Basiliscus

Good idea guys - I have joined the group and added photos!

Second challenge is up! I think we should try and at least have one embassy in each of the other 3 guilds! Of the 3, I would prefer not Nocturnus and since 2 people have already suggested they will build there I will go for Avalonia or Mitgardia. I have a general idea of what I am going to build. robuko - the Flickr group is a great idea! I for one endorse this move. A couple of people who missed the watchtower challenge have said they will enter this challenge. That's good news! And SI-mocs - I think we had the best showing of all 4 guilds - simply if you take the ratio of towers/members! I thought everyone did a great job and can't wait to see the next entries! I have set myself the challenge of at least one free-build per month as well as entering every challenge. I hope I can keep this up for the full year! My December free-build should be completed before Xmas (I hope!). I also want to show the Emir's army (damn work getting in the way! )!

I just noticed I have a 3-digit member number! I didn't think I joined that long ago... I joined well before I came out my dark ages - it wasn't until 18 months later that I finally admitted to another soul I was addicted to LEGO! Before this I used to browse the forums without posting much. You can see that over 5 years later I haven't posted much more! I must have one of the lowest average post counts possible. The reason for this is mostly that I am only interested in MOCs - I'm quite shy on the internet so don't say much. Almost all of my posts are on MOCs! However I saw a lot of castle MOCs on Flickr recently and saw that there was some kind of contest on EB - Historica! I had a few castle ideas in my head and it seemed to good to miss out - so I think I have doubled my post count just with this contest! I am really enjoying making castle MOCs that I probably wouldn't have otherwise made so I hope to increase my average post count!

Excellent news Bonaparte! Thanks for doing this for all of us

I'm back! I had a very poor internet connection when I was away so I didn't log into EB but I did try and check it on my phone (albeit I had a slow connection!). So many great entries were posted from Kaliphlin - well done all! I've tried to comment on the individual threads where appropriate. Now that the deadline has passed, I was wondering if SI-mocs could update us on what the next stage of the process is? Who picks our 5 MOCs which go into the showdown? When will the winners of the first contest be announced? What is the next challenge and what is the deadline (is there some free build time in-between?)? So many questions - sorry! I have a WIP free-build that is about 80% completed that I will hopefully post before Xmas and I also would like to show off the Emir's army too! I have a few ideas for the next builds but I would like to know what the next contest is first!

This is probably my favourite MOC of the Historica guilds so far! The scale is awesome! The architecture is fantastic - you've used simple techniques well. The interiors as separate vignettes is a great idea too - I might steal that!

Lovely entry Brickmaestro. Great oil river through the middle - nice idea! The architecture is really intricate too. Look forward to your future MOCs!

Great build robuko! Lovely use of the printed bricks and fantastic interior. A nice story to go along with it too! The heliotrope is simply brilliant! Normally I dislike taking LEGO pictures with a non-LEGO background - but in this case you've integrated the sand well and it blends nicely into the background!

Nice work gabe! A simply fantastic entry. I adore the intricate details on the roof. The scale is very impressive too! I think you did a much better job than me of showing the lighthouse flame. It looks exactly like it would fit in within how I imagine Kaliphlin...nice one!

Lovely work Simon. Happy holidays to you all! Hope there's a lot of rattling boxes under your trees!

I'd agree that Sirens-of-Titans' interior vignettes were fantastic. I personally very rarely build interiors - the reason being that unless you are going to design the MOC so that you can see inside then there is no point! I mostly can't be bothered with the hassle. For me it's all about the exterior looks...and nothing to do with what's on the inside!

Looks great! Some lovely architectural details.

Outrageous! Seriously though, that's probably true, but I imagine Avalonia as needing a strong central authority as I see it more like a feudal type guild. So everyone reports to someone thus giving it a strong structure. However, in Kaliphlin I think that we are more laid-back - there are no well-defined borders, everyone has their own little enclave they want to build as they see fit but everyone is welcome to build anywhere within the guild boundary. ***** Also, I realise the first post of this thread is now out-of-date, but I signed up for Kaliphlin guild - just a reminder for when someone gets round to updating it!

Thanks everyone for the comments! I am glad it has been well-received Thanks ZCerberus! If you look at the picture second from the bottom, you will see the path (tiles) heading toward the door. This path carries on the left of that picture onto the rocky promenade/causeway which attaches this small area to the mainland. No-one would be foolish enough to access it from the sea, as the rocks are far too perilous to traverse! I had some difficultly due to the restrictive 32x32 limit on the size - I would have liked to have shown more of this causeway but due to the limit I couldn't do it. Thank you, Abū Alī. Fortunately the Emir gets a preferential rate at the Qarkyr sandstone mines. My architect says that the door design can be used by anyone - he has no claim over it! Thanks for the comment. The tower isn't actually on an island though - there is no jetty! If the size limit wasn't 32x32 I would have shown more of the causeway which connects the tower to the mainland. Look forward to your second watchtower!

Ouch! I hope I never end up in there! Isn't Avalonia supposed to be a nice place? Greetings from the South

Meant to say Christoph, what a beautiful job you did with that book! I seemed to miss it first time round, but it looks great, and having it in that scale is a brilliant idea! Good point SkaForHire - some resistance MOCs would be a good idea! The only point I wanted to make was that if someone spends ages building up their vision of a city then it gets burned down during enemy occupation they might not be too happy! But I agree that we should be encouraging others in the guild to build everywhere (everyone is welcome in Stone Town!). That way everyone gets a share in creating the Kaliphlin vision! Lovely work Waterbrick Down - fantastic entry to our guild! I won't repeat my comments in the main thread other than to say I love it! My Lord, I am but your humble servant! The Emir built the tower based on Bahru's design, he is becoming quite the architect I must say - these old bones have little to show him these days! I hope to show off more of Stone Town but I have to do some travelling over the next 7 nights - my pigeons might be able to find you, or they may not. Time will tell. Your will is iron, Lord. Wahil ***** Thanks for the comment! Yes, I had some difficulty with the design because of the 32x32 restriction. I would recommend in future that the limit is set to 48x48 or 32x64 (or bigger!) as they do in the CCC. I wanted to show more of the landscape around the tower but the SNOT base for the tower alone is 16x16 so I didn't quite capture everything I wanted (despite what it might look like it does fit on a 32x32 base). You are correct about trans-blue tiles - I have 3 1x2 tiles! My wife would divorce me if I bought any more on Bricklink, but I thought it looked cool with the studs showing as the water wouldn't be smooth. I think the whole Kaliphlin guild has done a great job so far in setting the scene, now I just think we need a few more free builds. My tower is just one of many and I am proud when I see the standard everyone has set! And with regard to your other comment - yes I would encourage others to build everywhere, the gates of Stone Town are open to anyone who can pay the Emir's tithe!

Nice work Doornroosje. Lovely little scene. Great use of foliage too!

Awesome work MikeyB! Such great details on such a small scene. Everything is so believable which adds to the magic. Well played!

Nice work Hersbrucker. I love your Werewolf army in that each soldier is different. Your MOC there is nice! Keep up the good work! Greetings from the South

Nice work Captain Blackmoor! Lovely dark green colour scheme and great sense of scale. The cogs and saw mechanism add that extra wow factor. Keep up the good work!

Wonderful work Waterbrick Down, a fine addition to our guild! Fantastic tan and dark blue colour scheme. I love the SNOT base and the mountains in the back add depth. Keep up the good work!

There hasn't been an official announcement about it or anything, but in the Avalonia guild thread it's being talked about so I presume one of the organisers let it slip. SI-mocs hasn't said anything about it yet, so I don't think anyone should over-think it until he does. I'm just curious about how it will work, but I presume that this announcement will be made after the tower challenge. My understanding is there will be challenges over the course of a year but I am not sure when the guilds will be officially "at war" (which I presume will happen eventually) - it would be good if there were a few more challenges with them at peace so we can build up our settlements before the war begins!

Yeah, I've been looking in the Avalonia thread and things seemed to be getting a bit out-of-hand, I don't think we need any of that carry on here. I think it maybe makes more sense for them as I imagine Avalonia to be more like a feudal land where each Lord has his own land. Kaliphlin, being more Arabic/Indian (as I see it anyway!) doesn't need such strict boundaries. I don't think anyone needs "permission" (as such) to build in another's territory - e.g. if someone wants to build in Stone Town I certainly won't stop them! However, it should try and fit in with the theme of the place to keep the canon consistent. You've mentioned this already above (sort of). The facts are that we want to work together as a team to make Kaliphlin the best guild (after all it is a quasi-contest). My only worry about this system of taking land from other guilds is how do you make it fair? For example, if Avalonia take land from us will it be near their border? Then people who have decided to make Kaliphlin MOCs there are short-changed. I just have a horrible feeling that if it isn't managed right then people could throw in the towel if they suddenly find their city under enemy occupation. Maybe SI-mocs can elaborate further... SkaForHire - thanks for that tip! I don't have one of those sets but I'll keep my eyes peeled... And I second your comment on NiceMarmot's awesome maps - he definitely got the Skills to Pay The Bills! Word!

Thanks Bonaparte for the comment. Rocketbilly describes the issue far more succinctly than I did below: Maybe there isn't an issue but just thought I'd bring it to your attention!

So much to love here Captain Beerbeard! Grey use of both shades of grey (bley?) on the walls, nice interior (something I can rarely be bothered with ) and great foliage outside the walls.