# Skyrim themed vivarium!



## Lica (Jan 8, 2013)

More funny coloured mushrooms then the last time I tried hallucinogens...

Ok, so I've posted up here about how we're getting the outside of our wonderful custom vivs built.

Fire Skinks aren't too demanding when it comes to having to give them a decent living enviroment - plenty of stuff for them to burrow into, and some nice green, et voila. Done.

Tokays however, present a wonderful opportunity to get creative with their environment.

Because we are quite sad, and have named all our animals after characters from Skyrim, we thought we'd go for the skyrim approach again - except this time our tokay can live in a skyrim kinda setting as well.

For those of you who've played it, we're doing the Blackreach (somehow). For those have you who haven't, look at these pictures, that sums up what we're trying to acheive.

Trying is the operative word here as I'm not entirely sure how we're going to pull this off - does anyone have any ideas as to how we can do this?

Thanks 









Basically, we want to try and pull this off...


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

i honestly don't have a clue on how to help you (other than the fact that the structures would be easy to produce out of polystyrene and grout) however i am VERY interested in this build.

Keep me up to date?


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## Lica (Jan 8, 2013)

Loki 93 said:


> i honestly don't have a clue on how to help you (other than the fact that the structures would be easy to produce out of polystyrene and grout) however i am VERY interested in this build.
> 
> Keep me up to date?


Absolutely. We've got to wait on the viv being made. We've found some rocks that glow in the exact shade of blue, which is totally awesome. Other than that, we're not overly sure how we'll do it yet, but I promise to post up here whenever we manage to achieve something!


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

I'm trying to work out the mushrooms, as I tend to be the creative force out of the two of us 










These are the aquarium pebbles he's talking about. I want to theme it without making the light too overpowering for the tokay. I've had these in a few aquariums before, they absorb light during the day, glow when the lights are out, and slowly fade. They seem perfect to fit into the structure somehow. I thought that the mushrooms would make excellent climbing for the tok, and I'm hoping to be able to incorporate a waterfall in the building (there will only be one, and maybe a bridge due to space) 

Any ideas for any of this would be greatly appreciated, as I'm utterly determined that it *will* happen :Na_Na_Na_Na:


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## Lica (Jan 8, 2013)

Also, going to use a Lego skeleton as Sinderion too, ftw.


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

Would there be a way to crush the pebbles and then use a rep safe glue to glue them to the mushrooms? That would also add texture to them. Plus I'm sure you could make it bioactive which would fit the look


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Loki 93 said:


> Would there be a way to crush the pebbles and then use a rep safe glue to glue them to the mushrooms? That would also add texture to them. Plus I'm sure you could make it bioactive which would fit the look


I'm not sure about crushing the pebbles, I'll have to see when I get some, as I think they're plastic rather than glass, so harder to shatter. I've been toying with the idea of using glow in the dark paint (had some in my bedroom growing up, works better than you'd expect ) and 'splashing' the mushrooms with it to get flecks. But that'll depend on how sealing them effects the paint :/

Edit: just found this stuff

http://glowinc.com/detail.aspx?ID=30


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## GavinMc (Jan 9, 2013)

What about some of THESE for your mushrooms?


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

gavgav04 said:


> What about some of THESE for your mushrooms?


You are easily one of the most helpful people people that I've ever spoken to, considering you also told me where to find Tokays in thee first place :Na_Na_Na_Na: These mushrooms fit the look excellently.

The more ideas people come up with, the more I can see it coming together  can't wait to be able to start it!


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## Lica (Jan 8, 2013)

gavgav04 said:


> What about some of THESE for your mushrooms?


Those are some pretty excellent mushrooms. Plus, pretty damn close to the kind of thing they have down in the Blackreach


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## GavinMc (Jan 9, 2013)

Nicquita said:


> You are easily one of the most helpful people people that I've ever spoken to, considering you also told me where to find Tokays in thee first place :Na_Na_Na_Na: These mushrooms fit the look excellently.
> 
> The more ideas people come up with, the more I can see it coming together  can't wait to be able to start it!


I just happen to know where everything everyone wants is. 

Also I think that first pic that Lica put up has the perfect building(the two towers that look like they are joined with a bridge). I would also go along with Loki and try sculpting your own buildings with polystyrene, but don't buy any just wait and see if you get any thing for Christmas that comes packaged in it. I must have around 3 or 4 cubed meters of the stuff in one of the spare rooms waiting for a creative genius(definitely not me) to make me backgrounds. Also if you don't buy the polystyrene it won't really matter if it goes tits up as it was free in the first place.


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## GavinMc (Jan 9, 2013)

Lica said:


> Those are some pretty excellent mushrooms. Plus, pretty damn close to the kind of thing they have down in the Blackreach


They have quite an unusual colour to them and as they are all natural they will all be different in shape which I feel is also a plus side.


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

gavgav04 said:


> I just happen to know where everything everyone wants is.
> 
> Also I think that first pic that Lica put up has the perfect building(the two towers that look like they are joined with a bridge). I would also go along with Loki and try sculpting your own buildings with polystyrene, but don't buy any just wait and see if you get any thing for Christmas that comes packaged in it. I must have around 3 or 4 cubed meters of the stuff in one of the spare rooms waiting for a creative genius(definitely not me) to make me backgrounds. Also if you don't buy the polystyrene it won't really matter if it goes tits up as it was free in the first place.


I'm planning to use the building on the right from the towers. I'm playing with the idea of using tubing to make it 'rain' from the archway. That'll be excruciatingly fiddly and difficult, but I live alone and have nothing to do xD I'm also looking at dried sponge mushrooms as an element to embed into the polystyrene higher up into the viv. It'll be a mushroomy heaven by the time I'm done


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## Corfel (Apr 29, 2013)

I'm not sure what the housing requirments are for humidity but if they like it humid something I would possibly try is just simply carving sponges into shape but then cover them with a cloth to give them more of a flat and softer look. (rather than just simply looking like a sponge)

I'm not sure how to explain what I mean lol

Something like this as a cover - a dish cloth of sorts.










For a more "mushroom texture" than simply sponge.

Also I imagine they would be relatively cheap to make this way. 

They would hold moisture well obviously and can be easily cleaned (or replaced as and when they get moldy or look worn out etc)


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## Corfel (Apr 29, 2013)

Also glow sticks might be worth a look

You can probably pickup those things on Ebay for dirt cheap in various different colours (the bendy tubes to go around your wrist)

You could bend these around your shrooms, dangle them down or w/e

Obviously I would look into how safe these are in a Viv - I imagine in themselves it's fine, it's just a case of the liquid escaping should they become damaged.


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

By sponge mushrooms, I mean these 

• Sponge Mushroom Picked

I've seen them used in terrarium set ups before, and I'd be sealing them (though obviously not grouting them). I'd be using them more for aesthetics than humidity. 

I'm planning to make a waterfall, you know, because f:censor:k the fact that I have little to no experience of that  I made one before and that worked, so maybe I can do it again xD Hopefully that will help to maintain humidity


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## GoodbyeCourage (Aug 14, 2013)

I don't know whether this'll help but I just stumbled across it Luminous Mushroom Night Light


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## Corfel (Apr 29, 2013)

GoodbyeCourage said:


> I don't know whether this'll help but I just stumbled across it Luminous Mushroom Night Light


That's actually pretty slick lol


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

GoodbyeCourage said:


> I don't know whether this'll help but I just stumbled across it Luminous Mushroom Night Light


That's AMAZING! I'm trying to attempt to avoid too much wiring, but if I manage to sort the waterfall out, I could lay the wiring from that in the same direction. It's just a case of making sure absolutely everything is waterproof. But that definitely looks like it's worth playing with! Thank you!

Chris is going to have a nerdgasm over how cool that looks xD

I really want to get started on it


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## Meefloaf (Mar 24, 2013)

...you can get real mushrooms which glow in the dark


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Meefloaf said:


> ...you can get real mushrooms which glow in the dark


Do you mean the ones that glow green? I think they're poisonous, unfortunately. Also going for a blueish glow


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## Meefloaf (Mar 24, 2013)

here's a build Avatar Mushrooms! - Dendroboard

here's link to mushrooms - Bioluminescent Glow in the Dark Mushroom Habitat Kit

i've not used them personally


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Meefloaf said:


> here's a build Avatar Mushrooms! - Dendroboard
> 
> here's link to mushrooms - Bioluminescent Glow in the Dark Mushroom Habitat Kit
> 
> i've not used them personally


I'm surprised by how many ideas people have had  usually I'm lucky if I get one response on a thread  At this rate, the vivarium will glow too much to have anything live in it xD ah well, as long as it looks cool, nothing wrong with a display every now and then :whistling2:


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## saisaac (Nov 22, 2013)

Couldn't you find some concrete or resin mushrooms such as the type they use for gardens (as in the kind commonly seen with garden gnomes) and then coat them in glow in the dark paint and then put a non-toxic seal over them?


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

saisaac said:


> Couldn't you find some concrete or resin mushrooms such as the type they use for gardens (as in the kind commonly seen with garden gnomes) and then coat them in glow in the dark paint and then put a non-toxic seal over them?


A similar idea has been suggested  I'll be making my own mushrooms, as I'd like for some of them to act as climbing platforms while also matching the theme (the Blackreach mushrooms remind me of jellyfish, personally). But I think we will be coating them in glow paint and some form of sealant/varnish


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

Not going to lie, ima try this one next year. I really want mourning gecko's


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Loki 93 said:


> Not going to lie, ima try this one next year. I really want mourning gecko's


:gasp: Don't steal my idea! I'm so proud of the ingenuity xD also, you'll do it better, and then I'll feel crappy :whistling2:

I've been thinking about making my cresties viv a planted one, as well. If so, she's having a word wall :lol2:


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## Andylsg (May 11, 2010)

hello there! I havent played skyrim :s but i do love a good 'habitat' thread  as a result i'm not sure what its called but in picture 2 if you were using a bulb as your heat source you could possibly contact someone like these peeps

Bespoke Guards | Custom Guards Ltd

I'm sure a similar looking bulb guard could be knocked up or if they cant maybe someone with a hobby involving metalwork :2thumb:


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Andylsg said:


> hello there! I havent played skyrim :s but i do love a good 'habitat' thread  as a result i'm not sure what its called but in picture 2 if you were using a bulb as your heat source you could possibly contact someone like these peeps
> 
> Bespoke Guards | Custom Guards Ltd
> 
> I'm sure a similar looking bulb guard could be knocked up or if they cant maybe someone with a hobby involving metalwork :2thumb:


Unfortunately, they seem to just do made to measure normal bulb guards. I have no clue how to go about finding someone who could make something like that. The more I look at it, the less difficult it actually looks to make, but I don't know where I'd find someone to make it


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## FLINTUS (Feb 12, 2012)

The mushroom idea has got me interested for my own projects. What about these? 
Glow in the dark mushroom Panellus stipticus bioluminescent habitat log kits | eBay


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

FLINTUS said:


> The mushroom idea has got me interested for my own projects. What about these?
> Glow in the dark mushroom Panellus stipticus bioluminescent habitat log kits | eBay


Unfortunately, we have to stick with blue glowing stuff, or it won't fit the theme. I am determined that anyone that has ever played Skyrim will be able to recognise this build as Blackreach

I'm going to have to get a move on with this, or everyone's going to have upstaged me before I've even gotten started :2thumb:


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

Im thinking this picture is good, I like the structures


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

As it stands, I have a 'bit' of a plan. By which I mean that it's been meticulously thought out  I'm going to do the 'background' of the cave by shaping expanding foam to make it look as cavelike as possible, having a fake floor to house the waterfall pump and reservoir (this will be egg crated over so that the gecko can't hurt himself), the building will house the tubing for the waterfall, and will be at the back right of the viv. Then there will just be a variety of mushroomy ledges and glowy rocks xD I'm working out the kinks, and the vivarium isn't going to be very wide, so I have to be conservative of space


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

What size vivarium are you using?


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Loki 93 said:


> What size vivarium are you using?


Sorry, forgot to say as it's in another thread. A pitifully small one  over 3ft tall, but only 40cm wide, as it's part of a custom stack. That's why we decided on Blackreach - other than the building, all pretty basic and not that space consuming


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

Ohh right 


Im contemplating mourning gecko's in a small viv for mine. Not sure if it will happen though


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Loki 93 said:


> Ohh right
> 
> 
> Im contemplating mourning gecko's in a small viv for mine. Not sure if it will happen though


Mourning geckos are adorable :flrt:

For me, arboreal geckos are just about the cutest things ever. It's really hard to pick which ones you want


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## Terapod (Aug 1, 2013)

As a huge elder scroll fan I'll be anticipating this setup! 

: victory: - Max


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## Loki 93 (Jul 12, 2013)

Hows this going?


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## Meefloaf (Mar 24, 2013)

Loki 93 said:


> Hows this going?


it took an arrow to the knee


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## Corfel (Apr 29, 2013)




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## Manchanification (Jan 25, 2014)

Love the idea of a blackreach style viv! Pics when its done?


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Meefloaf said:


> it took an arrow to the knee


Rather than an arrow to the knee, our dog took a needle  So everything reptile related was put on hold for a while for monetary reasons. But we're finishing uni for the year oover the next few weeks and have all of our inhabitants, so will hopefully be getting back on track in the near future.


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## Ccardoso93 (Apr 14, 2014)

This sounds awesome!!!! I can't wait to see how it turns out...I'm much more of a fallout girl myself (guns are more my style I suck at archery and swordmanship) and this thread has given me lots of ideas on how to redo my snake's viv...maybe a halo theme....or maybe megaton from fallout....aah so much inspiration!


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

So we didn't do anything for ages in this due to various setbacks, but we've finally started, and this is what we have so far - mushrooms!

Chris insisted I photograph and update. In the end, we've started at taking wire and knitting needles with clay and grout. So here are the stalks for the mushrooms. These aren't arranged or anything, just stuck in a lump of clay to keep them upright while they dry.




















And then there was all the fun with the god-awful mushroom structures. I have never played with clay, and actually, making the damned thing lumpy and blackreachy was hell on earth. I'm usually a perfectionist, so making them uneven and whatnot has been driving me insane 




























We're finally at the stage where they're strong and stable enough that I'd be willing to let the crestie climb on them. So a few more layers of coloured grout and whatnot, and we can start actually painting and assembling them. As it stands, we're out of clay, so fun will arise with polystyrene and plaster bandages for the building 

I'm actually not too horrified by how they're turning out so far. They look skyrimish enough for me to be happy


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## Kiwibird (Mar 27, 2014)

Looks like an awesome project! I have a mushroom suggestion for you-

Romantic Avatar Effect Romantic Mushroom LED Decor Night Light Rock Cute Lamp | eBay

I debated using these when I was still debating the theme of my vivarium, and thought they were pretty cool


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

Belated updates on finally starting properly with the Skyrim project - after months of poverty and bad fortune with our house (having the floors ripped out), we've made a fair bit of progress. Especially considering this is one of three background currently underway. So far we have mushrooms and a bit of building



















And this is the building we're going for










And our start on it - don't be too harsh. I am but an amateur.










I've also worked out how to put fibre optics into my background, and how to get the ethereal glow on the mushrooms. But money and advancements on the actual interior of the viv are necessary for that


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

This could be an interesting one! I will be watching. Can I suggest you make the details on the building much deeper and pronounced. Reason being you will lose an awful lot of that detail come grouting so you need to compensate beforehand.


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## Liamwilko (May 20, 2014)

I'm a massive elder scrolls fan...subbed to see this build!


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## Nicquita (Mar 14, 2009)

The details are a fair bit deeper than they look, as I used a rotary tool to carve them, so most of it is drilled in. However, this is only half done, with most detailing not finished at all, so it'll all be gone over  Hoping not to lose too much of it. This is the rough start, before sanding the polystyrene back and adding textures to the flat areas. I appreciate any advice, so please feel free to throw some at me ^_^


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## Ph1l (Feb 26, 2013)

Any updates????


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## wagg (Feb 6, 2014)

WHAT!!!! lol i seriousely cant wait to see how it turns out. at the end you will have to give a good detailed list of how you do everything. i havent read everything so im sorry if its allready done lol


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## Corfel (Apr 29, 2013)

Silent for a while...

Guessing one of them took an arrow to the knee... :whistling2:


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