Desert Rough Ground - 15mm SciFi WIP

In addition to the monoliths, I want some patches of rough ground for my troops to battle over.  On a whim I bought some scraps of sheet styrene from Monday Knight Productions.  They were only $1 for 12.  MKP calls them "tree bases" but I thought they'd work well for 15mm rough patches.  You could use card or most any thin material for these bases, and cut out your own shapes, but  these were simple.  Plus, I like that the styrene won't warp when it gets wet.  I decided to make 4.

4 bases laid out.  Each is about 3" to a side.

To make the rough/broken ground I used some old aquarium gravel I've had for years.

I painted a thick layer of "Desert Yellow" texture paint onto each base and sprinkled with gravel.

When that dried, I painted on another layer of texture paint to help hold the gravel in place.

Next I used the Liquitex texture gel to make "sand drifts" over the rocks and on the edges of the bases.
I thinned the gel a bit with water and swirled it over the models with a paint brush.

When that dried I added a final coat of texture paint.

This was more involved than it needed to be.  I should have just glued the gravel to the bases, coated with texture gel and then painted.  I was experimenting (playing!) though so not a big deal.

Next I used the same shade of brown wash that I used on the monoliths.
Again, I just dribbled it around, not covering the whole model.

Then I drybrushed highlights.
1st Desert Yellow, then two layers of Desert Yellow mixed with increasing amounts of Ivory.

Finally some flock, ballast and "scrubby plants."
This was applied with white glue thinned with water.

And here they are on my desert table! 

In situ with a few monoliths.

Grunt's eye view.

These were very simple to make and should serve well.  That's it for now.  Until next time, carry on!