helpComputer

I just deleted parts when they were in the way of what I needed to figure out. If you can get comfortable with navigating around a 3D environment, I think you'll find that even just having the model itself can be very informative about how the ship is constructed.

This was my first thought too, especially considering the new UCS Star Destroyer; they can't do the ship justice without breaking the bank, so they have to make major sacrifices to end up with an (relatively) affordable set. On the other hand, TLG can come up with some ingenious design solutions, so it would be interesting to see their take on a UCS Nebulon-B. Tough call between that and the bomber for me. I couldn't care less about the gunship ‾\_(ツ)_/‾

Have you tried Studio? I strongly prefer it to LDD. I tried Studio because LDD seemed to be broken, so maybe it could help here?

Gorgeous! I love the color variations of the Nebulon-B and the GR-75. I've been thinking of doing a major color variation of a Corellian Corvette but it's difficult to get the iconic red and white out of my head. Your GR-75 really gives inspiration :)

I strongly agree with both of you :/ The Star Destroyer is one of these situations where you can't have all three of: large, beautiful, affordable. TLG has to prioritize affordable since they are a business and need to be successful. But they could sacrifice "large" and put out something like onecase's midi scale Nemesis that Rubblemaker referenced. Only 1400 pieces!

Also, it looks like we're about to get more LBG barrel halves and LBG levers: https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/imperial-star-destroyer-75252

At the end of the day, buying the 4633 parts that are unique to the Monarch will cost a lot due to the sheer number of parts. I took the time to make a few substitutions and it had a very big impact on cost. After that I identified what bricklink said are the most expensive parts and sought out sellers that had them for the lowest price. Then I added whatever else that seller had that I needed to my order, as long as the prices weren't high above average. I ended up placing about 10 orders over a month to get all the parts. One of the Death Star bottom halves I ordered used for very cheap, and it was in perfect condition. Probably nobody has noticed that I used a Death Star top half, which is not at all expensive. I didn't use any old-style hinges at all. In place of the expensive "2452 Hinge Plate 1 x 2 with 3 Fingers On Side," I simply used the new-style "60471 Hinge Plate 1 x 2 Locking with 2 Fingers on Side." It looks great as greebling, and in the few (3 or 4?) places it didn't fit, I used "15208: Plate Special 1 x 2 with Three Teeth [Tri-Tooth] - Dark Bluish Gray," though you could substitute anything. Greebling in many places is amenable to modification according to taste. My use of 1 x 3 tiles and "44300 Hinge Tile 1 x 3 Locking with 1 Finger on Top" in place of 128 of "4531 Hinge Tile 1 x 2 1/2 with 2 Fingers on Top" + 72 of "298c03 Lever Small Base with Light Gray Lever" hypothetically saved more than $500 if you believe rebrickable's average cost calculation, and in my humble opinion the final look is better. (They are along the back edges in the pic below.) The "12885 Equipment Paint Roller Brush Handle Edge On Handle" part should not be expensive anymore because four of them are used in the new Tantive IV set. Finally, I found someone selling four "4424: Container - Barrel Half Large - Light Gray" for about $3 on bricklink. This price did not appear on rebrickable when I tried out its 'buy from multiple sellers' feature. Not sure what's going on there. The point is, hunt for the right sellers. It's worth the effort! I *highly* encourage you to give this a try because the end result is a work of art! (It's not just onecase's superb photography; it really is gorgeous!)

I used BrickStock to subtract a parts list of my few Lego sets from the Monarch parts list. BrickLink can import formats that BrickStock exports. I'm really curious to know what the overlap is between the Aggressor parts and the Monarch parts. Let us know what you find!

IIRC, when attaching the bottom panels to the skeleton, I had to remove one or two of the turntable tops from the edge of the bottom panels in order to securely attach all of the black pieces shown on page 620 of the pdf (step 112 of the bottom panel). By the way, that trapezoidal opening in your bottom panel WIP photo and the assembly that fits into it is a great example of the elegant detail that makes this such a pleasant model to build. Given that you have built so many of the amazing Star Wars MOCs out there (I gawk every time I run into a picture of your display room!), which have been your favorites in terms of assembly?

I have a build going as well, though the photos aren't going to have the quality that @bricksmarlin's have. The instructions are superb! Very easy to follow. The construction is very sturdy. At first I thought all the reinforcements were overkill, but now that I have the four main panels on and have a sense of how much this weighs, I'm happy that the core is so strong. I very much like the look of the tan and blue color accents in the original design, and I'm happy that I stuck with it. @onecase's MOC is obviously gorgeous from photos, but that's nothing compared to seeing this magnificent thing in person. I can't express how thrilling it is to see this coming together in front of me. I used 1x3 LBG tiles along the back in place of the old-style 1x3 LG hinge plates, plus the new style 1x3 LBG hinge plates in the positions that had the LG lever handle accents. I just couldn't abide that much LG. There are gaps between the main body panels and the side parts in a few places. This is caused by a couple or three of the turntable tops (one example outlined in the 2nd photo below). Fortunately those particular parts don't seem critical, so I'm going to carefully pry them off once I make a final tweaking pass over the whole model. The 1x4 tile that makes up the very front of the top center line doesn't sit well. Maybe I did something wrong, but the instructions call for two 1x8 tiles in a row with the 1x4 tile at the very front, but I think the solution is to have the 1x4 tile in between the 1x8 tiles. Really excited to continue building!

Thanks so much @rockpig! Having @churcholo's stand incorporated is especially helpful. I've already started ordering, and in the name of cost I am going to try a few used parts, just no tiles, clear parts, or Technic pins. Looking at your notes I see you saved some cost with used parts too. Were the parts you received in decent condition?

That would be amazing @rockpig! It's happened several times that I'll be drooling over some thread of an amazing Star Wars MOC here or on rebrickable, and I'll run into a super helpful post of yours or one of your spreadsheets. Hopefully I can give back down the road. Regarding cost substitutions, I'm going to see if the LBG wheel 56145 is a good substitute for the half barrel 4424. But the taper of 4424 really is perfect.

I'd love to purchase instructions for this gorgeous model! The bridge and the fins along the sides near the back are so well done. When I have 10 posts I'll PM you @Kit Bricksto. In the meantime feel free to PM me if you happen to see this.

Hello all, Does anyone happen to have a parts list that incorporates the various corrections identified in this thread? I'm going through all 26 pages now and will add @churcholo's stand, but if someone has already made the substitutions it would be really helpful :)

I know what that's like. After my initial glee of playing with Lego for the first time in years had me rushing through the first build of the Falcon over a free weekend, my hurting fingers had me thinking that maybe something this much fun shouldn't be rushed :)