[MOC] Medieval castle and village aka "Dad, how about building a castle?!"

[twrHarri]

Hello forum!

I've followed this forum for two years already while I've been building this fairly large MOC for two consecutive Lego events in Helsinki, Finland. I was thinking I would like to give back as you all have given me so many great ideas. 

The story goes like this: My son asked me a build a castle, just for fun. After 6 months of building I had 7-floors high, detailed (both inside and outside) with front defence with 3 floors with functioning portcullis etc. Every floor connects other floors with proper stairs, all the support structures are there as you might suspect in real medieval castle. Fireplaces and chimneys are there etc - as with my engineer's neurotic precision. Every detail has a medieval counterpart somewhere in the world. The castle (or it's actually a keep) was presented in the Lego event on 2018.

On the following year my son asked me again: Dad, should we continue the castle this year - how about building surroundings. After 8 months of building I came up with 3 medieval 2-floor timber frame buildings with again interiors and a 3-floor medieval 13th century chapel. I moved the castle from the flat base plate on top of a hill and also started to do the build on moduverse units for compatibility with some Nordic LUGs. I presented this in Lego event on 2019. The size of the build is now 4x2 large base plates (roughly 51 cm x 110 cm). 

Here are all the photos from the castle: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmDR1Ztv

Here are all the photos of the village and the chapel: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmDR3Prw

Here are some photos of the castle (and the village) - much more through the links above:

Castle from 2018 state:

The large hall and keep captain's quarters upstairs.

Keep's captain's quarters.

Kitchen one floor down. Stairs visible up and down.

And Here are some on the village (market area):

Village well still separately. This photo ended up in to featured in the Blocks Magazine, which was fun as well.

"Prancing lion" pub. A local pub for local people. 

Barrel cart.

Pub from inside.

Bargaining about the sword on a market stall

Backside of the village. Chicken coop between the buildings.

A soldier slacking off.

Round chapel wall detail. Grave stones around the church yard.

Chapel altar. The knight holding his helmet in the Lords building.

Chapel frontside with a statue of Celebrimbor holding the one ring as a tribute for Tolkien and Lord Of The Rings.

 

 

Edited October 24, 2019 by twrHarri

[Littleworlds]

This looks very good. The detailing of the interiors and exterior is phantastic! Very busy, lived-in scenes. Something I like a lot. The only little criticism I have is that I wont have given the castle walls an overhang. But that's all really. Brilliant build all in all! 

[zoth33]

Very nice display.  The castle has some nice coloring to it.  I like how you used the castle wall pieces, looks good with the irregular walls.  The keep is quite tall.  Very nice interiors with some great details in there.  I like the altar in the chapel.  The landscaping has some nice elements with the pond and layering of the ground.  There is a lot of action going on to make the scene lively.  Well done.  

[RyszardBosiak]

Good piece of work, lots of good ideas in one big MOC. Very thought and consistency opus. I really like the shape of castle. It is hard to say what is my favourite part in that MOC :)

[Aine]

Very nice project!

[Louis of Nutwood]

Such an impressive work!

I can see how much effort and care you've put into your village. And I can totally relate to the drive of expanding it to a point of no return. 

I love the fact that this is not a massive creation, but a village that grew over time, still preserving a rather small scale to the constructions. I find it to be much more charismatic and beautiful in this size, as it is much closer to what a LEGO set would be.

The castle-keep has a very unique design to it. Very classical-fantasy. And the interior is beautifully decorated. The fact that you can access everything from anywhere is fantastic.

The village is splendid, and i think it is perceivable that it was more well planned (considering the pieces used, mainly for stone texturing and the flooring) than the first bit. Which is natural, once you've been through the learning process of the first build. The fact that each house has a unique architecture is awesome. The rockwork is fantastic and the color choices are perfect. Love the chimneys and the well, by the way. 

Finally the chapel is terrific! The interior is outstanding! Such a small space, with such personality. The roofing designs are also marvelous. And finally, the pond with hanging clothes and the cart are absolutely great additions. 

Personally, I'm working on a village as well - that just like yours, it has been expanding naturally for quite some time, and I can understand how challenging (and rewarding) it can be to ADD a plate or two into a "finished" build. 

Really inspiring work. Congrats on the build.
TRULY hope to see it expanding more. 

And finally: have you considered creating a story behind your village and townspeople? Maybe coming up with a name for the village and the background for one or two minifigs (a family dispute, or a love story?) can start another creative project for you and your kid(s). 

Keep it up, mate! Can't wait to see another plate next year.