Tag Archives: gGh0st

A shell for protection – just like the Koopas

You may remember gGh0st‘s first build in his Iron Builder duel with Sandro Quattrini: a katana. Here’s a refresher, if you need – it’s worth seeing again. Well, he’s come full circle with his ninth and final build. And just as the shell seed part protects a Koopa, the shells protect this samurai warrior, making up the armor and helmet. But I’m liking some of the other building choices too! In particular, the tile pieces for the plating around the waist, and the Bionicle mask make a great men-yoroi (the face protection that samurai wore). Only time will tell whether it’s enough to win this battle – but it’s been fantastic watching these two builders face off!

Very Last Strike (The Samurai)

Let the shell games begin!

Iron Builder competitions are one of our favorite sources of delight as we seek out new LEGO creations to highlight and share. These playful competitions highlight some of the most creative builders in the hobby while also showing how much potential is packed into a single eccentric LEGO element. The latest Iron Builder just kicked off between TBB regulars Sandro Quattrini and gGh0st, and the “seed part” is the green Koopa shell with spikes. Sandro fires the first salvo with a majestic green dragon, which uses 34 shells to achieve the snaking, scaly body. The head design is very effective, especially the sculpting around the eyes using minifig arms and frogs for an organic shape.

The Green Dragon

gGh0st strikes back with an elegant Japanese sword display, using koopa shells for the hilt. There are plenty of other nice touches in the still life scene, like the life buoys on the tsuba blade guard and the perfect curvature of the blade and scabbard. But the best touch of all: gGh0st’s sly nod to Sandro’s build, incorporating the unmistakeable green dragon design into the sword stand. That playful back-and-forth is another reason why Iron Builder competitions are so much fun to spectate.

First Strike

Sandro keeps the dance going in his follow-up, riffing on the Japanese theme with a beautiful kimono featuring a whopping 87 koopa shells. Mama mia, that’s a lot of koopas! Who knows where the game will go next?

Cad, the Bane of his bounties

Anyone else excited for the Bad Batch to return on Wednesday? I know I sure am. Bounty hunter Cad Bane made a surprise appearance in the show’s first season, and just in time for the third and final one, Flickr builder gGh0st has come up with a superb rendition of the Duros. He’s even got his trusty, sassy sidekick Todo! The semi-circular jumper plates are great choices for the droid’s eyes/face. There’s loads of clever parts use, but I would question Bane’s choice of fitting a thermal detonator to his wrist. In his line of work, that’s surely asking for trouble…

Cad Bane & Todo

All hail the peacock’s plumage

The male peacock is one of the prettiest animals in the entire animal kingdom. Sorry, ladies but that bro is has got it going on! Even the LEGO frogs know it; just look at them, basking in his magnificance and glory. This bit of cross-species love is brought to you by gGh0st who is competing in the Iron Builder competition. The seed part is the watering can and they’ve used twenty-five of them here. I’m sure there’s a watering can pun I could have used here but I’m just too in awe of this pretty peacock to think of it. Let me know in the comments if you have some because otherwise my watering can is dry.

Peacock

A hungry LEGO caterpillar with a can-do attitude

If you thought a LEGO watering can wasn’t much use outside of setting a scene in a garden, you have not seen an Iron Builder competition. In the contest, an unusual seed part is used in each build, to challenge the builder to think creatively. gGh0st does not disappoint with this caterpillar, whose many segments use the watering can in lime to great effect. The spout makes the perfect leg, clinging to the branch. But I do wonder what this would look like from any other angle…

Caterpillar

The queen and the king of SNOT

We just love simple LEGO creations that tell a story. And this very smart brick-built sketch by gGh0st tells not one, but two lovely stories. The first is about stunning building solutions. Did you notice all the white bricks in the background composed in some very intricate ways? This is what we call SNOT — studs not on top! And still, with studs facing all four directions, the pieces form a proper shape of a play card, not to mention the rounded corners. And as for the other story the build tells, of course, it’s about love. The forbidden romance between the queen and king that can’t be together… *sigh*

Queen of Spades / King of Hearts

There ain’t room in this build for the both of us

Don’t get distracted by gGh0st‘s exquisite hat choices in this imminent LEGO duel. The real battle is one of technique between the two buildings in the background. Will the bank take the win, with its multitude of wooden slat techniques (stacked plates, stacked jumpers, and stacked candles)? It’s also got that darling lettering and an interesting black awning. But the brown building is no slouch, either. Smooth curves and sand green highlights at its crown lead down to more slats, this time with gray cheese slopes. The golden yellow curtains in the window are a great touch, as are the anti-studs (undersides) of a couple of 1×3 jumper plates at the base of the building. And each structure sports its own type of brick-built door. I can’t tell which one I like better!

The Shootout

The cutest little LEGO Cloud City

We’ve often remarked that you don’t have to have a lot of pieces to build great LEGO creations, and this microscale Millennium Falcon and Cloud City from Star Wars by gGh0st are perfect examples. They’re also an excellent use for those cloud plates, which look much more realistic here than they usually do, and help integrate the two different scales of the ship and mining colony to create a forced perspective scene. I would love to see LEGO release little sets like this for $10 or so.

Escape from Cloud City

Raise a glass to a clearly important profession

I learned today that a glazier is someone who cuts and fits glass in windows and doors, demonstrating the educational application of LEGO with this colorful build from gGh0st. This workshop build is gGhost’s entry for the Bricklink Designer Program, and it’s an awesome entry! The design of the workshop is amazing with the color palette, the round windows throughout, and the colorful clips used within the roof. I do think it’s pretty cool to use the bar with ball piece for the texturing of the roof, something I’ve not seen before in a build. Notice the use of the transparent pieces along the midsection of the workshop and even the sign–small details that really contribute to the beauty of the profession. This is a great addition to any medieval village!

Old Glazier's Workshop

You won’t be-leaf this amazing vignette.

As part of the Iron Forge competition, gGh0st is putting LEGO leaves to work in as many places as possible for this kitchen vignette. From the curtains to the tablecloth, and even as spilled orange juice on the floor, there’s almost nowhere you can look in this build and not spot a leaf piece. But the real kicker is the wall construction, which allows for a framed portrait of Kermit the Frog in an almost Haunted Mansion-style effect.

Kitchen Vignette

Sink your teeth into this gorgeous architecture

When the Forest Elves need weapons and armor, they come to this forge crafted by gGh0st. With vertical and horizontal tooth plates galore, the building itself almost looks like it’s wearing scale armor. Not only is the result beautiful to look at, but I bet it makes any orc armies think twice about invading.

Elven Forge

Turning an armory into a place of peace

When creating your own builds with LEGO, one of the major hurdles is seeing a specialized piece as something other than what it was intended for. gGh0st demonstrates that here perfectly, turning a bevy of staffs and blades into a serene pavilion. The conical roof is cleverly constructed, and the shades of blue pair beautifully with gold and green to perfectly complement the stylish minifigure.

Pavilion of Liveliness