Kodan Black

I really love that cargo truck. So nice! Lots of greebles on the spaceship interior but not overdone. My one critique is that I believe you used to use the proper yellow minifigs instead of these abominations of fleshies.

Location: H06 Farmolis Tags: Land Vehicle, Civil Building ** My 52nd weekly build in AG, so I've now done a year's worth of weekly's consecutively!** Previously... // PERSONAL DIARY // We were recently sent a communication from Corporate HQ about a new program to try and make all AG staff better prepared for the harshness of our environment. I think that HQ was concerned for our safety and they tried to illustrate that by saying that losing humans came at "a significant cost." They instructed that we participate in classes led by one of their security staff, Major Richard Allcock. Being a member of the executive team I, of course, knew that I should provide a good example and therefore made sure I was one of the first trained and clearly demonstrated my enthusiasm for the effort to those around me. Dr. Allison and I reported to a training facility for our first class -- "Armed Self Defense: Use the Pointy End". Upon arriving we met the Major (he prefers to be called that), and he explained that he had brought with him some of the finest warriors to train us. They were skilled in fencing, polearms, and many other bladed weapon disciplines. One thing I noticed that was a big shift for me was that the Major always wanted us to yell our answers. If he asked if we understood something we weren't supposed to say "Yes", we should shout loudly: "YES, MAJOR!" Not something you generally do in a science lab. The Major asked Dr. Allison and myself about our military history (none), our previous armed/unarmed defense training (none), and our daily training regimen (apparently "walking to the lab" wasn't a good answer as he had me "drop and give him 20", which meant push ups I learned). Once we had established our lack of skills he went into a several minute profanity laced tirade about being barely more than targets. I attempted to point out that protection was never a concern as I had ED-208 (whom had been forbidden from attending) to keep me safe. I then learned that the Major was not a fan of robots. He asked what I would do when "that damned machine comes for my precious fluids", which I had no answer for as I had no idea what that meant. He asked if I had ever watched the classic "Terminator" series of holovids in which the inevitability of robot revolt was explored. I had not and he said that I should do my research before talking about things. I tried to explain that I had a Masters in Mechanical Engineering, a PhD in robotics and was working on a second PhD in Artificial Intelligence, but he simply said that "book learning ain't a replacement for the real thing." I was the first to face off against my instructors and they gave me a wooden practice sword so I wouldn't hurt anyone. The Major stood on his jeep (I'm not sure why he even had one in the facility or how it got in there, but he said it was necessary) and used his megaphone to yell instructions. Though mostly it was just "attack" or "defend yourself dummy!" I did my best to fend off my far more trained attackers, but it did not go well. I felt like even the training facility cats could have successfully attacked me -- especially the big smelly one. After an hour or so the Major said we were done for the day. I think all that armor must have made him really hot because he said he "needed a drink, like a gallon or so should do." I was very tired but felt like I was better prepared to face the trials of life in AG. After the class I told Dr. Allison I was going to head out to the garden outside the training facility for a bit of meditation on what I had just learned. She said she would catch up with me later and I was left alone with my thoughts. Extra Pics:

All my monies to Bob!

Great speeder and background, but what amazes the most is the fantastic photography!

I didn't have a corner slope piece, so I put in some 1/4 round pieces which then I had no way to smooth out like the tiles on the top, so I put in the 1/4 dome piece. I do tend to build myself into a corner, sometimes even literally.

I like it, very stylish and has some nice elements like the flowers up the side. I don't mind the color and I would imagine that the parts are available in different colors so you could likely build this in tan or white, etc if the person wanted to.

Really great story and I love the office. You did well with keeping the Oni-Ren looking similar but also unique individually. They are likely going to regret pissing off Dr. Long.

Very nice, I like the variety of the larvae also. Would be good to see more Sal builds again!

Very impressive, I didn't even catch some of the control rooms until I saw the lit up version.

Location: H06 Farmolis Tags: Land Vehicle, Civil Building Previously... // PERSONAL DIARY // After having a bit of a break I got back into work by helping Dr. Allison with a new speeder prototype. It was designed to be used as a long range exploration speeder for our explorer teams. It has a larger cargo capacity for more consumables and heavier lifting engines to handle the heavier load. While not designed as a high velocity speeder it can achieve very quick speeds and has a large energy output capability so it can be used to power a small encampment when needed. The underside has an armored skid and the seating area features armored plates to protect against foliage or more malicious threats. It isn't a full military vehicle, but with so many unknown alien threats this speeder should be very capable and help keep our people safe. Dr. Allison had been working on fixing the little issues she had been made aware of during testing and I was happy to help out. ED-208 kept insisting he could fix it, but all he wanted to do was use the giant sledgehammer. I doubted that even his robotic capabilities were enough to use that with precision. The prototype lab itself was a very impressive facility. Dr. Allison had modified it some to make it more in line with her personal decor tastes which isn't standard Octan practice, but I thought that Dr. Long would approve since it did seem to foster a stronger work ethic. I also like to allow people a bit of discretion when possible as it empowers them and gives them a sense of pride and ownership. I'm not saying to allow people to go crazy, I'm not pombe! But some minor personal touches do statistically prove out to be beneficial in helping an employee blur the lines a bit between work and personal time thus generally leading to more hours spent at work. Of course I'm sure many employees are like me and do plenty of work when away from the office also. The wonderful part of being so connected everywhere is that I can be out to dinner or at a park and still able to do work! Extra Pics: Side Note: I think this lab is my most "complete" facility build yet.

Very cool and I like how true to real life you made it. Has a very vibrant feel to it also. The lighting is really spectacular and especially makes a nice night feel to it.

I only have a few of those, but I haven't really seen it be an issue. However, I will say that most of those don't get much use because I have few. For instance I put Maleficient's hair on and haven't once taken it off. So it didn't feel like it would fall right off, but over time it wouldn't surprise me if the rubber had less clutch power than the traditional plastic.

All my hard earned cash to Bob!

I like them all. So many uses I can come up with for lots like the doorman and Roman lady. I'd certainly be buying quite a few of these packs!

Yes, I am not a fan of the fleshies concept. Also goes against the whole idea behind the yellow minifigs in the first place. But such is the path they have taken. Compared to older minifigs the coating feels a bit more slippery and I don't think the head peg does as good of a job keeping the head on (for instance it seems like taking a hat/helmet off now takes the head too much more than it used to).

I like the build, especially the table ornamentation, but man... storywise I am so confused...

Great sniper rifle and vehicle. Your CEO is on Farmolis? I know Kodan was recently hosting a Mantis employee on Farmolis, seems to be a popular spot for Mantis folks!

Yes, I was amazed at how you got a staircase in there and yet kept enough room for an intended purpose per floor. Crafty use of space.

Nice retro-future look. Combines 70 muscle car era with futuristic hover tech.

Looks amazing! I had this in HO scale as a kid, always loved their kitty logo and the color scheme was so unique. A great rendition!

Good start, the minifigs really help give it a sense of scale.

Entry A - 1 Entry B - 1 Entry F - 1

The only minifig difference I've seen is that a lot of my minifigs seem to come in this weird non-yellow tint these days. Really just ruins them.

I love the exterior build with the base so well incorporated into the ground. The hatch in particular stands out as being so seamless. The mech design is very nice and seems appropriately Mantis. The lab has some really nice interior lighting going on.

I really like the lighting and the dark with the eerie glow seems to go with the intended mood of the scene. I think like in the world today there aren't many "good guys" and "bad guys", it is all shades of gray. Perhaps even 50 shades. But I digress... one corporation could view the group as freedom fighters and another views them as an adversary. I would certainly expect each corporation to have a different take on various alien races that likely has a strong correlation to how friendly the corp and the aliens are!