GM's Tip of the Week

This may be of more use to the table-top GMs than it will be to my fellow Portal GMs, but … well, paper maps /can/ be – in theory – scanned or photographed.

So, building dungeons in 3d on a shoestring budget.

Let me introduce you to paper-craft dungeons. Paper craft is actually kind of misleading; they say paper, and what most of this stuff is actually made out of is cardstock. Light cardstock, or paper over foam board, but.. heavier than standard-issue printer paper (which may be what you start with). You can make buildings – rustic huts! cute market stalls! Tudor Mansions! Entire castles! – out of it, or bits of wall, or … well, it really does buildings best. But buildings do cover a lot of ground, and if you’re feeling especially crafty, you could build a whole city out of this stuff.

So, to start; Fat Dragon Games is all about paper craft dungeons. Yes, dungeons. Build your own … anything, almost. I believe they’re going to 3d printing, and  there’s not much you can’t do with that, provided you have a large enough printing bed. Assuming you have access to a 3d printer; I don’t, and I don’t generally expect anyone else to, but if you do, take advantage; you can do almost anything with a good one.

I don’t know these guys at Papercraft Dungeon, but they appear to be a good starting point, if Fat Dragon doesn’t have whatever you’re after.

Honestly, punch ‘paper craft dungeon’ into google, and see what you get; I got all kinds of wild things, these are just two examples. Granted, I’m familiar with Fat Dragon, sort of; never tried assembling any of their offerings, but I have access to a few.

So, if you /do/ have access to a 3d printer, you have some more options; you can make your own files, or you can buy somebody else’s – I’ve seen kickstarters go by for a few, there are probably all kinds available on the interwebs, and it would appear Fat Dragon has a number themselves.

But, you ask, how do I put all this together?

Well, the useless answer is ‘any way you want!’ – which is true, if not helpful. However! You have a map that either came with your module, or that you spent hours drawing out on graph paper! Use that as a starting point. If you don’t have such a map, many people draw them, and some of them make them available for free – I might have a few links into tumblr hell I can provide, for interested parties. Further down that rabbit hole, I will not send anyone deliberately. We have a few up for grabs via Patreon, even.

Usual disclaimer; we are not affiliated with either Fat Dragon Games or Papercraft Dungeon, and we don’t get anything for mentioning them, much less linking to them.