Exetrius Posted January 2, 2018 (edited) Zotharith: The outskirts Zotharith lies on the borderline of a mountainous river valley and a vast swampland. Its foundation was laid on the more solid, rocky banks, where the core business activities take place. As more newcomers settle, the city's residential area expands into the marshes. Some of the newcomers develop into powerful mages, gaining wealth and status so they can find themselves a home on the banks. Others remain in the swamps, becoming farmers, fishermen or craftsmen. To prevent demographic segregation from getting out of hand, a proportion of mages is assigned to live among these commoners. Aside from supervising and peacekeeping in these communities, they offer protection to the outer domains of Zotharith, which are under constant threat of the surrounding Darklands. When the time came for Exetrius to move out of the house, he was free to pick whichever place in the city he desired, on the condition that his father would arrange the house. Instead of living in the middle of the - slightly posh - hustle and bustle of the city, Exetrius chose to take up guardian duties in the relatively relaxed suburbs. However, he had thought he was the only protector of the neighborhood, until one fateful day... ... when the real warden returned! Exetrius had been tricked! Damn father, always pulling jokes and messing with him from the shadows! Or was he playing the over-protective parent? Alternatively, he might even be questioning Exetrius' capability to handle these guardian responsibilities, because what responsibility is there left to take when the real warden is the second mage in the Order of Zotharith, of all people? It would probably be the last neighborhood bandits would dare lay a finger on... One day, his father would pay for this... But that was months ago. In time, it became clear that his fellow warden was always on the move for quests, thus giving meaning to Exetrius' duties. Ultimately, he served a purpose and his new home was rather comfortable, so overall he could live with the situation. Hello guys! Though this is not a real Saga episode, I wanted to provide some sigfig-related context. It's my largest GoH creation to date, and another one expanding Zotharith. Hopefully, you enjoyed! More pics can be found here on my Flickr seen below. C&C always appreciated! Edit: Additional pics: Spoiler Edited December 21, 2018 by Exetrius improved wording Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
narbilu Posted January 3, 2018 Nice! And wow what a story... just cool Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Littleworlds Posted January 3, 2018 Beautiful and lush - a very impressive build. So many details and clever camera angles. Very vivid, very scenic. The background story serves very well in setting the place into context and fleshen it out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted January 3, 2018 Ever since BMA, I have been wondering when this would get online, and now you've posted it, the MOC looks even better than I remember! As always , your Nocturnian colourscheme works very well, and you have added a lot of details, which can only be encouraged. However, the general lay-out and idea is the real star of this build for me. Man, I love how all houses are put on poles above the swamp For me, this is a truly magnificent village! Lastly, I want to point out these lanterns. Ice on the cake for sure! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Blufiji Posted January 3, 2018 This is a beautiful swamp city sir. I like the hustle and bustle of it and it has your usual artistic flare to it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Exetrius Posted January 5, 2018 On 3-1-2018 at 8:09 AM, narbilu said: Nice! And wow what a story... just cool Thank you! On 3-1-2018 at 3:39 PM, Littleworlds said: Beautiful and lush - a very impressive build. So many details and clever camera angles. Very vivid, very scenic. The background story serves very well in setting the place into context and fleshen it out. Thanks! I tried my best with the photos, but I think I've got most details covered. On 3-1-2018 at 8:39 PM, TitusV said: Ever since BMA, I have been wondering when this would get online, and now you've posted it, the MOC looks even better than I remember! As always , your Nocturnian colourscheme works very well, and you have added a lot of details, which can only be encouraged. However, the general lay-out and idea is the real star of this build for me. Man, I love how all houses are put on poles above the swamp For me, this is a truly magnificent village! Lastly, I want to point out these lanterns. Ice on the cake for sure! Haha, I took a while indeed! I really enjoyed going all-out with the oni spells, lanterns and mana collectors. The poles are not only there because they look good and make sense, but they were the key in figuring out where the even Pythagoras positions are (4 out of 6 buildings do not have the same orientation as the terrain). Aditionally, it allows all the houses to come off easily, for transport. On 3-1-2018 at 9:55 PM, Blufiji said: This is a beautiful swamp city sir. I like the hustle and bustle of it and it has your usual artistic flare to it. Thank you very much! I also hope to show what 'Zotharith on the banks' looks like in a future build, it's not just the swamp. On a side note, you had a splendid swamp village of your own, very inspiring! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henjin_Quilones Posted January 5, 2018 Awesome setup, and great angles! This is a great look at the everyday life of Zotharith. Most of us (myself included) build scenes full of nobility and warriors, or else small vignettes of one or two commoners at work, rather than a full (or large chunk of one) village. It is the distinctively Zotharian details that delight me the most, from the mana collectors and guardian curses to the horned roofs and Ninjago outfits. Great work on this, Exetrius! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KevinyWu Posted January 6, 2018 This scene is very unique, with the raised buildings that fit in nicely with the swamp setting! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
de Gothia Posted January 6, 2018 Wow!! Those houses have some unique touch to them and the whole scene feels so alive!! Great work!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ecclesiastes Posted January 7, 2018 Awesome! This as one of my favorites being displayed at Legoworld last year! Just so many neat details like the lanterns. Also, the different house styles completes the whole picture, again nice work! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sander1992 Posted January 8, 2018 This was a nice setup with you and Jaapxaap at Lego World. Nice detailing in the houses and positioning of the houses. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGO Train 12 Volts Posted January 8, 2018 Awesome diorama ...I like the evil knight! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tezclatipoca Posted January 8, 2018 Ha great ! You posted the city ! Excellent job as always ! I was happy to see it for real and participate with you at BMA ! I still have to post my castle BTW... The poles are great and I echoe Titus on that ! It is astonishing you're using them as markers and to safely remove the houses for transport ! Excellent ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Exetrius Posted January 10, 2018 On 5-1-2018 at 8:22 PM, Henjin_Quilones said: Awesome setup, and great angles! This is a great look at the everyday life of Zotharith. Most of us (myself included) build scenes full of nobility and warriors, or else small vignettes of one or two commoners at work, rather than a full (or large chunk of one) village. It is the distinctively Zotharian details that delight me the most, from the mana collectors and guardian curses to the horned roofs and Ninjago outfits. Great work on this, Exetrius! Many thanks for your praises, Henjin! Although I do plan on building nobility and warrior scenes in the future, I really enjoy portraying commoners with their businesses. Also, integrating magical objects in this everyday atmosphere was cool, and it lends credibility to the statement that Zotharith is truly the "City of Magic". Where else would an ordinary fishermen need a mana farm on his roof? On 6-1-2018 at 1:11 AM, KevinyWu said: This scene is very unique, with the raised buildings that fit in nicely with the swamp setting! On 6-1-2018 at 5:08 PM, de Gothia said: Wow!! Those houses have some unique touch to them and the whole scene feels so alive!! Great work!! On 8-1-2018 at 11:28 AM, sander1992 said: This was a nice setup with you and Jaapxaap at Lego World. Nice detailing in the houses and positioning of the houses. Thanks, guys! On 7-1-2018 at 9:37 PM, Ecclesiastes said: Awesome! This as one of my favorites being displayed at Legoworld last year! Just so many neat details like the lanterns. Also, the different house styles completes the whole picture, again nice work! Thanks a lot, and also for featuring this on the frontpage! All houses have some techniques or colours in common with one another, but each has a few unique features as well, especially in the roofs, contributing to it's cohesion. I wish I could have made a panorama from the inner space to show four of the facades in one picture, but I didn't manage with my current camera and lighting set-up. Luckily, you saw it in real life as well. On 8-1-2018 at 9:27 PM, LEGO Train 12 Volts said: Awesome diorama ...I like the evil knight! Not all that roams Nocturnus is evil, my friend. Most of it is, though On 8-1-2018 at 10:16 PM, Faladrin said: Ha great ! You posted the city ! Excellent job as always ! I was happy to see it for real and participate with you at BMA ! I still have to post my castle BTW... The poles are great and I echoe Titus on that ! It is astonishing you're using them as markers and to safely remove the houses for transport ! Excellent ! Thank you! Likewise, it was great to have you at BMA! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soccerkid6 Posted January 15, 2018 Great to see such a large chunk of Zotharith at once! The various wooden bridges tying things together, angled buildings, and small details really bring the village to life. Some nicely incorporated interiors too, despite the limited space you had to work with Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Exetrius Posted January 16, 2018 (edited) 13 hours ago, soccerkid6 said: Great to see such a large chunk of Zotharith at once! The various wooden bridges tying things together, angled buildings, and small details really bring the village to life. Some nicely incorporated interiors too, despite the limited space you had to work with Thanks, SK! Most of the interiors are very basic, even that of Exetrius's home. In certain places, windows, balconies and opening doors, as well as beds prevented placement of additional furniture. Somthing to work on in following builds. Edited January 16, 2018 by Exetrius Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
