kinggregus

WhiteFang, Thanks for this great review. I wish I could return in time ... this is really the set that I would have loved when I was 10 years old. I did however vote for the Mobile Command Center (2008) to be a better set... but this is just due to its color scheme as I really like Dark Blue. I would love to see some future reviews of the new Ultra Agents sets, especially from a top reviewer as you!

I only once had this bad experience on Bricklink. I wish I had seen the seller feedbacks before as it had been mentioned several times in his feedbacks. However whenever a buyer left a negative feedback, he left a negative one in turn. I feel like a coward not having left a negative to forewarn new buyers.

I had so much pleasure reading this yesterday in the train. I am never disappointed about what I am reading. I particularly liked the section about Lego education as it is something I do not read about very frequently.

Last week-end, I was in luck, There was the piece I am using the most: 1x1 Bricks with stud on side in light blueish grey. I may have been a bit over my head as I filled nearly half of a large cup with those. Other than that, I took a few headlight bricks in green, 2x2 plates in yellow, 2x2 tiles in yellow, Palm Tree tops, 1x1 round tiles in light blueish grey.

Well, you still have 119,580 possible combination. Would you mind trying them out? Look at this post from Lasse.

Tower - Check Canon - Check Prison - Check Heavy Walls - Check Treasure - Check This fort has it all! Please continue on MOCing and you'll discover new techniques that will improve what you want to create. If it is only a question of Bricks, you can always go on to Bricklink. There are some amazing French sellers over there.

Let me be the first to congratulate you on your MOC. This creation is so original on many point of views. I really like the pose you used for your islanders.

Gary, your MOC are always incredible. Whenever I see a new creation coming from you on Eurobricks I jump on it... and I am never disappointed. I am so looking forward to the battle of Waterloo MOC. I believe that timing is perfect for it and you are probably the best MOCer to do this justice.

Fantastic Review - Great pictures While I admire the techniques used in this model, I am not considering buying it. This is mostly due to the subject itself as I feel that black models loose a lot in exposing their details. I do really like the Joker though

You learn something everyday. I feel stupid not knowing that... thanks for the clarification (and the question)

Guys! I am stupefied at the number of comments I received... and so honored to have been part of the front page. Thanks a lot for this comment. As I said previously, this took by far the most time in the build but I was happy at the result. It was also interresting as I worked on a mix of SNOT and Studs on top and decided to use 5 colors. Thanks Blufiji. I was so pleased to see this build on the front page and I am happy to see that you see this as a deserving build. Thanks NBV83! Thanks for the clarification Magma. Wouldn't we all wish that Tintin becomes an official Lego theme? Cesbrick, no one could have made a comment that would make me as happy as yours. You could have actually said "as Portuguese and an Algarve lover, and the most amazing MOCer, I can..." Thanks a lot Maxim I. This is really encouraging to build more. Thanks Garmadon! I am glad you liked the play features. For the story, it started out by building the cliffs, then I figured that 1) I would not have enough space to build an entire fort and 2) It would be nice to place something behind the cliffs. Then, I imagined a prison cell but needed, light and access to it. The second module had a much more integrated approach in regards to the play features. Thanks Tijgeric! Thanks Argalex, glad you like it. At last! someone who notices that details . It was indeed a technique I had not seen before but which makes, in my opinion, the best effect. It is only a bit heavier piece-wise. Thanks Thomas of Tortuga. I am glad you like it. Indeed we tend to forget that Lego is first and foremost a playset. Thanks so much Plaid Beard. I really appreciate your encouraging words. I do agree that it was my intention to add a bit more variety in the color design of cliffs. Thanks Withacee. It's true that when we see an XL base plate, we think that it is huge, but when we start layering our MOC, we notice that space is more limited that one might think. It always amaze me when MOCer manager to build an entire castle or fort in one single base plate. Thanks VFracingteam! Without sounding too narcissistic, I too enjoy watching the back picture of the fort as the fort is currently against a wall.

The design of your keep is flawless. I really like when such play features are included. It looks like it was a lot of fun to build.

Being a big fan of Lego, my wife planned the trip there a year ago for my Bday. I was quite disappointed and decided that I will not return. Unfortunately, I went on a rainy day. I was disappointed to see that the few restaurants in the park were full and not allowing customers to enter to avoid the rain. I really wanted to go see Miniland but I felt it was not maintained properly. A lot of the buildings were missing pieces or not working properly. I did not feel there were many rides (even for my toddler) and found the tickers to be very expensive. Note however that it is quite easy to find discounts (on cereal boxes for instance). All that lead me to say that I will not return. If that can serve as a comparison, I went to Disneyland Paris last week and was astonished about how well the parks were maintained (there are two parks). You get a lot more rides and all that for a price similar to Lego Windsor. I will definitely return there.

Thanks Captain. I agree that is has been a while we did not see a fortress. Glad you like it. Unfortunately, I have never attended a Lego convention. Seeing the impressive work of other MOCer, I am also not certain there would be an interrest for this kind of build. Thanks for commenting Simon. As a matter of fact, building it both ways made it very fun. It was definitely more challenging as I needed to plan ahead and make sure everything fit. Thanks Dr. Spock. Indeed, but no prisons is big enough to imprison all these Bluecoats... Thanks so much Capt Wolf. This is such a nice a comment. I would be delighted to see other builder try their hands on building cliffs based on actual sites. Thanks so much! As said above, I never considered exhibiting any of my MOCs (as a matter of fact, they are destroyed after a couple months). Maybe, I ll keep this one in mind before joining a convention. Hi Captain - you should definitely give it a try. This build was by far my favorite and most rewarding. As for the Tintin reference - there are quite a few Tintin with secret passage. However none with a barrel. To name a couple albums with secret passages, I can think of Flight 714 or Prisoners of the Sun. Would we not love a Tintin theme? Thanks a lot Captain. You may not know it, but you were among those builders that inspired me to try my hands at doing something pirate related. You are one of the person who keeps this forum alive thanks to your frequent builds. Thanks. I am glad you like it. I agree that it adds another level of fun. Thanks a lot littlejohn! As you mention the colors of the cliffs, there were actually three additional colors used to add variety: tan, dark tan and medium dark flesh. Thanks ArchitectureFan! It is true that while I was advancing through this project, I was also creating a story. This is how the levels are more or less interconnected and brought to life.

Hi Gary, what a compliment. Indeed, I'd like to make a pirate play set in the future. I will see if time allows as my wife is expecting our second child. You have no idea how hard I tried to make it nice from all angles. I even went as far as tiling the ceilings. Thanks a lot. I figured that it was better to make the flag brick-built as the flags on bricklink were too expensive and seemed to be too small. Thanks TheLegoExpert. Actually, the upper prison is loosely based on POTC. You may remember this scene where Jack Sparrow is held in the prison cell and where the dog holds the keys to the cell. Thanks James! I am glad you like them as they took the most work. I tried to use a mix of SNOT and Stud on Tops to give this effect. Also, slopes in dark orange and medium dark flesh tend to be expensive. Thanks Mr. Townsend. I am glad you took the time to appreciate the details. As for the bird in the cage, it actually comes in one piece . Here is the Bricklink linkfor that piece. It is one of the piece I really wanted to use.

Thanks a lot. I am glad you like this method. Yes, I did manage to have the barrel lead to the cave, THere is even a stair. Unfortunately, this is quite something which required a lot of effort to make but is noticeable only from a very specific angle, which is not worth taking picture :).

Wow, that's quite a compliment! Thanks a lot, this is greatly appreciated

Thanks for the swift comment. I feel quite proud to receive such positive feedback from one of the best ship builder I know. I have been re-reading Tintin lately, this is perhaps where my inspiration came from :)

Hi Everyone, I am pleased to share with you my latest MOC. When I had saw that a new pirate line was coming, I really wanted to try my hands at building a fort. I figured that it would be fun to do cliffs in another color than grey. I got inspired by the coast in Algarve to make the cliff in dark orange. I also decided to be very creative in naming my fort, and decided for naming it Fort Portugal. As I wanted to enjoy the build as much as possible, the fort is built on both sides. I have also added some play features. This fort took approximately 4 months to build. It is build on two XL baseplate and this is by far my largest build. Unfortunately, unless I move to a new house, I would not be able to build anything bigger. I hope you will like it. Better quality pictures are on my Flickr. Under the kitchen is a barrel, with a secret passage. The passage leads to a secret entrance in the cliffs but also to cave where the sirens are protecting an impressive treasure. The fort is also home to a prison where the most ferocious pirates are held. The pirate captains have the honor of a private cell. The gate of the cell can be opened. Here is an overview of the back. I have shown the play feature included. For the purpose of these pictures, I did not show this MOC in the dark (I could not get good quality picures). However, there are lights in each of the prison cells, in the towers, in the command area, in the kitchen and in the cave. Final picture of the MOC. I hope you enjoyed!

This build is at another level. It is fantastic. I assume the french flag is custom made, if so, was there no possibility to fold it?

The ship is stunning. I really enjoy the color scheme you used.

Incredible! I am under the impression that this is done for the DoP challenge on BrickPirate where you have to use that catapult element. It is stunning as I have never been able to use it!!! I am amazed how you have used and it is an integral part of the structure you have build.

Everything about this ship is amazing. I particularly like its proportion. The use of an old pillow for the sails is a great idea

My collection is much more sober but piece oriented.

Hi Breakdown, It is possible to add notes about a seller. When you go to a store, you can see on the top right "add to My Favorite Stores". You click, there and then can add a comment and even least favorite the store. The store will not see the comment or the note. I find it more practical than leavning negative feedbacks. Seller may indeed use retaliatory feedbacks.