City Wargaming Terrain review - Brutal Cities
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- čas přidán 28. 06. 2024
- MDF terrain comes in all shapes and sizes. In this video, I review the Brutal Cities range of futuristic city terrain. Their range is commonly used as Warhammer 40k terrain, Infinity terrain and more. Made from solid MDF and available in a range of styles the types of terrain.
Brutal Cities website: brutalcities.com/
Here's a full list of the terrain reviewed :
Acrylic signs - brutalcities.com/collections/...
Sirius Capsule Tower - brutalcities.com/products/sir...
Cabbage Palms apartment block - brutalcities.com/products/cab...
Eternity Labs - brutalcities.com/products/inf...
Scaffolding and sleeping pods - brutalcities.com/products/mod...
Planter boxes - brutalcities.com/products/pla...
Vantann Office Building - brutalcities.com/products/van...
Vantann Office Building Small - brutalcities.com/products/van...
Infinity Systems Data Centre - brutalcities.com/products/inf...
Eternity Labs Ladders terrain - brutalcities.com/products/ete...
Eternity Labs Bridges terrain - brutalcities.com/products/ete...
Easy Aug Shop - brutalcities.com/products/eas...
Using both an Infinity model and an Eldar Wraithknight from Warhammer for scale I go through almost the entire range and give my thoughts on what works best. - Zábava
Damn thanks for the glowing review mate! Glad you like the terrain. I look forward to seeing you paint it :) we have a sale on right now too if anyone is interested!
Highly recommend these kits
This reminds me alot of bladerunner and cyberpunk. Gritty, brutal, but also full of neon.
I really want to ramp up the neon and have great ambitions for embedded lights that will never become a reality 😂
In terms of mdf terrain these are probably the best looking kits I've seen, and the price point is really good - thanks for the detailed review! :)
You’re so welcome!! I love the kits but we’re spoiled that there are so many good infinity terrain makers out there!
I love Brutal cities works, been following them on Insta for a long while, nice to see these models on this scale!
They’re great kits, some are incredibly large!
They look pretty amazing
Not bad are they!
The Vantan looks like it lends itself to forming a dark alley way type situation.
The whole range looks great!
It's great having them as a few taller options for the table!
This terrain actually looks like it could exist unlike most infinity terrain which has more of a jungle gym vibe.
This, Micro Art Studio and Battle Kiwi, oh and Global Evil Corps are all very 'realistic' looking terrain options for Infinity :D
In the grim dark future 180 years from now, there is only... ladders.
Oh right. Ahem.
MILK FOR THE KHORNE FLAKES!
Hahahaha love it!
Great video. Really useful for my Infinity games
Thank you! Really appreciate the comments.
Yes, the acrylic signs look amazing.
Really nice simple touch for any terrain I reckon.
I really appriciate this video. I am looking for terrain for Infinity as well and this helps a lot.
Glad it’s helpful!
As a Tau player these are nearly perfect for my army's aesthetic, a little rounder edges and it would fit perfectly into the Tau style. I'll probably have to pick up some of these, maybe look into how to round out the edges.
You’re right they’d look good for Tau actually. Also check out Battle Kiwi as theirs are a bit more rounded too.
Nice!. While I do have a fair amount of terrain already, the kit with the taller buildings would be a nice addition for some nice visual variety and verticality
It’s good to have options!
Looks great! Thank you for the video!
Glad you liked it!
Great, comprehensive review. I only recently heard about these, and they look amazing and easy-to-use, with a style that lends itself to easy painting and weathering. Beyond my price range, sadly, but I love the aesthetic.
ThNk you so much for the positive feedback!
Love these
They’re pretty good!
This would be amazing for a shadowrun campaign
Just Googled Shadowrun, looks pretty cool!
And I like the Wraithknight for the scale.
Also, I didn’t realize there is an architectural style called Brutalism. Of course, now I get Halou’s album name, “Brutalism for Lovers”.
I thought a Revenant Titan was overkill so settled for its smaller brother 😂. Everyday's a school day on this channel.
For the planter boxes, bamboo trees from Ali Express would work perfectly and are very cheap
^^^^ this is such a good suggestion.
Great review.
I actually prefer buildings that don’t have windows in all directions. Such buildings tend to be too good defensive positions. With a blind side the tactical challenge of the building increase.
Absolutely agree - same with ladders. It’s sometimes good to place them so you have to consider whether a rooftop limits your advance.
This is great terrain. Still a bit out of affordability for me. I expect to build terrain using cheap foam core from the dollar store. These pieces may be great for a future effort. Thx for the video.
Always welcome Perkins 😁
Today I've used the birthday sale and bought a whole table worth of buildings.
I am excited!
You won’t regret it I absolutely love the buildings I have 😃
What did you go for?
@@the_infinitygamer I went all in. I bought the Eternity Labs tournament bundle, the objective room, the Data Centre, the Institute and some servers to fill said Institute.
Oh wow!! You are very much game ready 😃. I really like the eternity labs buildings especially as they stack so well for extra height. People often forget you can just walk through the building. Keep us posted on your progress!!
I usually heavily dislike mdf and similar building kits but goddammit I love these ones
I was the same up until recently!
This stuff is gorgeous. I’ve already got five tables worth of terrain.
🤯 wow! I need to bump up my numbers!
That rocks!
It’s great fun to play on!
Yeah, that's definitely a lovely looking table, to say the least!
As for MDF, I think one of the biggest reasons why many MDF tables don't see paint is the assumption that it will take a long amount of time to paint. Sure, if you're crazy like me and try to do it all with brushes no larger than a 1/2" flat or so, yeah, it's going to take a while, but there are plenty of inexpensive and easily accessible tricks you can use to paint them relatively quickly. I've heard Montana Gold spray cans are rather good (Sarissa Precision has mentioned them a few times on their Twitter, for example), and then there's also the airbrush option. The only reason I don't have a shelf full of rattle cans is that weather in Northern Alberta Canada is unpredictable, and our condo board gets rather cranky about spray paint being used on the back porch or in the parking lot.
I eventually plan on picking up an airbrush and two of the inexpensive airbrush booths. Seems a tad odd, but having 30-31" of width to work in means overspray won't be as much of an issue, plus I'll be able to fit whatever terrain i want in there. Or I'll just say screw it, and go with a slightly more expensive Paasche HSSB-22-16 because 22" of width will fit pretty much anything I want, and same with the 15.5" of height... Or I may go with the Pace 24" Mini-Plus for even more. Hard to decide... Well, that and an airbrush will speed up my priming and sealing by a significant amount.
That cubey-office/residence building is one I'm definitely looking forward to being released, as it has a rather interesting look to it to say the least! The creator's background, and care to attention of detail without going overboard I think is the biggest thing that draws me in for the terrain Brutal Cities offers. it isn't just a case of going boxy because that makes for more efficient use of MDF, it's more because it's how a lot of things are done in that particular architechtural style. Then there's the details. It isn't a case of details added in everywhere like some kits, or details barely etched in, it's a nice balance between the two that helps accentuate the overall aesthetic that's been aimed for, but still gives the painter a LOT of freedoms.
EDIT: I don't think it's heresy for you to include the giant Eldar... Uh... Doom thingy...? It sure gives off just how large it is, and how it is in relation to the terrain.
That scaffolding is also rather intriguing looking, I like the one Brutal Cities is coming out with (that and the Pod housing) as it's actually usable compared to offerings from other companies, which look good, but aren't necessarily playable - or compatible with other parts of the terrain they've put out (or you own)
I’ve also been tossing up the benefits of an airbrush but I’m also kind of wanting to take on the challenge of painting these without them. Not everyone can afford an airbrush just to take their models and terrain up to pro levels. Maybe rattle cans can look good too?
You’ve hit the nail on the head. The boxy, minimalist design wouldn’t have worked with many other companies but these guys can get away with it because they’re executing it perfectly. It’s a nice simple kit to build and look good while other kits are ideal for people looking for something more complex.
@@the_infinitygamer With a few basic techniques, you can get some really nice basecoats done with a rattle can - you just don't have the same precision/flexibility an airbrush does. On the flipside, $10-12 CAD gets you a really nice spray can (Montana Gold has a nice wide spray, with low pressure apparently), and it's about ten seconds to clean up your tools. I'm mainly looking at an airbrush because I tend to waffle the most on priming, and here in northern Alberta we go from "impossible" weather you don't joke about on New Zealand's northern isle (-30C with 25-35% humidity, and a week or two that's even colder than that) to weather that's a reasonable sunny day on said northern isle (30C with 45-55% humidity, although it fluctuates from 20C up to 35C, and screw anything above 28C as that's just too hot for my liking!)
I suspect the other reason I'm contemplating an airbrush is I just plain want one, and have for two decades, but yeah, weather sure does play a good part in it. Well, that and you can "sneak" an airbrush past the condo board easily (keep any compressor vibrations minimized, and it falls under the allowed rules), but if you do rattlecans the "traditional" way (spray into a cardboard box in the parking lot) boy do they get cranky! ...Probably because someone six years ago left a nice box shaped coat of Chaos Black on the building's back porch, and we aren't talking a thin layer, and it was several squad's worth (no, it wasn't me, lol)
I hear you on the brushes though, there's something to be said about that confidence of having done it all with a brush!
Can’t imagine trying to do anything at those temperatures and fair enough if people are hesitant about spray painting with that history!
I’ll have a stab at the rattle cans and document my failure for everyone’s viewing pleasure 😂 We’re heading into spring here so should be getting some good weather for doing lots of buildings at once.
Maybe a project for this weekend??
@@the_infinitygamer Winter is "easy enough" to deal with with a good heater and insulated building. I won't lie though, dealing with a snowstorm isn't always the most fun of things.
I will playfully say though, I've yet to experience horizontal rain here in Canada, even when visiting family on Vancouver island - we sure did when we visited Cape Reinga though! You know the weather's bad when the driver's all "nah, I'll stay in the bus, go enjoy yourselves!" :P I so need to visit New Zealand again, it's such a beautiful country!
Shovelling driveways is something I’m glad we don’t have to face! That and it taking five minutes to unlayer when you reach a warm restaurant or work. That wind must get pretty cold!
Glad you managed to enjoy this country, between horizontal rain showers. Or as we call them, free wheel washes. If you do manage another visit I’d certainly recommend January or February as the summer is a much nicer tome to visit.
hggNNNNNNHNNN!!
I sold my Mordheim table after closing down my club just last week, as I have been looking to move more towards 40k for its wider community. I absolutely LOVE rich, dense, and saturated cityscapes for tabletop games - but I've found the market is saturated with various flavours of city ruins or oil platform type stuff. Future-Modern cityscapes with residential and commercial spaces that look like somewhere people might actually live are very evocative for me, and this terrain set looks so perfect for what I want to achieve.
I never would've found it without this CZcams channel. Amazing! A little pricey, but it seems well worth it.
So glad you found the video!! Also worth checking out Warsenal and Battle Kiwi 😃
@@the_infinitygamer Yesss! The Xinguan series is absolutely stunning. It'll take a while but I'm hoping to build up a 40k sized board but at the scale of Necromunda. It's going to be almost unplayably dense for 40k games, but I'm resolved to make it the coolest hecking board in London.
Is there such a thing as unplayably dense??
@@the_infinitygamer Yes. Me. :'(
😂😂😂
this would be great for a post apocalyptic wargame
Fully agree!!
Brutalitist design is appropriately dystopian.
I hate in the the real world but its perfect for a dark future.
I agree!
This is so awesome. Thanks for making this video. Also, what kind of battlemat do you have in this video?
You’re super welcome! I’m pretty sure that one is my Frontline Gaming (FLG) city map.
@@the_infinitygamer Found it, thanks alot! I appreciate it!
No worries 😀
I've only got one of Ryan's buildings (so far) but it's the Easy Aug shop - and I lit mine up (I have a table of infinity terrain where most of the buildings are lit up). It was a joy to work with. I will be getting more.
I’m so keen to see how you did that. Can you share pics?
@@the_infinitygamer If you're on FB and in the Brutal city builders group, there's an album in the photos. Easy Aug construction log.
facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.1152419061801930&type=3
Just checked it out an looks amazing. I love the little light over the door. I really want to learn how to do those sorts of things.
@@the_infinitygamer There are instructables that cover lighting up kits with LEDs. Some are really basic (I've been doing electronics as a hobby for about 40 years - been a gamer for about 32.) but they give you a good grounding.
There are probably some sites that will even do the maths calculations for you (you plug in the relevant values for voltage, etc and it tells you which resistors you need to get).
Although xmas tree LED strings are also a very viable way of doing it. They're pre-wired to a battery pack and switch and if you get them just after xmas, they're also cheap as chips.
That’s a great idea (using Christmas lights) that’s perfect if I don’t want anything too complicated. Ok I’ll check out some instructables and see - thanks Chrome Dog!!
Cheers for the video, always been tempted by mdf terrain. Will be interested in the painting video as thars one thing thats put me off vs plastic terrain
I can’t promise that my feeble attempts at terrain painting will result in success but at least you’ll get reassurance in your choices. How do you find the laptop terrain is for painting? Similar to models?
@@the_infinitygamer im sure itll be better than what i can do, usually for plastic terrain i prime it, do a wet brush over it, then a dry brush and call it done. Will be interesting to see the difference between mdf & plastic as to what techniques work & dont vs plastic
That sounds like my necron painting technique!
We’ll soon see. I probably should practise on something first but what would be the fun in that??
@@the_infinitygamer could always test paint on any mdf sprues you have lying around
I probably should, that would be s the sensible decision!
Is there any prepainted-pre assembled kits that you could recommend for infinity? Im looking for a Cyber Punk Neon City style.
The closest you might get is Battle Kiwi stuff at the moment I think.
I like their stuff but it's pretty expensive for what it is. Like that little store is $63. I have found similar size buildings with just as a nice a level of detail for half that price.
I guess it’s a boutique product at the moment produced in relatively low volume but once the guys get to scale up they’ll be able to get the economies of scale that larger producers can. In terms of style I don’t think there’s a similar aesthetic out there so they’ve done an excellent job cornering the market if that’s the look you want.
I'm really torn between the glossy sci-fi utopia and the cramped urban slums for my first table. both themes are so appealing to me. Just ordered some mdf city pieces from TTcombat that could probably be painted either way...
I was the same and am very grateful to be in the position to try both. So long as you don’t lose any playability with the set-up then both are great. If your local tables lean one way offering an alternative might be good?
Some glossy, some dirty? Just look at real cities and you will see many times a building that is actually attached to another will be done up like new and its neighbour will be a mouldy time capsule from the 80s...
☝️☝️ great point - diversity is great on a table
Just a heads up, there are rules for Lifts (Elevators and Hoists) in Infinity.
I did see those for N3 but nothing for CodeOne at present. I’m sure N4 will have similar rules to N3 😃
@@the_infinitygamer n4 does not, neither does c1 (with regards to rules for elevators). N2 sort of had a vague catch-all with the short skill of "activate" (it's in the skill description).
N3 had rules for elevators (1 25mm base capacity) and "Hoists" (cargo elevators, not necessarily fully enclosed boxes like an elevator car - which could handle TAGs and things).
That’s good to know. I like that it’s probably a house rule territory.
What kind of storage solution do you use?
My biggest concern with these is the storage issue.
I live in a small apartment and don't have much space.
I have a huge shelf for it all. If storage is an issue maybe look at Acid House Terrain. It folds down into a small box czcams.com/video/Dg1nrh2F6dk/video.html
It looks like some, at least, will flatpack relatively easily...
True - the smaller buildings stack onto the bigger ones but only achieve verticality.
👍🏻🙂
Glad you liked it!
Is there a set to form a map like your video? or is there a list how many building i need to fill a 3*3 map?
I’m hoping to do some follow-up videos on recommended layouts etc 😄
@@the_infinitygamer In regards to Infinity, the amount of terrain needed for game purposes should go down fairly dramatically. I await the next set of recommendations from Corvus Belli. :/
That will be interesting if true! I’ve certainly seen a fair few tables where I wonder how anyone can ever see each other!
@@the_infinitygamer More relevant to those looking at how much of a terrain investment they might be looking at.
A fraction of what’s on this table that’s for sure!
Dumb question: can MDF be painted with the same acrylics used for painting minis?
yeah but you have to prime it first or the wood will soak up the paint and it'll come out splotchy
I'll second what @vulcanparrot said - you definitely want to prime your MDF before painting.
Not a dumb question at all 😁
You may wish to also experiment with artist's acrylic gesso primer, or aeromodelling dope. The gesso makes it look more concrete or stone, while the dope may give a smoother finish. And not allow spray primer to soak so badly.
Also if you have a lot of terrain to do at once you may find it more economical to resort to artists paint, if you're hand brushing.
Those are great pointers!
Can I ask where the game mat that you're using is from?
Frontline Gaming 😁
@@the_infinitygamer thank you.
Dude, where’s the update with this lot painted :)
Hahaha when it gets painted I’ll do one 😂
You could easily make this kit yourself at such a minimal price. Can't believe they're charging 140quid for chip board you have to assemble yourself
Can you share resources for those that would be keen to learn more?
@@the_infinitygamer My argument is, the price can be negated by spending a few hours making half decent terrain that's functional. for a fraction of the price and twice the fun.
I’m not disagreeing. The barrier to me doing that is a lack of knowledge and instruction on making it look good. If you have any pointers or tips then people can tap into those resources to reduce the cost of terrain. Otherwise (for people like me) the only way to have good terrain is to buy it.
Shit, Im on the Hook😅👍
😂
What scale are these kits?
Difficult to say which is why I did a comparison against models at the end so you can see. Things like the Easy Aug Workshop are a different scale to the Lab buildings.
@@the_infinitygamer Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Very titanfall 1
Definitely a resemblance!
What game mat is that please?
It’s a Frontline Gaming urban mat 😃
@@the_infinitygamer Awesome ty!
You’re welcome!
The look ist great... but the price... no words! TTCombat hast the same qualy.... and is so much cheaper!
I haven’t had a chance to see their stuff in the flesh 😁
Do you have any specific examples? Because I just checked TTCombat and there isn't a lot of difference in price, if anything it costs more, when you remember that the prices are in British money, and will need to be posted to the other side of the planet.
Nice review. But the buildings themselves... well... I dunno, maybe one or two big buildings are fine, but the whole table with these buildings look soooo bland that it certanly needs some other stuff. Like maybe a train, crane with containers or a city square.
Also, In my expierience - unless the roofs are relatively easy to remove without moving troops on top they will soon become just a bunch of boxes. Cause its more convenient.
I can only imagine the struggle to remove that back wall or a roof on these two-store stacked buildings (6:20 - how hard is it to get to 2nd floor room?).
Out of them all only Easy-Aug look promising. But maybe I just don't like the style.
At 6:20 that first floor and second floor would actually be impossible to access. Because the ladder is on the same side as the door you could have door access as well as the ladder going to the top.
That’s fair enough! As mentioned in the vid this style isn’t for everyone and the good thing is that there are other terrain companies out there with more detailed styles or very different approaches. I’m definitely keen on seeing how they look painted and how practical they are for games.
Your idea of a feature crane or train is excellent. I might try and “track” one down 😂 #dadjokesallday
@@the_infinitygamer Out of all trains I've seen so far only terrakami and bandua looked good enough. Terrakami also makes container crane. They are in Europe though.
Oh, and just as an example what I mean by easy to remove roof, check the simple buildings (they called "building") by terracutter. You can just take the whole roof away with everything on it to access the room. Nice and simple.
Just checked them both out and they are very cool. I especially like the Bandau prepainted Industrial terrain options. Nice and rugged with minimal effort.
Insane prices mean MDF is just too expensive. See Battlesystems for a start.
I’ll check them out for sure. MDF can be pricey but it’s so sturdy it’s good for transporting around.
@@the_infinitygamer Oh, these MDF buildings look really good, no question about it, but the Battlesystems printed cardboard also looks good, but is vastly cheaper. If I was a millionaire with a team of people sitting about painting stuff for me, I'd get this MDF stuff first LOL
I may need to check out that battle systems stuff. Sounds very interesting!
Fantastico, ma il prezzo è troppo alto!
This is really nice, but in my opinion it has two problems:
1. It is unique and doesn't fit much other terrain well, which in a way forces you to only use this sort of terrain. Atleast, if you are going for aesthetics, and I think you are, if you choose terrain like this in the first place.
2. Price. It is so f'ing expensive. You are very quickly spending up to a thousand dollars for an entire map of these buildings.
Both are good points and very true! I like the aesthetic of this terrain but prefer to not mix terrain styles on my tables. I'm lucky that I can run a whole themed table of this stuff and am working on another table of another theme to mix it up a bit.
1 Unique don't mean much when a real city has so many architectural styles mashed together. Or did you mean the design style of the kits?
2 Show me a range that isn't?
This is very good terrain. Why? You have a roof onto which you can place models. 40K terrain in comparison is just...terrible.
It’s a lot of fun having levels you can play on!
too expensive for mdf kit
Are they? What’s a good price range so you think?
It's actually a normal price, not "too expensive". There AREN'T any cheaper unless they are much crappier.