Scrabble Tiles for Counters Base

[Whiterook]

In putting together a Print ‘N Play game, or one that is part of a book that you disassemble to construct the actual, playable game, one of the things you may find yourself needing to do is, make counters. I’m assembling a game for the old west game, Bite the Bullet, (see here)








I’ll be making both cardboard counters for the admin counters and markers, but also something a little more substantial for the character counters through the use of Scrabble tiles.

I looked online for Scrabble tiles and noted that besides the traditional, natural wood tiles with glossy finish, you can buy replacements in a variety of colors and finishes! For this game in question, I decided on black tiles, which I picked up at Amazon for $14.99/100 wood letter tiles.







The dimensions are a typical 20mm x 18mm x 4mm (Approximately 3/4" x 13/16" x 3/16"), though some manufacturers make them slightly bigger or smaller, these are the general size of the Scrabble game. Little off square, but if it was truly an issue for me aesthetics-wise, a craft saw and miter could easily fix that, with a little black acrylic paint or black Sharpie.

Printed counters, either on paper or cardstock, should glue down on these just fine. The painted letters on tiles are ever-so-slighlty indented into the wood’ being white on black, that could threaten to ghost through the paper (or even cardstock), so the two options are, glue single sided counter art on the back of the tile (which is blank), or use a black Sharpie marker to black out the lettering forst, and then glue atop the tile.

The tiles give a nice, chunky feel, and easier manipulation in picking up/moving, which I like. They also are a nice visual counterpart to the flat cardboard counters.

[McCoy]

No, take a sander and sand the tiles flat, varnish them and then glue the counters to the tiles.

[Whiterook]

Jun 24, 2024 12:16:16 GMT -5 McCoy said:

No, take a sander and sand the tiles flat, varnish them and then glue the counters to the tiles.

Definitely a great suggestion on that, however I absolutely do not have the dexterity to hold thirty or so individual tiles to sand them, nor would I even think of making a jig to help in the process; plus varnishing, and the dry time, etc. Just way too much work for the finished product, for me, anyway. I did check cardstock against the white lettering and even on the white surfaces, nothing showed through at all. I did try using a black Sharpie to black out the lettering, but that was not necessary either, so I gave that up after four or five tiles.

[Whiterook]

So this gamer project starts with the counters provided in the book, however I opted not to break the book apart and print the PDF version I also bought… the colors may not be as vivid, but I’ve a good color printer that did a nice job. The following are sheets came with Volume 1 and 2 of the game…



Note that I am using all of Volume 1, sheet 1, and the spares sheet (middle one) for the backs of the Hidden Counters. I may …may, cut the other counters from the spare sheet and glue them on the back of the cardboard counters; but that’s a pain in trying to line up edges and I’m not sure it’s quite worth it. Lastly, I used the colored name placards on the Volume 2 counter sheet. 

I started to go towards using the Character counters shown on those sheets (above): Volume 1 had the eight main characters, and a Prisoner counter, that are in that volumes’ scenarios; Volume 2 has eight more characters that play with that volumes’ sceanrios. After cutting the characters out, I dry fitted one to a tile and it looked OK, but the picture is small. I then had an idea… try one of the Standee images, which are bigger and rectangular! Just so happens that of you cut the colored border off the bottom and top, but leave the sides, the cutout fits perfectly on a Scrabble tile with a tiny bit of room at each side…so I went with that plan instead; I printed off the sheet with the standees and cut those out.

[Whiterook]

It’s been awhile since I made counters, so there was a bit of a relearning curve   I first started out with the counters that would be glued to the tiles; first was cutting out the individual Hidden counters.



I use the big roll-on tube of Elmer’s Xtreme school glue, which I’ve found in past use, provided quickest coverage. I used some brown shipping paper as a blotter and applied glue to the counter cutout back, and carefully placed it on the letter-side of the Scrabble tile; it’s easy to adjust the positioning with a press down with the finger and twisting. The trick is to make sure you don’t get excess glue on your fingers, which will get on the surface of your pristine counter!



Next, came the back of the counters, which have numbers 1-12; when you reveal a Hidden counter when it moves into LOS of your character, you reveal the number to see if it’s a represented scenario character or a decoy dummy counter.



Upon close inspection, the white of the lettering does not show through at all and the indent doesn’t cause any lapse in surface glue retention. The black border looks nice and adds come distinction. The thickness and weight of the tile is comfortable and meaty. I’m pleased with the look!

I think the counters as is, will hold up well in repeated play use; however, for a little protection of the artwork, I might try taking a scrap piece that has counter art on it, and see if an application of clear acrylic brushed on causes the printer ink to bleed or smudge. Another test might be a fixative. I’ve always wondered on both counts, so this might be a good time for experimentation!

[Whiterook]

Next came both Volumes’ characters. I started with the color coded name placards first, gluing them to the letter-side of the Scrabble tiles. After I worked my way back to the other side of the tiles, the first side had dried nicely; it’s the same theory as applying nail polish where by the time you do all ten fingers or toes, they’re dry enough by the time you start back on the fist one done! The name placards are the smaller square size, so there’s a nice minimalist vibe to that side, with breathing space on all four surface sides.



The standee contours worked perfectly! I’m really happy with how these turned out and the artworks is easier to see; the Player Cards’ character artwork is a tad bigger than the standee size, so it’s easier to distinguish between he two, whereas the smaller counter art was definitely too small for me.



These are going to look great on the maps!

[Whiterook]

Next came the cardboard counters. This is where application strategy switches up… instead, I glue entire sections of multiple counters to SMEAD Pressboard Folder material (see this thread on those). I always start with scrap pieces from previous projects…



I glue them with a little room between sections, which makes it easier to get precision cuts. I do a few sections at a time, gluing and then cutting. Using scissors on the pressboard is tough on the fingers, but it’s quicker than using an aluminum ruler and craft/box knife. I just take my time and work my way through all of them. I have all the counters I need for Solo Mode and Co-op Mode play; I’ll make up the few extra counters for Volume 2’s scenarios another day. 



I may use my Oregon Laminations Rounder on the corners… haven’t decided yet.

For now, I placed all the counters in an AEGIS counter tray…



The plan will be to eventually make up a game box to hold everything… but until then, I have what I need to start playing the game!