TitusV Posted July 12, 2017 (edited) Tíre Keep is one of the most valuable strongholds of Avalonia. Though it has never been occupied, it's real advantage is the lighthouse: Avalonian ships are ensured they will not get lost the Great Western Ocean. ---------- ---------- My entry to the SJ '17, I'm glad I finally got around to posting it here. Category is the Castle Collab, and my amazing team mates are @Henjin_Quilones and @The Maestro (who's builds will follow). I would like to thank them, and of course the organisation, since I had great fun and I think so had everyone else. Note that it would theoretically be possible to combine all four builds into one big build withouth any (easily noticeable) seams by putting them next to eacht other. The only thing I'm not very happy about are the fleshies figures, but well... My team insisted! And I have to concede it works well with the (somewhat darker) atmosphere we tried to create. Thanks for looking, CC very welcome! Tíre Courtyard Tíre Gatehouse Edited July 13, 2017 by TitusV Adding links to the other entries of our amazing team! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garmadon Posted July 12, 2017 Beautiful work here, Titus - the size alone and the intricate layout are impressive, but the smaller details definitely don't let down either! The colors of the various houses and the stone gateway fit together very well (all the Tudor-work is excellent!), and the rock-work and half border are very neat and well-done too! Some of my favorite details are that curvy wooded walkway - very clever - and the goblet sign and almost hidden staircase there Great work with this collab guys (and you definitely put in your fair share, Titus! ), I'd think you all stand a pretty good shot on taking away the prize for this one! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kai NRG Posted July 12, 2017 As I said on Flickr, Titus - this is one of you best builds ever - super creative and eye-catching layout, really good job on the textures, and both houses look great! Lots of neat details too; I especially like the sign with the green goblet! Keep bricking man, you're getting better and better! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gunman Posted July 12, 2017 Wow Titus... you have improved your building skills so much... Amazing diorama Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGO Train 12 Volts Posted July 12, 2017 I would like to have the ability to build something like this one day! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cloud Posted July 12, 2017 Wonderful design and details. I love it! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mccoyed Posted July 12, 2017 (edited) This is great. Tons of impressive details. I think my favorite is the sign with the glass? A pub I imagine. Great piece use there. Such great lighting and photography too. After posting my first big build in about a year, I'm really noticing how light and photography (and my inability to figure out Photoshop) have held back the presentation of my builds. Also super impressed with the rockwork. I feel like I've barely learned anything about creating those kinds of terrain features without having it all fall apart. Edited July 12, 2017 by mccoyed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zoth33 Posted July 13, 2017 This is great. I really love all the buildings and the wood work. The walkways are wonderful. The stonework is great. All the little shops are great, I especially like the blacksmiths shop. The minifigs make the whole diorama come alive. Great job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BrickFit26 Posted July 13, 2017 I'm always amazed on how much detail goes into these incredible creations. Well done. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Professor Thaum Posted July 13, 2017 Wow ! what a lovely keep... The differents parts "on stilts" are masterpieces Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zork Posted July 13, 2017 WOW, really impressive! The colours, the details... every part of your build fits perfectly. Even the "fleshies figures" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Littleworlds Posted July 13, 2017 I really like this! The buildings are super detailed, with lovely tudoring and brickwork, while at the same time look still solid and believable. That's where many MOCs fail IMO. Nice choice of colours as well and the layout makes it really interesting with the different levels and surfaces involved. Great work! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy D Posted July 13, 2017 (edited) Wow! Beautiful, details amazing, looks like one could just walk into the scene. Andy D Edited July 13, 2017 by Andy D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Braunsfeld Posted July 13, 2017 Really fantastic! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MassEditor Posted July 13, 2017 (edited) This can't be Avalonia, it's way too awesome! Outstanding village scene, Titus. Nicely designed, from the little details to the overall dimension. The layout does a great job making this build look bigger than it actually is - especially with the close up shots. It's a really immersive design, well done! I always loved Jacob Nion's builds for this quality. He could take a 48x48 baseplate and build an entire city on it! The colors are great too, I always love the light bley/reddish brown/dark brown combo. The sand green accents are a great touch. I've tried several times to build a medieval style house using dark green, but I never liked how they looked. Your dark green building is great though! There's some great shapes to this build as well, the gate arch, the twisting boardwalk and the irregular rock border. It all looks incredibly realistic. If I had to make one suggestion, it would be to place a tree or two behind the foremost house in the overall picture. A big one that came up over the house and filled in some of the blank area to the right of the gate house. But that's only if I had to make a suggestion. More to the point, I really think you should have joined Nocturnus. Edited July 13, 2017 by MassEditor Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Globemaster8 Posted July 13, 2017 Awesome! I love the techniques used in the build and this brings the model to life! Well done! I wish I had the pieces (and the time and skill) to do a build to do this quality. Have you ever considered doing a build such as Château de Chaumont or the Neuschwanstein Castle? They would go well along with this set! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slegengr Posted July 13, 2017 Absolutely stunning, TitusV! There are so many neat details! Your Tudor style shines as usual. The docks are great, especially the narrow s-curve section. The stone texturing is superb with just the right splashes of color and texture variation. This scene appears so much larger with the up-close photography! I really like the small blacksmith station with a great anvil design and the nice forge! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
de Gothia Posted July 14, 2017 Stunning build titus!!! Have sen this on Flickr for some time now and wonder when you will publish it here! Love the whole layout and the colourscheme in the moc! Lake town in hobbit comes to mind! Perhaps add water to the moc? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
r5-j2 Posted July 14, 2017 16 hours ago, Andy D said: Wow! Beautiful, details amazing, looks like one could just walk into the scene. Andy D Andy summed it up best...Titus , you have created something special here..pure magic!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted July 14, 2017 On 12/07/2017 at 4:05 PM, Garmadon said: Beautiful work here, Titus - the size alone and the intricate layout are impressive, but the smaller details definitely don't let down either! The colors of the various houses and the stone gateway fit together very well (all the Tudor-work is excellent!), and the rock-work and half border are very neat and well-done too! Some of my favorite details are that curvy wooded walkway - very clever - and the goblet sign and almost hidden staircase there Great work with this collab guys (and you definitely put in your fair share, Titus! ), I'd think you all stand a pretty good shot on taking away the prize for this one! Thanks Garm! I really love tudor (though I think you must have noticed that before ). The sign is actually borrowed from @soccerkid6's Green Goblet Inn. When giving credits, I should also mention @Gideon, who inspired the use of microfigs on jumpers with his excellent Jungle Temple. On 12/07/2017 at 4:25 PM, Kai NRG said: As I said on Flickr, Titus - this is one of you best builds ever - super creative and eye-catching layout, really good job on the textures, and both houses look great! Lots of neat details too; I especially like the sign with the green goblet! Keep bricking man, you're getting better and better! Thank you Kai, glad you like the lay-out, since there went a lot of hours into laying it out Sign by SK, and I defenitely don't plan on stopping! On 12/07/2017 at 10:06 PM, Gunman said: Wow Titus... you have improved your building skills so much... Amazing diorama Thanks Gunman, great to see you like it so much On 12/07/2017 at 10:07 PM, LEGO Train 12 Volts said: I would like to have the ability to build something like this one day! I'm sure you can! On 12/07/2017 at 10:26 PM, cloud said: Wonderful design and details. I love it! Thanks! On 12/07/2017 at 10:43 PM, mccoyed said: This is great. Tons of impressive details. I think my favorite is the sign with the glass? A pub I imagine. Great piece use there. Such great lighting and photography too. After posting my first big build in about a year, I'm really noticing how light and photography (and my inability to figure out Photoshop) have held back the presentation of my builds. Also super impressed with the rockwork. I feel like I've barely learned anything about creating those kinds of terrain features without having it all fall apart. Thank you! The sign was borrowed from SK's Green Goblet Inn, though I have multiple variations for multiple shops ready... I always find photography way harder than building, so... And in my opinion, there's but one way of "learning to rockwork", and that's building! On 13/07/2017 at 4:29 AM, zoth33 said: This is great. I really love all the buildings and the wood work. The walkways are wonderful. The stonework is great. All the little shops are great, I especially like the blacksmiths shop. The minifigs make the whole diorama come alive. Great job. I feel honoured!, thanks! On 13/07/2017 at 5:41 AM, BrickFit26 said: I'm always amazed on how much detail goes into these incredible creations. Well done. Thank you! 23 hours ago, Professor Thaum said: Wow ! what a lovely keep... The differents parts "on stilts" are masterpieces Thanks, good to see you like the stilts, I may be using them again one day 21 hours ago, Zork said: WOW, really impressive! The colours, the details... every part of your build fits perfectly. Even the "fleshies figures" Thank you! Normally, I don't use fleshies, but my team is one huge fleshie-loving mess (), so in the end I just said "OK". And it seems they were right... 21 hours ago, Littleworlds said: I really like this! The buildings are super detailed, with lovely tudoring and brickwork, while at the same time look still solid and believable. That's where many MOCs fail IMO. Nice choice of colours as well and the layout makes it really interesting with the different levels and surfaces involved. Great work! Thanks, Littleworlds! I know what you mean, with all these ramshackle buildings nowadays. Nothing against a bit of texture, but I prefer it if my figures (even when they're fleshies ) can actually live in their houses, and preferably without a leaking roof. 16 hours ago, Andy D said: Wow! Beautiful, details amazing, looks like one could just walk into the scene. Andy D Thank you, Andy! 15 hours ago, Captain Braunsfeld said: Really fantastic! Thanks captain! 12 hours ago, MassEditor said: This can't be Avalonia, it's way too awesome! Outstanding village scene, Titus. Nicely designed, from the little details to the overall dimension. The layout does a great job making this build look bigger than it actually is - especially with the close up shots. It's a really immersive design, well done! I always loved Jacob Nion's builds for this quality. He could take a 48x48 baseplate and build an entire city on it! The colors are great too, I always love the light bley/reddish brown/dark brown combo. The sand green accents are a great touch. I've tried several times to build a medieval style house using dark green, but I never liked how they looked. Your dark green building is great though! There's some great shapes to this build as well, the gate arch, the twisting boardwalk and the irregular rock border. It all looks incredibly realistic. If I had to make one suggestion, it would be to place a tree or two behind the foremost house in the overall picture. A big one that came up over the house and filled in some of the blank area to the right of the gate house. But that's only if I had to make a suggestion. More to the point, I really think you should have joined Nocturnus. I think I'm not going to reply on that first sentence, but thank you none the less! Personally, I'd say Jacob Nion's MOCs still are a step up from my builds, though you're right: this build looks bigger then it is! As for the colours, I went a bit out of my comfort zone. The sand green was a last-minute addition, after a lot of urging from my team-mates. I find dark green a very cool colour to use, although a bit hard to take images of. Glad you like all the shapes, especially the curved walkway was a real pain in the megablock to build Now you say it, a tree would have been super-duper cool! It would add colour, and depth, ... Yes, I really like the idea! Why did you only tell me now? What? Join Necturnus... Noctirnis... Toxturnus... The pumpkin-pie-guild? Never! I just love Avalonia to much... Though there has been a point in the past when @Blufiji had almost persuaded me. Almost! Thank you for the long comment, sir. 12 hours ago, Globemaster8 said: Awesome! I love the techniques used in the build and this brings the model to life! Well done! I wish I had the pieces (and the time and skill) to do a build to do this quality. Have you ever considered doing a build such as Château de Chaumont or the Neuschwanstein Castle? They would go well along with this set! Thanks! I have actually never tried my hand at an existing castle, but I looked these examples up and they sure are really cool! So maybe, one day... 12 hours ago, Slegengr said: Absolutely stunning, TitusV! There are so many neat details! Your Tudor style shines as usual. The docks are great, especially the narrow s-curve section. The stone texturing is superb with just the right splashes of color and texture variation. This scene appears so much larger with the up-close photography! I really like the small blacksmith station with a great anvil design and the nice forge! Thank you, Slegengr! Glad you like the tudor style so muc, since there are more builds in the same style to follow It's good to see you noticed the blacksmith, since it was a bit hidden in the corner. 2 hours ago, de Gothia said: Stunning build titus!!! Have sen this on Flickr for some time now and wonder when you will publish it here! Love the whole layout and the colourscheme in the moc! Lake town in hobbit comes to mind! Perhaps add water to the moc? That's a great comment, dG, thank you! It does bear some appearance to Lake Town, but this is more by coincidence than on purpose. I think. Water would have been cool, but I only have the brighter shades of blue (as fits a proper Avalonian! ), and this would have spoiled the atmosphere. Ideally, I'd use the same technique as Henjin and The Maestro did, but I had only 5 1x2 trans-clear plates or so... Hence I decided to go without water. Just now, r5-j2 said: Andy summed it up best...Titus , you have created something special here..pure magic!! Tha's quite the compliment, thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
J_C Posted July 14, 2017 magnet holders in the roof front profile is the winner to me! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Littleworlds Posted July 14, 2017 1 hour ago, TitusV said: Thanks, Littleworlds! I know what you mean, with all these ramshackle buildings nowadays. Nothing against a bit of texture, but I prefer it if my figures (even when they're fleshies ) can actually live in their houses, and preferably without a leaking roof. Absolutely! It just doesn't looks right to me when a building looks like its close to collapse Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted July 14, 2017 58 minutes ago, J_C said: magnet holders in the roof front profile is the winner to me! Actually, it are turn-table-bases 14 minutes ago, Littleworlds said: Absolutely! It just doesn't looks right to me when a building looks like its close to collapse Exactly! It's not because castles look old today, they were built looking old Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slegengr Posted July 14, 2017 (edited) 5 hours ago, TitusV said: It's good to see you noticed the blacksmith, since it was a bit hidden in the corner. I always notice blacksmiths, as I do a bit of smithing in real life. I would like to do more, but I do not have a shop yet and I keep spending all my little bits of non-work time collecting and planning for LEGO builds! One additional note from an amateur blacksmith: forges were usually built with a flat surface in front without enclosed sides to allow coals to be drawn out to a more open area. The enclosed portion preserves heat until the work piece is to be heated. I noticed that the depth of your forge looks about right. Most people seem to consider a forge to be a deep pit with coals at the bottom, which does not allow for much more than just burning coal and wasting it. A piece of steel is hard to heat by sticking it into a pit. It is much easier to bury the piece in coals on a flatter surface. I will have to research medieval blacksmiths a bit more to be sure of what I perceive as blacksmithing, as most of what I know is based more on early American farriers than sword and armor smiths. Edited July 14, 2017 by Slegengr Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted July 14, 2017 Just now, Slegengr said: I always notice blacksmiths, as I do a bit of smithing in real life. I would like to do more, but I do not have a shop yet and I keep spending all my little bits of non-work time collecting and planning for LEGO builds! That's really cool, but indeed a very thoug choice to make... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
