[SoNE Ep 4] Sector C: The Bridge

[MKJoshA]

OoC: See the rest of the story:

First They Came For the Qwohogs

A Brother's Work Is Never Done

A Night At Hao's

The Breakout

Commandeered Escape

A Rebel Leaving Corellia

"In The Shadows To The Left"

Imperial Troops Have Entered the Base!

Sand Crab Attack!

"Rough Edges"

There's No Place Like Hoth For the Holidays

Junkyard Search

After turning the computer components we had collected on Ord Mantell over to some of the best slicers the Alliance had at its disposal Yeoman and I received orders to head to Sullust to help with a rescue operation. Apparently what had started as a simple mission to free some prisoners had turned sour when the Empire caught wind of the operation. Now they needed the help of some intel staff to get everyone out alive.

We landed the Rough Edges in a bunker previous Alliance troops had already cleared out for our safe landing. We quickly changed into mining uniforms used by the Sullustans so as to blend in better. The entire base was in chaos, but a little bit of native garb can go a long way to confuse the enemy even if only for a few seconds. When it comes to a fire-fight a few seconds usually makes the difference. We headed into the mining caves towards the sounds of blaster fire and saw a group of prisoners hiding behind an outcropping of rock. A couple stormtroopers were sweeping this particular cave and were getting closer to the escapees. The only way out for them was towards us. They couldn’t get to us though without crossing a narrow bridge right under the nose of the Imperial Officer in a comm center overlooking this cavern.

The comm center was built into the rock over one of the many openings in the rock from which the lava flowed, probably to make use of the geo-thermal energy being released as the lava escaped the confinements of the planet’s crust. The lava wasn’t flowing very fast and was even starting to solidify just a few feet from where it was coming out of the rock-face. Probably one of the reasons this particular mining shaft existed. A constant source of minable lava rock meant you wouldn’t have to worry about your mine drying up anytime soon.

Yeoman and I looked at each other and knew immediately what we were going to do. Working together for quite some time had really developed our ability to predict the other’s actions. He headed down the tunnel toward the prisoners, keeping in the shadows, while I raced up a side passage towards what I hoped was the entrance to the comm center.

Yeoman crossed the bridge and started waving his arms at the Stormies. He was yammering in his native Qwohoggian and they couldn’t tell if he was trying to warn them or was up to no good. While he was distracting the troops I opened the door to the comm center and leveled my blaster at the officer. He tried to reach for his commlink so I shot him in the leg.

Meanwhile the troopers grew tired of trying to understand Yeoman so they tried radioing for instructions. Since the man on the receiving end of their transmission was tied up and moaning from a blaster wound to the leg they received no response. Yeoman could tell by the Stormies’ cocked heads that they were radioing to the comm center. Not knowing if I had been successful in cutting off communications or not he pulled two blaster pistols from his back holsters and started shooting at the Stormtroopers. They dove for cover and the prisoners started running for the bridge.

I watched from the comm center as Yeoman and one of the former prisoners covered their escape by laying down heavy fire on the Stormies. True to their nature the Stormies didn’t know when to give up and pressed forward as one by one they were shot down.

There were only a few Stormtroopers left and it looked like all the prisoners were going to escape. I was already thinking through the fastest way to get them boarded on the Rough Edges as all of the escapees but Yeoman had crossed the bridge. I was just about ready to stun the officer before running out to meet them when the cavern shook. Whether it was an earthquake, turbolaser strike, or some blast from another cavern that had far reaching effects I’ll never know. It stopped just as suddenly as it had begun. At first it seemed like the only effects were the few loose stones falling from the walls, but then the lava flow erupted into chaos and a few spurts reached up through the bridge. I watched in horror as Yeoman tried to back off the bridge but wasn’t quick enough to avoid the spurt that caught his right leg on fire.

I rushed down the passage and helped the prisoners carry Yeoman back to safety. We all got aboard the Rough Edges and blasted off to get to the nearest Alliance medical frigate. Yeoman’s vitals were stabilized, but he was still unconscious. I could only hope this mission wouldn’t be his last.

OoC: The first picture is not meant to be judged as part of the build. It's from a previous freebuild of mine.

[Nom Carver]

I love the shapes on the walls and the interior of the room, You guys are putting quite a fight.

[VK-318]

Good one! One small issue, though. What kind of Imperial base has railings on the bridges?

[TWP]

Great build MKJoshA, it looks convincing!

[Lord Tyrus]

Love Yeoman's burning foot! Bridge looks good!

[Donnie Bricko]

Very nice build. The story is captivating. Nice work

[Dapper-D2]

I love the Rough Edges! My favorite part other than that is the radar and antenna on top.

[Rogue Angel]

Nice build-I really like the antennas and the rock work is nice too. Good job!

[BEAVeR]

Your stories and your builds just keep getting better. It's incredible how you can keep it up.

The build is pretty good. I like the practical look of the communication station with the nice antennas (those wheels work great there) and interior, complete with SNOT consoles and DS stripes. The details like the console at an angle, or the tubes at the comm towers and beneath the station, or even the fact that you didn't just drop that chair on the geound show your dedication. With all that attention, I think it's a bit of a pitty that the side entrance and correcponding door that are mentionned in the sotry don't feature in the build. That makes it look a little incomplete.

As for the environment, I like what you did with the lava, with those extra round plates and cheese slopes for more texture and even with those flames... it really seems ready to burst out. You made a little mistake in placing them across the direction of flow of the lava, making it look quite artificial. Laying those flames perpendicular to the bridge would give the feeling of flowing lava a lot more. That bridge, by the way, looks really good with the consistent grilled look and the angled railings.

You made a good attempt at those rocks, and some parts turned out pretty nice, especially near the base. It makes me wish you used some more SNOT rocks. Because once again, those rocks don't look very natural everywhere. It's okay there is a flat area around the window, but for the rest there should be more texture. Also, I have the feeling there are too much ledges (i.e. inverted slopes) present int the vertical rock face. A more gentle slope would have been better. Furthermore, a nice addition would have been to make the top of the rockface sloping back towards the viewer, giving more of an enclised cavern feeling. But anyway, good job making those rocks on the side and making little holes here and there. I love those kinds of details. A nice extra detail could be an opening for the lava to flow out of the rock, according to your story.

On the matter of the story, once again it's great. Love the development of the characters and the shocking ending. I would like to point out though that those stormies kept pushing on, because they knew how inpredictable the lava flow could be, and tried to keep Yeoman there long enough untill the lava would erupt. Well, it seemed they succeeded and are not that stupid as you portray them! But that's just a minor point in an overall great build, unlike any other.

Edited April 26, 2014 by BEAVeR

[MKJoshA]

Thanks for all the feedback guys!

Good one! One small issue, though. What kind of Imperial base has railings on the bridges?

Very true! All the ramps on the Death Star were rail-less, I guess they had a stricter safety inspector here

I love the Rough Edges! My favorite part other than that is the radar and antenna on top.

Thanks Dap! You can see more pictures of the Rough Edges here

Your stories and your builds just keep getting better. It's incredible how you can keep it up.

The build is pretty good. I like the practical look of the communication station with the nice antennas (those wheels work great there) and interior, complete with SNOT consoles and DS stripes. The details like the console at an angle, or the tubes at the comm towers and beneath the station, or even the fact that you didn't just drop that chair on the geound show your dedication. With all that attention, I think it's a bit of a pitty that the side entrance and correcponding door that are mentionned in the sotry don't feature in the build. That makes it look a little incomplete.

As for the environment, I like what you did with the lava, with those extra round plates and cheese slopes for more texture and even with those flames... it really seems ready to burst out. You made a little mistake in placing them across the direction of flow of the lava, making it look quite artificial. Laying those flames perpendicular to the bridge would give the feeling of flowing lava a lot more. That bridge, by the way, looks really good with the consistent grilled look and the angled railings.

You made a good attempt at those rocks, and some parts turned out pretty nice, especially near the base. It makes me wish you used some more SNOT rocks. Because once again, those rocks don't look very natural everywhere. It's okay there is a flat area around the window, but for the rest there should be more texture. Also, I have the feeling there are too much ledges (i.e. inverted slopes) present int the vertical rock face. A more gentle slope would have been better. Furthermore, a nice addition would have been to make the top of the rockface sloping back towards the viewer, giving more of an enclised cavern feeling. But anyway, good job making those rocks on the side and making little holes here and there. I love those kinds of details. A nice extra detail could be an opening for the lava to flow out of the rock, according to your story.

On the matter of the story, once again it's great. Love the development of the characters and the shocking ending. I would like to point out though that those stormies kept pushing on, because they knew how inpredictable the lava flow could be, and tried to keep Yeoman there long enough untill the lava would erupt. Well, it seemed they succeeded and are not that stupid as you portray them! But that's just a minor point in an overall great build, unlike any other.

Taking a page from MstrOfPppts are we? But really, I greatly appreciate all your positive criticism. SNOT slopes are one of weak points in Lego building as are rock faces. I was trying out some techniques here but I realize I need to be more adventurous . Thanks again for all the feedback!