The Stad

Great job on the colors and the shapes of your foliage, it looks very organic. I think I speak for everyone when I say we're all excited to have you back and building!

Welcome @Aurore and @ForTheGreaterGood, you've chosen an excellent outlet for your spare time! Speaking of time: did anyone else come frustratingly close to finishing an entry for this round that they couldn't quite complete by the drop-dead date? Here is a progress photo of my would-be Category A entry as it was on deadline day: I guess this means that I now have as much time as necessary to polish it up as a freebuild...

This is amazing! I love everything being off-axis, I think that was a great decision that allowed you to fit so much more into each scene, and you’ve executed it really, really well. There’s so much going on, I don’t know where to start, but your story is terrific and your creation is outstanding. And it definitely looks very Mitgardian!

Category A entry:

Previously: A New Post at Gammeltårn Party Supplies The elves had arrived in the harbor of Forstlys as the first light of dawn warmed the horizon. Hastening forth from their ship, they had immediately requested an audience with the lord of the isle. Now they stood in the hall as Kjell and his father strode in, several guards of the Stromvakt following closely behind. One elf wearing armor trimmed in green stepped forward and bowed low as the men approached. "My lord," he began,"I wish that my return to these shores were in happier times and on business less urgent, but I fear that I bear word of trials and troubles yet to befall your lands." Kjell felt his father bristle beside him, weighing his answer to a greeting that some might consider a veiled threat. "Friends," the wizened lord replied,"your arrival here is quite unexpected, and your news, it seems, unwelcome. We have seen much trouble already of late, and had hoped that the worst was put behind us. You must tell us more of this new threat. From whence does it come? What are we to expect? Why does it come now?" "Alas, my lord, to describe the origins of this evil would be to tell a tale that spans millennia, for it is tied to the fate of the same people who built these very halls three ages ago," the elf explained, gesturing at the ancient stones around them. Kjell struggled to hide his shock at hearing this, but if his father were surprised he concealed it quite well. "I would know all I can of the trials we are to face," contested the lord. "The day is yet young. Come, tell us all you can, ere your errand carries you onward, as I'm sure you've many more to tell this news." The emissary then related to them the tale of the Pinnothen, who had come to great power in the north of Historica - long before it was known as such - until they fled internal strife and untold disasters and followed their Chosen Prince into the east. There they found vast lands, called the Great Wings, in the grip of countless slavers and the many dark elf kingdoms who employed them. The Pinnothen hosts freed and embraced every slave they found, and drove the elves before them relentlessly. The cunning and cruelty of the Eastern Drow could not withstand the righteous fury of the Chosen People and the vengeance of former subjects let loose upon their old masters. In their new home, the Pinnothen created a mighty new empire that far surpassed the power they had known in the west, and which still stood unrivaled. With their armies crushed and their once-vast holdings reduced to a handful of remote, barren islands, the Drow turned to dark sorcery as a means to regain their strength. For years uncounted they labored and practiced, perfecting the art of swaying the mind and enhancing the body. Eventually they perfected their rituals, and began to grow their ranks once more with a fierce creation spawned from their hapless prisoners and few remaining slaves. The creatures they created took their name from the mark left by the unholy magic that had made them: the Hand of Corruption. Slowly, the Drow explored their new strength of arms, lending their beasts in small number to various warlords and despots, sowing chaos wherever possible and testing the potency of their creations until, finally, they found an enticing target. While the Pinnothen remained unchallenged and unassailable in the Great Wings, an insolent would-be ruler named Raavage had found great success with a relatively small contingent of the Hand of Corruption in the old homeland of the Pinnothen. Though he may have ultimately been defeated, Raavage's efforts had taken a heavy toll on the people and the land, and Historica was now ripe for conquest by a greater force. The Drow finally had their opportunity, and would hold nothing in reserve now. "My presence here is as a warning," the emissary finished. "You must prepare yourselves, and guard your alliances cautiously. The Drow will sow seeds of discord among you to ease their advance. I fear they have already begun to infiltrate the ranks of those who would oppose them. My people have already captured many of their spies upon the seas east of here, and I am certain many more have eluded us." Kjell immediately thought of the strange exchange with the Rigr that had recently brought him here to Forstlys. "My lord," Kjell interjected, "before our guests take leave of us, there is more I must ask of them..."

Excellent work! The scale and detail are impressive, and the reflections in the floor help add to the feeling of luxury and power on display in the space. Nice story too, looking forward to seeing where it goes...

Everything here is great; I love your tents, the hall is unique with some great shapes, the night-lighting is very successful, and your story is quite entertaining. Well done!

Great story, and very impressive moc! I love how many different details you fit into the scene, and it is fittingly lush for the Avalonian countryside.

Thanks! I wish I had more red leaves, I how they look too. I do find it a bit difficult to balance looking “clean” without looking “plain,” but I’ll keep working on that front. Thank you! I agree about the water, it could use a little more texture to suggest movement. Next time!

AoM Inn Phase 1: Party Supplies - Mitgardia On Shifting Sands - takes place in Kaliphlin, but points go to Mitgardia

Previously: A New Post at Gammeltårn Kjell left Gammeltårn in great haste and, having picked his way out of the mountains by the crumbling game trails, now galloped along the Old Road towards Forstlys. More ancient than memory and yet nearly unblemished by the passing of time, the Old Road crossed the Burial Isle from east to west in several segments, each perfectly straight, and only subtly, if ever, sloping. It was favored by many of the travelers and merchants that made their way across the island, and on his journey Kjell passed many folk who also trod the road to the capitol, nearly all of them laden with the trappings of festive revelries. Maybe I started this six months ago... maybe I've been a little busy... but it's here now, so... C&C welcome! And yes, the photo quality is not outstanding. I have an old phone for a camera.

It does indeed look much livelier now, and excellent job refining this MOC, I don't have the patience to stick with something in an iterative process like that. Job well done!

I've got one freebuild that needs some final detail work, then I'm not sure when I'll photograph it. The last three months have not provided much building time, but I hope to crank out some entries to the next challenge and maybe some storyline-advancing freebuilds over the summer, since my wife is expecting in August and I don't imagine I'll get many moments with the bricks after that...

Making sure this gets counted:

Thanks, it took many iterations to get it just right, but I’m happy with how it came out. The beauty of this medium is that we get to use our imagination constantly, and the “ice cream cone” piece looked like a good, small pouch to me, so here we are. Thank you! Thanks, though this isn’t really part of any ongoing story as of yet. I just wanted to build with tan for a while... Thank you! Isn’t it funny how the part we consider the focal point so often takes the back seat to the part that we build as an afterthought! Though I am glad you like the base, it turned out better than I had hoped it would.

The man hated this place. He hated coming out here, into the depths of the Badlands, hated meeting with those withered creatures, hated waiting for them in the cold shadow of this great, unsettling thing. Yet, here he was, nonetheless. He first saw their tiny figures when they mounted a distant dune. He watched them steadily descend its face into the next valley, then several moments later they appeared again, closer now, still coming at an even pace, unhindered by the rising heat that began to pulse in shimmering waves off of the endless sea of sand. They reached the crest of the penultimate dune, and his horse, which had been idly pulling at the burnt stalks of some long-dead shrub, came to him nervously pressed its head against his shoulder. Even she didn't like these meetings. In a few more moments they were there before him, and the first among them spoke. "Your task is done, then?" it rasped, its red eyes flickering behind the rags that held it together. "Of course," the man answered stiffly. "The proper people were paid, the peasants were fed, the shows went on., as promised." "So say our listeners. You have again performed...more than adequately. Your payment will be delivered to the oasis south of the Fallen Angel on the fifth day hence. A portion will also be delivered, to be used towards our efforts. Return to this place in two fortnights for further instruction. This is an adequate rendezvous, is it not?" "I'd prefer somewhere closer to water," the man said slowly. "My horse doesn't do well so far out here." "Perhaps a camel would suit you better," the creature dismissively returned. "No, closer to water is closer to eyes that might see that which must not be seen. Our meetings must remain unmarked. Besides, this place is significant to us." The man didn't respond. He'd tried, though he didn't expect to get much better from such dealers as these. He began to turn to leave when the creature spoke again. "Do you know why this place is notable?" Its voice seemed distant now, its gaze rolled slowly up and down the strange grey stones of the spire, and still the man didn't respond. "This marks the site of a great victory for our kingdom. Here, where lay their last great city, was the final gasp of an ancient empire, who came before even the god-kings of old. In their time they knew power unrivaled, ruled over lands innumerable, counted themselves as masters over earth, sky, and sea, and yet they are gone, and we remain. Our armies crushed them to a man, their halls and towers were torn to the ground, and our mighty king wrapped the very stones in the loving arms of this desert. Such is the fate of those who would stand before us!" Its eyes flashed brightly as its voice came to a crescendo, then just as suddenly the creature was silent. "As you say." The man bowed his head and turned, walking his horse back past the spire, the way he had come. "Remember," called the creature, and the man paused and looked back, "Our great master is generous to those who serve him well. Give thanks, and pray that you never fail him." The man bowed his head again, and both parties turned and left. When he was sure the creatures could no longer see him, he mounted his horse and spurred her away as fast as she would run.

Category A:

Two Mitgardian soldiers labor towards the Clan Lands through the winter snow, their sledge laden with the queen's generosity. It will be a welcome sight to those who struggle through this long winter, especially after such a meager summer, though who knows what will be expected in return for such gifts as these...

Thanks! I had a better perspective shot that showed more details: But I didn't like the wedge being showed off. This started out as part of a large octagon, but I couldn't get the wedge to come together with other wedges in a good way. I definitely should have gone back and straightened out the sides of the stairs to get better pics. Live and learn, eh? Thanks! I've found in the past that the photos I imagine myself taking and the ones I actually end up taking are always different enough that it pays off to put the effort into areas that might end up on the cutting room floor. Thank you, I feel like a story benefits from multiple layers of conflict and uncertainty. Thank you! Thanks, the mix of greys is partially out of necessity, but it does work to my advantage most of the time. As I showed above, I did have a lower angle shot, but aside from being too lazy to rebuild the stairs (three times as wide sounds about right), I was also limited with how low I could go with the camera by how many light blue bricks I had for the background sky. But I appreciate the critique, I really respect the amount of work and thought you've been putting into your own scenes. Thank you! Yes, the ruff is from the Penguin, and it is of limited utility (which I didn't find out until after bricklinking five of them), but has just enough extra room in it to allow for a new cloth cape and fits with the Ultron helmets for a cool combination. And I'm glad you're enjoying the story!

Thanks! Thanks! Yeah, I found myself fighting a losing battle with gravity with the internal friction of some of those pieces in the branches. It was a very delicate build. Thank you! I always hope to be convincing. Thanks, I agree with the stone placement. It was a bit of an afterthought, I'll admit. Next time.... You bring up a lot of good points as far as the drifts and path are concerned, and I considered a lot of those as I was composing this. There is some snow under the tree, and the area under the lean-to is the same dark tan that I used at the edge of the paths (very wide game trails), because in my head that area had been recently cleared and was still somewhat damp. That said, I don't think the writing reflects the physical facts of the build at this point, and maybe I shouldn't have made a point of "broad branches that kept off much of the rain and snow." As for the camera angle, I don't even have an excuse for not using this photo first: Thanks, I feel like snow makes any scene feel very cozy, wilderness or no. Thanks! I'm glad you picked up on the light/dark tan. Thanks, it's good to have another build posted! I figure they're very large trees - and I don't have the pieces or photography setup to do them justice - so I figured just the bottom of the tree would be sufficient.

There’s a lot going on here for what looks like a very simple build, so I commend you for that. I think it’s harder to make something small look really clean like this because there’s nowhere for little imperfections to hide. Love the base too, it works very well in this sci-do setting, even without the wargs.

Another great addition to your town, I love the cohesive architectural style. I’d echo what others has said about pieces being a little out of place, like the offset ridge piece on the higher roof and one of your “timber” tiles being skewed on the section to the right. I like your posts around the bottom, but I’d recommend considering the way a vertical load would travel through the structure to the ground as a way to inform the location of the posts. For example, I’d think that you would need support directly beneath the corners of the half-timbered overhanging sections. Or, if you want some overhang, just beef up the horizontal element on the bottom of those sections to handle the stress from the cantilever action. Still, this is an awesome moc with a lot of great details, and as someone who lives in the cold, I can endorse your depiction of snow.

Great job telling a story with just a single image. I like your cart design, and appreciate the judicious use of texture, though I think I would have reversed the sand green and dark bley areas in the wall, as if the muck were piled up on the outer wall surface, cracking and falling away in some places.

Great job, your half-timbered technique is very appealing and realistic in appearance. The overall color palette looks great, and you've got a great balance of textures here. I'm really impressed with how you've adapted this to two different settings and made it fit into them so well!

As others have said, there's a bit too much going on here in terms of textures and colors, but at the same time it's got too many square corners and straight edges, particularly in the landscape. I like the effort you put into the roof, and I really like the accuracy with respect to the source material. I think this is one of the best nordic longhouses we've seen here. Well done!