GoH Book III

[Exetrius]

On 7/7/2025 at 4:49 AM, Grover said:

Sorry you don't have the time right now, but we'd love to have you back when you do, everything will be here!

Thank you! 
 

On 7/7/2025 at 3:37 PM, Gideon said:

I actually really love the smaller challenges and other initiatives like AoM, where we get to do some world building and flesh out the settings of Historica. The minifig challenges have been particularly good in this sense. Challenges emphasizing the everyday nature of Historica, such as trade or the life/backstory of a character is particularly suited for this type of world building.
 

[...] just building and telling stories, and sometimes being able to compete for influencing the overall direction of the world by excelling in those skills.
 

Of course, incentives to "visit" other guilds are nice so one can get to build in other settings than just the home guild. Maybe a new "embassy/trading post in another guild" type of challenge or some (other reason to visit that setting) can make some of us better at doing those kind of excursions from our home setting.

Really agree with these points!

On 7/7/2025 at 3:37 PM, Gideon said:

Not great myself at the more Far East settings, but the Rakath mountains and especially their eastern side have as far as I remember been established over the years as a suitable place for those who want to build in that style in Historica and that could probably be better emphasized in the future.

Yes, that's right. MassEditor, Kai NRG, robuko and Lord Vladivus are some of the builders that have built Far East kind of builds in and around Rakath, I believe in Ulandus too and myself in Zotharith.

[Grover]

On 7/7/2025 at 8:37 AM, Gideon said:

Challenges emphasizing the everyday nature of Historica, such as trade or the life/backstory of a character is particularly suited for this type of world building.

Glad to hear this!  One thing we are agreed on so far is that we'd at least like to start a little more peaceful to add some everyday flavor.

On 7/7/2025 at 8:37 AM, Gideon said:

A good mix of challenges probably would contain at least a couple or perhaps more of smaller challenges in between every big challenge, especially in order to not overburden the leadership so the challenges end up being too far apart. Generous time slots for the challenges are however appreciated by those of us who are otherwise very busy with real life challenges... But that also means that challenges are a great way to actually get around to producing some builds!

We are trying to figure out a balance... it can be tricky, but we're never going to compete for attention like Instagram or something, so this will still have a more laid back pace than that.

On 7/7/2025 at 8:37 AM, Gideon said:

I overall like the freeform RPG nature of GoH, with limited or even no formal gameplay mechanics - just building and telling stories, and sometimes being able to compete for influencing the overall direction of the world by excelling in those skills.

This seems to be the general consensus, so I think it's going to remain so.

On 7/7/2025 at 8:37 AM, Gideon said:

Regarding the setting, I think the high medieval/high fantasy with some but not too powerful technology (siege engines are ok, but no reliable cannons for example) has been successful and fits very well to build high and beautiful fortifications (rather than the squat walls of early modern/age of sail fortifications). Similarly, I'm ok with fairly ubiquitous magic, but prefer if the magic elements is not overpowering compared to traditional medieval warfare.

We definitely draw the line and canons and firearms. It is good you point this out.

Thank you for your feedback!

On 7/8/2025 at 2:37 PM, jtooker said:

First, I'm excited about book IV.  I've been meaning to finish an updated map of Kaliphlin and have been ignoring it partially since there isn't a real need/deadline; but I'd like it accurate for the beginning of book IV.

That would be most welcome!

On 7/8/2025 at 2:37 PM, jtooker said:

* What aspect of the Guilds here do you like the most/least? I like the slow pace of it and the fact it is always here (vs. some other online LEGO role playing that have come and gone quickly).  Getting feedback and inspiration to build is equally important, but that can be got from other places in shorter spurts (e.g. the annual contests).

The feedback here has always been very good. You are doing a great job at being almost a one man show for feedback at ClassicCastle!

On 7/8/2025 at 2:37 PM, jtooker said:

A more succinct onboarding process would be good.  There is a lot of information in various places; having everything in the "Guilds of Historica New Member Guide" would have been nice.  At this point, I feel I understand everything well enough.

I agree. I am working on this. When I joined, I had to scavange around a bunch of threads to find everything. I am going to try and clean up some stuff and see if we can't make it easier for a new member to find everything to get started.

On 7/8/2025 at 2:37 PM, jtooker said:

I think the settlements one is best.  I'm the only one doing the Kaliphlin University one, but I think that one is a nice go-at-your-own-pace one too.  Having the overall scores of each guild updated more often would be nice, but not critical

The Kali University is very cool. I have been trying to participate, and I am hopeful we will get a lot more action going on there in Book IV...

Thank you for your feedback!

[LordDan]

 

• What drew you to Eurobricks and the Guilds of Historica?

I found GoH and Eurobricks after seeing Derfel Cadarn’s builds on Flickr and seeing that they all shared a setting (the mystical land of Avonia  ). I was interested in the fact that I could collaborate and add to this story alongside very experienced builders.

 

• What aspect of the Guilds here do you like the most?  The least?

As others mentioned, I enjoy the relaxed pace and shared setting to build in. I took a break for ~3 years, and when I came back GoH was still here and I was able to jump right back in.
 

I also enjoy the community of talented builders and the forum setting/ etiquette that focuses on detailed comments and feedback. I find that on many other platforms, feedback is limited to very short praise or  , whereas in GoH  members leave detailed commentary, critiques, and in depth feedback. I started out with GoH as my first exposure to the online Lego community and it was some of my first experience building MOCs, and the encouragement and positive feedback I received when first starting out was amazing, and it was coming from super talented builders! Because of that, I always try to leave at least semi detailed commentary when responding to builds and make an effort to encourage newer builders when I discover them. I’ve also noticed that many other GoH “alumni”  do the same, not just on Eurobricks but across other platforms like Instagram and Flickr. 

 

Over the course of time that I have been building in GoH (I joined in 2014, so 11 years ago!) I have also greatly improved my building ability. The detailed feedback, inspirational builds and techniques from other builders, and setting that motivated me to create and build all helped me to grow, and the improvement from when I first started to my  building skill  now is astronomical.

 

• Which challenges did you like the best and least?

My favorite challenges were the 10 year anniversary series. I agree with Gideon that my least favorite was the Kaliphlin Civil War series of mini games. At the time I really enjoyed it, but in retrospect I prefer not to focus on super gamey mechanics and limited time challenges that encourage quantity over quality.

 

Other notes: I first joined GoH in 2014, so it’s been 11 years! (Albeit with a 3-4ish year gap). Despite being a seasoned veteran at this point, I for a long time I felt like a bit of a latecomer, as by the time I joined 1 1/2 books had already passed, and many OG members had already come and gone. I haven’t been very active in recent times (as you can see by the fact that I am only responding to this 1 month later  ), but I look forward to Book IV and future challenges!

[Henjin_Quilones]

I joined in 2016, so like Dan, I am a newcomer…at least that’s what it felt like. The guilds had been a place of prodigious activity in the first few years, and I had missed out on that. But it had also created a world with plenty of story already in it, which made it fun to add my own little piece. 
 

My favorite challenge was the closing one of Book II, the only one of that book that I got in on. I built a ton of builds for that, to capture the story arc that I wanted, and was rewarded by being declared the winner and getting Queen Ylspeth on the throne of Cedrica. Builds and story, man. That’s what the Guilds are about.

 

The 5th and 10th Anniversary challenges were also great. 
 

The HSS and getting a settlement permanently on the map was a huge motivator for a while. I can’t be erased! Yay! Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on perspective, I don’t have much time for building these days with a horde of small children to raise and lots of other “adulting” jobs. Which are great, just they leave less time for this hobby. I still lurk though, and every now and again I dust of the ol’ ABS and relearn SNOT geometry and stud ratios to put something together. 
 

Looking forward to many more years of GoH. 

[kahir88]

Hey All! 

Grover found me in my absent. And asked me, if im interested to rejoin GoH, and im glad to tell, i would.

I joined in 2016, I watched the forums, and i wanted to join somewhere to do hobbies together. I liked Classic Castles, so this is why i joined Avalonia, but i almost went to Mitdgard first. I liked all the challanges I always tried to build something in, or twist the concept to be a little overthinked. 

Sadly, i saw the guilds slow progress, and i didnt had enoug inspiraton, to build too. A few year back, i was able to work with Lego, runing shops, and now im in a local club, that makes exhibition around Hungary. I spend most of my imegination therem and build thing for the exhibition, and have little time to build. Actually, im into something. back in 2016 i had to decide, i will continue my lego passion, or start something different. I was this close, to start playiing warhammer, then i make a vow, i will build warhammer out of Lego, and now, i start making it happen!

But im gladly returns to the guilds. Maybe more little challenges would be great, to keep the guilds running

[Grover]

Thank you both!  Great to see some familiar faces returning!

[Ben S]

I just joined both Eurobricks and GoH last year, so I'm still a real newbie. I had been lurking on Eurobricks since I was young, and I especially enjoyed the MOCs you made for GoH, so it felt only natural to join. As a castle fan, I feel really drawn to the Guilds' world and community.

As others have pointed out, I like that you build at your own pace, with no pressure at all. I've also enjoyed the feedback I’ve received for my freebuilds, even though I’ve only done a few. Especially yours @Grover, they’re always very detailed and truly help improve my builds.

I really like all the guilds, they’re so different. I feel most drawn to Mitgardia or Avalonia. I’d say it’s because I’ve seen more MOCs from those guilds, and they resemble the classic castle/viking setting I love.

Edited July 25 by Ben S

[Grover]

17 hours ago, Ben S said:

As others have pointed out, I like that you build at your own pace, with no pressure at all. I've also enjoyed the feedback I’ve received for my freebuilds, even though I’ve only done a few. Especially yours @Grover, they’re always very detailed and truly help improve my builds.

I'm glad that I have been able to help and give back to this community that has helped me through the years.  Welcome, and we are happy to have you!

[TalusMoonbreaker]

Congrats Grover on becoming the new Avalonia Guild leader! I'm excited to see where you take it.

What drew you to Eurobricks and the Guilds of Historica?

I initially discovered eurobricks from Derfel Cadarn's how to build a medieval village guide and initially heard about GoH from Isaac and John Synder's website. I joined in 2021 during the Anniversary challenges after reading La Cospirazione. So, the main draw for me was the collaborative storytelling possibilities available within GoH. 

What aspect of the Guilds here do you like the most?  The least?

My favorite (and most rewarding) part of GoH for me has been the build and story collabs that I've done in the past with Navarre, LegoHobbitFan, Ayrlego, and Kai. I also think that a lot of the feedback that I've received has been very helpful. I'll admit that I could improve on that front. Also, I agree with Ben that Grover gives amazing and very thorough feedback. My least favorite part is definitely not having time to participate as much over the past few years. I do appreciate the go at your own pace nature of the guilds as others have stated. 

Which challenges did you like the best and least?

My favorite challenges were the anniversary challenges because that's what got me initially involved in GoH. I wouldn't say I have a least favorite because each one provides an opportunity to build something new and creative!

Ongoing Challenges

While I'm not in Mitgardia, I really like the concept of the Age of Mitgardia as it gives ample room to improve building skills in a more structured way while getting to have some fun with the story and building different but related things. 

Definitely excited for Book IV!

[Grover]

@TalusMoonbreaker, thank you for the feedback!  I am glad I am able to help, and I am excited to see Book IV as we get things organized and underway for the new book!