[SoNE Ep. V] The Decoy

[Lego Spy]

It was the second day of my mission on Endor. Second and last, thankfully, it was a bit too humid for my taste. These two troopers and I had been assigned a rather unusual task: building a shield generator. But not just any shield generator, a non-functioning one, a decoy. We knew the Rebels were on our tracks, so we had to buy ourselves some time.

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Full View

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Interior of Shield Generator -

(Me soldering some fake wires. )

Just an extra, close-up photo.

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A quiet river running nearby, with someone watching from behind a bush.

I have a dog in my house, if you can't already tell.

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A Stormtrooper using the Laser-Saw to clear some forestation.

Also, try to ignore the magically appearing dog hairs once again.

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Side view of Shield Generator

(Sorry about the somewhat grainy photo)

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Large Tree (Yeah... )

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So that's my entry for Shadows of Nar Eurbrikka Episode V! C&C is of course welcome. I know there are some improvements I could have made, but to be fair, I was travelling for the last week so I didn't really get much time to build.

Also, before someone says I should have put more plants on: your looking at almost my complete collection of plastic greenery right there.

[Nom Carver]

I really liked this, it's like the ruins of a WW II bunker.

[Lobot]

Good work Lego Spy, although this Episode seems to be getting a little one-sided! I like the concept, the different layers of vegetation, and even ewok lurking in the corner. Is the tree shadow photo-shopped? It looks very good either way!

[Lego Spy]

I really liked this, it's like the ruins of a WW II bunker.

Thanks!

Good work Lego Spy, although this Episode seems to be getting a little one-sided! I like the concept, the different layers of vegetation, and even ewok lurking in the corner. Is the tree shadow photo-shopped? It looks very good either way!

It is photo-shopped. How did you know?

(Or did the lack of the shadow make it obvious?)

Edited June 21, 2014 by Lego Spy

[MKJoshA]

Nicely done! The building seems a bit one the small side, but I guess that's explained because the troops are still building it Your stream adds a very nice touch to this scene. Good job overall!

[Wat Tambor]

Nice build!

The idea of building a fake bunker to distract the rebels from the real bunker away is great.

The vegetation and foliage is alsow well done, it looks like on Endor.

[markus1984]

Nice "little" vignette!

The vegetation looks good and the destoryed bunker is great too.

markus

[BEAVeR]

A, the perfect trap for the Rebels... although there isn't a huge landing platfrom, and provided that Ewok (do I know him?) won't talk. But otherwise, great idea!

The bunker itself is quite nice. The big surfaces and the angled bricks in between make for something very Imperial (and it looks like a smiley too, from the side ). Those profile bricks and tubes add a lot of detail, so that it isn't just a block of concrete but well-functioning bunker. The inside isn't less impressive, and it's great to see that you gave equal attention both parts. The cutaway structure is really, really nice as well, and it serves as a viewport in the bunker and shows that it still is in construction. Well thought out! The tiled surface sets it apart from the environment, and I like the edge between the grey and brown plates. So really nice bunker, but it could use a bit more work. You could avoid straight sections altogether and work only with angled walls (just like in the real bunker), or keep a small amount of vertical sections as detailing. And while the parts spread across the ground help to convey the construction feeling, there could be more. Parts could be placed in nice stacks ready for use (like bricks on pallettes). Then the construction wouldn't only become apparent in the bunker in half finished state, but also in the surroundings, with parts and tools waiting to be used (and maybe some material for the lunch break ). Because now the bunker is a bit just popping up in the jungle, instead of slowly being built. So try to spread elements that link to your focal point throughout your build, and then you will have a clear and realistic story. But all in all, you did a really good job in depicting the construction of the bunker itself: it isn't random, and you have a clear plan. The jobs are well distributed and you didn't make the mistake of making everything look half-finished. E.g. you first finished the floor neatly and then began building the walls, layer after layer, thus not ending up with a weak triangle-like wall, but with a solid looking thing, suited for a bunker! It seems you understand the ways of construction very well!

I already pointed out that it is important for your focal point to affect the environment in several ways. It seems that you already did that to some extent. Take those chopped down trees, which are very nicely built: they achieve a lot with minimal parts. I especially like how your tried to depict the roots. Still, it seems there are some anomalies. The inner part of a tree enclosed in the bark should be something tan-ish (or black, if it has been burnt). And what happened to the other parts of the tree that have been cut of? It would be nice to have a heap of them somewhere, or maybe some ashes to indicate what happened to them if you don't have the parts to go big. And where did that tree come from? There is no part of soil that looks like there was a tree once. A simple plie of plates (now that I think of it, they don't have to be connected) could indicate loose soil. So once again, even for these smaller details, the environment should show traces of the action that is happening right now, so that your MOC will seem like world on it's own. Of course, not everything can be shown, and there can be room for imagination and (optionally) suspense. But keep in mind that IRL, everything leaves traces, and nothing vanishes into thin air or happens without a cause. But implementing that level of detail really is a higher level of MOCcing, I think, and you should not be ashamed of not thinking about that. I'm not really complaining about anything that is present in this MOC (and would be bad), but more about things that aren't there. So nothing to be ashamed off.

Then environment itself is quite nice, and I think you did your best to conceal the fact that you don't own a lot of vegetation. The clear area around the bunker certainly makes sense, and that river is something unique to break things up. So I think that layout is genious for someone to get the most out of his limited supply of bricks . It's a bit weird though that the ground goes up towards the river... that doesn't quite look natural. But you should put all of your MOC on a higher level to get rid of that, and I don't think that's quite in your collection's power. You could have your troops build some kind of little dam though. They have to ensure their little bunker doesn't get wet, so that would make sense and solve your problem. I like the relief you managed to put into your terrain. The hill with the tree is very nice, and small slopes throughout the build foretell it. Still, the soil in general is quite flat, and I would suggest some plates here and there to break it up, especially on places where the soil should be massacred a bit by building. But back to the hill. It's great how it is covered with foliage and builds towards the tree, but there could be more then greenery there. Some roots sticking out of the hill for example. Or a small hole for an animal. The tree itself is quite nice with the layered foliage and with the couple of green twigs. The structure of the stacked 1x1 rounds don't quite please me though, since they don't represent the structure of bark very well. Might I suggest to use brown Technic axle connectors (like part 6538 and 59443), that also posses some degree of detailing, but more suitable for tree bark. And the base of the tree isn't quite natural as well. Maybe a cone would be better than that sudden 2x2 round brick. Or cover the base with plant pieces. Or use a part like 4588 or 2566 to make it more interesting and (maybe) more realistic. Experiment with some more specialized parts, and don't only consider the basic parts. And if you don't find a suitable solution, always try to find a way to hide your mistakes.

Not that there are a lot of mistakes in this build. In fact, it is quite beautiful, with nice details like the soldering equipment, and clever layout choices like the river and the hill. You showed that you are quite resourceful with your plant collection, and I really appreciate that kind of creativity, that is just a good as an NPU. So very well done! Now finish that bunker, maybe boobytrap it, and keep being an excellent trooper for the Empire! You've had quite a nice carreer already!