The fort itself is 11 x 17 inches, the hill is 18 x19 inches and is designed to fit into a corner.

The gateway is foamcore decorated with ball-headed pins, small half-beads and different sizes of metal rings (called findings) from the craft store's jewelry department. It has a balsa firing platform behind the parapet.

This photo shows the fort still under construction. The palace buildings in the corner are unfinished, and the mountain corner in which the fort sits has no texture as yet.

The upper levels of cork are built on a foamcore platform on pillars to save expensive cork material. The ascending levels are stacks of broken-edged cork slabs glued together, which nestle under the upper level edges. Small ridges and pieces of cork can be pinned to the ascending levels in different places to allow for a direct assault up the slope, or require a winding approach, and to provide cover for native jezailchi, before they fall back to the fort itself.

A longshot view of the hillfort as the British might see it. Unfinished construction is evident in the uppermost building and the mountain corner behind the fort.

The fort comes apart for compact storage. Walls, buildings and towers are a press-fit into cork ridges glued to the base. If a part will not stay in place, it can be easily pinned.

The hillchief's palace when finished. The palace is nestled in a corner formed by cardboard and wrapping-paper mountains (see the Mountains Page for construction information). It is freshly-plastered and better-maintained than the rest of the fort.

The gold decorations are buttons from a fabric shop or sewing department of the craft store. The gold screening on the harem-wing windows and upper story audience-area are from the jewelry department of the craft store. The gold items are attached with temporary tacky putty, so they can be easily removed for a less opulent look.

The doors and details on the upper story are slightly undersized to give the illusion that the palace is more spacious than it is, and to enhance the sense of distance.

The mountain corner is cut out in the back for access to the building interiors. It could be finished out with interior walls, hanging tapestries and weapons, photocopies of oriental rugs on the floor, etc. - and if we ever play the "Rescue the General's Daughter from the Harem" scenario, it probably will be.

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Copyright©1998 David Helber. No commercial distribution of images or text from any page on this site without written permission.