Connect 4 Face Mosaic

This is Connect 4 with a twist. Connect 4 is a two-player game in which the players take turns dropping colored discs into a vertically suspended grid. The pieces fall straight down, occupying the next available space within the column. The object of the game is to connect four of your pieces vertically, horizontally, or diagonally before your opponent.

This game follows the same rules, except its standard colored discs are replaced by clear and mirrored game pieces. When the game is finished, you create a mashup of your and your opponent's faces! Every game, so every mosaic, is different.

Step 1: Get the Supplies

You will need:

• (x1) 36"x24" sheet of 1/4" clear acrylic
• (x1) 36"x24" sheet of 1/8" clear acrylic
• (x1) 8"x8" sheet of 1/8" 2-way partially silvered mirror
• (x1) 8"x8" sheet of 3/16" clear acrylic
• (x10) M3 socket hex cap screws 16mm in length
• (x30) M3 hex nuts
• black and white acrylic paint
• paintbrush

Step 2: Cut the 1/8 In. Clear Acrylic

First, correctly position the 1/8" clear acrylic in the laser cutter. Download the attached file, which includes patterns for the board's vertical support pieces, slider, and game pieces, and send it to your laser cutter. The pattern includes seven vertical supports plus two extra in case some crack, top and bottom slider pieces that will be screwed together, and eighteen clear game pieces. The settings for your cut depend on the laser cutter you use. I used an Epilog 120 Watt laser cutter with the settings set to those in the included image.

Step 3: Cut the 1/8 In. Partially Silvered Mirror

Download the attached file, which includes patterns for the mirrored game pieces, and cut them out in 1/8" clear acrylic. The laser cutter's settings are identical to the previous step.

Step 4: Cut the 3/16 In. Clear Acrylic

Download the attached file, which includes patterns for the base pieces, and cut them out in 3/16" clear acrylic. I used the same settings in the included image.

Step 5: Cut the 1/4 In. Clear Acrylic

Finally, download the file here that includes patterns for the game board and legs, and cut them out in 1/4" clear acrylic . I used the settings included in the picture here.

Step 6: Poke and Peel

Poke acrylic out of any holes with your fingers. For smaller holes, trying using a small pick. Also peel off the protective plastic from the pieces.

Step 7: Assemble the Board

Place one game board face flat on a table and snap all seven support pieces into its vertical notches. Make sure the edge with small notches is hanging over the table ledge. This ensures that the beams' protrusions don't break when you snap them in place. Take the second game board face and push it into the support beams so the beams are sandwiched between the two boards. Push the legs pieces into the the notches on the sides of the boards.

Step 8: Assemble the Slider

The slider latches onto the bottom of the vertical Connect 4 board. It's made of three pieces total: two top pieces that screw onto a bottom piece. Assemble the slider by pushing 16mm M3 socket hex cap screws into the top pieces' holes. Secure them onto the top pieces with two M3 hex nuts, which also act as spaces. Finally, thread the remaining end of the screw into the bottom slider piece and secure down with a hex nut.

To attach the slider to the board, guide it through a rectangular hole in a leg piece. Push the slider onto the board such that its top and bottoms pieces hug the beam protrusions. Your board is now fully assembled.

Step 9: Paint the Edges

It's sometimes hard to differentiate the pieces when playing, so I painted the edges of mine. I used a small paint brush and acrylic paint to color the clear tokens white and the mirrored ones black.

Step 10: Play

Make sure the slider is pushed all the way to the left so falling game pieces are caught. Drop base pieces, labeled "B", into each column. Now you are ready to go! Have fun making mashups of you and your opponent's faces.