Bradd Thomas McBrearty is a former animator at Disney and Skullcandy, he’s now the CPO at Bit Fry Game Studios, and he made a surprising discovery at his local IKEA this weekend.
IKEA are selling a 159 cm by 76 cm glass tabletop with an almost perfectly sized hex grid for $60. That’s cheaper than buying a hex battle map from most specialist retailers.
IKEA have the tabletop on their website too where is currently marked down to only $47. It’s available here in the UK for £60.
The glass tabletop is much more substantial than a roll-up battle map, though, coming in at nearly 30kg. Once put in place on some table legs, you wouldn’t want to move this heavy chunk of patterned glass around too much. It can support up to 50kg of weight, and it’ll be essential to stick to that threshold to avoid shattering it.
Gamers are asking the question “Can you see through the frosting?”. The idea of sticking maps to the underside of the table so models can be moved around on the grid is appealing. Alternatively, there is speculation as to whether the right sort of erasable marker pen can be used to draw on the hexes and then be wiped off after.
We don’t know, and Geek Native doesn’t suggest you test the table before you buy it, nor is it wise to buy the tabletop and hope everything works as planned. If you know, then please let readers know in the comments below.
Frosted glass and tape
The packing tape and frosted glass hack is a consideration, though. Do you think it’ll work?
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I think maybe use window chalk if the table surface is glass.
That’s a fantastic idea!
D&D uses squares. I think you mean RPG players
I can confirm they are D&D players … but I get your point. Hex is more old school than the latest D&D.
D&D does have optional rules for using hexes.
D&D 5th still uses hexes for town, county and country level maps.
D&D uses hexes for outside. Now, us GURPS players are looking at this and have ideas a spinning in our heads.
Dry erase works on glass. I am presuming that the hex and frost markings are on one side, meant to be the bottom, so the smooth spaghetti-sauce-shedding glass surface is your table-top.
I bet both hex and frosted effect are a plastic coating on the underside of the table, so sticking a map underneath isn’t in the cards. If it is etched to get the frosted effect, you could just spray it with clear-coat for the same result as the packing tape, but with less expense and effort.
i think you’re right. dry erase should work. i don’t think ikea would be selling an etched table this cheaply
I think wet erase markers ( formerly referred to as “overhead markers”) would work better. Dry erase smudges away very easily, whereas wet erase requires water. Wet erase are available in a fone-tip marker and a road-trip, so are appropriate for lines and writing, and also filling in hexes with color. I have seen them in red, green, blue, and black, but there may be other colors out there As an alternative, so-called cling decals may be useful. You can get clear sheet vinyl in rolls from hardware stores ( for temporarily covering windows), and at fabric stores, in multiples… Read more »
I prefer wet-erase too, but have seen dry in various tip-widths and lots of colours.
I love the cling-decal idea. Pre-cut ones could speed up map-drawing. Cut out lengths of wall, trees, etc and just slap ’em onto the table. Cut rings and wedges sized for common area-of-effect sizes and slap ’em down as needed.
as an aside, i learned at some point that Crayola washable markers are the same as wet erase markers for most purposes. save the $$ on buying those instead of vis-a-vis ones, and get more colors.
Looks neat. My concern is the fact it is tempered glass, that’s the kind that explodes if you hit the edge, and those edges have no protection at all. Even the disclaimer on Ikea’s website says to be mindful of that. I raise this point to see how other people would deal with that.
pool noodle bumpers could be used to protect against this…
I know some woodworkers who work fairly cheap and would probably invest in a frame for it (including legs)
Would also be easy to use a clear film over the top for markers……
Clear contact paper would do the trick very nicely.
Good ole fashioned China Markers work fine… nothing like the adult crayon and not having to worry about smearing like w/ dry erase.
If the top is smooth glass, even permanent marker works and cleans off. I use it on glass all the time to mark lines for sandblasting or cutting.
I looked at the product. It is two layers of glass with a layer of what looks like epoxy in the middle. The grid it printed on the inside of the glass layers.
So… Maps under and rear projections will not work.
It does not seem useful as a game table to me.
Yeah, I was a little concerned about that too. The weight and unwieldiness of it would be a concern for me: I want something that I can put down when I need it and then put away when I don’t. And not being able to put a map under it is a deal-breaker.
Regarding the frost: could you possibly use a small projector on the floor the project a map from the underside? I’m sure it wouldn’t be a great image, but it could be a cool feature.
I wander if spray adhesive would work ,though you need to put something clear over it
Use Mala whiteboard pens only £2 pk at IKEA
Bondage tape is essentially a reuseable window cling material sold in rolls. No adhesive necessary, but stays beautifully on glass if sprayed with water or non soap lens cleaner
If the frosting is on the outside and not an effect of something embedded in the glass, then you should be able to spray it with a gloss varnish to remove it.
I was interested and contacted IKEA customer support. The hexagons are 14mm to a side, 28 mm diameter. Convert to freedom units as needed. The glass can be written on using dry/wet erase, methanol or WD40 will easily wipe it off.
That’s really useful. Thanks for sharing.
So… has nobody been willing to give it a TRY? it’s not expensive, and you could return it. I’m ready to drive over to IKEA just to see if it’s in stock. those hexes are and 1 & 1/8″ and would work well with many gaming systems, hexes are superior to squares regardless. If I post again, you will know I bought it.