Saturday, February 22, 2014

Frontline Gaming's TableWar Mats - awesome

  Yes!!!  Finally I have the second (in my life) kickstarter that has actually worked!  Frontline Gaming's Tablewar Mat Alpine  arrived yesterday (Friday 22 Feb).  I have to tell you, I am so damned impressed it's crazy.  This things is way better than I imagined.

  I have heard about this thing since Reecius announced it on a podcast I was listening to (I think the Independent Characters, but don't quote me).  It sounded like a great idea then, so I jumped on the Kickstarter as quick as I could.  As always, I have some trepidations with kickstarters, since a lot of them seem to start out really well, then kind of fizzle out.  Not so with Reece and Frontline gaming.  Awesome communication through the whole process, I NEVER felt like my money was gone.

  But back to the Mat itself.  This thing is the cat's meow, the bee's knees, the serious shit for anyone who plays miniature games!!!  If you went to the LVO, you played on these mats, or at least saw them.  I couldn't go, so I was pretty green with envy toward the folks that did.  But true to their word, as soon as the Frontline guys got back from LVO, they hustled all these mats to the shippers and now I have mine.

  Imagine a HUGE, 4 foot by 6 foot mouse pad and you have the idea.  They are not super thick, but they are very sturdy feeling.  The graphics are just gorgeous, they look amazing on the table.  Trust me when I tell you, you will be proud of owning these things.  I only have the Alpine board, but I can guarantee I will be getting others.  Let me load up the pictures and describe them to you... hang on...

   So, here is a quick look at what the terrain looks like.  They are truly a sight to see.  The top is the kind of cloth that you see on mouse pads, very thick and durable.  A sharp piece of terrain or a few dropped minis are not going to rip or tear this thing, no way.  It also makes a GREAT surface to roll dice on.  Very quiet, but the dice roll, they don't just stop.


   It comes with a great carrying case, so you're not going to be hauling around some unwieldy, rolled up tablecloth.  Nope, this thing travels well.
   Another look at the terrain.  You may notice some undulations in the mat.  I first laid it out flat on the table, and then I said to myself, 'Self, try putting some forms UNDER the mat'.  My first experience was pretty good.  The Mat is thin enough to conform to things underneath it, so I may work on this idea more.
  The reverse of the mat is just like a mouse pad, a rubbery, grippy surface that will not slide around.  My table is a pretty varnished, slick surface, and the mat did not budge a millimeter. 
  Here is a look at the thickness of the mat.  You can see it is not super thick so as to be heavy and crazy, but it is thick enough that your not afraid it will rip or tear after a few hundred games.

  So, all in all, if you need a surface to game on, and you don't want to drop hundreds on pre-made boards, or build you own, you need to RUN, not walk to Frontline Gaming and 'get ya some'!!!  These things are awesome.  I'm going to order the urban mat right now... see ya round!!!

4 comments:

  1. Remember Reese said that they are not resistant to super glue spilling so dont let people near it with that stuff.

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  2. Good call, I'll have to remember that one! Thanks!!!

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  3. Glad you liked it and thanks for the review!

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  4. Very nice terrain! I am going to have to look into some myself.

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