IMPORTANT EU/UK NOTICE:
26/11/2025 - There is an issue with Shopify at the moment - the Trump Tariffs have messed up the way the settings work for tax apps and duties.
I have had to raise all EU and UK prices 20% in order to collect VAT since the normal system is not working. This is so your order can be shipped without customs fees. But large orders pay customs fees normally and I don't want to charge you that 20%.
So here's a work around for the Black Friday Sale until Shopify fixes the issue.
If you want to place a *large order above the VAT thresholds (read below) and you live in the EU or UK you will need to either contact me for a special or sign up to the email list for a special discount code to remove the 20% VAT.
For small orders, there is no issue. It's IOSS and I collect VAT for you. Please use the chat app if something is unclear or you have an issue.
*What is a "Large order"? Due to the many discount combinations in my emails, the cart etc and the way the discounts work I can't actually give an exact figure - For the UK for example, I tried to make an extra 20% off discount on top of the other black friday promotions. But too many discounts brought the number below the VAT collecting threshold - So I have made the threshold approx 360 AUD for EU / 202 EUR and approx $475 AUD / 149 GBP (Because you can have all these other discounts which then brings the price down closer to say, 151 EUR)
i'm in the usa - will i pay tariffs?
Brutal Cities are Australian-manufactured goods
Yes. you will pay tariffs of 10% as a line Item on your order. I'm even eating the other small processing fee for you :) This is paid in advance so you don't need to worry about customs! Refer to the shipping policy for more information.
i live in the eu/uk - what are tax/customs like?
Prices will update in your checkout based on amount in your cart - If you are over the respective UK and EU VAT thresholds we will not collect tax and the prices we show will be less - customs/post service will charge tax instead. You will pay VAT on the total cost of the order and any customs fees.
UK: For all orders up to £135 Brutal Cities will collect 20% VAT for the UK Government.
EU: Brutal Cities is IOSS registered. This means that we will collect and pay VAT on goods up to 150 EUR. (This 150 threshold does not include shipping) You will still need to pay EU customs clearance + VAT for all orders over 150 EUR.
Refer to the shipping policy for more information.
how long does shipping take?
Generally shipping (not fulfillment) takes up to 7 business days in Australia and approx 8-20 worldwide. See full policy.
25/11/2025 - update. Because the US tariffs are still new Shopify has not had adequate time to update critical settings. This is extremely frustrating and orders to the US now take much much longer to complete the customs forms. I'm also waiting for help from support as I don't want any errors and for your order to be rejected by customs. Please bear with me.
what happens if a product/part arrives damaged?
Send me a photo of the damaged part or product at ryan@brutalcities.com and I'll ship out a replacement to you ASAP.
do you give refunds?
If there are any issues with your products we will send out a replacement or we can refund you after the products are returned to us. We have a 30 day returns policy if you change your mind and have unopened products. Read our full policy.
does brutal cities have a distributor in my country?
Unless you're in Australia (where I live) No sorry! This is something we're looking into but for now Brutal Cities doesn't have any international distributors.
what glue do I use for mdf terrain?
PVA or Woodglue is the best. You can use superglue too. This is faster to dry but more brittle. PVA is usually the best because it's stronger for MDF. It also gives you time to fix any mistakes while it dries.
Even though I design the kits occasionally I have made mistakes too, but it wasn't a problem as I could still take it apart easily enough!
ALWAYS dry fit before gluing. More construction tips here on the MDF terrain instructions page.
do I need to seal before painting?
Brutal Cities MDF is dense and high quality. I hear people going to great lengths to seal their MDF terrain with PVA, hairspray etc. I haven't found the need to. Two coats of rattlecan primer is sufficient. I like to use rustoleum flat grey (higher quality than might be necessary, however I'm usually painting the buildings grey anyway!)
why is your terrain expensive?
Some people think they are a great price, others not. If you're in the later category, consider this;
The designs are far more flexible. You can use one set of terrain for 40k, modern skirmish games, pulp games, sci-fi games, cyberpunk games. You might want to supplement different settings with a few period-specific terrain elements, but overall you will get better value and save more time for playing games!
Some other reasons;
- We use a small but top of the line Trotec laser which loses some efficiency in terms of bed size and power, but makes up for it with finer quality cuts. Fewer errors as the beam doesn't have as far to travel (larger lasers have higher chance of misalignment.
Any misalignment is amplified. Eg. If you are 1 degrees off but walk 5 steps, you're still going straight to your destination.
If you're 1 degree off but walk a kilometer, you are 17m away.
I've got a bunch of terrain from other manufacturers, and with almost every other company, you can easily see the laser pulses on score lines. (little dots in a line which the laser fires) Not so with Brutal Cities. I put the frequency up so the score lines are crisp and smooth for your immersion.
- Brutal Cities terrain is typically much larger than most MDF kits - which means more material and time. However, it looks way more realistic if you want an urban table!
- Our MDF is the best! see above: What glue do I use for MDF Terrain?
how do I paint my terrain?
Check out our painting techniques blog! I also have a painting MDF terrain PDF guide available if you subscribe to our email list.
You can also follow me on Instagram or Tiktok for reels with painting tips.