[OL-FB4] The Tigre arrives

[Franco Clarke]

At first it was just the sails peeked up over the horizon, attached to masts with blue flags fluttering atop them. However, as the sails stretched on and more sets appeared beneath them, it became clear that this was no ordinary merchant ship; the Tigre had arrived!

Sailing into the harbour at Breshaun, across the entire town, everything stopped as everyone turned their eyes to watch the massive vessel plod into the bay, it's white and black stripes punctured by numerous red flaps, each concealing a heavy cannon.

Erwin watched from the deck of the Vif, still without a gun, as the double decker slipped into the harbour, dwarfing all the ships that were present. So this was why everyone had been so busy, they were preparing for this ship's arrival. He had noticed the air of unease that had hung about naval offices ever since the Margot had first been spotted, and obviously this new ship was the admiralty's response.

Erwin marvelled at its size, never had he seen such a massive vessel. However, the closer he looked, the more he saw that she wasn't a brand new top of the line vessel. Her paint was discoloured and chipped, grime streaked down the sides, and rough wooden patches covered old war wounds. She was going to need a lot of work to get her shipshape, and Erwin decided that he'd stick with sturdy Vif over half rotten old ship of line.

The vast hulk turned slowly and came up alongside the naval dock, towering over the warehouses and fortifications. A band stuck up playing the national anthem, and a frigate moored further out fired a salute.

I really wanted to do an entry detailing Oleon's reply to the beautiful Margot. I don't have the resources to make such a large ship at the moment, so I had to do it using LDD, I hope you don't mind. The Tigre is a 64 gun ship of line, and I have drawn great inspiration from a few of designs from the forum, especially around the stern. I wanted to feature a whole load ships to 'dress the set' and I copied a few of yours, cause I guessed some of your ships would be around Breshaun harbour, I hope you don't mind! Finally a shot of the entire scene.

[blackdeathgr]

So, another Oleander except KB has a secret talent after all!!!! Great ship Franco and she arrived just in time to protect us from Margot. Now let's repair her and put it to good use.

Also a great idea to incorporate other vessels to the build too as it makes this MOC very realistic!

[Maxim I]

I love it!

Such a gracious ship, with exactly the right look as you described in your story!

I am also honoured to hear Margot inspired you building this ship and seeing Purple Rain in LDD!

You made my day :)

[Captain Genaro]

Really nice build. You really captured the lines of a two-decker, and I really like the inclusion of the other ships (though I am disappointed not to see the Poseidon). Not only do the additional ships add to the notion of a busy harbor, but they also empathize the sheer size of your two-decker.

As for your ship, it looks good. The head rails are nicely done, and I love the stern cabins and their balcony. Very Oleandish.

In the future, I recommend placing four studs between the gunports. It looks more realistic and, especially for physical models, it makes it easier to display cannon crews. Also, most multi-decked ships would have offset rows of cannons. Otherwise, the beams would break under the strain of all the guns placed directly above each other, especially if a full-broadside was fired.

[BrickOn]

So the arms race continues...

Looks really great, I do like her back end.

[Tezclatipoca]

That's a big lady you made !

You made this two-deck vessel very well !

She has an Oleon feeling too !

so what else to say : Congrats and good job!

[Franco Clarke]

So, another Oleander except KB has a secret talent after all!!!! Great ship Franco and she arrived just in time to protect us from Margot. Now let's repair her and put it to good use.

Also a great idea to incorporate other vessels to the build too as it makes this MOC very realistic!

Thank you, I'm not a great fan of LDD its kinda awkward, but it does lend itself to big scenes which would otherwise be very pricey...

Such a gracious ship, with exactly the right look as you described in your story!

I am also honoured to hear Margot inspired you building this ship and seeing Purple Rain in LDD!

You made my day :)

Thank you, I had to incorporate one of your ships into it, and the Purple Rain seemed to be the best choice with its distinctive colour scheme!

Really nice build. You really captured the lines of a two-decker, and I really like the inclusion of the other ships (though I am disappointed not to see the Poseidon). Not only do the additional ships add to the notion of a busy harbor, but they also empathize the sheer size of your two-decker.

As for your ship, it looks good. The head rails are nicely done, and I love the stern cabins and their balcony. Very Oleandish.

In the future, I recommend placing four studs between the gunports. It looks more realistic and, especially for physical models, it makes it easier to display cannon crews. Also, most multi-decked ships would have offset rows of cannons. Otherwise, the beams would break under the strain of all the guns placed directly above each other, especially if a full-broadside was fired.

Thank you, the Poseidon was one of the ships I looked into adding, but I couldn't get her hull looking right in LDD. I know cannons are normally more widely spaced, but on this one 4 studs would almost double the length, which would mean taking it off prefabs, which brings a whole load of troubles... As a quick and nasty build I stuck with the cramped design. However I will look into offsetting them a little.

[Admiral Bejaune]

You can't go wrong with the white, black, blue, yellow with red gunport color scheme! I like how when the ship of the line arrived it was in a deteriorated state. Many ship of the lines sat in port and were rarely used in peace time as they were expensive to man and operate. So sometimes they needed refits and complete overhauls before they were seaworthy again. If you read the accounts of the HMS Bellona, you would learn that after a cruise, Her paint had almost completely washed away, and her poop deck had almost been completely swept away by the seas. Very cool story to have a worn ship and not a newly built ship!

[TitusV]

I love it!

Such a gracious ship, with exactly the right look as you described in your story!

I am also honoured to hear Margot inspired you building this ship and seeing Purple Rain in LDD!

You made my day :)

Oh no! Now there are two disco-boats!

Great ship!

[Franco Clarke]

You can't go wrong with the white, black, blue, yellow with red gunport color scheme! I like how when the ship of the line arrived it was in a deteriorated state. Many ship of the lines sat in port and were rarely used in peace time as they were expensive to man and operate. So sometimes they needed refits and complete overhauls before they were seaworthy again. If you read the accounts of the HMS Bellona, you would learn that after a cruise, Her paint had almost completely washed away, and her poop deck had almost been completely swept away by the seas. Very cool story to have a worn ship and not a newly built ship!

Thank you, your ship of the line was one of primary influences on this design. Lego isn't the optimal platform for making weathered looking things, it works much better for pristine ships. That's interesting about HMS Bellona, I guess the paints in those days were much less durable, so would come off a lot.

[Admiral Bejaune]

The paint back then was actually very good. It was lead based, which was bad. But salt water absolutely destroys everything. I own and have owned several ocean boats and I am constantly cleaning, replacing and repainting certain things onboard that salt water has ruined. But that is the nature of the beast that is the ocean!

[Bregir]

Really nice Ship of the Line! I love those stern galleries and the curvature of the hull is looking great too. The presentation along other well-known vessels of BoBS is really cool, although I would suggest rendering the pictures for a better look. (I have no clue if that is even possible with such a large setup, though. )

I really like story too - the idea of dispatching an old battered two-decker, which might not make much difference in home waters, to the new world to keep balance is brilliant, and very realistic.

[kabel]

Quite some cool ships floating along your coast! And good job on putting together this beauty!

I don't have the resources to make such a large ship at the moment, so I had to do it using LDD, I hope you don't mind.

Well, let me put it this way. I've now collected certain pieces for some two or so years to finally put together the ship that I really wanted to build. Guess I could have build her in LDD in a matter of days. My fear is now, that if you lose an LDD ship in the MRCA, you just go ahead and put together a new one. You sure have all the pieces in the right colors! I however, would not take mine apart so I can build a new one. Neither will I be able to build a new one within a few days since some pieces will always be missing or arriving too late. And I'm not speaking of the pain in the megablocks some decent rigging causes. So I do see a certain disadvantage on side of those who build in real bricks. Is there any way we can find a remedy for this problem?

[Maxim I]

Quite some cool ships floating along your coast! And good job on putting together this beauty!

Well, let me put it this way. I've now collected certain pieces for some two or so years to finally put together the ship that I really wanted to build. Guess I could have build her in LDD in a matter of days. My fear is now, that if you lose an LDD ship in the MRCA, you just go ahead and put together a new one. You sure have all the pieces in the right colors! I however, would not take mine apart so I can build a new one. Neither will I be able to build a new one within a few days since some pieces will always be missing or arriving too late. And I'm not speaking of the pain in the megablocks some decent rigging causes. So I do see a certain disadvantage on side of those who build in real bricks. Is there any way we can find a remedy for this problem?

I completely understand your point Kabel! Same for me and Margot :)

But there is a solution: we always can use a sistership to licence :)

The paint back then was actually very good. It was lead based, which was bad. But salt water absolutely destroys everything. I own and have owned several ocean boats and I am constantly cleaning, replacing and repainting certain things onboard that salt water has ruined. But that is the nature of the beast that is the ocean!

Sorry for the double post, but your ship has been a great inspiration for my Margot as well :D

[Captain Dee]

This is a pretty good design, and being built on a prefab hull, I can live with the close gun spacing and stacked (non-staggered) gunports. The overall look is really good, and both the bow and stern turned out well. A pity we can't see her fully rigged, but at the same time the shots of the other ships in the harbor are nice. And I commend you for building a "64" as they were a good balance of firepower and good sailing and handling characteristics. Keep it up.

[Franco Clarke]

Well, let me put it this way. I've now collected certain pieces for some two or so years to finally put together the ship that I really wanted to build. Guess I could have build her in LDD in a matter of days. My fear is now, that if you lose an LDD ship in the MRCA, you just go ahead and put together a new one. You sure have all the pieces in the right colors! I however, would not take mine apart so I can build a new one. Neither will I be able to build a new one within a few days since some pieces will always be missing or arriving too late. And I'm not speaking of the pain in the megablocks some decent rigging causes. So I do see a certain disadvantage on side of those who build in real bricks. Is there any way we can find a remedy for this problem?

Yeah I agree, I will always prefer to make things in real bricks. However, I just don't have the resources to make something this large!

Really nice Ship of the Line! I love those stern galleries and the curvature of the hull is looking great too. The presentation along other well-known vessels of BoBS is really cool, although I would suggest rendering the pictures for a better look. (I have no clue if that is even possible with such a large setup, though. )

I really like story too - the idea of dispatching an old battered two-decker, which might not make much difference in home waters, to the new world to keep balance is brilliant, and very realistic.

Thanks, I would've rendered it, but it was already making my computer very slow, it look almost 10 minutes to open, so I decided it was better not to push my luck