Category Archives: Models

This is what we’re all about. We scour the web for the best custom LEGO models to share with you. From castles and spaceships to planes, trains, and automobiles, you’ll find the best LEGO creations from builders all over the world right here on The Brothers Brick.

LEGO-built Dungeons & Dragon idol summons tabletop nostalgia

Before Tieflings or Githyanki, before Strahd took his first bite or Tasha so much as hideously chuckled, there was the Advanced D&D Player’s Handbook adorned with a red demon idol with jewel eyes who sparked the imaginations of a million young adventurers. Derek Bourgeois pays tribute to the OG D&D icon with a LEGO model of D.A. Trampier‘s classic illustration. Derek deftly captures the mix of menace and grandeur in the demonic statue, putting macaroni tubes to good use as fingers that clutch the flaming brazier. Third-party lighting elements make the flames dance for extra dungeon ambiance. Those jeweled eyes look quite tempting for treasure hunters. Perhaps a party of heroes from the new Dungeons & Dragons Collectible Minifigures will attempt to pry them free.

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The “B” in “B-wing stands for “brilliant”

For a starfighter that appears for about 0.3 seconds in the background of Return of the Jedi, the B-wing gets a surprising amount of love (especially from our Managing Editor, Kyle). Maybe it’s the way it swivels, keeping the cockpit upright. Or maybe it’s just the enduring mystery of how exactly this thing is supposed to look like a “B” (what, was “T-wing” somehow taken?). Regardless, this LEGO version by Simulterious looks great. The model captures the asymmetrical coolness of the storied starfighter, along with a level of detail worthy of a film prop (look at the greebling along the cockpit!).

Here’s a view from the back, to give you a better view of the Quadrex Kyromaster ion engines and the hull plating along the ventral wing. Take special note of the sloping where the wing meets the fuselage, which gets just at the right angle. It’s been a while since LEGO has released an official B-wing model, but I’d love to see them try to match this level of detail.

This LEGO troll means serious business

Is it a coincidence that Steven Wayne Howard shared this spectacular LEGO troll bust on the same day that World of Warcraft unleashed The War Within? Even though Steven isn’t a WoW player, his Day-Glo-colored troll, Ves’Panak, has so much personality that it has me itching to roll a new Zandalari Troll of my own. Steven was inspired to create this troll in light royal blue after acquiring a copy of LEGO Creator Expert 10298 Vespa 125, and only parts from that set are used for the blue skin. NPU (Nice Parts Usage) abounds throughout the build, from the dragon wing mohawk, dino tail tusks, frog teeth, and Banshee wing torso. My favorite element has to be the dark grey skulls, accented with orange eyes, teeth, and tusks.

This isn’t Steven’s first Horde-inspired fantasy bust, and hopefully, it won’t be his last. Perhaps a Tauren next?

Midnight sweet train brings holiday cheer in LEGO

It’s not even Halloween, but some folk are already pining for a winter wonderland. Christmas comes early in LEGO courtesy of Eann McCurdy (Miscellanabuilds) whose delightful midnight train scene is both cozy and clever in design. As his eighth and final entry in the latest Iron Builder competition against Geneva D, Eann incorporates the required red cauldron in the engine’s boiler. The pileup of snow in front of the train is a perfect mix of parts, including ice cream, hoods, and a frog. I especially love the forced perspective created by snow-capped trees at two scales. A tiny red byplane appears in the background, referencing Geneva’s prior Red Baron entry.

As if the brilliant train weren’t a grand enough finale, Eann prints the scene as a postcard for a bonus build that amps up the holiday spirit. Candles, Chrismas lights, and candies show off an abundance of red cauldrons. Dr. Strange capes make a sweet appearance as candy wrappers. Decorated gingerbread is the icing on the ~~cake~~ cookies.

Should any of ye be wishin’ ta beg for mercy, Captain Hutt will hear yer pleas

Any fan of pirate history knows the legend of the Jade Eye’s Return, and how young Duke Wavewalker and his ragtag crew fell into the hands of the nefarious Captain Hutt while fleeing the Imperial armada. Joe (jnj_bricks) pays tribute in LEGO to the memorable scene on the shoals of Cancun where Duke and crew were taken by skiff to the all-meaty shark pit. Joe’s clever mash-up was made for a challenge to blend Star Wars with history, so taking the plank-walking Sarclaac scene back to the golden age of pirates is a perfect fit. The skiff’s brick-built hull is a lovely design and Joe’s technique for partially submerged sharks is brilliant, nesting the upper jaw over a grey dome and using triangular tiles for the dorsal fins. What sells the scene is the excellent remix of minifigs. Of course, pirate Chewie would use Hagrid’s beard.

Beware the Queen of the Jellyfish!

Jellyfish are weird, aren’t they? It’s just a floating nervous system with tentacles. No wonder they make such a good basis for alien creations – and Korean builder DEES has served up a doozy in that regard! Let’s start with that most jellyfish of attributes: the tentacles. Loads of parts are used to make them up here, from trans-clear round bricks and flowers to a whole boatload of ball joints. The latter serves to accentuate the organic shapes of this creature, so wonderfully done on the body with inverted boat slopes and wheel arch pieces in all manner of pinks and blues.

Dive in to see what else this jelly has in store for us…

Unleash your imagination with Calvin and Hobbes

Cartoonist Bill Watterson has always been protective of his magnum opus Calvin and Hobbes, to the point where it’s tough to find any approved merchandise of the characters, but I like to think he’d smile kindly on this charming LEGO build of his two titular characters. Geneva Durand captures the boy Calvin and his tiger pal Hobbes crossing a log bridge in an image from one of their most iconic panels. Tiny white frogs make up Hobbes’s outstretched fingers, while Calvin’s characteristically touseled locks look good as sloped bricks. A red pot makes Calvin’s torso. Rocks and foliage spring up on either side of the bridge. It makes you wonder, what adventure are they off to next?

Going for gold in a gamut of great Greek games

Still suffering from Olympic Games withdrawal symptoms? Well not to worry! Not only have the Paralympic Games just got underway, LEGO builders such as Bousker are still getting in on the Olympic action. And they’re taking us back not to Paris this June, or even Tokyo back in 2021, but to Greece in ancient times! And even to those unfamiliar with Greek games like yours truly, there’s plenty of familiar sports to spot here. There’s the pommel horse over on the right, with a set of hurdles not too far away. Then there’s the archery, of course, and a pole vaulter who appears to be feeling the heat of competition. And all set against a nicely textured backdrop – particularly those rounded-off stairs. Definitely a gold medal for this one!

Take a Minecraft Warped Forest tour in LEGO for alternative rocks

In the Minecraft gaming world, player mods push the game’s visuals to new heights. In the LEGO community, builders like Michał Kozłowski (Edge of Bricks) similarly add AFOL innovation to the Minecraft theme and the results are truly next-gen. Michał’s ornate take on this Nether biome is night-and-day different from the official LEGO interpretation. Tooth plates make for excellent weeping vines on the fungal “trees.” Most impressive is Michał’s pixelated lava, which mixes solid and transparent orange elements and looks amazing when lit up with a third-party lighting kit.

Michał goes into detail on his LEGO Minecraft techniques on youtube, including his clever take on the Nether Portal.

Thai-style church gets the LEGO architecture treatment

While the LEGO Group may have only just released the first set based on a house of worship with 21061 Notre-Dame de Paris, churches have long been a popular theme for adult builders, whether coming from an interest in architecture, history, or faith. Inspired by a recent trip to Thailand, builder Anne Mette Vestergård recreates a landmark church very different from the cathedrals and chapels more often seen in LEGO: the Holy Redeemer Church of Bangkok. Built in 1954, the church is built in the style of traditional Thai temples, with square columns, stacked gables, enameled tiles, and decorative chofa along the roof edges. Anne Mette does a phenomenal job recreating the details in miniature, down to the microscale cars out front. Unikitty tails in white integrate surprisingly well as a Thai-style flourish. But it’s that colorful tile roof in the distinct Thai palette that makes the church sublime.

Danish builder Anne Mette creates large-scale architectural models professionally, mostly at minifig scale, for public viewing. Whether you’re interested in Nordic history, theme parks, or LEGo as a medium to explore current events, her works are well worth checking out.

To the Batcave, Rachel!

Christian Bale will always be Batman to me, and the Dark Knight trilogy remains my definitive version of the Caped Crusader’s career. So of course this Tumbler build by ABrickDreamer leaped out at me, so to speak. I love the Tumbler itself poised in mid-leap as it returns to the Batcave (presumably with a heavily drugged Rachel Dawes in the backseat), but as far as parts usage goes, the real MVP is probably the waterfall itself. Power blasts, trans clear minifig stands, rods, and the minifig “flying” stand all work together to give the impression of water cascading from different heights.

Here’s a view from the back, complete with a burst of flame to propel the Tumbler through the opening. Will it be fast enough to save Rachel from the Scarecrow’s toxin? Well, go watch the movie.

The bricks afoot!

Picture a locked room, a dastardly crime, and a thief hiding amongst the guests and staff of a house full of secrets and you’ll get a scene exactly like this LEGO build by Sam J.J.! The characters in this build have found the secret staircase hidden behind a hinged bookcase, but they are still deceived! To save space on the build, Sam used forced perspective to give a flat series of bricks the appearance of a staircase running deeper into the walls of the house. While the minifigs focus on the staircase, let’s take in the rest of the build. The decorative sections on the wooden columns are mostly made from one, two, three bricks and seemingly a whole lot of friction. The table with its teacup is made from wands and book covers. And finally, the stained glass windows are made from turntable bottoms. Now back to our minifigures. Remember, when there’s a mystery, it’s always the butler who did it!