywhere else you still need to get into base to base contact.

 

-- OBSCURING - RUINS will usually be the tallest structures on the table.  You can not see to the other side of them unless you are inside the RUIN even if you have LOS.  Exceptions are Aircraft and models with 18+ wounds... which you can see if you have LOS.  Simple visual if you are using GW terrain kits.  If the RUIN has 1 floor, you can see an Imperial Knight on the far side.  If the RUIN has 2 floors and doesn't have a huge hole in the wall, you cannot see the Imperial Knight on the far side.

 

 

Alternative Option:  BARRICADES AND FUEL PIPES - If you are using FUEL PIPES instead of RUINED WALLS the following exceptions apply.  You don't get -1 to hit, instead you get improved armor save by 1 for both shooting and assault.  And you don't get Breachable, instead you get Difficult Ground, -2 inches from distance when moving, advancing, falling back, or charging.