Glue-less Turkey Papercraft

The Toymaker website is a true delight. The site has dozens of lovely hand-drawn printables for all occasions. A few years ago I made this glue-less papercraft turkey as a table decoration for our Thanksgiving dinner. I would call it a 3D papercraft, but because the head, legs and tail feathers are flat, it is probably more accurate to call it a "2.5D" papercraft. The PDF template for this turkey may be downloaded from The Toymaker's Thanksgiving section. It should be noted, unlike the photo where the turkey's tail is blank, in the template the turkey has the words "WE GIVE THANKS" across his tail.

Other Thanksgiving Papercraft:

Origami Turkey
Easy Mayflower Ship
Cooked Turkey Origami

Captain Phasma Paper Sculpture

I like to think of this Captain Phasma model as "papercraft bas-relief". Intended to be seen from the front only, the model uses curved pieces of card stock to give it a 3D effect. Phasma was designed by papercraft artist, Mookeep. A download of the template is available here. Captain Phasma was the first female stormtrooper to appear in a live action Star Wars movie.

Other Star Wars Paper Models:
Tauntaun
Jango Fett
Aayla Secura
Jabba the Hutt
Han Solo

Cthulhu Mythos Papercraft

Ugh! This group of uglies are some Cthulhu Mythos figures created for tabletop gaming by Eddnic at Fantasy Paper Miniature. Pictured are but 4 of the 15 characters available. From the upper left going clockwise there is Cthulhu, a Byakhee, a Shoggoth, and a Nightgaunt. Eddnic makes use of a papercraft technique some call "2.5D" because flat (2D) pieces of paper are used to create 3D effects. The Cthulhu Mythos universe began with the writings of H. P. Lovecraft and was expanded upon by subsequent writers.

Other Lovecraft Papercraft:

Arcane Books
2D Cthulhu Mask
Elder Thing
House of Chthulhu Paper Toy

2.5D Chinese Dragon Papercraft

In Chinese mythology, the Azure Dragon (Qinglong) symbolizes the cardinal direction east. By extension, the Qinglong also represents the season of spring. This 2.5D papercraft Azure Dragon was created for use in miniature gaming by papercraft designer, Eddnic. The printable PDF file for the model may be downloaded here. Sorry to say, there are no instructions for this model. Your best guide is the photo shown.

Other RPG Papercraft:

Medieval Tents
Crypt Worm
Urban Buildings
Star Trek Ships
Japanese Torii

Papercraft Star Trek Playset

Here's a fun little papercraft playset of the Star Trek TOS bridge. The playset features hand drawn art and comes in an easy to assemble 2.5D format. The various pieces of the diorama may be found in the DeviantART gallery of MadunTwoSwords.  The floor and walls work better when they are glued to cardboard or foamcore.

Previous Star Trek papercraft:
Mini Shuttle Collection
Kirk and Spock Paper Models
Type II Hand Phaser
Voyager Medical Tricorder
Klingon Knife

UPDATE 7/2/2019: Madun's DA account has been deactivated. :( The link above now points to an archived version of his page. Low res images of the playset parts may be saved by right clicking on the images and selecting "save image as".

White Dragon Paper Model

What were tabletop RPG games like before papercraft was introduced? A lot less fun, I'd say. :) Eddnic at Fantasy Paper Miniature runs one of the best websites for free 2.5D printables for miniature gaming. This white dragon is but one example of his work.  The template for the dragon may be downloaded here. Build photo by DeviatART member Cavyman.

Previously posted dragon papercraft:
Draken Dragon
Winged Dragon of Ra
Minecraft Ender Dragon
RPG Figure Flats Dragon

2.5D Batman Paper Toy

Desktop Gremlins has added to their free papercraft collection. This time it is an animation style Batman! With only two pieces and no glue required, this has to be the easiest papercraft Batman anywhere to be found. The PDF template for the toy may be downloaded here.  The template includes two options: the classic animated style Batman pictured above and a more sinister Dark Knight style Batman.

Warhammer Necron Night Scythe Papercraft

Here's another fine Warhammer miniature gaming papercraft from Jim Bowen. This papercraft falls into the "2.5D" category of paper models as the ship is formed from flat printouts that are glued to black foam core then stacked. According to the Warhammer 40k Wiki, the Night Scythe is "capable of combat operations in both the void and within a planet's atmosphere. It serves the Necron forces in the interceptor, starship assault, and fighter-bomber roles." The template for the model is available here.

2.5D Papercraft Decepticon Seeker Jets

WuLongTi created these 2.5D fighter jets for use in a table top game. It just so happens that Wu is also a huge Transformers fan so he modeled the jets after the alt modes of the Decepticon Seekers. Included in the assortment are StarScream, ThunderCracker, SkyWarp, AcidStorm and SunStorm. The templates for the Seekers are available for download here. The design for the original Seeker jets in the Transformers franchise were based on the real-life F-15 Eagle fighter jet. Build photo is by Aim11.

2.5D Steampunk Santa Papercraft

This "Steam Santa" papercraft is new from Desktop Gremlins. Here's the back-story to the piece:

"Steam Santa makes gifts for all the good girls and boys, shrinks them down to the size of a spec and carries them in a magical utility belt. He can be seen each December, zooming around the world on a wondrous steam-powered jet pack, delivering holiday joy." 

As with all the delightful creations from Desktop Gremlins, this three piece papercraft is glue-less and easy to build.  The printable template for Steam Santa may be downloaded here.

RPG Papercraft: Blue Dragon

Here's another great miniature gaming papercraft designed by Eddnic. This blue dragon is a good illustration of Eddnic's 2.5D paper model work which is so well developed that it could be considered true 3D papercraft (or at least 2.7D ^^). A download of the blue dragon template is available here.

2.5D Velociraptor Paper Model

Paper models show up in the oddest of places! This 2.5D velociraptor papercraft is a free download at the Spanish language paleontology illustration blog "Las conicas de Pabluratops". The velociraptor (or "raptor" for short) depicted by the paper model is specifically Velociraptor mongoliensis, named for the fact that several fossils of the creature have been found in Mongolia. In the 1993 movie Jurassic Park, raptors are portrayed as cunning and ruthless killers. A printable template for the dinosaur is available here.

2.5D Dragon Paper Model

The term "2.5D" is a very appropriate description for the papercraft figures that are often created for miniature gaming. They are more than just flat 2D paper figures, but something less than a full blown 3D paper model. This red dragon paper model is one of the better examples to be found of the art of 2.5D modeling. Created by ONE-MONK, the PDF template for the dragon may be downloaded here.

High Elf Tower Papercraft

Here is another great papercraft from the world of miniature gaming: a High Elf tower. There are several nice things about this tower model. First, the roof is removable. Next, it is constructed so that the interior has as much color and detail as the outside of the tower. Finally, the window shutters can actually be opened and closed. A free download of the template for the tower is available here. 

RPG Dragon Papercraft

This papercraft dragon was designed by Jordan Peacock, the same designer who brought us the Alice in Wonderland Chess Set. This type of model is what Jordan calls "figure flats" which are simple fold-over paper models meant to serve in the place of the more expensive painted miniatures used in role playing games. In other places I have seen papercraft of this kind referred to as a "2 1/2 D" model, which I think is a good way to describe a 3D paper construction that is built of mostly flat pieces. A PDF template containing five different colored dragons and may be downloaded here, just click on the image near the bottom of the page to the left of the heading that reads: "MORE Sundered Skies Free Figure Flats: Dragon Models".

Mr. Rippy Robot Papercraft

This robot papercraft is a little different than most you will see in that it is built almost entirely from flat pieces, but surprisingly it still achieves a good 3D effect. The name of the robot is "Mr. Rippy" . His job is that of an assassin. Mr. Rippy was designed by "Nobody", comes in three colors, and was intended to be used in miniature gaming. A download of the template is available here.

Lovecraft Papercraft: Elder Thing

Well, it's not Cthulhu, but it comes close. Dubbed the "Elder Things" by the Antarctic explorers who found them in H. P. Lovecraft's novella At the Mountains of Madness, these creatures were thought by the explorers to be extraterrestrials who colonized Earth one billion years ago. This papercraft Elder Thing was created by UK artist Wayne Peters for use in 28mm scale role-playing games. The PDF template is located here.

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