Grover

I second Gideon's idea. I would like to see a HSS open to all Historica, and an "Age of Historica" (not just Mitgardia) open to everyone as well. Maybe one of the tasks could be to build something specific to your guild, so Mitgardia could require something, Avalonia something else... just a thought. I thought that the Doctorate, the AoM, and the HSS should all be open to each guild (although 2 are), and not really associated with one particular guild.

Welcome to the GoH, x105Black! I'm excited to see your builds and to see where the story of Vismund goes!

Thanks! I am still figuring some things out, but am happy with how the landscaping turned out. There's a small puddle with a frog between the two chickens, but you can't really tell from the pics. Thanks! If you click on the pics, you can see the flickr album that shows the back (there's a rabbit in the weeds) and sides. The roof is held on decently, as it's some swords sticking between the pins. The pins hold together decently well, although there are a couple of them that are somewhat weak connections. I had to replace those with others, but it may be just because I had to buy used pins.

Glad to have you as part of the best guild! I am excited to read the rest of your story; I'm not sure exactly why, but I find your character really interesting. I like all the different characters that you have come up with and the fun townsfolk. As the others have said, figuring out photography will help improve the pictures (as pics are a large part of the build), but that will come with time. I know that I have not fully figured out lighting yet. Hope to see more from you!

Spectacular. I don't even know where to begin. I have no idea how you find the time for these epic builds, but thanks for sharing these wonderful builds!

That's a beautiful chapel build. I like the feel--an old, upkept castle with a lot of history, and some truly avalonian colors. I like the stained glass, and the details of the shelving and table. Awesome!

Welcome! I love the story, and the interiors are great. As some of the others have said, the blocky colors are busy, although less so when you see the whole build. Of course, you run what you brung, and for the bricks that you have, it's lovely. Thanks for sharing, and I hope to see you around the guilds!

Awesome! I like the small build with nice details, great use of some of the new tiles, and then the great backstory and detailed family tree!

The bright colors look great for Varlyrio! The olive tree looks good, too. I used to live near an olive orchard, and they planted a ton of olive trees in rows, so some of the suggestions that there should be more trees may be valid. The bright blue door is awesome and works well. I love the low sloped roof. How did you get that to look so even? Are the tiles attached to a plate underneath on a hinge, or are they just sitting there?

Great house! There's a ton to like here: the olive colors, the foliage on the ground, the textured roof, and the awesome antlers above the door. The interior is great as well and a good use of the minecraft printed part! I also kind of like the olive bricks as an irregular base. I know it's not the smooth lines that everyone normally likes, but I think it works here. The texture of the stones is a little busy for my personal taste, but I bet most of the folks around here love it, and it's not as busy as some of the builds I've seen. Fantastic job, and keep up the good work!

Very cool! I like the prodigious use of animals, particularly the SW lizard, and I think that the cacti are awesome! I love the use of some of the unusual colors like light blue and light purple that I would not normally consider to use in one of these builds. I always thought that Kali had two sections: one that was sandy and one that was more like the american southwest. Thus, I assumed that your build was more of the former, as it has a more arabian feel, rather than an american southwest feel. I like the story that goes with your build, too.

Great build! I like how it captures the Mediterranean architecture style without looking too reniassance-forward. I also like how you kept some clean lines but made the buildings look aged without looking uncared for. The sign with the pretzel is also great! I'm a little concerned the door to the bakery isn't tall enough for the baker, but some of those old buildings were pretty small.

Awesome ship! Not that I'd really expect anything less, but I love it. The colors, the use of the log bricks on the side, the high deck... great job!

What a great build! In my opinion, your builds epitomize Kaliphlin. There's a lot of great Kali builds out there, but you really capture the colors, detail, and the feel of Kali if you ask me. The tiny details like the overall color choices, details of arches, and the rug on the camel are awesome. I love seeing all your work!

This is frustrating. I'm trying to get some time to post responses to the builds, but my internet has been out at home for a week now. The repairman is coming in 30 min so I hope that gets it done. In the meantime, I am here at a coffee shop stealing free WiFi. Meh. Everyone's builds are looking awesome!

Great job! I know it's less detailed than you usually work in, but I think it looks really good--almost spartan, although not for reasons of austerity, but due to the newness that you described. It works. The lighting is great, as everyone has said, intentional or not. I also like the incorporation of the new HP pieces (candles, flame, and square latticed windows). Did you just brute-force buy some Hogwarts Great Hall sets or did you bricklink them? I am debating whether or not I want to shell out for the great hall right now just for the small pieces. Thanks for including Lady Gwenllian! I recognized her and appreciate you taking the time to include her. As for fleshie, I just attribute it to her having her picture taken in a different light! lol I was thinking they haven't made a straight fleshie smiley face either. Maybe I am wrong about that but I can't remember seeing one.

Great build! I would not have expected those colors to work together, but they do! The dark orange rocks in the back look really good, and I like the whole scene with the building. Were I to nitpick, I would parrot the others in suggesting that the dark brown soil up front looks a little plain (maybe an irregular base would help clear that up?) and the sand green might be helped by breaking up a bit--maybe with a few of those olive brick façade 1x2 pieces from the Old Fishing Store? Regardless, I really like it! Keep up the good work!

As usual, I am in love. I really like how you are able to strike the balance between having lots of detail while not being cluttered to the point you can't photograph anything. I like the whole color scheme, the amazing forced perspective, the arches... I think everyone before me said it all, but wow, what a great build! I also love the inclusion of dinosaurs!

Great job HQ! I really appreciate the time you took to organize everything and format it in an easy-to-read style. It will make things much easier to find for newcomers (something I had trouble with when I was new in the last book's thread).

Not only is that good, but it's amazing that you did it in a non-native language! I would not be able to do that in German (my second language). I really like the creative idea and think it turned out wonderfully!

The mill looks great! I like the look of the roof. The flickr link does not work, however. I get an error message about security or something.

First, welcome Ailhbe! What an awesome fig and backstory! I look forward to your builds. Secondly, I am going to have to bow out of the lore contest. I have a sick infant as of this evening, and HQ has done a great TV-guide summary. I am working on a comprehensive history that I will have to share with everyone later, just not for a title unfortunately.

I"ll try and get it done today, but if I run into trouble, I'll post here for an extra day. Thanks!

When is the Historica Lore challenge due? July 31 or August 18? I assume it's one of those, either before allegiances are declared or before Book 3 starts.

Welcome, pompe! Nice intro! Zlatan, sorry to lose you from Avalonia, but glad to see quality builders headed to Varlyrio!