Aurore

What an impeccable presentation! And the minifig themselves are spot-on too. My favourite is the goo mummy - very original, excellent idea and excellent realisation! You have a great number of impressive side-build/accessories. I especially admire the telescope, very nice choice of individual parts, the whole looks absolutely gorgeous with those distinct pearl gold colours!

They look so great! Very neat combos, with an excellent choice of parts for each character! The Kaliphlini noble cavalryman looks especially classy, and his shield works wonderfully with his armor. And I absolutely love the cyclops, this is just the perfect helmet!

Latest info on the CMF Series 22 on Promobricks shows a few potentially interesting minifigs and new moulds for medieval-fantasy enthusiasts: - A female warrior with a moon theme (sword and shield), - A male warrior with a snow theme (sword, shield and husky), - A forest spirit with an acorn hat and a mushroom, - A bard with a lute (new mould), - A girl with a foal (new mould) (OK, it's essentially the foal that's interesting). And there is also a new tucan mould. I'll definitely order a whole box of this serie!

My entry to the Ancient Wonders category! CDC2 Ancient Wonders: the Moonbird Mausoleum [Chronicles of Embervale Episode 2] - Guilds of Historica - Eurobricks Forums And a little question: I followed the specified pattern for the topic titles for both my CMF entry and this one, but added precisions between brackets at the end (namely, "CDC2 CMF : Aurore [Scholars & Spellcasters - and some Scammers too]" and "CDC2 Ancient Wonders: the Moonbird Mausoleum [Chronicles of Embervale Episode 2]"). Is that OK?

I thought I'd never been able to finish that build in time for the challenge...It's my biggest MOC so far, and hands down my most complex one. I don't even know how many trials and errors it took before those wings actually looked like wings! Anyways...here is my entry to the GOH Anniversary 2nd count down challenge, in the "Ancient Wonders" category. --------------------------- The build: A druidic mausoleum, deep in the Enchanted Forest of Avalonia... --------------------------- The story: Chronicles of Embervale Episode 2 - the Moonbird Mausoleum Read the previous episode Featuring… Alrune The Elf Maiden, Lady of Embervale, mage Dresghar The Chronicler, her uncle, erudite Evrart A soldier Ancient heroes, long forgotten "Uncle, would you please pay attention?" Alrune cried out, desperately trying to drag him away from the lute he was tuning. "I’m reading you a message from mom!" "What does my august sibling want?" he asked, out of pure courtesy. "She wants a heart." How great, this time he did react: he was raising an eyebrow. "A heart? Well, I knew she didn’t have one, but I thought she was unaware of it," he sneered. "And not just any heart. She wants the heart of some girl named Lloergan. It seems to be important for her - she even says please. Twice! As if I had nothing better to do than…" "Lloergan, you said?” Dresghar interrupted. "That’s interesting. What else does she say?" "Nothing. She has just included an antique map, with a red..." He snatched the map from her before she could finish her sentence. She rolled her eyes – with him, there was no such thing as a middle ground. Seconds ago he did not give a damn, and all of a sudden he was like a kid on Midwinter morning. "Druidic. From the First Era, I’d say. Most probably authentic," he mumbled, inspecting the map. "So what?" "So it’s likely to show the actual location of Lloergan’s mausoleum, sweetheart." "Holy pretzel, Uncle! Am I supposed to understand what you’re babbling about? Who’s that girl?" He cast her a bemused look. "What, you’ve never heard about her?" She let out a sigh as a few notes suffused, and he began to sing an hour-long epic drama – the story of Lloergan. It was a rather classic legend, featuring an impossible romance, feuding families, and many curses. But in the end, it all boiled town to a shapeshifter, a druid of ancient times, who gave her life protecting her people from an – of course – evil sorcerer. After her tragic fall, struck by a wicked spell, nothing intact remained of her but her heart. The druids of her circle embalmed it and placed it inside a mausoleum built in her honour, somewhere deep in the ancient forest, in a place long forgotten. "And that’s the heart your mother is coveting," Dresghar concluded. "Given the remote location of the mausoleum, there is a chance it has been preserved from tomb raiders and other inquisitive adventurers. Especially when youngsters like you have so little knowledge of ancient lore!" "Whatever. I’ll send Evrart. He’ll retrieve that heart and mom will leave me alone." "You’ll go with him, sweetheart, this mission may require finesse! Besides, it will do you a world of good to go gallivanting around the forest. You spend way too much time inside with your books and your cats." --- The Ancient Forest was tinged with gold and speckled with rust, yet still full of life and sounds: the joyous trills of lively birds, the gentle babble of puckish pixies, the rustling of leaves in the fresh breeze. Before long, morning mists would enshroud the lakes. Valleys would echo with the roar of mighty stags. And nature would slowly fall asleep, in a flamboyance of light and colours. Valiant heart and noble spirit, the Elf Maiden had set forth for the mausoleum of the legendary Lloergan with a single guard. They had ridden for days, following broad paved roads, then proceeding on narrow paths winding through the forest, and finally making their way through the undergrowth. And soon, in a beautiful glade bathed in sunshine, they reached their destination. [Excerpt from Dresghar’s later telling of the journey in the Chronicles] --- The druids had built Lloergan’s mausoleum in the shape of her favourite animal form, a moonbird. Its wings spread around a terrace, finely sculpted, the large figure was still pristine centuries later. At its heart, framed by opalescent stones, were a massive silvery urn and three delicate statuettes: Lloergan herself, and her two closest companions. "I was expecting something more impressive," Alrune mumbled – in blatant bad faith, Evrart judged, given that she was staring at the mausoleum with her eyes wide open. "And I was expecting a ruin, my lady," he retorted. "Could the heart still be in the urn? This seems way too easy." "We’ll know it soon. Let’s go and check!" The heart, skilfully embalmed, was still in the urn. And there was not a single trap protecting the mausoleum. No warden. No protection spell Alrune could detect. The situation was quickly getting on Evrart’s nerves. His conscience already bothered him about desecrating the grave of a hero and, somehow, seeing said grave be so cooperative with plunderers made their mission feel even wronger to him. "That’s ridiculous!" he grumbled at the end of the day. "How can a centuries old, so-called forgotten place be so…immaculate? Apart from a few leaves on the ground, it’s impeccable. No wild grass, no creeper, not even a proper crack in the stone! And the heart is still there, just like the stones and the statuettes!" Alrune shrugged. "We’re in the ancient forest. Maybe some hermit comes from time to time to clean up? Anyways, no-one remembers that place and no-one ever passes by. There’s no-one to damage the mausoleum and loot its riches." "Well, that is, except from us. Aren’t we precisely here to loot the most precious relic from this place?" A frown crossed the elf’s face, and she did not answer. As she spent the rest of the day sulking, giving her guard one-word orders and replies, he began to suspect his remark had hit a nerve. --- In the middle of the night, while he was sleeping fitfully, he was suddenly startled awake by a harrowing cry shortly followed by a low rumbling. Still drowsy, he drew his sword and rushed towards a faint halo gleaming in the direction of the mausoleum. As a second thundering noise resounded, he spotted Alrune firing some kind of shockwave at two spectral beings hovering and wailing around her. "What happened?" he shouted, rushing at her side before realising his bland steel weapon would have no effect on their opponents. "I don’t know! I was in the mausoleum, and they attacked me!" One of the ghosts brushed past him, cold and distressing, and he felt his strength failing him. The constant howling of the creatures kept ringing in his ears, clouding his judgement, slowing his moves. He stumbled, struggling to keep his balance. He suddenly sensed a sharp discharge of energy, and his sword became colder in his hand. It occurred to him that the blade was now enshrouded in a shadowy, ethereal mist: the elf had cast something on it. He heard her yelling something indistinct, seconds before the rumbling of one of her magic attacks rolled again. One of the ghosts vanished in a last shriek. Evrart pulled himself together and attacked the other one. He had been a man-at-arms since he was strong enough to wield a weapon, and his combat reflexes came back quickly. Already weakened by Alrune’s spells and vulnerable to the now magic sword, the second spectre soon disappeared like the first one. "Why the heck were you alone in the mausoleum in the middle of the night?" Evrart asked more harshly than he actually intended, while glancing around to ensure that no threat remained. "I was putting the heart back in the urn. I can’t…do that anymore. Obey orders I don’t understand. Do fishy things on the whim on my mother. I’m fed up with her caprices and dubious plans!" Evrart remained silent for a moment. The lady’s words sounded somewhat bratty and unclear to him, and he had no idea what kind of things she had done before he got to know her. Anyways. Whatever her reasons, her decision of putting the heart back seemed fair to him. "If you were setting things right, then why did the ghosts attack you?" he finally asked. "They were Lloergan’s two companions, weren’t they?" "I think so. But they were probably not protecting the mausoleum anymore. Most spirits fade after un-death, losing conscience and memory. They might not remember who they were, nor where they were. Then nothing heroic remained in them, only the cold and despair at being trapped in between worlds." --- When they left the place at dawn, Evrart turned back one last time before entering the woods behind the elf. And there, in the morning mist floating over the mausoleum, he distinguished the faint figure of a beautiful lady all clad in white, watching them leave with a smile on her pale face.

I went to my LEGO store today (first time since pre-COVID times!) and came home with those three guys. While I'm pretty sure I'd already seen photos of the parts from the sombrero skeleton and snowboard skeleton, I did not knew of the torso of the science skeleton. A new female lab coat - I'm over the moon! The teal brick costume was available too, as well as the guitar, and a teal shirt torso I had not seen before either. They also had the Halloween minifigs from last year. It was the last pig though...

Oh my, some absolutely gorgeous combos here! Pandemonium's torso and legs, for example, really do look like they were meant to go together. Same for Rebecca's! I really appreciate that you made characters that don't actually fit in a Guild, but show that Historica is even more complex that it seems at first glance. Your introduction, your own story, your character's story and all those hindsight thoughts are incredibly interesting too. My absolute favourite is Lunarius - such a perfect minifig, such a nice use of those trans-light blue axes, and such an intriguing character! I also have a fondness for Sabrina, but I'll strongly deny it. PS: "But sir, me and the lads, we're wondering...is that a real shrunken head on your belt??"

Oh wow, so many details on all of them! I especially enjoy the Queen (that's a gorgeous ceremonial armour) and the aluring not-a-vampire Countess (excellent choice of parts, perfect colours!) Backstory-wise, my favourites are Gerti (of course)...and Claudette. I love Claudette.

I will! But first I must finish my Ancient Wonder build...

I second that so much... And if the fig with the pigeons could be a little old lady with an interesting headpiece - babushka-style - it would be the cherry on the cake. But I'm afraid I'm daydreaming here.

@Exetrius Thank you so much! Thrilled that you noticed the peddler, I had so much fun building him! I think I see what you mean with the cluttered paving - and, with hindsight, I agree. I'll definitely take that into account when I'll build further market stalls!

@kahir88 Thank you very much! I had to search for your Efreet Lord (this one from 2018, right? Looks insanely great!), and I do agree A'angis would get along quite well with him. @Exetrius Thank you so much! So glad you enjoy them! And yes, indeed, the backdrop for the group shot is my building table - which is my former dining table. I've had it for years but only very recently noticed it makes a clean, no-brainer background for MOCs...Oh well, guess we learn something new every day.

At last! This morning, I woke up to the sweet, sweet sight of a Brickhawk alert : sheep are available on B&P in France! Their ID is 6342625, if anyone's looking for them.

Oooh, I love that build...The idea is briliant, and the realisation is perfect. The giant books are wonderful, and I love how packed with details the shelves on the back are. The story is great too - and so glad to read more about the thoughts you put behind! To reiterate : I LOVE it.

@Grover Thank you so much! I'd love to see Raina with the queen...and Bob...

Short comment : Long comment : They're so great! All lively, all visually perfect, and all very funny to read about. I'm especially a big fan of cheesy centaur princess Ayriel, gruff caber tosser Logh (the well named), and badass centaur Hai Sairuk. Excellent choice of legs for Logh's kilt, by the way. I guess that's from HP CMF Ginny? We Mitgardians enjoy classy tartan. Thank you for having solved a critically important existential question : do female dwarves from Mitgardia sport beards? And also I'm curious : which torso did you use for Dworthi? Some excellent puns too.

@AmperZand *Sigh. I completely agree with you. When I saw the title of the set, I hoped for something related to Legoland Mythica (but, of course, with less detailed builds). Such as, at least, the unicorn...

@Umbra-Manis Thank you so much! I really had a lot of fun thinking up their names and quotes...

Hmmm...I believe it has been revealed. Here is the google trad of promobrick's paragraph about the set : The forest mythical creatures are not as fabulous as the name may convey. It is simply a purple owl and a reddish-brown hedgehog. As an accessory there is a built book. Alternatively, a deer with a rabbit (Bambi sends greetings) or a squirrel with nut can be built from the stones. The 175 stones cost 14.99 euros and also appear in March. March, according to the promobricks article (google trad just above).

Oh my, it looks amazing! Perfect architectural match to the Blacksmith's house! The roof, especially, is gorgeous. Perfect use of those new oval tiles - the tan and medium nougat version screams 'Skyrim'! I also enjoy the way you made the straw. With a few olive or sand green grille tiles, the horses could have had hay - which is much more nutritive! But that's just me being pedantic. ^^

What a lovely scene! Very lively, with a nice variety of minifigs : the peasants, and also the witch and the rider hidden by the yellow tree! And it there a wizard on the bridge? The vegetation is very interesting, nice choice of colour. I particularly enjoy the roof of the round tower, it looks so neat! The structure of the bridge looks interesting and original, would it be possible for you to share a photo that shows more of it?

That's an elegant castle, too bad if it's plundered! I love the architecture you chose for the castle and all the decorative details. The scene in itself is great too, with perfect minifig posing. I really like how the tree is built at the end of the bridge, but it may have been a poor tactical choice to let it grow!

The link given above (that leads to the Malaysian version of site) shows an error 404 for me even if I could see the set a few hours ago. I can't find the set on the US version nor the French one (I've not tried other regions).

It's awesome!! The cottage looks great, the kid's pyjama is incredibly cute - and do I spot white opal round bricks? They could have recoloured the little bird as a robin, but oh well, it's great enough as it is!

Oh my, now I'm thinking up the discussion between loner elf Alrune and snobbish elf Dresghar when they would receive such an invitation...to a ball! From a human! But noblesse oblige, someone has to go! Indeed, the expression is perfect too - Hmm...that scent...a female squeaker obviously, not older than 8 months. Alone and scared, looking for her mother and siblings. Interesting.