Castle building tips?

[dwarf-brik]

Hey all,

I am having a very frustrating time when it comes to castle building: they all invietably turn into BURP fests, or end up being very bland and sqaure. What are the best ways to avoid BURP-olioe, and what are some good ways of making castles 'pop'?

Thanks,

Dwarf-brik

[Sir Dillon]

I don't think there is a definitive answer to give you on this subject. You need to find what works for you and practice at it. Looking through others' creations can be helpful, and studying a good looking MOC can reveal new ways of building and inspire you to try things you would not have before.

As far as building with BURPs and other large pieces, my recommendation is to use them sparingly. Depending on your collection size, building without all your big rock pieces may make the creation seem inadequate, but a smaller build with more polished details will usually look better than a creation that stretches your part supply.

You might also want to post one of your creations, which could result in more specific feedback.

This fits better in the Historic Themes forum. I'll move it there.

[Duke]

Classic castle has a really useful page here:

http://www.classic-castle.com/howto/articles.html#construct

and specifically trying to avoid the big gray wall syndrome..

http://www.classic-castle.com/howto/articl...iggraywall.html

Good luck!

[blueandwhite]

I would suggest building small and then working up to something bigger. Smaller MOCs will allow you to experiment with techniques and design strategies that you could implement in your large castle. The biggest failing when making a large castle is trying to rush to the finish line. Take your time and come up with a suitable design. Make sure you have the bricks and the building skills to see it through to the end. Be persistant and by all means look to others for inspiration.

[dwarf-brik]

Thanks guys. I have gotten started building a 3 level gate house, based off a cross section. I have only semi completed the first level, and have already run out of corner peices, so it looks like it time to make a bricklink run. Thanks for the help guys!

PS. Mods, may I use this thread for posting pictures of my keep as I work on it, so I can get tips along the way?

[davee123]

Here's one thing that helped me out a bit:

Try build it on some wacky raised baseplates. I once took two of these at right angles to each other and built a castle that was both on and off of them:

It basically forced me to make lots of little oddities in the walls because the underlying landscape was irregular, just like in real life! Anyway, I found that building my structure on top of an asymmetrical surface really forced me to adjust the building in certain places to accommodate.

In the end, though, it's a matter of adjusting how you think about design. Keep at it, and do a bunch of designs and see what you like and don't like. Copy what you like in other peoples' designs, and integrate the techniques into your own creations. With experience, you can learn how to make some really nice MOCs.

DaveE

[Sir Dillon]

PS. Mods, may I use this thread for posting pictures of my keep as I work on it, so I can get tips along the way?

Sure, if you would like to.

[LegoDad42]

That 'classic-castle' site is a great inspiration website. Lot's of good ideas there.

Also, check out some DK books on Castles, Medieval eras, etc. for good reference.

[dwarf-brik]

Okay, here are the pictures.

Front:

Back:

I now have run out of enough pieces to build the next level, so time for a Bricklink run. However, I am thinking of making the floor on the 2nd level coverd with smooth brown plates, and adding a winch system to the 3rd floor, so I can lift up the poortcullis. Thoughts?

[blueandwhite]

It's a nice start, however I would definitely extend the tower to the edges of the baseplate. A gatehouse is most certainly going to be affixed to a larger wall so it's only natural to run the edges of your tower to the edges of the baseplate leaving the rest to our imagination. Right now you have a small tower but it doesn't look like it's attached to anything negating the purpose of having a gate in the first place.

As for the overall build; the design itself is nice enough however you might want to add a couple of doors to access the unused space in each of the round towers.

[dwarf-brik]

It's a nice start, however I would definitely extend the tower to the edges of the baseplate. A gatehouse is most certainly going to be affixed to a larger wall so it's only natural to run the edges of your tower to the edges of the baseplate leaving the rest to our imagination. Right now you have a small tower but it doesn't look like it's attached to anything negating the purpose of having a gate in the first place.

As for the overall build; the design itself is nice enough however you might want to add a couple of doors to access the unused space in each of the round towers.

I may just remount the gatehouse on a smaller baseplate. The idea with the unused part is that archers could shoot arrows out of the wall, like in a real medieval castle, so I will need ladders going down into thse parts.