Watchtower finally finished!
First of all, I must admit — this took me much longer than expected, but:
it was actually my first full XPS building,
many elements were made for the first time,
and there was a lot of thinking, testing, and searching for “how to do stuff” along the way.
In many ways, I think this was a bad choice for a first XPS build. Usually, you should probably start with the basics, right? Something like stone tiles or simple wall segments — easier to carve, easier to paint, easier to experiment with techniques. But well… I am what I am 😉 and I wanted something more ambitious.
The main reason I chose this structure was actually very simple — I already had some scatter terrain and wanted a larger centerpiece for my gaming table. I don’t think modular walls alone would have given me that feeling.
When I left off in the previous WIP posts, most of the painting was already done, but I still had a strong feeling that something was missing. Pretty quickly, I realized it needed shrubs, moss, and rubble. I wanted to keep most of the flat surfaces playable, so I tried not to overdo the rubble, but adding greenery was definitely the right call.
At the moment, I don’t really have professional greenery materials on my workbench, so I worked with what I had available. I used reindeer lichen in some areas, but my favourite effect is definitely the moss near the bottom of the stone walls. It was made by mixing PVA glue with fine turf and applying it using an old, worn brush. Once dry, it created uneven coverage and different shades of green — and honestly, that effect might be my favourite part of the whole build.
Another challenge — and something completely new to learn — was editing the photos to blend the model into real-life scenery. For the backgrounds, I used my own photos from a short trip to the Tatra Mountains last year. The weather that day was cloudy and misty, and I thought it matched the atmosphere of a ruined watchtower perfectly.
I hope you like the results 😉
Next post: close-ups, details, and a few thoughts on what could already be improved next time.
