Former Total Noob (now just noob) starts Castle Project

[derEselausErgste]

It's time for an update, and this time it will be real WiP - please prepare to be imaginative 

 

I made a start with the "inner castle", that will be a main part of the northern rampart. It is a small castle for it's own, with a tower called "keep" - without beeing a real keep, but who cares. We start with a birds eye look. Easy to see it is a total chaos right now. When fitted to the rest of the walls, the whole thing will be turned by some 45 to 66 degrees to the right. The castle itself is shaped as a rectangle, some 65cm wide and 45cm deep. At the moment I am using base plates, but i will change to normal plates, as base plates are always a pain to combine. 

Next a look from at the front - it will face to the south-east later on. The small tower in the middle is the gate house, as we can see at the following pic. The path leading to the gate (coming from left) is still missing. OK, honestly spoken nearly everything else is missing also at the moment. On the right side we can see the beginning of a tower, left from the gate house there is the base level of the future hall and kitchen building.

A look at the gate from what will be south afterwards. As we can see, horses will not be able to enter this part of the castle.

The look from the east. 

The last pic should grant the best overview. The gate house reaches 34cm at the moment, but the front facing buildings should come to a height of about 45cm, and the "keep" will be higher of course.

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Can You imagine how it will look like in the end? I cant 

Edited February 22, 2020 by derEselausErgste

[derEselausErgste]

As time goes by...the inner castle grows. I changed the design of the front battlement roof, and all in all it becomes bigger and bigger - much bigger than I planned in the beginning  

The small tudor building on the wall will be just a link between the building on the left (kitchen/hall/bower) and the tower to the right, so both parts will be higher than the tudor.

 

The western wing is new. It will contain the Kitchen, a hall (above) and the bowers (side wing to the front). Easy to see I "borrowed" the kitchen design from Soccerkid6 - lots of thanks to him. The arcades are a mostly 1:1-copy of his arcades at the "Cider Cellar MOC", the kitchen itself looks a lot like his "Harburg Kitchen MOC". I love both MOCs, indeed  Presently the tiler is at work, afterwards the stove fitter will start.
To the west the front will be covered with some battlements. 

The look from the back (north) shows total chaos right now. At the end of the kitchen (here: in front of the kitchen)  the keep will be founded.

A look from above. At least the keep has to be built as a seperate module, as the inner castle right now weighs 8kgs already and will easely reach some 15-17 kgs in the end. 

 

It is quite clear a will need some dedicated room for the castle as soon as possible. Thats no problem in general, but i will have to uninstall my model railway. Thats a pitty, but it is necessary. 

 

Edited March 20, 2020 by derEselausErgste

[legoMoccer]

coming along very nicely keep it up

[KotZ]

Looking good so far! I also am doing a WIP castle, so it's fun to see what you're doing and how we're differing. Good idea on using technic for the supports.

[soccerkid6]

It's coming along really well! The overall fortress layout looks very natural, and I like the civilian buildings you're starting to add.

One little technique I can't recall seeing before is where you used mixel joints as torch sconces

I'm honored to have inspired the kitchen area

[derEselausErgste]

Thank You all for your compliments!

 

@soccerkid6: You will not believe how many ideas I've already borrowed from You - or am planning to do so. Man, I think I spent houndreds of hours looking at Your tutorials at Brickbuilt, just awesome  the mixed joints are some kind of idea fall-out: I bought big amounts of them for a future forest section around the castle, and the mixed joints trees are - of course - also taken from You. The whole castle will be some kind of tribute to You in the end.

[derEselausErgste]

Today just a small handicraft. The hall above the kitchen will need some windows - not just open breakthroughs, but real windows with glas. I made some tests and finally decided for this design:

There is one small mistake: the middle traverse should end with one brick 49307 (Brick, Modified 1 x 1 x 2/3 No Studs, Curved Top), but presently I have this one only in lavender  - Bricklink will send help soon.

Ok, one more problem: easy to see the width of the wall / window is uneven, and as the windows should fit to the archs below, I will have to jumper the whole front (unless somebody has a better idea). But should work.

 

Edited March 29, 2020 by derEselausErgste

[DOOM!]

This is an amazing project to follow along with. Very cool to watch the progress and upgrades you've  made along the way. I have always wanted to do something like this but time and space are limited right now. Maybe in the future :)  Thank you for sharing, love what you've done, and can't  wait to see what's next..

[Sarophas]

ALTER SCHWEDE! I just read through 5 pages of this amazing progress and suddenly it ends?!

First I'd like to say that you have talent! As previously mentioned, your building style is not overly complicated but it works really well. Also your sense for detail and knowledge of all these quirky medieval building styles/techniques is really inspiring and looks very believable! :D

I'd also like to add that your way of documenting your building progress is great!

In the end, following your progress has had me glued to the screen for the past 2 hours, downloading multiple pictures and thirsting for more! O.O

P.S I noticed that it's been 6 months since the last update, is it because of the pandemic or is it continuing somewhere else? (Sorry, I'm still new here)

 

[jimmynick]

It's been a while since I've looked in on this topic and it's great  to see its progress. There are some really wonderful features such as the staircase climbing up the side of the wall but especially the curved roof over the brick kiln . Keep up the excellent work!

[Cyberfounder]

Yes, this is one I have been following for a while too. 

Certainly an interesting journey. Hoping there is more to come.

[derEselausErgste]

Goodness - 6 months gone and this lousy thread is still allive 

 

Thanks a lot for having a look Ladies and Gents! I beg Your pardon for being lost for so long. I started a new job in the first week of April, and I have been working since that without just one hour of spare time to think about my castle. But this will change. Presently I am moving to Berlin, an when this will be finished somewhere in the middle of October, there will be time and space for this project to go ahead. Especially space, as I will get some extra 25 square meters just for my Lego "business". I am sooo excited  

I will go on with the inner castle, thats for sure. This will have to be finished before I start something new - or before I will finish with the other sites that are still waiting for completion. If I stick to my plans, the inner castle can be finished somewhere around the end of January (can't You see I am crossing fingers?!). For this I will have to stock up supplies! I am short of nearly any kind of light bluish grey bricks (as always), and esp. on tiles for the floors. What I am not short of are minifigs, and perhaps I will go on with this thread by showing just some parts of the army the donkey is going to raise. Just to start over as soon as possible.

 

Many thanks to all of You for visiting - and of course for the commendations! The donkey is back and right on the starting blocks. You remember this song?

"Happy days are here again
The skies above are clear again
So let's sing a song of cheer again
Happy days are here again."

 

 

[Sarophas]

No pressure, but I'm counting the days until I see a new picture of your beautiful castle!

But maybe playing around with your army would be a nice "filler" until then. 

[BrickCommander9]

I really enjoy watching as this project grows. I am working on my own large castle project, and it is cool to see the build process of others. I can't wait to see your next update!

[derEselausErgste]

Dear Visitors,

time for an update - even if its not a lot.

I had to decide where to go on. As the inner castle is really a lot of work to be done, I thought it would be a nice idea to finish the gate house. The gate itself is done, but the side building (the "magazine") hasnt been more than just the foundations, so I started last weekend...

But first some changes on the small tower - still not exactly what I want, but far better than before

I will have to re-think again - but for the moment it should work.

 

Now, lets go on with the magazine. Lots of woodden stair and platforms, so there is not a lot space left for storage - but minifigs are not that hungry and demanding (hopefully).
The small place behind the gate needs to be modelized, but that will be something for the very end...around 2023?!

And YES - I still have no place for taking photos - I'm really sorry 

 

The outer walls. Just started with the roof - this has been the result of the passed weekend. And as the weather presently is all but nice, I decided to go on yesterday. So thats what was added yestersay:

Looks quite massive. The dormers seem to be a bit to large, i hope this will change a bit when the roof ridge will be done, otherwise...I dont have a clue what I will do otherwise 

The back - or the inner front - is still a scenery, but tomorrow evening it should be done. And I will be back soon - promise!

 

 

 

 

Edited May 23, 2021 by derEselausErgste

[Sarophas]

Finally! Every update is an inspiration to me, especially on how to piece together such a beast of a castle/fortress. Regarding the dormers, I don't know what you had in mind, but to me the size seems fitting Also the timber framed/tudor buildings really give a nice splash of color (and look awesome!). Something that you hinted at in an earlier update, was to make the bridge leading to the gatehouse cross a swamp (or swamp-like underground) which I think would look great, (imagine the contrast of a dark green swamp and the grey/red colors of the castle!). 

Now I'm just rambling, so I'll stop for now

I keep saying this, but I can't wait to see where this goes. I think you are doing an amazing job so far. Maybe the title should say "Former Noob (now adept) starts Castle Project"

[derEselausErgste]

Many thanks. The bridge...next site that needs my attention...

I would suggest "Giant noob that never gets done"...would fit perfectly 

[derEselausErgste]

I promised another update - here it is...

The gatehouse is done...more or less:

 

Whats next? I would have liked to build some Tudors - the castle needs some civil housing inside the walls. But the inner castle waits, and there is no sense starting a new site, as long as an old one is still pending.And as I am not yet through with the basic question: how will it look like??? - perhaps I can work on details. Todays work: the kitchen  ...of course still WiP...

The kitchen maid also serves as the castles ghost - at nighttime...she is well known as the "Heavenly blue Lady"...
What will happen to the chopped-of-fishhead? Just ask the rat thats lurking in the shades...

Now the kitchen ist near to be finished, it will be easier to go on with the inner castle itself...next weekend. Please stay tuned 

 

 

Edited May 24, 2021 by derEselausErgste

[jimmynick]

It continues to look fabulous. Well done for sticking with this project and good luck on the rest of the build!

[Sarophas]

Can't wait! Adding some civilian buildings will surely add a bunch of life to the build

[derEselausErgste]

You remember the module I called the "Guardshouse" (page 2 & 3)? I did not like it. To fat and clumsy, to much different roofs, without any elegance - just awfull. The small side tower - just ridiculous. 

So I decided I had to change the whole thing. Well, not the whole. I saved the front and the tower - the rest is completely new. Not perfect, thats for sure. But at least a lot better than the former design. Hopefully. The hole right from the big tower is still WiP, here the peasants gate will follow up. Not as heavily fortified as the main gate, this will work with everydays traffic. And the small tower will guard a second, simple gate, where customs will be collected. 

And as I still have time to spend, I think I will also make some changes to the "old Pallas"...lets see.

And as always: no details yet...will they ever follow...?

[zoth33]

Coming together nicely.  I do like this better than the previous iteration.  

[Sarophas]

I agree with @zoth33 this does indeed look better. I think that the big arches on the ground floor make for a lot of creative options, once you get to the detailing. It looks very welcoming and makes it easy to look inside (like the armor-stand/mannequin). Also the reinforcements/decorative stonework between the arches look great and help break up the walls in sections.

Once again a nice addition, keem 'em coming

[derEselausErgste]

As I mentioned, the old Pallas - the building I started with in the very beginning - also needs a rework. The style in total is to soft, the look is to clean, and the proportions are mostly unjoyjous. I wanted something to fit to the guards house, as both will form a small square. Here is the result:

https://www.office.com/launch/word?auth=2

The small side tower will offer access to the outer wall to come, as the old Pallas is definitely the part of the castle with the worst defensive potential.

I also decided for a major change: the tall owl tower in the middle of the castle front will be moved to the castle inside. This is just for the optics: presently the interiour buildings would be much smaller than the sorrounding walls and buildings. Moving the owl tower will offer a much more interesting silhouette, as well as it will subdivide the interiour into two parts. I am still thinking where to locate the tower exactly, but more or less it should look like this:

The owl tower will be replaced by battlements and a much smaller tower, covering the approach to the main gate. I just started with, perhaps You can imagine how it could look at the end:

Also this new tower offers a door to the outer wall...or will offer as soon as this wall will be finished.

 

P.S. making bad photos helps a lot to identify hidden corners with work still to do 

Edited June 20, 2021 by derEselausErgste

[Sarophas]

Just wow, the scale gets more and more impressive! Revisiting and changing your previous builds have payed off I'd say. How small do you plan to make the new tower? I'm thinking that a "bigger" tower would also look very impressive at the main gate, but I can also see your point of having the inner layer be taller (if that is what you meant?). In any case, I know you'll make it look amazing