I've been Terraclipped.

When I saw the finished product that World Works Games was releasing for Wyrd's system, I knew I was going to enjoy playing around with construction, but I had no idea just how much fun that in itself would be.

These are shots of my first attempt at a 3'x3' table.  I bought a sheet of masonite, and cut it to size.  I spray-painted one side black, and applied way too many non-skid grip pads to the other side, to assure stability.    I had originally purchased one of each Streets and Buildings of Malifaux sets, but after laying them out on the 3'x3' board, I quickly saw that in order to make environment as elaborate as I had originally envisioned, I was going to need more.  In the end I picked up five boxes of clips, two sets of Streets of Malifaux, and two sets of Buildings of Malifaux.  I do like the aesthetic of the Sewers of Malifaux kit, but I didn't really like the way that kit mixed with the other two.  While it certainly wasn't a small investment, I am extremely happy with my decision.  The quality of the product, combined with the creative possibilities of a temporary gaming board, were too much to pass up.

As I said earlier, these are photos of my first test-run at building an actual board with the kits.  Having spent the time building a board, I am now astounded at the possibilities.  Take this basic two story building for example:

The basic balcony you see is quite small, but they are very easy to build.  With that in mind, balconies can be built to run around structures, or even directly across streets to form bridges between tall buildings.  You can see in the photo how the street tiles work to help sell the aesthetic, with brick-work that not only continues the curves of the road, but also takes into account the location of doors with a flourish of pattern or segmented curb.

Getting back to the building itself, the roof section can be removed freely to reveal the second floor interior:

Inside, you can see the continuation of the doorway from the balcony.  You can also see the railing protecting the stairwell leading to the ground floor.

Here you can see the ground floor, with the front and back doors, as well as the stairs leading up.  This entire building, which is stable and locked in place, came apart this way without ever needing to pull card from a terraclip.  The product is designed very, very intelligently.

Again, this was my first effort.  It took close to an hour and a half to create this test village, but only about 15 minutes to clean up and put away.  It is worth noting here that the system must be stored with care, as keeping the components orderly is a huge help during the construction process.  I am hoping that with practice, I can crank out a 3'x3' board in around 30-40 minutes.  I was pleased with this test run, but what I find very exciting is the possibility of delving much deeper, and seeing what can be made with these components.  Maybe one giant mansion.  Maybe a system of catwalks surrounding very narrow, spindly towers.  Maybe an action-playset for my cats to stalk.  I pity the hapless mousey-invader who enters my home, only to find himself hunted through the streets of Malifaux.  [evil laughter]

Which brings me to my final thought of the day:  Can gaming terrain be more fun than gaming?