Marooned Marin Posted December 5, 2021 (edited) Dear all, It all began one night, I believe this summer, as I roamed the vast oceans of Internet something small (simple) but utterly genius caught my eye on Classic-Pirates blog. I’m talking about “Caribbean Ribbit” by Legostein, a wonderful creation which immediately posed an old challenge for me: Can I Do More With Less? I decided to put on hold work on two mayor vessels and go out and try to find the answer. I gave it my best, and so here I am. DESCRIPTION The Warty Crab is a two sail – single mast vessel which resembles more a medieval cog than your single mast pirate sloop. Built mainly for quick light transport, with no cannons onboard, it gives the appearance of an easy target. However everything of what it lacks in heavy firepower it gains in unparalleled speed. The best description of this vessel is ‘Catch me if you can’. Despite its size vessel contains two compartments; first a clearly visible cabin on the stern which can be used for cover during the rough weather. And the second in the bow, convenient to hide smaller sums of gold. I went at some length to make the creation exceptionally sturdier than it looks. It is sturdy alright, as far as I’m concerned, but it is not indestructible, i.e. it will not survive unplanned drop test from the table (if it does, let me know). RARE PARTS The use of rare/unique parts is minimal and only one part represents a challenge: 3x pieces of 2736 Technic, Axle 1L with Tow Ball in BLACK for bowsprit. I obtained the same part in gray and painted it black. Yes, I’m aware that now somewhere some purist can’t sleep at night because of this abomination, but it had to be done. QUICK INFORMATION Parts: 191 parts (without minifig) Dimensions: W: 10.3cm L: 22.1cm H: 18.4cm Weight: 107 grams Estimated Cost of Parts: 24-30€ (on BrickLink in 2021) Instructions available at Rebrickable.com at this LINK BACKSTORY Before I log-off, I would like to point out my deep admiration for the massive amount of work you all do at this forum and on the Classic-Pirates blog. It is mind-boggling how much useful information and ‘know-how’ is accumulated. Bravo! As I was marooned for a long time from LEGO and brick-world I was not aware of this community and can only regret I didn’t joined earlier, but that’s the price for being marooned. Since I’m a new member I come to you bearing a small gift in a form of a short backstory. Enjoy. Edited December 5, 2021 by Brickander Brickumnus Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Rackham Posted December 5, 2021 Simple and cute, like it. The sails are great too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NOD Posted December 5, 2021 Great comic! The ship, the various Lego backgrounds and the drawings are very good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 5, 2021 5 hours ago, Red Rackham said: Simple and cute, like it. The sails are great too. Thank you. For sails I used old pillow sheet made from cotton, and to make them stiff soaked them in a water + glue solution, and drew crossbones afterwards using black permanent marker. Simple and straightforward technique which worked fine for me. 3 hours ago, NOD said: Great comic! The ship, the various Lego backgrounds and the drawings are very good. Thank you very much for kind words, I am glad you liked it, both the comic and design. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thewatchman Posted December 6, 2021 Perfect little ship, a difficult scale to work too, but looking awesome. I cannot believe those sails are hand drawn! I was so sure they were printed on some sort of canvas! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 6, 2021 36 minutes ago, thewatchman said: I cannot believe those sails are hand drawn! I was so sure they were printed on some sort of canvas! I printed the crossbones on plain paper in different scales and placed both the 'stiffed-glued' sail and the paper on the glass table with lamp shining from below. When I found the right size the drawing was pretty much easy. Tip: first use small finer marker to draw out the edges and then fill the rest with fat marker. But be patient and gentle. I ruined 2 sails before success. Also, very important, draw only on one side of the sail and wait wait wait till it dries out before switching to the other side. This will minimize the chance of smudging the color outside the edges. Never mind if it doesn't look good when you fill only one side. Repeat the other after 15minutes and you will see significantly better result. Then after 10minutes return and do the first side again if you think it needs more paint. Patience is the key. Very simple, cheap and direct method. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 6, 2021 This is a very well produced comic! Better add this to my reading/viewing list too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 6, 2021 29 minutes ago, Mister Phes said: This is a very well produced comic! Thank you Mister Phes. It is always a pleasure to have the Governor approval. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Feuer Zug Posted December 7, 2021 The ship is wonderful for the size and the comic superbly done. Love the story and can't wait to see more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 7, 2021 5 hours ago, Feuer Zug said: The ship is wonderful for the size and the comic superbly done. Love the story and can't wait to see more. Thank you Feuer Zug. I will try to incorporate story with my other MOC's and gradually continue to work on both fields. We will see how that goes (it's a massive amount of work, but I love every minute of it). :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zinnn Posted December 12, 2021 awesome job! and the comic is great too :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 12, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, zinnn said: awesome job! and the comic is great too :) Thank you Zinnn, I'm glad you like it :) Edited December 12, 2021 by Marooned Marin Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 13, 2021 On 12/6/2021 at 11:28 PM, Marooned Marin said: Thank you Mister Phes. It is always a pleasure to have the Governor approval. Are there higher resolution images available? 800x700 dimensions are well below modern standards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 13, 2021 18 minutes ago, Mister Phes said: Are there higher resolution images available? But of course Mister Phes. I first intended to go with 1500x1400 images, but after experimenting on 'practice posting topic' I was scared that they would be too big for forum. Here is the link on Bricksafe with full-HD images: https://bricksafe.com/pages/maroonedmarin/warty-crab-hd As for the comic I can go much higher (7000x4900)... but I reduced it to 2200x1555: https://bricksafe.com/pages/maroonedmarin/warty-crab-comic---hd Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 13, 2021 2 hours ago, Marooned Marin said: I first intended to go with 1500x1400 images Excellent! With these images I can create a fine blog post! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 13, 2021 2 hours ago, Mister Phes said: Excellent! With these images I can create a fine blog post! I am really honored Mister Phes only to be considered for blog post on your mighty fine website, let alone to be actually featured on it. In one draft of the later story (the Captain Red story – still working on the working title) we will meet the Governor who has his reasons for putting the end on treacherous Captain Redbeard. The Governor Phes has a nice ring to it. It would be my pleasure to base that fictional character on you, if you agree. Be advised this is a redcoat character. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PxChris Posted December 13, 2021 Not only is this a great little build with a lot to appreciate, but the comic backstory is absolutely spectacular! This certainly made a splash in our waters! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 13, 2021 22 minutes ago, PxChris said: This certainly made a splash in our waters! Your words are too kind mister PxChris and it is my pleasure to hear them. Thank you. I will do my best to maintain this level of quality in my future creations. I already made one pretty good ship recently which raised eyebrows and got me interviewed and published in the newspapers in my little corner of universe. But sadly that vessel does not belong in Pirate theme and it would be posted elsewhere on the Eurobricks forum when his time comes. For the time being (next year or two) I plan to stay here in the Pirates waters with several different creations on my mind. I will try to do more similar splashing... and there’s a comic-story which needs to be finished, and maybe turned into a movie script, and maybe offered to Hollywood, and why not? They can always say NO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 19, 2021 On 12/14/2021 at 4:17 AM, Marooned Marin said: I am really honored Mister Phes only to be considered for blog post on your mighty fine website, let alone to be actually featured on it. Much obliged! A blog post is currently underway... Do you post your images to social media? Particularly Instagram and Flickr? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 19, 2021 12 hours ago, Mister Phes said: Much obliged! A blog post is currently underway... Do you post your images to social media? Particularly Instagram and Flickr? Until you asked I only used Facebook, but after a short consideration I put together my Instagram account available at this link https://www.instagram.com/marooned_marin/ I will start filling it out with interesting material. :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 24, 2021 On 12/20/2021 at 5:54 AM, Marooned Marin said: Until you asked I only used Facebook, but after a short consideration I put together my Instagram account available at this link https://www.instagram.com/marooned_marin/ Excellent! The Blog Post is complete and scheduled for December 26. I think you can preview the post here - but let me know if that's not the case. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marooned Marin Posted December 24, 2021 The link gets me only 'Lost at sea', but I don't want you to waste any of your holiday time fixing it, after all it is almost Christmas and I can wait December 26 for my debut on the blog. Thank you Mister Phes for the effort and promotion thus far. From where I am standing you are better than Santa Marry Christmas Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted December 24, 2021 6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said: The link gets me only 'Lost at sea', but I don't want you to waste any of your holiday time fixing it, after all it is almost Christmas and I can wait December 26 for my debut on the blog. It's not broken. It seems you need to be logged into Classic Pirates to view unpublished blog posts. I wasn't sure but you've just confirmed it. 6 hours ago, Marooned Marin said: Marry Christmas Seasons greetings, laddie! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blackdeathgr Posted December 31, 2021 How this gem passed under my radar is totally unacceptable! Great effort and a lot of character!!! I just love it!!! Good thing that @Mister Phes is thorough!!! Happy New Year guys!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mister Phes Posted February 13, 2022 On 12/5/2021 at 11:09 PM, Marooned Marin said: This MOC would be perfect for an upcoming Instagram post - but is there a version of the above image with a transparent background? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
