I finished the Creaking Gantry recently—although I nearly always call it the Creaky Gantry—and Flower has now finished painting it.
It is a fantastic building, with lots of different levels, a couple of cranes, dockland foundations underneath and some really cool, unusual parts.
And now I’m building another gantry.
Starting a second one immediately after finishing the first might seem a little strange, but there is a good reason for it: these two gantries are designed to create completely different experiences at the table.
The Creaking Gantry has a closed-in, warehouse-like atmosphere. It is great for exploration during a Dungeons & Dragons campaign: climbing ladders, entering rooms and searching for secrets, treasure or whatever might be hiding inside.
It could also be the perfect hideout for a band of pirates waiting to ambush anyone foolish enough to enter.
Gantry number two is another beast entirely.
The Breezy Gantry is much more open—a scaffold-like structure with exposed platforms, large open areas and precarious heights. It leaves plenty of space for miniatures while keeping sightlines open for spells and ranged weapons.
Rather than exploring enclosed rooms, players will need to think about height, movement and positioning. Who controls the upper platforms? Who risks crossing an exposed walkway? What happens when somebody is caught in the open with nowhere to hide?
It should be the perfect arena for an all-out battle.
If you have been following Clicky Walls, you will know that many of our builds contain a mechanical or engineering element. The Breezy Gantry is no exception.
It has a huge chimney on one side, a working cog-driven lift in the centre, and a functional crane at the top with an articulated arm and rotating cabin.
Then, for one final game-changing feature, a long wooden bridge stretches between the Breezy Gantry and the Creaking Gantry—high above the waves below.
The two builds may both be gantries, but they are designed to play very differently. One is enclosed, mysterious and made for exploration. The other is exposed, vertical and built for battle.
And when that bridge connects them, they become one enormous dockside location.
What would you put at the centre of a battle across these two gantries—and what would happen if somebody stopped the lift at exactly the wrong moment?
Join the conversation: read and discuss this design journal in Built for Play.
