Ambassador Project - Set Suggestions

[Random Guy]

They're not the same; note the pirate vessel has two masts, a longer quarterdeck, and only carries swivel guns instead of the larger cannon.

[Wellesley]

Set Name: The Post ship (not from the royal navy rating system)

Category: 7

Faction: The Merchants

Description: A little ship, maybe the size of the prefab hulls from the armada flag ship (6280). One or two masts.

Main Elements / Play Features: A lot of storeroom and a working crane.

Minifigures: 4 - 1 Trader and his son. 2 Sailors (All are part of the Merchants)

Accessories: Barrels, letters.

Set Name: The smugglers cave

Category: 3

Faction: The Smugglers

Description: A coastal hideout for the smugglers.

Main Elements / Play Features: A rowing boat and a cave.

Minifigures: 2 Smugglers

Accessories: A barrel, a chest full of gold, a skeleton, a treasure map

Set Name: The lighthouse

Category: 4

Faction: The Merchants

Description: A lighthouse with a little landing stage and a crane on it.

Main Elements / Play Features:

Minifigures: 2 -1 lighthousekeeper (The Merchants) and 1 Guard

Accessories: (a canon on the landing stage?)

Set Name: Dead drop

Category: 2

Faction: The Smugglers

Description: A part of the pier with a few bollards. An outflow of the drainage contains the dead letter box.

Main Elements / Play Features: A fence or grid marks the outflow. One may open the grid to access the canalisation and the dead letter box

Minifigures: 2 -1 Harbor patrol (The Guards) and 1 Smuggler (Pirates)

Accessories:

[BFN]

Set Name: Smugglers' Ship

Category: 6

Faction: Smugglers

Description: The smuggler's small ship.

Main Elements / Play Features: A cannon, hidden storage, oil/mines to drop from a hidden compartment at the back of the ship. There should also be a rock outcropping in which they should hide/recover something of theirs, such as a jewel, so that the set has a story for kids to play using.

Minifigures: 3 smugglers

Accessories: Map, telescope, muskets/swords

Set Name: Smugglers' Hideout Attack!

Category: 7

Faction: Smugglers/Haven Guard

Description: The smugglers are taking cover in a small, wooden fortress lying on the rocks, while the merchants are using a bomb vessel to try and take out their fortress.

Main Elements / Play Features: The smugglers have one cannon, which is initially hidden, and maybe something like "Greek fire" can jut out of one of the rock outcroppings as well. Inside the storage is a small prison, a small storage area for general supplies, and maybe a small crane to unload what they smuggle. The Haven Guard has a small vessel with a mortar at the front, which is slightly larger than a cannon and as such shoots slightly larger ammo. Corresponding with the mortar, the fortress would have some sort of "fall-apart" feature.

Minifigures: 1 captured merchant (optional), 2 smugglers, 2 guards

Accessories: Muskets, swords, torches

[Random Guy]

So far, so good. Here's what we've got so far.

Merchants

1: Card Challenge, Fisherman's Catch

3: The Calamari Cutter

4: The Lighthouse, Treasure Heist

7: The Post Ship

8: The Fastlane Fluyt, unnamed town set

Smugglers

1: Smuggler's Camouflage, Smuggler's Ox Cart

2: Dead Drop

3: The Smugglers' Cave

4: Stealth Runner

6: Smugglers' Ship, Smugglers' Top

Haven Guard:

1: Soldier's Watch

4: Haven Gunboat

8: Fort Nassau, HMS Swordfish

Multiple:

3: Harbour Patrol

5: Nassau Haven

7: Smugglers' Hideout Attack!

8: Reef Showdown

Totals:

1: 5

2: 1

3: 3

4: 4

5: 1

6: 2

7: 2

8: 7

I think what we still need is some kind of small fort for the Haven Guard, something like Saber Island, Imperial Outpost, Broadside's Brig, Lagoon Lock-up, and Cannon Cove. A main base for the Smugglers would help too.

Edited June 5, 2014 by Random Guy

[Navy Trooper Fenson]

I just wanted to come here to tell you the same as Random Guy, the 20 to 60$ sets should be more ships and not scenery. The 2009 theme was held down by having a single ship in its line-up with the rest of the sets relegated to an island, hideout and fort. I don´t like that most themes like City, Space, Superheroes and Star Wars are so vehicle based with one location set every two years but ships are front and center of pirates so there should be a selection of at least two or three types with things like the typical hideout and fort reserved for another wave or as D2C stand-alone like the Imperial Flagship from 2010 so they could get the size and attention they deserve.

Also I would give these category 5-7 sets ship hulls so their design isn´t as clashing with the inevitable 100$ set and to make the ships more customizable. When the 100$ set is a smuggler/pirate ship and the two smaller ships are from the merchants and haven guard you could buy two or three of the same smaller ship and build one ship of roughly the same size and design as the 100$ one.

More in spirit of the Renegade Runner, Cross Bone Clipper and Armada Flag ship but with a better design. Just taking the front and back hulls and sticking a single sail on it isn´t that great nor realistic. I don´t know ship faring terms but a sail/hull design like that from the Assassins Creed 4 gunboats could look great on its own Link to pic. Of course interconnectivity maybe needs another solution for hulls since they are maybe too big for 20$ sets but I am going to write something on that in the Design constraints topic.

[Mister Phes]

Set Name: Smugglers' Hideout Attack!

Category: 7

Faction: Smugglers/Haven Guard

Description: The smugglers are taking cover in a small, wooden fortress lying on the rocks, while the merchants are using a bomb vessel to try and take out their fortress.

Main Elements / Play Features: The smugglers have one cannon, which is initially hidden, and maybe something like "Greek fire" can jut out of one of the rock outcroppings as well. Inside the storage is a small prison, a small storage area for general supplies, and maybe a small crane to unload what they smuggle. The Haven Guard has a small vessel with a mortar at the front, which is slightly larger than a cannon and as such shoots slightly larger ammo. Corresponding with the mortar, the fortress would have some sort of "fall-apart" feature.

Minifigures: 1 captured merchant (optional), 2 smugglers, 2 guards

Accessories: Muskets, swords, torches

I wasn't far off suggesting a similar idea... So I'll just add my thoughts:

Description: Two Haven guards on a daring rescue mission to save the merchant from the Smugglers!

Main Elements / Play Features: Could use the baseplate found in Pirates Perilous Pitfall to build up the rocky outcroppings.

Minifigures: 4 Smugglers instead of 2.

Accessories: Handcuffs for the Merchant prisoner.

[Bob De Quatre]

Maybe it's not the right place, but as it's sets related I'll post it here.

I was thinking of designing some smaller set each with a part of the harbor, like some merchant houses, a small garrison, and so on...

I think it would be nice to have some modularity so that we could combine sets the way we want, even the bigger sets like a pier or the guard's fort.

The small modular sets could be like:

Set Name: The fishmonger

Category: 2-3 ?

Faction: Merchant

Description: The fishmonger store/house, where he sells baskets full of fishes

Main Elements / Play Features: A small modular building with the fishmonger shop, fishes that the smuggler could try to steal

Minifigures: 1 fichmonger

Accessories: baskets, fiches

[tedbeard]

[updated Aug 19: added set names]

I have had a really hard time contributing to this thread because I think it is way too early in the process to be suggesting sets in such a detailed way. Every time I think about this I want to see a coherent overall plan for the whole line.

I see the sets as a matrix with 3 factions and 8 categories. I also think it is important to start at the "top" since that makes a lot of the set type decisions easier, ie the biggest set should be a fortress which means the second largest must be a ship, etc. I think the "good guys" should get 5 sets and the "bad guys" 3 sets but of course all the sets can have a mix of figs, ie. the warehouse/dock set should have 2 "company" and 1 "smuggler".

The following charts the overall components with minifigures noted in ().

Category……………………………………..Company………….Guards………….Smugglers……total figs

Category 8 (800-1000 pcs)………….…………(1)…………….fortress(5)……………(1)……………..7

Category 7 (400 pcs)………………………….ship(3)…………………………………..(1)….……..……4

Category 6 (250 pcs)…………………warehouse/dock(2)…………….………………(1)………….…3

Category 5 (150-200 pcs)………………………………………………………………ship(3)……….…3

Category 4 (120-140 pcs)…………………………………………………………….hideout(2)………..2

Category 3 (80-90 pcs)………………………..boat(1)……………………………….…(1).………..….2

Category 2 (60-70 pcs)………………………………………………………………….boat(1)……...…1

Category 1 (20-30 pcs)…………………………………………guard shack(1)………………………..1

Total figs (per faction).……………………………(7)……………….(6)………………..(10)………….23

Set Name: Fort William

Category: 8

Faction: guards

Description: The fortress watches over Brickhaven Harbour keeping the smugglers in line.

Main Elements / Play Features: includes a jail cell with breakaway wall section for escape, the office of the chief factor of the company, bunk beds for the soldiers

Minifigure(s): commander of the guard, a sergeant, three soldiers, a smuggler and the company chief factor/governor

Accessories: muskets, cannons, chickens

Set Name: Good Fortune

Category: 7

Faction: company

Description: the company ship Fortune carries cargo near and far

Main Elements / Play Features: working crane to load cargo, rope for smuggler to climb aboard

Minifigure(s): captain, 2 crew, 1 smuggler

Accessories: pigs, chickens, one cannon, one grippable rope

Set Name: Trader’s Warehouse

Category: 6

Faction: company

Description: this warehouse located right on the dock serves as the main loading and unloading point for company cargo.

Main Elements / Play Features: big

Minifigure(s): yes

Accessories: parrots, barrels(with lids) and crates

Set Name: Red Dragon

Category: 5

Faction: smugglers

Description: the smugglers ship is a fast sloop designed to outrun the guards and deliver cargo without getting caught.

Main Elements / Play Features: hidden cargo hold

Minifigure(s): smuggler captain and two crew

Accessories: monkey

Set Name: Jungle Hideaway

Category: 4

Faction: smugglers

Description: the smugglers hideout is a hut in the jungle which serves as the rendezvous and storage place for secret cargoes offloaded from the smugglers ship using a canoe.

Main Elements / Play Features: log pieces and a couple of palm trees

Minifigure(s): 2 smugglers

Accessories: pig, chicken, barrels & crates, brown canoe

Set Name: Something Fishy

Category: 3

Faction: company

Description: fishing boat

Main Elements / Play Features: a mast w/rope and hook to haul in the fishing net

Minifigure(s): company fisherman and a smuggler spy who watches the movements of the guards and company men

Accessories: large rowboat, net, fish

Set Name: Smugglers Gunboat

Category: 2

Faction: smuggler

Description: a small rowboat armed with a cannon

Main Elements / Play Features: swivel mount for the cannon

Minifigure(s): 1 smuggler

Accessories: cannon

Set Name: Haven Guardpost

Category: 1

Faction: guards

Description: the guard shack is a sentry box to shelter the lonesome guardsman

Main Elements / Play Features: the monkey likes to annoy the guardsman by thrown bananas at him

Minifigure(s): 1 guardsman

Accessories: musket, monkey, bananas

I haven’t provided set names as I think the names should come after the sets are designed (at least in early stages) and the factions are more established.

Edited August 19, 2014 by tedbeard

[ManInATopHat]

Hate to suggest this so late, but...

Set Name: Merchant's Fishing Runner

Category: 4

Faction: Merchants

Description: A small, light sailing craft, no armaments. A large hook to one side with a fishing net. Also a pirate dinghy with a lone armed pirate.

Main Elements/Play Features: The fishing net can be lowered down to the water line to catch fish. Merchants can fight the pirate for the fish.

Minifigure(s): One Merchant captain, one Merchant fisherman, one pirate.

Accessories: 1 musket, 3 fish, 3 cutlasses.

Set Name: The Salty Seadog Inn and Tavern

Category: 5

Faction: All? Doesn't necessarily cater to one group.

Description: A building similar to the Captain's Daughter, but with more interior. A bar, few tables, keg storehouse, and perhaps a boarding room on the upper level.

Main Elements/Play Features: Hidden stash under bar containing swords and small arms, breakable wall on one side.

Minifigure(s): Bartender, two pyrate drunkards, one solider, perhaps a random civilian?

Accessories: Two pistols, one musket, 3 swords, 4 bottles of rum.

Set Name: Pirate's Paradise/Smuggler's Spot

Category: 3

Faction: Smugglers

Description: A small beach with water, some palm trees, a shack with hammock, a boat, small dock.

Main Elements/Play Features: Boat can be docked at the beach, captain can chill in hammock.

Minifigure(s): Pirate captain, pirate deckhand.

Accessories: 2 rum bottles, 1 sword, 1 pistol.

Set Name: Harbour Checkpoint/Trading Post

Category: 4

Faction: Guards

Description: A small walled fort for sentries, an officer's office, sentry box out front for checking in and out, treasure chamber. Also would have a small boat with sail, like in the old Imperial Trading Post.

Main Elements/Play Features: Treasure chamber can be robbed by pirate, officer has a rum stash, has one or two cannons on walls.

Minifigure(s): Guard officer, one or two sentries, 1 pirate.

Accessories: 3/4 swords, 2 muskets, 2 pistols, 1/2 cannon(s).

Thoughts?

[The_Cook]

[quote name='ManInATopHat' timestamp='1402174483' post='1910484'

Thoughts?

Could you possibly sort out your formatting you've got a white background that's clashing with the standard pirates skin. Thanks.

Other than that it's a couple of good suggestions in the 3/4/5 categories which is where the primary market lies. We'll soon be collating all the suggestions together, merging close matches and trying to work out a good way of fitting them across the various price bands; going out to a poll if or where necessary.

[ManInATopHat]

Could you possibly sort out your formatting you've got a white background that's clashing with the standard pirates skin. Thanks.

Yeah, sorry about that. That's due to me being lazy and copy pasting the lists. I didn't notice until after I posted, I'll see if I can fix it for you!

[The_Cook]

Ah, much better for being readable. Thanks

[Mister Phes]

I think what we still need is some kind of small fort for the Haven Guard, something like Saber Island, Imperial Outpost, Broadside's Brig, Lagoon Lock-up, and Cannon Cove.

I agree but I don't have a complete concept at the moment... But I'll plant a seed of an idea....

Set Name: Haven Checkpoint

Category: 4

Faction: Haven Guard

Description: The smugglers are trying to sneak into the harbour but can they get past the Haven checkpoint?

Main Elements / Play Features: A small fort like structure with a jetty that can restrict passage of small vessels.

Minifigures: 2 Haven Guards 2 Smugglers

Accessories: The smugglers would have a dingy with a concealed compartment containing smuggled goods.

UPDATE!!!

Well dopey me! ManInATopHat had already suggested something similiar.

A main base for the Smugglers would help too.

We should have that pretty much covered with Smugglers' Hideout Attack!

[CMP]

Set Name: Haven Guard Battery

Category: 3

Faction: Haven Guard

Description: Haven Guardsmen have set up a gun battery on a small island to keep an eye out for smuggler vessels.

Main Elements / Play Features: A strip of land, with some simple ramparts, a cannon, and a tiny 'building', really just a small alcove for a table and a flag on top.

Minifigure(s): x2 Haven soldiers

Accessories: x1 crate, x2 muskets, x1 pistol, x1 cutlass, x1 map, x1 telescope, x1 Haven flag, x1 alligator

Set Name: Lighthouse Watch

Category: 5

Faction: Haven Guard/Smugglers

Description: The Haven Guard maintains the lighthouse to guide merchants and spot smugglers.

Main Elements / Play Features: A small, open-backed Haven watchtower on a tiny landmass not unlike Sabre Island. First floor has a cannon battery, second is an 'office' for the officer, third is pyre. The smuggler gets a rowboat with a small sail.

Minifigure(s): x1 Haven soldier, x1 Haven officer, x1 smuggler

Accessories: x2 muskets, x2 barrels, x1 crate, x1 Haven flag, x1 cutlass, x1 pistol, x1 bottle, x1 coins, x1 parrot, x1 crab, x1 officer's log, x1 sextant

Set Name: Brickhaven Market

Category: 7

Faction: Merchants/Smugglers/Haven Guard

Description: At Brickhaven's bustling market, the Haven Guard searches for the escaped smuggler.

Main Elements / Play Features: A medium, two-story tavern that unfolds like in The London Escape, two market stalls, one brick-built, one larger with a cloth top, a small animal pen, a signpost denoting where each thing is, and a horse-drawn cart to move cargo or for the soldier.

Minifigure(s): x1 smuggler, x1 Haven soldier, x2 merchants

Accessories: x3 crates, x3 barrels, x3 coins, x1 chicken drumstick, x1 french bread, x2 fish, x3 chickens, x1 pig, x1 goat, x1 horse, x3 bottles, x2 goblets, x1 Haven flag, x2 sacks, x1 playing card(s), x2 compasses, x1 musket, x1 cutlass, x1 pistol, x1 key, x1 pitchfork

Set N

[Mister Phes]

Here's a quick overview of what's been suggested - note that similiar ideas have been merged and there has been slight category adjustment.

Suggestions we don't have yet

Merchants - Category 5

Haven Guard - Categories 2 & 7

Smugglers - Category 5

[Capn Frank]

I understand I'm over a month late past the deadline. Hopefully some of these ideas can be added to the final report. I also know that some of my ideas have likely been repeated since I have primarily skimmed this topic before posting my (semi-)brilliant ideas.

From watching set overview videos from set designers and seeing what almost all factioned themes include, I think as many sets as possible should include minifigs of at least smugglers and merchants or Haven Guards. It adds a constraint to sets, but I believe it also adds opportunity to diversify these recommended sets. A couple of pirate figs could be stealing loot at a small merchant town like Medieval Market Village or Mill Village Raid. Governor could be captured being taken from his house by pirates in the Governors mansion set. Merchant captain and his daughter captured on their own vessel or on a pirate vessel. Etc.

I also don't think we need to be completely historically accurate to the golden age of sail for the dutch. We could focus more on freaken awesome ideas for sets that don't exactly relate to the dutch, but have never been done by TLG.

Merchants and Smugglers Category 5 be the same set. It could be a small merchant vessel carrying cargo and light armament with a row boat of a couple of pirates. The set could then be slightly altered to include gun ports and large cannon armed to the brim. Maybe the set should be closer to a 6.

My Gunboat thoughts:

Large, snot, brick-built “row boat” 8-10 studs wide with a gaff rigged mast and a cannon in the back. Combination of this hull (with a flat bottom) and this rigging and only the rear gun. The actual set will likely have a hull that is smaller than either of these examples.

It would be awesome if the largest pirate ship set was a xebec. Almost as long as the BSB, but only using 12-wide hulls with three masts each containing a large lateen sail. Build for speed so that the captain can run away from the larger Haven Guard flagship (Fluyt?) and easily overpower any merchant vessel.

Small tower forts could be part of the Semaphore line with pivoting shutters on top.

Small low forts with a cannon need only be a single Redan or V-shaped with the back open and the point to the sea. A merchant seaport will likely contain at least one such fort.

[Mister Phes]

I understand I'm over a month late past the deadline.

Actually, there was a typographical error in the first post, it was supposed to read: Set suggestions will be taken from Saturday June 7 - there is currently no deadline.

So we are very much still accepting new set suggestions and commentary - and you have provided some very interesting ideas and commentary, so keep it coming!

[Capn Frank]

So we are very much still accepting new set suggestions and commentary - and you have provided some very interesting ideas and commentary, so keep it coming!

Ok, you asked for it.

I've been perusing through the Wiki Links Index for additional ideas and considerations.

A redoubt could be used as a medium sized to small fort set. Most of the fortification is earthwork, which is Lego for BURP. Then, piece count is brought down, and the fort can be larger.

Dutch merchant vessels ought to have Leeboards. Could make the Haven Guard vessels look very distinct from previous sailing ship sets.

Smaller vessels necessarily do not have a steering wheel, but a very large tiller like on the Friends Good Will. Or the steering wheel could be facing backwards against the stern like on The Red Witch.

[Mister Phes]

Dutch merchant vessels ought to have Leeboards. Could make the Haven Guard vessels look very distinct from previous sailing ship sets.

That could be interesting for smaller vessels, but for the flagship vessel I'd envision a Dutch cargo fluyt which in itself looks distinct:

[Capn Frank]

That could be interesting for smaller vessels, but for the flagship vessel I'd envision a Dutch cargo fluyt which in itself looks distinct:

Very much agreed. Leeboards would get in the way of cannons on the military vessels, but could work nicely for the merchants.

[tedbeard]

Here's a quick overview of what's been suggested - note that similiar ideas have been merged and there has been slight category adjustment.

I updated my suggestion to include names.

[Mister Phes]

I updated my suggestion to include names.

Excellent work! Although I merged a few of your suggestions with similiar ideas, which by default had to adopt the other name.

Although some of your names may work better, for example: Haven Guardpost sounds better than Haven Checkpoint... well in my opinion at least.

[TitusV]

Ok, this is what i propose (i used some of the ideas already proposed in this topic)

The Havenmaster's Office

Category: 5/6

Faction: HavenGuards

Description: No ship can enter the port of Brickhaven without having to pay it's tarrifs. The Havenmaster is the one collecting them, and if you don't pay him, he steals your goods! But, maybe you can bribe them back? You have heard the master has a weakness for good wines... Or just don't show him you wares and put them into your cart's secret space... But that's against the law...

Main Elements / Play Features: The set can be attached to set number XXXX "the YYYY" for even great fun and a greater Brickhaven! (1) The thiefs/smugglers can break themselves into the storage room, to steal their wares back, by letting their cart pull on the fence. (2)

Minifigure(s): The Havenmaster, a havenguard and a smuggler/merchant

Accessories: cart with secret space, bottles, map, accesoires for the minifigures, canon on top of the office (altough not done in LDD caus ei didn't found them)

---------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, after i built the office, i thought it wasn't the feeling you were trying to capture, and too much based on the present TLG Pirates sets. So i reworked the set a bit, hope you like it!

Edit: the plate of the storage's room floor should be white to

Edited July 18, 2015 by TitusV

[Mister Phes]

Thank you for submitting your design. Please note I will not be doing anything to move this project forward in the near future so don't expect feedback on your submissions.

[TitusV]

Thank you for submitting your design. Please note I will not be doing anything to move this project forward in the near future so don't expect feedback on your submissions.

No problem, i just wanted to show you this