Bregir

A bit of number crunching: With a wealth tax, wealth will rise (or decrease) until monthly income is equal to monthly tax. (all else equal) Elos' currrent income is 1723 (and current wealth is 53.303 dbs), which translates to 172.300 dbs in wealth a equilibrium. Assuming Elos has two royals, his income will be reduced by 1000, which result in 723, which gives an equilibrium at 72.300 dbs. Assuming three Royals, and adjusted income at 223 dbs, equilibrium wealth is 22.300 dbs. And please note that no MRCA income is considered here. The game was never designed for any fortunes of that size. There is nothing to spend that much money on. Recruiting an army costs 4500 dbs, and the largest ship cost 1500 dbs. It should be clear that even if we have war, recruiting three armies would be entirely absurd for colonial warfare. And these sort of fortunes are a serious balance problem for the game. (Hence the increased costs) What I am wondering is why people are so upset about having to part with some of their hard earned cash, the above considered. If what people are searching for is a sort of scorecard to see who achieved the most, the PIPs are a very good representation of lifetime economic achievements in BoBS. On a different note: One wonders if the position of the richest in ESL will result in an early rise of a form of socialism amongst your ranks...

@Maxim I It had been a pleasant captivity and they had now learned the language to near fluency. This effort had certainly been worthwhile and they had now been allowed to exercise daily in the palace courtyard under limited guard. They had also learned something of the history of their hosts. Long ago, as the Halosian Empire fell, an organisation of craftmen and philosophers had embarked 10 ships into the unknown with their families to escape the expected chaos of the fallen empire. After months of voyage, miraculously the whole squadron made landfall on a bountiful island, that they would call home. They broke up their ships to ensure isolation and for basic building materials, and for the past 600 years, there they had lived, working effortlessly towards building the utopia their ancestors had envisioned. In recent years, they had decided it was time to break their isolation and seek contact to the outside world. A fleet had been built and the king sent out to establish connections. However, they had been away longer than expected and feared lost, and ships had been sent out to find them. One of these ships were the one to pick up the Arkady and its crew. One day, horns echoed over the bay, and the Eslandians could watch as a fleet entered the harbour and the city erupted in celebrations. But Emmanuel noticed several battle scars on the ships, and the crews seemed rather weary and glad to be on land. Shortly thereafter, the crew was released and given a small house to live in. But what to do with this newfound freedom. Join the parade The citizens are joining together to celebrate the return of their expedition. A large parade will be held, going throughout the city and the different guilds and regions of the island will each have their own entry. Perhaps this is the chance to give a good impression and represent MAESTRO, Eslandola, or Halos for these people? Joining the celebration will certainly gain goodwill. 1 build required showing your participation in the parade. Press for an audience With the King now returned, it is time to formalise relations. We must press for an audience and make an offer on behalf of... who? It may not be optimal to press the King so soon after his return, but we cannot wait any longer... 1 build required showing the audience and what the expedition offers. Homewards We are now free and must return home to bring home word of our discovery. 1 build required showing the Arkady being made ready for departure. Indicate which direction the expedition will take. Only one option can be taken this turn

From the backbenches, a Corlander delegate was struggling with his notes. The discussion was finally progressing and the Eslandians seemed to have abandoned the notion of taxing shipping, which would not have been popular in Belson. However, there seemed to be some confusion or latent disagreement as to whether the 1% were to apply to income or wealth. After scratching out his conclusions several times, he was now scratching his head in surrender, thinking how muddled statecraft was under republicanism. If only someone were to make an explicit comment about it...

Yes, I think that should be doable. And yes, you can fill the paperwork already.

It has been a pleasure to see this build develop from its humble beginnings. Many thanks to @Elostirion for taking his time to give detailed feedback. To approve the build, we would like to see the following implemented: Generally, with the quality you have now shown capable of, it would be a shame not to work a bit on presentation. :)

Considering your attention to feedback and the overall quality of this build (and the impressive improvement in other builds posted is helping too!) we have decided to approve this build as is. Great work! A personal note: on future builds, trying to work with alternative angles of the buildings may help get a more realistic look. Lego builds naturally tend to have buildings sitting square on the baseplate, but even a single rectangular building at an angle can do a lot to liven it up. The above build, while nice, does come across as very rectangular.

I have really enjoyed these reviews. As someone else said above, it is nice with a channel with a quiet and sensible voice talking about these sets we all love. Too many youtube channels are explosions, loud music, shouts and rants, etc. Well done, sir, you've got yourself a subscriber (watched all your reviews...) Now, GIEF ME MORE! *cracks whip* ;)

This one seems a bit unconventional. Gaff-sails on the fore is... well - it is a first for me. Seems like a strange mix between schooner (the gaffs), a snow (the snow masts) and a brig (the three part masts). Typically, to the best of my knowledge, a snow would only have the trysail (or snow-) mast abaft the main mast. A quick search for "snow ship" on google will give you a lot of hits, eg. this one. (apparently found basically intact on the sea floor! :O) Alternatively, I can recommend the models in the game "naval action" - they are expertly done with great attention to detail. (And you can find good pictures from there online) They have a snow too.

There have been a few "proper" snows on the brick seas, where you can see it. One example is my own Athena. Notice the small mast behind the main. Wikipedia is always a useful place to go, and their article on the snow is actually quite helpful, even if the pictures are rather small. I will also add that we of course encourage you to take in as much of the feedback as possible, but that you do not *need* to include it all on this moc to be approved. I have a few old books bough second hand, one with a lot of details of ships and rigging - I can see if I can find the original title. But what I typically do is simply find pictures online, or read up on wikipedia articles. Once you get the general idea of how rigging looks and works, I find you can work largely without source material for a realistic result. I still look at pictures, though, as it helps with proportions etc.

Both. If you win the manoeuvre roll (by enough), your "strength of enemy" will determine if you attack or flee. (So if the attacking enemy is below your strength of enemy, and you win the weather gauge, you will counter attack with your preferred combat method)

Sooo, if your 60 troops plus 2 companies of rebels try an open all-out attack, I think a diplomatic crisis will be the least of your problems... :P If the WTC troops are mercenaries (whoever pays for them) fighting under the flag of Gonda, I see no reason why Cor should be affected at all. Mercenaries were a very common thing back then, as you know, so as long as the story checks out, I see no issue. On the other hand, if Countess Mesabi raises the red, black, and white of Corrington over the palace of Gonda, I think you will find yourself about a head shorter or with a strained neck... :)

Only damaged. In fact, I do not think Corrington has yet to lose a single gunboat, (WTC excluded) neither taken as prize, nor sunk. On the other hand, they have taken several prizes and sunk several enemies! At the naval HQ in King's Harbour, the gunboat strategy has been deemed a general success, and everyone is padding each other on the back for their general brilliance. BTW, have you sealed the edges of the sails in some way? Glue, stitches, etc? Or are they simply cut along the edges? (I bought a sheet of canvas too, you see ;) )

Beautiful little build, mr. Skippy! It is a very beautiful little market, and a very lively scene. I agree with Ayrlego that the olive and greys go very well together, and I too am interested in those torsos. And where is all that pottery from/what parts are you using? I have only two comments: The porticoes behind the market looks rather empty. Some boxes, people, or something in there, perhaps? How do people get in and/or out? :P Right now, it seems to me the area is entirely fenced in? (Between the walls and the fencing) :D

@KotZ, @Captain Genaro, @Bodi, @Dukesc The clandestine investment in the dissidents appears to have produced results with two Terraversian settlements raising militias. In Sillitholina, the rebels took up arms and loudly declared their allegiance to Mardier in open affront to Terraversan authorities. The reaction was as swift as it was efficient, as L'Oluis' troops from Westface marched in and was able to re-establish control without violence, arresting the ringleaders and dispersing the 'militia'. Farther from the reach of Terraversa's establishment, in Nola Mar, the rebels took a wiser course, peacefully and quietly replacing the mayor and garrison commander with loyalists and instilling martial law under the guise of increasing smuggling. Makeshift roadblocks and checkpoints on all roads ensure that no one can leave to warn the authorities, while house searches and patrols have rounded up many supporters of an independent Terraversa, incarcerating them as smugglers. Day by day, more and more people arrive to rally to the cause, and as more and more opponents are disposed off, the loyalist militia grows in strength. It seems there are still many loyalists in Terraversa... Options: - Vive la révolution It would seem the dissidents have proven themselves but what next? How involved do we wish to be and do we care who knows of our involvement? Only one of these options can be chosen this turn: Covert By working in the shadows, perhaps through the agents of the order, we can support the growth of the movement, although the effect would be limited by the requirements of secrecy. The risk of being discovered is limited, but so will the effect be. One build required showing the cause being supported in secrecy Overt Perhaps we can risk a more... active involvement. It will certainly be easier to assist the cause if we can be more blunt... Although discovery would likely be a disaster. One build required showing the support given to the movement The below option may also be progressed this turn if it has its own build: - The Quiver of Artemis The Inscriptions on the statue revealed an epic of war and peace that stretched back to the Mardierian invasion. But most importantly, it revealed that the Quiver is hidden somewhere under the town of Nola Mar. It seems there are extensive catacombs under the city, and the Quiver is located somewhere there. One build required showing the catacombs. Max 32x32 (or equivalent). The potency and power of the "Quiver of Artemis" will be determined depending on the quality of the build.

Great looking build and interesting storyline, Ayrlego! I really like those palms, and the outhouse for the saplings too, and of course the coffee bushes! How did you get the different shades of the roof tiles? The halftimbered walls and the nicely detailed foundations make for a very nice house too. Oh, btw:

Welcome, Legonaut! And more so, welcome to Edward Brown! The colonies can always use competent soldiers, and I am sure Mr. Brown can find employment! I really like your intro story, and the build is very good too! I particularly like the vegetation - some very nice parts usage there! Seeing as this is a military building in Port Woodhouse and of very good quality, you could enter this into task 11 in the GoC building challenge :)

As others have said, the hull is a nice improvement over what we have seen before. Overall shaping, tumblehome, and a nice stern cabin and bow shape are all well done. There are a few bricks not pressed properly together, which seems to be a recurring issue for you, and something you should generally address. I agree with Captain Dee and Silentwolf that we want to see some sails (or alternatively custom rigging) on this one before giving final approval for this one. Dee gives a few different options for this. For future ships for the GoC I have a few things I would like to see you work with (not necessarily all for all mocs): Deck details I would like you to work with some different deck details. This could be hatches, ships bell, capstan, pumps, etc. Bodi, for instance, have some very nice examples if you look at his ship. If possible, tiling it may also help with nicer, cleaner look. Life aboard I want to see the ship come alive with minifigures. Not just standing around, but actually doing something, potentially using some of the details above. Masts I would like to see you work with getting a more realistic configuration of your masts and spars. Again, Bodi's ships, Legostone's, or my own, all show how the masts are divided, how the proportions are, and where you need fighting tops, spars, shrouds, etc. And use the shipwrights guild hall for some specific questions, if you can't make it out from looking at real life pictures or other mocs. I can see from your configuration that you (as many others, of course) do not really understand how rigging and sails work on a ship in this age, so I would suggest asking for some input and looking at what others do. Rigging The prefab shrouds limit you, as they have set proportions. If you make proper chain plates (where the shrouds are fastened to the hull) when planning/building the hull it is fairly easy to make simple string rigging for shrouds (without ratlines), and really enhances the look (and stability...) of a moc. That's all for me for now :)

King's Harbour must surely be the number one place for landscape architecture by now! Another great installment to the Majestic (indeed!) Gardens of Corrington! I feel like King's Harbour needs a Versaille Palace tho complement this! Extremely impressive, again, Captain Dee! (and will this new part be available for licensing by the faction or settlement?) Happy you showed us this part too! (And as it happens, both Cooke and Montoya has just passed through King's Harbour, so no continuity issues there!)

As I said elsewhere, I like this build. It isn't the most elegant ship, but it is a very nice representation of a different concept - and I really like seeing other ship types represented in BoBs, including the ones I didn't know about! :) I really have nothing much to add to what has already been said, other than not really being sold on the trashbin for a mortar. Personally, I prefer the heavier barrelled method I used on my Lavalette build or my artillery sloop. Other than that, great shaping - and very nice rigging. What is the material you have used for sails?

Interesting guns, LM! My favourite is the falconet, but the multibarrel contraption is very interesting too. With a limited amount of bricks available, I think you did a pretty good job of detailing the landscape, but (while I am not a landscape expert myself!) you may want to try to avoid symmetircal shapes or sharp lines separating colours. (The two lime green rounded plates look a little odd) If you have brown plates (1x1, 1x2, 1x3, etc - which I find to be some of the most versatile bricks ever, particularly in brown) you could perhaps have built up a little around the palisade, as if some dirt had been dug up to lower the timbers and piled up to support them. I also think the idea of a border or base is great, particularly when the base is so think. It sometimes looks a little odd. Storywise, you could perhaps have added a little more explanation about each gun - it may be because I am a former artillerist and technically interested, but I always like a little "technobabble" about ships, guns, etc. :) Overall, nice little build - I think we would like to see some of the feedback included on the next build, but for this one, definitely a from me.

Expertly done - you do not need it, but you have my - I knew it already when I saw the pictures on flickr. The exterior is very good all around (love the walkway) and your solution for the mangroves is innovative. However, since the GoC is meant to improve our building skills, I will add a few suggestion to the above for your next builds. Pictures If you take them from further away, you will get a less thwarted perspective. It may not be possible for you to zoom on your camera, but then you can crop your photos to only show the relevant parts (i.e. the build). The light seems fairly good, although you may want to try to reflect it off the ceiling or similar, as you have some shadows. You may also want to rotate some of your pictures, as some of them seems off canter. Interior While your exterior has a lot of details, you interior is mainly just "busy". As TJ said, roof rafters would be a nice idea, as would some texture or detailing on the walls/roof. Maybe some windows on the side walls with windowsills and/or curtains. As it is now, you can take out the interior furnishings, and the only thing left is bare walls and floor. If you have the bricks, some form of tiling of the interior would also help (although I advice leaving some studs for posing minifigs. Post I think I would suggest a few less pictures and a bit more story. Right now, it seems very staccato. You read one sentence, and then you have a picture. I sometimes do the same, but look for instance at Ayrlego's posts. He typically have a story, and then a single photo or two. You also might be posting some very small pictures? And I suggest you edit out the: part after each picture, as it is visually disturbing. All in all, great work!

@Legonaut While my German is very rudimentary, I will be happy to help you if you send me a pm. :) Alternatively, you are welcome to ask in this topic as well. Very much looking forward to getting you off to a good start and seeing your introduction! :)

Hi both, I will try to get a proper reply on the topics before the end of the weekend. Good to see you taking on the challenge already.

Why not lobby for Eslandola paying for the Royals it takes over? Or have the trade company doing the same pay? All players (I hope we didn't miss anyone) owning royals have been contacted before this decision was published, so please do not get the impression that this was just decided out of nowhere. To the best of my knowledge, everyone afflicted accepted this decision. (At least the Corlanders did - didn't speak directly to the others) And there is nothing stopping those taking over the royals from paying compensation. (Or those having to give them up requiring it from them)