Ch II: Team Simon: Cat A: So Below

[mccoyed]

Here is my entry for Category A of the challenge. I thought I'd turn the tables on the tunnel-loving drow a bit by having them be the ones caught sleeping on the surface for a change.

Somewhere South of the Mitgardia border, a long-abandoned dwarven mineshaft is suddenly the setting of a tense meeting. An Avalonian scout, one of Lord Simon's, has been called down to the underground in the company of dwarven soldiers and a pair of lantern-wielding prospectors who claim they have something dire to share.

"Shhhhhh..." comes a whisper from above them. One of the soldiers has climbed up a makeshift ramp to where cracks in the stone form a natural passage for sound and smell. And what sounds! What smells!

Directly above all their heads, drow spider-riders creep through the underbrush. One directs his spider to deface an Avalonian flag that once stood proudly from the squat spire of rock. In their harsh language, they confer about the whereabouts of Avalonian encampments. An ambush is being planned.

The dwarves want to deliver an ambush of their own. The scout argues with them. Let the drow think they have the element of surprise, he says. He'll head back to the nearest encampment and raise the alarm. The dwarves are reluctant, relishing an opportunity to strike back against their most hated enemy. But the scout is persuasive and the dwarves agree to let this one go... for now.

The complete build. I built is so that the rock outcropping is removable, as is the top layer of grass and foliage where two of the drow are positioned:

In the bottom right corner you can see structural supports built of wood by the dwarves. The bottom left is a cutaway for visibility.

Thanks for taking a look, C&C always welcome. Especially on the rockwork as it is only my second attempt at SNOTed rocks/terrain and I still have a long, long way to go.

Note: more pictures available on flickr. These may be fun to look at because they show how I constructed the MOC for easy removal of parts.

Edited June 18, 2014 by mccoyed

[robuko]

Nice build mccoyed. Those Spider riders give me the shivers. Good rock work too, especially inside the mine.

[mccoyed]

Ah, shivers! Then they are having the intended effect. I am pretty proud of them. I was stumped trying to build them so they wouldn't be too close to the Mirkwood spiders from the LOTR set. I opted to keep the leg design but switch up everything else and include some armor plating on the head and thorax areas. The armor makes a nice saddle-like structure for the drow to ride in.

[narbilu]

great build, love the snot like rockwalls... the spiders are awesome

[Lord Vladivus]

Nice spider riders!

[Torgar]

The spider riders were a great idea, and they look great!

[Scaevola]

Great, I like the rockwork and the spiders.

[Kai NRG]

Great concept, and good work with the riders!

[mccoyed]

Thanks everyone! The riders are definitely my favorite part too. Especially the one eating the Avalonian flag. Haha.

[-Carson Haupt-]

Nice! I like the wooden supports and the storyline!

[Kayne]

Good stuff! This challenge really brought out some great ideas from people, and this is definitely one of those great ideas!

[mccoyed]

Thanks! I hope my ideas make up for my fledgling skills!

[TheUtilityBelt]

Cool! The spiders and rock work look pretty nice!

Brick on!

[MKJoshA]

I'll add some constructive critcism since you asked for C&C I like the overall build and your work with snot techniques has a great effect. However, there are many places where it looks like the bricks and plates have not been pushed together all the way. The lowers the overall look of quality in the build. I would recommend putting pressure all around your builds before photographing them next time.

[Gabe]

Nice concept Mccoyed! The armoured spider steeds are great too. I think the best views are above ground, the underground spaces are a cool idea (and i like the way you can take it apart modular style), but they still look a little blocky and unfinshed. With rockwork, i find the biggest thing is just to take your time - i find it's often a two steps forward, one step back thing. Don't get caught up in the idea of doing snotted rockwork for it's own sake either, ppl can go overboard and forget that studs-up can often be just as effective - every technique has it's place!

[mccoyed]

I'll add some constructive critcism since you asked for C&C I like the overall build and your work with snot techniques has a great effect. However, there are many places where it looks like the bricks and plates have not been pushed together all the way. The lowers the overall look of quality in the build. I would recommend putting pressure all around your builds before photographing them next time.

Yeah, I definitely noticed that when looking at the photos. Did not notice when I went to take pictures, unfortunately. I was wondering if anyone would pick up on this, especially looking at Flickr, where there are a few pics where it's terribly noticeable. One problem I made for myself was with the side of the rock-face that remains attached to the "grassy platform" piece of the build. When the detachable main rock section is put in place, there are too many seams.

Nice concept Mccoyed! The armoured spider steeds are great too. I think the best views are above ground, the underground spaces are a cool idea (and i like the way you can take it apart modular style), but they still look a little blocky and unfinshed. With rockwork, i find the biggest thing is just to take your time - i find it's often a two steps forward, one step back thing. Don't get caught up in the idea of doing snotted rockwork for it's own sake either, ppl can go overboard and forget that studs-up can often be just as effective - every technique has it's place!

Thanks, Gabe. The armored spiders and the design of the drow are pretty much the "victories" of this build. The interior also unfortunately suffers from poor planning on my part. I built the space to be seen from overhead but it's very difficult to take pictures of. I have been moving away from my old building style of modular/openable dioramas to stuff more suited for photography. That said, I've seen some builders on GoH find a happy medium so hopefully I do too.

[de Gothia]

My facourite detail is that spider biting of the flag!

Great work on this one!

[Gunman]

Nice concept with the spiders there Mccoyed! Well done!

[soccerkid6]

I like the stairs and ladder in the cave Those spiders are definitely creepy too. Another little detail I like is the brickbuilt mace you can see in the last picture

[Maxim I]

I hate creepy spiders... luckily those Mitgardians are hidden in a very nicely executed cave

[mccoyed]

Those Mitgardian dwarves hate the spiders too! Only the eloquent argument raised by the Avalonian scout convinces them to holster their axes and mauls long enough to make a plan. Mitgardians may be peerless warriors, but they can get a little rash when drow are around aboveground with their spiders getting their spider goo on everything.

But you have to wonder how the Avalonian would feel if he knew one of the spiders was chewing up his Guild's colors?

[Mike S]

Armored spiders was a brilliant idea and you built them perfectly! Nice job with the flag snapping as well!

[mccoyed]

I like the stairs and ladder in the cave Those spiders are definitely creepy too. Another little detail I like is the brickbuilt mace you can see in the last picture

I missed this comment! I'm glad you liked the mace, I built like a dozen hammers, maces, and so on before I joined GoH. Sometimes I like to use them over my 3rd party stuff. They especially look good with dwarves for some reason.

Armored spiders was a brilliant idea and you built them perfectly! Nice job with the flag snapping as well!

Thanks, Mike S!