Need help fine tuning prototype

Hey, thanks a lot. I'm pretty sure that the mechanics of the game are pretty much complete. I was able to hand out little annoymous surveys, and my friends were more than happy to hurt my feelings and tell me every single minor mistake. (lol) What I really need to ask, is how the pieces could be made, so that they do not break so easily when the game is presented, and also how to make the board better. Thank you.

Unless you're really good at sculpting miniatures, the best way that I can think of to make your playing pieces would be to use printed cards in plastic stands. There are plenty of places to get plastic stands (even small enough to fit within a 1" x 1" square).

As for making the board, there are plenty of other threads on the forum with information of that kind. Board, spray adhesive and some patience and you can have yourself a fine looking prototype!

Good luck!

Thanks for your help. Although these ideas are very workable and would be absolutley fine, I feel that to the three-dimensional pieces are really neccesary to the feel of the game. It's almost comparable to Chess. Chess wouldn't be as much fun without the little plastic figurines, and I think the same applies for my game. I'm really asking for, perhaps an "unbreakable clay" of somesort. Almost like a plastic... Something that can be made 3-D and not chip or break. Also, for those who cannot vizualize the actual game BOARD, it is essentially a square, with in the center, a RAISED PLATFORM. Sort of like a ziggurat in the center. (A ziggurat is an Aztec Step Pyramid...) And at the top of this pyramid is a trophy, which must be claimed by the player. I would like to take some pictures, but I really need to get around to it. I'll try to get them up in a few days. I really appreciate all of you guys' help with my project!

Thanks. I've tried baking clay before and it became very brittle, and cracked into pieces. But after looking up Sculpey, it claims that it will not break and in the thinner areas, bend. So I think I will try the Premo! Sculpey clay. Now all I need is a method to make the board...

There's also something called Paperclay, which is supposed to be excellent, and it doesn't have to be oven-dried. It air-dries, feels a lot like soft wood and can be painted and sanded. Haven't tried it, but I've read lots of good things about it.

Thanks for all the great ideas. I really like the wax molding one, but I really don't think I would be very good at it. I guess it's worth a try. Also, the pieces aren't that intricate... You can get a look at what they looked like when I made them out of the breaking clay at the post in The Game Design Forum. The rules and like are there. I appreciate all your help and please look at my post.

OK, your board looks simple enough to make. I'd suggest either plywood (from your local Home Depot) or foamcore board (from your local arts & crafts store). Either one can be easily cut, glued, and painted.

If you want to get more involved, you could do it in plexiglass (again, from your local hardware store), but that's a bit harder to work with, and it's also a lot more prone to marks and dings while you're working with it.

Whatever you do it with, just make sure you're using the proper tools and safety precautions.

Oh, and a side note about your rules docs and whatnot: not everyone uses (or wants to use) MS Office, so a more standardized format might be a good idea. PDF works great. I've downloaded and converted them for you; email me and I can get you the PDFs.

Good luck!

I've just sent the PDFs to you. I created them in Mac OS X, which has native OS-wide support for PDF creation. I happen to have MS Office for Mac, so that's what I used to open them for conversion (the conversion part, though, is handled from within the OS X print protocols).

There are probably some free or cheap Windows alternatives for creating PDFs...you may want to check VersionTracker.com to see if you can find something.

Good luck with your game!