The Slaughter at Sultan's Rock

[SkaForHire]

Today was a grave day. It is with a heavy heart that I, Petera MacLean, take on the role of First Lord of Eastgate. My brother Dugal has fallen in battle.

Below are an artist’s renderings of his final moments and the battle that consumed him.

DSC_1965 by skaforhire, on Flickr

From what we gather, this is what happened:

As you all know, Victor marches on Queenscross. To gather time and defenders, Dugal and about 150 men have been raiding parts of Victor’s armies that slowly march towards the city. They have to stay spread out so that they can forage for food, and this makes it easier for Dugal’s smaller army to find and pick of stragglers. There have been many successful sorties in the last few weeks, and they even killed one of the army’s generals. However, fortune ran out today.

DSC_2002 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Before each sortie, a scouting party goes out and gathers intelligence. This morning one of our scouts, an Avalonian by the name of Dravis, returned with a report that said that Victor’s forces had split into three parts and two were heading in different directions now, while the first force of only about 150 men were still heading to Queenscross. Dugal decided not to rally the forces for a direct battle with this smaller army, but to go on a second advanced scouting mission, taking many of his bodyguards, including my personal bodyguard, Cannondale, and a small amount of scouts. They followed the Avalonian to a place called Sultan’s Rock, a small bluff that our army has been using as a lookout point.

DSC_1997 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Dugal gave the men a rest and waited for a report from one of his other scouts. Meanwhile, Dravis told them all about the amazing things he had seen, and how now is the time to strike.

When the scout came back and reported, he bowed and was about to tell Dugal and urgent message when a body fell from the bluff next to where the leaders were gathered. Everyone turned to see what happened, and a few ran to aid the man. It was for not, as the man was dead when he fell from the cliff.

DSC_2009 by skaforhire, on Flickr

In that moment of surprise and distraction, Dravis plunged his spear through Dugal’s back, mortally wounding him.

DSC_2008 by skaforhire, on Flickr

DSC_2010 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Dugal’s men had no time to consider what was happening, because they were swarmed from all sides by Hand of Corruption soldiers.

DSC_1986 by skaforhire, on Flickr

DSC_1985 by skaforhire, on Flickr

(Cannondale delivers death.)

DSC_1977 by skaforhire, on Flickr

DSC_1992 by skaforhire, on Flickr

(Keeping tabs on the murderer, unfortunately, someone slit his throat during battle, so we may never know what the plot is.)

DSC_1996 by skaforhire, on Flickr

The fighting was intense, and many of our men died.

DSC_2011 by skaforhire, on Flickr

I now will send a new General to Queenscross to lead the battle, I fear Dugal's second in command, my younger brother Paulos would be ill fit for this position. May Dugal find peace in the afterlife.

------

The original idea for this build was to make a painting setup like Benjamin West's Death of General Wolfe (1770), which I have always loved. It did not turn out the same, but I think I got the essence:

DSC_1982 by skaforhire, on Flickr

[Kayne]

A sad day indeed. As Kha and Saladus are currently on a mission of blood vengeance, we will certainly be sure to deliver extra death for this

[Maxim I]

Those puny bloody Avalonian bastards!! Never trust them, too bad it's is a fault I gonna make too in Chal VI (lucky for me, I will not die)

We will remember every year the death of this hero!

Sir Freh Poah (second in command of the I.A.M.S.), who became good friends with Dugal in the time he was a resident of Everlast, ordered some of his members to gather as much information as possible about the whole case in order to punish he who is responsible for this treachery! Even if that means we have to folter interrogate the whole family of that Avalonian idiot!

Edit, I was so caught in the emotions that I forget to praise this scene

A lot of very well executed activities going on here! Also great how you made the vegetation in colours that fit a desert very well

And that last picture is epic!

Edited February 5, 2013 by DaMaximus

[Captain BeerBeard]

Ska, you've been here for a long time. So, I have only criticism to offer here. The dark tan layer of earth should be lower than the sand layer. Your elevation of the hill should have a bit more slope pieces coming out at us to create a more natural flow of elevation. The altbricks parts look really bad. The brown stems stick out really bad with their direction change. They don't match well with real LEGO. You could have added a bit more to your sandy terrian by changing the ground levels up a bit.

[ZCerberus]

Some good points Beerbeard. In a sandy environment, the terrain looks a bit boring without more elevation and the like. Moving the dark tan layer down and mixing up the elevation could help that out some. The trees do look a bit short, and where are the palm trees? I guess I am not a desert tree expert or anything, just curious.

I like all the action and how you posed the figures.

The pictures are also very clear and in focus, good work there.

I would also recommend cropping some of the photos though. The third picture especially.

Looks like the Hand of Corruption is everywhere! We better prepare for war!

[Maxim I]

Those treehugging Avalonians... We are still in a desert, so trees are never big in here... And palmtrees are only in areas with water.

Also about the dark tan layer above the normal tan. If you put: desert cliff in google, there are a lot of pictures where there is a darker layer above a lighter layer:

It just all depends on what picture you base a MOC on.

[Captain BeerBeard]

Fresh layers of sand would be more common. Those pictures of millions of years of where water used to cover American deseret are pointless. GoH is fantasy based. We don't build from reference from the last billion years of our earth.

[Kai NRG]

Actually I don't think it makes too much difference where you put the dark tan. I'd just suggest you combine the two a bit more; since you're near the great escarpment I'd expect canyon like layers and, as has been pointed out, it's not always darker on the bottom, it depends on how the water layered it as it came down, water pressure converting it into rock, etc. How was the Great escarpment created anyways?

You've got some good action and fig posing in the MOC, especially great how you took the time to set up different scenes. Using the sleepyhead face for Dugal especially worked well! If you did have more tan plates they could create some nice texture, but that could well not be an option. And in story, this is very sad news, the suspense you've set up is great though! Especially interesting the difference between Dugal's letter and Petera's portrayal here of the event. At what point did Dugal write the letter though? He writes as though already wounded, but by the looks of it he didn't have time...

The top trees look good sans figs, but when you add the figs on the top it does bring their height more into contrast. Not a big deal though, I think.

[TenorPenny]

Great use of the new dark red leaves pieces..!

[gedren_y]

Kia, I believe the letter from Dugal was supposed to have been written before this battle. It's about what to do in the event of his demise.

The build as it stands works for where and what it is supposed to be. Yes, Altbricks aren't an exact match to Lego, but then if they were a law suit might be the result. Lego patents its designs, so some small deviation is neccessary.

[soccerkid6]

Revolword is starting to get me riled what with destroying Ondylion and famous knights falling left and right

Who is your character going to be now?

[SkaForHire]

So..... I wrote out a long post and it did not seem to post. It had all kinds of things about the history of that tree and junk. Not going to do that again and have it disappear.

Anyway, Thank you for the criticism. It has already been mentioned that the dark band isn't always at the bottom, and in fact, with moisture in the soil on higher plateaus often the top area looks darker. Also, the logic that this is a fantasy world, and that we shouldn't base its geology off of the Earth's past, can be turned back around with the fact that it is a fantasy world, so why couldn't it be that way? I do wish that I had the orange / tan color en mass, so that I could have another band. I just didn't have more slopes to make the rock formation look jagged, but I think it does OK as a smooth formation, which does exist.

One thing that I think I misinterpreted here was the perceived height of Sultan's rock -- It is not supposed to be part of the escarpment like my tower (see sig) It is actually only supposed to be less than 10 meters high -- a small butte or plateau. The trees are supposed to be small, maybe 10ft tall ashes. Also, those Blood Ashes are bad luck for a Kaliphlinite - because they grow where no water is seen, and they provide little shade, and no water within their trunk, they are usually taken as a bad omen. (that little bit is for Mikel and his guide.)

what else did I write... Oh, as for the altbrick parts, I think that is a matter of opinion, I don't think they look less quality than Lego, just come in different colors. But, I have sympathy for CBB's opinion, as I used to absolutely despise third party and aftermarket bricks on principle.

Oh... and for the terrain, I think that these desert scenes are the most difficult of the terrains we have, with current piece inventory available, it is hard to really vary things up. One could vary the elevation to create some diversity, but that takes money, extra time to plan and execute, and really is about the same every time with just different hill formations. We can throw in some limited vegetation, but putting in a bunch of trees or rivers or bushes isn't normally an option.

Ugh... don't really remember the rest I typed.

Thank you everyone for your comments, and I hope you enjoy the story so far.

[Mike S]

The trees are supposed to be small, maybe 10ft tall ashes. Also, those Blood Ashes are bad luck for a Kaliphlinite - because they grow where no water is seen, and they provide little shade, and no water within their trunk, they are usually taken as a bad omen. (that little bit is for Mikel and his guide.)

Cool, more info for the guide! I'll copy and paste that to my guide file later. I really need to update that, but with my builds I haven't had the time. Once I get a major portion of my planned builds finished, I think I will take a break from building and work on the guide which is pretty much just photography and typing... and maybe by that time my outdoor photoshop will be ready which will make the photography so much less a chore..

I really don't have any complaints about the MOC, your style seems to gear more toward storytelling than elaborate MOCing and that is fine with me. The figure posing and expression on this was done well.

[kabel]

i actually like your story telling beside the fact that yet another hero has been killed. As for the rock formation, with the bricks I see that you've got I'd recommend you try some vertical rock building as I did in my ambush moc and Z actually before me in his challenge V entry. I do know though, that you don't like it. However, if you want to go for geological accuracy, do to erosion desert rocks often come in vertical bands, as can be seen in the pics posted above!

[SkaForHire]

Cool, more info for the guide! I'll copy and paste that to my guide file later. I really need to update that, but with my builds I haven't had the time. Once I get a major portion of my planned builds finished, I think I will take a break from building and work on the guide which is pretty much just photography and typing... and maybe by that time my outdoor photoshop will be ready which will make the photography so much less a chore..

I really don't have any complaints about the MOC, your style seems to gear more toward storytelling than elaborate MOCing and that is fine with me. The figure posing and expression on this was done well.

I really need to build a photobox, but I like big scenes, so that may be a problem. I know, the most elaborate I have really done is the Embassy, which was fun, but something I can't always do. I am a horrible piece sorter which is part of the problem.

i actually like your story telling beside the fact that yet another hero has been killed. As for the rock formation, with the bricks I see that you've got I'd recommend you try some vertical rock building as I did in my ambush moc and Z actually before me in his challenge V entry. I do know though, that you don't like it. However, if you want to go for geological accuracy, do to erosion desert rocks often come in vertical bands, as can be seen in the pics posted above!

Yeah, I was thinking about the vertical bands while disassembling part of the MOC today. Haha, my distaste for vertical building and tiles is becoming famous! No, you are right though, if I had more headlight pieces or pieces with side studs (what are those usually called on Bricklink?) I think I would attempt it more. Yours was so nicely done.

Edited February 5, 2013 by SkaForHire

[kabel]

I know about your distaste because you acutally claimed so in the discussion about my moc. However, I think I didn't use more than 10 or so headlight bricks. Technic bricks with the pin also do the job.

[Scarst]

*From the Hand of Sergio Jarrett to Paulos MacLean*

I regret to inform you of your eldest brothers death during an ambush at Sultan Rock, As we were marching following the lead Dravis had informed us of the scout that had been sent out met up with us but before words could be exchanged a loud crashing was heard near the middle of our caravan and with a thud a body fell face first into the sand. As we rushed to it Dugal let out a cry when I turned around I saw Dravis running him through with a spear that seemed to radiate power and The golden axe of Eastgate falling from your brothers hands.

It seems that his death was the signal for an even larger plan as only seconds later we were beset by hordes of hell spawn led by a woman in the finest purple silken cloth and what looked to be some of the finest crafted armor I've seen. She was commanding her Flank from the rear and not one of the men seemed to pay her mind almost as if she were invisible, guarded by the brutish beasts that i've come to learn are called Orcs from my stay with the Eastgate Company and their own allies one of which being an exceptional being of rather decent morals that goes by Florbad, a being so loyal and devoted I sometimes question his heritage.

The battle was quick and I was slow into it, I'm ashamed to say my reflexes lacked this day, with the enemy coming from the high ground and our lack of preparation we were sorely at a disadvantage we'd have been completely overran were it not for the stalward defense of Dugal's eternally loyal men. The beasts descended upon us like rabid wolves and showed no signs of thought other than to kill us. The troops that paniced were quickly dead leaving us to defend an unlikely position right under our enemy by all rights we should be dead. With little chance and of survival those who remained fought with all they had fueled by what i can only imagine was the rage I felt in the pit of my stomach.

Florbad charged into there flank with abandon tearing asunder their forces and ripping off the limbs of the smallers ones. His ferocity and rage seemed unending but I was quickly turned away from observance to deal with my own fight myself almost being beheaded before a guard who's name I learned was Ali'Jih a man of great prowess and devotion he saved many lives today by throwing himself infront of attacks and turning the tides on many of the assailants that would have defiled your brothers body. As the mongrels continued over the bluff my servant lost track of his duty to keep Dravis detained only to find his body moments later throat slit and one of the hands of corruption fleeing the area, only moments later the enemies retreated as fast as they had appeared leaving us with many wounded and dead, where they could have easily finished us off we live to carry on.

(Florbads Ferocious charge)

(Ali'Jih's Defense)

It is because of their retreat dispite their overwhelming momentum of force that I believe we were not the targets but the disposal of Dravis, upon our regrouping it was found that both the spear that'd run your brother through and the Golden Axe of Eastgate have disappeared, I can only imagine they were taken by the filthy horde that set upon us. I've also been informed by your brother Petera that my contract with the eastgate company has been ended I will continue with the envoy until we meet up with a caravan heading north to Midgard, with the loss of forces I can't help but grow more suspicious of Petera's actions of late. I unfortunately can't stay on while not being provided with necessities needed so I fear I must abide by this dismissal of services, it has been an honor working for the Eastgate Company.

~Sergio Jarrett

[Maxim I]

That was an other epic way to describe the battle Scarst!!

I hope that those who have to secure Paulos, will find him in time! Like I said earlier, the I.A.M.S. will send some of their best members to help them!!

[NiceMarmot]

Oh dear. Sorry to hear about Dugal. This is bad news indeed.

Great action scenes, and good posing. I agree, the sleepyhead face on Dugal is perfect. The altbricks plants don't bother me at all; I think they fit in well. The sand could be a bit more textured, and Sultan's Rock could be a bit less regular in its slopes, but that's probably due to the bricks you have or the time available. We're all pressed for time here to get multiple MOCs to support our challenge entries.

[SkaForHire]

Some of this has been brainstorming MOCs to see what I want to do for my other two builds. I have the interior planned, but the two other builds are still up in the air. Good to put brick to baseplate and sort out one's thoughts.