DIY Crafty Gamer, Issue 1

When you enjoy board games AND you enjoy building and making things… it can lead to a hobby marriage made in heaven. I am starting a series that will feature gamers who create custom pieces and accessories for their games. Have you created things for your games? Contact me if you are interested in having your project featured here. The project must be something you made yourself and that you personally use when you play games.
This first installment features three gamers, three games, three projects. If you like what you see, click on their names to find them around the web!


Sarah BaileyEldritch Horror – “Monster Cup” Drawstring Bag

We have definitely added drawstring bags to several of our games, but I would love to have some custom bags to match the game theme. Check out Sarah’s solution for a favorite in our house!
To Play Is Human: What specific component(s) did you upgrade?
Sarah: I made a “Monster cup” to draw the tokens during gameplay.
 


TPIH: Why did you upgrade the component(s)?
Sarah: The game came with plastic clear bags, when we first started playing we used an actual ceramic mug, but I felt I wanted something specific for the game and to keep in with the theme/atmosphere of each session.
TPIH: How long did the project take?
Sarah: It took about an hour.

TPIH: What kinds of materials did you use?
Sarah: I used my embroidery machine to create a Cthulhu design onto black cotton, and added a purple cotton liner and drawstring.
TPIH: What is your favorite thing about crafting for games?
Sarah: I love creating my own components to create solutions that keep in with the themes of the game rather than something bland and common.
‘Monster Cup’ photos were provided by Sarah Bailey.


Ron JonesZombicide / Zombicide: Black Plague – Custom Box

Having organized game components is helpful. We have lots of tiny bins and trays that we use in our house to organize games when we play, but how great would it be to have custom wood boxes specific to the game?!
To Play Is Human: What specific component(s) did you upgrade?
Ron: I created a custom box to use when setting up and playing Zombicide. Works with both Zombicide And Zombicide: Black Plague.
 

TPIH: Why did you upgrade the component(s)?
Ron: I simply love Zombicide and it’s nice to have everything organized when playing. It is also a lot of fun. A true hobby in itself.
TPIH: How long did the project take?
Ron: 2 days

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TPIH: What kinds of materials did you use?
Ron: Wood, Glue, Paint, Laser cutter, Felt
TPIH: What is your favorite thing about crafting for games?
Ron: I like to enhance the gaming experience and also display my favorite games in a unique way. The challenge of designing a new item and learning new ways to make your ideas come alive is quite satisfying. I like the challenge. I also make new objects for many of my games along with scenarios that use them. I have a scenario posted at Zombicidestuff.com that use 3D printed additions like a bar, horse and kegs.  I also make dice boxes, dice chutes and dice towers. Each one of our gaming crew has there favorite to use when we play.

 

Zombicide Custom Box photos were provided by Ron Jones.


Ian AllenBattlestar Galactica – THE ENTIRE SHIP IN LEGOS

When I saw Ian’s post on Twitter about his Lego build for Battlestar Galactica… I. WAS. IN. LOVE. This is a thing of beauty, folks!


To Play Is Human: What inspired you to recreate the BSG board game with Legos?
Ian: I customize all my favorite board games. Creating a 3D Battlestar ship just seemed like it would work well with Legos. Lego doesn’t do round well, but there were lots of square and rectangular rooms and hallways.
SeventhSonGames_LegoBSG00
TPIH: How long did it take to complete?
Ian: Approx. 6 months to complete and over $1000 worth of parts – I had to order small batches of very specific Legos, from many different sources and pay shipping on every batch. This took a long time to plan, look up the right parts, order them, and wait for them to come in. I couldn’t do it in just 1 shot, I was doing this from scratch so I would figure something out, order parts, see if it worked, continue.
SeventhSonGames_LegoBSG01
TPIH: What is your favorite part of the Lego board?
Ian: My favorite part of the Lego board has to be the Brig. I put a little toilet in it and put a newspaper on the floor by the toilet – the Daily Quiddler I think it was. Actually, creating the Cylon Basestars was a big challenge. Lego doesn’t work well with triangles either and those ships had to have triangular components, so I am pretty proud of my solution to create them.
 


TPIH: Are you a Cylon?
“Ian”: Of course not! (eyes shift around the room in an evasive manner)
 

TPIH: Have you done this with other board games?
Ian: Yes – I have created Lego components for 3 or 4 other board games and have customized a couple dozen more games with various other components other than Lego. I think every great board game deserves 3D full color components to give you the most enjoyment!
 

You can find more photos in Ian’s original tweet thread: @SeventhSonGames.
Lego BSG Board Game photos were provided by Ian Allen.


What are your favorite board game DIY projects? Don’t forget to contact me if you have a project that fits this series!

0 thoughts on “DIY Crafty Gamer, Issue 1”

        1. My husband and I have a laser cutter now, so we’re planning on doing some upgrades for our games: custom tokens, inserts, meeple, etc. My husband really wants to make a dice tower, too. I really want to make some meeple coasters for our game table, haha!

    1. Thanks! That was a fun one! It started a ton of other projects. I have a Kickstarter running right now for custom dice boxes! The large ones are all collaborations and will be SWEET!

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