Ye Olde Inn

So here's my story:

I grew up playing HeroQuest, it was my favourite game as a kid. Fast-forward a number of years, I ended up giving away my copy to my neighbour's kid when I went away to college. Present day, I haven't played HeroQuest in almost 12 years, and now the nostalgia has hit me pretty hard.

My kids are at around just the right age to be able to play with me, but we have no board, no cards, and no pieces. I would love to obtain a proper copy of the game, but the prices are just too high to find one with all the pieces. Desperation has driven me to attempt to create my own board, for the pieces, I'll have to see if I can find some good paper-mini's for now.

I'll write a bit about my process and progress here, I would appreciate some feedback as I go on this journey.

I'v decided to use XPS foam from the hardware store as my base material for the board. It seems to be a fairly simple material to work with. I'm also adding some modifications:

- I'm changing the grid size to 1.25"
- Instead of making a whole board, I'm making a set of modular tiles that can be placed together to form the rooms that are being explored

First I'm cutting the tiles to size using a box cutter. Then scoring in the grid lines and boarders with a knife. The scored lines are then widened using the tip of a ballpoint pen. For finer details I used a smaller tipped ballpoint pen and finally the stone texture was achieved by rubbing crumpled aluminium foil over the surface. Here is the result:



Today I just started with a few tiles, hope to get some more done tomorrow. Here's the set so far:



I really hope they look better when they are no longer pink.

Nice! I've also recently had the nostalgic itch for HQ. I plan on using foam to create modular tiles as well, except my kids have no desire to play it so I'll be using a modified version of available solo rules. It shouldn't be difficult to find some affordable proxy miniatures, if not right away then in the near future (though there's nothing wrong with paper minis!).

Try using the side of a dull pencil tip to press details into the foam. You can make ALL of the tile types on the original board. Watch this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaggKFg8hKY Once the texture is there, painting is easy. Keep up the great work!

Hey whitebeard, thanks for the tip, I'll have to try that out for some finer details later.

Got a bit more work done on the tiles yesterday. I wasn't happy with having the grid lines extend past the walls on the tiles that I had finished. For new tiles I have the grid stopping at the wall, for the ones that were already done, I've tried to fill the gaps with some caulking (it's what I have laying around so it will have to work). The result is pretty good I think. I decided to do some test paint on one of them to make sure that it looks alright before continuing with the rest.



After filling the gaps on the tiles that needed filling, I finished cutting, detailing, and texturing the rest of the room tiles.



The tiles are really light, almost too light. They move out of place at the slightest touch. I'll have to find a solution to that, maybe driving in short screws through the back in each corner will add enough weight to keep them in place. Another idea that I'm toying with is adding magnets to the sides so that I can snap the tiles together.

For now, I think I'll base coat these with black paint and then move on to the corridors.

What I really like about this project is the simplicity of the tools and materials, stuff that i already have lying around. Box cutters, pens, aluminium foil etc.
I’ll be following this with interest. Best of luck!

The foam material shouldn't be very hard to get either. I had some leftover from finishing my basement, but you should be able to get it at any hardware store. It usually comes in a 2ft by 8ft sheet, but my local store also has it in project panels that are 2ft by 2ft. Perfect if you can't fit a full 8ft sheet in your car.

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/owens-corning-foam-insulation-2x2-project-panels/1000845392

Just a heads up if you don't already know, if you go the route of the magnets and you decide to glue them in, make sure the adhesive is safe to use on foam or else it may eat right through it.

You are making good progress! Have you thought of using some sort of felt or other material that could potentially "grip" the table so they don't slide as much? Might be easier to manage than magnets or screws. Come to think of it, I have a pile of promotional mouse pads in my desk at work....I think I just realized what I'm going to do with them lol...

Magnets are complicated first, but then practical.
That mouse pad idea is perfect! Adds weight, plus the lower side is made so that it doesn't move on the table, nice idea!

That mouse pad idea is great. I don't have any felt at the moment, or mouse pads, I do have a few rolls of electrical tape though. I'll try it out and see if adding a few strips adds enough friction.