pedro

There's many battle packs I'd like to see in production right here! So many good entries that'd sell like hot cakes if they were official

I always open 'em. I have Home One, Dooku's Solar Sailer and the Separatist Spider Droid all sat here MISB, waiting to be opened... it's only a matter of time! I build, MOD and of course MOC so that's no surprise really. I'm also definitely a collector: I have a very large collection of LEGO displayed just about anywhere I can... at home and in work! The sets are built and displayed, stand alone and in 'scenes'. I quite like organising multiple minifigs such as clone troopers, stormies and snowies into squads or armies for display together - they look great like that! Dark bley 16 x 16 baseplates are perfect for it and saves space too Great little story Wooten - wish my Mum would find some LEGO loot hidden somewhere too! You be as well keeping it sealed methinks.

Thanks KimT - and everyone else! I've added several more pictures of the battle pack to my Brickshelf folder including a shot of the underside of the speeder, as well as others, and hi-res action shots of all the Jedi minifigs. Check them all here!

Nice entry ILikePi! I like some of these little playset that some of our fellows have come up with this year and yours is no exception! It's got the sort of layout where you could arrange 4 in an open circle for a for an large command centre - bet that'd look cool. I like the way you've injected some humour in there with the toxic waste, spade and bin. The little images on the screens are fun too. Doesn't that Indy head work well everywhere?! Good luck in the competition!

I really like your battle pack Lion, this would make an awesome accompanyment to Jabba's Sail Barge! The custom Vurk looks great, the palace guard too - I really like those armour prints and they suit your theme perfectly. I also like your inclusion of the LEGO Gamorrean guards - I only have 4 and would love some more! Good work! Best o' luck in the contest!

Great entry Knight, i think it stands well on it's own merit despite similarities with another Star Wars vehicle. The details are really nice - the power generator makes a great addition - and I can imagine a row of these lined up like a ground based turbolaser battery! Your other minifig selections would've made a good combination too - your white 'gunner' or rebel trooper/snow trooper in the first Republic set looks really interesting. I'm afraid I'll have to agree with others on that - it looks good - but the Imperial colour-scheme tends to be that bland, drab grey; I think it'd look good like that too. Best of luck to you in the contest!

Great little concept - these are the sort of additional features I'd like to see in an official set! Your minifig selection is cool and I like the way you've added the Stormtroopers in on one of the photos: it really sets the scene! Best o' luck in the competition.

Great idea for a battle pack! I like your custom characters (though your bounty hunter does look a lot like Greedo) and you've got some great little touches in there: the Bith's musical instrument, the nicely detailed vaporator... I think that's exactly what Fumoffu was saying Good luck in the competition!

Nice entry LegoJoe! Your battle pack looks like it has loads of playability! I think your sliding door is ingenious, the speeder/hover-vehicle makes a great addition and your figure selection is really good - I'd love more of 'em Death Star Troopers! Best of luck in the contest.

Of course... but I meant actual, real-life (OMG!) Garindan! Thanks for the additional information Wout - the different combinations of heads in the Hoth Rebel battle pack sounds great! And I'd love to see more detailed shots of the new clone pilot and Cap'n Jag

Thanks for the new pictures! Indeed, I've been firmly stood on the side of the fence that believes it's too similar and already own the original... however upon seeing this new image I've noticed it has a lot of really cool parts which may actually make it a worthwhile purchse. I might have to see if I can get it afterall! Only when it's cheap though... /agree The new helmet is spot-on. The detailing and printing are wonderfully accurate. By their very nature the helmets on minifigs always look big and this isn't a bad thing, it adds to their character. Besides, the AT-AT Driver helmet looks big even on a person! Anyone notice the reflection of a cowled figure in the spherical hull of the Tri-fighter? Could it be... Garindan?!

Thanks for your comments chaps, positive and negative! I understand completely - it's one of the reasons I submitted the Clone and Crab instead as it suited the idea of impulse sets far better. Saying that I was happy with the little ISD build in and of itself Curved parts do work better, but as you mentioned don't come in reddish brown! My original Crab Droid - off of which this is based - uses curved pieces and does look better. I think if I was to re-design the set I'd alter the brown colour scheme to dark red, replacing the slopes with curved slopes.

Cheers for the picture! The double sword holder looks awesome and we can only hope it goes beyond prototype to full production! Will certainly add new fantastic new options to our custom minifigs too. Asides from that, this somewhat vindicates the theory of a Ninja return! I loved the original Ninja theme so am keen to see where this might lead...

Hey, I've been working on a couple of smaller Star Wars MOCs recently (and have been musing with the idea of re-creating the Whimsical Fate) but have been having some trouble with my camera/set-up as of late - it's not helped my RA course either! So, until I get it all sorted I thought I'd show a couple of impulse sets I created last year for a contest on Brick Horizon. The 'sets' were only allowed 1 minifig with accessories and a model of 15 parts. Excuse the grainy photos, took 'em some time ago and didn't really apply my P'shop know-how. Pictures are link to respective Bricklink folders with extra shots including parts. Clone Commander & Crab Droid I thought that this could work well not only as an impulse set but an army builder, giving the opportunity to add clones with upgrade options to a Grand Army and flesh out CIS armies with Crab Droids. I've built a larger more accurate version of the Crab Droid in the past (currently have an MOC built using CIS dark blue), so it was a challenge recreating the droid using very limited parts. Imperial Officer & mini Imperial Star Destroyer Since Imperial Officers are somewhat rarer than they used to be (in tones of dark bley, flesh) this served as inspiration for another impulse. As a accompanying model I suppose I could've created a maintenance craft but felt a mini ISD was far more interesting. Whether as an individual collectible or part of some kind of Imperial museum MOC, I felt this sat well within the set. As I was only allowed 1 final entry I went with the Clone and Crab, just felt like a more well-rounded impulse set. Hope you like 'em, t.t.f.n.!

New ARC-170 looks nice but it's still very, very similar to the original. So much so it isn't so much an improvement but more an alternate build of the same fighter. The figure selection is pretty good though, Kit Fisto is great (though I already have him too) and the new pilots are more accurate than the older ones. Using my super-pixel-vision, I'm reckoning it does say Captain Jag under the first clone and something short under the second... would normally say something such as 'Clone Pilot' so it must be a different named clone. Just as an aside, from the image the Clones' eyes don't look like the Clone Wars versions... the picture is too small to tell really but... just a thought. Most likely they'll be Clone Wars-ified like the rest of 'em Specifically, my hopes are on Aayla Secura... would mean I don't have to finish my custom

Nice battle pack Jonas! And a great way to stock up on some more of those great Death Star Troopers. I like your models too; the command station is a cool little idea and I guess another E-Web couldn't hurt (though I personally avoid using transparent pieces for blaster/weapon ends - call it my serious side ). I think with the so many parts unused (50/70) you should consider making some kind of maintenance vehicle or speeder to enhance the set? You could do a lot with 20 parts! That'd be very cool. DS Troopers are finding themselves in a jack-of-all-trades position at the moment

Great premise for a set Skipper! Mandalorians have always had that inherent cool factor (as begun by Boba Fett) and I reckon a battle pack would please many an AFOL. I like your Basilisk but think it'd be cool to see if fleshed out a little more. 'Catapults' and the like in sets are so much spare parts as far as I'm concerned and I reckon you could use the parts to fill out your Basilisk, giving it bigger, clawed arms, etc. - parts permitting That aside, great concept, good luck in the contest!

Great idea Dodger! The Geonosians haven't had enough LEGO exposure - bizarre considering their number and role in the movies. Anyway I'd love to see them in a battle pack like this, you've got a great balance of models with play here. Well done and good luck! Dooku's speeder is a Flitknot speeder and is of Geonosian design and use. They are modified for use by other races.

Wouldn't it be marvellous if we did though?! That's why it'd be my ideal battle pack!

It'd be cool to see another Phase 2 clonetrooper pack. I think you're onto the right idea with giving them heavy weapons, however your Barc Speeders are way too similar to the speeder released with 7655 Clone Trooper Battle Pack. You might want to try an alternate design for these: altering the engines, hull structure, etc. in a way you would see fit to make it even more accurate. Give it a go and see how you get on! Good luck in the competition.

Don't worry Jim, it just depends on the display resolution of your monitor - they look grand on mine and probably a lot of other peoples too. All the same when browsing anyone's work you should always check it out at the size it's supposed to be if given the option! Incidentally, try playing with the contrast setting in Paint.NET for a quick way to enhance your dark tones to make your photos less bleached and add depth. I've never used Paint.NET - I'm a staunch Photoshop user - but it's bound to have this basic option in there

If you're not too fussed about permanently altering your minifig heads you could always try using an abrasive polish such as Peek to take the markings off? I've done it before with small details such as Harry Potter's scar, Captain Rex's helmet markings etc. It works a treat. Only worth it if you have multiples of course...

10188 Death Star is definately the centre piece of my collection and in my opinion one of the most awesome sets ever conceived! The functions, features and sheer number of minifigs are unparalleled. I had a blast building it, playing with it, setting up the scenes for display and now... dusting it There's been so many great sets though, especially since 2006. Amongst them, both incarnations of the Republic Gunship are awesome and have a great selection of minifigs. Out of the starfighters, the accurate design and superb detail of the 7658 Y-wing make it a big win!

Congratulations Dutch Rebel and to the rest of you lucky, lucky people! Much kudos to the top MOCers too

Looks cool SWMAN. Might not be ideal as army building battle pack, but this would make a great promotional or special edition pack which I'm sure would appeal to a lot of people. I would've like to have seen the meditation chamber fleshed out a bit more but I completely understand that you do what you can within the parts limit. Good luck in the compo!