Darnok

======================================================================================= OOC editors notes: The full PDF can be found under the spoiler: The advertisement on page 5 is serious, meaning there are two WTCM rewards to be claimed during April. Check out issue #4 here for the other one!

Wow, what an impressive display. Not only is it impressive in size, but it is technically well done, and full of details and different small scenes - great composition! The rounded paths look awesome, as does the water with different colours depending on its depth. The "rainbow flowers" idea is lovely, and well executed. For me it is tough to name one single "best part" about this MOC, I think my personal favourite is the - fully functioning, w00t! - chess game. A lovely addition to any Lego city, and overall just really well done!

That is not at all what I said, you are wrong. To quote myself: To spell it out: Elostirion, I like all your challenge entries. But in my opinion every single one of them had better competition in its respective category, and in each case I think their place in the ranking is not justified given the alternatives. In my opinion - I can not stress this enough. Given the rest of your reply I see that we disagree a lot on this matter. Fair enough. Judging is done though, congratulations to your wins.

A brilliant build, a perfect example of those "gentlemen club". The furniture is so well done, as is its placement with the minifigs - the scene at the billard table looks alive. Even if I would not place my glass right there! The scenery beyond the window is a great detail. I too would like to know what you have used there.

Feedback for BotBS Challenge 1, Era II: „Celestia' Superb Orchid“ Most of the following was written some time ago, with comments about the results and some changes made today. This is meant as my personal feedback for the „orchid challenge“. Apart from the statistics parts, which is facts only, the rest is my opinion. You can agree or not, and you can use it for improvement or not. Without further ado: wall of text incoming! My general experience This was the first challenge in BotBS I actively participated in, when it started I was still new to the game. As a surprise to me, the theme centered around something I had been curious from even before I joined, something that actually played into me joining Corrington: the search for a mysterious and near-mythical orchid on the island of Celestia. One of the reasons I came up with an „explorer character“ as my sigfig was, from the very beginning, the idea to go on this search one day in the future. Little did I know the chance would come so soon! Despite all my ideas I came up with actual builds quite late into the challenge. Lesson learned: next time I will start much sooner. There are still a lot of things I want to try out, but they will not be part of this challenge. I had great fun with planning and building all my entries, and I am proud of the results. In the end I liked the concept of this challenge enough to keep my participating character „out in the wild“ for a while longer. I hope to find some more time for that soon. Waiting for the results became increasingly irritating over time, mostly due to an almost complete lack of communication from „above“ and the sheer time it lasted (well over eight weeks!). When the results were finally out... eh, what a letdown. Not at all what I had expected, even incomprehensible in some parts. More on that below. Statistics Start: November 10th, 2017 End: January 31th, 2018 (extended from January 15th on January 8th) Duration: 83 days / 11 weeks and 5 days (before extension: 64 days / 9 weeks and 3 days) Results posted on: March 31th , 2018 Categories and prices announced: Category A (1 main price), Category B (3 main prices plus 3 subcategory prices), Category C (3 main prices) Prices given out: Category A (1 main price), Category B (two 1st prices, one 2nd and one 3rd price, 3 sub-prices as announced), Category C (one 1st and one 2nd price, two 3rd prices) Number of entries, sorted by faction and category: COR OL ESL SR ∑ Category A 8 3 6 1 18 Category B 9 1 3 4 17 Category C 5 2 2 1 10 ∑ 22 6 11 6 45 Analysis: A total of 45 builds were entered into the challenge, but they are very unevenly distributed. In all three categories Corrington has more entries than any other faction, and in total all other factions combined only have one more entry than Corrington on its own. Highest overall attendance was from Corrington. Lowest overall attandence was from Sea Rats, with only one player taking part (Professor Thaum). The most entries from different players were for „Category A“. The numbers for „Category B“ are misleading, as some people posted more than one entry (examples: Drunknok with 5 entries, Professor Thaum with 4 entries), while others posted none; it does not show in this numbers, but there were less people participating in „Category B“ than there were in „Category C“ (9 in B vs. 10 in C). In summary: of the 18 players who entered the challenge by posting an entry for „Category A“, 9 posted at least one entry in „Category B“, 10 posted an entry for „Category C“. The Good – Things I liked Challenge presentation. The challenge had a great presentation, all categories were presented and explained well – an easy point of reference, and a good introduction. Premise of the challenge. The basic idea for this challenge is just brilliant! It fits the Corrington character perfectly, builds on existing background and asks for everybody to flesh it out. Everybody can easily come up with reasons to search for the „supreme orchid – be it scientific interest, lookingthe search for adventures, the will to please the gods, the will to make money from the orchid itself, or simply the search for fame. General category design. The categories made it pretty clear, you went through the stages of „set up the expedition“ - „explain your findings in the jungle“ - „describe the supreme orchid“. All of these had different specifics, with an overarching theme to hold them all together. If you had at least a bit of interest in jungle flaura or fauna (more on this below), this provided plenty of options for builds. Inter-faction collaboration. I loved that there were many entries working together on one coherent story. Well done! Communication during the challenge itself. Any question I had during the challenge was answered quickly and friendly. The extension of the deadline was reasonable, and communicated at the right time (one week prior to it, basically giving everybody three more weeks from there). The ??? - Things I did not understand Price distribution. The „default category“ (as in: you have to post an entry for it to participate at all) was obviously the most contested one, but it came with only one (huge) price. I see that there is some kind of reasoning behind this, but I do not agree with it. I would have preferred more prices at an overall lower level, for example „medium property of any kind – small property of any kind – 50DB“. Focus on the jungle. Once you „are in“, by posting an entry for the first category, you are forced to come up with a „jungle based build“. If you had, for whatever reasons, no „jungle inspiration“, or simply lacked the parts for some proper vegetation, you had nothing to build for two of the three categories. While I personally have no issue with that (I still have many ideas for future builds), both the overall attendance as well as the numbers for the different categories (see above) clearly show that I am in a minority with my opinion. Starting in Jameston. Why did people have to build (and license) in Jameston to enter the challenge? You can prepare an expedition anywhere, and most likely it would be easier if you prepare it „at home“. I have more problems with this (see below), but to me it would make more sense – and possibly encourage more builds all in all – to let people start such an expedition wherever they want. No faction prices. This was a feature for all challenges from Era I, and I have yet to see an explanation why this was dropped. Offering something for the „best“ faction could have more likely than not led to a higher participation from non-Corries. It would also have encouraged working together as a faction, instead of "each on his/her own". Promise of a developing map. The challenge was presented with the possibility of a „developing map“, but absolutely nothing of the likes happened. My advice would be to not promise something that you are not absolutely sure you can deliver. The Bad – Things I disliked Licensing requirements. You had to license a property in Jameston to enter the challenge... why exactly? Jameston gained 30 settlement points by that alone, and will gain 19 more due to the prices (again, why can those not be claimed in a settlement of your own choice?) – that is the equivalent of a Large Town, basically for free. The other factions will have „their“ challenges in the future, but for the time being this feels quite unfair. It just sets a bad precedent. And no other Corrington settlement gained anything from this. See above for how this could have been handled much better. Judging time. I do not know how the judging process is handled behind the scenes (because it is not communicated), but it took over eight weeks for the results to be posted. I understand that nobody does any of this professionally, but I do not understand what the hell took so long with this. Combined with the next point this only resulted in frustration. Abysmal communication after the end of the challenge. There virtually was none. A short statement of „thanks“ roughly a week after the challenge ended, and then... nothing. When I asked for some kind of ETA six weeks (!) after the challenge ended... nothing. Somebody else asked again, and one week after my original question there came a vague answer – which turned out to be a good bit from the reality too. It took more than ten more days for the results to show up, and nobody said anything publically. Suggestion for the future: simply say what is going on, instead of playing hush-hush. A lack of communication shows a lack of respect, and I really doubt that this impression is, or should be, intentional. Results. Sheesh, where to start. As a summary: I disagree with the majority of placements, independent of category. Before anybody jumps at me: I did enjoy all the entries in the challenge, but I think their relation to each other in terms of quality is not at all represented in these „results“. Since the judging process is intransparent, I can not say where (if at all) things went wrong on that side, or if the opinions of the judges just vastly differ from mine (if it is the latter, I question the judgement of at least some of them in terms of aesthetics and common sense). The following are my main objections, more or less in order of categories: why name a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in Cat.A when there is only one winner to be announced, that simply makes no sense; you can not with a straight face tell me that the Cat.A entries of Elostirion or Kai NRG are better than the ones from Gideon or Mike S; similar for the 1st places in Cat.B, where it was seemingly enough to build a sloped mountain and place some prefab animals on it; how can Spud win the „geography“ subcategory, but my entry for the same subcategory wins 2nd place overall (yet he does not?), again this just makes no sense; I have no idea how anybody could come up with the ranking for Cat.C for 2nd and 3rd place, it is completely incomprehensible to me. Summary Overall I think this challenge had a good concept with solid execution until the deadline. The theme given allowed for a variety of different build ideas, and the results mirrored this. I had wished for more participation in general (and from other factions than Corrington in particular), but I also accept that the theme was not for everyone. The „communication from above“ after the end of the actual challenge definitely has to change. More transperency is needed. The results left quite a sour taste in my mouth. I really hope the next challenge improves considerably in these fields. Congratulations to all winners.

Over the last week the following properties were added and licensed in Mesabi Landing: medium agave plantation (Drunknok) "Inky Brewsters", large factory (Mesabi) "Rotating Meat", small artisan (Legostone) small WTC warehouse, small commerce (Drunknok) "Egg-tion in Mesabi Landing!", small arts&culture (Drunknok) WayMart Flagship Store, large commerce (Drunknok)

WayMart - everything the Brick Seas have to offer in one store! The WTC is proud to announce the opening of its WayMart Flagship Store in Mesabi Landing! The WayMart stores were already a success in different places all over the New World, offering everything from food to explosives at affordable prices. Now enjoy a shopping experience on a whole new level in the WayMart Flagship Store, located in the centre of the one and only Mesabi Landing. Let us follow Mary-Lou, a five-year old local, on her shopping experience: She is quickly greeted by a friendly WTC Operator. Of course he knows Mary-Loe and her family well, for a sales professional form the WTC the customer always is king - or in this case queen. Meanwhile, one customer enjoys the huge variety of fruits, vegetables, pies and breads on offer, and another is checking out the exellent maps the WTC can provide thanks to the service of Karst Geographers. . "Say Mary-Lou, what are you looking for today?" ... "Mornin' mister. Mommy just said we need guns, lots of guns." ... "Very well young lady. Follow me downstairs then." . Downstairs was another hall, filled with a huge variety of weapons on display. Two WTC Marines were debating the benefits of a musket versus those of a pair of handguns... . The WTC Operator gave Mary-Lou a short tour: . "Let us start with the melee weapons, just in case you fancy something sharp and pointy in the future. Swords of different kinds, the best cutlasses of the Brick Seas (fancy gear is available!), as well as exotic blades from the Southern Kingdoms." . "But you of course came for guns, and we have on offer the best shooty sticks your doubloons can buy you. State-of-the-art muskets, available with enlarge-o-scope for enhanced sight at range, several types of handguns, and some rifles from overseas. Top quality, all of them!" . "But if you really want to kill your enemy dead-dead - so even in the afterlife he stays down - there is nothing better than a proper cannon and explosives. Never let you tell otherwise: there is no such thing as "too much boom"!" At the end, Mary-Lou left with a bag full of guns, and a smile on her face. MayMart: come today, have enough firepower for your own private war tomorrow! ====================================================================================================== Licensed as a large commerce for the WTC. More pictures: As always, C&C are appreciated.

Isn't it a day early for shenanigans like this?

Every egg is a regular Lego piece. The ones I have are: the white one with blue zigzag line, from the 2018 Easter seasonal minifig box one white, blue and grey one, from the 2017 Easter seasonal set one blue one, from "Easter Batman" (TLBM series 1)

It is nighttime, the full moon is shining over Argentia. Everybody is sleeping. Everybody? Maybe not everybody... Is it a man? Is it a rabbit? And what is it he is doing out here at night? Who knows... The next morning, lil' Jim and his mother are out for a walk, when suddenly Jim notices something: "Mommy look, there are eggs in the bushes! As if somebody tried hiding them..." "Jimmy, that is just silly. Who hides blue and white eggs among sand, grey stones and green plants?" Little did they know that some eggs, were better camouflaged than these: And while Jim and his mother collected the eggs they had found, a spectator wondered what bird lays coloured eggs: =========================================================================================== Licensed as small arts&culture. Just a small easter-themed story and a build to go with it. As always, C&C are appreciated. Happy Easter everybody!

To store necessary mining tools (and explosives) for the coal mine, as well as any small amounts of coal that did not fit into the latest transport, the WTC has set up a warehouse near the coal mine. The WTC Marine outside was quite irritated, when the warehouse started making weird noises. Could it be... ... yes it could! Another Marine was inside, taking a rest and snoring loudly! ======================================================================================== Licensed as small commerce for Mesabi Landing. Two more angles (outside and interior): As always, C&C are appreciated.

Excellent build, and a great story too. I'm lovin' it, so to speak.

Dark side? Those are just some jolly fellas relaxin', havin' a good time!

Nice! Small and easy, but very effectful, I like it. Could you be tempted to expand your recreatinal business to Mesabi Landing? We have lots of stressed people there, jsut sayin'.

Could you post the link please? I've deactivated signatures...

The WTC currently has only two members, Mesabi and me. There is one (massively out-of-date) thread here... ... which is on the to-do-list for a remake. So far I consider it not a top priority, but it will get done in April or May. There is also a (background only) thread about the organisation and troops of the WTC: As far as I am aware, all WTC forces are on AMRCAs at the moment. The ships can be found in the monthly account sheet. Most of the WTC properties are in Mesabi Landing - which is de-facto a WTC settlement - a complete list will follow as soon as I updated the general WTC thread. If you have any questions about the WTC, just ask either myself or Mesabi. Until the remake of the WTC thread is up, this is best done via PM.

Thank you! Any idea what caused this one?

Nice! I never thought about ink production before, but it it actually not that far-fetched. Good to see an ink factory! I like the build in general, and especially the "busy" outside. Including the rails is a good idea, as is all the vegetation and "water" (appropriate for the coast of Argentia). The forced perspective and the open roof are clever. The production facilities inside are well done too, I would like to see a bit more action though (ink being made, or some workers loading barrels of ink into the waiting wagon). Other than that I would only suggest pressing those bricks down properly. Overall a good MOC, and a great addition to Mesabi Landing, well done!

Agreed, I think it looks better now than the first version.

This build went from "great and detailed 64x64 build" to "that same build tacked on a 80x80 base" to "expanded build using most of the 80x80 area" in a matter of hours - quite impressive in my opinion. By now it looks like a "proper" large plantation, well done! The "swampy feel" is pretty nice for a plantation in the jungles in my opinion. If you keep modifying the build, I would add some more foliage and smaller plants near the edges, and maybe some colourful animals (frogs maybe?) here and there.

The 64x64 footprint makes it medium plantation (80x80 for "large").

Cocoa on Cocovia? Heresy! Nice build there! The overall scene is properly "busy", and I like all the details you added in terms of harvesting the cocoa. That cocoa tree build is lovely! The story around the build is great too, I really like how you are picking up the loose ends of Quinnsville and start to develop them, not only here but in all your recent MOCs. It already feels like Quinnsville is "back on track" again, well done!

@Phred again: The issue I described in the post above has not been resolved yet. I would really appreciate if this got either explained or fixed before Saturday. That way, if it is an actual mistake, it does at least not get taken over to the April account sheet. Thanks in advance.

We just had the chicken wings "Crispy Rat"-style, and I can report: tasty! The fried version is of course more greasy (and juicier as a result); the oven version - comparable to what you would do with a grill - is much crisper (and a bit more dry). Both versions are eaqually tasty, and I encourage everybody to give both a try and decide for yourself. In the future I will experiment with a bit more spices, more honey and less orange juice (which I made from fresh fruits btw) and some lime juice instead. I will also try adding some freshly ground coriander on the finished wings. I will definitely do these again, and can not wait to try them from a grill this summer.

===================================================================================== OOC editors notes: Many thanks go to @Mesabi for helping with many of the articles. I also want to thank @Legostone and @Roadmonkeytj for their ideas, which gave me the inspiration for this months recipe! The change in presentation is due to a suggestion from @Legostone. The full PDF can be found under the spoiler: The copyright of the WTC flag is with @Mesabi. The copyright of the picture from the Great Ball of King's Harbour is with @Bregir. Among others, the following threads are referenced in one or more articles: Waymart Camp Isaac, You did WHAT?!, Eslandola Colonial Council, Second Cycle, 618, IN SESSION, Having a ball!, The Lavender Inn, Jameston, Emptying the sea with a bucket, Kings Port Adviser and Ship List (Vol 3, Issue 2), February-March 618 If you have questions, suggestions or want to claim this months reward: please use this thread. You can still claim last months reward (100DB for a large property in Mesabi Landing) until the 31st of March, on a "first come first served" basis. Expired.