Trench Crusade Basing Box Review ⏤ Bear Cavalry's Eco-Friendly Grimdark Basing Paints

I’ve been painting up two Warbands for Trench Crusade, the Principalities of New Antioch and the Iron Sultanate, using the official digital files from Factory Fortress, Inc. The models themselves are fantastic, and can check out GamingTrend’s Learn to Paint articles on these warbands. What really brought these models to life (death?) is the basing materials and paints from Bear Cavalry’s Trench Crusade Basing Box. I had a chance to use this basing for both warbands and the end results speak for themselves… and they’re eco-friendly!

What is Trench Crusade?

Trench Crusade is a skirmish-scale tabletop miniatures game set in a horrifying alternate timeline of World War 1. Europe, the Middle East, and Africa have fallen to demonic forces after demons were set loose during the First Crusade. The crusades have continued, and the landscape is devastated by a prolonged, trench-based war. Created by a collaboration of horror artist Mike Franchina, sculptor James Sherriff, and former Games Workshop designer Tuomas Pirinen, Trench Crusade is a miniatures-agnostic combat game that allows, and even encourages, players to use miniatures from their favorite 28mm-32mm scale miniature games (Like Warhammer, Warmachine, and even Bolt Action). The game itself uses a clever success and failure system using d6 dice, so no proprietary dice are needed.

Bear Cavalry Paints & Mission Statement

Bear Cavalry Paints is a truly unique painting operation. Founded by Dan and Tracy Zehner, Bear Cavalry Paints was born from a passion for tabletop gaming and a mission to provide eco-friendly solutions for miniature painters. Bear Cavalry products are crafted using recyclable bottles, compostable labels, and a roadmap to fully biodegradable packaging. For them, it’s not just about being green; it’s about creating products that make miniature painting more accessible, enjoyable, and convenient. Their mission is to empower miniature painters with the tools they need to bring their vision to life while simultaneously protecting the planet we all share. 

Bear Cavalry & Elrik Hobbie’s Muck & Mire Trench Crusade Basing Box Contents

So how does a company that’s so eco-friendly and conservation-minded fit into the gritty dark alternate history of World War1? Simple; coffee grounds.

Nothing makes nature look better than nature. There’s simply no better way to have a rock on the base than to have a rock on the base. The same goes for mud and muck. Made with recycled paint, coffee grounds from Caffee Pacori, and some Oregon sand, Bear Cavalry’s signature earthy texture paint is made with natural elements. 

Trench Crusade basing box — The Universe’s Ultimate Acrylic Paint

Get ready to defend the realm from the forces of evil, or perhaps you’re more inclined to unleash chaos on your enemies. Either way, bring a shovel. Time for Trench Crusade! This kit contains multiple colors of mud, weathering pigments, some excellent bases and debris from Elrik’s Hobbies, and a yeo

The Universe's Ultimate Acrylic Paint

Contents

This kit contains a lot! You get three colors of mud (Mire of Lands Tithed, Muck of Hell’s Thrones, and Bounty of No Man’s Land), three jars of weathering pigments (Blackened, A7V Mephisto, and Fields of Verdun), some excellent black, 3D printed bases, 3D printed debris from Elrik’s Hobbies, and New Antioch Yeoman miniature… and a little shovel! If you don’t have any texture paints, or are looking to expand, then this is the box to get.

Muck & Mire Texture Paints

The texture paints themselves are smooth and rich, but don’t let that sweet smell of coffee fool you into tasting it (seriously, don’t do it. It’s paint). Unlike some other texture paints out there, these ones go on really well, and can easily be applied with an old brush or spreading tool (like a shovel!). For my pieces, since the bases were already textured, I only added dabs and spots of the texture paint. Some of it covered the boards, and some just spots built up against the printed battlefield debris. Once it dried, it left this nice, chunky mud that really captures that European muck nicely. I gave a little more depth to the mud using spots of Agrax Earthshade in addition to Bear Cavalry Streaking Grime.

Dust

Pigment powder is a hobby beast of a different color. It can easily make or break your model; too much and you just get a ghostly, sandy mess, and too little and it looks like you have flaky paint that needs some Head & Shoulders. When using pigments, it’s important to apply it after you’ve painted your model, and certainly after sealing it (if you’re doing that). It’s a powder, so when it mixes with any liquid, it immediately mixes into it (which includes spray paint). If done correctly, you get this really nice coating over the paint that can nail that dusty wasteland look. For a miniature like the New Antioch Shocktrooper, there is no way his boots aren’t either caked in mud or the dusty remains of No Man's land, so I made sure to dab in the pigment (brushing off the excess).

Grime

While not part of the bundle box, Bear Cavalry supplied me with a sample of their Streaking Grime Technical Paint to use on my forces. Composed of canola oil, the streaking grime flows easily onto the models. Especially for vertical flat surfaces like walls, shields, and tank armor, this is a great little technical paint to apply after painting to get that mechanical look of leaky oil and unkempt vehicles. 

Technical paints (20 mL) — The Universe’s Ultimate Acrylic Paint

The Universe's Ultimate Acrylic Paint

The Extras

In addition to the paints, the box comes with several blank bases, a Yeoman miniature, and some basing debris, such as skulls, crosses, candles, and holy shells (if that’s not the official title of them, I am not sure what they would be). These were a nice little bonus to have, and I included some skulls on my Iron Sultanate Figures. 

I painted up the provided Yeoman for my New Antioch warband.

The best accessory provided was this little shovel, which was a great way to scoop paint out and apply it to the bases. It also served as a great way to mix the texture paints. This little tool is going to be part of my painting accessories for years to come. 

New Antioch and Iron Sultanate

To give these materials a proper test run, I painted up a warband for the New Antioch and the Iron Sultanate. The basing really helps tie everything together, and I feel like Bear Cavalry’s paints really help tie everything together. 

I am very happy with the outcomes of each warband's basing, and am really pleased with how quickly the basing application went.

Impressions

Saving the planet and painting miniatures with some top-notch basing is a win-win. I have painted a lot of minis, using a lot of texture paints, and while they have a limited selection of colors right now, I will absolutely be using them when I can. Other texture paints can be very costly per ounce, especially if you’re painting full armies. A little bit of this texture paint goes a long way. The best part is that it’s using natural elements and materials, so it really does capture the essence of the mud and muck of the wasteland. I don’t normally use pigments for my minis, only because it tends to rub off after a lot of handling. However, I have lots of war dioramas that could benefit greatly visually by adding dust to trousers or wheels. I really like the colors on these pigments, and I think I would reach for them over some of the others out there I’ve used. Streaking grime is neat, and I could see this being very useful and handy for mechanical details on armor plates or engines. Again, not something I’d use regularly, but I can see it being applied appropriately for other models and miniatures. 

I will be using the texture paint on all of my Trench Crusade minis and I would like to use it on some of my other post-apocalyptic minis as well (looking at you, Fallout: Wasteland Warfare!) This is a really fantastic box, and offers a lot for texture paint options for new and veteran painters alike. 

Have you painted up and based your Trench Crusade warband yet? Share your work with us! Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Blue Sky!