I belong to, as you can tell by my signiture, the guild of Mitgardia. However, for the embassy chalenge, I am building in the Kaliphlin stye. What I need is some advice on how to make my MOC detailed and not look like just a pile of tan bricks, while still retaining the Kaliphlin feel.

Any help is welcome.

NOTE: Anything you say will be used against you in the challenge. :devil:

NOTE: Anything you say will be used against you in the challenge. :devil:

Then you clearly need to use about 100 of these pieces in dark blue in whatever you build. That will give you a very Kaliphlin style. No less than 100 of them.

Then you clearly need to use about 100 of these pieces in dark blue in whatever you build. That will give you a very Kaliphlin style. No less than 100 of them.

I don't have much dark blue (at least that I can get to), so will dark red work? I have a lot of dark red 1 x 2 jumper plates.

I belong to, as you can tell by my signiture, the guild of Mitgardia. However, for the embassy chalenge, I am building in the Kaliphlin stye. What I need is some advice on how to make my MOC detailed and not look like just a pile of tan bricks, while still retaining the Kaliphlin feel.

Any help is welcome.

NOTE: Anything you say will be used against you in the challenge. :devil:

Well, if i were in your place i'd think about the various ways i could approach building an embassy in another guild. You could always use your Mitgardian style of architecture and transplant it to a different setting, or you could go completely native and have a go at building totally in a Kaliphlin style, or you could attempt some kind of hybrid style that fuses the two cultures. (which might be the most interesting option!) One thing you should definitely do is check out what mocs (if any) have already been built in the area where you are going to build your embassy. Consider the landscape too - if desert, is it going to be sandy desert or more rocky? Is the area heavily built up? Are there bodies of water nearby that you could incorporate into your build? etc. If that still doesn't give you some starting points, i'd google some architectural styles that might help get you going - try Turkish, Arabic, African, Indian, Egyptian, also perhaps some Mediterrainian cities for ports etc.

As for a colour palette, don't just get stuck on tan - white is also effective, as well as dark tan, bleys, nougat, brown and gold for accents. Accents of other high colour are also appropriate, and maybe consider the pastel or sand colours (if you have any) to simulate colour fading under the hot sun.

Regarding parts, if you have any of the PoP sets then they will fit right in, but it's fine if you don't. Just research what you want to build, maybe make a small layout sketch to get it clear in your mind, and go for it!

I hope that helps somewhat, i look forward to seeing what you come up with!

Edited January 7, 201213 yr by gabe

Thank you. My prelim plan is a busy city/trading post with a large gate, a market, and the Mitgardian embassy in hybrid style.(Kaliphlin at the base, Mitgardian at the top).

What do you think?

About PoP, I have many of the sets, and I am using some minifig parts and camels.

I don't have much dark blue (at least that I can get to), so will dark red work? I have a lot of dark red 1 x 2 jumper plates.

No way, those jumpers are only $0.05 each on BL! Check the price of those dark blue arches, and you'll see why I recommended you get 100 of them.

No way, those jumpers are only $0.05 each on BL! Check the price of those dark blue arches, and you'll see why I recommended you get 100 of them.

I did check; they are very rare. And expensive! I would be looking at almost $300.00!!

Edited January 7, 201213 yr by Legoman273

I don't have much dark blue (at least that I can get to), so will dark red work? I have a lot of dark red 1 x 2 jumper plates.

...you have 100 of this in dark red? Where did you say that you live? I'm sending a Drow raiding party, prepare some cash and slaves also ;)

Edit: oh, jumper plates... :( we are going to raid you city now just because for disappointment :)

Edited January 7, 201213 yr by Angeli

Thank you. My prelim plan is a busy city/trading post with a large gate, a market, and the Mitgardian embassy in hybrid style.(Kaliphlin at the base, Mitgardian at the top).

What do you think?

About PoP, I have many of the sets, and I am using some minifig parts and camels.

Good stuff, sounds like you're on your way already! Just remember when mixing styles - they don't have to be one on top of the other nessacerily (though that can work as well), you can also mix styles of ornamentation, arches, materials, furniture etc - just think, what would a homesick Mitgardian do to make an unfamilar place feel more like home?

Edited January 7, 201213 yr by gabe

build your embassy in the style of the Mitgardian and the materials of Kaliphlin.

Thank you. My prelim plan is a busy city/trading post with a large gate, a market, and the Mitgardian embassy in hybrid style.(Kaliphlin at the base, Mitgardian at the top).

What do you think?

About PoP, I have many of the sets, and I am using some minifig parts and camels.

=> You are planning on making a whole city??

but the max size of the base is 48x48 if I am not wrong :(

And you can do for example Kaliphlin at the base and Mitgardian at the top by making the mitgardian part resting on arches already in the style of Mitgardia. Maybe it's not exactly clear what I mean

Arches are typically Kaliphlin, while wood is typically Mitgardia. so if you make for example the ground floor out of tan bricks and the top part of wood, you can make the wooden top part overlap the size of the groundfloor and the walls of the top part resting on wooden arches with wooden cilinders stretching to the baseplate.

...you have 100 of this in dark red? Where did you say that you live? I'm sending a Drow raiding party, prepare some cash and slaves also ;)

Edit: oh, jumper plates... :( we are going to raid you city now just because for disappointment :)

=> You are planning on making a whole city??

but the max size of the base is 48x48 if I am not wrong :(

And you can do for example Kaliphlin at the base and Mitgardian at the top by making the mitgardian part resting on arches already in the style of Mitgardia. Maybe it's not exactly clear what I mean

Arches are typically Kaliphlin, while wood is typically Mitgardia. so if you make for example the ground floor out of tan bricks and the top part of wood, you can make the wooden top part overlap the size of the groundfloor and the walls of the top part resting on wooden arches with wooden cilinders stretching to the baseplate.

No, not a whole city. Just part of one.

I am building on a 48x48 baseplate.

I know what you mean. The embassy part of the MOC is a hybrid style; Kaliphlin at the base, but the Mitgardians built fortifications on the top.

What Gabe said about the color palette is spot on for Kaliphlin. If you peek through some of the builds already done, you will notice that tan is almost a secondary color(or a landscape color), whereas the primary color is quite often white. Of course, the Kaliphlin colors are Red and Dark Blue, so we'd love for you to add those in, but as a Mitgardian you may not want to! But, like others have said, the PoP sets give a good idea on the general theme to the desert. Again, there are mountainous areas in Kaliphlin and even some oases(sp for plural?)

Oases is correct for plural

How about a nice sandwich? Everyone likes a sandwich, bread, baguette, panini, w/e. You could go Mitgardian at bottom, Kaliphlin white walls with arches in middle and a Mitgardian top, for each floor. Perhaps the plot was an old, delapidated Kaliphlin ruin that the Mitgardians thought would be a good place for an Embassy and have renovated it in a Mitgardian style if you know what I mean. Or just do what I do and probably alot of others is make it up as you go along.