mccoyed

Since we're gonna have a proper debate about this, let's move it over to a private discussion.

I don't quite despise Tolkien but I probably tend to agree with your assessment of that problem. I think your idea about xenophobic humans trying to wage war against entire races maps depressingly well onto history, both in the Crusades and the Old West so it's a neat angle for a story. Might be a bit dark for GoH but I say go for it. Just to be clear, I wasn't trying to single out your storyline when I brought this up. I was just being general because we have a lot of new members and I wanted to steer things in the right direction if I could. In GoH, it's been pretty good about this issue. The only truly evil race is the "drow" and we haven't seen them for a while. Since they're lifted wholesale from Forgotten Realms, I shrug it off. Not to derail this into a Tolkien discussion but I disagree with you. I know orcs are a corruption of elves, but they and goblins are "evil races" for all intents and purposes. You can't really use Tolkien's special in-universe justification as a way to defend this. People like to do that, point to the text and say "but see, this is explained" but they're missing a pretty fundamental part of literary analysis by doing so. Tolkien might have liked to think of himself as a sort of historian for a made up world, but he wasn't really one. He was a white British dude with a fairly patrician background and lifestyle and was writing at the edge of modernism, the afterlife of colonialism, and at a time when racial "science" was still quite popular. The better argument would be that we shouldn't entirely dismiss him because he was a "product of his time" but this, many would argue, is a misunderstanding of history since there were always people who defied, criticized, and rejected racism and other social issues and policies. So that's still not clear-cut either. Excuses for Tolkien wear thin when you also consider what I think are more compelling reasons to say his work is more than a little racist: the "Haradrim" (linguistically coded as middle eastern, brown-skinned, etc) and Easterlings are invaders in-league with Sauron and, aside from orcs and goblins, the only non-white folks in the world as we know it. The "black corsairs" also IIRC are baddies coming up from the south. Because Tolkien kept ME parallel to Europe in many ways, it's not hard to see what he's going for here (whether he meant to or not). North-west Europe = good, colonial/wild/non-white Africa and Asia = bad. There's a reason why neo-nazis and racists like to point to LotR's "invasion of the savage hordes" narrative and the alliance of white peoples from various backgrounds (elves, dwarves, and Men) in opposition. So you might reject this analysis, if you want. But it's not ridiculous. It's actually pretty well-trodden scholarly ground. Wouldn't be too hard to find better, more rigorous critiques than mine. Personally, I don't think it ruins Tolkien or his books. I also don't think it was really intentional. I don't see Tolkien as a secret white supremacist hunched over his desk cackling into his pipe. I think he reached for cliches that he could keep so sketchy that they wouldn't seem like cliches. Or perhaps it wasn't cliche then for fantasy worlds to do a "white/west=good" thing but it sure became a cliche after that. Have a peak at the Belgariad for example. Even if you decide you see some merit in these points, you don't have to reject Tolkien like @Basiliscus seems to. My stance is that it's important to know what the themes, unintentional or not, are in a work. I can still appreciate Tolkien and his works while acknowledging there's some problems. If I can encourage anyone, fellow nerds or students of mine, to do anything... it would be to pay more attention to what they like and what it is saying. Doesn't mean we can't still like stuff. I still like Lovecraft's work and he was one world-class turd.

Great micro!

I like @Basiliscus's idea about the Western Frontier. I think we would also have isolated strongholds in the wastes that aren't as lawless but are basically city-states since being cut-off from any larger power in the region. I think we should try to give reasons for the raiding and savage life of the wastes that aren't "because evil". For example, with resources being sparse and the wastes producing generations of fairly hardy folk (be they orc, minotaur, lionell, whatever), raiding culture is just a norm. Attacking settlements and caravans is a kind of sport/way of life for these guys. In practical terms, it gives them access to wealth and resources that are difficult to acquire or impossible to find in the west. Just some thoughts. I personally dislike "evil races" and things like that, so I try to look at historical (or at least reasonable) rationales for banditry or larger-scale attacks/tension with "civilization".

Rain effect is cool but those are some great looking figs.

Haha yeah. Pretty sure KOTOR was the game that basically launched Cathar into the SW universe.

@Basiliscus My Challenge builds often don't include sigfigs or important characters from my story builds because they are off doing things and it doesn't make sense. That said, Stena, Kass, Abelia, etc are all part of my Varlyrio family and can stand-in for builds where it doesn't make sense to include Fel. As for the others... If your builds include "society" functions, Abelia is the D'Gatto to include. She isn't openly hostile to anyone because the D'Gattos are a "weak" family (for now). Pardo can show up as well because he's apolitical and though a bit of a recluse, would probably show up for any artistic events. Stena is the least likely to appear in non-military or ceremonial builds. An event that includes Varlyrian Knighthoods might include her as an emissary from the Sana Argenta. Kass, on the other hand, could show up just about anywhere and likely would if only to make a nuisance of himself. Hope that helps!

Ah yeah, you're right I think. Going by the SWTOR design, CHIMA heads do look pretty good.

I dig the building but if you're looking to use CHIMA cat heads as Bothans... what about Cathar?

Those trees are the standout here. Very nicely done.

Very cool. Has a nice retro-futuristic feel that I associated with sw.

Incredible build. I love the construction of the cockpit as it reminds me of old Jules Verneish ideas about bathyspheres!

You really brought it to life, man.

AWESOME concept super well executed.

Very cool and will be a solid inspiration for future Varlyrio gnome builds.

Hey @soccerkid6. Thanks for dropping by, haha! I'm busy with the Challenge but plan to return to Fel and Friends soon. I need to study more of your rockwork tutorials too...

Yeah, this is good stuff. Last two shots especially. Try using GIMP2 for brightening pics though.

I don't mean to answer for Andrew, but the skirt is because it's a robe. Plus, men throughout history wore "skirts" in various cultures. Kilts, togas, etc all could be construed as types of skirt. Even the Spartans (and other ancient Greeks) wore leather "skirts" to protect their legs in combat. The "skirts are for ladies" thing is not global and only historically recent, like any given fashion trend. :P As for the build... my one criticism is that the dark bley makes the roof pieces look like stone which isn't likely with only wooden walls as support.

Nice one again. I like the figs, especially NPU with the Robin hair/eye piece. I think it would be a big challenge to pull that off in a fantasy build but you've done it!

Congrats on baby Moos. Liking this building, just as with the others you've been doing recently. The dome is nice, especially the spike, but the support pillars lean a bit it looks like? I think the tiled floor is a standout. I don't know why I never think to use 1x1 tiles that way but I bet I have enough of the right colors...

Great moc, so many good details and the photography is stellar.

I've been playing Assassin's Creed Odyssey and I think we should take more inspiration, probably in smaller towns and cities or "old towns", from it. The amount of detail in the settlements in that game is intense and I think the landscape and flora are close to what Varlyrio should be like.

I had this idea for Challenge 1 that was just... way too much with the stuff I had going at the time. I wanted to do a new university in Cedrica with colleges for each Guild (and appropriate architecture) as a kind of modular build. Then I realize I would never get that done in the window I had so I thought maybe a monument and then I was just out of time haha. The one I'm working on now is 20% or so done. I work fast so it just needs a couple more sit-downs and it'll be ready to maybe show a WIP.

Out of curiosity, what was the idea with the skirt?

I'm working on something for Category B but I don't want to spoil it (I will say it's another big, ambitious build by my standards). Just hoping no one has the same idea. I should be done pretty early too and may do something for Cat A or C as well.