[ENTRY] The Lost Lagoon

[The Brick Stop]

Legend has it that if one strays too far down the forbidden cost you’ll find yourself adrift in a mysterious mist.

If you can navigate through the fog, you’ll likely end up in the “Lost Lagoon” Beware me sea dogs, for the lost lagoon is the seat of power for King Kahuka and the Islanders!

Come in peace, and you’ll be safe enough, but attempt to loot the vast wealth hidden in this city, and being eaten by alligators will be the least of your worries! The lagoon is littered with traps, surprises, and bad ends for anyone who wishes it’s inhabitants ill will!

 

My name is Jason and this is my entry to the "Return of the Classic Pirates Contest" 

I love the Islanders sub-theme and I've always wanted to make them a mega-set!

This build is comprised of 2,123 pieces, has over 8 major play functions and is home to 13 Islanders, 3 alligators and 4 rope bridges!

It also includes a small Islanders skiff, 3 pirate intruders, a pirate raft, and loads of hiding places, trapdoors, gates, walkways, hidden skulls, an stowed treasure!

Hope you all enjoy!

 

 

 

[Mister Phes]

The images are coming soon folks!

Images have been added - are they working?

[thewatchman]

1 hour ago, Mister Phes said:

The images are coming soon folks!

Images have been added - are they working?

Yep

[Mister Phes]

4 minutes ago, thewatchman said:

Yep

That's great!

Any thoughts on the entry?

[MstrOfPppts]

A stunning entry! Just like an UCS islanders set if LEGO did UCS sets back then. A lot of details where 3 images can't do the build justice. Would like to see some enlarged images of the play features.

I will not go into detail what all is awesome about this build which is the vast majority of it. Would like to point out the diagonal bridge which came out nicely and gives that extra connection between the areas to make it seem more as a whole. You followed the classic color scheme almost perfectly and the use of decorated baseplates is also very smart!

My only nitpicky complaints would be a few parts that do not match the classic standards. I think that there is still a 2 years gap between the Islanders and the Indians, where the tent supports used under the diagonal bridge are from. Maybe I'd change that into a rocky pillar and a black support using 2x2 round bricks decorated with some red. Another part that stands out is the pirate raft. I can't tell if it's black or dark brown? Dark brown is too modern of a color anyway. And although I know that technically the black barrels existed in one set in 1990, they were never used in pirates nor western theme later on. Therefore not even black works for the barrels on the raft since the rest of the build follows the classic color scheme so well. Another thing that looks a bit out of place are the yellow shores. Maybe if plates were used instead of bricks it'd look better, yet I think that the ones in back corners are completely redundant! Anyway, mixing the decorated baseplates shores with brick / plate built shores does not work the best in my eyes.

All in all a very strong entry! I would even consider buying this set back in the days, before I decided to abandon all my yellow minifigures ... (:

[Mazin]

Excelent entry! I'm absolutely in love. Great photogrphy, great build, great ideas, awesome elements included and obcsene amount of playfeatures i''ll need a year to discover, give me an another year and i might start to get bored and become picky ;) 

I don't even know if it's reay built or if it's a render to be honest. But then again, i dont realy care. I wanna have it. Didn't even think we'd get something bigger than Enchanted Island, especially in the Islanders sector ;) And it's not that that it's big, it's also a monstrosity of all those little things merged beatifuly together, like, i wonder if You've spent last few weeks reading trough other entries or if You had this planned already before, cause there's jsut so many things we've discused separately all over other entries mixed nicely together in here. 

Even things that aren't part of the mai structure itself are stunning and well thought, like that little raft, small but great, and it's got a flag used as as sail, wow! And there that islander's catamaran. Characters seem to be nicely selected too. And with the lagoon... One thig is just better then anoter, we have a drawbridge, a turning bridge, a double brdge. Hm... should we stop here and wonder if this this element could be changed for better? Naah, i don't wanna do that. and i've run out of ideas, or at least wanna enjoy this one for a while. With all those beautiful towers, roofs, walkways, stairs, hidden compartments, LAVA BOMBS! :o wow! Tunels, arches, crocodile cages, vegetation, tribal elements, sculpted elements, and even those small yellow island drops here and there... and those instructions... seriously dude, You're a madman.

One thing i don't understand on the istruction tho, it's about that last picture in the very lower right corner. I don't get what's the playfeature there :) I guess this area with tribal face/statue isn't that visible on Your photographs and so it's hard to tell what's going on there. Perhaps You could add an another pic then? Or would that be too many already?

I also wonder what's behind that big black door where those lava bombs are located? Is there a secret room too or does it just store all that lava? Or maybe there's a secret treasure room inside as we see those pirates running out from there with a chest? Perhaps an another reason to provide one more photo for us? ;) ( could be done with a separate gallery on a different site, not everyone is eager to jump to links, but i do sometimes, especially with sets like this where i want to see evey corner ;) )

 

[iragm]

Very impressive work!

When I saw this, I thought it reminded me of a crazy classic-style Forestmen build done on Islander baseplates, and when I looked it up, sure enough, you designed that one, too!  All of your work is very nice and feels just like classic 90s sets.  Not to mention the professionally-made renders!

2 hours ago, Mazin said:

like that little raft, small but great, and it's got a flag used as as sail, wow!

Many of the best bits of this build are lifted from official sets.  That raft is (mostly) from set 1788.  I'm not saying that this is a bad thing at all, why not borrow elements that work?  The only element of this build that bothers me is the use of a rope bridge as a drawbridge (the bit borrowed from set 6281) -- it's a bit silly and breaks the suspension of disbelief for me.  But that's minor -- the colors are great, minifigures look right at home, the proportions of the build look great, well done!

5 hours ago, MstrOfPppts said:

Anyway, mixing the decorated baseplates shores with brick / plate built shores does not work the best in my eyes.

I am inclined to agree with this; a lot of sets used one or the other, but both together clashes, just a bit.

I think the falling lava play feature is my favorite bit here.  That's pretty original, and looks very well executed.

In terms of actual criticisms, it feels like there's just a bit too much going on here.  This could easily be split into 3 different sets, each a winner in their own right.  Having 4 rope bridges, 4 statues, 4 palm leaf roofs?  Sometimes, less is more.  This feels like catalog diorama from the 90s, it's great to look at in a "Where's Waldo" kind of way, but as a set, it's a bit overkill.  Still, at the end of the day it is a joy to look at, and that's all that matters.  Thumbs up!

[Mazin]

12 minutes ago, iragm said:

Very impressive work!

When I saw this, I thought it reminded me of a crazy classic-style Forestmen build done on Islander baseplates, and when I looked it up, sure enough, you designed that one, too!  All of your work is very nice and feels just like classic 90s sets.  Not to mention the professionally-made renders!

Many of the best bits of this build are lifted from official sets.  That raft is (mostly) from set 1788.  I'm not saying that this is a bad thing at all, why not borrow elements that work?  The only element of this build that bothers me is the use of a rope bridge as a drawbridge (the bit borrowed from set 6281) -- it's a bit silly and breaks the suspension of disbelief for me.  But that's minor -- the colors are great, minifigures look right at home, the proportions of the build look great, well done!

I am inclined to agree with this; a lot of sets used one or the other, but both together clashes, just a bit.

I think the falling lava play feature is my favorite bit here.  That's pretty original, and looks very well executed.

In terms of actual criticisms, it feels like there's just a bit too much going on here.  This could easily be split into 3 different sets, each a winner in their own right.  Having 4 rope bridges, 4 statues, 4 palm leaf roofs?  Sometimes, less is more.  This feels like catalog diorama from the 90s, it's great to look at in a "Where's Waldo" kind of way, but as a set, it's a bit overkill.  Still, at the end of the day it is a joy to look at, and that's all that matters.  Thumbs up!

Oh, i didn't know that... to hell with him then!! ;P honestly tho, most important thing is that it's not the same, i'm not familiar enough to judge how much of it is borrowed, ispired etc, it looks different enough for me, it's not like it's ripped off or anything. Then again, all toys borrow from each other. I would think that that You'd rather point to that turning bridge, that it might be too similar to the idea presented in the Enchanted Island, but even if it is similar, should we complain?  

I can't agree with You saying that it's too much tho. I'm always pushing the "less is more" philosofy in a lot of fields, even with some of the entries, but i wouldn't say it's a problem here. It would be a problem if it was doomed to be too expensive as a single set, and there fore it would be more profitable to sell it as few separate pieces, and i actually suggested it in a Enchanted Island entry... tho, that was poorly suggested because i was worried that our friend there would not be able to finish before the deadline, so i thought that it would be smart to use his completed ideas as separate entries, rather than have a heart attack while trying to merge them together to a single set ;) But in here it's all finished and i don't see a problem. Sure... for some it might be too big just like some other iconic sets from Lego or other toy series. But there were even bigger and we all wanted them anyway. So i'm all in. I guess that the amount of locations withing this lagoon would make some of those areas used more or less during plays, some stuff would be poorly decorative, but then a lot of reviewers complain about a lot of elements that aren;t actually needed to enchance the play experience, but they want them poorly for decorative reasons or because "historically they would need a linstock to fire a gun" etc ;) 

Lego is all about magic and storytelling to me, buiding too, and this one is one of few that took my straight into my childhood :) 

 

[CAESARBLACK]

Been following you on Instagram!

Love it all

[thewatchman]

17 hours ago, Mister Phes said:

That's great!

Any thoughts on the entry?

Many many thoughts.

 It’s incredible, the truest form of a 90s UCS iv ever seen, carrying the same vibe as the islanders sets and creating not only a great display piece but also so many play features!

The crocodile release pit is very very cool and on theme for the islanders.

I love that you understand the building techniques of the time, and colour palate available to those builders and made something remarkable!

brilliant entry

[durazno33]

Wow this is great! Like Islanders meets Ewok Village.  There is a lot to love.

The only thing that could make this better and is totally is probably a pipe dream is that if you were able to incorporate the throne and gold from the 1994 Lego Catalog somewhere in there. Maybe on the second or third level of the center building. But that might be too much at this point. Great job

Edited August 24, 2023 by durazno33

[Yoggington]

I am overwhelmed just looking at this

Do you think it's possible to crank out a few more renders/photos of some of the details before the deadline? I'd love to explore the nooks and crannies a bit more.

[MstrOfPppts]

21 hours ago, Mazin said:

One thing i don't understand on the istruction tho, it's about that last picture in the very lower right corner. I don't get what's the playfeature there :) I guess this area with tribal face/statue isn't that visible on Your photographs and so it's hard to tell what's going on there. Perhaps You could add an another pic then? Or would that be too many already?

Well I think it is quite obvious, the whole statue build slides left and right along the tiles on the floor revealing or concealing a hidden cave entrance behind it (:

[Mazin]

12 minutes ago, MstrOfPppts said:

Well I think it is quite obvious, the whole statue build slides left and right along the tiles on the floor revealing or concealing a hidden cave entrance behind it (:

Ah, ok, You're right, i got it now. I didn't realize it could slide, i thought it was more about those elements in front of the statue - little island and rock/statue formation. Kinda thought they can do something, be moved away, so that statue could be moved in there between them or somesuch :)  

[Marooned Marin]

Pure delight to see this kind of entry.  Great job!

[Mister Phes]

On 8/24/2023 at 12:20 PM, Yoggington said:

Do you think it's possible to crank out a few more renders/photos of some of the details before the deadline?

More images have been provided!

 

[Rogue Redcoat]

Amazing, I massive set but it looks great at every angle :) Here are my suggestions, first I would love to see more up-close pictures, second I want less of a repetitive feel as there are 3 alligators, 3 canoes, 4 bridges, Etc... Also, this is a great build but a bit too large for my liking, it seems it could almost be like 2 sets, now with the updated photos, perhaps we could get some close-ups of the play features? I also see a lot of skeleton heads, perhaps you could add some of the other bones around the build, also I believe there should be a place for the islanders to feast once the battle is over and some food for them. Anyway and great build albeit a bit large but great job and happy building :) 

[Lyichir]

Wow! The scale of this is incredible—it very much feels like the kind of set that could have come out in the theme back then if sets got as big as they sometimes do today. The aesthetic is very accurate to the original sets, but like some of the best entries in this contest, it doesn't merely content itself with the rearrangement of elements from existing sets, but rather innovates with novel features like the double-length diagonal rope bridge. Classic sets rarely engaged with such unique angled construction, but by doing so with period-accurate parts and techniques the result doesn't look at all out of place. Well done!

[hatchpattern]

Magnificent Set!
I love the renders and professional quality presentation.
Specifically, the site plan of the map is gorgeous and really gives the audience a feel for the size of the set.
If UCS was around back then, I think we would all vote for this one.
Been following you on Instagram of awhile now; huge fan of your work.
Keep it up!

[JeffBuilds]

I like the presentation, I like the illustrations, this is a larger, better version of the Enchanted Island! It's everything from the Islanders' Wave, to the Tenth Power! It has the same color profile of the Islanders' sets, More Side-Builds, more Minifigures, More play features! Just more! This is just me being selfish, but a render of the box, with the flap, like on the old Pirates Sets would send this over the top! Not that it isn't already! 

 What's on display is already amazing and worthy of recognition by the LEGO Group!

[Glowboy]

This is amazing!! I can really see this being a real set! It's absolutely love the retro-style instructions of play features of the set, makes me feel really nostalgic! Were those all hand drawn? if so, well done! Even for such a large set, every inch was filled with detail and put to good use!

[Fraunces]

Wow, Islanders on steriods! So much play futures and details to see. I follow you on IG also and you truly have incorporated that classic building style.

[Mazin]

HERE ARE MY FINAL THOUGHTS AND REASONS WHY I'VE DECIDED TO RANK THIS SET AT THE 3RD PLACE IN THE MAIN BUILDING CATEGORY

I must admit that i was sure this Contest was almost over and i had my votes practically selected when this brickifull beast popped up and it's blowned my mind, as I believe that Lost Lagoon is THE SET of this Conteast, should we throw best Entries into Lego's new catalogue. It's simply the kind of set that we all would have dreamed of if we were still kids, or if it would be released back in the 90s. None of us would probably afford that tho, nor would get for Christmas, but that's just the thing with every toy line. There were always some favourites we would eventually claim, and holly grail that would be fat from our reach. And that would also enchance their attractivness. Thus, Lost Lagoon is what The Flagg Aircraft Carrier was for Lego, what Castle Grayskull was for He-Man, and what Cats' Lair was for Thundercats. It would be a dream of dreams.

With all those awesome playfeatures, with it's brides, craft, animals, great number of minigures, and visual appeal, it blends so well with it's size, that it's actually an amazing playground, where every area and every brick is realy well placed and useful for kids endless scenarios, and so it's not just a enormous bunch of Lego parts thrown together into an oversized composition.  This is actually a real beaty, and something every fan of Lego and Pirates would opt to have. And it's very and classic looking original too! 

Still... it's an Islander's set and this tribe was always sorta 2nd class among Lego Pirates factions. We liked them because they were part of Pirates theme, but it was the same attaction we had to all those bad Gijoe or He-Man figures, that we wanted to get only because they were part of those world, not because they were attractive on their own.  And for the same reason I believe people would prefer to choose more boxes with Pirates and Soldier if given a chance, rather than forcing themselves to get only one, but giant product focusing on the natives. Thus, i'm ranking it "only" at the 3rd place.