Time to put an end to sabot bases

So, do you have an opinion on sabot bases? Sure, they are very functional, I get that, but how do they look on the table? I don't mean those that are not painted or flocked, let's not even go there. No, it's more the floating platform look where it appears as if all the units are performing on their own individual stages in a surreal historical recreation of a modern Olympic opening ceremony. 

Consider a sabot base made from 3mm MDF. It has two layers, so the base is 6mm high. With 28mm miniatures that's a scale height that approximates to about 12" (300mm). Even a base made from 2mm MDF puts the figures at a scale height close to 8" or 200mm above ground level. When they are used with 20mm or 15mm figures the accentuated height becomes even more pronounced. That may not bother many people but at that stage I stop seeing a game of miniatures and start to see a board game with wooden blocks as counters.

To be fair this is a broad hobby that can accomodate everyone and who am I to judge what's acceptable or not? If it bothers me, then it's my problem. I hear you.

So having had my little rant I'll share with you how I've tried to find a solution that keeps the sabot bases functional (which they undoubtedly are) but also a little less obvious. In fact the aim if possible is to make them invisible so they don't break the immersion and so maintain our suspension of disbelief. 

For me there's a simple enough solution which is to bevel the edges using the sanding attachment on my Dremel rotary tool.

It's just a matter of doing this freehand, as you are after a naturalistic look.

What is remarkable is the difference it makes. I'm not sure if it's an optical illusion, but it's hard to believe the two bases pictured below are exactly the same thickness. And it doesn't require a Dremel. If you don't own a rotary tool there's no reason why you can't bevel these edges with a good craft knife.

The next steps are to add texture and paint in exactly the same way as I do the figure bases. These were created for my colonial era games set in the Sudan. In the case of the desert they don't even require any flock, just the odd tuft.

I think they become much less obvious or intrusive once the figures are in place.

In the case of a region like North America the same technique is used except I've added the same flock to the sabot base as I used with the individual figures.

I think the flock makes for an even more seamless transition with the table surface.

Having gone to all this effort to try to conceal the sabot bases the illusion can be lost in an instant with the removal of a figure as a casualty. 

Once again it breaks the illusion and the immersion, but there are several simple enough fixes which involve creative use of round bases. I use mini dice to record things like morale or shock and so having these the same size and style as the figure bases means they can be dropped quickly into a slot emptied by a casualty. Similarly I've made a few blank bases to perform an identical role.

The blanks are quick and easy enough to make and I think well worth the effort. Of course eventually the entire sabot can be removed from the table once the number of casualties increases. 

Another option if you have casualty figures available is to make a replacement base featuring one of those. The boxed sets of Perry Miniatures plastic figures often include a casualty figure, so it's a simple enough matter to base these to fit in a recently vacated sabot slot.

Between the casualty figures, shock markers and empty flocked bases it's easy enough to maintain the visual illusion while adding to the narrative that unfolds during a game. 

Individual sabot bases like the ones below come with a single layer of 2mm MDF and a layer of thin greyboard on the base, so while they don't need to be bevelled in the same way they can be textured to match the bigger bases. In these cases I've made these up for leaders for Sharp Practice and marked the bases accordingly so they are easy to identify.

As a leader can be wounded in the course of a game rather than make an additional marker to place on the table I made use of suitable figure to represent the wound. Like I said, it's all about the narrative.....