Khorne

Chapter VII. - Butchers' Bay As the Gwenivar crept on northbound, the waters darkened and the weather slowly became even colder than when the party had left St. Gallo on Oléon’s shore. Tiny flecks of snow sometimes fell from the grey skies, rendering the world around the ship in shades of black, white and grey. Only the hardiest of sailors venture this far into the Northern Ocean. In this vast remote area of black water, drifting ice and wind blasted rocky islands, a whaling station was founded to supply the whalers that hunt here. ‘Butchers’ Bay’ station sat on the shores of Durand’s Rock - which as it name implies, was a mostly forgotten barren island of rocks and snow that was once discovered by the now mostly forgotten Jacobus Durand. His legacy was about as barren as the eponymous island, since most folks referred to the whole island as Butchers’ Bay anyway. As the crew made landfall on the small settlement, they were overcome by the scents, sights and sounds of the place - intensified by being stuck on a ship for a while. Gulls cawed as they circled in the air, only to come down and scavenge the leftover pickings of whale cadavers, that were processed outside on bloodstained wooden terraces built intro the shores of the island. Creaking cranes and chains dragged the corpses of whales onto the platforms, ready to be drained of everything valuable and cut up to feed the consumer markets in the civilized lands down south. The air was filled with the ferrous smell of fresh blood, mixed with a putrid touch of rot and death. It made Archambeau’s nostrils flare in ecstasy and the gory display of butchery brought a sparkle to his eye. Small details that hadn’t passed captain Kerouac's gaze unnoticed. That guy creeped him out. There was an unsettling, unholy aura around him. Sadly, they were bound together in this journey and Ambrose could only hope that the Felon slipped on some ice on the Gwenivar’s deck and somehow tumbled overboard. But then again, that would stain Kerouac’s good name. No captain wants a dead man on his ship. The concise shore party navigated its way through the wooden buildings and narrow, snow packed corridors of the settlement until they found Archambeau’s contact. Ambrose hated the plan, but it was the best they could do for now. He had disliked about everything during the trip so far: his passengers: how the Priest changed course and goal seemingly at random, the weird Guide they had picked up on Tam. There was some secretive play going on over his head and he couldn’t stand it. Ironically, the miserable weather and the unforgiving ocean were the most positive aspects of the expedition. A home away from home. “You Klaus?”, the Captain grunted at one of the bloodstained butchers working a whale. He turned towards the Felon and muttered: “This your guy?” Archambeau nodded affirmatively. Ambrose sniffed his nose and spat on the ground. He peered around, briefly contemplating the situation. “Alright”, he sighed. “Take care of our little alimentary conundrum.” Aggressively he pushed his finger into Archambeau’s chest. “Get us the food. Decent food, mind you, so we can be on our way. Don’t plough this up. By Argus' Eyes, I'm watching you.” Archambeau grinned. “No worries, cap’n. These are my kind of people. We speak the same language, I can get us a good deal. I’ll fix us some food," the Felon pushed the Captain's hand away slowly and continued, "and I'll do it cheaply as well." Here's an alt outtake, showing the mighty Duplo whale in all its g(l)ory:

That's a very nice compliment! I always like reading that people actually take their time to read the stories. I didn't originally intend this to feature Lysandre, but it was a nice tie-in and a handy hook for some exposition. I'd love to expand upon the ideas and city further, but sadly time and bricks are limited.

An excellent entry for this category! I like how you packed plenty of details in such a small space. I also like the curtains you made; I haven't seen curtains made like that a lot.

Another fine addition to Tristan's storyline. A lot of unique pictures from a rather "simple" MOC. I like the addition of the myriad of tropical birds and also how they fit in the story. Like Jeff said: cool narrative touch to make it extra spooky.

Thanks guys! In hindsight, the 1x1 round plate is maybe a tad bit too big. Perhaps I should've used a lever for the clapper.

Not really a new MOC, just some story telling. Long text incoming. "The end is nigh!", the lead friar bellowed as a warning to his compatriots, who mostly ignored his call and continued their way through the bustling main street of Jiangkai. "The end is nigh!", he repeated once more and kept on repeating the phrase as it were some sort of chant, accompanied by the tolling of the mendicant's bell. The black procession made its way through the crowd, ringing their bells and holding its circular symbolism aloft. "Repent all ye sinners! The Apocalypse is coming! The Lord of Time will return from his chthonic prison and reset the Sands of Time, for all of us have lived in sin and tainted the world with our corrupt behavior. Greed! Violence! War! The clock will be reset and a New Dawn will come. Repent and untether from this world and ye shall be spared by the returning Titans! They shall shape this world anew! Hail Kronos!" Like many things in the New World, the mendicant Order of the Wheel (of Time) were a product of a cultural synthesis, catalyzed by the recent string of strange events. Taking inspiration from Monomontachi and Lotii Emmetist beggar monks, which often pass through Jiangkai and the surrounding areas, the brothers of Time have denounced their possessions and have taking vows of poverty, relying on alms to survive while traveling El Oleonda to spread their message - which is actually borderline heretic as per the teachings of the Aplynician Faith. Luckily for them, the agents of the True Faith have little say in Jiangkai and are often outright refused entry. Their attire also attests to Lotii influence, with loose garments dyed in black similar to those sometimes worn by those of southern Halos. Their typical hats, chapeaux de campagne, are a Western version of the classic Lotii conical hat and offers great protection from the sun. The friars themselves left little impression on the passersby, despite their shouting, chanting and bell tolling. What did draw attention - or at least raised more than a couple of eyebrows - were the flagellants that followed in the wake of the friars. Many of these poor souls had lost their homes, property or relatives during one of the heavy storms or bad weather events that plagued the island. Utmost desperate, they took up the message of the Order of the Wheel and resorted to mortification of the flesh to show their penitence. The defeatism of the flagellants could hardly be in greater contrast to the optimism of Oléonese entrepreneurs who have come to Jiangkai to expand their businesses and invest in the region, following the discovery of silver and gold. The business man frowned at the religious display that was unfolding in the street. Peddled around in an ubiquitous Jiangkai rickshaw and protected by a group of mercenary yojimbo, the entrepreneur was the classic image of a Western investor coming to profit from Jiangkai's special position in the Empire. As a partially autonomous part of the Empire, not all of Oléon strict laws applied in Jiangkai and the area was a grey zone as legislation was still being ironed out. The fact that the city was home to different splinter cells and cultural communities didn't make it any easier to share political power and come to legislative consensus. Which ironically made it easier for the wealthy to invest in the region, as the government either looked away or was content with a bribe to their own political cause: the Lotii supremacists, Monomontachi minority - which in itself was also divided between traditionalists and modernists, or the Oléon backed Western faction that sought to make Jiangkai a proper fully-integrated colony with full citizenship to the inhabitants. While the city is officially called Jiangkai, many of the inhabitants use colloquial cultural alternatives with the Monomontachi calling it Okinakawa and some Oléonese calling it Géants Quai, unable (or not caring) to pronounce the actual name. The peculiar status of Jiangkai and the abundance of unemployed soldiers following the relative detente in the Lotii War, led to the rise of mercenary yojimbo: Monomontachi stragglers, or sometimes Lotii - soldiers and ronin - who did not evacuate to the homeland or who deserted the army and now offered their swords to the highest bidder. With the Oléonese army and auxiliaries occupied in more important regions and cities of El Oleonda, the local government tries to take care of security, but sometimes falters. Which has led to rich people raising their own private guard cadres, similar to a samurai's retinue. Supply follows demand and several Monomontachi with a nose for business have started to set up protection services for those who need it. Lysandre gazed at the spectacle of colors and sounds beneath him, as he enjoyed a short leave after his latest mission. Haji stood stoically beside him. "What an utmost interesting display of behavior by these proles," Lysandre stated as he continued to survey the street. "A bit concerning message though. Could use more cowbell", he smirked. "Perhaps we should word to lieutenant-colonel Andromeda? Even though Section XIII is mostly involved in political unrest and religious unrest is handled by other instances, they might still be interested. Let's not let this fester into civil unrest." He jerked his head towards the crowd as he eyed Haji. "Best to keep your eyes on those folk, Haji." "Hai", the swordsman merely grunted, made a short bow and left the premise. ----- I've had the figures for the friars laying around since the First Transitional Challenge. I wanted to build a series of MOCs showing an obvious Oléonese response to the disasters: dial the religious crazy up to eleven. Sadly, I didn't have the time to work out my ideas. Still, I like their story and I wanted to share these guys before Era II is over. The business man and his retinue is a continuation of the phenomenon I set up in my original post that debuted the MOC. I just saw it fitting to take it up once again. You can see the full scene in the spoiler below. Like I said, these aren't new MOCs. Both have been presented in the past. I've some ideas to expand the market street, but not the time I need. It was a long read, but I hope it was enjoyable!

I'm curious to see how the factions will work, if PC's can be from all over the world now. Interesting game mechanic for sure, considering what we're currently used to. Great challenge as well! And a difficult one at that! After X amount of years in BoBS, with various story lines and different characters, I've only recently felt like I've finally been able to 'settle' on a particular one, but the prospect of being able to have a character from all over the world offers interesting perspectives for something new. Something to ponder for sure!

Excellent work on the water. It looks really organic and fluid.

At least here Luke's doing something useful and not being depressed on a backwater planet . Like the others have stated: interesting read and accompanying build. Always cool to dig into some background stories. I'm not very familiar with everything concerning the Juniper War and its factions, so it was a bit difficult to follow. At least the uniform colors make it very easy to understand visually . Also interesting to see that characters of ill-repute are fleshies, haha!

Thanks! I think the light blue background also helps, since some of the light blue reflects on the MOC which aids to give it a cold hue. The crane is supposed to be a liftarm attached to the mast of the whaling ship, but I don't know if it comes across enough. The Captain is standing on his ship. I cut off the mast and rope ladder for the sake of the scene, otherwise they'd have been too big. Hopefully you've been enjoying the story so far. More is coming!

Chapter V. - The Gwenivar The Captain surveyed the hustle and bustle in the docks of St. Gallo. The first rays of the sun were only just barely scraping the surface of the vast Northern Ocean, shedding some much needed warmth and light upon the myriad of seamen already fast at work in the early morning hours. Even though winter was slowly creeping towards its end, the northern shore was still far from a welcoming place. Ambrose turned up his nose in contempt at the sight and thought of his passengers. Even the sun’s golden rays could sparsely warm the Captain’s icy poise towards the lot. He grunted in annoyance and blew some hot air in his hands. Only a handful of days ago, captain Kerouac had been jubilated at the prospect of an easy job. Sail some rich nob and his entourage around the Ocean, give him a tour of the sights and then drop him back off at the docks with some stories to tell his friends back home. Except now it turned out that the rich nob was a god-fearing Priest of Poseidon, whose name the Captain had yet to catch, and the entourage was hardly worth the euphemism. Rabble seemed more fitting a term. Or perhaps even a herd. Maybe a term denominating a pack of lice-ridden street dogs, if such a word existed. Légionnaires Pénales, the worst Oléon’s Armée had to offer. A stain upon the uniform. There was work to be done, however. Expeditions don’t load themselves, even though some of the supplies were sourced by the benefactor of the Priest’s whimsical excursion. It was up to the Captain to lead everything in good order. Ambrose put his mind to the work at hand and delegated some orders to Monsieur Le Pen, his second in command and an absolute red-haired giant of a man. Also one of the few men the Captain could bring on his ship. As the sun slowly rose, the early morning rolled into a proper morning and the ship was finally ready to set sail. The Captain took no issue with that. On the contrary, he never liked leaving the safety of the dock too early in the dark, even though it was often a necessity in his line of work. The blackness of the Ocean, lit only by the tiniest sliver of moonlight, always gave him an ominous feeling. The howling wind and lack of visual information at night made the mind conjure up all kinds of illusions. Some sailors vehemently claimed the drowned would call out from the ocean at night. Surely a myth, but one could never know for sure in these lands. Despite sharing cultural links with the Corrish and the people of Tam, their knack for science hadn’t found its way into Courlandie yet and in this regard its people were more in line with the Oléonese: putting their faith in the gods and the mystical. The Captain shook his head to ward off the thoughts. The North was a powerful and wild domain - untamed. He was curious to see how the Priest’s shiny faith would stack up to the raw, unbridled energy of the vast darkness. There were more ancient beings at work here, Ambrose believed. One of the convicts walked up the gangway to enter the ship. He seemed to be the leader, because he had a more fancy hat. The Captain would bid him welcome, but he didn’t want to utter any words he didn’t mean. So he just pointed to the below-deck and stated dryly: “Go there.” And then, with everyone aboard, the whaler Gwenivar left the dock.

I can only echo what the others have said: excellent technique on the wave! It really adds a level of dynamism to the MOC. I also like that you've used the hexagonal base technique introduced in the Era 3 thread.

You sure crank these out at a fast pace, yet retaining excellent quality! The catamaran looks great. Is there a reason you did the second boat of the middle piece like that and not with its nose outward? Visually, I think it would've made more sense to do it the other way around, so that it looks less like two boats hooked together in a row. Great scene overall, with great action. I'm envious how you can create so much motion and life in Stud.io. I can hardly manage to pose a figure in there .

A fine addition to the story, Jeff! Like I said before, lovely writing in this chapter and accompanied by an excellent build with some great character details in the faces and postures.

Chapter II. - The Captain The warmth of the sailors’ tavern contrasted heavily with icy northwestern wind that swept the streets of St. Gallo outside, hammering the shutters and door. Inside the atmosphere was lively with laughter and music in the air and plenty of alcohol-filled pewter cups in the hands of the patrons. The eponymous ‘Captain’s Daughter’ could hardly keep up to keep all drinks filled. St. Gallo was a fishermans’ city, one of the largest on the Courlandie peninsula and its nautical nature was clearly on display throughout the tavern, with whalebone trophies and fishnets dotting the interior. “Another top up, captain?”, Gwen asked as she carefully meandered through the myriad of drunk fishermen and sailors. Captain Kerouac merely grunted as he took a deep swig of his pipe and raised his cup, eyeing an unfolded letter on his table. As the barmaid filled his drink, he muttered through his bristles: “Would you be so kind and give the boys another round as well, Gwenny?” “I’ll be sure to do so,” she replied as her eyes darted to the letter as well, “Good tidings, captain?” He chuckled. “I believe so. Some fancy schmuck from the interior provinces hired us to take him North. Can you believe it?” The captain could hardly contain his laugh as he continued tugging on his pipe. “Paid us good money as well. Wants to see what the Northern Ocean is really like, since he’s read so much about it. Apparently, sailing North has almost become something of a hobby to those entitled nobs. The landlubbers should stay put, is what I say. Aye. The sea is not a playground and many a good men have already vanished in its treacherous embrace.” “What’s the catch?”, Gwen asked intrigued by the tale. Ambrose raised an eyebrow. “The catch? Heh, not whales or seals that’s for sure. I doubt the inlanders have the stomach for such hard labour anyway. Besides, I’m only sailing with a skeleton crew. The cargo is apparently more of the schmuck’s friends.” “There’s always a catch, though. Be careful out there, Ambrose”, she replied gently and briefly caressed the captain’s worn hand. “Discerning stories come from the New World. Something’s off. Volcanoes erupting. Islands disappearing under waves the size of temples.” Gwen stared dourly into the distance and then turned to the captain once more. “And you know as well as any other man here, there hasn’t been this much pack ice in the Northern Ocean in years. It’s dangerous.” “But the sea is freedom”, the captain philosophically answered. Gwen chuckled. “Only to fools, captain. You whalers are an odd lot. Running from civilization to float around in the great nothingness.” “Heh, who says we’re running, Gwen?” She smiled and shook her head playfully. “Whatever suits you, Ambrose. Be sure to show the fancy pants how we do things in the north.”

I actually like this set! I didn't really have much anticipation, but I have been following this topic with half an eye to see if there were any leaks. Now that I've seen the pictures, I'm not disappointed. It does what it says on the box: it's a medieval town square with multiple peasants of various professions. Style-wise it fits the Lion Knights' Castle, so that's cool. I also really like the painting with 375 Yellow Castle. Plus, there's an updated Wolfpack torso and a lot of different animals and stuff. Yeah, pretty much ticks all the boxes in my book. I can understand people who have been steadily following the news on this set might be somewhat disappointed or expected more of something different, but for me as an "outsider who just likes historical Lego": I think it's pretty great. Neat successor to the previous village-themed medieval Lego sets.

Who else but @Ayrlego could build a bushland so well

The terrain types all look great! I especially like the whale jumping out of the water.

Nice build! I like the outward facing position of the bricks on the side. It adds an interesting rough structure to the terrain. Can't wait to see what Era III will bring.

Wow, no words for this! It's mind-boggling! The recreation you've built is so meticulous, it's almost like an exact copy. The pictures (and obviously the build itself) are amazing! How did you plan this build, or what was the process like? Did you find schematics or drawings online or did you just base yourself on pictures you've made (or found online)? Did you recreate in in Studio first, or did you immediately start building with real bricks? This deserves a frontpage feature for sure!

(Taking this from the Sea Rats topic, as to not derail the faction topic too much) Sorry for not replying in the Sea Rats thread, but I didn't want to derail that topic too much with non-Sea Rat faction discussion and thought it'd fit better here as someone else already suggested. Addressing the quoted post by @RobTheVan directly above: I don't think the subfactions need to be specifically outlined as such necessarily. I mean, as 'official' subfactions. The overarching factions are already played with different accents and the underlying differences are also explored in the background lore of each faction and have been expanded upon by the players' own stories. @Ross Fisher plays his Oléonese character very Faith-minded, while @Keymonus and @CapOnBOBS or @merc for example build with a more general military or commercial theme. Which also works. The few builds and characters I have made were more political scheming, with conservative royalists vs revolutionaries. Like I said, they don't need to be actually split up as genuine subfactions, I think. The current framework and outline works, IMO. In a way, this is already how the factions are kind of described in the Quick Start Guide, but these short doubled-down descriptions of the factions are more nuanced in the actual faction threads. But over the years most factions and players have moved more towards the doubled-down versions and away from the nuance (I feel). To add my 2 cents to the Sea Rats = pirates faction: I always thought they were the pirates faction . Never saw them as anything else. I'm not really up to date on the EGS and stuff, but I can imagine a more 'piratey' way of play can be added, if this is not already the case? Kind of like you have Horde factions in Rome TW: Attila, Pirates could have more raid/plunder via the seas benefits but are unable to grow settlements beyond a certain level to compensate. Whereas "normal" factions must gain their riches via colonies, settlements or regular trade. Just from the top of my head. Like I said, I'm not up to date on the EGS, so maybe this is already the case .

Lovely, the final pieces of the story are here! Because the pyramids are obviously built by aliens! Everyone knows that, of course! Nice! Excellent setup for more adventure. Looking forward to that.

The Society of Heracles and its Brigade Rouge militant army will still be the main adversaries, I think. Their popular cause is easier to get behind and gain new followers than an anarchist cause would. I mainly introduced Nestor Antonin and the anarchists to show an ideological rift and aid in the downfall of the Brigade Rouge mercenaries on El Oleonda, thus finishing that story thread there. I'm glad you liked the introduction, we shall see what the future brings! Nothing is set in stone yet. Haha, indeed it seems they're just adding fuel to the fire. But is that not often how it goes with such tales of revolution . The Force Publique torso is from the US Union soldier from the Lone Ranger range. They're already several years old. I bought a whole bunch of those rather cheaply when they were still more commonly available. You can still find them on Bricklink, but the supply has dwindled over the years. I had not thought of it like that, but a molotov cocktail would indeed probably not be called that in this universe . We'll have to figure out a new name. Thanks for the positive feedback! Like I said in some previous post here somewhere, I have vague outlines for a new (short) storyline so perhaps I will do another one in the future. I'm glad it is well-received . Happy New Year, everybody!

Another fine addition. Great furniture designs and packed feeling in the interior. Like @Yperio_Bricks said: the professor is a promising character and his study looks interesting. Will we be seeing more of him? Too bad the full text isn't there yet, I'd love to see the descriptions for the final pictures. If possible somehow, I'd try to write the text beforehand in a text editor perhaps and then you can post everything all at once? The suspense is always killing . Did you come up with the name because of the sign/sticker or did you have the name first and then made a custom TCRR sticker?

Epilogue - The Head Of The Snake "Cut off the head of the snake and the body dies," Noorah declared sternly to the prison warden. Standing on the balcony overlooking the main courtyard of the prison, she could see how the prisoners stood to attention awaiting to be shown their own cell. While Noorah and the prison warden were shielded from the blistering Guelphian sun beating down on the scene, the prisoners were not so lucky. "We have reports of disbanding Brigade Rouge units on El Oleonda. They are steerless - broken without a leader, their morale gone. It won't be long now before our troops have destroyed them utterly." She grinned at the sight of Nicolas Pierrot standing below in ball and chains. Turning heel, Noorah addressed the warden before she left. "Be sure to give our special guest a warm Guelphian welcome. Get all the information you can out of him." "What will happen to him afterwards, Madame?", the warden asked. The Spider shrugged. "As much as I'd love to parade him through the streets of Granoléon after this is all over, we both know our war is fought in the shadows and is not rewarded with grand parades and public displays. Our prize is knowing we are protecting the heart and soul of Oléon from the poison spread by individuals such as him." "Let him rot," she concluded. Granoléon - the rich district, some time of the capture of Nicolas Pierrot and the events on El Oleonda. "Cut off the head of the snake and more shall take its place. We are the disgruntled and downtrodden. Our numbers are legion. Our name is Hydra. We serve none, but utter Freedom. Our actions are our propaganda. We thrown down the shackles of government and the king's yoke and reject the poisoning of the mind that is the Faith. We stand for an equal society based on free grouping of individuals. Hail Hydra.*" FIN That's it! With the epilogue posted, it's now officially over and done. Again, thanks to all those who were following along and read the chapters and overall story. I'm glad you enjoyed it! Feedback is always welcome. Some rough outlines/ideas are forming for a next story in a similar format, which I would try to keep to a 10 chapter length. But I have yet to make it more concrete. It would tie in to this one and feature some of the characters. And having posted this, I kept my own deadline to have this finished in 2024 . Happy holidays! * I was doubting on using this phrase, because it's such an obvious reference and therefore cheapens the pamphlet somewhat but I also thought 'why not?' - a bit of cheap fun to lighten the mood; plus alliterations are nice.