Bregir

Nice little plantation, Faladrin. Showing the process from clearing the forest to planting the trees is a really nice touch, and I like the feel of developing the frontier in this build! The little raft is nice too, and I am really wondering if the native warning is a matter of myth, or if the rainforest actually will fight back... One question, though - who built the small wall and for what purpose? Or is that part of the plantation? I approve!

There is: Transaction Form - Use this when you are making payments to another player of faction. This includes selling EGS properties or ships. Will be looking forward too seeing it!

Only an Eslandolian would look think it for the profit! It is, of course, for the sport of it!

It should be my honour! Anyone betting, I wonder?

Oi, is that a challenge to a duel? Will it swords or pistols, sirs?

As I wrote in the faction thread, I am totally in love with that study! It has so many great details and looks so wonderfully busy! The skeleton, the potions and the plants are just some great details. The posing and the landscaping in the second one is great too! And, Isaac Montoya read your paper on the "Chemical Composition of the Secretions of the Common Oleander Skunk" with great interest, and should be most delighted to have the opportunity to discuss the particularities in person one day! For Science, Corrington, and the Queen!

Even if someone ended up licensing a first rate, it would probably require so much wealth that the whole faction would have to chip in, taking away the possibility of doing much else. And what is one large ship able to do, if the enemy has 20 small? It can't be anywhere at once! But I will be looking forward to seeing whatever you feel we will all appreciate! Plus - there is nothing wrong with a healthy arms race!

You sir, is crazy! That's not just first rate size - that is Spanish first rate size! @Maxim: Yes, I see that now... Does change things quite a bit...

@Captain Dee: I am really into it, I admit. My father has sailed on a full rigged ship (and in the merchant fleet) and its always been an interest of mine - Some of my favourite novels are based on the age of sail. 62 guns? That is quite a few - I will be very much looking forward to seeing how it will turn out under the restrictions you have set for yourself! (However, wouldn't 62 guns "only" make it a third or fourth rate? Depending on the period, I suppose) @Silent Wolf: I would definitely do both! Or even more - as you develop your business, there might be more and more options. A ranch, a stable, an auction house, training grounds, etc. There are multiple options to expand the business (and the income from it, if you are part of the EGS ) @Ayrlego: Welcome - your intro is great, both builds and story, and it is great to see another man of science join our ranks! We may one day join into the same scientific fraternity - Dirk and Montoya definitely share a set of interests. Your study is just brilliant with all those great details, and the landscaping in the second one is nice too! I agree with Garm that those builds deserve their own topics, but there is no obligation! However, you can get 10 extra dubloons if you register them as a freebuild!

And yes, you could post your intro as a freebuild - with the characters, back story, island, etc. This should be more than sufficient. A lot of people have done that. And then introduce your sig fig in shorter form in the faction thread. Welcome! :) I really like your characters, and having the ceremony officiated by their accountant is true Eslandolan style!! ;) The tower is looking good too, and I will be looking forward to seeing that figurehead mounted on a ship! Edited: I must have been drunk - made no sense whatsoever... Should be better now!

Thankee, Ska. I'd suggest everyone to read O'Brian's series of books on Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin - they are great books in their own right, plus they give a wonderful insight into life at sea in the Napoleonic era. :) @silentwolf: Challenge builds do not count towards freebuilds. And i believe we will coordinate our MRCA later this month, most likely through a private conversation, to which we will all be invited. @CaptainDee: That sounds... Awesome! Cant wait to see it!

Nice double outrigger canoe and really cool to see an Islander character! I like the story too, and will be looking forward to following his adventures! Welcome to BoBS!

*Cough cough* Scientific method *cough* Accountability *cough* Research *Cough* OWNED! *Cough* Sorry, I must be allergic to people being WRONG!

Actually, pictures of my last challenge entry was taken in a rather dark room, but with a tripod and 5 seconds (or something like that) exposure lights up almost everything! (Plus, you do not generally get the same flare as from direct lightning or flash!)

Lovely landscaping and a funny twist to the story to have a different perspective than that of the "invaders"! However much I love that swampy feel, I have to wonder how that native walks on the water, not in it! Is he the Jebus? I understand that it is probably meant to indicate the edges of the pond, but I would definitely have lowered him into it somehow. Perhaps taking away his legs, or removing the tiles under him, so his feet would appear submerged. The last option does limit posing, though.

I agree with the others - a very nice selection of characters, and a nice backstory. I too like the different outfits and will be very much looking forward to following his adventures in the new world! I only hope he will return to his fiancee one day, or bring her with him to the new world!

Actually, a vessel can only truly be called a ship if it is full rigged. (Three masts with square sails on all (Although the mizzen typically carries some fore-and-aft sails too). Otherwise, it is a brig, barque, or something else. In short, most of the other vessels here are NOT ships, but this particular one could look like it will be! At least that is how it was in the age of sail in the British terminology!

Hey guys, what do you call an educated Eslandolan gentleman? Noone knows, as there has never been a use for such a word! On a side note: That ship is looking great, Maxim - I like those curves and the stern gallery! But didn't you say something about the cost of guns somewhere, Maxim? It looks like you are the one who has been driving up their price!

Thanks! Aaand... NERD ALERT! (Both of us, that is... ) Wikipedia is my friend, and sailing ships an interest, so it is fun to research!

Gracias, Capt'n!

I saw a lot of sailing pics on your flickr - do you sail or work with sails in RL? I have sailed abit of racing and have my own small sloop, but that one is slow and mainly for toursailing... It is really interesting to see the rigging so far, and I will be looking forward to seeing it finished - good luck in putting it back together! I like how the masts are correctly in several parts, and your shrouds are great too. (Although they still seem to be missing ratlines! - joke aside - the level of detail (and functionality!) is just amazing!) I think topping lifts is a correct word (it makes sence on wikipedia ) but I think the age of sail word you are looking for would be "halyard". I have put rods inside my masts, but I think there will always be weak parts - at least there is on mine. As to sails, I did mine in plain white paper, and I am tolerable happy with the outcome - the trick, I found, was to cut them out so they appear to be already stretched by the wind. If you can, I really think you should add sails, as it adds a lot to the overall look. See below my WIP shot: HMS Athena - A model by Christian West, on Flickr It used to be cutter rigged, but as my brother so nicely suggested, it was a bit large for a one-masted vessel... And it really does look better as a snow! (And yes, there is actually a small trysail mast behind the mainmast! ) Edit: Cannons: Thanks! As to a 3 stud base with wheels, how about snotting it like this?

What a lovely ship - I really like her colours! (COR-RING-TON, COR-RING-TON, OH-YEAH! ) Matching the red and white of the sails in the details on the sterncastle is a neat touch, and I like her armament - although it took me a while to spot those bowchasers! They are not exactly on the forecastle, but instead in the bow of the hull, I would say. The forecastle (and aftcastle) is the raised platform in the front (/back) typical for ships from the beginning of the age of sail such as carracks, caravels and galleons. Originally, this platform was a fighting platform used to fire muskets or bow and arrow, small swivel guns or regular cannons down into the enemy decks. (Like your aftcastle) The large gunports are an interesting solution to the problem of securing a reasonable arc of fire for the main guns! (Although it does leave the gun crews rather exposed to small arms fire) I really like your minifig selection too! A few comments on the rigging, mostly general in nature. I like what you have done with the sails available, but (and this is the general part) I would suggest everybody to think about the balance of the rigging. This particular vessel would have most of its sail-pressure very far forward (Due to the lack of a spanker sail), making it very stable going before the wind, but most likely very hard to steer on any other course. (As the force is mainly applied in the front, it will have a tendency to sail in a straight line, rather hard to turn.) On the other hand, if the sail-pressure is too far towards the back, it will be a very unstable vessel, prone to overturning. Consider that the rudder on a sailing ship is a very small area, that has to turn a very large vessel. In reality, in the age of sail, ships were steered as much by their sails as by their rudder. It is really a delicate balance! With just one square sail, and especially since you have a jib too, I would suggest moving the mast very close to the middle of the ship, to get a more balanced feel to it. Alternatively, you could add a large spanker sail, and you would basically have a sloop rig. (I am pretty sure many sloops in the age of sail wore square sails too.) I am aware that you might be limited in the sails available, so please take this as suggestions for future builds. I think it is a great idea to experiment with custom sails - it really does not have to be too advanced to look good. I am working on a snow, where I have simply cut out pieces of white paper, and it looks pretty good (if you ask me, that is... ) For a ship type, this looks mostly like a cog to me, with one mast, square sail and high aftcastle. However, the mast should be centered more, and I don't actually know if cogs ever had jibs. Maybe the later ones had? For classification though, I think you pretty much hit the mark with a class 2 WR, as it seems to be a nicely balanced vessel with reasonable armament, speed and cargo hold, without specific focus on any of them. And the size is perfect for a class 2, I think. I hope some of this is useful! I will definitely be following Micah's adventures! PS. I keep getting impressed by the amount of different hull pieces from Lego. Am I correct in the following: 2 sizes: Small ( 14 wide?) and large (16 wide) High and low stern/bow pieces, plus the one used here at the stern. And to top that, there are the viking bow and stern piece, for the wide hull pieces, right?

I promised pictures of my guns: Guns for the Athena by Christian West, on Flickr The one on the left is meant to be a long 12 pounder (for chasers), while the one on the right is an 18 pounder carronade (short range, but high damage output). I am quite happy with them. However, for the carronade, it should ideally be put on a slide or on wheels, but as it turns out, my gun ports are too low over the deck, so I have to keep the carronades low... Nice rigging, Bart - looks very elaborate - much more than what I have been working on! However, I had a very similar experience, where my bowsprit was dislocated by an unlucky hand movement, thus removing the support for the upper foremast, tipping that over, removing the support of the mainmast, etc... It was NOT fun putting back together... After which I realised I hadn't finished the deck detailing, meaning I had to work under the stays and spars in constant danger of knocking something else over... Luckily, it is a pretty sturdy construction as long as everything is still under tension... but knock down that one critical stay.... But I suppose it is all a learning process? I am pretty sure everybody thinks the ship index is a brilliant idea, and your initiative is really great! The other part of it, we will find a solution to. I actually find it fair to encourage economically this kind of initiative, albeit in a different form. I am sure we will find a solution to this, and one that is fair for all. As you say, Maxim - it is just a game. And the point behind my comments above was really to avoid animosity, not spark it!

Again, I would definitely make separate indexes. Hypothetically: I build and post a ship, clearly indicating that it is for sale. Someone bids for it, and we agree. I edit the post to say: Sold to Maxim. Maxim then registers it via the webform and transfers the money to me. While you might not feel compelled to update the ship index, will the admins see any problems in this? And what if I decide to moc a ship broker and manage postings of ships for sale - I will still be required to pay you a fee everytime? I would suggest you reduce the fee to 1 DB for sales managed by someone else, meaning you "only" need to update the index. I would feel that that was a fair fee, and it would open up for others brokering ship sales. Then it can be a competition on who makes the best sales pitches, handles the process best, or has the best connections to buyers. It will then be a choice rather than a requirement to use your services in brokering the trade. What I am really hinting at is the issues with establishing a monopoly: As people will not have the opportunity to take their business elsewhere, or copy your business themselves, they are prone to feel unjustly treated. Especially in a community based game like this, you run the risk of stepping on someones toes, by establishing yourself in a position of power or advantage.

Sounds good, Maxim - but be prepared for competition on the ship-broker side. When you charge a fee, others may see the opportunity to do so too! You might have created a position of monopoly, but out of sheer spite for mercantilism, I now feel a strong desire to try to break your monopoly! If you are to make other indexes not directly related to ships, I suggest separate topics for that. Otherwise, it gets very hard to find everything.