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Friday 21 October 2016

Roman Villas

Recently, I discovered that Channel 4 have got one of my favourite TV shows, Time Team, on their online player, so I've been watching all the series en masse. They seem to have a heavy bias to Roman Britain, in an increasingly desperate search for tessellated pavement, but this has given me a bit of inspiration to commence a project that a certain Mr B has been requesting for around 3 or 4 years or so now...

I wanted to create a Roman Villa in a system that will allow you to add, append and alter the design of your villa, much in the same way that they evolved some 2000 years ago. The beauty of the original Roman design means that the vast majority of the Empire is covered in this system.

We start with the main villa itself, which includes a portico on the front. The back walls are blank, so you can have a bit of security from the local ruffians.
 When you add the large towers (bath house and temple?) to each end you can see how the villa has changed in appearance.
 In the next picture, I've removed the large towers and replaced them with smaller ones, then added the two small store sections to give us a U shaped villa, not unlike the original villa at Lullingstone in Kent.
 We can remove any of the components and totally change the appearance of the complex. This is an L shaped villa utilising a medium store.
 And below, the same with a large store instead.
 I've designed a wall with a gateway to enable you to enclose areas, making courtyards and increasing security and privacy. I've thrown a lick of paint at this one to see how it looks, I'm quite pleased with the results.
 I've also made a separate portico, shown here with the roof removed so you can see the internal detail inside the walkway. All the doors are removable so you can gain free access to the building. The arch window surrounds are supplied with all kits, but are optional for individuality.
We've added the portico onto the back of the villa section, which means that we can create an enclosed courtyard on this side of the villa too.
You can just keep adding sections, creating a rambling giant of a villa if you wish.
Also on the design table is a free standing Roman Temple for your pious Romano Brits to worship in. The covered walkway goes all round the building in the contemporary style.
Please bear in mind that all these buildings are still prototypes and therefore, finalised versions may differ from those seen here. There will be more parts to follow, including walls, a bigger gate, roadside tombs and maybe even a fish pond.

I hope you like these, we hope to have a small selection on display at Fiasco Leeds and Warfare Reading. Comments and feedback is invited...

Mr Warbases.


23 comments:

  1. Hi Martin

    These look great, in fact better than great.

    Will you be doing a tile sheet with a Roman pattern?

    Must also figure out how to do a tiled floor.

    Jim

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    1. Thanks Jim, We might do a tile sheet for these depending on demand...

      As to mosaics, I thought that google images and a half decent printer could be the way to solve that particular problem.

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    2. I hope so in that the first thing I would do to almost any MDF building is to retile the roof.

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  2. Well now Martin, that really is the business! I knew you could do it and was content to be patient. I look forward to seeing Pompus Maximus and Baldinus battle around these. Mr B

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    1. It's always a privilege and a pleasure Mr. Bickley. I'm glad you approve of them.

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  3. This looks great! Is there any possibility of producing a row of Roman shops/houses for my Collegia to fight outside too?

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    1. If you've any pictures of the sort of thing you're looking for, we'd be glad to look into extending this range. Hadrian's wall sections anyone?

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  4. Fantastic! Really looking forward to getting these for my Dux Britaniarum collection.
    Richard

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    1. I'm hoping to do some later models like an aisled villa, and an early christian church which might be more appropriate to that particular era.

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  5. Oh dear, my wallet just had a conniption!! lol.

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    1. Actually, we're hoping that these buildings will be at the affordable end of the market. And given that you can expand your villa one wing at a time, we're sure that will minimise any damage to your finances.

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  6. The modular villa is very clever but the temple is what I really want, I have seen reconstructions just like it so often on Time Team. Perfect for gaming even into the dark ages though the villa would not look terribly out of place over a huge area and length of time.
    I foresee that the stucco texture gel is going to get a hammering for the outside walls but for the insides some areas of mosaic would be nice, so time to start looking for suitable images though making one from an inappropriate image could be entertaining, something 40K based for example or maybe that Aphrodite looks oddly familiar.

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    1. Hi Michael, Thanks for the kind comments. I'm certain that there would be a market in Roman times for the more risque mosaic. The makers of such works of art would in all likelihood, considered the Michelangelos of the era, and command a high price.

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  7. Perhaps a cladding for the interior walls like Sally 4th?

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  8. Stop reading my mind! I was planning to make both a Villa and a temple for our upcoming games of Dux Britanniarum and now I'must wondering why I'm bothering. Seriously good looking kits. Sickeningly deeply infuriating!

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  9. Stop reading my mind! I was planning to make both a Villa and a temple for our upcoming games of Dux Britanniarum and now I'must wondering why I'm bothering. Seriously good looking kits. Sickeningly deeply infuriating!

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  10. Amazing stuff, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't very interested. Looking forward to seeing a fully painted version!

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  11. These are brilliant. I fancy building a Chedworth out of them! Looking forward to seeing them out.

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  12. Lovely. I could see these models being used for a Romanesque era medieval monastery, perhaps with a little adaptation.

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  13. I've been waiting for something like this for ages. Just lovely! I reckon if you made a few damaged components, particularly of the roof tiles, there would be a good market for a ruined or semi-repaired Roman villas for Arthurian settings, particularly with the Arthurian SAGA variant somewhere just over the horizon. I will be spending a lot of money on these.

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