Twigs make forests

Today I've got an idea which is nice and simple, and gives you a load of easy to make and easy on the eye terrain for very little outlay. Usually, wargames tables feature trees in full bloom, but some of the most striking photographs of the Great War are of trees blasted by artillery until they have lost every branch and scrap of leaf. Fortunately, it's the perfect time of year to recreate that look in scale.

Desiderata:
* Hot glue gun and sticks
*A base (I've used a spare bit of plywood here)
* Sand
* PVA glue
* Paint and brushes
* Some twigs from the garden

1) Make sure the twigs are dry, and aren't filled with wee creepy crawlies. This is both for their sake and yours. Do you want to explain that the house is suddenly full of woodlice because you brought in a load of wood? Didn't think so!

2) Sort the twigs so you have ones that look right, and put a few on each base. Don't overcrowd a base or you won't be able to move your infantry through it. Grab the hot glue gun and stick the twigs to the base.

3) Paint slightly diluted PVA over the base, and cover it with sand. Once this has dried apply another coat of diluted PVA to seal in the sand. See Fig. 1.

4) Wait for the second coat of PVA to dry, then paint it. If you want, you could add some dead leaves, bits of grass, skulls or other detritus, but you can quite easily just paint the model as totally blasted and lifeless. See Figs. 2, 3 & 4.

5) There you go, folks. Nice and simple. You can get a very evocative forest in this way in absolutely no time at all. See Figs. 5&6.

Until next time, happy gaming!