LucasLaughing

I've been buying sets and building LEGO for at least 10 years, and in all that time I've only had one set that was missing parts. Atlantis 7898 Angler Attack was short several parts, and missing the villain minifig. In a strange coincidence, that was the first set that I built together with my new girlfriend; luckily we made it though that rough patch and are very happy over 2 years later...

I like it! You've definitely captured the "Imperial feel," and I like the way you did the blast doors. You should check out the Shadows of Nar Eurbrikka contest and come build for the Empire!

I like it! The minifig posing is great, and I'm glad to see some rebels about to be blasted! One minor suggestion - you might think about building a roof / cover over the top - that would add more to the feeling of this being deep inside the base.

This is progressing well! My only suggestion at this point would be to add some kind of safety glass between your engineers and the reactor. You know ... for safety ... I'm not positive what you're asking about the corridors ... are you talking about having the base of the walls angle up? For doors, I used a brickbuilt, non-functioning technique in my hoth build which doesn't take up too much space (link) I'd focus more on Imperial Crew for the control room; maybe just a stormtrooper or two to stand guard. You should join SoNE and come build for the Empire!!

LOL, desk jobs are the worst! I love the imperial symbol hanging inside each cubicle, and I've talked to many tech-support people who sounded as though they were speaking through a stormtrooper helmet. Now that you're serving on board the Avenger you should finally be able to put those explosive skills to good use

Thanks VK - welcome to Eurobricks, and I'm glad to see you're building for the empire! That's actually an awesome observation - I think you've got a promising future in Imperial Intel I like your idea of a rebel builder using that as a story hook too! Damn those broad-shouldered minifigs! I like your suggestions though; they're a good reminder for me to pay attention to detail. Thanks for viewing / commenting!

Alright troops, we've received our new assignment and it's vital that we work together to retake that garrison! According to the episode IV rules, the faction that controls 3 out of the 5 sectors will win. I suggest focusing our forces on 3 sectors, and planning here so that we have an equal number of builders on each one. Tactically, it seems that we should work to seize Sector A (main gate/perimeter), Sector C (comms station) and Sector D (docking/hanger bay) to keep the rebels from escaping, but I want to hear what you guys think as well.

I'm sorry to hear that! If your build is still together, maybe you could send me a PM with what you were making and your story and I could help brainstorm some ways to make it work? I could even edit some bits of my story if needed...

This is looking rad! I'm not sure what the round thing in front of the gunners is, but I like it!

Thanks! These stormtroopers are mostly from the Endor battle packs (9489) that came out a few years ago. I'm hoping the stormies coming out this summer don't look too weird with my existing troopers. Sorry! I wanted to tell more story, but didn't think that it might screw you up. I'm glad you can still make it work; I figure it's a big city/planet, so there are many different rebel safehouses. We only got one, so far.... Thanks! I feel like I watched a lot of SWAT team type shows during my formative years

Troops, I'm pleased to report that we've captured a group of rebels, thought to be involved with the garrison bombing.

Nar Eurbrikka; 3 days after the bombing. The rebels didn't realize it, but they'd made a serious mistake. The sewage tunnels they'd used to get below our garrison were unguarded because they'd been unused and largely forgotten for so long. These forgotten tunnels saw few visitors, so a probe droid dispatched the day after the bombing spotted telltale signs of recent movement. Nothing obvious at first, but areas where slime had been inadvertently wiped from the walls as men moved through narrow passages and, most damning, ladder rungs where years of grime had been recently knocked off as boots climbed down from the surface. The probe droid beamed its coordinates to base, and an aerial surveillance droid confirmed the presence of a sewer access hatch, in a courtyard next to a building in one of the vast, sprawling slums surrounding the spaceport. ISB immediately started 24/7 monitoring of the building, using both air and ground assets. After waiting and watching for two days, they called us. Normally, SpecOps wouldn't be needed for a simple assault on a residential building, but the situation on Nar Eurbrikka was complex. There was a growing rebel presence in this part of the city, and the local commander refused to send in troops without heavy armor support. The army, having recently lost two scout walkers nearby, refused to commit forces before the area was "softened-up" by TIE bombers. Naval command was under orders not to unduly upset the Hutts, who would certainly consider widespread bombing of one of their colonies an act of war. High command did not view the Hutts as a serious threat, but they did control vast swaths of space, and fighting them would require forces that were desperately needed elsewhere in the struggle against the rebels. That's how I found myself riding through the streets of Nar Eurbrikka, in the back of a civilian hovertruck, 2 hours before dawn. Two hover trucks pulled to a stop in front of the target house, and we piled out. Gunners with heavy repeating blasters covered the street as the entry team stacked up at the door. On cue, a small explosive charge destroyed the door. At the same time, flash grenades were thrown through the windows, and we went in. [note - the following photos have been light-enhanced to show the scene more clearly] Flash grenades are a beautiful thing. Unlike stun grenades, which leave unconscious prisoners who have to be carried out of the building, flash grenades explode with blinding light and deafening sound. This overwhelms the nervous system of most creatures, causing them to instinctively move into the corners of rooms while covering their heads. It takes most beings 10-15 seconds to recover from the shock, and by then we've infiltrated the building. Of course, we also have traditional blasters for anyone who was outside the range of the flash grenades and tried to put up a fight. The final tally was one rebel stunned by blaster, and four captured without further resistance. Less than three minutes later, the prisoners were loaded onto the hover trucks, along with captured weapons and datapads, and we disappeared into the night. This was my first mission with the Special Operations division of the Stormtrooper corps. To the casual observer, there was nothing to differentiate the commandos from regular storm troopers. A trained eye might notice that the troopers did not carry standard blasters. Commandos are given much more leeway when it comes to weapons selection, and for close-quarters raids like this one many prefer blaster pistols, which are more accurate when fired one-handed. A trained observer might also notice the fluid way that commandos move, communicating with hand-signals (habit from the missions where helmets with comlinks are not worn) and quickly clearing all areas of the target building. We kept our helmets on and didn't speak as we headed back to the temporary garrison, on the outskirts of town, but I knew there'd be celebration once we dropped the prisoners off. I relaxed, somewhat. I was still the FNG, but at least I hadn't screwed my first mission up. --------------------------------- Overall view:

Thanks! I thought Kaitan did a very nice job capturing the "Imperial" style, so I figured I'd just extend the scene a bit. My main goal, of course, is to show that we Imps are still people under these helmets .

I agree with Kaitan - it's a cool idea, but I don't think random death/injury would increase my enjoyment of SoNE. I would love to see rank introduced as well. This might not be a common complaint, but I've felt like I've been promoted faster than I wanted to be ... ie, was thinking of stories to go with ISB, but I'm now part of shadowtroopers instead. I think it would be cool to have different ranks associated with XP, and as your rank goes higher, than you can choose to move to different branches. A possible set-up, using ranks from wookiepedia: 0 XP - Private - Stormtrooper Corps 10 XP - Squad leader 25 XP - Corporal - can choose to enter Survey Corps 50 XP - Sergeant - can choose to enter ISB 75 XP - Lieutenant - can choose to enter Spec Ops / shadow troopers 100 XP - Sergeant Major - can choose to enter Military Research I don't know if there should be any other benefits associated with rank, other than being part of a "cooler" unit. I wouldn't mind seeing bonus objectives for those in higher ranks, as long as it didn't cause too much more work for our judges... As for scoring, my vote is go with top 5, and see if that has an effect on overall participation. If it causes a sharp drop in entries, maybe try something else next time around.

Thanks! Thanks - I was excited that I had almost all the right bricks to get it done! Oops, I corrected the spelling of your name . I look forward to seeing your reply to my reply, and replying in kind. Thanks, you never know when a military operation will backfire! Thanks

Troops, I'm afraid our garrison on Nar Eurbricka has been hit. There are casualties... http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=92296

Note: this build is a response to Kaitan's freebuild, which you should read first. Warning: violent content / images ahead Officials confirmed today that a number of Imperial peacekeeping troops and civilians were killed on Friday, when a bomb exploded in the sewers under their garrison. Witnesses described a chaotic scene, as the screams of the dying mixed with the shouts of surviving troopers, torn between treating their fallen comrades and securing the scene from further attack. The bomb's detonation, just under the surface of the street, left nearby troops with horrific injuries. Several troops that survived the initial blast died from blood loss before they could be taken to bacta tanks. Officials said the confirmed death toll of 16 includes 5 civilian casualties: 2 passersby, and 3 detainees who were being questioned inside the garrison. The regional governor vowed to hunt down and apprehend the extremists responsible for this dastardly deed. Already, several battalions of fresh troops have arrived and are locking down parts of the city. The longer term ramifications of this attack remain to be seen. ------------- Out of character disclaimer: Sometimes on the internet we don't come across as intended, so I want to clarify that this build isn't meant to be a personal attack on Kaitan in any way. His build was actually pretty rad, but ... I can't let the rebels get away with too much

Awesome - I'm honored to be included in your build! My favorite part about this creation is the minifig posing; the figs look very natural and "in action." I especially love the shot where "we're" looking at the hologram - I can almost see the motion of both troops leaning in for a closer look. Good work! (Also, I'm glad we didn't try to open the last door. There is nothing good behind that door...)

I'm really liking your story; this was a great twist and I can't wait to see what happens next! This build captures the feel of Echo Base very well. My favorite part is the irregular wall on the far right, with the angled bricks at the base - looks great!

This is a great build! I love the brick-built wampa, and the stuffed tauntauns are awesome. I also love your interpretation of the wampa scene from the film; it's always good to remember that we're only seeing the rebels' side of the story on screen

Thank you for the comments and kind words everyone! I went through a bit of thinking on whether to include standard troopers in addition to snow troopers. In the film, the rebels inside echo base are bundled up but they do have some skin exposed so I figured regular stormtroopers would be okay inside the base, and the snow troops could handle any action outside. I think that's a fair criticism. I've been kind of experimenting over these last few builds with different ways of blending story telling with building. My goal for the next one is for the scene to look "complete" while still telling a story. For sure! Also, I'll make it to a SeaLUG meeting one of these months, so maybe I'll see you there!

Twas the night before Life Day, and all through the base Imps were hacking the files the Rebs tried to erase. And while thinking of hot Tatooine and sail barges I wired Reb equipment with thermal det. charges. All at once, from the hall, we heard weaponized light as our troops found a rebel who put up a fight! Outgunned and outnumbered, the reb didn't last long and as he surrendered ... ...we broke into song! Give a cheer to the troops, far from home this cold night fighting and dying for justice and right! Cheers to the pilots who saw them safe down through the treacherous winds, over hostile ground. Cheers to the snow scouts who found the ice cave where we first made our entrance, so dashing and brave. Cheers to ISB spooks, with their cool slicer droids (and their all-seeing eyes, which we try to avoid). Cheers to army and navy and Stormtrooper Corps, and to all who support us as we win this war. 3 cheers for the Empire, protecting us all, it's for her that we fight, we shall not let her fall! Cheers to her citizens, no matter where from ... and tonight (tonight only!) cheers too, rebel scum. Happy Life Day!!! ------------------------ Behind the scenes ------------------------ Once again, my build ended up much larger than I had planned! This was a difficult one to photograph, with a lot of white on white; I ended up taking a ridiculous number of pictures, experimenting with different lighting and settings. Here in Seattle, we have "full spectrum" or "happy" lamps to get us through the long damp winters. I built part of the cave wall with clear bricks, and let the blue light illuminate the interior. Here's a look at the overall build: This was a lot of fun, but I think I'll try a small vignette for Episode IV Thanks for reading!

That's great news - we Imps need all the help we can get . Thanks Lobot!

Cool, I'm excited to see what you've got planned! My entry is also coming along, slowly but surely.

Ah yes, I definitely played the Hoth level ... I still have disturbing memories of slow moving but unstoppable wampas!