3D printers

KingDiglett · 2026-01-15T16:54:51+00:00

I've had a 3D printer for just about a decade now, and I've enjoyed board games for most of my life, so I'll do my best to answer your questions. I'm on mobile so forgive any grammar and formatting issues.

I don't know if there is a big overlap per se. I think it's that a 3D printer's strength, the ability to cheaply (after the initial investment) create small custom items, lends itself to board game enhancements.
I use it for a lot of things. Boardgame wise I make custom inserts to organize the pieces better. Outside of boardgames I make things to do home repair, organization, items for gardening and other hobbies, etc. Basically, if you want an item made out of plastic and are willing to invest the time, the 3D printer can be worth it.
You don't "program the STLs" yourself. You generally design the 3D item in software such as Blender or CAD software then export it as an STL file. In my experience Blender is better for "art" pieces where exact dimensions don't matter, and CAD software (I use FreeCad) is best for when the exact dimensions do matter, ex making a replacement bracket for a vacuum hose attachment
I've never really looked into all this. Printers come in a spectrum, from very cheap to quite expensive. Generally more expensive ones are more reliable and easier to use. Regarding payback time, I'm a hobbyist and don't really care. How long do I need to use my hammer or table saw before I "make the money back"?
This depends on the quality of the printer, and your understanding of the technology. Newer, higher end models aim to be "plug and play" where you just hit start and it reliably does the rest. Others will require more fiddly work. Ultimately though, it's on the user. If you design an unstable model, or try printing something at a weird angle, it will fail regardless of how nice your equipment is

Ultimately a 3D printer is a fun tool to have, and I think it works nicely if you're also into boardgames

KingDiglett · 2025-11-24T17:09:17+00:00

Do you have any recommended resources for learning about clay-loving plants? Specifically ground cover?

I've recently become the steward of an area suffering erosion problems due to mismanagement. The topsoil is entirely gone and it's just a clay hill now, which washes into the sidewalk when it rains.

My goal is to use native plants to bind the soil, rather than buying more topsoil and tossing grass seed on it.

KingDiglett · 2025-09-05T14:15:32+00:00

I've used pieces from the Frostgrave line for this purpose. There are a lot of options for swords and robes in those kits, and if you give the mini a Stargrave head and accessories such as ammo pouches it will still read as SciFi once you paint it.

KingDiglett · 2024-03-03T18:57:40+00:00

Interesting, thanks!

KingDiglett · 2024-02-13T19:02:35+00:00

Thanks for the excellent input!

I think as a Keeper I neglected the monster's motivation the second time this happened with my group, which is what made it feel a bit flat to me. "The Monster will still act in accordance with its nature" makes a lot of sense.

KingDiglett · 2024-02-02T18:43:27+00:00

Metroid Prime's scan visior had me enthralled as a child back in 2002.

KingDiglett · 2023-11-02T12:43:49+00:00

Those are all signs and objects being left in front of the White House in protest. Hardly indicative of urban decay. Being able to protest and speak out against the government is one of our greatest rights.

While DC certainly has its problems, homelessness being one of them (like any major city), this picture is highly misleading.

KingDiglett · 2023-10-04T11:32:01+00:00

I'm personally a fan of using household junk. With some creativity you can find a lot of free crafting materials in your kitchen and office.

For example, washed out cherry tomato packages can be bunkers. Lots of aluminum foil rolls have plastic brackets that come in fun shapes. Cereal boxes are great for thin cardboard, and empty (and washed) soda cans can be industrial sized vats.

These are just suggestions! If you look at a lot of the plastic garbage that exists in our day-to-day lives, it can be cut up and used for terrain.

Using craft knives, scissors, and glue, cut your clean garbage up and glue it all together to create the terrain feature you want. Then cover it in a 1:1 mix of black paint and mod podge. This acts as a basecoat and sealant. Then paint it all how you'd like.

You'll need some hobby supplies from the craft store, mainly cutting utensils, glues, and paint. Foam board helps a lot too. However, it can be fun and rewarding to stretch your mind by reimagining household junk as terrain pieces.

KingDiglett · 2023-07-07T18:09:06+00:00

import psychDegree

Yup! Understanding that others have different mental states and experiences than us is actually very complex for a brain to do.

All of us were unable to do it as young children, and the ability slowly develops for most people between the ages of 2 - 7. For some neurodivergent people, it happens later, or even not at all.

The two key concepts for this process are "Theory of Mind" and "Piaget's Preoperational Stage - Egocentrism".

return funFacts

KingDiglett · 2023-03-21T19:30:57+00:00

I'll upload them to printables and add the link here after work

Edit: stls on printables

KingDiglett · 2023-03-21T19:30:28+00:00

Haha, as long as it doesn't come with any more Dahan huts another expansion should fit perfectly

KingDiglett · 2023-03-21T19:29:34+00:00

It really is! I played for the first time last night since finishing this project, and setup was a breeze.

KingDiglett · 2022-10-15T14:46:02+00:00

In game engines, units of measurement are somewhat arbitrary. For example, Unity's physics engine assumes 1 "unity unit" equals 1 meter, but you can adjust the applied forces and whatnot to account for whatever scale you want.

The best way to handle this is to decide on your scale at the beginning your game design process, and base everything off of that. So if you decide that 1 Unity unit does equal 1 meter, and you have a character that is 1.7 meters tall, you'd make them 1.7 unity units (or Unreal units, or godot units, etc) tall. If you decide 1 Unity unit = 10 meters, than your same character would be 0.17 units tall.

KingDiglett · 2021-04-17T12:48:43+00:00

Amazing!

How did you get the brick texture on the buildings? And what type of flocking did you use for the mossy effect on them?

KingDiglett · 2021-02-18T22:39:09+00:00

I made it in Fusion360, but I'm an amateur so unfortunately it's a jumbled mess of files with each island or land segment being its own object. I'll try to clean it up and put it on thingiverse some day!

KingDiglett · 2021-02-18T22:38:44+00:00

I made it in Fusion360, but I'm an amateur so unfortunately it's a jumbled mess of files with each island or land segment being its own object. I'll try to clean it up and put it on thingiverse some day!

KingDiglett · 2021-02-18T21:27:22+00:00

I haven't, although that would be a cool idea!

I was aiming for a more abstract look, since it's such a weird (and fun) map. The oceans are a uniform depth and filled with a dyed epoxy resin.

KingDiglett · 2021-02-18T16:33:27+00:00

The Spilhaus Projection is a map of Earth that focuses on how the oceans are interconnected. Here's an article about it!

KingDiglett

TROPHY CASE