CannonFodders Terrain with Setup tips

This is my first table, and is also my favorite. I originally made is a temp set of terrain while I waited for my kick starter to come in. I like this so much I sold the kickstarter terrain. I had a full set of instructions in the old forums, but I think everyone can figure out whats needed from the photos.



Check out this thread it has some good tips on how to set up a table. Not every pointer work for every style of terrain.

Foundation: I use 2 MDF board on top of a non-slip mat over my table. The non-slip mat makes the table a lot sturdier, and since teh boards don't slide it won't scratch the table. Then I have my Zuzzy mat on top of it. If you are looking for a option that is still available to replace the zuzzy mat check out urbanMatz. If I didn't have the Zuzzy matt I would pick up the UrbanMatz asphalt mat. I personally don't like mats that are too detailed.



Building sizes: make a big impact on how you set up a table. The building I use are 4,4.5 & 5 inches wide. It can make for a cramped table. But when setting up the table don't hesitate to have the building touch to make a larger building. I've found tables with lots of small individual buildings turn in to grids. By having building touch you can get some interesting shapes and it turns the table into more of a maze, and interesting choke points. A side note for making the building, Having the door inlaid added some extra depth to the terrain. I tried to do a couple with deeper doors, but takes a lot more time to make, and they don't store as well. If you do want deeper inlays, only do it on the small building or else they don't stack when storing them.

Last note on the building: The 4 inch buildings on the 5 inch buildings leaves enough room for S2 models to move around a balcony.



House rule: On this terrain you can take a long action to move from any door/hatch on the building to another door/hatch as a long action.

Asymmetrical building layouts: This is an important aspect of the game. Having balanced table side make choosing initiative a waste of time. Some say only give 1 side a sniper roost. I prefer to give 1 side a couple 2 story building, and the other all 1 story building. But the side with 1 story a better defense from AD units.

In the photo below, a model with AD can walk in, and be in the opponents DZ with 1 more order, shooting from Cover.


Below we set it up so the AD troop needs to spend 2-3 additional orders to be able to shoot into the DZ.


Angling Buildings: makes it a bit hard to the have 1 model get LoS on multiple models. If you combine it with touching buildings, it give you cheerleader a couple decent nooks and grannies to hide in. By having the building edge be non-linear, your models can all hug the building and not be lined up for a boarding shotgun template. Its still prone to direct templates, but there are fewer infiltrating models with direct templates.


Sniper Roosts: are probably the first thing people look fro when picking a side. Some say 1 side of the table should get 1 GOOD roost. I prefer to give 1 side a couple decent spots, but no amazing spots. By dropping some scatter terrain on the perfect spot, you get 2 decent spots which have a more restricted view of the table. A single sniper can easily move from one spot to the other for 1 order. But it forces them to pick 1 spot, and use other models to cover other spots.


House Rule: That piece of scatter is considered blocking S2 height.

Long Lines of Fire & Table Edges: Its always a good idea to avoid LoS from DZ to DZ. This include the table edge. Putting a building on the edge of the table stops this. Just keep in mind AD troops can come in the rooftop if the roof has enough room for model on the edge. Look at the green circle below. The rooftop terrain was added to block the AD troop from walking in on a rooftop. The 2 red lines are LOS to the DZ from a single ground level location. We ended up modifying the table afterwards to remove the right most LoS, it hindered too may models he deployed in that corner. The other one was thin enough to pass with a cautious movement, and models over there had other options, so we left it.



Tall Centers: The building the middle of the table should be the same height or taller than the buildings in the DZ. This cuts up the view for the sniper roosts. While you want there to be a couple sniper options they should not see the entire table.

Avoid Kill Zones: I've tried tables with small parks in the middle filled with only with scatter surrounded by buildings. Its not recommend. Everyone trying to move threw got cut down.

Scatter: On my table I built a pile of plant boxes. I made the long thin ones to fit in the smallest building to give it the option of rooftop terrain. The edges are tall enough to give S2 cover. Our House rule for that is that its a saturation zone. The larger square one we consider a blocking square. I've found having standardizes rules agreed in advance helps avoid mid-game arguments.



Forests \ Jungles: While I don't use them on this table. If you are looking for a way to fill up the table, a forest zone works well. Even on urban tables. The saturation zones add a new flavor to the game for those used to only urban warfare. Below is my other table (still needs some work, I'll post later), If you use a lot of forests, an army with MSV2 and multi terrain (eg. Djanbzan) will have a field day, at which point its not a fun game for your opponent. If you are going for a full jungle/forest table I would use the reflective rule. It helps balance things. But if you have 1-2 zones, its ok to just use the saturation zones. When using zones I recommend that you decide in advance how tall all the forests are in advance, and have a piece of cardboard that tall to use when checking LoS.



Single Trees: I've tried them, I personally find its not recommended for infinity. All it does is block LoS for snipers at elevated locations. But it turns into an argument since model trees don't have clean edges for LoS.

Bridges & Ladders: One thing I love about infinity is that its 3D. Most miniature games can be switched to 2D and not lose much. Infinity add so much more by using the extra dimension. The bridges gives you approach options. This is especially true for buildings that do not have interiors. If you are able to eliminate the snipers, a bridge can give you easy access to an objective. There have also been times that a prone model has crawled to an objective for the win right over a tag.


Catwalks or Archways: I personally like the archway style I made from the lids of the boxes. It added some nice cover to some of alleys. Unfortunately since I made them from box lids, they are a little short. The 5 inch box lids are ok but can be a bit longer. the 4 inch arches just make for a crowded table. The Catwalk style are 8 inch long and will let you space the building out further for a less crowded table. I find a spacing of 6-7 inches between building is ideal. It makes it so you can't get to cover for just 1 short skill.


Ladders: I use the Warsen.al ladders. They hang from the edges perfectly. This make every roof easily accessible. I personally like to have it so every building has an accessible roof.

------
I added a new section and corrected some typos.

 

I find it adds a new dynamic to the game. Snipers behind them in aro are stonger because of the min 1B and attacks on them are weaker, but on the active turn they are weaker because thier B2 becomes B1. Also a lot of times MSV1 is considered worthless while MSV2 is considered valuable. This makes MSV1 have more value.

It's not a major change but does make for more variations on tactics.