I'm currently creating a prototype to ship to publishers.
I am having a problem with the map and pieces themselves. I printed them both on a piece of matte photo paper. They tend to slide easily, one atop the other.
I may just be picky (the game still functions, but shifting the table or a careless hand could easily nock the pieces out of place) but what type of paper has worked the best for you and what is the trade off in quality?
BTW, The map and pieces look stunning on this paper.
Put felt on the bottom of game pieces.
Give them to a couple of 4 year olds for half an hour. Its amazing how sticky the pieces will get.
Alternatively, patch test a few mild abrasives to add friction. Put 3 or 4 in a bag with sand, or salt, or corn meal and shake it a bit, take them out and clean them off and see if that roughed them up enough to keep them in line without spoiling the looks.
Or you could try a light film of hair spray. 'cause hair spray is magic.
- KrisW
Have you tried coating your game board with a layer of varnish? That might provide for a little friction and as an added bonus will keep your colors intact for a longer time. Just be sure to pick a varnish that works for the way you printed it (e.g. laser vs inkjet).
Are your game pieces finalized as square or rectangle shapes? If not would changing them to circular shapes and then putting the game pieces into clear circular coin displays? These clear circular coin discs are viewable from both sides and can stack easily.
Sheets of pvc used to keep unmounted maps flat has the nice side-effect of adding a lot of friction. Also imo a must for making simple unmounted prototype/pnp boards (or typical wargame boards...) feel at least as luxurious as thick expensive mounted boards, I recommend to keep one around anyway.
Here's a forum thread discussing what varnish to user for laser printers: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/48370-laser-printer-tr...
By the way, not sure whether that's your cup of tea, but you can also submit your game(s) to the Boston FIG design contest: http://www.bgdf.com/node/12388
(Not sure if I'm allowed to cross post like this, so feel free to remove/edit this post admins)
Varnish both sides of the board at the same time to cut the chances of warping.
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They are double sided...