LucasLaughing

Cool structure - I like the grey sculpture on the roof and the way the roof curves. Normally I try to use either curves or slopes, but I think the inverse slopes on your columns work really well with the roof. I do feel like the front of the building doesn't quite fit with the rest of it. I'd almost suggest cutting the front off, and just leaving the rear part with the columns: I'd also add a little elevation to the courtyard - having the DBG and blue 2x2 tiles raised up by a plate or two would add a bit more texture. I like it overall, though! It manages to look sci-fi without losing the feel of an old/classic structure, and your writing and story continue to be great. Careful ... @BEAVeR once thought as you do. No one has heard from him in quite some time ...

Correct, the 100 studs refers to total length or width, not surface area.

According to the core rules topic, the freebuild count resets after each episode concludes. I'm not sure we've actually been tracking it all that closely, and I realized after looking it up that I've probably been labeling my freebuilds incorrectly... I'd say go ahead and post your planned freebuild(s) and if it looks like you'll have more than 4 for the current episode you can always throw yourself at the mercy of the judges We want to give people a lot of creative freedom when it comes to ship choice/design, so if you can justify it with your story (and it's not too outrageous, like a stolen Millennium Falcon) we'll be fine with it.

Here's a very late comment (to go with our late freebuild judging)! I agree with Cody - your writing and story are great; they really give us a feel for what kind of officer Kodan is. I like the low ceilinged corridor - it feels very imperial, but still has enough details to be interesting. I also like the curved bits in the second scene. My only feedback is in the second scene it might have worked better to have the wall details/greebles on the upper floor, since the troops on the ground floor are kind of competing with the detailed wall so it feels a little bit cluttered (IMO). Great scenes overall, though!

Thanks Jannik! I've been trying to plan my builds with photography in mind, to make it easier to get interior shots. Thank you Cody! I'd intended to go the lazy route, but I kept expanding the ship in order to get the shots that I wanted. I really liked Karen Traviss' Republic Commando series (and am impressed that you recognized it by the Mando'a - you really know your EU ) - were you not a fan of the clone personalities, or how they portrayed the jedi? 2B's arm came in a handful of sets a few years ago, but it doesn't look too expensive on bricklink.

Vode An: Mando'a - "Brothers All" This build takes place immediately after my last freebuild, Recognition. Grace’s men, gruffly introduced as "Maze" and "Kom'rk," ranks unknown, lead us to a small shuttle in hanger 10. It's just a little run-about by the look of it, but knowing the ISB it’s probably stuffed with all sorts of hidden weaponry and systems. We follow Maze onto the shuttle. Excuse me? I have a name. You'll have to forgive Maze; he suffers from a terminal lack of charm. I’m afraid you’re not cleared to know our destination yet, so you’ll have to ride cargo class for now. What's that noise? It sounds like ... a broken toaster. It's as if you don't realize the fragility of your fleshy body. Anytime you wanna try it, clanks, be my guest. Savages. The droid turns to face us, as Kom'rk disappears into the cockpit. Oh! Where are my manners? Hah, I guess whoever named you was a fan of the galactic bard. A fan of the galactic … ah, you jest. I shall laugh. Ha HAH ha. I'm sensing some kind of dumb nicknames pattern... An understandable mistake, but we arrived by our nicknames in different ways. When I first became self aware, I chose my name to remind me of the mortality of all non-droid beings. Nice... Mister Kirana's nickname, on the other hand, is an acronym. "TB" stands for ... Tank Bait? He attacked it, single handedly, with a light rifle, to draw fire away from my mistress. In my defense, I figured it either worked and I died a hero... I didn’t think I’d have the dumb luck to live through it and have to explain myself afterwards. It’s a strange thing, 2B. I’d never root for the rebels, but... But? But if some tank commander had been just a little bit better at his job, this jackass wouldn’t have made it to Commenor to screw up my life. Best not to think of these things, miss. The chains of causality are long and tangled. Why, when I was a young - Mercifully, the cockpit door opens before 2B can unleash any more philosophy. We're past port security and we'll be jumping shortly. Try not to lean on any boxes with the red warning tags, eh? Aye aye. I had a feeling something like this was coming. I'm not sure if he's testing me, or if I just rub him the wrong way. Then we'd best find somewhere quiet to sort it out. Look, di'kut, you got a death wish? Fine. I don’t need her pissed off at me.

Thanks Cody! Your comments are always appreciated, and I'm glad at least some people are reading my (sometimes overly long) stories Thanks Kodan - I've been collecting for a while, so I do have a nice assortment of minifigs to work with. Thank you! I was an english major, so it's good to finally put my education to work Thanks!

Note - this build takes place immediately after my Episode XIV build. Saleucami Spaceport Too many people – way too many people here, I’m a sitting nuna, what the hell was Grace thinking, making me wait here in the open? Okay – calm down. If Grace thought the ISB was actively looking for me, she would have picked a better RV – she’s not stupid. Just need to relax, blend in, put a dumb smile on my face like I’m a normal civilian. That’s right, ignore me, I’m just your average ignorant yokel. What Galactic war? Huh? What’s for lunch? There, I make a great civilian. You make a lousy civilian. You need to slouch more. Tyria, what are you doing here? Same thing as you, obviously. Tyria and I had gotten off to a rough start. An ace TIE pilot, she'd been called in on her day off to fly me around Commenor, looking for fugitive ISB agent Goatm An. That flight came to an abrupt end when unknown Imperial forces tried to shoot us down, and after we'd escaped I had a flashback and tried to disarm her. We came to an understanding during our couple of days hiding out on Kuat, though. And by “understanding,” I mean that I apologized profusely and repeatedly, and she promised not to shoot me again unless it was absolutely necessary. Not sure why your friend picked such a crappy planet for the meet, though. Probably because this is my home planet, so I was already here for a visit. Oh. Oops. So, how was your visit? Ok, I guess. I mistook a thunderstorm for incoming – it got a little hectic. I hear that. I’ve been in lockup the past three days. What for? Got into a fight with a constable about whether traffic laws apply to me. Why wouldn’t they? <shrug> ‘Cause I’m really good at flying and – what wrong? I hear the distinctive march of stormtrooper boots a few seconds before they come around the corner. For an instant, I see the troopers the way others must see them. The way others must see me. Skull-like mask, empty eyes, unknowable and unstoppable. Then the moment passes, and I notice all the other details. Lazy formation. Dirty weapons. Half alert, at best. It’s a good thing they’re not here for me – I could draw my blaster and drop at least 2 of them before they got a shot off. They’re not here for me, though. Looks like an escort for some banking clan bigwig. Probably a good call; people here don’t have fond memories of the separatists. One of the first lessons I learned in SpecOps was not to look where everyone else is looking – if something is causing a scene, assume it’s an intentional distraction. The stormtroopers probably aren’t a staged scene but they’re a distraction all the same, so while all other eyes are on the troopers bullying their way down the hall I spot the real danger, gliding through the crowd behind them. It’s nothing a civilian would have spotted. Just two men dressed as mechanics with no visible weapons, but there’s something about them – the way they move, maybe, and the way they scan the hallway – that makes it clear what these men are. They’re killers. Just like me. They notice me at the same time I see them and I tense, waiting for a sign. A gesture from one to the other, or a casual drifting apart, something to indicate that they’re about to draw the weapons I’m sure they’re carrying. Instead, the one with long hair moves his hands away from his sides – just a few inches – and goes back to scanning the crowd. The other one, carrying what looks to be a tool case, nods once without looking at me. Heard you’ve got a mynock problem. I relax a bit more. It’s the recognition code Grace gave us. I’ve got three in the airlock – can you take a look? I can spare a minute. Ship's transponder? Zulu eight four kilo whiskey. Alright, let's go.

Hey Logitaet, welcome to Eurobricks! No worries about your english - it seems fine to me For the images, from the picload.org photo page I right clicked "open image in new tab" (so you get something like img2 . picload.org / etc etc .jpg) then pasted that URL here. Then if you hold "control" and right click on the pasted image, it gives you image options and you can resize it to something smaller. You might also sign up for flickr, as they make it easier to upload different sizes. Your shuttle looks good - it seems like a mix between 'playset' and 'UCS' as far as size and detail. The wings seem a little small in proportion to the body, but since you said weight is already an issue I can see why you wouldn't want to make them bigger. Here are a few of your pics - you can edit your post and see if you can add the rest using the method I mentioned.

This was a tough choice! I vote for #9 and #13

I actually just used a picture from brickipedia, so I guess we could ret-con it to be either you, Vaderfan or a nameless thankless officer of the fleet

Doing my part to get us up to 10 entries! The serpent and the bird

On a small planet, in the far edge of the outer rim, a group of Nediji mercenaries looking to make a name for themselves have seized an important tibanna gas refining facility. Imperial ground forces have assaulted the facility twice – and twice have been beaten back. The Empire would prefer to keep the facility, and its gas, intact, so rather than ordering a TIE Bomber strike, the sector governor requests the help of master tactician Grand Admiral Thrawn. Tell me captain, are you familiar with the Nediji species? No … Thrawn: I am not surprised; they rarely stray too far from their home system. Captain: Well, they seem to have strayed this time. Sir. Thrawn: So they have, Captain. The Nediji are a fascinating species. They are avian, and although they are no longer capable of true flight, they are astonishing jumpers and use their wings to glide great distances. They hunted every other flying predator on their planet to extinction thousands of years ago – and most of the land based ones as well. But there is one adversary they have never been able to defeat. Thrawn: This is a replica of one of the oldest known works of Nediji art – it depicts an unnamed hero, capturing a serpent in its talons. A serpent, the ancient enemy, who slithers into the nest at night to take the eggs. The Nediji have been fighting this battle since the dawn of their species. The message of this piece is clear, but look – see how detailed the snake carving is. The Nediji hate the serpent, but they also know him intimately. Thrawn: Here, we have another telling look into their psychology. Most primitive species create gods in their own images, and most of them create devils in their images as well. True, the devil figure is often a grotesque caricature of the species, but the species is almost always recognizable behind the mask. Not the Nediji, though. Their devil is a serpent, through and through. Thrawn: Finally, lest we think that this obsession lies solely in the past: a few years ago there was a Nediji film maker who saw some success making holofilms for human audiences. Her first hit was a monster holo. And her imagined monster? Not some winged beast. Not a tentacled space alien. The same ancient enemy. This is all very fascinating, Grand Admiral, but I fail to see what it has to do with our current situation. Thrawn: You fail to see, and that is why you fail militarily. Of course the Nediji defeated your ground troops. They have spent the last several millennia fighting, fearing, and studying the serpent. The serpent that slithers on the ground, and is killed from a perch. The Nediji are unprepared for an enemy that flies as well as they do. Send in your jump troopers. Have them deploy from a drop ship at medium altitude and attack the facility from above. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sir, we’ve defeated nearly all the mercenaries. A few are making a “last stand” at the top of the refinery, but our second wave of jump troopers are 30 seconds out. Our ground troops just landed unopposed on the beach, and have started clearing the refinery's interior. We’ll have control of the facility shortly.

Two minutes have elapsed my Lord – his fleet is being obliterated, but still Prince Xizor remains silent...! Carry out my orders, Commander. Destroy the skyhook. Thanks to @Cody Startale for letting me use / edit his Skyhook picture for this shot! It was a fierce battle, with Black Sun fighting for their very survival, but in the end they could not withstand the combined forces of the Rebellion and the Empire. The Imperial forces dominated the scene, winning the Location Point bonus in all three sectors (Skyhook was very close, with Commander Beltar's 16.7 narrowly beating Cody Startale's 16.5). Sector Empire Rebellion Black Sun Sewers 6 (3 + bonus 3) 0 2 Palace 6 (3 +bonus 3) 2 1 Skyhook 5 (2 +bonus 3) 2 1 All builds earned a score between 1 and 10; the top 3 builds moved on to the second stage where they earned up to 10 more points. The final scores are: Skyhook Commander Beltar 17 Skyhook Cody Startale 17 Sewers LucasLaughing 16 Palace Merc4Hire 8 Palace Bregir 7 Palace Gubi0222 7 Palace Ryn 7 Sewers Professor Thaum 7 Skyhook Goatman461 7 Skyhook MKJoshA 7 Palace Kodan Black 6 Sewers Mediumsnowman 6 Skyhook VaderFan2187 5 Sewers Tariq J 4 Palace BrickmasterBen11 3 Sewers Brickwolf 3 The Imperial and Rebel teams will share control of Coruscant (for freebuilds), and each team may choose one unclaimed planet to be seized from Black Sun's control. Special thanks for @Bregir for helping to coordinate our first cross-RPG collaboration, and big thanks to @Professor Thaum and @mediumsnowman for joining us for this episode. We hope to continue to expand and grow this collaboration moving forward, so you may be called to sail with the Brethren of the Brick Seas at some point in the future. When that happens, we'll post an announcement on the SoNE forum. Black Sun has been defeated, but a final showdown between the Rebellion and the Empire still looms on the horizon. While you're waiting for the next SoNE episode, you should head over to Watto's Junkyard to check out the Thrawn Contest. The deadline is June 17th, and there are some awesome LEGO prizes up for grabs!

LOL, I just now spotted the fuel tank theme I saw the Octan one right away, but I figured they were just doing some cross universe expansion...

Sure, go for it!

I think you maybe got mixed up on the date line? If you look at a time zone map, the last place it was June 3rd was Baker Island, which is 5 hours behind US Pacific Standard Time, so the absolute deadline for the contest would have been 5am on Sunday the 4th (Pacific Time). If you're in the USA, most of the rest of the world is a day ahead of us, not behind. We should be able to count your build as a freebuild, so you'll still get some XP from it.

Hah, we're in the same boat, story-wise I like the Coruscant gunship - the color scheme works well, and I like that it's a little longer than the original. The Star Viper looks good - I think those Nexo Knight (?) slopes work well for that weirdly angled cockpit. The back seems a little square to me - I think the engines should stick out a bit more, but I'm guessing I only noticed because I spent so long staring at Star Vipers for that "mystery part" build a few episodes back...

Interesting architecture (in a good way) - it definitely feels like some kind of utility area that would be found in a large palace, and it looks like there are plenty of places for an ambush. Great story as well.

Wow. Amazing work here, Beltar - I feel like this is really using LDD to it's full potential. The skyhook is beautiful - very imposing looking, and I think you strike a nice balance between greebles and smooth bits. The micro Star Vipers are great, and I love the shots where the huge swarm of TIEs is approaching the battle. re: spoilers, I usually put an extra line above and below whatever I want to be in the spoiler, then highlight the whole thing and use the 'spoiler' button in the editor... you might have tried that already, but that's what works for me.

I believe this build came in after the contest deadline, but you've still got some great details. I really like the leaking pipe, and the floor sloping down to the dark green sewage works well.

Cool little tunnel - I like the details on the roof. I think another color might have worked better for the floor, but I suppose alien excrement could come in red and blue

This turned out really well! Great action shots, and I really like the last two pics, where the rebels are down. Thanks for joining us for this episode!

That's a pretty excellent ISB capital ship! The overall shape is good, and I like the shield generators and the red viewport of the bridge. The individual greebling bits on top are great, but I think it does make it a little too obvious that you're just repeating the same thing over and over. I think if you had a few more greeble "sections," and maybe randomly rotated them, it would go a long way (same with the side greebles). I like how the LBG spine on the bottom has the little orange plates for texture - I'd recommend doing something similar for the dorsal spine, and maybe add some headlight bricks with tiles, just to break up the flatness a bit. Overall, I think this is your best MOC so far - keep up the good work!

I like it! I'm not 100% sold on the tan, but I think the architectural style works well for a palace interior. I really like the sand blue floor pattern with the hookah (?) on it - it's a cool design, and the stairs leading down to it give the room a really nice flow.