Tag Archives: Pirates

Avast, me mateys! If ye be lookin’ for LEGO on the high seas, you’ve found the place where X marks the spot. Here be a treasure trove of sailing ships, garrisons full of imperial scalawags, and other such nautical nonsense. Walk that plank and dive into the wonderful world of LEGO Pirates.

We’re going to need an even bigger boat

In 1975, Stephen Speilberg (and to a lesser degree Peter Benchley) made the world afraid to enter the water when the unsettling movie Jaws came out. How do you top that, exactly? Well, LEGO builder Julius von Brunk may have figured out that formula. You simply go larger. He may have arrived at that success quite by accident; the shark turned out much larger than anticipated so the “normal” shark attack scene he thought he was building became an encounter with the prehistoric Megaladon. The protagonists (or are they antagonists?) are a group of pirates proving that a pirate’s life isn’t always yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum. The water, and especially the shark with its complex curves, are done to great effect. However, as enticing as a deep golden tan and a breezy cocktail may be, this is one beach I’d much rather avoid!

Megalodon Beach

Cluckery on the high seas

LEGO builder and The Brothers Brick alumn Benjamin Stenlund acquired some chickens recently. This inspired him to build The Bad Egg, a plucky pirate ship inhabited entirely by chickens. As Ben tells it, here we see Captain Cockerel and his bloodthirsty buck-buckaneers prowl the seas in search of gold. Golden corn, that is. The plume of tail feathers at the aft of the ship is a brilliant touch and the chicken masthead is also quite funny, but I like that one of the crow’s nests is an actual nest. Ben tells us he enjoys watching the real-life chickens roam the yard and do their thing, which is mostly eating and pooping. It’s about as productive as some humans get, truth be told.

The Bad Egg

It’s always great to check in on how an old friend is doing. Have a gander at our archives to see why we think Benjamin Stenlund is still the cock of the walk around here.

It’s good to be the captain sometimes

Pirate captains seem to keep all the good stuff for themselves, as Maxx Davidson shows us in this detail-rich build. Utilizing many of LEGO’s unique pieces, Maxx gives us a glimpse at the stolen goods in the captain’s quarters. Well, I assume everything is stolen, because, uh…pirates: they steal things! Anyway, however the items came into his possession, the bookcase is chock-full of fun things. There’s a little ship in a bottle, a golden globe (no, not the award), a decanter, and some reading material. A keg of ale leaks onto the floor, much to the delight of the visiting bilge rat, and jewels rest in a golden dish on the other barrel. A pen and inkwell keep the jewels and open journal company, ready for the pirate captain to begin their memoir. My favorite part of the build? It’s got to be the captain’s nose. I enjoy the whole design, but the nose is a wonderful and clever use of a tan hamster. Seriously! Take a closer look.

Pirate Captain’s quarters

Ahoy, more details off the starboard bow, matey!

Dead men don’t sweat

Okay, I have to admit, I am nog a big connoisseur when it comes to LEGO big figures, technique, Bionicle and Galidor. But I do know an amazing creation using parts from those themes when I see one. This creation by Nikita Nikolsky features a lot of weird and interesting parts. I am just about sure there is even DUPLO hidden in the design of the treasure chest.

Dead men don't sweat

There is a lot to love about these figures. For one the expression on their faces. For two undead characters they appear to be very much alive and kicking. The attention to detail, when you look at the belt buckle or the gold embellishment on the shoes. And last but not least, the exaggeration when it comes to the size of the lock on the chest, but also the use of a plunger for a peg leg. Nikita also has been experimenting with the distance between the two characters and their scales. One is actually built on a smaller scale than the other.

Motley pirate crew without a parrot

I love a good motley crew, especially when it is made out of LEGO. This can be straight-up minifigures or brick build characters. In this case Dan Ko created a pirate crew. They had a ship, but they wrecked it. Apparently, they left the steering to a mosquito, which to be fair doesn’t sound like a very smart idea. These guys are a fest for the eye and there are quite a few bricks used in smart ways. Let’s take a closer look. We have a mouse, a rat, a hedgehog, and a mosquito and every one of them has a very cute snout.

The Crew

The hedgehog is sporting a technic ball joint for a nose and wind-up keys for its spikes. This is not your everyday hedgehog. This is a well-groomed hedgehog who permed its spikes. The rat has a microphone nose and shovel legs. I am not sure if the shovel and the cheese slopes are kept in place thanks to gravity or friction, but it is really original. For the mouse, Dan Ko incorporated a lipstick nose, which to me is the most creative. Last but definitely not least is the ski stick nose used on the mosquito. All these guys need now is a new ship and maybe a foul-mouthed parrot.

Sometimes you leave to find adventure, and sometimes the adventure comes to port

A swashbuckling LEGO adventure from Robert4168/Garmadon and Kai/Geneva plays out in front of us like a movie scene! A stranger appears and challenges the lord to a duel for their treacheries. Onlookers take in the clashing of swords on the Port Royal wharf, some working and some drinking tea. Even the wildlife takes in the sight–is it me or does that toucan look a little nervous? I would be too with a sword fight that close, but no one else is bothered by it. I guess this sort of thing happens a lot in a pirate’s life! This build demonstrates the beauty of collaboration between builders. The wonderful Tudor buildings, back docks, and landscaping are thanks to Kai, and everything else is thanks to Robert. There’s a plethora of awesome detailing, from the buildings and trees to the clutter dotting the docks. Sometimes I forget LEGO pieces comprise these amazing builds!

Duel in Port Royal

Eyes right for an interesting Villa build

In this LEGO build,  Ayrlego takes us back in time with this Colonial scene of patrolling troops passing a white-washed villa. I enjoy learning from other people’s builds, and there’s some nice take-aways in the composition of this scene. We’re treated to some lush vegetation framing the building, and the palms are really well-executed, bookending the build. In addition to the palms, the undergrowth to the front and sides are great examples of adding fauna to any scene.

Campaign Planning, Port Woodhouse

There are some really nice touches to be found in the building itself too — some I’m sure to use myself in the future! I’m particularly fond of the aged white bricks used amongst the newer white pieces with other subtle details such as the white profile brick. The Micro Figure nestled into the wall, suggestive of a shrine, and the logs that serve to hold the upper level really elevate this whole scene. I think you’ll agree that Ayrlego has done his homework in constructing this one.

Cresting the wave of a pirate’s life

Beware any ship what flies the crimson flag! This LEGO ship by Ralf Langer sails on the crest of two seas, ever searching for more riches. The ship is beautifully crafted, but make no mistake–this is a pirate ship! Besides, who says pirates can’t have nice things? The ship is loosely inspired by the Golden Hind, the galleon captained by Sir Francis Drake during his circumnavigation of the globe in the late 16th century. The sails are brick built, allowing for greater detail to capture the way they catch the wind. The ship itself sits atop two curved LEGO seas, elements reused from some of Ralf’s past builds. One has a town under threat of cannon fire, while the other has water stained with blood and a town burning from a pirate attack. The captain’s quarters bear remarkable stained glass windows, and that intricate detailing in the ship’s woodwork is exquisite!

The "Death of a Sailsman" - Model view

Continue reading

Just another quiet night in the local...

LEGO builds that are injected with humour are particular favourites of mine. In this regard, I particularly enjoy Ross Fisher‘s builds and his latest perfectly captures a wrong time, wrong place scenario.

Friendly fire in El Oleonda

The characterisation in both expression and pose of minifigure is effortlessly recreated in LEGO form here and the building the figures populate has some nice touches too, with the loose roof tiles and wood frame of the building capturing the era of the high seas.
“Now back away, slowly, as if we were never here…”

The isle of magic

If I were searching for an island of magic like the explorer in this LEGO vignette by Josh, I’d be pretty excited when I saw this. Josh doesn’t provide us any further details on the specifics, but this mysterious island is flowing with lava and surrounded by a steaming sea. At the center lies some sort of magical cauldron. Note the subtle gradient beneath the transparent light blue tiles, giving the water a sense of depth.

Searching for Crystal Cove

The sky pirates have returned in this epic mashup of Ninjago and Pirates

Ninjago has done a lot of settings over its decade-long run, but for me, by far the coolest wave was the Skybound storyline from 2016, which was basically a Ninjago mashup of steampunk and pirates. It’s the LEGO theme we never not from Disney’s Treasure Planet. So this fan redux of some of the sets by Markus Ronge just ticks all the right boxes for me. Markus has taken the already-fantastic idea from Ninjago of sky pirates and turned the dial up to eleven, with slightly more “realistic” designs (you can call a flying pirate ship realistic, right?). The color scheme is on point with the browns and oranges, and check out that bone dragon figurehead on the revised Misfortune’s Keep. I reviewed the original 70605 Misfortune’s Keep back in 2016, and as cool as I thought that set was, this would have blown me away.

Sky Pirates' Air Junk "Misfortune's Keep"

But what really blows me away about Markus’ model is that it’s not just a redux of the Skybound sets, but it’s also a mashup with the LEGO Ideas 21322 Barracuda Bay Pirates set, another set I loved. The Misfortune’s Keep ship breaks down into a sky pirates wrecked base!

The Golden Teapot

And let’s not overlook the splendidly simple yet beautifully stylized way Markus has chosen to display the models, with a simple graphic and brick-built stands.

 

It’s a pirate’s life for me down by ‘arr-bour

You might have missed it, but last Sunday was that silliest of holidays, Talk Like a Pirate Day. And to celebrate the occasion, Nick Sweetman built the local LEGO pirate hangout, the Skull and Crossbones Bar & Grill. The cutaway design is ingenious for giving you a feel for the building while letting you see all the piratey action, mostly consisting of lots of drinking and carousing—which seems about right. My favorite thing about this scene, though, is the multitude of pirates wearing that classic blue pirate coat. Often builders try to carefully make sure all the minifigures in a scene are uniquely dressed, but this somehow seems perfect to me for how LEGO pirates would dress and I absolutely love it.

We Arrr Family Talk Like A Pirate Day Build