Edited by Swedge
Yoga mat.
DagobahDave's yoga mat is pretty good, when it comes to being the right size and not letting your minis slip. However, I do want something that looks spacy, and I find that my black spray-painted felt is really nice.
That is, until my cat decides to join in the fun. Never pull the cat off the table when felt is on the line!
I'm sure I've said before that the only thing better than a yoga mat would be a yoga mat with nebulae and stars printed on it.
Favorite Battle Surface?
Oak table
I just got the HCD Supplies Star Field mat, and I'm going to try it tonight. It's basically a huge mouse pad. I got the one that has just some small stars scattered about, so it's not as busy looking as most of the mats we see.
I'll post here how I like it after I use it.
Update for anyone who was interested: I really like this HCD supplies mat. It's basically a huge mousepad--heavy grippy material on the backside, and a slightly shiny cloth material on the play surface. Doesn't budge at all on a wood table, and the design is quite nice with stars and a very subtle blue gas/nebula effect in places. I much prefer it to the very busy nebula/planet style mats that are prevalent.
Two complaints:
1. The corners are rounded very slightly. Probably about the outer arc of a quarter, so not much is cut off if you need to put two together for epic. I don't really think it's an issue.
2. I wish the play surface was just a teensy weensy bit grippier to better prevent nudging of pieces. I have a feeling that people using Yoga mats might just have the best overall surface, as both sides are nice and grippy on those.
Overall I think I'd recommend it over just about any other "official" play surface I've seen, as well as felt. Yoga mats might technically be a better overall surface for preventing bumpage, though.