Aztec Buildings and Scatter Terrain from Acheson Creations

This post will cover the Aztec resin terrain/structures from Acheson Creations that I have recently finished for my  Feudal Patrol™ games in Mesoamerica (using my Civilizations Collide supplement). I purchased 6 structures from the company, and they were kind enough to throw in some scatter terrain that I believe will prove to be quite useful. The six buildings plus the 4 scatter pieces are all part of “Mark’s Aztec Building Challenge Contest“, as are all of the MDF I listed in the original contest post. While the buildings in this post would be probably more suited to a rural setting versus a cityscape, I think that the scatter terrain will be useful in several gaming ways.

Originally, my plan was to do finish all of the MDF structures first, and then move on to the resin ones. That concept did not pan out as I ran out of some key items for the MDF. The MDF need to match exactly so that visually the collection makes a nice panorama.

So, those shortages moved me onto the resin, which I had luckily prepped for priming back in March. I thought Acheson had made the recommendation to prime with Rustoleum “Painters Touch Ultra Cover Flat Black” – a rattlecan – something I usually avoid. (Now that I looked back at his website, that recommendation is not there?) Anyways, I got another delay in priming as the Massachusetts weather also did not play nice (it’s been cold and we even got 6″ of snow on April 16th).

I thought it prudent – prior to priming them – to give all a thorough scrubbing and washing. I also saw a need to install 1/8″ neodymium magnets for the resin structures with roofs – to make them more stable (and stay on the buildings during games). This would be useful on the tabletop and yet keep them easy enough to open up for gaming. I used different patterns for the magnets as you will see below – so the roofs won’t end up on the wrong buildings in error.

Subsequent to washing, I based these pieces back in March on 1.5mm sanded styrene card – so as to appear more flush with the tabletop. When the weather finally cooperated (one day), I primed them all with that flat black and then sprayed a coat of Army Painter “Leather Brown” over the pieces that would be lighter or brown. This group of pieces all needed different paints – I am listing what I used by type at the end of this post (this helps me remember for future consideration and projects but you may find it useful too). As I started them all before April began, these will be 10 more entries in the April painting challenge from Ann’s Immaterium called Ann’s “Paint the Crap You Already Own” challenge.

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One major difference here with these pieces versus how I have painted previously is my use of Army Painter “Soft Tone” (the “dip”) applied with a brush. This is an oil-based product, which I do not employ usually, mainly as I hate the need for cleanup with paint thinner. However, I thought that it would be a good use for the stuff that I bought back in 2017 – especially on the thatched roofs as it would both shade and provide a varnish-like protection. I could then dry brush over them with abandon and dull the dip’s shine with a final matte varnish.

Below, you will see I broke each of the pieces out so you can get an idea of the transformation. I must give a shout out to TIM of The Imperfect Modeler who graciously gave me some excellent advice for these pieces.

Cuezcomatl Granary Structure

The term cuezcomatl refers to a granary storage structure that was used in Mesoamerica before the arrival of the Spanish and even up to today in some rural areas (see reference here). The model was interesting to paint, and working on it also helped me to prepare for the other thatched roofs. In the end, I decided to use Army Painter Soft Tone (the “dip”) with a brush. This allowed me to both get some good detail shading as well as to protect the model. I can see this model being useful as a terrain piece, as well as an objective marker. The Aztecs were quite avid practitioners of raiding their neighbors for food as well as captives (or anything else that they wanted to take), as were all Mesoamerican peoples of the era. The Aztecs were just more adept at the practice.

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Maize Storage Structure

This piece had a few areas that I worked to improve upon. One was to fill an open storage well with “maize” – or at least something that could approximate it. Another was to convert the dowel-like smooth front pillars into a more convincing-looking pair of period wooden supports. The pillars did have a slight wood grain, but I wanted to make them more rustic. Lastly, I did need to do some drilling and magnet installation so as to allow the piece to stay together. As with all of the other pieces here with separate roofs, I needed to finish the inside of the roof (including up to varnishing) before I finished the outside.

Similar to the cuezcomatl piece, this one can serve as both terrain and an objective marker due to the food storage bounty.

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Aztec Peasant/Farmer’s House

I had three peasant houses – this is the first one.

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Huaxtec House

The Huaxtec were a people who lived near the east coast of Mexico. They were related to the Maya and were conquered by the Aztecs. I found this structure to be quite striking visually and I have to imagine that it was somewhat common. In any case, it was different than the others, so I thought it worth adding. The only issue that this piece presented was that the roof size did not line up as easily for the magnets – but enough to make a couple work enough to keep the roof on.

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Aztec Stone House

The third type of house is an Aztec Stone House. This is one of the two stone houses in the group. I decided that I would go for more of a sandstone or light limestone look for these.

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Aztec Noble’s House

The Aztec Noble’s house had an interesting roof and a bit of opportunity for some color.

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Miscellaneous Scatter Terrain

It was a nice surprise to get this scatter terrain. I used all of it except one – which was an African mask. I based it and primed it but did not paint it. As I will not likely use it, it will be another (5th!) prize in “Mark’s Aztec Building Challenge Contest“.

These will be nice treasure markers for the games. I played with some shiny (and tiny) beads (from Japan) and Swarovski glittery crystals from Michaels to make the treasure and fill the pots over some steel BB’s. I also had a chance to do some minimal Aztec freehand work on the pots.

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That rounds out my pieces for April. I now have just two more pieces of MDF left for the contest – though I do have more planned terrain and structures – keep following!

I’d love to hear any feedback on these – and I did use a different photo set up as well – so let me know on that too if you want. Getting my last “jab” this weekend, as well as trying to play in two golf tournaments – so when will I get done and end the contest…who knows?

As far as Acheson, I must give them a very positive review on these resin pieces. Check out their stuff here. Their offerings and ranges are quite extensive across many periods. The sculpting is good and the details are nice, and the extras they threw in were very cool too. And other than the freebies that they threw in, I have not been paid by them in any way.

Thanks for looking and please let me know what you think in the comments section!

For all of my previous posts on games, units, and other projects for my 16th Century Spanish Conquest supplement for Feudal Patrol™ – “Civilizations Collide” – please see this page.

The next sections are references on the paints I used – mainly for me – so skip the rest if you are so inclined. Thanks for looking and I hope that you’ll let me know what you think about these models.

PAINTS, INKS, GLAZES, SHADES, WASHES, PIGMENTS, FLOCKING, GLUES AND MORE THAT I USED ON THESE STRUCTURES AND PIECES:

Cuezcomatl Granary Structure:

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. 1.5mm styrene sheet
4. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
5. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
6. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
7. Vallejo Model Air “Sand (Ivory)”
8. Vallejo Mecha Color “Sand Yellow”
9. Hataka “Jaune d’Ochre”
10. Vallejo Model Color “Wood Grain”
11. Citadel “Ushabti Bone”
12. Citadel “Aggaros Dunes”
13. Vallejo Game Air “Ivory”
14. Vallejo Model Color “Dark Sand”
15. Vallejo Game Air “Red Terracotta”
16. Vallejo Model Color “Red”
17. Army Painter Quickshade “Soft Tone” (dip)
18. Hobby talus
19. Gorilla Glue
20. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
21. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
22. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
23. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
24. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
25. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
26. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
27. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
28. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
29. Citadel “Karak Stone”
30. Americana “Desert Sand”
31. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
32. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
33. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
34. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
35. Elmer’s PVA Glue
36. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm Jungle Tufts
37. Poster tack
38. Plastic Plates

Maize Storage Structure

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. Green stuff (kneadatite)
4. 1.5mm styrene sheet
5. Birch wood
6. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
7. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
8. 1/8″ neodymium magnets
9. Reaper MSP “Black Primer”
10. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
11. Vallejo Model Air “Sand (Ivory)”
12. Vallejo Mecha Color “Sand Yellow”
13. Vallejo Mecha Color “Brown”
14. Vallejo Game Air “Beastly Brown”
15. Vallejo Model Air “Wood”
16. Vallejo Model Air “Yellow Ochre”
17. Vallejo Model Color “Wood Grain”
18. Army Painter Quickshade “Soft Tone” (dip)
19. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
20. Wooden toothpicks
21. Elmer’s PVA Glue
22. Citadel “Hexos Palesun”
23. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
24. Citadel “Iyanden Yellow”
25. Army Painter “Strong Tone” (wash)
26. Citadel Air “Balor Brown”
27. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
28. Citadel “Aggaros Dunes”
29. Hobby talus
30. Gorilla Glue
31. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
32. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
33. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
34. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
35. Citadel “Karak Stone”
36. Americana “Desert Sand”
37. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
38. Vallejo Model Color “Dark Sand”
39. Vallejo Game Air “Sun Yellow”
40. Citadel “Lamenters Yellow” (glaze)
41. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
42. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
43. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
44. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm “Jungle Tufts”
45. Poster tack
46. Plastic Plates
47. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
48. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
49. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)

Aztec Peasant/Farmer’s House

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. 1.5mm styrene sheet
4. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
5. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
6. 1/8″ neodymium magnets
7. Gorilla Glue
8. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
9. Vallejo Model Air “Sand (Ivory)”
10. Vallejo Mecha Color “Sand Yellow”
11. Vallejo Mecha Color “Brown”
12. Vallejo Game Air “Beastly Brown”
13. Vallejo Model Air “Wood”
14. Vallejo Model Air “Yellow Ochre”
15. Vallejo Model Color “Wood Grain”
16. Army Painter Quickshade “Soft Tone” (dip)
17. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
18. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
19. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
20. Citadel “Hexos Palesun”
21. Hobby talus
22. All Living Things Dry Dust Bath (chinchilla dust)
23. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)
24. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
25. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
26. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
27. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
28. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
29. Citadel “Karak Stone”
30. Americana “Desert Sand”
31. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
32. Elmer’s PVA Glue
33. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
34. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
35. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
36. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
37. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm “Jungle Tufts”
38. Poster tack
39. Plastic Plates

Huaxtec House

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. 1.5mm styrene sheet
4. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
5. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
6. 1/8″ neodymium magnets
7. Gorilla Glue
8. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
9. Vallejo Model Air “Sand (Ivory)”
10. Vallejo Mecha Color “Sand Yellow”
11. Vallejo Mecha Color “Brown”
12. Vallejo Game Air “Beastly Brown”
13. Vallejo Model Air “Wood”
14. Vallejo Model Air “Yellow Ochre”
15. Vallejo Model Color “Wood Grain”
16. Army Painter Quickshade “Soft Tone” (dip)
17. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
18. Citadel “Hexos Palesun”
19. All Living Things Dry Dust Bath (chinchilla dust)
20. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)
21. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
22. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
23. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
24. Elmer’s PVA Glue
25. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
26. Hobby talus
27. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
28. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
29. Citadel “Karak Stone”
30. Americana “Desert Sand”
31. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
32. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
33. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
34. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
35. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
36. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm “Jungle Tufts”
37. Poster tack
38. Plastic Plates

Aztec Stone House

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. 1.5mm styrene sheet
4. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
5. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
6. 1/8″ neodymium magnets
7. Gorilla Glue
8. Reaper MSP “Black Primer”
9. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
10. Vallejo Model Air “Sand (Ivory)”
11. Vallejo Mecha Color “Sand Yellow”
12. Vallejo Model Color “Wood Grain”
13. Army Painter Quickshade “Soft Tone” (dip)
14. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
15. Citadel “Hexos Palesun”
16. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
17. Vallejo “Light Slate Grey” (pigment)
18. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
19. Americana “Raw Sienna”
20. Vallejo Model Color “Dark Sand”
21. All Living Things Dry Dust Bath (chinchilla dust)
22. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)
23. Hobby talus
24. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
25. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
26. Elmer’s PVA Glue
27. Citadel “Ushabti Bone”
28. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
29. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
30. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
31. Citadel “Karak Stone”
32. Americana “Desert Sand”
33. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
34. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
35. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
36. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
37. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
38. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm “Jungle Tufts”
39. Poster tack
40. Plastic Plates

Aztec Noble’s House

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. Army Painter Color Primer “Leather Brown” (spray can)
3. 1.5mm styrene sheet
4. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
5. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
6. 1/8″ neodymium magnets
7. Gorilla Glue
8. Reaper MSP “Black Primer”
9. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
10. Vallejo “Light Slate Grey” (pigment)
11. Armory “Dark Blue”
12. FolkArt “Yellow Ochre”
13. Vallejo Model Color “Red”
14. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
15. Citadel “Drakenhof Nightshade” (wash)
16. Americana “Raw Sienna”
17. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
18. Vallejo Model Color “Yellow Ochre”
19. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)
20. All Living Things Dry Dust Bath (chinchilla dust)
21. Hobby talus
22. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
23. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
24. Elmer’s PVA Glue
25. Citadel “Ushabti Bone”
26. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
27. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
28. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
29. Citadel “Karak Stone”
30. Americana “Desert Sand”
31. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
32. Vallejo Model Color “Dark Sand”
33. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
34. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
35. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
36. Army Painter “Grass Green” (flocking)
37. Shadow’s Edge Miniatures 12mm “Jungle Tufts”
38. Poster tack
39. Plastic Plates

Miscellaneous Scatter Terrain Pieces

1. Rustoleum “Painter’s Touch 2X Ultra Cover Flat Black” (spray can)
2. 1.5mm styrene sheet
3. Sci-Grip “16 Fast Set Clear, Medium-bodied solvent cement”
4. Vallejo “Brown Earth Gel Leather Brown”
5. Vallejo Model Air “Wood”
6. Reaper MSP “Black Primer”
7. Vallejo Model Air “German Red Brown”
8. Citadel “Skrag Brown”
9. Vallejo Game Color “Livery Green”
10. Vallejo Game Air “Beastly Brown”
11. Vallejo Model Air “White”
12. Vallejo Model Air “Silver”
13. Citadel “Waywatcher Green” (glaze)
14. Vallejo Model Air “Dark Brown”
15. Citadel “Yriel Yellow”
16. Battlefront “Dark Leather”
17. Vallejo “Thinner Medium”
18. Vallejo Model Color “Red”
19. Citadel “Skeleton Horde”
20. Citadel “Retributor Armour”
21. Citadel “Gehenna Gold”
22. Citadel “Auric Armour Gold”
23. Vallejo Mecha Weathering “Rust Texture”
24. Swarovski “Shimmer Effect Crystals”
25. Steel BB’s
26. Vallejo Mecha Weathering “Light Rust Wash”
27. Citadel “Nuln Oil GLOSS” (wash)
28. Army Painter “Mid Brown” (wash)
29. Vallejo Game Air “Desert Yellow”
30. Vallejo Model Color “Yellow Ochre”
31. Play sand
32. Elmer’s PVA Glue
33. Army Painter “Soft Tone” (wash)
34. Citadel “Ushabti Bone”
35. Citadel “Steel Legion Drab”
36. Citadel “Tallarn Sand”
37. Citadel “Karak Stone”
38. Americana “Desert Sand”
39. DecoArt “Light Buttermilk”
40. Vallejo Model Color “Dark Sand”
41. Vallejo “Dark Yellow Ochre” (pigment)
42. Vallejo “Burnt Umber” (pigment)
43. Vallejo “Flow Improver”
44. Vallejo “Airbrush Thinner”
45. Vallejo Mecha Varnish “Matt Varnish”
46. Toho Gold 6/0 “E” Beads
47. Miyuki 11/0 “Delica” Turquoise Beads
48. Miyuki 11/0 “Delica” Gold Beads
49. Miyuki 11/0 “Delica” Silver Beads
50. Gorilla Glue
51. Army Painter “Light Tone” (wash)