FAT DRAGON GAMES (http://www.rpgnow.com/browse/pub/346/Fat-Dragon-Games)
If you are not familiar with them, FDG makes paper terrain stuff that looks really pretty in their photos. The link above is to their RPGnow page. I have never bought any of their kits because I am hesitant how the models look when printed on a regular printer and how wonky they may be to setup. I am not dextrous and not a modeler, but I love terrain.
Anyone use their stuff? Your thoughts?
Any links to pics of FDG stuff? (I mean, other than FDG's own promo pics)
I've only used FDG's stuff in combination with other papercraft products. If you've got a decent inkjet printer and spring for proper cardstock, the stuff turns out looking really nice.
But not as nice as the stuff World Work Games (http://www.worldworksgames.com/store/), which is what I recommend for papercraft scenery.
What makes the World Work Games stuff better?
How difficult is it to assemble the terrain?
Do they really assemble/disassemble easily for storage? Or are they more "make'em, glue'em and tape'em" so they become more solid?
Do they look like the pictures? Or are the pics really talented work? AKA, how figs in White Dwarf look compared to the average gamer's army?
THANKS!!!
I haven't used or seen the sort the OP mentions but I have gamed on tables using buildings from Dave Graffam Models (http://www.davesgames.net/) and they were pretty nice. We were playing games of Warhammer Fantasy Battles and the buildings fit really well with that setting.
I've been told there some degree of effort is involved in getting paper terrain to look good and be sturdy enough for the rigors of gaming... that, depending on what you need/want, it might be just as easy/cheap to go with one of the laser-cut wood options like the stuff from Sarissa Precision (http://www.sarissa-precision.com/), or even stuff in resin.
If I may offer my experience with both companies products:
Fat Dragon is usually a simpler build, requiring a little less skill to get a food-looking product on the table. The printed detail is a little less elaborate, but fine for the usual game use. The items are usually stand-alone, and pretty easy to use on the table - the set-up and take-down normally doesn't interfere with the flow of the game
World Works is the top of the line stuff, with more detail. The trade-off is that you need a little more skill to build the stuff; it's a little more fiddly. The items do take a little more pre-game planning to use, as I've found that it does take a bit more time to set them up and take them down, which can slow down a game; I plan ahead, and that seems to solve the problem.
After being charmed by the Dwarven Forge KS sets, I have seen the light. Selling a DF few sets allowed me to buy mountains of Heroscape terrain. Color coded, interlockable, and stackable plus hex based. Fantastic!
Shine on brother.
(You can explore gluesticking printed paper to corrugated plastic for very durable and cheap terrain. Cheap, light and strong!).
Chirine's summed it up perfectly. I've built both Fat Dragon and World Works as well. (The World Works Martian Crawler was a hoot!)
The Fat Dragon stuff has a bit looser tolerances too... things don't always line up to exactly the dot like they do for World Works.
The Fat Dragon "Blacksmith Shop" is pretty easy and a good way to get started. 110 pound index paper and any decent inkjet will do.
Also, rather than scoring with an exacto blade, spend a few bucks at a stationery store to get a tool called a "bone folder"*. They are available in plastic, bone, or metal. I got a metal one sold as a tool for dry transfer lettering, but yeah, it's the same tool. It makes it much easier to get really good creases without breaking the surface of the index stock.
And if you look around you can get free samples sometimes. Download a few and try your hand.