Mike S

WOW! I just found this now and its awesome... The gate and wall may be my favorite part.

Desiring a greater knowledge at my fingertips of the Kaliphlin Guild, I have taken it upon myself to create A Backpackers Guide to the Greater Siccus Badlands, by Mikel Kalores To begin with I have begun collecting information on the races and species that live in the Siccus Badlands. I have begun with the following list: Beasts (this post) and Intelligent Species (here) of the Siccus Badlands. Later I plan on making a list of locations, but that won't be for a while. EDIT: Thanks CptMugwash for the links. I will be updating this list with pictures and more detailed descriptions so I would appreciate all suggestions and info. More edits to come... Beasts of the Siccus Badlands Camel - The most common transportation of the Siccus Badlands. I have spotted two different breeds, a light haired and a darker haired one. Other than the color,the breeds look alike. Chicken - Crocodile - A common reptile residing along the waterways of the Siccus Badlands. Crododile hides are a staple in armour making in the south. Cow - Grazing animal used for food. It is not thought that the cow is a native of the Siccus Badlands, however wild herds are sometimes seen wandering in the greener areas of the Siccus Badlands Dragon - Not much is known at present. Dune Worms - Discovered by Rasputin Jones Elemental - What more can be said? They come in all shapes and sizes but always remain the element that they belong to: water, fire, earth, and air. The most commonly known are respectively: nymphs (water), salamanders (fire), gnomes (earth), and sylphs (air). Goat - Golem - Griffin - ("Painting" by Captain Hardiel) Common Griffin ("Painting" by Yakob the Red) Horse - Oliphant - Great animals of immense strength, oliphants have been used in the Siccus Badlands as beasts of burden and war from the beginning of time. However due to the relatively small number of oliphants existing in Historica, usually only the very wealthy own them. ("Painting" by Semiramis the Sand Queen) Ostrich - Parrot - Pig - Scarab - Scorpion - Common predatory arachnid of various sizes and colors. Although poisonous,the most common breeds are of small threat if in small numbers. However there are rumors of scorpion pits where thousands of scorpions have gathered because of the moisture. These pits arefeared by travelers in the Siccus Badlands as it is lethal to fall into one. It has recetly been brought to my attention that certain residents of the Siccus Badlands have found a way to tame the large breed known as Giant Scorpions. It is in my plans to visit one of these such scorpion tamers to seek to learn how such a feat is possible.Giant Scorpion. ("Painting" by Kcaj Nosnikta) Serpent- Common reptile of various sizes and colors. Most serpents of the Siccus Badlands are highly poisonous and their poison glands fetch a high price on the black market. Spider- Common predatory arachnid of various sizes and colors. Although most spiders are highly poisonous, they are for the most part harmless if proper care is taken. However there are rumors of large breeds in the tunnels and caverns below the surface of the Siccus Badlands. Unicorn - Wolf -

Nice work! It reminds me of the Petra Ruins. Edit: Let me add that Petra is at the top of my list of favourite ruins....

Thanks everyone for the compliments on the microscale version of my castle. In the early 90's I encountered the problem that I am sure all of you have encountered as well... the great problem of not having enough bricks. So I came up with a system similar to LEGO's current microfig games using 1x1 tubular bricks as "minifigs". I abandoned the system and LEGO shortly thereafter going into my "darkage" as I was not satisfied with LEGO's limited brick variety. (either I was far ahead of LEGO or my imagination station had ceased to work) EDIT: As I have not contributed any finished MOC to the guild yet, I wanted to let you all know that I am currently revising my watchtower to be added as a free build and also am thinking of plans for an Avalonian embassy as well. (it will be the abbey in my Mikel's history) Watchtower is for sure and should be complete soon but not sure if I have enough bricks to make the embassy I want to. Is LDD acceptable for a free build? gabe- yes I can't wait for those 1x1 round tiles. LEGO should have introduced those a long time ago. In fact it is LEGO's mold expansion that brought me back into LEGO. Also a note on your embassy... when I saw the first version of your embassy, I thought the first floor was brilliant but as you said something was not quite right with the second floor (still can't pinpoint if it was the colors or the shape that was wrong). Anyway your remodeling did the trick and I dare say that I don't think you could do anything more to it to make it more perfect. Si-mocs- I had a question about these challenges that I am sure was asked before. Is LDD acceptable submissions? I don't plan on using it in the myth challenge but in the future I might need to use LDD instead for time reasons (and maybe financial). I have a habit of coming up with more ideas than my current brick horde can build, so I think of each LDD design I do as "blueprints" for models I will build in the future after current projects are complete. As it is that when I build something that I am completely satisfied with, I am quite hesitant at tearing it apart to build something else... hence I expect my brick collection to fluctuate quite a bit between purchases and completed projects and with the current Lion's Bluff/Borqa project I forcast a great decrease of free bricks in my collection. Also is the myth chalenge limited to one entry per person? (I'll sneak this in- I uploaded a few of my Si-fi projects to my Flickr account)

Nicely done! It would go well with the Avalonian theme over in Historica subforum...

Here is a micro-scale version of Lion's Bluff in Barqa:

NiceMarmot- Indeed I have come to agree with you that Barqa fits well as the location for my castle. SkaForHire- Thanks for the welcome. Now that I'm more familiar with Kaliphlin, as I see you seem to have settled Eastgate quite nicely, I have decided to settle Barqa. However My scouts have discovered a tower just north-east of Eastgate which I will turn over to your control after it has been repaired. robuko- I'm glad you enjoyed reading about Mikel's history. Thanks for the scenery info... it has saved me time on my research of Barqa. Gabe- Thanks for your kind comments. Si-mocs- I most definitely will not forget the colors as this building is being built in Kaliphlin instead of being "discovered" in Kaliphlin. It is most probable that you will get to meet Leon soon as the Knights of Aslan wish to establish a base in Petraea if it is agreeable with Lord Dextrus Flagg. Thanks also for the tip about link the posts. I will try to do that now.

Is there any plan to have this thread pinned? http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=63865 Thanks DaMaximus for compiling that info.

Reminds me a bit of a MOC I saw of a Star Trek monastary... forgot the name... Awesome job and excellent presentation!

I like it! That is one circus I would be proud to display on my shelves.

And so I continue with A Brief History of Mikel Kalores: Part 2 Let me know if I should be creating a new thread for this... or if I am getting a bit carried away with the backstory I will cease and desist. Anyway, I finished another level on my castle and am once again at a standstill as I wait for more parts to arrive. I don't know why but it seems I am always needing pieces I hadn't planned on using... For those of you that missed the first part, here is a link: http://www.eurobrick...dpost&p=1210308 Now back to the story: The following day, Bishop Jamon gathered all the inhabitants of the abbey together and made the announcement that I was going to establish a settlement in the south country of Kaliphlin. Any person who had combat experience was expected to join the endeavor but could return once the settlement had been established if they so wished. Everyone else was given the choice of pledging their loyalty to me and making a new life for themselves in the new land or staying on at the abbey. Immediately there was a slew of questions. What was Kaliphlin like? Was it not just a vast sea of sand? How long would it take to travel? Bishop Jamon called for silence. “It is true that a large part of Kaliphlin is a sea of sand,” he began to explain. “But it is much more than that. There are several rivers that run through Kaliphlin and along those rivers is fertile land. Just south of the borders of Avalonia, lie the Wither Woods where grow the magnificent live oaks used for shipbuilding. In the capital city, Petraea, Black Oil is produced, which is an extremely valuable resource. It will be Mikel Kalores who decides where to build the settlement after he has arrived in Kaliphlin and gained more knowledge of the place. As for the time it will take to travel, that also will be decided by Mikel but from what I have heard, it is ten days journey along the main road to Eastgate which lies in the Witherwoods.” The rumble of voices was renewed as the abbey's inhabitants went back to discussing the idea amongst themselves. After a few moments a booming voice brought silence to the abbey again. “Why does not Leon lead us himself?” I had expected such a question but hearing it did nothing to fortify my confidence in myself. Leon was held in utmost regard by all the inhabitants of the abbey, and while I was in no way disrespected, I was still young and regarded more as an equal rather than a leader. “It was my plan that Leon lead the settling expedition,” the bishop answered. “But he believes that Mikel should be the leader of this expedition.” Leon then stepped forward. “I have trained Mikel these last two years and of all of you, he is the most fit to be the leader of this expedition. As all the people with combat experience will be going on the expedition, it is advantageous that I stay here and continue to train new recruits to become Knights of Aslan.” To my surprise, the abbey's inhabitants seemed satisfied with the answer. There was a general nodding of the head and the inhabitants went back to discussing the idea once again. Soon many were volunteering to pledge their loyalty to me and join the expedition. By the end of the day, my expedition consisted of nearly three quarters of the abbey's inhabitants. The following weeks were spent in preparation for the expedition. Supplies were packed, provisions were crated, and our course was plotted. We were concerned that such a large group traveling on the main road would alarm the authorities along the way, but we had no choice but to use the main road if we wished to arrive in Kaliphlin with provisions to spare. In the end, our fears were needless. As we passed through the territory of the first Noble Lord along the way, a company of knights did ride out to question us. But when I explained our purpose, they wished us luck on our expedition and rode back to their castle. The rest of the journey through Avalonia was uneventful. The towns we stayed in each night were friendly and we were even able to do a little trading for as the abbey was situated on the border of the Mystic Isles, we would on occasion find rare resources found only within the Mystic Isles during our hunts. On the seventh day of our journey, we crossed the Red River into Kaliphlin. We spent that night at the small Kaliphlin settlement on the other side of the Red River. I inquired as to where we would be welcomed to settle in Kaliphlin and was informed that we would be welcomed anywhere. I enjoyed the evening listening to the tales of the locals regarding the lore of Kaliphlin. Before it got too late, I retired to bed for on the morrow we would continue on to Eastgate. To be continued...

Super cool! and I envy your photo skills....

Greetings Guild of Kaliphlin, Having already introduced myself, I feel it is time for me to tell you a bit about myself. I did not always reside in the Kaliphlin lands that I now call home but was born in the lands of Avalonia to the north-west. My father before me was a noble lord in those lands but through the greedy treachery of neighboring lords, my father fell by the shaft of an assassin's arrow. My family was forced to flee our home and our land and I as the eldest son was prematurely given the position of Lord Protector of the House of Kalores. After many months of hiding during the day and traveling at night, cold and hungry (for our enemies still pursued us), we finally found refuge in a quaint old abbey in the outskirts of the Mystic Isles. In this old abbey a ragtag group had gathered under the leadership of a man who called himself Bishop Jamon. The good bishop called his group, the Knights of Aslan and welcomed all those who were oppressed and homeless into his abbey. We dwelt there at the abbey for a full two years and I continued my combat training under the instruction of another refugee whose name was Leon. He had been with the bishop before we had first arrived and no matter how I pressed him, he never shared the circumstances of how he had come to reside at the abbey nor his family name. It was clear however that he was a man of great military training and his skill with the sword to this day exceeds any other man that I have had the chance to observe. Leon seemed to take a special interest in me, telling me that I was a natural born leader. On one such day as I arrived at the clearing where we practiced our combat skills, I found that Leon had assembled a group of men from the abbey into two groups all armed with blunt staves. Upon my arrival, Leon's face lit up. “There you are,” he said. “Today, I am going to teach you basic military tactics.” He assigned one of the men as the leader of one of the groups and sent them off into the woods. He then turned to me and said, “The first rule of tactics is to always know the location of your enemy.” And so began the first of my many lessons on military tactics. As word of the abbey and the hospitable bishop spread, refugees began to arrive at the abbey's gates in increasing numbers. One evening as I arrived back home at the abbey after a successful hunt, the bishop summoned me to his quarters. Leon was already there. “Leon puts great faith in you, lad,” the bishop said to me after he closed the door to his quarters. “It is clear that we must do something about our living quarters. Should we add on to the abbey, it is inevitable that we should soon come into conflict with nearby fiefdoms as our numbers swell. I have heard rumors that far to the south lies an untamed land, a land free for the taking- the land of Kaliphlin. I have asked you here at the request of Leon for the task I now ask of you I had asked of him but he has assured me that you instead are the man for the task. This now is the task I ask of you, that you should lead a group of our faithful knights and settle a colony in the southern lands. If you should choose to go, all who volunteer to go with you will pledge their loyalty to you and you will rebuild the House of Kalores in the land of Kaliphlin. All that I ask in return is that when you are established, you return the same favor to those who are homeless and oppressed that I have shown to you.” I was stunned by this speech as I had grown content with my life at the abbey. “What about Leon?” I asked. “Will he come with me?” “I will remain here for the time being,” Leon replied. “I have taught you all that you need to know to rebuild your house in Kaliphlin.” “Can I give it some thought,” I asked the bishop. “You have until tomorrow evening to decide,” the bishop replied. The following evening I decided to accept the task. To be continued.....

I like it! I bet I could learn some things from you about LEGO landscaping. I have a tendency to turn mine into either a simplistic well manicured lawn or a dense jungle.

I see I am not the only one reading Derfel's guide on how to build a medieval village. When I first looked at it, I thought it WAS one of Derfel's works... Great work!

All I can say is simply awesome! If that is your embassy, I really can't wait to see your HQ in Kaliphlin....

Well done! and nice little touch with the ice and the icicles...

Awesome shape and use of unusual parts like the new Death Star piece for the dome and the microfigs for statues.....

I have to say that even with all the colors, you pulled it off realistically. Marsh and wooden walkway are awesome as well.

Same here... I think that is the best stocked kitchen I have ever seen in LEGO... I also like how when you first look at the MOC it looks a whole lot larger than it actually is because of the roof design. And it is a massive MOC as it is....

Ok to start, I'm going to throw out ideas and wait for feedback before I continue. First off there needs to be a general idea of what the terain looks like. I'm thinking it should be something like this: slightly similar to the terrain of False Bay, Cape Town area: http://wikitravel.org/en/Diving_the_Cape_Peninsula_and_False_Bay

Like Ecclesiastes said, excellent exterior, but the detailed interior (especially that fireplace) finishes it off nicely.

Yes, gotta get at least a partial consent from the wife first... I made a deal with my wife... she gets to decorate our house and I get to build with LEGO. Meanwhile I subtly am trying to convert her to the LEGO fanclub with statements like, "Honey, my castle is going to need decorating... Wanna help?" and "Why don't you let me decorate that with LEGO?"

Thanks! To be honest I really don't have too many projects completed or photographed. I just came out of my "dark ages" about a year ago when my son was born and I was in the toy section with my wife. The Lego Kingdoms sets got my attention and I remembered the castle project I had started as a kid but due to being a not so wealthy kid, had never finished. I've been following LEGO blogs ever since getting inspiration from all the awesome MOCs out there. I really need to buy myself a new camera as well so if any of you have a good suggestion that takes good LEGO photos and is not too expensive, I would appreciate it. My name on Flickr is M. Kalores and here is the link http://www.flickr.com/photos/37491720@N04/

Thanks! Barqa might indeed be the location as it is a coastal city. My plan for this castle is for it to be sitting on top of cliffs overlooking the bay. Also I plan on adding a catheral to the side jutting out from the cliffs inland, one side facing the bay and then a shipyard and then, and then, well I have lots of ideas but not a lot of time.... So has any city concept on Barqa been done yet? If not, I would like to begin working on a basic concept, terain, general layout, setting, history, etc... to put my castle in and then work on the backstory for my sigfig.