Red Desert 24”x24” / 61x61 cm - mat for wargames
Compatible with
The shuttle lifts off, its dust settles, and the crew is left standing on brick-red clay that last saw rain long ago: fine cracks under every boot, darker streaks where the wind has dragged the dust, and the same orange running to the horizon in every direction. Red Desert brings that ground to the table as rubber 61 cm a side (2' x 2') for Stargrave crews and Five Parsecs from Home campaigns. Turn a double-sided copy over and the crew lands on green grass instead.
Key features of the Red Desert 24" x 24" mat
- Orange-red clay from edge to edge - the whole surface is dusty orange-red clay with darker reddish-brown patches and a few lumps of broken crust; the print has no craters, rocks, plants or roads, so every piece of cover comes from your own scenery.
- A web of drying cracks - fine cracks break the crust into small, uneven polygons in wide bands across the design, the way a clay pan looks once the last of the water has gone.
- Two feet square, both games - a Five Parsecs from Home campaign jumps between 2' x 2' and 3' x 3' battlefields, and Stargrave fits a table of 2' x 2', 3' x 3' or 4' x 4' - this mat covers the smallest of them.
- Rubber, one face or two - 2-millimetre natural rubber carries the printed polyester surface and a laser trims the edges; a single-sided copy holds on with a bare anti-slip back, a double-sided one shows green grass there, and both roll or fold away.
Specification
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Size | 61 x 61 cm (24" x 24" / 2' x 2') |
| Design | Red Desert - orange-red dusty clay, fine drying cracks, darker reddish-brown patches, small lumps of broken crust |
| Versions | Single-sided rubber mat / Double-sided rubber mat |
| Reverse (double-sided) | Green grass |
| Backing | Anti-slip rubber (single-sided version) |
| Compatible with | Five Parsecs from Home, Stargrave, Deadzone (3 ed.), Halo: Flashpoint, Space Weirdos, Planet 28, MERCS 2.0 (unofficial) |
| Miniature scale | 28-36 mm |
| Material | Natural rubber 2 mm, polyester top layer |
| Edges | Laser cut |
| Storage | Roll or fold |
| Made in | Poland |
Where the Red Desert 24" x 24" mat fits
Planetfall for Five Parsecs crews - Five Parsecs from Home: Planetfall hands a crew of colonists, scientists and explorers the job of building a colony on an alien world strewn with starships that crashed aeons ago; its 14 mission types run from exploration to pitched battles and expeditions into alien ruins, and the rules work with characters from the original Five Parsecs from Home.
A longer story in Five Parsecs - the full retail edition added a seven-stage narrative campaign for solo play and expansion modules that upgrade the crew's starship, and before each fight you check for special deployment conditions, then set up the table.
A Stargrave crew on 400 credits - with 400 credits to spend, a captain and first mate hire up to eight soldiers, no more than four of them specialists such as a Pathfinder, Sniper or Codebreaker, and each soldier costs anything from nothing to 150 credits.
Who moves first in Stargrave - each captain acts with up to three soldiers standing nearby, then the first mates do the same, then the rest of the soldiers, and creatures and other figures run by the game move last; on the d20, a natural 20 always succeeds and a natural 1 always fails.
New fronts for Stargrave - Death Vector (2025) sends crews into the Outlaw Technology Sector, where cyborg automatons still hunt anything living, and Acceptable Losses (Osprey, November 2026) is the game's first military supplement, with vehicles, heavy weapons, airdrop deployment, artillery strikes and minefields.
What makes the Red Desert 24" x 24" mat different
Next to the other desert battle mats we make, Mars has impact craters and raised plateaus, Rocky Desert is beige earth with scattered stones, and Sandy Desert honey-toned sand rippled by the wind. Red Desert keeps to one idea - level orange-red clay that cracked as it dried, with no landmarks in the print - so it can stand in for a colony site, a mining world or any dry planet you fill with your own buildings. This is the smallest size in the Red Desert series; at the other end sits a 44" x 90" mat.
Frequently asked questions
Where does the cover come from?
From the scenery you set on it - the print is open clay with nothing that blocks a line of sight. Stargrave leans heavily on shooting, so reviewers suggest a few pieces that block sight plus some scatter terrain; most guns in the game reach between 10" and 24", the full width of this mat.
Is there a bigger Red Desert?
Yes - the 36" x 36" Red Desert gives you 3' x 3', the size recommended for most Stargrave games and the larger of the battlefields Five Parsecs from Home uses.
What is printed on the second side?
Green grass, broken here and there by sandy patches, is printed on the back of every double-sided copy, while single-sided ones end in anti-slip rubber.
Complete your gaming setup
FAQ
How long does it take to make and send my order?
Products from our regular offer are usually made and handed to the carrier within up to 10 business days of your order. If your order needs more time, we let you know by email. Orders paid by bank transfer go into production once the payment reaches us.
How long does delivery take?
Courier shipments within Europe arrive within 3 to 5 business days of dispatch. Parcel post can take up to 2 weeks within the European Union and more than a month outside it. Every order gets a tracking link, so you can follow the parcel all the way to your table.
How much does shipping cost?
Free shipping from 200 EUR within the EU and from 400 USD outside the EU. Below these thresholds, delivery costs depend on the destination and parcel weight. The exact price is shown at checkout.
Do you ship outside Europe?
Yes. Besides Europe, we ship by courier to the United States, Canada and Asia. Courier prices outside Europe depend on the destination and the weight of the parcel and are shown in the cart before you pay.
What payment methods can I use?
You can pay online through Stripe or PayPal, which covers credit cards and many popular banking systems, or by bank transfer. Unpaid bank transfer orders are cancelled five business days after they are placed. All prices in the store are gross prices in euro.
Will I get an invoice?
Yes. On request we issue a receipt or a VAT invoice for your order. It goes into the parcel or arrives by email as a PDF file, sent to the address you gave when ordering.
Will the product look exactly like the photos?
Very close, but not always identical. Phones and monitors show colours in RGB, and each screen renders them a little differently depending on brightness and settings. We print in CMYK with our own calibration and match the print to the design as closely as possible.
Is the size exactly as listed?
Almost. Our materials are cut at high temperatures, so the final dimensions of a mat can differ by up to +/- 5 mm from the listed size. On a gaming table this difference has no effect on play, deployment zones or card layouts.
Can I return this product if it is not right for my table?
Yes. You can withdraw from the purchase within 14 days of receiving it, without giving a reason, by sending us the return form. You cover the cost of sending the product back, and we refund your payment, including the original standard delivery cost. Custom products made to your own design cannot be returned this way.
What if my order arrives damaged or I get the wrong product?
File a complaint with your order number, a short description and photos of the problem. You can choose a refund of the price plus delivery or an exchange for a new or correct product, and we cover the shipping both ways. We respond to every complaint within 14 days.
Can I cancel my order before it arrives?
Yes. You can withdraw from the order at any point until you receive it by sending us a statement, for example the return form. This does not shorten your 14-day right to return the product after delivery.
