Hi all. I've been MIA for awhile now. But some time ago, I had posted that I was working on a Civil War battlefield to take to Brickworld this year (which by the way, was fantastic. It was nice to meet other Eurobrickers there too.) Anywho, I finally got around to setting it up at home again and took lots of pictures which can be found here. There are over 4 pages of pics to check out, but here's an overall shot of the display:

I didn't base this on any particular battle, but rather combined certain elements that were appealing to me based on a variety of battles, hence the name "Battle of the Randomness." The creek is inspired by Antietam. So too is the small white burning building, which I was inspired to make after looking at pictures of the shell-shot Dunker Church. However, it is not a model of the church. The Confederates charging to the federals, lead by Armistead was inspired by events at Gettysburg. I also include a wide variety of regiments; Zouaves, Louisiana Tigers, African American troops, etc. As they say, variety is the spice of life. A number of generals/officers appear in the display; Pickett, Armistead, Lee, Longstreet, Grant, and Chamberlain are all here. I also wanted to add something a little different to the display to make it a little more interesting, so I added the Confederate campsite to the left of the creek, complete with tents and even a field hospital. If you look closely at the hospital you will see a slave nurse. This is historically accurate, as the South did use slave women as nurses.

My goal here was also realism. I wanted to make this look as believable as I possibly could. That is why I used a wide variety of minifig heads, especially angry/scared expressions, as well as a wide variety of poses. You will find figs running, one man for his life, casualties, blood, and people falling back as if they were just hit. It ain't pretty, but as General Sherman said, "War is Hell." All of that was time consuming, to say the least. I also wanted variety in the terrain and foliage, which is why I chose different colors and sizes for each tree.

I also used a lot of custom stuff in here, so my apologies to the hardcore purists out there. ;) The Confederate torso decals were designed by legofreak. Armistead's hair/beard was made by Arealight, and the dwarf and sage beards came from brickforge. The scalpel in the surgeon's hand was kindly given to me by Will of Brickarms when I was at Brickworld. And lastly, and most importantly, I used Brickmodder's LifeLites kit for the building on fire. Although you can't see it in the pictures, you can set it to have a nice flickering effect to simulate a fire. I will have to upload a video sometime.

So anyway, I hope you enjoy it. :)

-Bayonets on!

Haha, very nice! :-P

Been to Antietam myself. Nice place, if perhaps with a gory history

The blood in the river and the fire are innovative, I must say!

- Heir

Wow! Simply amazing! Everything is so detailed, from the blood in the river, to the tents, to the diverse army. I like all of the troops that you've included in this, and the encampment is great! I like the guy hiding in the stump, as well as the squad hiding behind the building. The CSA general with the light brown beard is posed in a way that says "Chhaaaaarrrrggge" very well. Excellent work, Brickraider General! :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Hey there Brickadier General, I remember you from Brickworld...you and I were the two guys landscaping Jurassic Park!

Looks great! That building on fire is really fantastic. The lighting really does give it that "burning" effect. The bullet holes are such a great addition too. What I really like on that building though are the flames. As simple as adding a flame on top of another flame, you have created a feeling of the flames blowing in the wind...awesome.

Hope you plan on returning to Brickworld next year, I know they plan to drop the lights in the hall so everyone can light up their MOCs...that should be amazing!

Whoa, what an awesome diorama! I particularly love the smoke from the cannon blast in this pic, and the use of life-lites for the burning house in this pic. A very cool action-packed scene indeed! I like the doctor's tent as well, that is also a nice touch, as well as the picture with the man and his dog, a little bit of joy. The blood in the river was again another great touch. Such a cool scene! :thumbup:

~Peace

One of the best battlement sceneries I´ve ever seen. From the fine landscaping to the lively placing

of the MF characters to the awesome amount of creative details like the way you did the flames on

the roof or the lovely kerchief of the slave nurse.

Hello Brickadier General, it's nice to see you around again.

This is probably the most impressive Civil War Lego creation I've seen. That the Rebel camp is so near the battle field is a little weird to me, but the scene has a good overall representation of the battle.

When building something this huge, I can imagine that it's easy to overlook some of the smaller details, but I think you've done really well. I find the placement of all your figures particularly impressive. The burning house is seriously cool too.

I love this moc. The detail is amazing and it seem to be historically accurate. I have not seen many War of Northern Progression mocs. I have 15 relatives that fought for the Confederacy so its good to see a Civil War moc.

-T

Thanks for the kind words everybody! By the way, forgot to mention, but suggestions and ideas are always welcome. I do plan on eventually expanding the scene to hopefully include a southern plantation, among other things.

Hey there Brickadier General, I remember you from Brickworld...you and I were the two guys landscaping Jurassic Park!

Looks great! That building on fire is really fantastic. The lighting really does give it that "burning" effect. The bullet holes are such a great addition too. What I really like on that building though are the flames. As simple as adding a flame on top of another flame, you have created a feeling of the flames blowing in the wind...awesome.

Hope you plan on returning to Brickworld next year, I know they plan to drop the lights in the hall so everyone can light up their MOCs...that should be amazing!

Thanks. And hey, yeah I remember you too. It was nice meeting you, and I do hope to go again...provided the funds are there of course.

Amazing! The detail that you put into this, from the house right down to the blood-filled river, is incredible to me. Great job!

That's an absolutely amazing diorama, Brickadier General!

I really it because it looks so realistic and includes so many nice - and not nice - details, too!

Very well done!

Klaus-Dieter

I too am in awe of this spectacular diorama. All of the little details scattered throughout make this a moment captured in time. I really like the choice of some of the heads of the figures, especially General Lee. Also, the various tree designs give the location a natural look that is hard to do with LEGO. Great job overall; thanks for sharing this with us!

Simply amazing! I agree with JimButcher in saying that the blood in the river is an amazing addition!

Great moc. Don't worry about some inconsiquences about the details. I know only some headnotes for the u.s. civil war and it looks good enough.

The slave nurses are even worse. They were not good enough to be free, but they were good enough to cure southern soldiers.

Just wondering, but where did you find the orange caps?