AdapTableTop
AdapTableTop
This was a Kickstarter by Game Start that I backed. Originally I backed it because one of my pet peeves is players putting things on my maps when we play in person. The AdapTableTop was the idea that you could have your maps and game boards elevated on a 3d printed platform leaving space for your players to keep the rest of their things under the table top playing space.
The AdapTableTop- lifted modular system for board games and RPGs was created through a Kickstarter by Game Start Studio. I got their first Kickstarter version, though I know that they also just did a LED kickstarter edition. Another reason why I was interested in this was the idea of tiered level dungeon spaces for my game play. This here is my review of the ATT.
The AdapTableTop
Overall I am happy with the AdapTableTop itself. It makes me happy that my map is off the table itself and that it allows me to build layered dungeons. The plastic table portions are durable. One of the legs has snapped apart from disassembly but for the most part the table itself is impressive. I would not recommend putting this together by yourself, as it takes two people to flip it over to stand it up without bending or breaking the table. With the legs and the extra stabilizer squares the AdapTableTop is able to be sturdy enough for board games and maps. I got the double set so I can have two levels of 6 tiles (2x3 tiles) and it covers a good chunk of our playing table. The table looks good when put together and I am quite pleased with how the table turned out. The rubber feet that can go on the bottom of the legs exceeded my expectation.
I think one of my favorite things about the AdapTableTop table is the customization to your gaming table. You can make squares, rectangles, and multilayered dungeons. You can make different shapes such as having a 3x3 square in the middle and then a pop out square in front of each player (if you have enough tiles to do so). I have used this in square and rectangle formation the most. Each top is 30 cm by 30 cm. Legs can be either put at a short or regular height depending on if you use both or just the top half of the legs (9cm vs 13cm heights)att. The bottom of the table pieces are honey combed so you can put the “lego” like tops of the legs where you would like. One of the things I like is that you don't have to have the legs on the outside if you don't want to, you can set legs back an inch and give more space for under table storage.
Putting it together is an interesting process. Please note that the box comes with paper instructions, that can be a little less than describable. There are other people out there who have put YouTube tutorials on how to put it together with less fear of breaking pieces. It is a really tight fit for the leg and stabilizer squares into the circles on the bottom of the table pieces. Dm Bork and I had to tag team so one held the table square down while the other pulled straight up with the legs/stabilizer.
I'm sure with more time and practice the ease of putting it together will be increase. Right now I think I am most hesitant knowing that people have broken leg parts and one of ours even popped apart at the seam (nothing a little super glue love can't fix). It is super nice when it is fully put together though.
The most recent use of the AdapTableTop was for a 3 tiered dungeon for a horror one shot. It made set up much easier to pre build all the pieces and then just remove the tiers as the party explored downward. It did clear up space at the table, when not using the table top it gives players space to store dice trays or snack plates when playing and it keeps my table top my cleaner and less cluttered which is a big fox pet peeve.
The ATT Player Kit
The thing I was most disappointed about was all of the accessories. The clips to hold down the maps were too tight to even get a piece of paper halfway under them. The clips were made to size of the table with no give in the plastic to put any maps or even the mats that came in the accessory kit from this company. The neoprene mats came rolled funky so there is a permanent crease in each of the mats. Also the square side of the mats are great but the hexes are way too small to use for ttrpgs or games. The cup/can holder works alright, they do hold a pop can but the plastic is of ok quality and I can see them breaking in the future. Also a note, not a critique, the clip is big enough to slide a can in but there is no bottom holder so the can slides all the way through making it just a piece of plastic to help prevent spills from happening. The cup holder is quite sturdy though and one of two things that will be used from the player Kit.
The plastic “dice holder” is a very weak piece of plastic cup that comes with an equally flimsy cap. The idea was these plastic containers would slide into the cup holders mentioned above to hold dice and game pieces. They are so shallow that you will only be able to put one full set of 7 polyhedral dice in it or a very limited amount of game pieces inside of it. Even having two of these containers to a spot there is a very limited amount that will fit into it and it seems that when we play board games and ttrpg we are using the table rather than using these plastic containers.
I do like the two dice towers that came with the player accessories box. There are two different styles that were unlocked by the Kickstarter. The dice towers are not super fancy but they do the job. The pieces are of a quality cardboard and the dice towers can be slid together fairly easily. They also break down to be flat again after gaming for easy storage. The towers aren’t of high quality where they have long ramps to bounce off of but they do the job. These are now dice towers that my players can borrow when we play in person games. I would not recommend lots of disassembly /reassembly as the cardboard that the dice towers are made out of will break down over time and I can see the pieces getting destroyed over time.
The biggest bummer was that when the accessories box came the card holder was made of cheaply painted wood instead of the promised plastic and the slots were not big enough to even hold cards without the high risk of damaging your cards by trying to shove them in the too small of slot. On the Kickstarter backer facebook page it was said that the missing pieces and these card holders would be replaced, but when the second Kickstarter ended and we got the survey to get these replacement pieces they wanted us to repurchase them. I was so disappointed with the accessories the first time around, I’m going to cut my losses and not give them more money to replace these items. I can see paying for shipping, but not paying for the products again when I paid the first time to not get a product and then have to pay to replace the wood product with something that was already promised. As shown on the box below the trays were supposed to be a plastic item as well and the cups look to be made of a thicker and more durable plastic as well. The clips and cup holders look to be of a black plastic but I'm not picky about color. It does make me wonder if the black plastic for the mat holders would have been more flexible.
Too tight
Here is an image of me trying to get a piece of white printer paper under the mat clip. Trying to put one of the neoprene mats under would have broken the clip.
I do like the map
The square side of the mat is nice looking and I would probably use it if I could get the creases out (shown in last pic here)
Too small
The hex side has a very small hex print so I cannot use these for our traditional minis for D&D that we have.
The Creases
This was the first picture of me setting it up. The mats cover a good portion of the AdapTableTop but unfortunately there is no good way to get them flat. There is even a Youtuber who tried ALL the things (steam, iron, wash) and could not get it out either.
Overall Thoughts From the Dungeon Fox
I am so very happy that I purchased the table set itself. Having a play space that elevated, where everyone can see the maps free of items and snacks. I like that it frees up space and allows for players to store things under the AdapTableTop such as putting your character sheets and dice trays out of the way when not in use. It can also be a place to put game tokens when playing board games for those that are not in use. I wish that I didn't buy the PlayerKit; I would have rather used that money to get a third box of the table top pieces. I think the concept is great. I know that the company has come out with stl 3d printing files for different legs. I wish that there was a file for more tiles as well since I have not found a way to order more of these unless you did the Kickstarter.