Tag Archives: Summer Joust

Is that a solar flare or a fire dragon coming to roast me?

Andreas Leander brings another excellent LEGO build to the Summer Joust with this fiery dragon! This dragon competes in the Gradient category with its yellow to orange scales. Like the sun itself, this dragon is hard to look at with the fire that burns from within. It raises its glorious head high, preparing to expel a stream of fire at those it finds unworthy of witnessing its majesty. Half and quarter rounded tiles run up and down the dragon’s neck, hearkening wonderfully to warm scales. The best part of the build for me are the natural elements making up the mane and beard. Leaves and flower studs wreath the dragon’s neck and chin with burning plumes of fire. Makes me wonder if the horns are made of brimstone… I’d ask, but I don’t think the dragon is taking any questions at this time.

Fire dragon

Rodent problems don’t last long when this beast is around.

This purple pest-catcher by LEGO builder Dan Ko is an excellent example of repurposing pieces for unexpected uses. This wolfen beast’s snout is crafted from a purple minifigure motorcycle, and his tufts of fur are leaves. The result is a ferocious-looking beast that’s happy to keep the city streets free of vermin, who are clever little brick-built creatures themselves.

The Rat Catcher

Going out on a limb for a good view from home

From the imagination of Cab ~ comes a LEGO cottage held fast above a flowing river. Did the land form in such a fashion, or did the wizard shape it with magic? Who’s to say, but the end result is certainly an eyecatcher! Built for the Summer Joust contest, for the Bridging the Gap category, the arm stretches across more than 32 studs. The arm is supported by way of technic pieces hidden in the structure, with only 4 technic pins holding it to the base. The background and surrounding landscape use forced perspective to achieve some wonderful depth, but my attention is pulled to the foreground details. The wizard’s goat has broken free, making a dash for the nearby woods. The wizard chases after it along the arm’s length. The shaping of the terrain, from the wooded area up to the land, is absolutely gorgeous! It features great use of slopes, tiles, plates, and hinges to achieve a really standout build.

In Good Hands

Of course, that’s not to mention the cottage itself! The walls of the home contain a plethora of rounded pieces, including some minifig headwear. Can you spot them? I personally like the use of croissants for the chimney’s smoke and the red kite flying in the wind. There’s also a skunk hiding somewhere in the scene. Take a look, but be careful lest it sprays you!

A busy blacksmith burns his bacon.

Builder lokiloki29 has crafted a tribute to home cooks throughout history with this scene of a blacksmith letting his pork dinner go up in smoke. Who doesn’t know the struggle of enduring a too charred meal because some household chore distracted you for too long? The build is filled with delightful details, from the cobblestone floor made from wheels to the forced perspective castle in the distance. And it all comes together for a grade-a piece of storytelling worthy of a chef’s kiss.

Kitchen Knightmares - The distracted blacksmith

A massive castle and bridge just under the deadline

Some people can work magic under a tight deadline. Take this LEGO castle and bridge built by Thomas van Urk for example. He tells us it was an entry for the Summer Joust: Bridging the Gap category and was finished an hour before the deadline. In his own words; “Since there wasn’t really a category for a large castle I decided to include a bridge in front of the gatehouse. Originally I wanted to leave it at that, but because of the pressure from the arching bridge, it needed to stand on a baseplate. But then, of course, there needed to be water around the whole castle, and then of course there needed to be a landscape across the water. Maybe I went a bit overboard.” If working until the deadline and going a bit overboard yields results like this then we’re pleased as punch.

Bridge to the Castle Gate

Thomas says he didn’t even have time to build his favorite part of the castle. I wonder what that could be. To see how the Summer Joust is heating up with all the other builders check out our Summer Joust category in our archives.

Bones and desert ruins forgotten by all but Time

Sun-bleached bones and an abandoned structure standout in the LEGO desert landscape by Eli Willsea. A feeling of loneliness and sorrow pervade the scene. Was this a sacred site with a sacred creature left alone due to unforeseen turmoil? Or was this creature the victim of sacrifice or punishment? None can say what happened here, only that the creature is long gone, its bones still bearing the weight of being tethered to the place. The structure around it towers overhead, an impressive mark on the landscape. Minifig roller-skates give detail to the capitals of the pillars. The banners on either side of the entrance stairs are seamless in their fitting, giving form to the staircase. High overhead, quarter tiles are wonderful vertical detailing for the entrance roof. The blending of soft and hard edges gives the scene a gentle, yet harsh, quality, not unlike the sand surrounding it.

Forgotten Bones

Got your goat right here

LEGO has released a lot of great minifigure-scaled animals over the years, but one of the rarest is the humble goat. Released in only one set,  2011’s 7189 Mill Village Raid, it currently commands an aftermarket price that is frankly kind of silly.  Richard Young (IamKritch) has a suggestion – why pay high prices for a single piece when you can make a giant brick-built version for a fraction of the cost? Built for the  “Going Big” category of the Summer Joust competition, this oversized darling makes great use of curved slopes to accurately mimic shaping of its smaller counterparts. We just hope it’s friendly.

A Large Goat

Want more goats? Sure, we all do. No kidding, go check our archives. Or maybe opt for a recently released set with slightly smaller brick-built alternatives.

A ghostly greeting in a green garden.

A black knight encounters a white ghost in this garden scene, but the only color you’ll see is green. ABrickDreamer took on the gradient challenge for Summer Joust, and this wonderful little vignette is the result. Eight shades of green are used to give life to this delightful little garden. And the limited color palette forced some excellent parts usage, like those Hulk bigfig arms making up the little hill.

A Spooky Encounter

A staggering ghostly presence comes to visit

Inspired by a friend’s work, the spectral stag leaps from Andreas Lenander‘s mind into this lovely LEGO build. An ethereal presence in nature with delicate and flowing features, the deer stands unflinchingly with strength about it. One of the defining elements of the stag is the end of the tail piece. Its use is versatile, from the antlers to the flowing of the neck, to the extended ghostly tail trailing behind. Being a smooth and curved part, it gives a sinewy and organic look to the deer. The greenery of the scene makes good use of minifig whips for the twists and turns of vines and the tree’s trunk. The tree and flowers bring a calming sense of peace to mind, pairing nicely with the rich details of the ghostly visitor. It’s easy to get lost in admiring the sculpting present in the build.

Ghost stag

A brilliantly built tiny temple on red rocks

Idoneas of Hillcrest opens the description of this creation by stating it’s a “super quick build”. I think that’s an understatement – I count a grand total of seven pieces here, so surely it must have taken mere seconds to build! In truth, that is underselling it slightly. The build may have been quick, but such a careful choice of parts requires a lot of thought. A piece of Hero Factory armour makes up the rocky base, while treads make up the basic shape of the temple at the top. Interestingly it’s the second creation in a row where Idoneas uses tread pieces to great effect, albeit at different sizes. That’s the mark of a great builder – a master in all scales!

Red Rock Temple

Some gleaming treasure and its fintastic warrior guardian

Builder JastaBrick gives us this amazing scene from the depths for the Summer Joust contest, in Going Big category. This is the sort of build that show off the nearly limitless capabilities of LEGO. I have a special appreciation for builds that render organic movement and shapes. This build does so wonderfully with the tail of the merman warrior. The segmented approach allows for some excellent bend and movement of the warrior as he comes up to defend the treasure. Even the armor has some organic elements to it with the curvature of the plating. There’s even a more literal organic representative in the form of a little grey frog! The sea plant life is sparse, but each is unique unto itself, lending greater diversity to the colors and shapes of the build. Even the treasure chest is fun to look at, especially the nice detail of minifig handcuffs for the handle. The base itself is well shaped and really grounds the whole scene. It shore is a fun build!

Deep Sea Merman Warrior

Spiders are not the only forest creature to be wary of

LEGO nostalgia is a big thing these days — and I’m not just talking about the footprint of the colossal 10305 Lion Knight’s Castle. Sigmund Haugland has big-ified the legendary yesteryear factions of the Black Falcon knights and the Forest Guardians in this amusing scene. Our brave Falcon knight must be suffering from a bout of arachnophobia, given the way he’s pointing his spear at the poor spider. The Forest Guardian is taking advantage of the situation to lob a net over the unsuspecting soldier. Perhaps he’s in league with the spider? I’m never sure whose side they’re on. These forest dwellers sure give off some chaotic-good vibes. Either way, both protagonists in this picture are full of character. I like the use of the closed eye for the mouth on both characters – despite using the same piece, they both have very different expressions. The door handle is nicely done as well using a pair of antlers.

Forestmen's prank