[Freebuild] Embervale Castle - Basement (Chronicles of Embervale Digression #2)

[Aurore]

Fleshing out Embervale Castle...and taking part in this year's Summer Joust, in the "Subterranean" category.

---

Guard Captain's log, arcane date-time 140630B SUM 1322

Intruders broke into the basement.

Two killed, two captured. One vanished.
No own casualty.
Minor material damage.

Prisoners interrogated: they’re from the Adventurers' Guild, tasked to retrieve some magic gizmo (see attached drawing).
Contracting party unknown.
They had a map marking the hidden room in Lord Dresghar's cheese cellar.

I'm off to the city to have a word with the representative of said Adventurers' Guild.

Side note: the trap in the goblins’ crypt was triggered. No need to feed the plant-thing below before next week.

---

Level 0: from the scullery, access to the well and to the storage room below (with a handy goods elevator - carrying barrels while using a ladder is quite a delicate task).

Level -1: just a regular storage room, with food and jumble.  

Level -2: the goblin guards' crypt. The idol's pedestal is held together only due to the friction of its side plates. Messing with it - e.g. removing the idol - triggers a trapdoor that leads direcly to the lower level. 
Concealed behind a sturdy, regular stone wall without any secret door, this level also includes a treasure room shielded by a shadowguard...

Level -3: let me introduce you to Eriaxis Monstrosa, a subterranean carnivorous plant from the Kolgari realm, that definitely appreciates the snacks the trapdoor above keeps sending it! 

Level -4: the cheese cellar and the well. And a secret door hidden in the wall, that leads to a (rather disappointing) secret room... 

Edited August 22, 2022 by Aurore

[LordDan]

Theres just heaps and heaps of great details here! The cutaway style builds like this are always really fun, and you nailed it for sure! Some of my favorite details are the rat tunnel, the spider webs using the spider man pieces, and the neat torch design! I also really like how you use the ladder piece to great effect, not many mocs I see make use of that part but it fits great here!

[Kai NRG]

Oh yes!!  So many layers, so much fun!  Starting on the bottom with that shrunken skeleton head (which reminds me that I need one of those...) and the excellent curves of that cavern, then there's also all those delicious looking cheeses and the deep blue of the well.  And if that isn't a spooky plant I've never seen one!  What a great use of the starry night print, and the urns in the crypt are really clever.  All the "jumble" of the next level is great, and I really like the way you positioned the spider's web--and that brings us to the top, with some great angles on that wall.  Overall, it's such a fun build to explore.  Great work!

[Frike]

You keep creating one breathtaking build after another!! Not only is the entire build astounding, but all of the levels have enough details to be presentable on their own.

I'll definitely be coming back to this for inspiration! 

[socalbricks]

Great work on all of this - where do I even start? Your minfigures and rock-work continue to impress. My favorite details include the rat tunnel, Van Gogh painting, well, the ladder construction (I can't recall ever seeing that technique), and the upside-down brackets used as torches. I especially like the cheese cellar (nice parts usage - I'm sure that rat is fan of it ) and the "Eriaxis Monstrosa" (I love the use of the Miek and Orchid/Demogorgon heads)!

Edited July 19, 2022 by socalbricks

[Aurore]

@LordDan Thank you so much! I have to admit the rat tunnel, while being the smaller "level", is my personal favourite. I'm really glad you noticed and appreciated the details!

@Kai NRG Thank you very much! The Starry Night was a late addition, but the print is incredibly beautiful and I thought it would go well in a treasure room...
PS: oh yes, you do need shrunken skeleton heads. They're the cutest thing ever. Sort of.

@Frike Thank you so much for those heartwarming words! I had a lot of fun designing each level as if it was a room in some dungeon-crawling game, with plenty of details to keep "players" entertained... 

@socalbricks Thank you very much! I'm definitely thrilled that the rat tunnel, painting and storage room ladder get so much appreciation!  The Eriaxis Monstrosa began as a delicate, alien-looking plant for the desk of my sci-fi lover of a husband...but halfway through its construction it made me think of all the beautifully coloured vegetation that has been created here on GoH for the Kolgari...and gave me the idea for the whole build.

[Simon_S]

Oh wow, this is such a beautiful and detailed build! I really like how you made the most out of this category. Great entry! I especially like the food storage room, but all levels are designed with so much attention to detail. Bravo! 

Edited July 25, 2022 by Simon_S

[Aurore]

@Simon_S Thank you so much for those kind words! I really had a lot of fun designing and building it... 

[jtooker]

This is terrific! Love all these different levels and details you've included. The Eriaxis Monstrosa is fun.

[Grover]

Awesome!  I love all the details and humor.  This reminds me of some children's books I used to read as a child, where each page showed another scene in a tall tower of whatever was being explained.  All the little scenes wrapped together in here are fantastic, from the Van Gogh to the plant creature (which is fantastic).  I like some of the details like the barrel winch, and how you illustrated a ladder with the grill piece to save space.  The spider webs are well done, too.  Totally awesome build from bottom to top!