Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Grod_The_Giant 05-22-06, 08:17 AM	Ok, this really should have gone in the acessories section, but it was closed to new posts. Anyway- My dad and i were talking about drawing dungeons, and we came up with the idea of a re-usable dungeon map. So, we bought a big dry-erase board and scored it to a 1-inch grid. Now we have a great thing to draw out our dungeon maps on! Cool idea or what?
Seeker95 05-22-06, 08:31 AM	It has been a cool idea for about ten years or so (that's the first time I saw someone use a whiteboard this way). Don't take that the wrong way. It is still a cool idea! A few things to watch for. 1. The dry erase marker dust will fill the scored edges and eventually be impossible to completely clean the non-scored surfaces as each pass with the eraser will just sweep extra dust back onto the surface. You'll need to remove the excess dust with something other than the eraser/cloth. A can of compressed air (or an air compressor, if you have it) can accomplish this, but definitely make sure you are outdoors wearing clothes you don't care about. The dust has no respect for clothing. 2. If you use a liquid cleaner from time to time, it accumulates in the scoring, and eventually makes it impossible to clean the non-scored surface, as each eraser/cloth pass brings more of the chemical residue across the surface of the board. Best advice here is just don't use a liquid/chemical cleaner. 3. Your markers will gradually become black, regardless of the color of the marker, as each time the tip crosses a scored line, it will accumulate some of the residue dust from previous uses. Over time, this dust is black, regardless of the various colors you are using. Light-colored markers suffer this fate even faster. Again, it is still a cool idea.
hmmmm 05-22-06, 10:14 AM	Good advice Seeker95, I have had that problem before, its a great idea good thing you thought about it Grod_The_Giant.
FnordBear 05-22-06, 10:19 AM	He, good idea, I have acctualy thought of doing something similar Basically what I plan to do is have a piece of clear plastic (or glass depending on cost) cut to the size of my table top and lay it over a printed map (changable between hex and square depending on the game) and write on it with erasable markers
Ryusage 05-22-06, 10:23 AM	Can you buy dry-erase boards with the 1-inch squares already printed on it? If so, where?
hmmmm 05-22-06, 10:25 AM	I know that you can as they are used for teaching math. They can come in the pull down types from the wall (Like the maps) or as White boards.
Lord Mhoram 05-22-06, 11:18 AM	I get around the cleaning problems by not drawing in the squares. 1" = 5 ft and leave it at that. It's worked well for years now*. It means that spell templates are actual cones, circles and what-have-you than the official ones, so I guess that ends up being sort of a house rule, but we never have had any problems. * the fact that we have been doing the same thing for Champions with 1"= 2 meters without the hex grid since the early 90's made the transition to D&D without the squares pretty easy. And another bit of help - Dry erase boards can be expensive. Go to your local Home Depot or Lowes and get smooth white waterproof paneling (the stuff that goes in with showers). When we were pricing dry erase a 2' x 3' was something like $30 (or more). An 8' by 4' paneling was $14. You can have it cut to fit youu needs. We cut it in thirds, and have an expandible map board. :)
celtredleg 05-22-06, 12:23 PM	I use foamcore poster board, witha clear plastic coat on it. I have one with the grid and one without. Works just fine.