cms634 Posted June 3, 2009 I've always liked Pirates, but never really built any MOCs with them, because I had no sets. Now I have some sets, but only 2 of the new Pirate sets. Does anyone have any advice on how to begin Pirate MOCs? I'm dying to build one, but I have no idea where to start! All tips are appreciated! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Davey Posted June 3, 2009 Starting a new MOC always seems to be the toughest part for me. With themed building like pirates, I think it often helps to come up with a short story to jump start your building. Maybe it's that the Imperials are defending their city from a pirate attack. Maybe Captain Brickbeard is stranded on an island and trying to find a way off. Perhaps it's a brothel in Tortuga where all the pirate wenches reside. And when all else fails...build one of the LEGO 'official sets' and get to modifying it. My wife had a case of 'builders block' recently and decided to build the 'Loot Island' set. She ended up using two of them to build a really cool 'Pirate Island'. If you will be at Brickworld 2009, you should stop and check it out. Otherwise I'll try and post pictures when I get back. Good luck and happy building! -Dave Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cms634 Posted June 3, 2009 Hm...I've never thought of modifying a set... Great idea! Hopefully, I'll have some cool MOCs to show soon! Are there any other important things, such as the style of the buildings, the foliage, etc.? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Blackmoor Posted June 3, 2009 All you really need for a MOC are parts and being creative! The first is easily solved by buying sets or bricks from BrickLink for example. The second is a thing based on experience from previous MOCs and inspiration. Think about what you're going to build, a tavern for example. Then watch some images from taverns on the internet to get inspiration. Also MOCs from other members will help a lot. Check out the indexes to find MOCs made by the members here. This is the way I get inspiration, I hope this might help! Have fun building! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Daphne Blue Strat Posted June 3, 2009 I've found that, as Dave pointed out, modifying a set is often a good way to generate ideas. Some of my best MOCs started as modifications of other sets. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SlyOwl Posted June 3, 2009 The A-Z of things to build has some good ideas in it. I'm often inspired to build things from the POTC films, and I know other members draw on Hornblower and Sharpe etc. for their MOCs. I get the basic idea, and develop it from there; for example, Laffite's Landing started out similar to Tia Dalma's shack from POTC2, but was mixed up with Lafitte's Landing from the POTC Disney ride. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Commodore Hornbricker Posted June 3, 2009 As SlyOwl TV, movies and books related to the period help spark ideas. I get a lot of ideas from what other have done. I think I like that I want to try something similar. I also find that sometimes just laying out a plate and grabing some bricks helps. I've built things like my Naval Shipyard where I thought I was going to build one thing and then I end up building another. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
martinsuper Posted June 3, 2009 I grew up in South Haven, MI, so there were always Tall Ship festivals, reenactors, etc... (War of 1812, great lakes) Most of my inspiration as a kid came from movies. When I want to build something, I first decide what general idea I want. For instance, I want to build a fort. Then I ask what kind of fort? So I will do a google search for forts built during the pirate era. Sometimes you need to actually put dates in. I found this: Its Fort Mantanzas, which in Spanish means Fort Slaughter. It was built in the pirate era, and used by many different factions all the way past the civil war. I spend several weeks then deciding how I would build it. After that was decided, I started finding parts on bricklink and ordering them. However, as the parts arrived, I decided to modify the design of this fort and build my own. Fort Mantanzas inspired me to use sloped walls and multi-levels, but I took it to the next level and made my own design. It came out like this: Now looking at my fort, and the original, they really dont have a lot in common. Except that the front wall of the original and my have the same slope, height and ratio. However, after that I wanted to make mine more complex, and thus my MOC was born. I hope this wasn't too much info, but I wanted you to know what I was thinking as I built this. Why don't you find something you like, or something you think is cool, and try to figure out how to build it? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
