mccoyed

Another knockout moc!

The ground on this one is good. The color choices are nice and you chose to break up the pattern in an interesting way. I definitely get a desert vibe here and though most people use just light tan (in creative ways), I like what you've done here as it implies a different flavor.

This is great. I love shots like these because they imply a larger tableau. Also, I think the name is funny.

Yes. I wanted to create Yureishima as a haven for the aesthetics and genre stylings of Far East Asian medieval fantasy. The launch of Book 3 has put Yureishima on hold for now, though. It's not connected to any challenges or big stories so I feel like I can sort of dip in and out of it whenever. I didn't think that the Nocturnian examples had really been fully developed in a while, so it seemed like a good idea for a "New Land" that wouldn't just mimic one of the regions of Historica.

I finished all of my Halloween stuff just in time to fall sick. I'll get back to my bricks as soon as I can for some expansions of the D'Gatto family. Then back to Fel's story.

Like the idea behind this one. Makes for a solid little vignette though I'd like to have seen the statue in a more advanced state just to tease it more.

Awesome build. The landscape is the standout to me. So lush and full of interesting foliage.

Sorry, I didn't really have time for a Challenge 1 build because of Halloween. Here's what I've been up to: https://mrtrexcosplayandprops.wordpress.com/2018/10/30/dai-2018-round-up-and-index/

I think it probably depends on what kind of browser or app is being used. For me, on my widescreen monitor, it's harder to read center text on forum posts.

Thanks, but I borrowed the presentation style from other Varlyrio builders. Now it's kind of a loose norm! Thanks! Thanks. It was really fun and I'll be doing some more soon. I didn't include Fel just because she's featured in all the builds. I guess I could have included her here! She has a build and a bio in the Varlyrio thread but I suppose non-Varlyrians may have missed that.

Great vignettes and a very diverse range of abilities and predilections for the family members. I like seeing another somewhat prominent Varlyrian catfolk. I also appreciate the inclusion of some more adult elements in these stories. I try to do that a little too, striking a balance somewhere between Tolkien and Martin but probably skewing a lot closer to Martin.

This story is great. I really like the flashback here and your tents are great!

Great stuff. I've been thinking of a big gate build too so this is good inspiration.

The color choices stand out a lot. That pastel blue looks really good against the brown ground. I think the story is good, lots of fun, but would be more readable if you didn't orient it in the center of the page.

This is a pretty good small build, I'd say. Especially if your Lego is stretched thin! I also like the story here.

Not sure. It's definitely a thing I've been seeing a lot more of lately. I get that folks are worried about their stuff getting reposted and uncredited (if that's the reason), but giant garish titles distract from the reason we're all here: Lego.

Sorry, been busy with Halloween prep and kind of inactive around here! I'll cross-post my stuff: Abelia D'Gatto is the head of the D'Gatto family, which traditionally passes power down matrilineally (common practice among Varlyrian Catfolk). Her mother left her with the family business: artifacts and antiquities and her father left her with vexing familial connections out west, including various debts, secrets, and obligations. She married an artist, seeking to expand the family business into art collection, patronage, and sales but so far this has been an uphill battle. Abelia is refined, but ruthless and has a famous temper. She makes it a point to attend major social events in Illaryian and the more important eastern Varlyrian cities and maintains a reputation for cold poise and withering wit, though she must also pretend not to hear the japes and judgments offered behind her back, or a half a moment before she is fully out of earshot. Abelia is the kind of mother that presents a different face, a different style of mothering, to each of her three children. Who she really is remains a mystery even to those closest to her, though Fel suspects it is reserved for herself --not that she appreciates it. Fel is Abelia's heir and she saves her greatest reserves of attention and disapproval for her. Link to the rest of the D'Gatto immediate family: Link to the D'Gatto immediate family's Known Associates: (COMING SOON) Link to the extended D'Gatto and Sivaelurus Families: (COMING SOON) Expendable Family Members: Currently NONE. This will change soon, but for now bad things can happen to the characters I've introduced though I do not want them killed or maimed incurably. Because Fel D'Gatto is traveling with her own group of companions, she is effectively outside of the wider Varlyrian family intrigue for the time being.

Great choice. Love Endless Space. Though "avian sapien" could use a revamp to fit better with a fantasy setting. Just "avian" works nicely.

Fantastic build! I love every part of it.

I'm sure your stuff is a big influence on color choice and balancing here. Hopefully it came out well. Plants growing on walls is a medieval moc staple. :P I agree about the walls. I built this thing around that half-circle facade and just never really figured out a way to do the other parts that worked "right". This build was frustrating and tedious because of how many variations I tried. There are some building techniques that I just haven't mastered which means I wind up doing some architectural stuff in overly complex or dysfunctional ways! Can you elaborate on your photography comment? What do you mean about having the photos "uprighted"? Your photography is so good that I'm eager to absorb any tips you might have! Thanks! I have some plans but Halloween preparation has depleted my Lego time. Eager to get to the next chapter.

A good effort, but I do think you can do better than this. I don't think that's a great choice of angle if you're going to have only one picture. I know you've got limited pieces, but the regularity of the plating for the grass gives this a Minecraft playset or Lego Worlds feel where some wedges or wing pieces or even 1x2 plates could have broken up the geometry and elevated the effect. Those scattered detail bits like the foliage and studs as stones are a solid attempt to break it up and add some interest to the terrain, but the darkness of the image means these details either fade in too much or wind up seeming haphazardly placed where they catch some light. Hate to be so critical but I hope these comments are useful anyway.

Great stuff here. Really like the shape and texture of that tower. Shows off why it's okay to have visible studs now and then. :P

This is just a showstopper, Gideon. I love how you can turn it around a little and really emphasize the Challenge 1 criteria, while also being able to make it look like a building that is old but still strong. I think the coolest part of your "under construction" parts is that you've really created the feel of a building being in a long-term, regular state of repair and reconstruction. Anyone who's had to walk under the scaffolding and tarp in a city for the same street/building over a season or longer knows that feeling and you've got the middle ages version down pat. I'm impressed that you included some printed elements in the shrine chamber, too. Don't see the greats doing that very often.

This is a great low key build showing off really expertly executed techniques both in terms of the bricking and the knowledge of how to conceptualize a "framing" scene. Just really cool stuff here and maybe my favorite entry so far.

Very well done and ambitious build. Love your color choices here especially. My favorite detail is the golden apple and "horn" on the left building, followed closely by the angled dock.