Gaming mats, what to choose

[Reyner]

I imagine having a mat is easier for storage too - fold up the table and roll up the mat.

[Adeptus]

Yep, the advent of gaming mats was really a godsend for gaming tables. Brilliant 3D tables with bespoke terrain features, built in roads and rivers and hills etc are amazing. But... there's only so many times you can play on the same board with the same terrain layout before you get tired of it. Mats are very modular while still looking great.

[Dantay VI]

I have Fallout Zone one, and can vouch for it. Also vouch for the brown colour.

At a certain point it seemed an academic argument between GameMat and FATmat in terms of quality, really.

A club I was involved in needed terrain and mats, and the low overseas shipping on a significant order (4-5 mats and a box of terrain) that GameMat could offer made them stand out from FATmat, even though the latter was technically closer.

Living a bit out off the beaten track (rural Ontario, Canada), it's often the shipping cost that discourages me from buying something : P

All best in your search; I don't know how I ever gamed on my old surface... once you make the plunge I'm sure you'll be pleased.

Cheers,

The Good Doctor.

Thanks Good Doctor. Yes it is the way it is seeming to go. Looks like it will be more of a choice of hat you like.

Some reviews seem to say that the quality between is pretty much the same.

gamemat.eu does more realistic images

FAT mats are bolder colours bigger designs for a more gamer like scenery.

 

Stargreave

can I ask, If you are going to make a board / plywood thing to put the mat on, why not make the board yourself? You could use insulation foam for depth and so on, and really have something beautiful as well as a hobby project, or even just paint directly onto MDF if storage depth is a thing. Especially, as you say, you won't be carting it round much

Because it will initially start as just the board itself o top of my pool table.

The issue with making a table would be time. I have another kid on the way, so time and money will get in shorter supply, therefore getting a gaming mat will be better option for me. Most of the time I will have at home will be prep work on existing models which can the get paited when I am offshore (cant get glues, modelling knives etc on the rig)

Adeptus

Because using a mat makes it easier to change up your terrain and lets you switch out one type of terrain for another easily. You can lay down your snow mat one day, then your city mat the next and then bust out your grass mat on the third day.

That would be part of it too, however this will likely be the only mat I wil get, so gotta make it the right one....

 

Guiltysparc

Also, rolling dice on a mat is 1 billion times nicer than rolling it on anything hard, lol

The plastic clattering is annoying, and its not great on models when they drop, or get stuck on the spackle & topple.

Reyner

I imagine having a mat is easier for storage too - fold up the table and roll up the mat

Pretty much the plan :)

Adeptus

Yep, the advent of gaming mats was really a godsend for gaming tables. Brilliant 3D tables with bespoke terrain features, built in roads and rivers and hills etc are amazing. But... there's only so many times you can play on the same board with the same terrain layout before you get tired of it. Mats are very modular while still looking great.

I agree, and quick too. Mats have revolutionised gaming, and I am hoping it will get me into gamingas there are preciousfew peopl I know of who are into 30 or 40K near me, so it may be my only chance to do this.

Worst case scenario, my son uses it to play with his cars or lego.

Also, rolling dice on a mat is 1 billion times nicer than rolling it on anything hard, lol

 

I hope so :P

Edited October 27, 2017 by Wolf_Priest _Dantay.

[Dantay VI]

Maybe a daft question.

 

Is a gaming mat worth 115 because that is what battleboards want for their battle mat?

[Adeptus]

The ones from Deepcut seem to run around 65GBP.

[Dantay VI]

Both tablewars (FAT mat)and gamemat are at 59.

 

Battlemat is 115. However they use unique design processes and more durable mouse mat materials etc.

 

I looked at deepcut and prefer the other designs.

[Adeptus]

Fair enough, you gotta make sure you're happy with your product.

[Dantay VI]

I guess.

 

Its annoying when there is too much choice isn't it? :D

[Adeptus]

First world problems!

[Dantay VI]

A quick update.

 

Decided to order the Gamemat.eu Fallout zone gaming mat.

 

I went for the battlemat, but the order got stopped as they wanted to charge an additional £15 over and above the £115 already quoted for bank charges to the printer.