Murdoch17

[WIP] Skull Rock Lighthouse - a tropical pirates haven from sets 71722 + 71717 + 70431

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The light house of Skull Rock was once kept lit by a order of monks, who believed the nearby skull-shaped cliff face (carved by the former native islander inhabitants) was a sign from "The Man Upstairs" that is was an evil place. The monks were later killed off in 1708 by scurvy and other diseases, leaving only one alive who went insane from the ordeal, claiming he saw ghosts of several past wrecked ships' captains.

In 1710, the pirate Captain Henry Smithfield of the infamous "Yago" found skull island and skillfully managed to sail through the island coral reefs unaided except by the light and a keen sailor's intuition. He was inspired to take over operation of the light, but eventually had to maroon the mad monk on a nearby deserted island as he was too crazy even for pirates!

The light is still lit only occasionally, mostly when trying to wreck merchant and pirate hunter ships onto the reefs to be plundered thereon. This island is known to the area's native islanders as Hazar-dues, or to it's pirate inhabitants and imperial captives as Skull Rock.

NOTE: The name of the island is said like the word, "Hazardous" (which is quite apt for it's windswept rocky surface!)

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I'm taking @Faladrin lead with his similar model and one-upping it to include the entire skull rock, and a dock for pirate ships of all types! 

 NOTES:
The set conversion is mostly (98%) finished as of 1/28/21. The as-yet unbuilt lighthouse portion is on order from Bricklink as of yesterday. This new piece will replace the crane section of the dock.

I've also realized that all the set 71722's features are tied together by gearing / rods, such as:

- The rotating scythes on the walkway to the officer's quarters behind the eyes.

- the moving "wave" walkway to the base of the waterfall. (which opens up!)

- the lowering / raising of the wooden cage holding the (deceased) bluecoat Admiral.

..and all this is activated by cranking the large U-shaped handle on the left!

The front clips of sets 71722 (Skull Sorcerer's Dungeons) connect to a wooden dock model (seen below). The two Ninjago set's (the other is 71717, Journey to the Skull Dungeons) will be modified to have blue parts instead of orange and trans-orange for the bases and "lava drip" parts. I plan on using these sets, plus this dock, in conjunction with my other pirate ships, seen below.

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Inside the lower portion of Skull rock is the pirates treasure room, with gold aplenty and a few jewels. The upper floor is for the Captain Smithfield when not at sea.

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Here is the lighthouse proper. The wooden crane is for offloading cargo / loot off the smaller boats after leaving the big pirate ship. The spinning lens idea is from 70431 (Lighthouse of Darkness) from the Hidden Side theme.

The front clips of sets 71722 (Skull Sorcerer's Dungeons) connect to a wooden dock model. (seen farther down the page) The two Ninjago set's (the other is 71717, Journey to the Skull Dungeons) are currently being modified to have blue parts instead of orange and trans-orange for the bases and "lava drip" parts. I plan on using these sets, plus all the custom dock / lighthouse parts for my island.

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This building model comes apart into three modular sections:
- lighthouse, lower level (this is sleeping / storage area for the crew when not at sea.)
- light house, upper level (storage area for whale oil for keeping the light lit)
- actual light - (rotates around, though it's usually lit for use in misguiding ships onto the nearby rocky coral reef surrounding Skull Island.)

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The docks model also comes apart into three modular sections:
- The working wooden crane (left side, which will be implemented into the lighthouse)
- The corner with cannon (behind the others)
- The dock extension (right side)

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Here is that unlucky monk today, with his one-shot pistol on Twenty-paces Island. (I'm getting a palm tree for this island.... still have to order the parts!)

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The whole setup of Skull Rock so far.

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The Minecraft-based Seacow, as captained by Peg-Leg Stevie. Not sure what to call this type of ship, though it kinda reminds me of the Santa Maria from Columbus' first trip.

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The brig Yago, as seen here and captained by Henry Smithfield.

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The Golden Bounty pirate junk, as seen in this topic and led by Captain Soto.

(picture of Joly Roger goes here)

Captain Hook's Jolly Roger isn't done yet, so no picture or topic... waiting on a certain flying boy for that.

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The Silver Crab is not built yet, but is captained by Bob "The Sponge" Squarepants and can be found here.

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This is the Hell Bent, and is led by Captain Victor "Jawbone" Blucher. It can be found here.

Edited by Murdoch17

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On 1/18/2021 at 8:45 PM, Mister Phes said:

Ah yes, some of those Ninjago sets are ripe for pirate conversion! :pir-skel:

Ok, @Faladrin , @Jack Sassy,and @Mister Phes, what do you think of this WIP shot below?

The island is known to the area's native islanders as Hazar-dues, or to it's pirate inhabitants and imperial captives as Skull Rock.

50877044843_837735e573_z.jpg

The set conversion isn't finished, as I'm still waiting for the last Bricklink order to arrive to attach set 71717 / the custom dock to this model.

I've also realized that all the set 71722's features are tied together by gearing / rods, such as:

- The rotating scythes on the walkway to the officer's quarters behind the eyes.

- the moving "wave" walkway to the base of the waterfall. (which opens up!)

- the lowering / raising of the wooden cage holding the Admiral

..and all this is activated by cranking the large U-shaped handle on the left!

I'm gonna update the first post in a second with this new info / features.

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7 minutes ago, Murdoch17 said:

The island is known to the area's native islanders as Hazar-dues, or to it's pirate inhabitants and imperial captives as Skull Rock.

50877044843_837735e573_z.jpg

The set conversion isn't finished, as I'm still waiting for the last Bricklink order to arrive to attach set 71717 / the custom dock to this model.

I've also realized that all the set 71722's features are tied together by gearing / rods, such as:

- The rotating scythes on the walkway to the officer's quarters behind the eyes.

- the moving "wave" walkway to the base of the waterfall. (which opens up!)

- the lowering / raising of the wooden cage holding the Admiral

..and all this is activated by cranking the large U-shaped handle on the left!

I'm gonna update the first post in a second with this new info / features.

 

I like this, it's starting to remind me of those classic pirate stop-motions from back in the day. Good job!

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3 hours ago, Jack Sassy said:
  Reveal hidden contents

 

I like this, it's starting to remind me of those classic pirate stop-motions from back in the day. Good job!

Just finished the modular docks!

50879181201_67f94c8eb4_z.jpg

The whole Skull Rock island model is almost (~97%) completed!

This model comes apart into three modular sections:
- The working wooden crane (left side)
- The corner with cannon (behind the others)
- The dock extension (right side)

..still waiting for one BL order to come in.... not sure when that will be, but hopefully soon!

Edited by Murdoch17

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Just added the lighthouse MOC to the first post, @Jack Sassy.

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I was inspired by the spinning lens from 70431 (Lighthouse of Darkness) from the Hidden Side theme for this MOC. (This section of the dock will replace the current crane section.)

Edited by Murdoch17

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On 1/27/2021 at 12:03 PM, Jack Sassy said:

This adds more life to the whole thing itself :pir-classic:

Thanks @Jack Sassy, I think so too!

On 1/27/2021 at 4:21 PM, CaptainPolluxofOrion said:

Really awesome idea! :pir-huzzah2:

Thank you @CaptainPolluxofOrion, it was @Faladrin who inspired me to do this with his original MOD of set 71717.

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The first post has been updated with new pictures, as it's only lacking the Lighthouse now to complete it 100%.

More pictures of the inside details in the first post!

Edited by Murdoch17

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9 hours ago, Murdoch17 said:

The first post has been updated with new pictures, as it's only lacking the Lighthouse now to complete it 100%.

This badly needs some plant life to prevent it from looking too "industrial". 🌴

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On 1/30/2021 at 5:43 AM, Mister Phes said:

This badly needs some plant life to prevent it from looking too "industrial". 🌴

Lovely but I agree. I am missing plants (and animals ... Where is the monkey ? :monkey:)

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On 1/29/2021 at 10:43 PM, Mister Phes said:

This badly needs some plant life to prevent it from looking too "industrial". 🌴

Do you think these will help @Mister Phes?

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I plan on buying these four palm trees along with the Minecraft pirate ship soon. I just placed a lego.com order for set 31109 (Creator Pirate Ship) for use as the Jolly Rodger for Captain Hook. (yes, it's not exactly the same as the ship from 1951's Peter Pan film, but it's close enough for me to slap the name tile on the back!)

1 hour ago, Faladrin said:

Lovely but I agree. I am missing plants (and animals ... Where is the monkey ? :monkey:)

Look at the flag pole with the skull-n-crossbones on it, @Faladrin, in the main (first) pic. The monkey is hanging onto it.

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4 hours ago, Murdoch17 said:

Do you think these will help @Mister Phes?

Yes, definitely! :pir-thumb:

But you also might want to scatter smaller foliage around the MOC.

For example:

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And so on...

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Will add some greenery, and post pictures when done, @Mister Phes. Thank you for your help!

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This lighthouse is still not done, but it is part of a larger teaser of things to come.

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These are three new pirate figs and some of the greenery for sprucing up Skull Rock. I'm quite proud of the torso for the left-most pirate, he is using a Legolas' figure torso. The names of the pirates are Steve Jackson, James "Jim" Hawkins (yes the same Jim Hawkins from Treasure Island), and Marion Smithy.

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7 hours ago, Murdoch17 said:

These are three new pirate figs and some of the greenery for sprucing up Skull Rock

Good to see you've hired some gardeners! :pir-grin:

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On 2/4/2021 at 8:51 PM, Mister Phes said:

Good to see you've hired some gardeners! :pir-grin:

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Aye, I have indeed! How does this look Cap'n? (it's still a WIP) Here's a small story to tide you all over:

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"Curses!", said Captain Hook
What the matter, Captain, you don't like the fog?" replied first mate Smee
"I don't mind the fog, it's just that it's night and the fog is so much worse at night!" Plus, I can't hear if that darned ticking crocodile is close, because of that foghorn sound you're making with that infernal noisemaker!" lamented Hook.
"But Captain, you threw the foghorn into the lagoon last week when I was practicing for a night such as this, Remember?" retorted Smee.
Hook's face goes as white as a sheet as he cries out "Then WHO is making that noise?!?!?"

(Meanwhile, high up in the ship's rigging, Peter Pan decides the jig is up and flies home to his hideout, dropping the used-up foghorn on the way, where it hits the huge crocodile silently following the ship on the head.)

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"Dear Journal:
Day 25 of life on this god-forsaken island. I've taken to calling it Twenty-paces Island, as it is 20 paces long. I think I'm going crazy, storming around on this sandbar with no respite from the heat... I swear I heard a ticking noise late a couple nights back night...as if some animal had swallowed an alarm clock. Crazy right? What's even crazier, I saw a flying boy shortly thereafter, heading south-west overhead. I waved and shouted, but he didn't see me in the dark. The child was followed immediately by a spark of light that almost looked like a tiny fairy.... from those stories you'd hear as a child. I must be insane just for thinking that! Thank the heavens above Wilson the hermit crab is here with me. Wait. I think I sat on something just now... Oh no! WILSON!!! "

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