Shadows

Not for that tricky bugger who made the Licensed Themes Index... check out those first 4 post times.* *Disclaimer: Normal members shouldn't try this at home. Your results may vary. Product sold by weight, not by volume.

Don't worry, some of us still respect you, even if blocky doesn't... I'm closing this thread now, we've made our decision. Dead woman walking. Be sure to PM your useless night actions to Dragonator now.

Well, since Pirates were only introduced 19 years ago, and they've always had open backs, let's try going further to see if your case holds. Classic Town and Castle both had the exact same style of build in the earlier 80s, open and hollow. Heck, people gripe about junorization as being big walls and such, but those started in the early castle era in some of the best sets ever produced and that has continued to the present. Open walls were always meant for playability, but also a certain amount of economy. Seriously, how much more would you pay to have sealed structures, and then what? You'd expect removable roofs or hinged walls or something, and honestly, it kills the whole interaction you get from a more open set. To be blunt, LEGO is like a doll house for boys. We have little furniture and walls and doors and various types of buildings ranging from houses to space stations, but in the end, they're all doll houses of a different type. LEGO did eventually go too far with the concept, briefly, with the Studios line, however. Big sections of nothing but cardboard backdrops and limited structure was too much for people to tolerate and the line died, despite some excellent ideas (the monster sets were almost brilliant). As to the price situation, look up the original retail prices that 80s era sets sold for and adjust for inflation, factoring in piece count. You'll discover something surprising if you do: LEGO isn't any more expensive now than it ever was, and in some cases it's cheaper, even with licensing costs. It's scary if you do the math.

Unbeknownest to Byron, he's actually fighting my stunt double while I'm off wooing and scr... uh... damn, it's such a good rhyme... Well, while I'm off keeping the fair Mary entertained as these boys are playing with their swords. Play on, boys.

I don't think protecting works against investigating, or I wouldn't have even tried it. Far as I can tell, it only keeps them safe from murder and gives you a chance to sort of observe, which did me no good at all. Boring... Poisonous herbs and all that. Well, it certainly fits with the King's death. Shame it didn't come a day sooner, we could have saved that crazy injun. Vote: Lady Suzanne/AgentRick (OOC: I didn't have a free night, but I managed to finish my vig, so nyah! )

Done and posted. It will give you a completely new perspective on dinner in the castle.

Title: No One Suspected Story: Life in the middle ages had it's disadvantages: No running water, no internet (well...), no electricity for such simple things as refrigeration. With that last one in mind, it's interesting to note that no one gave a second thought to what they were eating during the lock-down after the King's death. Sure, dried meats and things grown in the courtyard, maybe a delivery of potatoes, but fresh steak? Where would the chef get that? No one suspected that the daily executions were part of the process until they discovered Majiko's meat locker in the basement, lit only by a high window and positioned directly below a corner of the kitchen. Savour that crappy photography. Mmmm, fresh meat. Tastes like loyalists though. I built this almost entirely out of spare parts I throw in a box when they're less than perfect. I wanted to give it a worn look, like the forgotten corners of an old castle, and I think it achieved that goal. So, it's all old grey and old brown, some of which has seen better days, but it actually worked quite well. The only 'new' parts are the current style skellie, the brown lattice windows (new, but still old brown... geez those are hard to get in quantity) and the med/dark blue tiles (yay for PaB!) Originally, I intended to put a guard on the roof, standing watch unaware of the whole scene below. Then I decided it would be Dragonator in a dress, giving a completely new twist to the DRAGon Masters faction, but it just didn't work out. Maybe I'll use that somewhere else.

Great. So now we can pick another at random, hoping we get it right this time, or... well, there really is no 'or', is there? We got no major clues out of this. As for Lady Suzanne and my arrival... Taking a page from Lord SwedenBound, I decided to take the chance to spend the night 'protecting' a suspect, hoping it would reveal something vitally important to the future. It did. She isn't half the fun of Mary... I'm sorry Mary, I shouldn't have strayed. Boring! Sadly, it didn't help with the hunt for the traitors either, so it was a completely frustrating night all around. Which means, I don't know where we go. I guess we could kill Lady Suzanne now, since she's no fun in bed a valid suspect and we don't have anyone else in mind, or maybe someone could make a suggestion as to how we stop killing loyalists before it's too late... (OOC: Off to post my Mystery Castle Building Contest thingy entitled, "No One Suspected")

I'll make a 600dpi scan of the original sheet and make my own to print and use, possibly edited down to just the green. If those Republic round logos go on round 2x2 tiles, I'll use real printed ones that I've already stocked up on. Basically, I'm not using the originals at all, I know that much.

Funny you should mention that, as the situation is currently being considered.

I reviewed previous days and my very first suspect was the doctor. Since then, he's done nothing to change that, we've just been distracted with other issues, which would be a good way for a traitor to keep himself alive, get his fellow traitors to confuse us while he doesn't even post and stays out of sight. I don't even completely dismiss the idea that they're working together to keep us divided, it's certainly having that effect. So, I figure it this way... we kill the doctor today, if it's a bad call, we kill Lady Suzanne tomorrow, if that's a bad call... we gang up on Dragonator and Majiko once and for all! Vote: Dovchenko / Damien the Doctor

I'd suggest visiting the Other Themes forum where we discuss military ideas, and where I'm moving this thread to. Since LEGO will never produce real military themed parts outside of things that appear in Licenses, we keep the whole "realistic military" element in Other Themes, aka "The Land of Misfit Toys" and Fabuland. You should find lots of ideas there, just browse around.

I like this set. We have a couple of mostly stock figures for adults, but then the nice twist of including kids and toys, showing normal people just living their lives. It's what I always ask for in the other lines, so it's good to see here. I think you mean 'mini-totem' when you say 'mini-stake'. I was never sure how the cultural elements translated to other countries, which is probably one of the reasons that a line like this didn't last longer. I gave the whole show a 2/2. I thought that some of the figures were too close to their original designs, but others stood out as great new ideas, so in the long run, I have to say that you did a good job. Thanks for presenting your own personal take on the entire Wild West minifig lineup.

Only the ones in bikinis. As far as threats, I figure we'll be lucky to start with pirates vs ninjas soldiers/Imperials, and probably no third faction like the old Islanders. I just hope they fill out the sets a bit by adding some natural hazards and not a lot of silly fantasy elements. It's probably a hopeless cause there, as fantasy sells and it's made the current castle line work out nicely, but I would actually be annoyed if it was all massive sea-monsters or skeleton crews. I'm not, however, opposed to small amounts of those things, if they really think it's necessary.

Basic Non-Mammals/Sea-life Sharks are still available, I'm sure the sawfish is as well. Throw in some alligators, crabs and clams and you have the basics covered. I'm not really sold on the kraken/sea monster angle, but I'm sure LEGO will go that way anyway. Still, I hope we see some of the more realistic dangers that could be confronted as well. We don't always need "epic" monsters, real life can outscare the best of them with a little imagination, and isn't that what it's really all about? Beyond that, all of these could be used in divers sets, some would be great for a Paradisa revival/beach themed city set, or any number of other uses. How about a zoo with aquarium? People would love that!

Let's see here. I don't think that Lady Suzanne can ever claim the throne, she was only married to a Lord, not actually in line, even assuming they would have allowed female succession. Still, being married to the traitorous Lord Ash, she has motive and needs to be checked out, I just don't know how we do that. The doctor has been on my list since day 1, as soon as it appeared to be poison. I'm annoyed by the non-participants and would love to go 2 for 1 and take both the Lady and the doctor in one shot, even if we end up 50/50 it would be a good turn, but I don't see how that can be arranged. The statues are turning out to be a real dud of a clue. Bah, I'm getting frustrated. I knew I should have protected Mary last night instead of BlockyBabblepants.

Maybe this would be an excellent time for anyone who isn't completely clear on things like this to review the Member Guidelines?

It could just mean that General Marcus killed the King, since he was a soldier. Of course, it could also mean that General Spencer got drunk one night and thought the King was suspicious of him and bumped him off, preemptively. I think things are slow because we're tired. I got absolutely no sleep after being locked in a room with the rambling Byron all night. Lord Saveloy spent the night watching Mary, and I'll be the first to tell you, you get no sleep when you're with Mary. Plus, we're stuck. I know I am. At this point, anyone I would vote against would be purely circumstantial, except maybe Majiko or Dragonator, and we can't seem to vote for them. It is time to take a new approach? I'm only absolutely sure of a couple of people (I really wanted to kill him, too... ). Maybe we should just start killing the least active players. I mean, it would be one easy way to avoid slipping up or doing anything suspicious, just by not being here. Or maybe Dragonator should send Ragnir around to kick some pigeons and see if he can get them participating again.

I will admit, the technic cannon would be death to a Pirate line for me. It would literally push me over the edge, make me buy every available classic cannon on Bricklink and set them all up around me until the men in white coats came to get me. So, in keeping with the Classic line, I'll add the base to go with your cannon. The four original colours might be asking too much, though it would be nice. Balancing value and demand, and for the sake of convenience and budgetary considerations at TLG, I would take brown and red. Brown and red are just as standard as it gets, they were in almost every set produced. For TLG, this offers a few additional possibilities. First, if they ever return to ninjas or wild west, they've got cannons, but going beyond that, they could include these in a town set as a park statue, as are seen all over the world. More importantly, a single cannon with base and wheels would make a great Impulse set if you added a pirate or soldier. People would buy those by the ton.

You don't. We do. As long as you're doing what you should be, you never have to worry about anyone else, they're our concern. Oh, and thanks for your cooperation.

I would add this... I've never seen that many weiners (Firefox insists that I should spell it 'wieners' but I refuse) in any single episode of a show. Well, I may be lying, but it's weinertastic, for those of you so inclined.

In case you're unaware, this site is intended for an adult audience and asks that you be 18 to join. While 18 is "teen", anyone 18 or 19 considers themselves an AFOL, so obviously, this isn't intended for them, this is intended for the rest of you. Here's my thing. It was a cute idea at first, sort of. Everyone wants to be part of a group, and you saw TFOL as a group, but you're already part of a very special group, you're a member of EB and a LEGO fan. So please, remove all of that from your sigs, especially the big animated gifs. It's one thing to join a site when you aren't the age required, but at least try not to advertise it, ok? Instead, act mature. Post responsibly. Don't refer to your mommy and daddy taking away your computer time or sending you to bed or being mean and not letting you buy LEGO. Don't gripe that you can't get a good job because you're 14. Don't tell us all about your junior high dance. Please don't mention puberty. If you're going to be on an adult site, act like an adult. Don't necessarily use me as an example... Oh, you know what I mean! Now let's clean up those sigs, act like adults and get back to playing with our toys, ok?

Definitely not the point of this thread. It doesn't matter if it's 2009 or 2019, the views we're collecting in this thread need to be expressed BEFORE a new line, since we're hoping to help show TLG what we're actually interested in, not in speculating about what they will make.

With all the speculation about a new Pirates line in threads like this and this, and the new minifig torsos spotted here, it seems like a good time to talk about your expectations, even if we don't know that such a line is in the making. There have been similar discussions before, but I want this to be different. As you probably know, when LEGO decided to redesign the Castle line, they contacted prominent members of the online Castle community to ask for assistance in designing what this new line would contain. Pirates is different, because it means launching the line fresh, as opposed to just adjusting a currently existing one, so they probably won't contact anyone for advice, even though Classic-Pirates at Eurobricks is the one and only home of LEGO Pirates and they would be wise to consult with us. That said, I do think they look in from time to time, and wouldn't be surprised if someone involved in the process could read this thread. So, I'm asking you to name a single part that you would absolutely NEED for a new Pirates line to satisfy you. One part per post (unless 2 parts are a natural pair, like a chest and it's lid, or a pair of boat hulls). Don't double post to get all of your ideas out. Post the one part you want most, explain in detail why you want it and basically sell your case. Imagine it's being read by the designers at LEGO and you need to convince them that your part is absolutely necessary. Provide pictures, if possible, either of the pre-existing LEGO part, or of the real life item you want made. If you have more parts ideas, wait a while, let others comment, then make another post detailing another important part to you. To make this idea clear, I'll post a little example. The Rag Wrap. A vital piece of headgear for everyone from dock workers to swabbies, it's the iconic topper to the vast majority of your pirate minifigs. Now, imagine it in white. Suddenly, it isn't just good for Pirates, it can also be used for town people as well, thus giving TLG a chance to double dip and use the mold for two different lines and saving a lot of money in the process. Of course, other colours are possible: dark blue, dark green, tan. But I'd be happy with just the originals and white, wouldn't you? Now it's your turn to come up with an idea and make your case here in this thread. The future success of Pirates may depend on it!

Byron, can I just summarize all of that with, "YAY, we killed the megablocker" and skip the rest, please? All night, I had to listen to him going on and on about his brilliant coded messages, how he tricked the traitorous killer and blah blah blah, my head is being a traitorous killer now, I sort of wish Lord SlammyArmour had whacked me so I could have gotten a good nights sleep. Speaking of which... uh, nice new hairstyle Mary. Now I know what you two did all night. Now, let's get to business. We finally scored another traitor, we're well on our way to avenging our King. Hopefully, we've dealt with everyone who can kill in the night, so now it's up to us to make the right choices and sentence the traitors to death, but how do we proceed from here? I don't even remember that whole bruised torture whatever subplot, so I'll have to go back and review the previous day in my mind. Until then, we have this paintagraph to work with. A spear with a skull and helmet that look like our poor King when we discovered him. A huge carrot in a spilled goblet of wine, not entirely unlike the one found by his body. Clearly, someone is trying to tell us that this whole thing has been perpetrated by a killer bunny. A giant killer bunny. *keeps his Holy Hand-grenade of Antioch nearby, just in case* Ok, let's try this another way. The goblet/carrot statue is holding a trident, indicating the sea, which leads back to that clue about the fisherman being the one to catch the King's last meal (never did understand how he caught what looked like a chicken leg). Sort of fishy. FISHY! Get it? Oh nevermind, I was stuck in that damn armoury all night with this blithering idiot, er, I was going to say something nicer, but I can't think of anything, sorry. Maybe it's just a reminder of the goblet? So we need to question the cellar keeper? Or the chef... but he killed himself. Oh Ernest, why hast thou left us without decent food? I'm not getting anything else out of this. Anyone else?