SkaForHire

Hello all, I have been working on this for a while, and it keeps getting larger, so I just needed to stop! The pictures are not the best, I do not have a good macro lens, but hopefully you all can see much of it. Al'Derak Al'Derak lies upon one of the few roads to the fabled and gilded Kaliphlin city of Lost Vega. Originally it was a small well on the side of a hill, travelers found the water due to the larger palm trees that sprang from the hill. For centuries the waterhole had been used by travelers along the road. When the great oil boom came to Kaliphlin it was discovered that oil could be found within 15 miles of Al'Derak in almost any direction. For this reason, the Greater Eastgate Articles & Rations Company set up a blacksmith shop at the site of the only fresh water in the vicinity. The smith forged crucial parts for the oil gathering process, and the waterhole continued to provide workers and travelers with much needed sustenance. About 15 years ago something drastically changed, the large palms started to die and this was a sure sign that the water was running out. This brought the region to a standstill in oil production because it was too hard and expensive to bring water from far off oases to the Al'Derak region. About a year later, GEAR Co. Second in command and high mage, Petera MacLean cast a water delving spell on the well and discovered that, indeed, there was still water left deep within the rock. With this knowledge, Dugal MacLean commissioned dwarven tunnelers to delve deep into the sands to find the precious liquid. It took a few weeks but soon the spring was flowing more than ever. GEAR CO bought the land, and introduced a pump system that controlled the flow into a catch pool. The abundance of water allowed GEAR CO to come up with some other capitalist endeavors along the way. Because Al'Derak is on the way to one of the greatest and richest cities in the whole world, Lost Vega, many travelers would pass by it looking for refreshment. Soon GEAR established a small inn and built a bathhouse to suit the needs of these travelers. GEAR also built a small market to sell food and wares to travelers and the occasional oil worker that made their way into town. Due to fights between oil workers and travelers, there is no tavern in the town proper. However, most oil camps have their own small establishments. Al'Derak is currently ran by a former high seas officer, Captain Locklind. He serves as magistrate and chief operator of all the establishments. Today, we catch the small town while they are being visited by Petera MacLean. DSC_0933 by princeofska, on Flickr One overview pic. DSC_0903 by princeofska, on Flickr Another overview. DSC_0915 by princeofska, on Flickr A look at the water queue, the well on the hill, and part of the inn. You can see the main road through town makes a 90 degree bend between the well and the Inn. Water is free to the inhabitants of the town. It is free to those staying at the inn, and to those oil workers in the surrounding parts. However, stockpiling water for travel comes at a price. The queue is open during all daylight hours, and is regulated by a guard. To the right, in front of the Inn we can see an Avalonian merchant wagon taking something down the road - is it water or oil? both are just as precious out here. DSC_0899 by princeofska, on Flickr The bathhouse without its roof on. I am extremely limited on white since I have not taken apart my Watchtower yet, so the top portion of the bathhouse has colored glass to let varying light into the pools. DSC_0935 by princeofska, on Flickr A look at the Blacksmith complex. One of the smith's teaches his son about the many uses of the hammer. The complex has a shop that sits underneath the magistrates lodging. The Magistrate's patio is actually on top of the smith housing. The shop is an open air shop, and is heavily guarded at night by guards provided by GEAR Co. The Magistrate's quarters are also open air, but are one of the largest permanent living spaces for miles around. He is treated and paid well to make sure the oasis functions. DSC_0924 by princeofska, on Flickr Still, there is some disappointment here. Petera MacLean's inspection has revealed that Captain Locklind has been putting too much of the treasure into his own pockets and not into the establishment. Not only is the inn dirty and understaffed, more egregiously, he has skimped on guards for the whole town. Petera, and his bodyguard Cannondale pictured guarding the stairs, have counted only three guards for the whole premises! One at the well, one at the inn, and another mercenary Mountain Mummy (Petera doesn't trust mountain mummies away from their home in the mountains) guarding the watchtower. Locklind has not even bothered to staff the watchtower! DSC_0904 by princeofska, on Flickr DSC_0907 by princeofska, on Flickr Furthermore, Locklind has been lax in his overseeing of the blacksmith's shop here. As seen in this picture as one of the smiths skips work for some personal time with his current fling (boy those muscles from smithing really gets Lucky Lou the ladies!) There are broken drill bits on Kaliphlin rigs that have been out of commission for weeks now, and Locklind can't seem to keep the smiths forging. DSC_0909 by princeofska, on Flickr From this angle, you can see that some of the housing and storage in Al'Derak is temporary or tent. This small storage tent owned by a successful Petrea Merchant has a permanent wind breaking wall built out of mud behind it to cause less damage from the harsh Southeast winds. You can also see the open market that GEAR Co built to supply travelers. DSC_0901 by princeofska, on Flickr Perhaps more memorable than it's crystal waters, Al'Derak has a distinctive advertisement in the middle of the town. Five years ago, after more and more travel on the road came from oil-seekers rather than pilgrims to Lost Vega, proprietors of that City decided to create an advertising campaign. They began construction large signs pointing the way to Lost Vega from many miles away. To the point where almost every town in Kaliphlin has some sort of advertisement from Lost Vega in it. Some of the more sensible minded Kaliphlins limit these signs to the outsides of their cities, but GEAR CO was happy to take the Lost Vegans' monthly advertisement fees to leave the sign in the middle of the town. (This began as a joke, when my real life brother [scarst, a member of Mitgardia] was visiting he constructed the original sign and planted it into the middle of the oasis I was building. I thought it was kind of funny, and left it there.) DSC_0914 by princeofska, on Flickr The inn, as viewed from underneath the sign. I did not take a straight on picture of the inn, but I wanted to note that those were not all stables underneath. There are actually three open three - walled rooms that travelers wishing to spend only a little amount of money on could bunk with other travelers. (Since not many Kaliphlinians use traditional beds, the term bunk is used loosely, they can share floor space.) For those wishing to avoid snakes and scorpions and spend a little more coin, the upstairs is an open bunking facility that is guarded 24/7 (or at least supposed to be) by a town guard. One can purchase space within that common room for a higher fee. DSC_0905 by princeofska, on Flickr The watchtower. The rest of the flickr gallery So, Petera's visit was successful, he found out why the smiths were not working up to efficiency, and that a change in leadership at Al'Derak was desperately needed. Locklind may have to try his hand on the seas again - Petera would prefer to banish the wasteful and greedy man to the sea of sands and the People of the Flame (TO BE REVEALED LATER) but his brother Dugal is more lenient and appreciates what Locklind has done on the seas over the years (the reason why he had this promotion to begin with...) Only time will tell where Captain Locklind will end up and who will eventually take over this small, yet bustling, town of Al'Derak.

Thanks, I hope to. It is always weird for me because I used to work there, going back as a tourist is fun, but sometimes it feels like I am missing something! I will definitely hit up the Lego store there, as their PAB wall is the largest I have ever seen. I might have to mail back a few boxes! EDIT: Ok, guild preview of what I am posting later today when I can write up the story: DSC_0933 by princeofska, on Flickr Al'Derak - a small oasis town along the route to the fabled and gilded Lost Vega. 100 miles away to be exact. (I will leave it to NiceMarmot to decide where exactly on the map that is.) This started as a small oasis, and then grew and grew, especially after my dog stomped the first half of it.

I wish I could still find ANY Kingdoms, full price or not. I am glad I went with intuition and bought the second wave earlier than normal... Or I would have none! The first wave even seemed short, but the second wave was ridiculously short, did they not manufacture as many sets or something?

I second this, elements is relatively cheap. The academic discount on the whole package (CS 5.5) is great if you can afford it and are a prof / student (Think I can get a double discount since I am both? lol). But again, if you are not a professional photographer or graphic designer (or someone else who needs a professional editing platform), elements is all you need.

Same here, it is the limitation in bricks... I just spent my Christmas money on a few bricklink orders though. I hope to finish this 64v64 Oasis scene before my vacation to Disney World next week. I keep thinking I am almost done, but then I rip something out and put something else in. and of course, Happy New Year guildies!

Awesome guide! I wanted to say that I used ProFantasy's Campaign Cartographer 3 for my maps. Years ago, when I lived around friends, I would play D&D and this tool is by far the best mapping tool when it comes to linking a whole world together. Although it is not as expensive as Photoshop, it is a bit pricey if you want the whole package. Still, you can make much better maps than I do with CC3, but I don't have the patience to really learn a CAD system. When I spring for Photoshop, I plan to create maps more like NM has been doing. As far as I know there is not a supported version of GIMP for Win 7 64 bit, so that is not an option for me. However, deciding to spend 400 dollars on academic photoshop, a new DSLR lens (I really need a wide angle!) or Lego keeps ending up with me spending money on Lego since Historica started. Student loan time is right around the corner, so maybe I can get all three in a few months, haha! Back on point, CC3 can be really useful and has all the map features built in, to get quality maps like NM, you really need to go through a lot of the tutorials. However, if you are just doing basic land maps and not cities, 30 bucks (US, Amazon)for a mapping program is not bad (I think the Cities add on is 50 or 60, but it has been a long time since I bought it)

Wow, that is the first time I had heard about the WoW Mega Blocks, what a pitty it was with them, I am wondering if there will be anything salvageable out of those sets - maybe weapons? Although, don't get me wrong, the figures look really nice for a non-lego world, I just can't utilize Mega blocks other than structural support. At least is is not shifty or best lock.

Nice little oasis! I am working on one right now too. I like the "shape" of your oasis, it reminds me of the classic movie / cartoon oasis. It really speaks to our deserts in Kaliphlin, vast and unyielding, the tiniest comforts are treasured dearly. I wish I had some trees!!!!

I know here we have a couple Lego Stores in the part of Texas I am in, and I have at times asked workers if they could check if they have a piece in the back - most of the time they will do it for you. During less busy times of the year they seem to have more stock in the back, but I am guessing during the holiday season what you see is what they have. Also, don't assume they do not have any more stock if you see a few empty bins along the first two rows above the ground. The Lego stores are required to put larger bricks that cannot not be swallowed by little kids at that level. Sometimes they run out of those large bricks and leave them empty, but have stock for the top rows beyond what is displayed.

Passage to India for more diversity of Indian culture. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom for temples, Maybe Raiders of the Lost Ark or The Last Crusade for Egypt / Middle East. I still want to make something based off Petra in Jordan.

I used to use that second piece all the time, now they are pretty hard to find. Sometimes Pick a Brick has them. I have not looked at how the new ships are attached, do they go back to the old way?

Looks great NM! The only thing I can think of is that now it looks like it is easier to go around the sea, but that can be easily negated with storyline - let's say the constant monster attack, pirate attack, the fast west moving tidal currents that sweep ships deep into the ocean out of sight of land, and the fact that the cliffs on the west side of the islands make finding places to put in nearly impossible make the west side of those islands (The Misery's Arm for a name?) somewhat an extension of the Forbidden Coast. Also, we could name that large channel to the north, Giant's Elbow (might be too many English sounding names on the map though). Another thing, I imagine the coastal road that connects EG and Barqa goes West along the coast into Avalonia. The terrain of the isles should be varied, I imagine them volcanic, mountainous on the south / west, with coastal plains, deep tropical forests, and beaches on the North / east. Not very habitable because of their isolation, but good nesting spots for pirates, outlaws, and hermits. However, great map! I love it. And I like how you put in the extra cities. Those are very logical spots for cities, and I look forward to seeing what we name them, or for new members to take them over. I feel that NM has given Kaliphlin a rich history almost single-handedly.

Hmmm... that may be worth trying... I don't know if I want to pay shipping on another order though. I did stock up on mummies, I bought 10, so I added 30 to my modest collection. I should also note that I ordered 10 RPs, but after I ordered, LEGO emailed me and said that they could not fulfill the order (along with the banana games I bought) I did get a bunch of the Lava game, so I may be building my embassy in Nocturnus.

I tend to agree with this, if a person builds a "general embassy" then if it really needs a location the guild master of the receiving guild (the one which the embassy is built in) can assign it later. I understand the desire to limit some buildings in certain cities, but since we are participating in an event with such loose structure, I think it might be hard to add any concrete rules mid way through. I definitely think that a person should have the right to reject a foreign entity in "their territory" though, although some of us only loosely "claim" an area.

Not that I want to place another order, but are the Anubis magnets separable?

I don't know if you have this information yet, but I posted it a while back in Kaliphlin's thread. Eastgate - a safe harbor for ships traveling east from Avalonia into the coasts of the Badlands. (Also vice versa, but the winds are more favorable west to east.) Also the head of the Red River moving the great timber trade (live oak in large quantities, the finest in the world) and some river trade from upriver. It is a mix of styles, having some classic European architecture, mixed with Mediterranean and Arabian because it is a melting pot of cultures. The quarries to the east bring brown and tan rock, while the queries up river bring red rock, with Avalonia so close, rock grey in color is also sold in the city. The city walls are mostly tan / brown in color, but some of the newer structures are the now cheaper Avalonian grey. Not only is Eastgate a port, but it also has some of the best ship building facilities in the known world (due to the large live oak supply that comes through its port) with a natural bay that has been artificially expanded around four hundred years ago. Eastgate by princeofska, on Flickr Legend 1) GEAR CO. World Headquarters 2)Main Armory 3) Warehouse District 4) Great Bridge of Eastgate 5) Rose Tower 6) Pearl Tower 7) The Inner Bastion 8) The Great Keep 9) Expansion Town 10) New Town 11) GEAR Shipbuilding facilities 12)The South Gate 13) Lionsgate 14) Crown's Gate 15) The Guardians 16) The Neck Eastgate, roughly as it stands today. Lord Dugal MacLean welcomes all non-slavers to Eastgate. I hope that many trading companies will set up shop here.

Oh no! Yeah, I am a proponent of people building in all cities. Anyone can build anything I linked on the map, or something else and say it is in the city. I did the map for myself to get a general feeling of the city. My next free build will be shipyards there I think, but I am not going to methodically build everything, I like varying it up and building in the desert and other places.

The ship would have to be quite amazing for me to buy something over 200 dollars... I hope this is not the case. I Actually rather see a better collector's pearl or QAR than the Dutchman anyway, that ship was ugly and totally unrealistic.

I hope to finish up my oasis tonight, I might just call it one of the few you put on the map already NM. My next free build is the shipyards at Eastgate. I am slowly collecting black in order to build my embassy in Nocturus. My traitorous brother is planning on joining Mitgardia lol. Worst of all, he is using my actual (very sizable) collection which is stored at my mom's house a thousand miles from me, while I have to rely on whatever POB has each week... Haha. I imagined that whole edge of the inland sea as a mess of islands that only the most skilled navigators and local pilots can travel through. I look forward to what you come up with. Once my limit is lifted on flickr, I will put up my map of Eastgate, it is done in Campaign Cartographer, so it is not as cool looking as yours, that is for Sure. EDIT: OK I did have some more room in my account, here is how I imagined Eastgate, and some of the key points marked. Eastgate by princeofska, on Flickr Legend 1) GEAR CO. World Headquarters 2)Main Armory 3) Warehouse District 4) Great Bridge of Eastgate 5) Rose Tower 6) Pearl Tower 7) The Inner Bastion 8) The Great Keep 9) Expansion Town 10) New Town 11) GEAR Shipbuilding facilities 12)The South Gate 13) Lionsgate 14) Crown's Gate 15) The Guardians 16) The Neck

I am so glad you are our mapmaker! I think perhaps we may need a few more islands around the coast... but those can be added later. Also, I wish we had a list to figure out where everyone in the guild was based, just so we all have a general sense of placement.

Maybe some names for Oasis towns or more... Mormet, Mophet, Haven, Greenhaven, El'leez, Au'ban Dran, Eternal Spring, Blue Springs, I do like how we have "bases" in this guild, but we are not divided up into states or provinces as it seems Avalonia is starting to. I imagine many of our figs administrate areas outside of town with loose boundaries. Welcome Damaximus! It is great to have you here, I am sure our trading vessels will frequent each others' ports often.

Eastgate - a safe harbor for ships traveling east from Avalonia into the coasts of the Badlands. (Also vice versa, but the winds are more favorable west to east.) Also the head of the Red River moving the great timber trade (live oak in large quantities, the finest in the world) and some river trade from upriver. It is a mix of styles, having some classic European architecture, mixed with Mediterranean and Arabian because it is a melting pot of cultures. The queries to the east bring brown and tan rock, while the queries up river bring red rock, with Avalonia so close, rock grey in color is also sold in the city. The city walls are mostly tan / brown in color, but some of the newer structures are the now cheaper Avalonian grey. Not only is Eastgate a port, but it also has some of the best ship building facilities in the known world (due to the large live oak supply that comes through its port) with natural bay that has been artificially expanded around four hundred years ago. I have a map, I will try to get it posted.

Well that is interesting... I will probably still do my oasis scene first though. I am a bit stumped on this one, I probably don't have the right brick combinations to landscape outside of the desert lol. Guess Lego is getting more of my money...

The same set is 6.98 on Target... but they only allow you to buy three... Or else I would have got ten. My Girlfriend loves the ostriches. I stole them all for my ostrich cavalry... I am working on an Oasis scene myself. I hope to see some neat small builds out of our guild before the next challenge. Just some "I had a few hours to kill" kind of builds.

May I ask how? Do they just have old sets still on the shelves? Wondering, because my brother's ship goes through Hong Kong a couple times a year and he could probably send stuff back to me...