This project started with the plastic blister packaging that came off a GHQ pack of five vehicles. As I was assembling the models I was looking at the packaging while the glue dried (Okay, okay, I was driving them around making motor noises... ;-) and realized that they were the size of small bunkers or hardened storage sheds. So I grabbed a scrap of Styrofoam and cut out a base. I wanted room for a miniature to be within the storage area so I only used three of the five blisters.
I used a sharp hobby knife to cut the sides in a rocky pattern and to cut out the path down to the table. Then I glued on the blisters and added filler around the bottom to fix the cracks between the plastic and the base.
By the way, the "battle damaged" tank closest to the road is a result of opening the package. I just took advantage of it and added some filler in the top to look like it had been smashed and filled with dirt, leaves, and other rubble.
I added a cut piece of straw as a ventilation shaft (or possible an underground entrance) and filled the open end.
After the glue and filler had dried (overnight... or actually it was a few nights before I could get back to the piece) I covered the top with glue and sand.
Once the sand had dried I covered the whole piece with light gray latex house paint (from a gallon bucket) using a 1 inch (25 mm) brush. Then I used Apple Barrel acrylics to paint the details. The storage tanks are gun metal, the grass is a light green, and the road was dry-brushed with some brown to indicate wheel wear. I washed the model with thinned black paint, especially the rocks and some of the cracks on the storage tanks.
I envisioned using the piece as an objective and that a miniature in between the tanks would get a cover bonus. The only problem is that if the tanks stored ammo or fuel then the element was dead if they were hit... So I guess it will either have to serve as a objective that is to valuable to be destroyed or else hold something nonvolatile like water.
(The miniature is by In Service Miniatures).
