Scratch building a French Indian War fort

Having completed a blockhouse to add to my French Indian War armies last week, it was time to figure out how to create a fort. One of the considerations I had was not to create a large piece of terrain which would require storage. 

The final result which can be set up with different configurations

I opted to build the fort walls in 6 inch strips to fit with the 6 inch tabletop grid I use. My figures are based on 3x4 inch bases so small firing steps are not going to work. The approach is to use MDF for the walls and an angled pine moulding for the firing steps. This allows a defending unit to be seen over the defence wall.

Man the walls!

The defenders can be seen over the wall

The MDF was cut into 6 x 1.5 inch strips and the moulding cut into 6 inch lengths with a 45 degree mitre cut on each end. These were then stuck together and stapled to hold them. The stapes were removed later on once the glue was dry.

Wood cut and prepared

Glue mounding

Staples used to hold pieces in position 

Once all the glue was dry, the walls get an undercoat of mid-brown. The next step involves stripping the walls with a watered down dark brown, then with a watered down yellow brown to represent logs used to build the walls. Although the yellow brown is less watered down, else they tend to disappear once dry.

Painting on stripes with watered down dark brown

A second set of strips were added with a slightly watered down yellow brown 

The back is painted green and will be later flocked

In all 12 wall sections were made - 2 were painted up as gates

Once painted all sections got a coat of varnish and the back flocked. Very simple to make and paint and can easily be packed away without fear of any breakages. It is surprising how effective a little bit of paint quite quickly applied can transform a simple strip of MDF into a log defence wall.

The whole lot including block house (made from balsa wood and card) cost less than $20, and made over the weekend.

A close up of the fort walls and blockhouse made last week. 

This shot shows how the mitred back supports work. 

A seige underway? 

The defence walls will also get a run with my dark age flats