[MOC WIP] Horgaard Hall

[Aurore]

Introduction : Sigrid's journal

"We were called to a meeting with the other village leaders yesterday. Jarl Elisif wanted us all to know about the victory at the Enchanted Forest.
Of course, the word had already spread, and everyone was already talking about how Jarl Thimolir's bear cavalry saved the day.

After months of tensions, even the most ardent sceptics now seem to veer to the side of the Queen.
And that's great news. Instead of worrying about a possible war, we can now hope for peace. Instead of focusing on arming and training our people, I can now step back and also plan for the long term.

It's time to rebuild Horgaard."

In order to assist my sigfig's efforts to rebuild her village, I'm going to build a mead hall.
And given that this is the first time I'll build such a MOC, I expect a lot of thinking, a lot of trial and error, and a lot of time.

During the months by the housewarming hallwarming party, here is the thread where I'll track the progress of the construction and all the thinking behind. 

History

Chapter 1. What could it look like?
Chapter 2. Of roofs and doors
Chapter 3. Woodworking
Chapter 4. Construction delays

Current state

 

Edited January 23, 2021 by Aurore

[Aurore]

Chapter 1 - What could it look like?
Next

OK, so I want to build a mead hall.
Which means a place to hold hearings, and formally receive visitors. And also a place for all villagers to gather and feast for weddings, victories, or any other pretext they can find.
Thus it should be a rather large and dignified building - but neither too large nor too dignified, as Horgaard is just a small village. And, being in Mitgardia, it should feature a distinctively norse-inspired architecture.

But just saying that doesn't really help me picture it more precisely.
Fortunately, norse-inspired fantasy visuals are everywhere. A mere google search returns dozens of different mead hall styles, ranging from simple longhouses to elaborate stave church lookalikes.
So I gathered inspirational pictures in an ArtStation collection, and tried to identify the color palette I'll go for and sketch a few architectural elements.

Edited February 15, 2020 by Aurore

[The Stad]

This is so cool! I love that you’re already sketching out ideas/details/color palettes and figuring out how you want it to come together. The not is an especially nice touch.

 

Regarding size/scale, I think some important questions to ask yourself are, firstly, are you building your world in LEGO set scale, or more of a true model scale? Secondly, what separate spaces need to be present? Is this also the Jarl’s residence? Is there an attached kitchen and larder? How many figures does each space need to accommodate, and is it with real-world proxemics, or LEGOfied? You could have wildly different outcomes based on the scale alone.

Can’t wait to see where this goes!

[Kai NRG]

Very cool idea to present the process this way!  I'm going to enjoy keeping up! 

[Grover]

I really like how you are laying out the colors and ideas.  I always wondered how others did this, and you have a great sense of color and style.  Very artistic!  I look forward to seeing the progress of the mead hall.

[Eoin Wallace]

Great idea and thanks for sharing your process! it's looking great so far, especially the banner. I can't wait for the next one!

[zoth33]

Nice idea.  Your builds are fun and very creative.  Look forward to seeing your future builds.  

[Aurore]

@The Stad Thank you very much for all those point to think about!  I have thought of the overall appearance and use of the hall, but a more precise idea of its functions will indeed be necessary to plan the spaces. Your comment about scale and proxemics is very thought-proviking too - I never asked myself such a question, and the answer seems to be quite complex given the discussions on this topic. 

@Kai NRG, @Grover, @Eoin Wallace and @zoth33, thank you very much for your support. I hope you'll enjoy the process!

[Aurore]

Chapter 2 - Of roofs and doors
Previous | Next

The building of Horgaard Hall is going on - sowly, but steadily. 
While the issue of the scale and size of the whole building is not yet completely solved, I focused on the porch and entryway to clarify my ideas.
And by doing so, I had to face two design challenges : the border of the roof, and the entry doors.

I really like "wedged" roofs. But building a nice border for such a roof is not exactly easy! 
After many trials and errors (and at least two coffees), I ended up with a rather satisfyign design - except from that pesky little gap in the middle of the rake.
We'll see how it looks like with the definitive colors when my huge order of tiles, wedges and plates arrives.

I had never built a functioning LEGO door before. 
But eventually, it was easier than I thought : after an interesting self-interrogation on whether the doors should open outwards (like modern-day public buildings doors) or inwards (like medieval defensive doors), I sketched a few designs, read some online tutorials, and voilà!
Functioning hall doors. 
With pesky little gaps above and below. 

Edited April 28, 2020 by Aurore

[Kai NRG]

Ah yes, doors... you should have gone for an even number of studs if you didn't want gaps.   Another way to avoid that is to make the doors close behind the wall - handy if you want an arch.  Nice way to attach them though, good solution to center them relative to the gap.  And speaking of the gap, it's probably period appropriate.

Very nice roof!

[The Reader]

@AuroreGreat! I like the design of the roof and the door.

P.S.: The 1x2 tile with the "building instruction" is on my Bricklink-wanted list, too.

[Grover]

Well done!  I think making functional brick built doors is one of the trickier propositions in Lego building and yours look very good!

[Aurore]

@Kai NRG Thank you very much for the advice! I'll take that into account to change the design of the doors.

@The Reader Thank you! I have to admit that little tile is one of my favourite printed elements. It's so versatile!

@Grover Thank you very much!

[zoth33]

Looks great so far.  Both the door and the roof are very detailed and have some nice intricate patterns.  Good work.  

[Aurore]

@zoth33 Thank you very much! 

[(Luc)ky Luke]

This looks very promising! Good work!

[Aurore]

@(Luc)ky Luke Thank you very much! 

[adde51]

Lovely colourscheme and some really nice shapes and details. Great job!

[Louis of Nutwood]

This is absurd, Aurore. 

The color scheme is perfect, but the addition of the celtic knot and the carved dragon head above the entrance are absolutely fabulous.

Great to see the architect and her companion on duty.

Can't wait to see the final result. 

[Aurore]

@adde51 Thank you very much!

@Louis of Nutwood Thank you so much! The hall has not evolved much since those photos - I just finished the entrance roof. 

Edited April 28, 2020 by Aurore

[Aurore]

Chapter 3 - Woodworking
Previous | Next

Sigrid's journal :
"Finally, the glazed tiles I ordered from Avalonia arrived!
Our carpenters had already built a nice, sturdy framework for the entrance, and now it's roofed. It may not have the flamboyance of those amazing polychrome roofs I had seen in Avalonia, but I'm satisfied with that. If fits better in our austere Mitgardian landscape.
The carpenters also started the carvings on the walls. There is still much work to be done, but I think that we finally manage to agree on the pattern..."

 

Edited January 23, 2021 by Aurore

[Henjin_Quilones]

Looking great! The entry way is beautiful, and the carving on the right looks excellent! Maybe another step up to the landing would be good, since minifigs have tiny little legs.

Now to build the rest, right?

[Kai NRG]

Looking great, like Henjin said the carving takes it up a level!

[Lordofdragonss]

Really waiting for more. Seeing actual creation process is SO MUCH FUN! ANd you are VERY good at documenting it!

[Aurore]

@Henjin_Quilones Thank you very much! I'll indeed add a step, otherwise the inhabitants will have a hard time getting inside...

@Kai NRG Thank you! I'm really glad you and Henjin like the carving! It will go on all around the building, but for now I'm sadly running out of bricks with a side stud...

@Lordofdragonss Thank you so much!