Finding the Air Crystal

[soccerkid6]

Well here is my entry finally able to post some pics thanks to a great big brother. There are quite a few parts of this that actually work, a trap, the crystal lights up, and a bridge operated by a crank. Go to the bottom of this post for a link to a video showing the trap and bridge. A picture of the crystal showing the light up feature is on my website.

The Finding of the Air Crystal

Sir Glorfindel and Fergus were discussing the weather and likely harvest when a soldier came in

to tell them a messenger from Jarl Nibelung had just arrived. Sir Glorfindel quickly welcomed him in,

and asked, "What gives us this unexpected honor?"

The messenger replied, "I bring a task for you from the Jarl." With that he handed Sir Glorfindel

a scroll and excused himself saying, "There are many others I need to reach before sundown."

Sir Glorfindel quickly read the scroll while Fergus looked on. "Well it seems we have a difficult

task ahead of us!"

"What is that Sir?" asked Fergus.

"The Jarl wants us to search for a gem called the Air Crystal," replied Glorfindel. He fell

silent, then exclaimed, "What does that sound like to you?"

Fergus looked quizzically at Glorfindel. Then as realization struck him, he exclaimed, "Why

of course! the legendary gem hidden along the river Baranor, but that myth has been told as long as I

can remember."

"Don't forget the other part of the myth though, that anyone who searches for the gem is never

seen again, in his message the Jarl mentioned that the crystal would have some kind of guardians. I

think it is the best place to start," Glorfindel said.

"As you wish sir."

So Sir Glorfindel and Fergus set out to search along the river while Glorfindel's other men

searched for other legends of mysterious gems. The river Baranor ran out of the Calenhad mountains.

These mountains some distance north of Sir Glorfindel's castle. As such they expected much colder

weather and dressed accordingly. They had been looking along the river hoping to find some sort of cave,

it was getting late in the afternoon yet they still trudged on wearily.

As Glorfindel stood upon the drifts of snow on the cliffs hr slipped and tumbled into the river!

Fergus cried out and prepared to jump in after him.

They were being swept swiftly down the river when a bridge appeared in front of

them; seeming to come out of the rocky cliffs.

A figure appeared on it and pulled them out of the water onto the bridge. Fergus and Glorfindel then looked up at their rescuer.

He was dressed in warm furs armed with a crossbow,and wore a mask over his face. Then the masked man spoke, "You are now captives of the

Clan of Thiery, get in the cave." They obeyed and entered the cave.

After they entered the man closed the door behind them. There were 2 other men in the cave, dressed similarily to the first man and also armed

with crossbows. One of them took their soaking hoods and capes. The first motioned for them to sit on a

stone ledge and they did so. He then began to question them as to why they were searching along the river.

Sir Glorfindel told the truth and the man's eyes grew hard, "Why do you seek this crystal?" he asked.

"To unlock the an ancient artifact," Glorfindel replied.

At this the man's countenance, at least what they could see of it, suddenly changed. He gave a cry of joy

and then said, "Our task is finally ended, take them to the crystal."

One of the men went to a crank and started turning it, the other opened the door and stepped onto

the bridge that was now across the river. "Come," he commanded. Sir Glorfindel and Fergus followed him

across the bridge into another cave. The man pointed to a rock in front of them and said, "Do not step

there." He then jumped over it to the other side and motioned them to follow. They did so and realized

that the cave was lit. Their guide stepped around a bend in the tunnel, Sir Glorfindel and Fergus then saw

what the source of light was, a crystal in an ornate wooden shrine. "Behold the Air Crystal," the man

said.

Sir Glorfindel stepped forward slowly then took the crystal and lifted it aloft. Then turning to the

guide he asked, "But how do we get out of here to go back to my castle?"

The guide smiled and led the way across the bridge to the first cave. They then noticed a ladder going up

one of the walls, the masked man led they way up the ladder through a trap-door and out onto the snow.

As they started back home in the fading light he explained that their family had been given the task of

guarding the crystal until someone came to use it for its right purpose, and had done so faithfully ever since. "But now our task is finished!"

After reaching his castle Sir Glorfindel and Fergus discussed the best way to take the crystal to Valholl.

Upont thinking the matter over they decided to send a wagon with soldiers as a decoy while they took the

crystal on a different route in a cart disguised as fishermen. They set out early the next morning

and reached Valholl without any difficulties, the Jarl thanked them profusely and gave them a gift of gold to

have a monument made in their town to commemorate the finding of the crystal there.

Finally reaching home they were startled to find that the other wagon had not yet returned. They waited

anxiously and to their great joy it arrived several hours later. The soldiers explained they had been

attacked by bandits on the road, but had managed to escape.

The monument was built in the town square

Many Mitgardians come to see it and talk of the finding of the Air Crystal.

Link to video of working functions:

As implied in the story the trap is activated by stepping on a stone, a minifigs weight is actually enough to set it off. I tried to get a picture but couldn't get any decent ones due to its location in the tunnel.

Anyone have a guess on what the core of the monument is made of?

Any comments or criticism welcome!

Edited January 12, 2016 by soccerkid6

[mephistopheles]

Well done! I love those "Eskimo" crossbow guys.

[Flint]

Cool build. The river is my favourite part, it captures nature well.

Keep up the good work.

[Balthasar]

Looking good! I really like the cliff build in general and the choise for eskimo's as inhabitants.

[Blaze]

Very cool! The river is also my favourite part and the monument is also well built.

Great entry with a good story, good luck with the challenge

[soccerkid6]

Thanks guys I really like the way the river came out too.

It actually only used about 130 1x1 rounds in total.

Still no guesses on what the monument is built around?

I have a picture ready to post, but I wanted to see if anyone could guess.

[Christoph]

Very nice entry! I really like that you incorporated moving functions in your moc (I always like when something is moving ). Both the barrel trap and the bridge are well built.

I have no idea what the core of the monument is made of. But since you build in all six directions, perhaps a Lego dice?

[soccerkid6]

Ah we have a winner I was looking at the dice and thought wow I should be able to make something cool around that. I made the monument then had to figure out a way to incorporate it into my story If anyone wants to see how I attached the plates to the dice I can post a picture, basically it is 2 dice with centering pieces on 4 sides (not the top or bottom)hooked together with 2x6 plates on the centering pieces. Then a 2x2 plate on the very top and bottom, then 6x6 plates on very top of those, they all fit perfectly. Then you can add whatever decorations you prefer, they can make some nice pillars as well.

Thanks for commenting on the moving parts, I was starting to worry that no one saw them I couldn't believe how well the trap worked, and I'm happy with the bridge as well.

[de Gothia]

Those snotted cliffs are really amazing! Great job on those! I like the story aswell and the posing of the minifigs are also very good!

[soccerkid6]

Thanks de Gothia I actually decided on the SNOT cliffs because they use way fewer pieces

You will probably be seeing a free-build using this technique again soon. This was my first try at rockwork so I'm glad everyone likes it

It was a little tricky posing the figs in the water, but I think it came out pretty well.

[kabel]

yo Soccerkid, great stuff you build there! All looking really good, but what I definetely like the most is the Moc with the ravine. It just looks ever so Mitgardian. Great job!!

[ZCerberus]

For some reason I like this picture the best!

must be the Avalonia side of me.

[soccerkid6]

@kabel: thanks Glad to hear some approval from another loyal Mitgardian, that is really my first build to capture the spirit of Mitgardia, I was very pleased with the way it came out. It is by far the most popular scene here and on CC, which is good I guess seeing as it is the main build.

@zcerberus: I really liked that build myself, I thought it made a very nice contrast with the dark gloominess of the other road. I also really liked the way the base looks staggering up to match the terrain.

Edited May 15, 2012 by soccerkid6

[Ecclesiastes]

Great job soccerkid!

You nailed the Mitgardian look indeed with the snow and the rockwork build at the river! The tree is also a beauty as is the rockwork again inside the cave, love the differnt angles.

About the cart, I like the way you've made the hinge for the horse!

And again, great to have you on our side as you're a very active builder!

[Derfel Cadarn]

Great work!

I love all these scenes you have created, they flow with the story well. Great use of techniques throughout, I particularly like the cliff with the small stream below and the horse and cart.

Well done, this is a great and fun entry

[soccerkid6]

Great job soccerkid!

You nailed the Mitgardian look indeed with the snow and the rockwork build at the river! The tree is also a beauty as is the rockwork again inside the cave, love the differnt angles.

About the cart, I like the way you've made the hinge for the horse!

And again, great to have you on our side as you're a very active builder!

Thanks Ecclesiastes, I modified another pine tree design I found on moc-pages so that it would work with my 12 leaves

I was quite satisfied with the horse harness/hitch.

Yeah I actually just posted another build in the historic forum and I have another free build in the idea stage, hopefully we can put Mitgardia back to the top where it belongs

@Derfel Cadarn: Thanks, that means a lot to me.

Edited April 20, 2012 by soccerkid6

[Rogue Angel]

Nice job with this entry. I really like the ravine with the river below. It definitely makes your entry stand out. I also like how you used multiple different scenes and continued telling the tale after the crystal was found. I also feel that the eskimo guardians were a nice touch.

Good work!

[soccerkid6]

Thanks rogueang

[Mike S]

Nice entry! I think yours is the only one where the guardians are good/friendly... a unique twist I like the chasm and all the other little vignettes this entiry is comprised of.

[Gabe]

Nice entry Soccerkid! Your ravine is a very interesting build and i love the little cart going up the hill! I wanted to see the functions, but unfortunately your video wasn't working...

[soccerkid6]

Nice entry Soccerkid! Your ravine is a very interesting build and i love the little cart going up the hill! I wanted to see the functions, but unfortunately your video wasn't working...

Thanks for the encouragement gabe

It is working for me, try this link:

[robuko]

This is an ingenious design, soccerkid. I love the moving parts, and the ravine is a really brave choice (because it is so hard to photograph ). You built it very well. The going home vigs are really nice too. Great entry

[soccerkid6]

Thanks robuko Yeah the raving was tricky to photograph, I toyed with the idea of making the whole thing split in half so you could see each side clearly, but as I had already gotten pretty far when I though of it I never did. At least I can boast I was the only one to make a working trap for the challenge