Project: terrain model and GHQ miniatures for Army training

BattlerBritain · Post by **BattlerBritain** » Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:01 pm

busboy - cheers for the explaination. It must have taken you ages to get all that done.

I've tried something similar but not combined all the shots onto one image. I'm working to get a final image at 1" :100m for a platoon level game using Google at the 50m scale with each screenshot trimmed (to remove the Google scale bar etc) and sized in Word for 6" by 4" sections (~914 by 644 pixels). It took me a day to get 14 sections that covered one German town.

I use PaintShop Pro7 to align the images.

I printed mine and pasted the prints onto mounting board, which promptly bent from the glue

Foam board would be better, but maybe a bit thick? I need to find some thin foam board (less white edge showing).

It does look good though when the sections are placed on the table.

ShortRound70 · Post by **ShortRound70** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 1:13 am

busboy

First off - thank you for your service, sir.

Your terrain board is fantastic! I can imagine it with model buildings sitting atop the aerial view! What a board that would be to game on, let alone to train on!

Your Stryker company is also great! I built one a couple of years ago for a friend's son (B/5/20 Inf). It didn't turn out as nice as yours. I may have to get it back from him and re-do it, or build him a new one.

Semper Fi from an old Jarhead.

Gary

Gompel · Post by **Gompel** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 6:58 am

I don't want to interfere, but there is a much much easier way to get big scale images from Google maps. You don't need a photo-editing program and it just takes a few mouse clicks.
I use the program called 'Terra Incognita' and it's for free at this moment (I had to pay for it).

How does it work?
1 Download the program, unzip and start.
2 Zoom to your desired location.
3 In the menu click 'Selection' then 'Rectangle selection'
4 Select the area you want by clicking and dragging your mouse on the map.
5 Zoom in to your desired level of detail (or click 'Zoom' and then the detail you want).
6 Save your image file by clicking 'File' , 'Save map' and then 'ArcView map'.

You will then have 3 files: a .jpg image file, a .jgw coordinate file and a .prj project file. If you only want to print the image, you can just use the jpg-file and forget about the other two. The prj-file might be useful if you use the program ArcView. I use the jgw-file for coordinates in the also free GIS program 'MapWindow'.

A note: If you select a big area and a high level of detail, your images will get really huge. So you might want to start with a small selection or less detail (=less zoom in).
Another note: be aware that using Google images (and other maps likely too) without proper attribution is illegal. See:
http://www.google.com/permissions/geoguidelines.html

Hope this saves you a lot of work,
Patrick

busboy · Post by **busboy** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 8:08 am

Thanks for the post Gompel! I wish I had known before!

Good consideration about the TOS and copyright considerations. For my purposes I can easily claim "fair use" as the google images are being used strictly for instructional purposes. I suppose the print shop could theoretically get into trouble though. I've had a print shop refuse to print something for me before because they suspected the image was copyrighted. In fact it was government property and I was printing it for official purposes, but they still refused. Such is life.

ShortRound70, thanks for your service sir! You should be proud to know that my marine student is at the top of the whole class: he has a shot at honor grad. He is also the class XO. The students we get from the Corps are utterly top notch. Its always a pleasure to work with Marines. Semper Fidelis sir!

I'd certainly love to add building models on top of the imagery. Its definitely on my wish list. I'll be using this board for the next few weeks and then it'll go into storage for another six months until my next class gets to the same lesson: maybe I can explore that by then.

ShortRound70 · Post by **ShortRound70** » Thu Mar 07, 2013 8:38 am

Way to go cama! "Gunny" would be proud of you. I have to add that the free paper buildings on GHQ's site were provided by Gompel of this forum. I have them all, and they are great to look at, and easy to build. There are also several other free paper building sites on the web, just use google.

busboy, they are a different breed today than those of 40 years ago. But they are good at what they do. A good instructor helps, too.

Gary

busboy · Post by **busboy** » Wed Mar 20, 2013 5:02 am

Some pics from today of the terrain model and Strykers in action:

Today one student briefed the team chief (my boss) and his peers his order for the Stryker infantry attack.

The order was followed by an in depth AAR which included the terrain model.

After the AAR the students conducted a combined arms rehearsal on the terrain model. The below are pictures of the board as they arranged it (which includes adding graphic control measures) and the rehearsal itself:

The enemy position, and friendly breach sites/local SBF.

Company trains

Assault position/dismount point.

MGS and SH64s in support and attack by fire positions.

US and host nation forces in an isolation position.

Rehearsing the plan.

After the rehearsal, the students spend a few hours rehearsing in a computer simulation, and ultimately executed the students plan with him serving as the company commander, and his peers as the platoon leaders, squad leaders, and other enablers such as air weapons teams. The students, I'm pleased to say, won the day in the simulation due in part to microarmor as a training aid. The students _loved it_ for this lesson.

It'll be about 3-4 months before the micro armor comes back out. By that time I hope to have two more terrain models done, and maybe a few holes in my inventory filled in.

The students have their "must pass" tactical examination next week. I think they're going to do well

BattlerBritain · Post by **BattlerBritain** » Wed Mar 20, 2013 8:22 pm

Epic!

Really great stuff busboy. Hope they all do OK in their exams.

Cheers,

B

busboy · Post by **busboy** » Thu Mar 21, 2013 5:03 am

BattlerBritain wrote:Epic!

Really great stuff busboy. Hope they all do OK in their exams.

Cheers,

B

They all passed the last one; I think they'll be OK for the big test. Thanks for the well wishes!

busboy · Post by **busboy** » Sun Oct 13, 2013 12:26 am

Time for my last significant update to this thread. I've concluded another round of teaching and during that time I completed a third terrain model. I never got to the fourth. I'm a senior instructor now and they are reassigning my to other duties as new instructors come in. After all the hours of work, I'm handing off the models to a buddy (who is buying them for a nice bottle of whiskey each). Part of me wants to keep them, but I don't play tabletop games personally so they'd just be wasting away in my attic and getting torn up when I move. Besides, they're training aids for our officers, and it gives me some satisfaction knowing they'll still get use. Hopefully they'll catch on.

And, for what its worth, quite a few students this last class bought quite a bit of microarmor from GHQ after seeing it used in my classroom. I must have given away about a dozen catalogs, and I know of at least two students for sure who bought probably about between $200-400 (U.S.) worth to use for training within their classrooms and after they move on.

Links below the pictures below are to full size images.

So, the last group got good use of the first of my terrain models:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

HMMWVs in support by fire with the company's mortars and attached ADA:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Through the breach; the infantry company assaults.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Looking south to north at the third and final terrain model. This is a chunk of actual terrain in Iraq called the Thar Thar wadi near the city of Baji. Students have to breach a mine/roadblock reinforcing obstacle and then cross 1.5 KM of raised road over the wadi which includes to bridges that they might have to span. Each tile is 20" and the model represents 3km by 5km of actual terrain. This one took me much less time to make as it is much flatter and there are no trees!

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

OPFOR defends with a Mech infantry company reinforced with a T-72.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Defensive fire is oriented on the crossing site.

[/img]https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Infantry dismounting on the far side.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Tank platoon secures the point of penetration. My roller tank is "good enough for government work." I'd love to see GHQ expand their selection of engineer equipment.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

A few other details. This is a rail yard south of the battle area. While I had high aspirations of using wire to replicate the train tracks, I ended up limiting myself to permanent marker to meet my timeline. Buildings are cork.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

A general view after the students finished the exercise on the board and went to write their hasty order.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

Some details of the engineers. I secured the wolverine bridge with sticky tack to allow students to emplace the bridge:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/ ... o.jpg?dl=1

I never got to the Stryker urban attack as I unexpected found myself on paternity leave, so the saga ends here. If I happen across any pictures from my successors using 'em, I'll see if I can share.

BattlerBritain · Post by **BattlerBritain** » Sun Oct 13, 2013 10:29 pm

Outstanding!

Good luck for the future and thanks for posting these pictures.

Don't forget to mention to the new staff that they can post here too. It'd be great to see this thread continued. It really gives us 'Civvies' an idea how the professionals are doing things.

Cheers,

B

chrisswim · Post by **chrisswim** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 6:15 am

Busboy, thank you for sharing. Please encourage your successors to continue posting n participating on the forum. Best of god's fortune to you.

JMBaker · Post by **JMBaker** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:52 am

in reference to the urban training games above, that is really mega cool....

Uhh.....

Wait a sec....

Oh crap

Is that my house on the map?

JMBaker · Post by **JMBaker** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:54 am

in reference to the urban training games above, that is really mega cool....

Uhh.....

Wait a sec....

Oh crap

Is that my house on the map?

AllenRockwell · Post by **AllenRockwell** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 5:21 pm

I don't know how I missed this tread till now. Very cool. Thanks for sharing this.

chrisswim · Post by **chrisswim** » Thu Jul 03, 2014 12:44 am

Busboy,
Any more training sessions with pics, maps, figurines to show.
I look forward to seeing more of your methods/training.
Chris