Forum: boardgames.stackexchange.com
Tags: <game-accessories>
Title: What's a good table-topping material for tile-based games?
Question: On my polished wood table any disturbance (and I have kids, so you can imagine the disturbances...) can shift tiles around, which I then feel compelled to try to adjust to be flush with those around them. I want to get a mat to fix this, and was wondering if anyone has had experience doing this, and can offer advice. Thanks!

Answers:
sents: text: Felt.
text: A thousand casinos can't be wrong.
text: Padded felt also makes it easier to pick cards/chits up off the table.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/267/Sparr
score: 21
sents: text: You could try some no-slip shelf liner (the kind you use for kitchen cabinets).
text: They're sold by the roll at various department stores, fairly cheaply.
text: They lay flat and can be cut into whatever shape you need.
text: If you can, I would splurge and err on the side of using a heavier-duty liner.
text: The cheap stuff is probably little better than a tablecloth.
text: For Carcassonne specifically, you'll want to make sure you cover as much of the table as is practical.
text: You probably don't want to artificially constrain the game if your no-slip surface isn't big enough.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/224/Kristo
score: 20
sents: text: For Settlers of Catan , there is an expansion you can get that consists of six interlocking long sections that frame the pieces in.
text: At worst, your entire island will shift, instead of individual hexes.
text: I just picked it up recently from my local game store after seeing our island moved one too many times.
text: For other tile-based games, I would suggest a tablecloth like Egg of P'an Ku suggested, or a large piece of fabric (or felt) that you can get at a craft store -- you don't want any fabric to be TOO slippery, though.
text: You can even go one step further and get those no-slip rubber mats for rugs to place between the table and the tablecloth.
text: The only downside to that I could see is the tablecloth may occasionally get bunched up.
text: You could also try a table-top gaming mat, or simply skip the tablecloth and just use a large number of the no-slip mats I mentioned above, and place your tiles directly on the rubber mats.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/6/LittleBobbyTables - Au Revoir
score: 10
sents: text: It was quite a bit of work to construct, but we made a mat to play games on that
text: was baize on one side and leatherette on the other.
text: It's really nice playing card and board games on the baize surface - it's easy to pick up cards and tokens, as if from a slightly squishy card table.
text: The leatherette underside is heavy enough to keep it in place, and easy to clean if you discover afterwards that the table wasn't as clean as you thought.
text: I made an instructable showing how we made this.
text: It'd be nice to know of places that sell something like this.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/685/Mark Longair
score: 6
sents: text: For Settlers of Catan, a sheet of acrylic or pane of glass over the board can work wonders!
text: I have used both a pane of glass and a sheet of plexiglass.
text: The two are roughly equivalent to play on.
text: Pieces slide around a little bit easier, but not so much as to become a nuisance.
text: I prefer glass for its superior durability, but I have been using plexiglass at home for quite a while and it works just fine.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/1200/George
score: 5
sents: text: I just took one of my old Bridge tables and is using that for most games, it works great as long as we're 4 players.
text: I also have a fairly cheap 8-sided poker foldable tabletop thing for bigger sessions (with the added bonus of drinkholders).
text: This means another table which is perhaps not an option for you but both options can be folded and take very little space when not playing at least.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/93/Don
score: 2
sents: text: In addition to Kristo's answer , if you have a wood shop you likely have a router mat which would accomplish something similar.
answer_details: author: boardgames.stackexchange.com/users/180/warren
score: 0

Summary of the answers:
Padded felt makes it easier to pick cards up off the table. You could get a no-slip rubber mat to place between the table and tablecloth. For Settlers of Catan, there is an extension you can get that would work for this. You could also get a sheet of acrylic to put over the game board.
For Settlers of Catan , there is an expansion you can get that consists of six interlocking long sections that frame the pieces in, or a sheet of acrylic or pane of glass over the board can work wonders!  For other tile-based games, I would suggest a tablecloth or a large piece of fabric or felt as long as the fabric isn't too slippery.  You could also try a table-top gaming mat or use a large number of the no-slip mats or even shelf-liner. Padded felt is useful and it also makes it easier to pick cards/chits up off the table. Or for a small number of players you can use a bridge table.