Armchair Dragoons Forums

Other Gaming => Designing and Creating => Topic started by: bayonetbrant on May 07, 2019, 09:06:52 AM

Title: Brant's (not yet) Patented DIY Counter-Making Method
Post by: bayonetbrant on May 07, 2019, 09:06:52 AM
Brant's patented* foam-counter solution


Use scrapbooking foam to given them some depth and structure. You can buy it cheap at Michael's or any other craft store, and usually one side is already adhesive. I use this method for all the playtest counters I make.

- I print one side on cardstock, and stick it to the adhesive side of the foam. Don't worry about lining up edges, just slap it on there.

- Trim the stuck side to the edges of the counter area and get all the 'white space' off the edges, leaving you with single-sided counters backed with the 'smooth' side of the foam.

- I print the other side on full-sheet label paper (from an office store like Staples).

- Trim this to the edges of the counter area first before trying to peel/stick.  Ideally, this should be the same size as the single-sided foam counters you've already made

- Stick that side to the back side of the existing counters. This step is the biggest pain in the butt b/c of all the trouble lining up the front and back.
----  You can cut the counters down to smaller chunks to make the lining up task a bit easier, but then you're doing a lot more peeling and sticking. Your call.
----  You can also cut a few notches in the foam on some of the counter borders to give you a visual reference with the counter borders as you line up the adhesive sheet.

- Cut the counters into strips with an Xacto knife or similar

- Cut the indiv counters off the strips with a pair of scissors

In my exp, this process is much easier, cheaper, and faster than trying to hack posterboard apart. I like my 'foamies' much better than any hard-card homemade counters I've tried to make.


* OK, not really, but it sounds cooler
Title: Re: Brant's (not yet) Patented DIY Counter-Making Method
Post by: bayonetbrant on May 07, 2019, 09:16:51 AM
another method
http://privatewars.kyth.org/making_your_own_counters.htm