Tag Archives: Castle

Dragons! Knights in shining armor! Trebuchets & ballistas! From enormous LEGO castles buttoned up for battle to peaceful village market scenes, we’ve got your LEGO Castle needs covered right here.

Color and light blend beautifully in this Medieval city

Fantasy castle building often leans towards the creation of dark, gloomy and foreboding places in which one would not lightly tread. Master castle builder Jonas Wide usually takes a different route, however, using cheerful splashes of color to create incredibly warm and welcoming scenes. This style is definitely evident in his latest creation, the Houses of Barqa:

The buildings are elegantly designed and laid out, but the real star of this show is the use of color. If there’s been a better use of sand red, I haven’t seen it. The pastel palette blends so well with the more subtle tan/dark tan foundations and street. Taken together, it’s a gorgeous and eye-catching scene. Clever use of lighting also makes for some atmospheric and quite realistic looking images.

If Jonas’ city leaves you wishing for more, definitely check out his amazing Streets of Barqa from several years ago or last year’s Aslanic Temple in Barqa.

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Tropical paradise is a plea for warmer weather

Those of us in the northwestern hemisphere have had a tough time lately, what with the polar vortex, record-shattering temperatures (as low as -63 degrees Celsius at my mom’s house in Winnipeg, Canada) and unrelenting snow and ice. Even here in southwestern Arkansas, where winter generally just means anything below 10 degrees Celsius, we were racing to buy wintry garments normally only seen in movies about Alaska. On the flip side, the nasty weather meant more time shamelessly spent in the LEGO room. I built this tropical scene while daydreaming about places where I don’t have to leave faucets running for fear of water pipes bursting inside my home.

This was a simple but fun build to throw together. There are no crazy techniques or excessively nice parts usages (NPU) to highlight here. But a dash of color, proper composition and a bit of photography know-how can just about always turn a bland build into something that really catches the eye. If you like the trees, they are easily recreated using the 4mm pneumatic hose and cylinder bricks. They can be twisted around each other and held in that position with the leaf elements. Simple and easy jungle tree!

The city of Cyrene falls to the Pierian Empire

Despite the inclusion of Classical or Greco-Roman characters in several waves of Collectible Minifigures, the ancient world just isn’t as popular with LEGO Castle builders as the big gray castles of the medieval era. As a result, it’s always refreshing to see great LEGO models from that earlier era. Talented TBB alum Mark Erickson has created a fictional battle between rivals the Pierian Empire and the great city of Tylis. Mark’s diorama is full of fantastic architectural detail — I particularly love the contrast between the tan city walls and the shining white temple with its gold details and green roof.

See more of Mark’s fantastic Greco-Roman city

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, unless it’s a Trojan horse

The story of the Trojan horse is one of the most well known in ancient Hellenic lore. In the classical version, following a fruitless and decade-long siege of the city of Troy, the Greeks constructed a gigantic wooden horse in which they had hidden their finest warriors. The Greeks feigned defeat, and the Trojans pulled the horse into their city as a victory trophy. That night, the Greek force crept out of the horse and opened the gates for the rest of the Greek army, which had sailed back under cover of night. The Greeks entered and destroyed the city of Troy, ending the war. It was a brilliant coup, though historians have argued its veracity ever since. Regardless of whether or not the Trojan horse actually existed, Martin Harris wonderfully brings the story to life in LEGO form with his depiction of that fateful gift-giving moment.

One has to admire the simple but imposing Trojan walls and gate, which stood up to 10 years of determined Greek attacks (the angled walls are a great touch, though a bit more landscaping around the bottom edge would help break up the abrupt edges). The Trojans lined up along the battlements and the Greeks laboriously pushing the horse depict the sheer scale of this creation. Continue reading →

A dark shadow over the kingdom

An ominous black dragon hovers low over Kale Frost’s stunning microscale castle. Although small, this model is filled with movement and atmosphere. The perfectly placed transparent slopes convincingly replicate waves crashing against its rugged coastline, and it’s matched by cleverly selected tile and foliage bricks, which complete the landscaping. The castle itself is a cunning amalgamation of unexpected pieces. It even manages to use what may potentially be the least useful LEGO elements ever, the trigger from a stud gun, which is doing duty as a detail in one of the towers – bravo!

The Dragonborn speaks

Skyrim players the world over know the joy of a well-timed FUS RO DAH! The iconic shouted spell will blast your enemies, and if you time it just right, as in this scene by Victor, the results can be spectacular. This also happens to be the perfect use for LEGO’s new power burst elements from various Superhero sets, showing the blastwave emanating from the Dragonborn. Also not to be missed is the use of the tree-costume element as the tree’s trunk. Despite the obvious application, this is actually the first time I’ve seen a good tree made with that element.

Worn with the sands of time

Builder W. Navarre takes us to a Middle Eastern-inspired fantasy world with this lovely vignette of a royal apartment. What’s striking as much as the excellent agglomeration of official LEGO stickers is the use of worn, dirty bricks to lend an ancient, chiseled look to the walls. Most builders eschew such bricks except as hidden filler, but scenes like this remind us that there’s a use for nearly anything if you’re clever enough.

The art of winemaking in one scene

When we think of medieval LEGO creations, we most often see grand castles of all shapes and sizes. And I’m not complaining per se, but I do love it when someone brings us a more uncommon scene. Wine is a classic medieval beverage for kings, queens, and knights alike, and thanks to Guido Martin-Brandis we can see winemaking in the brick. The builder has incorporated almost every stage of winemaking into this single build. The process of planting and growing the grape vines, and the ripening of the grapes themselves is shown in full, with the grapes represented by different colored cherry pieces on the vines. Behind the vineyards you can spot a bare-legged peasent having a grand old time crushing the grapes with his feet, which I certainly hope he washed before he started.

Around the back of the aging house (with its thatched roof made with minifigure hands) we can see the bottles and barrels of aged wine being shipped off to market via horse carriage, the ending to the story depicted by this excellent diorama.

A castle’s a stronghold

Long before they became fashionable manors for showy wealth, a castle was a stronghold that needed to withstand sieges and bombardment. So it helps that this 21,000-piece LEGO castle by Corvus Auriac MOCs is located on an island and bespeckled with the hallmarks of defensive works. There’s a gatehouse over the entry that’s just perfect for pouring hot oil on unwanted guests, and tall towers with archery loopholes for snipers. And even though the castle is flecked with bricks of varying textures and colors, it comes together visually to give a unified appearance. The dark brick corners and black roofs lend an ominous air, and the smoke rising from the chimney makes me uneasy to learn who the inhabitants are of this seemingly deserted fortress.

A castle fit for the greek gods and goddesses

This shiny microbuild by Isaac Snyder is anything but small when it comes to character. There’s a picturesque punch packed into a small space, along with a mythical quality. The way the buildings are perfectly nestled in the rocks makes it seem like these LEGO bricks were always destined to be part of the build. With the ice cream clouds, it seems fit for a snow globe souvenir from Mt. Olympus.

If you think this is cool, check out another picturesque LEGO castle of Isaac’s. Or perhaps you’ll enjoy Elrond’s House from the Lord of the Rings series.

Explore an astronomer’s tower that’s out of this world!

Sergeant Chipmunk is back with another one of his beautifully textured, fantastically displayed LEGO scenes. Some past creations from Sergeant Chipmunk featured here on the Brothers Brick include Hailstone Point, Securing the Seas and my personal favorite is the western-themed From Sunrise to Sunset!

I have some puzzling thoughts about this picturesque little scene. The titular astronomer has clearly landed already. The boat is tied up, but not unpacked. There are even freshly caught fish and a roaring fire with a pot of fruit boiling away. The telescope is propped up and ready to go. But where’s the astronomer? All of Chipmunk’s other models star minifigures in key roles. Not this time. The easiest answer might be that the astronomer is inside the tower. Or are they underwater spearfishing for more to eat? Did they become the parrot atop the roof? Have they fallen off the bridge with no one to save them? Maybe the intrepid astronomer spotted aliens through the telescope and they arrived to whisk him/her away! Share your theory in the comments!

Return to the Guarded Inn

The original LEGO Guarded Inn was released back in 1986, gradually becoming one of the castle theme’s most cherished sets. It even received a 2001 re-release under the LEGO Legends moniker. Thanks to builder Corvus Auriac, the little inn has undergone major renovations. It’s a medieval masterpiece built to reflect current LEGO building techniques, the expanded range of parts, and diverse selection of colors.

Every angle of Auriac’s build is packed with jaw-dropping detail. While classic red bricks are great, the dark red used for the walls in this build feel more authentic to medieval source material. Whereas the original featured printed timber details, the timber gracing the walls of Auriac’s model is brick built. The placement of each piece has been carefully calculated. Meanwhile, green hues simulating moss growth on the roof add an extra dash of character.

As you can see in this image, each side of the building looks distinct from the next. A personal favorite is the first image, which showcases both the walkway and vines reaching toward the tower. I love how it shows off the aging of the architecture, a stark contrast to the clean look of the original.

A close-up shot of the yard shows off exciting little details you might miss without taking a second a look. There’s a brilliant-looking well, outdoor furniture, and a mix of greenery and weathered terrain. Even the door looks wonderful; the sai weapons make for convincing hinges.

Auriac’s re-imagined version of the Guarded Inn looks warm and welcoming enough to sleep in. There might be a few ghosts in the tower contend with, but that comes with the territory.