Mike S

Thanks again @CopMike! The figures arrived yesterday and were so much more attractive in hand than I had anticipated!

With the uncertainty of events that have been unfolding in Historica, Masa has begun searching for a safe haven should things go literally south. He has sent his personal caravel in search of a peaceful land, a land that he and his friends can retreat to should the Desert King prove undefeatable. Well this is it... I was hoping to do a category A entry and have such a great idea but unfortunately time has slipped me by. Nothing much here but at least I was able to enter something for this great challenge....

Xoram was another Coyle brother. Unlike Aidan, but like Simon, he was not in Oleon at the time of the family's tragic fall in Oleon. Being opposed to the strict rules the Clerics of Zeus imposed on Oleon society, he had at earliest convenience sailed across the Merlonic Sea for the more lenient climate of the nation of Carno. In Carno, he had partnered with a rather mysterious woman, Madame Rum, and together they opened their first establishment: The Captain's Daughter Inn and Tavern. Now years later, with the establishment having met with great success, Xoran decided to reunite with his older brother Aidan who he had learned had risen to Governor of Corrington's Northern Reaches. However as his brother's base in Stormhaven did not seem to be a very promising location for a thriving business, he decided to establish the second Captain's Daughter in the up and coming Jameston in Celestia. His timing was impeccable for no sooner had the inn been opened, there was a steady inflow of travelers arriving in Jameston seeking to find fame and fortune in Celestia's unmapped interior. Among the recent visitors to The Captain's Daughter was a group of four disparate men that seemed the unlikeliest of allies. First (from left to right) there was Harry Hotham, an older gent hailing from Mesabi's Landing. He was the group's "protection" and loved to boast that he knew one thousand and one ways to kill a man. Then there was Fulk Goodere, the group's financer. He was from Elizabethville and seemed to have a limitless supply of doubloons to spend. It was rumored he owned a large horse ranch that had a fat contract to provide horses for Mesabi's Landing. Next was Reynald Wilkins, the group's excavation and botany expert. A felon from Belson, he had recently been paroled after serving the remainder of his sentence in Stormhaven's work for freedom program. While in Stormhaven he had worked on the local plantations and quarry which he claimed had given him a vast knowledge of excavation and botany. Last but not least was Jeffrey Speir from King's Harbour, the group's chef and keeper of provisions. He made sure the group was well fed and did his best to keep them sober as well. Tonight the group was celebrating their last day in town. In the morning, they would be heading out into Celestia's interior to search for the rumored "superb orchid" and if they were lucky they would return with it before any of the other adventuring groups.

A fun build! I like the roof design and the round windows of the upper floor fit surprisingly well!

Great story and some really nice builds! My favorite is Wukong's (not King Kong? ) palace entrance but the mushroom house and beach hut are also quite nice.

Nice entry! Neat headquarters and cool characters (except Doctor Thaum of course , that banana head just looks so out of place). Nice work with the cross beams as well!

Awesome entry! I really like the architecture here of your roofs. Awesome design! Also like the shaping of the main gate and npu of the "dragonmill". Also, also, clever use of the tracks for the cage!

Awesome entry! Love the colors!

A very beautiful sea vessel! Nice entry!

Entries: C:

This is perhaps my favorite entry because of the unique architecture. The angled walls effectively set the mood as a new and foreign place. Excellent work!

Nice entry! Definitely is a continuation of the MAESTRO style!

This is definitely the most original entry! I love it!

I really like the LEGO scale of this how you made a relatively small build look so much bigger! Very eye catching colors and great job with the decor, especially the statue! Nice arrangement of minifigs as well!

Nice entry! Love the varied terrain!

A super massive entry and great group of adventurers! Nicely done!

A great job with this entry! You really put a lot of work into this one, with both the build and the story. The most eye catching thing about this build is the meandering river. Beautiful!

A simple yet totally believable build for a converted warehouse!

Quite a colorful lodge! Nice job!

Lovely scene! Great job on the stairs and ruined pillars!

i really like this little abandoned inn! The monkeys leaving was a nice touch as well!

Great story and idea! Interesting orchid design as well!

Nice base and group of minifigs !

Beautiful build as usual! Excellent trellis as well!

Previously: The log of Governor Aiden Coyle. 31st January 618: "After nearly a year of planning and construction, the Marion River Gold Mine is now in operation. I followed Vernon Cloggs recommendation and had several dredging cranes built along the Marion River. It is a surprisingly simple process. A row boat drops a drag box a little down river. Then the crane operator reels it back in. Because of its weight and design, the drag box drags along the river bed filling with sediment. The drag box is then raised to a high platform where several miners sift through the sediment looking for gold nuggets which are placed in water buckets. When the buckets are full, they are dumped down a wooden shoot to a filter box that drains the water and collects the gold nuggets. These gold nuggets are then shoveled into crates. Because of the high risk of robbery, I have reminded Mayor Jack Bain to keep the operation well guarded. There are just as many guards as miners and this drastically reduces profitability. However, at present, I see no other way to successfully operate a gold mine in such an open environment." OOC: Sorry for the horrible pics but I wanted to get this licensed in January. I probably won't get around to taking better pictures as I don't have the time to take good photos during the day.