I think this D&D terrain was painted with Polish space magic

There’s a new brand of pre-painted tabletop gaming terrain on the market, and no one that I’ve talked to seems to know how it’s being made. Best I can figure, it’s Polish space magic.

In February this year Archon Studio (Wolfenstein The Board Game, Masters of the Universe: Battleground) announced PrismaCast, its new line of pre-painted tabletop terrain. But the pitch — that these bits would come out of the box, on a plastic sprue, but with “detail typically reserved for the industry’s elite painters” — simply sounded too good to be true. Now that I’m holding the first of its retail releases, fresh out of a box from its Polish factory, I’m fairly shook. These Dwarven Mine pre-painted half-height walls look great, with multiple shades to build up a highlight and a nice, evenly-applied wash to bring out those little details. There’s even an attempt at object source lighting, with lanterns and torches casting colorful shades and shadows along the walls.

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

Simply put, Archon’s terrain looks excellent — not quite as good as I could do here myself at home, but far better than anything I’ve ever seen come fresh out of the box. And I have absolutely no idea how they’ve done it, nor how they managed to make it so inexpensive. The set here costs $89.99 and covers a fair amount of the table. For a proper layout, you’ll probably want at least a couple of them.

Photo: Archon Studio

I’d say they were doing it by hand, but the pieces are simply too consistent. There’s a machine involved somewhere in the process, that’s for sure. Trouble is that none of the professionals in the world of industrial printing that I’ve quietly talked to this week have seen anything that can do this kind of work here in the United States. They, too, are stumped.

“It is entirely our own technology and we develop it consistently,” said project and marketing manager Kamil Grochowski in an email to Polygon. “The product you have in your hand is the first in a series. So it is safe to assume that the quality will only get better!”

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

Photo: Charlie Hall/Polygon

Note the marks along the top of the wall where the pieces were cut from the sprues. The plastic color matches the paint color, in an effort to hide those marks during assembly.

So while we don’t know what kind of equipment they’re using, Archon has provided the broad strokes. According to its initial press release, the terrain is first hand-painted by a professional artist. This box lists Kuba Sawicki as its painter on the Dwarven Mines, and they are even credited on the back of the box. Sawicki’s work was then turned into a digital model using photogrammetry, a technique that’s been in circulation in the world of video gaming for at least a decade now. But then... somehow... they then put it on to the highly irregular surface of the miniature.

How remains a mystery. But I tell you what: The finish is strong as hell. Scratching it with a metal drill bit, even with a decent pressure, does next to nothing to it. If you want to repaint or otherwise improve on it, Grochowski says not to bother stripping it. Instead, he says to just paint right over the top.

In addition to these Dwarven Mines, Archon also has another set coming out shortly. Designed in partnership with Paizo, the Pathfinder Terrain: Abomination Vaults Pre-Painted, with all its mindflaying horrors, will begin shipping soon.

Dwarven Mine: Pre-painted Half-height Walls were previewed using a retail copy provided by Archon Studio. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.