BrickJournal #37 by TwoMorrows Publishing

The Magazine for LEGO® Enthusiasts of All Ages! Issue 37 • December 2015

8.95

in the US

STAR WARS : The LEGO Force Awakens

Building the Spaceships with Eric Druon

Building the Settings of the STAR WARS Universe with AC Pin Titan’s Creations Millennium Falcon

Instructions AND MORE!

09 0

74470 23979

Issue 37 • December 2015

Contents

From the Editor....................................................2

People Colin Hemmen: Starting His Brick Story................................4

Building From A New Hope to The Force Awakens: Building the Star Wars Universe! ...........................................8 Building the Settings to Star Wars.......14 Designing Mid-Scale Droids...................20 You Can Build It: Mid-Size BB-8..................................................23 Project Spotlight: UCS First Order TIE Fighter........................29 LEGO Ideas Spotlight: Aaron Fiskum’s Landspeeder...............30 Builder Spotlight: Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez.......34 Joshua Morris’ Mos Eisley Cantina.....42 Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann’s TIE Fighter Bay...................................................50 You Can Build It: Endor Shuttle Platform............................55 Minifigure Customization 101: The Heights a 4 cm Minifigure can Reach!.........................................................64 The ULTIMATE Millennium Falcon.....68

Community TwoMorrows Crossover.............................76 Community Ads..............................................78 Last Word..............................................................79 AFOLs......................................................................80

From the Editor: December 2015 Issue 37 Publisher John Morrow

Editor in Chief Joe Meno

Photography Editor Geoff Gray

Proofreaders John Morrow Eric Nolen-Weathington Japanese Bureau Editor Nathan Bryan West Coast Editors Todd Kubo Ashley Glennon

LEGO Ideas Correspondent Glen Wadleigh

Contributors: Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez, Jared Burks, Christopher Deck, Eric Druon, Aaron Fiskum, Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann, Joshua Morris, Amado Pinlac, Daniel Stoeffler, Titans Creations, and Greg Hyland. Many thanks to the websites who have served as mirrors for BrickJournal:

www.LUGNET.com, www.Brickshelf.com, www.peeron.com, www.brickmodder.net www.rustyclank.com

About the Cover: Eric Druon’s Millennium Falcon and X-Wing approach! About the Contents: Queen Amidala awaits. Built and photographed by AC Pin.

So, I’m excited about the next Star Wars flick, can’t you tell? Star Wars has been one of a few threads in my life that has lasted for decades—in junior high school, I saw Star Wars: a New Hope and from there began a love for movie special effects. I also learned to draw by reading and poring over the The Art of Star Wars and other behind-the-scenes books. That eventually got me into the Design School at North Carolina State University, where I got my degree and went into... advertising. The next time Star Wars got my attention, it was at the LEGO Imagination Center in Orlando, Florida. I bought the initial sets from the new Star Wars theme—an X-Wing and a Naboo set. From there, I became an AFOL, which led me literally to where I am now. So this issue, I hope that you get inspired like I, and those who are in this issue, did. There’s ships, droids, and places to see and build here, so have fun reading and building! And as Obi Wan says to Luke: May the Force be with you! Joe Meno, Editor P.S. Have ideas or comments? Drop me a line at admin@brickjournal.com. I’m open to suggestions and comments and will do my best to reply. P.P.S... Yes, BrickJournal has a website—www.brickjournal.com! Twitter? Yep, there too—http://twitter.com/brickjournal. Facebook? Yup—http://www.facebook.com/ group.php?gid=58728699914&ref=mf. Or you can scan the bottom codes with a QR reader! P.P.P.S. If you want info on a subscription, you can go to: http://twomorrows.com/ index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=78&products_id=616 or scan below! Website

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Glossary AFOL (Adult Fan of LEGO) NLSO (Non-LEGO Significant Other) MOC (My Own Creation) TLG (The LEGO Group) BURP (Big Ugly Rock Piece) LURP (Little Ugly Rock Piece) SNOT (Studs Not on Top)

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LEGO®, TECHNIC, MINDSTORMS, Belville, Scala, BIONICLE, ExoForce, Mars Mission, World City, and other LEGO theme lines are trademarks of the LEGO Group of companies. STAR WARS and all related elements and characters are TM & © Lucasfilm, Ltd. All articles, photos, and art are copyright BrickJournal Media, LLC, TwoMorrows Publishing and the respective writers, photographers, and artists. All rights reserved. All trademarked items are the property of their respective owners and licensees. Subscriptions are $50USD Media Mail, $68 Canada, $78 International Surface, and can be purchased at www.twomorrows.com or payment sent to: TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614 USA. The editorial/advertising office address for BrickJournal is: BrickJournal Editor, 5610 Briar Oak Lane #510, Raleigh, NC 27612 USA or admin@brickjournal.com. First Printing. Printed in the USA. ISSN 1941-2347. BrickJournal and its staff would like to thank the LDraw community for the software it makes available to the community, which we use for making all of the instructions and renderings in this magazine. We would especially like to thank Kevin Clague for his continued upgrades of the LPub tool that is a part of the LDraw suite. For more information, please visit http://www.ldraw.org.

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People

Colin Hemmen: Starting His Brick Story Article by Joe Meno

Every builder has a story. The usual story is that a builder revisits a childhood LEGO set or sets, and rekindles his or her creative spirit and begins to build anew. From there, they either build for themselves and are discovered by their friends or by a visit to a LEGO fan event. Their story then begins a new chapter, where they become part of the LEGO fan community. This isn’t the only way to start a builder’s story, though. Colin Hemmen already has a different beginning—I spotted his work on Facebook. I’ll let Colin tell his story... My introduction to LEGO began at a very young age, mainly because of my parent’s constant need to keep my young mind busy while they prepared dinner or whatever it was that grown-ups did back then. There was always an understanding and appreciation for these tiny interlocking plastic bricks when I was growing up. So much so, that when my newborn sister arrived home from the hospital for the first time, my peace offering and welcoming gift to her was sharing the family LEGO collection. Clearly I had not fully grasped the concept of an infant’s lack of dexterity. Hey, give me a break—I was five. Dreading the month before Christmas each year, I would break out the old standby toy bin, mainly because I knew that I wasn’t getting a single G.I. Joe or Hot Wheel car for at least three weeks.

That, and there were LEGO parts a plenty in that forgotten box. Anyway, time went by. I sort of grew up and gave my precious collection to the neighbor’s kid and went on with life.

Examples of Colin’s work.

Eventually I got sick of playing online video games and yelling at a computer. So I purchased the Witch Doctor (LEGO collectible minifigure) and LEGO Atlantis Deep Sea Angler set, and the rest is history. After reawakening my creative focus, I became consumed with LEGO building. I can’t pinpoint the exact moment, but somewhere there was a split second where I realized a fraction of the potential this medium had in terms of combinations and that it had unlimited artistic expression. Music helped a lot too. I lived in Seattle, Washington most of my life. I struggled for years trying to “find” myself. Seven years ago,

my sister and I moved to Hawaii. It wasn’t until I made a conscious decision to have a more positive attitude that things started to change for me. Eventually, I settled into an easy little job managing a deli on one of the most beautiful beaches in Maui. When I create a piece, I usually don’t have anything too specific in mind. I just start putting parts together and see what they form. When I try to plan a design out too much, it becomes a chore, and loses some of the organic feel and freedom. I think that is where a lot of my style comes from: that desire and passion for evolving and creating something totally original. A new design keeps me on my toes while exploring different techniques of building.

Edward Saberhands, one of Colin’s named models.

Emperor of Quiet Fire.

I try to make it a goal to push myself to create something better, or more advanced than the last thing I made. I get a lot of my inspiration out of my love for music. It’s a form of therapy for me to sit down with a ton of bricks and put on some headphones.

More of Colin’s work.

When Joe Meno reached out to me for an article in BrickJournal, that’s when I knew I had to return to my hometown for BrickCon. It was a spur of the moment trip, and I was not able to get my act together in time for registration. All I was thinking was, I had to be there. I’ve had a lot of support in the form of family and friends to get to this point with my hobby. Even my boss told me I had to go to BrickCon. Editor’s Note: I met Colin at BrickCon during public hours on Saturday and arranged to meet him and see what he brought (he was too late to register for BrickCon). By the time Sunday had arrived, he had shown a portfolio of his work around and gotten the attention of many BrickCon attendees. Meeting Colin, I grabbed a couple of attendees with me to see his work. We got to his car, and he showed us a few models—a panda, a sculpture, and a head. They were passed around and some photos were taken. The photos I saw in his portfolio are nothing compared to seeing and holding the actual models. We returned, where Colin was able to attend the end of BrickCon. And with this, Colin’s story as a builder began. Where will his story take him? And what is your story?

Petey Grafitti.

People

Eric’s model of Jabba’s Sand Barge.

From A New Hope to The Force Awakens:

Building The Star Wars Universe! Article by Joe Meno Photography provided by Eric Druon (BaronSat) The rear of Jabba’s Sand Barge.

BrickJournal readers may already know Eric Druon. He’s known online as BaronSat, and he has been in BrickJournal multiple times, most recently showing us how to make a Hulkbuster costume in issue #34. Outside of the hobby, he is a freelance graphic artist, making magazine advertising. At the age of 42, he has built a library of Star Wars sets that span all the movies. BrickJournal asked him to make exclusive models for the cover of this issue, so he built spaceships that were only glimpsed at in previews of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Here he talks about his Star Wars MOCs and also briefly about the cover. BrickJournal: Did you have a Dark Age and if so, when did you get out of it? Eric Druon: Not really, I have always bought LEGO sets but only a very few until the early 2000s, so in a way you can say I’ve been out of the dark since these days. Of course, I have built custom models since I was a kid but things really changed when I discovered LUGNET in the late ’90s. I think the first pics I published were on FBTB (From Bricks to Bothans, a Star Wars LEGO-themed website) in 2001. What go you interested in building Star Wars models? What models have you done? I would say, “How is it possible not to build Star Wars models?” Star Wars has been in our life for over 35 years and has always been very popular. So I just couldn’t help it. I have built many, but not all of the models I wish I could build. The oldest one is Jabba’s Barge, and in reflection, I have no idea why I chose that one first. It just seemed cool. Since my initial build, I have updated it twice, but you won’t see that on my website. I also built an X-Wing, a UCS TIE Bomber, two Death Star playsets, two rancors, two models of the Rebo Band, two banthas, the shuttle Tydirium, Jabba’s Palace, a large IG-88, two Hoth scenes, Mos Eisley, an Imperial Troop Transport based on the vintage Kenner toy (like one of my Death Star, the other is based on the Palitoy), and a cantina with miniland-scale figures.

The interior of the Sand Barge.

What was your approach to building the cover models? When I worked on them, there were very few photos available, so instead of trying to be very precise, I went for a new interpretation based on the old design. I did what we all do at one time or another: we adapt the Star Wars universe for ourselves.

What got you into building models based on Kenner Star Wars sets? You did a lot of sets and figures based on their toys. I was a big vintage Kenner Star Wars toys fan, with a really nice collection! I mean, in the ’90s it was a big collection, of MoC (Mint on Card figures, not My Own Creation) and MIB (Mint in Box) vehicles, 12” dolls, Micro Collection sets with their die-cast figures and many other accessories like the C-3PO carry case etc... Back in the day, Kenner was the company. Leia takes the laser cannon.

Eric’s Death Star playset, based on the Kenner playset.

Eric’s Hoth playset, including ion cannon and generator.

You can see much more of Eric’s work by going to www.baronsat.net or scanning this QR code!

What Star Wars model of yours are you happiest with? The Kenner Death Star. It is based on the Micro Collection toys and is still my favorite. I hope to build a third part for that diorama as Kenner made a prototype for the Emperor’s throne room, but the toy was never produced. So I need to make it with bricks. Why did you build IG-88 in such a larger scale? Because of the vintage Kenner 12-inch doll line. I built it at the same size as the vintage Kenner doll. What Star Wars model do you wish that the LEGO Group would do or do right? Bespin. We already had one in 2003, and it was great, but that was a long time ago. With all the parts and colors that now exist, a new version would be killer!

A UCS TIE Bomber.

A larger scale IG-88.

Miniland scale aliens. droids, and stormtroopers for...

...a Miniland cantina set!

Alternate views of the Episode VII X-Wing Eric built for this issue’s cover!

In terms of creating the cover models, how did you work with the online audience to refine a craft that was only seen for a few moments when the model was first requested? I started to build the models in April 2015 so there were only a few pictures online. When I published teasers online for the X-Wing in June, people from the forum noted there were many errors, as there was much more documentation available at that time. I decided to upgrade the model as I got feedback. AFOLs and TFOLs made remarks. I asked for details, then submitted a modified version, received new comments, made more modifications, etc... That was very fun to share and build in a sort of real-time challenge.

The Millennium Falcon, as built by Eric for this issue’s cover!

Opposite: Staff photo of Jørgen Vig Knudstorp.

People

Article by Joshua Kranenberg

Building the Settings to Star Wars! Article and Photography by Amado Canlas Pinlac

Amado Canlas Pinlac (also known as AC Pin on Flickr and Facebook) has been building LEGO layouts for over 15 years. In that time he has been a prolific builder, with dozens of layouts built and displayed online and at events. Here are a few of his best models, with comments from the builder himself!

Fully rebuilt/reinforced after the book LSW—The Visual Dictionary came out last May 2014, it has already made the rounds of public shows in New Jersey including BrickFair, Brick Fest Live, Greenberg Train & Toy Show, and a private one-man show at my workplace, Verizon Wireless in Warren. Hopefully it will have a chance to go out of the Garden State for the other brick conventions/shows.

Theed Hangar Battle

More than three years ago this MOC was finally completed, after almost seven years when the first prototype was revealed. It might have taken a long time to get it done for various reasons of which some were more obvious than others (no budget/money, etc.), but I’ve always known that it was a project/idea worth pursuing/ building for.

As I’ve said countless times before to A/T/KFOLs during the public shows, “Build something out of your ideas; it doesn’t matter if you don’t have the correct parts, color or whatever reason it is. Just do something with that idea because if you don’t, you’ll never know when that idea comes along again.” I did something about it... A close-up of a Naboo starfighter.

A lot of firsts for myself were achieved when it was finally completed: • first SW modular design/build, first MOC built specifically for public display • first MOC shown in public with GardensLUG (a local LEGO Users Group) • my first MOC submitted for CUUSOO (now LEGO Ideas) • first SW MOC covered in various SW LEGO blogs • first SW MOC featured in LSW—The Visual Dictionary and • first MOC displayed at the LSW—The Visual Dictionary book signing (with author Jason Fry) in Maplewood NJ. Up to this day, it continues to be also the most popular signature MOC of mine and the main reason why the ACPin FB community page was started/created.

Another view of the hangar.

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon Jinn confront Darth Maul.

Looking down the floor of the layout.

Droid Foundry Sabotage

Inspired by the episode on the Clone Wars series where Ahsoka Tano and Barriss Offee make their way to the factory reactor through the battle droid foundry. The battle droid conveyors running across the multiple levels was the main focus on the design and I initially tried to experiment with various ways of getting movement along the conveyor. I was not satisfied with the results and just had to settle for the static look.

Looking down the floor of the layout.

A higher view of the foundry.

An overall view of the display.

Clone training facility.

Domino Squad Final Run

Five years ago a vignette of the clone cadets in the pit of the training facility was made and the tremendous response/ feedback received by it made me decide to build the whole training facility. It took the whole month of October 2010 to complete, and the Tron-like gridwork across multiple levels was the most challenging part of the build. When it was finally completed in November 2010, it got a lot of attention from various SW blogs/sites around the Internet including the official Star Wars blog, EuroBricks, and The Brothers Brick. You can see more of AC Pinlac’s work at his Flickr gallery: https://www.flickr.com/ photos/acpin/ or scan this QR code.

The facility wall.

Building

Designing Mid-scale Droids! Daniel Stoeffler first appeared in BrickJournal in issue #36 showcasing his cathedrals. It turns out he also built some other creations from a completely different source. Here, he talks a little about his Star Wars droid models, and shows us how to build the newest droid, BB-8!

Article by Daniel Stoeffler

Threepio and Artoo.

Building Mid-size Droids

The “mid-size” is an intermediate scale between minifigure scale and the UCS scale. The LEGO Group has explored a similar scale with the two midi-scale spaceships (the 7778 set Millennium Falcon and 8099 Imperial Star Destroyer), but they do not match to a common scale and can hardly be displayed together. I built R2-D2, my first mid-size droid, in spring 2012 for a contest with a 32x32 baseplate total size limitation. I displayed R2-D2, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker. At that moment, I realized that the scale allowed one to build detailed MOCs (nearly as detailed as the UCS ones) which are not too large, which do not require too many parts and which are not too expensive. From my point of view, it is even more challenging to build MOCs at this size than UCS because the reduction in size requires me to be careful in choosing the right parts, much like the Architecture theme of sets uses a minimal parts palette. C-3PO was built three years later and was the most tricky because I wanted to get it at the same scale as R2-D2. BB-8 was built in September 2015 and was the easiest to build. R2-D2’s first appearance. You can see more pics at https://www.flickr.com/ photos/77709542@N06/albums/72157630758629342.

During the summer of 2015, I also built WALL•E and EVE. As a result, I built five of the most famous droids that belong now to the Walt Disney Company and that fit nicely together.

Threepio broken down...

Mid-size C-3PO

C-3PO is a humanoid droid and is consequently more difficult to build at this scale than R2-D2 (to fit with R2D2 it is 29 cm high). The comparison with the original model shows that the body of the MOC is very well proportionate. The character is immediately recognizable even if the head is less accurate than the other parts of the body.

...and in gray.

More particularly, the shoulders can rotate over 360 degrees allowing it to move up it arms and, as a good protocol droid, to welcome people. According to the Star Wars 4 movie, the right leg can be built grey, and according to preview images of Star Wars 7, its left arm can be made red.

Some rigid and pneumatic hoses are used to enhance the final design. Most of the 562 LEGO parts used to build it being common, full yellow and full grey versions can easily be built. The model is fully articulated (neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, fingers, waist, necks of femur, knees, and ankles) so that it can adopt various attitudes.

Old and new droids.

Mid-size R2-D2

R2-D2 is an basic astromech droid having acquired additional features and presenting an evolving personality during the six movies: this explains its popularity and the success of the UCS model. Its simple shape—a hemisphere over a cylinder—explains also why it was the first of the mid-size droids I have built. My MOC is 15.5 cm high and contains 477 parts. The legs are clearly the easiest parts to build, and consist mainly of stacked bricks and plates. The cylindrical body is built using ten 2x9 “panels” displaying most of the details of the original droid, and circularly arranged around a central axis. Two body panels can be modified, allowing the lateral utility arms to extend out of the body. Also, the central foot can be removed. Artoo and a new droid.

R2’s head is more difficult to build at this scale because it contains essential features and various colors. The head is built like a small Lowell sphere, using five sections in order to get the most accurate possible shape. The periscopic camera can be added at the top of the head. Finally, the head rotates freely on top of the body. More than ten copies exist worldwide (a free building instruction has been available since the end of 2012).

You Can Build It:

Building

Mid-size BB-8

BB-8 is the new droid of the coming Star Wars 7 movie, and I had enough preview pictures to build it. The main body is a small Lowell sphere with six sections built with plates and 1x2 jumpers: they make a nice final sphere 8 cm in diameter. Round plates correspond to the orange, white and grey patterns. BB-8’s head is built on a 6x6 round plate, while R2-D2’s head is built on a 8x8 round plate. Because of the smaller size, BB-8’s “half sphere” head is built using several slopes and two 2 x 2 dishes with rounded bottoms, one for the top and one with a headlight pattern for the main “eye.” Being 12 cm high and requiring 257 parts, it fits nicely with R2-D2 and C-3PO, and I particularly like to see the three droids together. For those who want to build the newest Star Wars droid, here are the instructions to BB-8. Have fun building!

Parts List

(Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color) Qty Color Part 2 White 4070.dat 1 White 2654.dat 1 White 4593.dat 5 White 3023.dat 1 White 32028.dat 111 White 3794b.dat 2 White 3710.dat 7 White 3022.dat 24 White 2420.dat 2 White 3021.dat 15 White 3795.dat 7 White 60474.dat 7 White 54200.dat 3 White 15068.dat 2 White 2555.dat 1 White 3069b.dat 12 Orange 18646.dat 1 Light Orange 60474.dat

Description Brick 1 x 1 with Headlight Dish 2 x 2 Hinge Control Stick Plate 1 x 2 Plate 1 x 2 with Door Rail Plate 1 x 2 with Groove with 1 Centre Stud Plate 1 x 4 Plate 2 x 2 Plate 2 x 2 Corner Plate 2 x 3 Plate 2 x 6 Plate 4 x 4 Round with Hole and Snapstud Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Slope Brick Curved 2 x 2 x 0.667 Tile 1 x 1 with Clip Tile 1 x 2 with Groove Plate 3 x 6 Round Half with 1 x 2 Cutout Plate 4 x 4 Round with Hole and Snapstud

Qty Color Part Description 1 Dark Bluish Gray 15535.dat Tile 2 x 2 Round with Hole 1 Black 87994.dat Bar 3L 1 Black 4589.dat Cone 1 x 1 1 Black 2654pb1.dat Dish 2 x 2 with Headlight Pattern 8 Light Bluish Gray 44728.dat Bracket 1 x 2 - 2 x 2 4 Light Bluish Gray 4733.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on Four Sides 1 Light Bluish Gray 4592.dat Hinge Control Stick Base 8 Light Bluish Gray 3022.dat Plate 2 x 2 1 Light Bluish Gray 87580.dat Plate 2 x 2 with Groove with 1 Center Stud 10 Light Bluish Gray 3020.dat Plate 2 x 4 1 Light Bluish Gray 11833.dat Plate 4 x 4 Round with 2 x 2 Round Hole 1 Light Bluish Gray 11213.dat Plate 6 x 6 Round with Hole and Snapstud 3 Light Bluish Gray 85984.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 2 x 0.667 1 Light Bluish Gray 4519.dat Technic Axle 3 2 Light Bluish Gray 6541.dat Technic Brick 1 x 1 with Hole 2 Light Bluish Gray 3713.dat Technic Bush with Two Flanges 6 Light Bluish Gray 4150.dat Tile 2 x 2 Round

1 2 3

12x

4 1x

5 1x

1 2x

2 4x

3 1x

12x

4 1x

2 25

1 2x

2 4x

3 12x

4 1x

5 6

3 26

7x 1x

4x 2x 1x

4 2x

1x 3x

1x 1x 27

3 1x

Instructions for all the droids are available online for download at http:// danstomocs.blogspot.fr/2015/10/the-midsize-droids-files.html, or you can scan the QR code !

www.brickcoaster.com

Custom Roller Coaster Tracks, Sets and Accessories

Building

Project Spotlight:

UCS First Order TIE Fighter! Article and Photography by Todd Kubo

It goes without saying that Star Wars: Episode VII has generated a lot of buzz. It’s probably one of the most anticipated movies of all time. For the LEGO fan, just as much anticipation has been toward the sets that are coming out for this film! And while I’m excited to see the movie, I’m really looking forward to seeing the new sets. After seeing clips and leaks of the TIE fighter versions and the new T-70 X-Wings from the upcoming movie, I couldn’t help but think about creating a UCS First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter. The color scheme and design, while staying true to the original, were fantastic! I started to build this right around the time the UCS TIE was released. Looking at the design, it was clear that this could have turned out to be a simple “build in different colors” project, but soon after the flood of information hit the web, my project turned into anything but that. The cockpit now holds two people: a pilot and gunner. The back where the single ion drive was once located, has now moved to the sides, and a window of sorts seems to be there. Building that was a challenge, and utilized a lot of SNOT techniques. The lower gun turret takes the place of a stand, and can rotate 180°.

A closer look at the bottom of the crew pod, with the guns and color detail. The rear of the crew pod, with the moved engines and window.

Color-wise, LEGO couldn’t have had a model handed to them with better colors. Black and red for this exist readily! Only a few pieces proved to be a bit rough to locate, but finding many large plain panels from the early hockey sets proved to make the difference, and as a result I could model the solar panels much like the LEGO UCS TIE. Otherwise, the build came together nicely. Technic black treads create the detail next to the panels, and force the design to be much wider than the UCS release. (It’s six studs wider than the LEGO UCS TIE.) The only long delay was having to Bricklink the main cockpit windscreen and top hatch. While not completely original in design, the idea and result were more than I could have hoped for. Now I can’t wait to see the film in December! May the Force be with you!

Building

LEGO Ideas Spotlight:

Aaron Fiskum’s Landspeeder! Article by Joe Meno Photography by callsign51.com

An outstanding model that has been submitted to LEGO Ideas is Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder, built in Ultimate Collector Scale. Built by Aaron Fiskum, the model was a response to his thoughts about what Luke Skywalker’s X34 Landspeeder might look like if it were brand new off the assembly line from the Sorosuub Corporation (via LEGO) in UCS scale. The result is a UCS Landspeeder model at 2854 pieces, including the stand. It measures 22.5 inches in length, 15.5 inches wide, and 12 inches high with the stand. Aaron reviewed pictures of Landspeeder toys, images on the web, watched snippets of Star Wars: A New Hope, and read over schematics on Star Wars wikis for vehicle statistics. In collaboration from those sources, here is the final build. He went through six different revisions in LEGO Digital Designer (LDD) looking for something acceptable and fairly accurate in proportion.

A look at the rear of the speeder. An overhead view.

A shot of the complete set.

The stand is modeled after a combination of the LEGO UCS 10175 and 10134 stands. Although different from the orange and brown of the original craft, I decided that LEGO Dark Red and Brick Yellow/Tan would be best based on piece availability in specific colors. Amazingly enough, the landspeeder was nominated into the top five and ultimately took home the“Best Land Vehicle” award at Brickworld Chicago 2015. It was a great opportunity to be graded by the other builders at the event and get feedback from the public as well—they loved it! I’m hoping that more interest and support was generated for this project as well as exposing LEGO Ideas to more of the public due to this event. Overall, the project was a lot of fun for Aaron to create and he was completely engrossed in it. He welcomes any comments or critiques (don’t be shy) as everyone has a different take in design and how things should look. If you like this “Idea”, he encourages you to support this project and follow project updates as time goes on.

A shot of the set showing the stand and minifigures.

Aaron would also like to extend special thanks to Cavegod (Peter Brookdale) for inspiration and early critiquing. You can support Aaron’s project by going to https://ideas.lego.com/ projects/91535/updates or scanning this QR code!

A close-up of the stand and minifigures..

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Building

Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez.

Star Wars and LEGO have been part of my life for as long as I can remember. I honestly don’t know which one came first. Diego’s EF76 Nebulon-B Escort Frigate Redemption

Builder Spotlight:

Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez Article by Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez The LEGO Group started their Star Wars theme with the X-Wing and TIE Fighter in 1999. Since then, many other smaller spacecraft have been produced by the LEGO Group, and even some of the capital ships, such as the Star Destroyer in 2002. However, there are still some capital ships that haven’t been produced. One builder that has built the large ships is Diego Maximino Prieto Álvarez. He has submitted these models to LEGO Ideas and talks about his models here.

I remember myself seeing the classic trilogy in the VHS copies of CBS Home Video when I was just 4 years old. I watched them without any spoilers. and without any digital edit. I watched them just a few years before Episode I was released (so I was immunized against the prequel’s disappointment). Coincidentallly, I stored them mixed with Disney’s VHS cartoons, so I was ready for the Lucasfilm purchase in 2012. Not a bad context for the ’90s. I was also starting building with LEGO at the same time, so I also missed the darkest years of the Danish company. I wasn’t surprised when LEGO and Lucasfilm joined in 1999 to make the Star Wars LEGO theme. As a kid, I didn’t understand the complex maneuvers behind those license agreements. It just seemed natural and logical. Before that, I was already pretending to find similarities between LEGO Space sets and Star Wars vehicles. It sounds silly now, but I remember that I used to consider the U.F.O. theme saucers as Millennium Falcon copies. With each new set, I was wondering whether it would be possible to recreate the complete saga frame by frame. Suddenly, I realized there were still several ships and scenes to be produced, so I finally did something that every LEGO Star Wars builder has done: to think, predict or imagine upcoming releases for the missing scenes. Everybody wants to feel like a LEGO Designer.

A side view of the Invisible Hand.

Providence-Class Carrier/Destroyer Invisible Hand This destroyer is General Grevious’s flagship in the battle over Coruscant, as seen in Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. This seemingly unknown ship (unless you have played board games, or videogames like Pandemic’s Battlefront II) would have never been in my mind if LEGO had never altered the minifigure scale in sets like 6211 Imperial Star Destroyer. Sets like that, and specially the 8039 Venator Cruiser, encouraged me to think on a toy based on another cruiser, which has been somewhat forgotten in the official merchandise. The concept was in my mind since 2009, but the idea was basically a fan-made set rather than an artistic MOC, so I couldn’t find the proper motivation to develop my idea. Then LEGO Cuusoo (now LEGO Ideas) went global, and I considered it the best place to show a model like this.

Another view of the Invisible Hand.

As I have already mentioned, the ship is not really popular (most likely because it bears little resemblance to the classic trilogy vehicles). However, it is the main goal/ backdrop in the first 20 minutes of Episode III, so it is actually more relevant in the plot than the Venator-Class Star Destroyer. Due to the importance of the scenes, I began working on the rooms and play features first. That was the reason behind the big size of the model. Considering that the sequence is about rescuing someone from a Villain’s Evil Lair, the play set 10188 Death Star was an inevitable reference while I was building. Like any play theme toy, a kid should be able to tell a story with it.

A close-up of the command bridge section.

The dimensions were established with the hangar, which should be able to contain at least a small microfighter. A simple box worked as an elevator to the spire. The upper part of this spire was supposed to contain the Chancellor Palpatine minifig, so this area became quite

Hangar

Escape Pod

Communication Pod

Flak Gun Command Bridge A breakdown of the model and its play sections.

disproportionate in the first version. When I redesigned it, I found an easy solution: The upper part can be removed and replaced by a scaled-down version, for display purposes. The other half of the ship contained the remaining elements and features to continue recreating those film scenes: the command bridge with sliding doors, a flak gun and an escape pod. The feedback was so positive that I decided to make a great redesign, paying more attention to the external shape while keeping the same concept from the original submission.

The Communications Pod open with minifigure seat.

The Invisible Hand’s shape may look plain, but its curves are quite tricky to translate to the LEGO System. In fact, I think that’s a key factor in the most eye-catching MOCs in the Internet: Almost everybody links “LEGO” with “square”; therefore the best way to surprise is “breaking” the square through the use of curved elements or unexpected angles. This destroyer has many kind of curvatures. Some of them are slight and small, while others are very long.

A view of the hangar.

The smaller ones were so tiny that I was going to ignore them. About that time, the curved slope 1x2 was introduced to the LEGO palette, which proved to be an extremely useful piece. I was probably using the easiest route, but I don’t like to reject any element at first sight (that is the advantage of growing with the ’90s-early 2000s sets). An over-detailed part can be used to create new textures, and an oversized element can always add structural integrity to the build. For example, some boat hull pieces are used in the Invisible Hand’s base. And there are even some recently introduced bricks (like the hinge panel 3x4x3 curved) that would help to optimize the model’s design. There is no element big enough for the longer longitudinal curves. In this case I use a solution not-so-well appreciated: to stagger plates. It worked well at a huge scale, and the light/dark grey stripes around the fuselage helped to disguise the effect.

In conclusion, it was a challenge to work with too many curves at the same time, but it was an excellent exercise to test and compare the different curved elements available. I am aware this kind of building has the most criticized topics on LEGO Ideas projects (Huge size? Check. Digital build? Check. Existing license? Check.). At this point, I have read many comments in the Internet asking why people insist on making this type of content. My answer is clear: No matter how crazy a set idea can be; this is the formal way to tell the company what you are waiting for. It will always be more effective than writing a wish list in a fan site. Another view of the hangar.

Two Jedi Starfighters and one Droid Fighter.

A close-up of the Jedi Starfighter, showing minifigure placement.

Eta-2 Actis-Class Interceptors Jedi Starfighters [microfighters] LEGO set 10188 came with a mini-TIE Advanced with space for a minifigure (this was probably a precursor of the Microfighters range) to add some extra playability. I created two small Jedi Starfighters following the same guidelines: an easy build with space for a standard minifig.

EF76 Nebulon-B Escort Frigate Redemption I don’t know why, but this has always been one of my favorite spaceships. Used by the Rebel Alliance as a medical frigate, it is well known for its appearance at the very end of The Empire Strikes Back. This makes the Nebulon-B a reminder of that memorable movie as well as John William’s unforgettable and timeless soundtrack. Based upon the favorable reception of the Invisible Hand project, I decided to give this frigate a try. The build was completely different this time. My previous ship had dynamic and organic shapes, while this one has a geometric and industrial design. This time the project wasn’t focused toward younger builders, so I started working directly with the external appearance. However, I was also keeping my original

The Redemption.

Surgery Room

MINI YT-1300 Freighter Troop Carrier Cockpit

A breakdown of the Redemption, showing play sections.

boyhood ideas: I included some playable features hidden inside to add play value. Reference material is essential when you are recreating a scaled model. Gathering documentation about this frigate was a bit complicated because there is contradictory information, specs and schemes online. The proper reference pictures turned out to be the behind-the-scenes photos featuring studio models. Even the blurry images were helpful to obtain accurate measurements. The original LDD file was turning bigger and bigger. Wanting to see the final model as a real thing, I made a dramatic decision and rebooted the entire project. I started the build from the very beginning, keeping the level of detail at the lowest possible piece count.

Close-up of the Surgery Room.

Cockpit detail.

The most important feature to include was the surgery room, as well as a minifigure-suitable cockpit. I was able to locate this escape pod-like cockpit in the same place where the command bridge is situated (according to the Expanded Universe/LEGENDS sources). The supposed storage for the “water tanks” was indeed the perfect space to allocate a Bacta tank. One lesson learned from these builds: when you try to replicate something, proportions are the priority. Maybe you think it is awesome to use a specific piece for a certain area of the build, but sometimesit is better to sacrifice that Nice Piece Usage in favor of the scale. If the build is as close to the proportions as possible, it won’t need a NPU to attract attention.

Mini YT-1300 Light Freighter Millennium Falcon Obviously, this MOC should include a miniature version of the iconic Corellian Freighter. A first idea I considered was to make another ship with space for a minifigure. However, at this scale it was impossible to do anything other than a cartoony ship that destroys the Ultimate Collector Series nature, so I just included a micro-scaled version for the obligatory size comparison.

Hoth Rebel Carrier Set 10198 Tantive IV was a reference for this project, and that product also included a mini rebel personnel carrier next to the engines. This MOC can be considered the Episode V version of that set. In that regard, I added a small Hoth troop carrier in the empty engineering section.

The Millennium Falcon docked.

Front and rear view of the troop carrier.

Incom T-65 X-Wing Starfighter I don’t think this ship needs an introduction.

Diego’s X-Wing.

One of the first sets I played with as a kid was the old 7140 X-Wing Fighter. Years later, I won a redesigned version (4502 X-Wing Fighter) on a drawing competition, so I could check the evolution of the toy sets. However, as I grew up, I compared these toys with scale model kits. The differences are enough to justify more product iterations for this ship, so I tried to go a step further; this time the goal was to make an X-Wing so detailed than it wouldn’t need more updates. Like any other MOC, I started working in LEGO Digital Designer. I was going to build it with real bricks, but the digital software was still helpful to

preview your MOC and compare multiple solutions to one problem at the same time. The details I cared about were the ones usually forgotten in LEGO depictions: a hexagonal fuselage, an accurate windscreen, and more important, the huge engines. I made an early experimental version in 2010, but I was never satisfied with the result and I decided to do a complete redesign two years later. The final result is not really sturdy, but features some interesting techniques: • The notch in the nose, for example, only uses a curved wedge upside-down. • The laser cannons needed a tubular piece between 1x1 and 2x2. There are few round parts in between, but the best solution was pretty funny: I used several minifig utensil saucepans. The X-Wing is so iconic and has been MOCed so many times that the finished MOC didn’t have much impact. No surprises here. Curiously, the laserback suppressors were later used by (now LEGO Designer) Mike Psiaki in his own X-Wing. And I don’t know if it was a coincidence, but Marshall Banana’s cockpit in his X-Wing is pretty close to the one in my 2010 first sketch.

Rear view of the X-Wing.

Close-up of the cockpit.

X-Wing diorama.

Despite the stability issues, I am satisfied with the final result. However, I failed doing a model which doesn’t need updates; there are already some new 2014-15 elements that would improve the build. Any artwork is never finished.

Rebel Personnel Carrier

Like the first LEGO version (7140), and some model kits like Kotobukiya’s replica, I also recently made this small rebel personnel carrier to assist the T-65 Starfighter.

Personnel carrier.

Josh’s diorama is filled with many of the aliens and characters for Star Wars, but also other LEGO themes, including Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lone Ranger!

Building

Joshua Morris’

Mos Eisley Cantina

Interview by Joe Meno

“Mos Eisley Spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villiany. We must be cautious.” —Obi-Wan Kenobi

A couple of months ago, I spotted an extensive diorama of Mos Eisley Cantina built by Joshua Morris, a 40-year-old AFOL living in Australia. After contacting him, I found out he is married with two boys; Ethan (10) and Zac (7) who absolutely love LEGO, and a gorgeous, very tolerant wife, Kathleen, who has “allowed him to commandeer the double garage” for his LEGO building. Outside of the hobby, he works as an MRI Radiographer and enjoys the creativity that comes with the job. BrickJournal talked to him about this build and building. BrickJournal: Do you build with your boys? What do they build? Joshua Morris: I help my boys build their Ninjago and Star Wars bases, and they are often raiding my supplies as it’s easier than looking through their tubs of doom! Ethan is starting to pay more attention to what I build and has started helping me on creations. He loves building trains and has come up with some really detailed builds. Zac is more into building Mecha and spaceships at present and still likes working from instructions. How long have you been building, and did you have a Dark Age? If so, when did it start, and when did it end? I have been out of my 20-year Dark Age since 2007. I was looking for a hobby that could handle destruction via my 2-year-old son and stumbled into the LEGO aisle and spotted the Mars Mission sets. It all started with 7692 MX-71 Recon Dropship. The 7690 MB-01 Eagle Command Base was bought a week later. The plan was to avoid the large theme of Star Wars. That plan went out the window two weeks later when I tracked down the 7666 Hoth Rebel Base and I soon discovered Eurobricks and FBTB (From Bricks to Bothans, a LEGO Star Warscentered site), then Bricklink and Flickr. I began displaying in 2010 with a trip to Brickworld (a LEGO fan event in Chicago, Illinois). I was amazed by the scope of such a large fan show and met many great builders from all over the world. It wasn’t too long after this that I met local members of SydLUG (Sydney LEGO Users Group), of which I have been a member ever since, and am currently into my second year as Ambassador.

What do you like to build in terms of theme? My favoured themes are Star Wars, Sci-Fi, Castle and Pirates. I enjoy the freedom of loose themes, it allows me to not be tied to specific details on

A nice subtle touch to the diorama is the gradual sloping of the ground by using plates to add height. Random 1x1 plates add rocks to the landscape.

Mos Eisley Information

Size: 2 X 3 small baseplates 64 studs by 96 studs Estimated Number of Elements: 5000 Number of Minifigures: 80 Hours to Construct: 20

While the cantina is a custom build, there are some parts from a LEGO set: the landspeeder from the LEGO Mos Eisley set (75052). The dewback also came from this set.

A diorama is a very effective way to make a setting for a model; however, in this case, the model is the setting. Minifigures in the cantina and outside make the cantina a center of activity.

Numerous details make the diorama come to life, such as the vaporator outside behind the landspeeder, and the scrap shop that is just outside the cantina entrance.

vehicles, etc. and let the ideas flow freely. I like a high level of detail in my builds and always enjoy coming up with interesting parts usage or looking through Flickr at what other people design; it is a great community to be a part of! I tend to build minifigurescale dioramas as I enjoy the emotion that figures can bring to any situation, just on subtle alterations of posing and the myriad of different facials expressions that we can use. When I was just starting out, I founded the Eurobricks Community Castle build which helped me learn lots about building when my collection was still growing. This led to me creating the Guilds of Historica on Eurobricks as a way to help others learn from skilled LEGO builders like Derfel Cadarn, Si-MOCS and Sirens of Titans. After 18 months I stepped back and others like Ecclesiastes and ZCerberus have stepped up to continue the great experience with more and more great builders surfacing all the time. From this point I felt my collection was large enough to have a go at larger scale builds like Star Wars. Which leads to the build... What inspired you to build the Mos Eisley Cantina? I was really excited to finally see a remake of the classic Cantina, but on a larger scale. I had been thinking about doing a cantina for a while, but noticed a few MOCs starting to pop up online, and next thing I knew I was building my own. What did you use for reference? I went to Google and looked up the floor plan and blueprints of the cantina from games like Battlefront, and utilized the Star Wars Locations book, which I often look through for inspiration. Once I had sketched out a floorplan that was achievable within a 64x64 studs area, I went to work scaling and angling the walls. What were the hardest parts in the model to build and replicate? Getting the angled walls correct and mirroring each side. Having enough space to place figures in each room was challenging, especially after tiling the floor and building the walls. A few pull downs were needed along the way. The bar was fun to build, but I left it for last to savor the completed 44 MOC.

How to Build a Vaporator

A couple of the outside elements that make this layout so effective are the vaporators. On Tatooine, these are a part of the environment, and so for Mos Eisley, Joshua made a few. The vaporator is broken down to the right. Most of the parts are common and recognizable, except for perhaps the Technic half-pin. The vaporators are fastened to base plates by the 1 x 1 round plate, so it fits on a stud or between studs.

A Mandalorian passes by with his swoop bike. Figrin D’an and the Modal Nodes, the cantina band.

Watto the Toydarian makes a sale with the local Jawas.

What are you particularly proud of in your build? I’m proud of the atmosphere the whole scene has as it helps to draw people in to take a look at the action, including the iconic scenes from the movie like Han and Greedo, Ben and Ponda Baba (or Walrus man as I remember him), the droids stuck outside, and the dewback and Sandtroopers on patrol. I made sure to add a few twists to inject some humor into the build as well in the form of Jack Sparrow running towards Tonto, Watto working for Jawas, a gambling back room, assassin behind the bar, etc. I love letting kids discover where Spongebob is, followed by the parents saying they don’t remember him being in the movie. I am also happy with the Jawa stall and the other small building, as it helps earth the Cantina in Mos Eisley and breaks up the tendency for MOCs like this to be all tan walls. How long did it take to build? Probably 2-3 weeks of an hour here and there at night or weekends—say, 20 hours. The MOC uses two Cantina sets and a Jabba’s Palace, a whole heap of plate and tiles and a loads of expensive figures. I resisted putting my original Greedo on for shows as I didn’t want to risk him disappearing. 47

Luke at the bar. “No blasters! No blasters!”

A stormtrooper patrol waits outside the cantina.

You can see more of Mos Eisley here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/28773832@N08/ albums/72157650422884332 or scan this QR code!

Building

Article by Joshua Kranenberg

An overall look at the diorama, with Sabine Wren and Ezra Bridger sneaking overhead.

Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann’s

TIE Fighter Bay 50

Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann is usually a LEGO Mecha builder in Singapore who built an unusual layout: a TIE Fighter bay. With a mix of sets and custom building, he created a detailed environment that includes lighting and moving doors. Benjamin chatted with BrickJournal about his layout and building. BrickJournal: What do you do in real life and how long have you been building? Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann: I was born in Malacca, Malaysia and have worked as a creative designer in a custom publishing firm in Singapore for almost a decade now. I just started to build back in the year 2006 after my college time. Have you built all your life? If not, when was your Dark Age? Yes, ever since I first laid eyes on my first LEGO set, which was a tanker truck 6594 from my parents. I played with LEGO bricks throughout my teenage life, when the other kids my age were busy playing with computer games.

Having grown up in Asia at a time where LEGO bricks weren’t popular toys, the impression from family members and friends wasn’t supportive. They saw LEGO as child’s play, and having to keep playing and hide it from their eyes was pretty hard. I’m glad I stuck to it though, because it led to where I’m now being a creative designer and also a LEGO MOC builder in my free time. I would like to take this opportunity to say: Thank you LEGO! The only time I had a Dark Age was a two-to-three year period in my college time. It was nice to rediscover the love of the brick again. It’s like falling in love all over again. What inspires your building? I was inspired by many robots from TV series such as Transformers, Patlabor, and Gundam. I am particularly fond of ‘bad guy’ robots because they always have this edgy, cool look and design, and awesome weapons. Of course, they always are in darker colors which reflect on my Mecha MOCs as well.

An AT-DP walker and stormtroopers await review.

A speeder bike passes by a TIE Fighter.

What do you like to build the most? Definitely Mecha with various designs, followed close behind by a diorama. Besides that, I play with Power Functions and remote control in my MOCs whenever I can because of the challenge. But I do MOC other designs such as vector-based creations and 3D logo sculpture. What inspired you to build the TIE Fighter Bay? It was actually for an event back in May for Star Wars in LEGOLand Malaysia. I never built a large scale diorama based on two 48 X 48 grey baseplates. I looked for a aircraft set from the LEGO Star Wars Rebels series, which just launched at that time, and I discovered that the TIE Advanced Prototype fit the bill. I tried to recreate a hangar scene where the TIE would be docked and be in a maintenance check while the Inquisitor would come out from the main gate to do an inspection. This was also a good opportunity to try out an automatic gate using Power Functions and playing with LED lights from IKEA. The Inquisitor arrives for inspection.

TIE Fighters being prepared for patrol.

A minifigure’s view of the hangar.

What did you use for reference? I do vividly remember a famous Star Wars scene from Return of the Jedi where Darth Vader and the Emperor walk by hundreds of soldiers waiting at a landing bay, which was awesome; so I decided to take that as an inspiration to create this bay scene.

Sabine and Ezra peer over the bay.

A higher view of the layout.

How long did it take to build? Roughly two to three months from the sketches, design and ordering parts. Building the hangar bay scene itself took about two weeks due to the technical design on remote control gate in it. There’s so many LEGO sets from the Rebels series that I used, I listed them all: Sets 75090 Ezra’s Speeder Bike 75083 AT-DP 75079 Shadow Troopers 75078 Imperial Troop Transport (x3) 75082 TIE Advanced Prototype (x2)

Models Tie Advance Fighters (x2) Speeder bike Ezra’s Speeder bike AT-DP Military Walker

Minifigures Stormtroopers Sabine Wren Shadow Stormtroopers The Inquisitor Shadow Guards TIE Fighter Pilot Agent Kallus Imperial Officer Ezra Bridger

Benjamin with his display.

Where has it been displayed? Throughout the two-day event in LEGOLand Malaysia in May. Unfortunately it never had a chance to display to the public because I demolished it and recreated a new diorama hangar scene for my next MOC project. As the good old saying goes, “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.”

Ezra and Sabine.

Endor Shuttle Platform

You Can Build It MINI Model

Design and Instructions by Christopher Deck

Hello everybody, and welcome back to the Star Wars universe! In this special issue of BrickJournal, we want to recreate a popular scene from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, complete with set-up and vehicles. Our journey leads us to the forest moon Endor where we arrive with a shuttle that softly touches down on a gargantuan landing platform that sticks out over the treetops. A little later in the movie we see the platform again, but this time from the underside showing a big AT-AT walker docked on one of the two main support tubes. On the following pages we want to materialize this image into bricked form. We will begin with the platform, and then will add the Imperial Lambda-class shuttle, and finally the AT-AT walker. Although the

vehicles are pretty small and would best be described as micro models, they are quite detailed and functional with folding-up wings for the shuttle and moving legs for the walker. I hope you will enjoy building this little scene as much as I did when creating it! Happy building and see you next time!

You can see Christopher’s webpage by going to www.deckdesigns.de or scanning this QR code!

Parts List

(Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)

Platform

Qty Color Part 9 Light-Bluish-Gray 3005.dat 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 3003.dat 6 Light-Bluish-Gray 3941.dat 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 17485.dat 7 Reddish-Brown 3005.dat 4 Trans-Yellow 58176.dat 4 Light-Bluish-Gray 64644.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 3024.dat 1 Dark-Bluish-Gray 3028.dat 4 Green 2435.dat 2 Green 4032b.dat 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 4032b.dat 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 11833.dat 2 Reddish-Brown 41539.dat 2 Yellow 4150.dat

Shuttle

Qty Color Part 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 3024.dat 2 White 4070.dat 2 White 3024.dat 2 White 6019.dat 3 White 3023.dat 2 White 15573.dat

Platform

Description Brick 1 x 1 Brick 2 x 2 Brick 2 x 2 Round Brick 2 x 2 Round with Hole Brick 1 x 1 Cylinder Domed 1 x 1 x 1.667 with Bar Minifig Telescope Plate 1 x 1 Plate 6 x 12 Plant Tree Pyramidal 3x3x4 Plate 2 x 2 Round with Axlehole Type 2 Plate 2 x 2 Round with Axlehole Type 2 Plate 4 x 4 Round with 2 x 2 Round Hole Plate 8 x 8 Tile 2 x 2 Round Description Plate 1 x 1 Brick 1 x 1 with Headlight Plate 1 x 1 Plate 1 x 1 with Clip Horizontal (Open U-Clip) Plate 1 x 2 Plate 1 x 2 with Groove with 1 Centre Stud, without Understud

Qty Color Part 1 White 18649.dat 2 White 54200.dat 1 Trans-Black 54200.dat 1 Trans-Yellow 3070b.dat 1 White 43723.dat 1 White 43722.dat

Walker

Qty Color Part 4 Light-Bluish-Gray 48729.dat 4 Dark-Bluish-Gray 11090.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 99780.dat 2 Light-Bluish-Gray 4070.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 2654.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 30375.dat 1 Dark-Bluish-Gray 6019.dat 3 Light-Bluish-Gray 3023.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 2540.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 54200.dat 4 Light-Bluish-Gray 85984.dat 1 Light-Bluish-Gray 32000.dat 4 Dark-Bluish-Gray 93794.dat

Description Plate 1 x 2 with Handles on Opposite Ends Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Tile 1 x 1 with Groove Wing 2 x 3 Left Wing 2 x 3 Right Description Bar 1.5L with Clip Bar Tube with Clip Bracket 1 x 2 - 1 x 2 Up Brick 1 x 1 with Headlight Dish 2 x 2 Minifig Mechanical Torso Plate 1 x 1 with Clip Horizontal (Open U-Clip) Plate 1 x 2 Plate 1 x 2 with Handle Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 Slope Brick 31 1 x 2 x 0.667 Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Holes Tile 1 x 1 with Clip with Centre Notch

Shuttle

62 62

Walker

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Building Minifigure Customization 101

The Heights a 4 cm Minifigure Can Reach! Article by Jared K. Burks Photos by Jared Burks and Matt Rhody

Jared and Orli Shoshan.

Orli Shoshan’s autographed minifigure.

I have had the pleasure of sharing my hobby with many people over the years. I have shared my figures and how I make them via the web, various published articles including this series, my two books, and many public events. Some of these public events include attending science-fiction conventions, a personal favorite of mine. These sci-fi cons always feature celebrity guests and I have shared and even given my figures to many of them. I have been amazed by their reactions to my custom minifigures. In this article I will share a few stories of these interactions at conventions, and just how strong a reaction a custom minifigure can evoke. The take home message here is to focus your efforts on capturing the character as well as you possibly can, and if you are ready for the ultimate critique, show them to the actors that they replicate.

Orli Shoshan: Shaak Ti, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith

The first autograph I ever acquired, way back in 2006, was that of Orli Shoshan who played Shaak Ti in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. I was a bit dumbfounded by her response to the custom figure I had with me of her character Shaak Ti. This was very early during my custom figure days and I wasn’t sculpting at that time, let alone casting. Luckily a friend of mine, Robert Martin (Tothiro), could sculpt and cast. He had created a headdress for Shaak Ti and I had created a decal set to go with it. Mark Parker (MMCB) made a special cape to go with the head-tails due to the way they attached and covered the back of the figure. The whole figure resembled the version of Shaak Ti from the LEGO Star Wars video game. Orli was so taken with the figure that she asked if she could have one. At the time I didn’t have extras and was reluctant to give her the only one I had. I attended that con with my friend Matt Rhody. Matt was snapping photos and nudging me to give her the figure. Finally he suggested I send her one. She rips out a sheet of paper and starts writing down her home address for me to send her a figure. My mouth about hit the floor; here is this Star Wars actor and model giving me her home address to send a custom figure. I have run into Orli at a few different cons since and she has recalled me at every one. She is an incredibly kind and lovely woman.

Femi Taylor: Oola, Jabba’s Green Slave Girl, Return of the Jedi

Jared and Femi Taylor.

Femi Taylor’s autographed minifigure.

In October 2007 I met Femi Taylor, one of the most gracious and lovely Star Wars actors I have ever met, and wow can she move fast! By the time I was getting Femi Taylor’s autograph, I had learned to bring extra figures with me. Good thing too, as Femi about had a stroke when I showed her her figure. This figure featured head-tails sculpted and hand cast by another friend of mine, Arealight. Again, I had made custom decals to go with these head-tails—he and I had collaborated on the design and construction, including a separated piece for her medallion. Femi was immediately blown away with the figure and started jumping up and down when I told her she could have the figure. Then continuing to bounce, she jumped around the table and started hugging me. Matt Rhody was again in attendance with me and his job as cameraman became quite difficult as she was moving so fast it was hard to photograph her reaction. Neither of us expected this reaction. It was amazing to see the joy this figure brought to her. This is still one of the best autograph moments I ever experienced.

George Takei: Lok Durd, The Clone Wars

While most know George Takei as Mr. Sulu from Star Trek, he also voiced the character Lok Durd from Star Wars: The Clone Wars. He was attending a convention in Dallas and I couldn’t help but bring him a Lok Durd and, of course, a Sulu or two. George is a very nice gentleman and took his time with every guest of the con. I approached the table and showed him the Lok Durd that I had quickly put together, with the Nute Gunray hair piece holding two more figures in the back as a surprise. He was gracious, and as a major Star Trek actor, signed a Star Wars plate for me. Then I showed him my classic Star Trek Sulu figure complete with tricorder bag and phaser that Kyle Peterson from BrickForge had given me. He laughed a bit, but then I showed him the “Fencing Sulu” from the Star Trek episode, “The Naked Time.” He burst out with that famous Takei belly laugh and he motioned for me to come a bit closer. He said, “I appreciate the six-pack abs, but I think you made my hips a bit too wide.” I about fell over laughing myself, and quickly retorted that he would have to take that up with LEGO.

George Takei signing his minifigure.

George Takei’s autographed minifigure. Meredith Salenger with her minifigure.

Meredith Salenger: Barriss Offee, The Clone Wars

While actors can be incredibly excited by custom figures, they can also be your toughest critics. I met Meredith Salenger, who voices Barriss Offee in The Clone Wars, and I hadn’t had time to construct a Clone Wars-specific version of her character, so I took my film version with me. She had several pointers and notes about how the film version was not accurate to her character, while still being polite and kind about the figure. I could tell that she enjoyed the figure, but she reminded me to always do my homework and only present my best effort to the actor.

Meredith Salenger’s autographed minifigure.

Stephen Stanton and his signed minifigure.

Stephen Stanton – Admiral and Grand Moff Tarkin – The Clone Wars and Rebels

In 2011, I met Stephen Stanton who voices everyone’s favorite holder of Vader’s leash, Tarkin. Stephen was quite kind when I met him and he enjoyed the figure very much. I had made a small mistake as I quickly assembled this figure the night before the convention. Stephen, even though his line was quite long, was taking time with every person and chatting. He signed my plate and I was moving along. Since this was a last-minute creation I didn’t have time to make two. Shortly after leaving Stephen’s table I had a tap on my shoulder from one of his management staff wanting to talk to me. Apparently Stephen was so taken with the figure he had sent his management out into the Convention to find me and inquire about getting a custom figure for Stephen. Luckily I hadn’t gotten too far. They wanted the figure I had with me, but due to the small mistake I was hesitant to give him this figure. So they gave me an address to their offices to send a figure.

Aaron Allston & Timothy Zahn Aaron Allston and his signed minifigure.

I have not stopped at making custom figures of the Star Wars characters; I have also been blessed with meeting authors Aaron Allston and Timothy Zahn who have written many Star Wars novels. Aaron Allston has written:

X-Wing Wraith Squadron (1998) Iron Fist (1998) Solo Command (1999) Starfighters of Adumar (1999) Mercy Kill (2012) The New Jedi Order Enemy Lines I: Rebel Dream (2002) Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand (2002) Legacy of the Force Betrayal (2006) Exile (2007) Fury (2007)

Timothy Zahn and his signed minifigure.

Fate of the Jedi Outcast (2009) Backlash (2010) Conviction (2011) Timothy Zahn has written: The Thrawn Trilogy Heir to the Empire (1991) Dark Force Rising (1992) The Last Command (1993)

Hand of Thrawn series Specter of the Past (1997) Vision of the Future (1998) Other Star Wars novels Fool’s Bargain (2004) Survivor’s Quest (2004) Outbound Flight (2006) Allegiance (2007) Choices of One (2011) Scoundrels (2013)

Graphic novels Mara Jade: By the Emperor’s Hand; a graphic novel with Michael A. Stackpole (1999) Mara Jade: A Night on the Town, comic in Star Wars Tales 1 (1999)

Dave Filoni – Director of The Clone Wars and Rebels

Dave Filoni essentially shut his autograph line down when I met him. I knew he was a big fan of Plo Koon, so when I met him I took a custom Plo Koon minifigure with me. Unfortunately my camera did not play nice when I met him and I have some very grainy photos of the interactions. After he got over the Plo Koon, I pulled out the custom figure of him, featuring the Indiana Jones hat he is known for wearing. He was quite taken by the figure and proceeded to take the next 15 minutes to sketch a picture of Plo on the side of my LEGO Star Wars plate!

Robert Watts – Producer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi

Dave Filoni and his signed minifigure.

I thought I had missed my opportunity to get Robert Watts’ autograph as I had missed his signing while waiting in another line. While he was an Associate Producer on The Empire Strikes Back and a co-producer on Return of the Jedi, he had made an appearance on screen as Lt. Watts the AT-ST driver in Return of the Jedi. Remarkably, I had already made this figure and took it with me to get him to autograph. Having missed his signing, I was bummed, as I had thought I had missed my opportunity. That was when life threw me a curve ball. While waiting in another autograph line, Robert Watts was walking through the crowd and I quickly stopped him and asked for his autograph. He quickly retorted, “Why would you want my autograph?” as if I didn’t know who he was. To this question, I presented the minifigure of Lt. Watts and his face started to beam, as clearly I knew not only who he was, but that he had appeared on screen for those 2-3 seconds. He signed the plate for me there in the middle of the convention and was again on his way. I have also had the pleasure of getting autographs from Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kenny Baker (R2-D2), David Prowse (Darth Vader—the guy actually in the suit!), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian), and many more. It is always a surprise how the actors will react to the figures I create, and it ends up as a fun and unique experience. The message is take your passion and follow it, create, be proud of what you make, and share it with your inspirations. You will be humbled, amazed, grateful, and thanked for your work and the time you have invested.

Robert Watts’ signed minifigure.

You can view Jared’s webpage by going to http://www.fineclonier.com/ or scanning this QR code!

Come back next issue for more Minifigure Customization 101!

Community

An overview of the model.

The ULTIMATE Millennium Falcon! Article by Freddy Tan Photography provided by Titans Creations A MOC that went viral this year was a minifigure scale model of Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon, built by Titans Creations. Measuring 110 cm by 85 cm, it was displayed at LEGOLand Malaysia for its May the Fourth event. Here, one of the builders, Freddy Tan, talks about building the model, which is larger than the LEGO-produced UCS Millennium Falcon!

Back in February 2015, when we first heard about the LEGOLand Malaysia May the 4th Star Wars Event, we were thrilled that there would be a LEGO MOC competition on such a scale. It was a good opportunity to be able to meet with avid MOCers from the region. As for us, we had just submitted a Viking theme diorama for a local event and were ready for a new challenge. We rested for a week while brainstorming for ideas, and met for a group discussion. There were plenty of ideas, but we basically struck down all those that involved dioramas, because we foresaw that there would plenty of fantastic dioramas, and it would hard to compete. Initially, we headed toward the direction of creating an X-Wing assembly scene or repair bay with some exposed interiors. Then we upped the stakes by changing the ship from an X-Wing to the famed Millennium Falcon and going from a partially exposed interior to a fully exposed interior. There was the holy grail of all LEGO Star Wars sets, the 10179 UCS Millennium Falcon, and we knew we had to top that. We started out looking through various online materials such as movie stills and artist illustrations as well as published books with reference to the Falcon’s interior. We realized then that different artists had different representations of the ship interior, though there was a few portions of the ship that was represented consistently. We were sure to get those parts correct. We printed out the blueprint of the ship and played around with the scale of it by trying to fit a Han Solo minifigure on the pilot seat, and settled on a scale where Han could sit comfortably.

Touring the Millennium Falcon

Here’s a visual tour of the model, showing close-ups of the various sections. The floor layout shows the location of the close-up area on this and following pages in this article.

Docking port and rear storage compartments

Docking port detail.

Docking port and interior hallways.

9 5 6

6 With the majority of us having a day job and being married with kids, we could not afford the time to meet up to build the whole Falcon from scratch. Space was also a major constraint. In the end, we decided to divide the build. We split up the Falcon into nine different sections. One person was designated to build up the entire framework of the Falcon over a period of two weeks. Each piece of this giant jigsaw was then passed to members progressively to complete the interior detailing and returned to the first person,

Rear holds.

Hyperdrive, which is lit along with the cockpit, rear drive and interior by 24 LEDs.

who would build them back together and do alterations on the pieces to ensure that the whole Falcon would have a consistent building style. We would post photos of what we had done on our group chat and comment and ask for suggestions. It took about a month before the whole model could be assembled, and thus began the period of the final touching up, which took us two weeks. The final two weeks were the most hectic, as it was two weeks to the submission deadline, and this was also the phase that we could finally

Lounge and nav computer.

find out all the flaws of the build and rectify them. There were heavy modifications on the circular corridor, rear hyperdrive/cargo area, and the cockpit. There was also an insane amount of wall detailing and greebling that needs to be done to give the Falcon the finished look. We basically built until almost midnight to complete it, just nine hours before the submission deadline. There are parts of the Falcon that were very frustrating to build, and we had to rack our brains to get it done. The circular corridor was especially tricky due to the fact that the corridor itself was a whole coiled tube, so we had to worry about the circular pattern as well as the contours of the wall, which was also curved. Also there was the issue of getting the corridor to the same diameter as on the blueprint. We spent a few days trying out different ways to get the corridor to the correct diameter, as well as making the floor in a way that it has minimum gaps in between, then finally to trying out different ways to best depict the beige padded circular wall.

Cockpit.

it. As it was intended in Singapore, where we are all from, we actually practice right-hand driving—yes the driver actually sits on the right side of the vehicle, so we would like to assure fans that Han Solo is still the pilot of the Falcon. Summing up, we were glad that we took up the challenge and were quite surprised that the Falcon was so well received in the LEGO and Star Wars community. When we began the project, we weren’t sure that we would be able to pull it off and as mentioned, we really toiled up to the last minute to deliver this project.

Upper quad cannon with gunner.

Another tricky part was the rear compartment, featuring the hyperdrive dock as well as the wall of greebles and rear thrusters. The hyperdrive thruster is one of the coolest features of the Falcon and we paid extra attention to it, even incorporating pulsing LED lighting. Columns of trans-blue round cylinder was used to give it the required profile. To increase its complexity, every wall of the Falcon is covered up by greebles, so there are details wherever you set your eyes. It is difficult to describe all the features in the Falcon and we would think that it’d be better if you studied the picture instead. We threw in a few Easter Eggs in the build; two of the more obvious ones would be the Benny manning the quad laser turret, and Batman stealing the hyperdrive for the Sea Cow. The next Easter Egg would probably be what we call the most controversial, Han sitting on the right side of the cockpit rather on the left. There was a lot of online comment on

About Titans Creations

Titans Creations was formed by six AFOLs with an intense passion for MOC building. We met during a local MOC competition and hit it off very well. Formed with the intention of focusing on and promoting MOCs locally, the team took part in various local LEGO-related events and competitions. Initially, we displayed individual work during events, but after two events, we realized that our main strength was collaboration builds. Following that, we collaborated on a Viking Diorama build and then the Millennium Falcon. Today, we are one of the two recognized LUGs (RLUGs) in Singapore. We hope to promote MOCs locally and hope that more people will be inspired to build their own creations. LEGO is only a brand name and a company; it is up to the community to show the world what LEGO can do. It’s not just a big boy’s toy for us, but something which inspires and relaxes our soul in our everyday hectic life. Clement Chen is an undergraduate that enjoys building MOCs in his free time. He is involved in numerous technics projects during his Polytechnic days and has won several awards through nationwide technics competition. He loves building Mecha-themed MOC.

10 Concussion missile launchers.

Eric Ong is currently a semiconductor engineer and had early childhood experience with LEGO System sets. His pet MOC topic or creativity sources are mainly from the past and present mechanical forms of armored military vehicles. He is always looking for improvements on his MOCs and LEGO provides the perfect solution to test his creativity. Freddy Tan is an automation engineer by profession. He succumbed to the world of video games at the age of 12 and entered the Dark Ages. In 2012, an unexpected Christmas gift of a Star Wars battlepack brought him out of the Dark Age. He mainly dabbles with mechs but is looking to jump into doing other themes for a change. He also likes to greeble excessively and is currently undergoing rehab for it. Ivan Ho is working as a banker in his day job. He is the RLUG ambassador for Titans Creations. He was doing scaled modelling before coming out of his Dark Age. His favorite theme includes Marvel Superheroes and Star Wars-themed sets. He shares his MOCs via Facebook pages and submitted several projects on LEGO Ideas. Jason Ng works as an IT consultant by day and builds LEGO at night. He collects Star Wars and Super Heroes series. Building LEGO is a stress relieving tool for him and it’s a simple and pleasurable way to enjoy life after a hectic workday. Woontze works as an architect during the day and becomes a LEGO builder at night. He prefers superheroes or movie-themed creations. He tends to keep his creations to minifigure scale because it’s more fun when your can interact with those little people. Despite the small scale, he still tries to cram in as much detail as LEGO elements allow.

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This FULL-COLOR issue spotlights blockbuster summer movies, LEGO style! Go behind the scenes for new sets for INDIANA JONES, and see new models, including an MINI FLYING WING and a LEGO CITY, a lifesize IRON MAN, plus how to CUSTOMIZE MINIFIGURES, BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS, a tour of the ONLINE LEGO FACTORY, and lots more!

Event Reports from BRICKWORLD, FIRST LEGO LEAGUE WORLD FESTIVAL and PIECE OF PEACE (Japan), spotlight on our cover model builder BRYCE McGLONE, behind the scenes of LEGO BATMAN, LEGO at COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL, FIRST LEGO LEAGUE WORLD FESTIVAL, plus STEP-BY-STEP BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS, TECHNIQUES, and more!

Interviews with LEGO BUILDERS including cover model builder ARTHUR GUGICK, event reports from BRICKFAIR and others, touring the LEGO IDEA HOUSE, plus STEP-BY-STEP BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS and TECHNIQUES for all skill levels, NEW SET REVIEWS, and an extensive report on constructing the Chinese Olympic Village in LEGO!

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Event report on the MINDSTORMS 10th ANNIVERSARY at LEGO HEADQUARTERS, Pixar’s ANGUS MACLANE on LEGO in filmmaking, a glimpse at the LEGO Group’s past with the DIRECTOR OF LEGO’S IDEA HOUSE, event reports, a look at how SEAN KENNEY’s LEGO creations ended up on NBC’S 30 ROCK television show, instructions and spotlights on builders, and more!

Spotlight on CLASSIC SPACE SETS and a look at new ones, BRANDON GRIFFITH shows his STAR TREK MODELS, LEGO set designers discuss their work creating the SPACE POLICE with PIRATE SETS, POWER FUNCTIONS TRAIN DEVELOPMENT, the world’s TALLEST LEGO TOWER, MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION, plus coverage of BRICKFEST 2009 and more!

Focuses on the new LEGO ARCHITECTURE line, with a look at the new sets designed by ADAM REED TUCKER, plus interviews with other architectural builders, including SPENCER REZKALLA. Also, behind the scenes on the creation of POWER MINERS and the GRAND CAROUSEL, a LEGO BATTLESHIP over 20 feet long, reports from LEGO events worldwide, and more!

We go to the Middle Ages, with a look at the LEGO Group’s CASTLE LINE, featuring an interview with the designer behind the first LEGO castle set, the YELLOW CASTLE. Also: we spotlight builders that have created their own large-scale version of the castle, and interview other castle builders, plus a report on BRICKWORLD in Chicago, ands still more instructions and building tips!

BrickJournal looks at LEGO® DISNEY SETS, with features on the Disney LEGO sets of the past (MICKEY and MINNIE) and present (TOY STORY and PRINCE OF PERSIA)! We also present Disney models built by LEGO fans, and a look at the newest Master Build model at WALT DISNEY WORLD, plus articles and instructions on building and customization, and more!

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BrickJournal goes undersea with looks at the creation of LEGO’s new ATLANTIS SETS, plus a spotlight on a fan-created underwater theme, THE SEA MONKEYS, with builder FELIX GRECO! Also, a report on the LEGO WORLD convention in the Netherlands, BUILDER SPOTLIGHTS, INSTRUCTIONS and ways to CUSTOMIZE MINIFIGURES, feature on LEGO HISTORY, and more!

“Racers” theme issue, with building tips on race cars by the ARVO BROTHERS, interview with LEGO RACERS designer ANDREW WOODMAN, LEGO FORMULA ONE RACING, TECHNIC SPORTS CAR building, event reports, instructions and columns on MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION by JARED K. BURKS, MICRO BUILDING, builder spotlights, LEGO HISTORY, and more!

A look at back-to-school sculptures by NATHAN SAWAYA, LEGO builder MARCOS BESSA’s creations, ANGUS MACLANE’s CubeDudes, a Nepali Diorama by JORDAN SCHWARTZ, instructions to build a school bus for your LEGO town, MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION by JARED K. BURKS, how a POWER MINERS model became one for ATLANTIS, building standards, and much more!

Special EVENT ISSUE with reports from BRICKMAGIC (the newest US LEGO fan festival, organized by BrickJournal magazine), BRICKWORLD (one of the oldest US LEGO fan events), and others! Plus: spotlight on BIONICLE Builder NORBERT LAGUBUEN, our regular column on minifigure customization, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, spotlights on builders and their work, and more!

Discover the world of stop-motion LEGO FILMS, with brickfilmer DAVID PAGANO and others spotlighting LEGO filmmaking, the history of the medium and its community, interviews with the makers of the films seen on the LEGO CLUB SHOW and LEGO.com, and instructions on how to film and build puppets for brick flicks! Plus how to customize minifigures, event reports, step-by-step building instructions, and more!

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Looks at the LEGO MECHA genre of building, especially in Japan! Feature editor NATHAN BRYAN spotlights mecha builders such as SAITO YOSHIKAZU, TAKAYUKI TORII, SUKYU and others! Also, a talk with BRIAN COOPER and MARK NEUMANN about their mecha creations, mecha building instructions by SAITO YOSHIKAZU, our regular columns on minifigure customization, building, event reports, and more!

Focuses on STEAMPUNK! Feature editor GUY HIMBER gives a tour with a look at his work, DAVE DeGOBBI’s, NATHAN PROUDLOVE’s, and others! There’s also a look at the history of LEGO Steampunk building, as well as instructions for a Steampunk plane by ROD GILLIES! Plus our regular columns on minifigure customization, building tips, event reports, our step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and much more!

LEGO SPACE WAR issue! A STARFIGHTER BUILDING LESSON by Peter Reid, WHY SPACE MARINES ARE SO POPULAR by Mark Stafford, a trip behind the scenes of LEGO’S NEW ALIEN CONQUEST SETS that hit store shelves earlier this year, plus JARED K. BURKS’ column on MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION, building tips, event reports, our step-by-step “YOU CAN BUILD IT” INSTRUCTIONS, and more!

Go to Japan with articles on two JAPANESE LEGO FAN EVENTS, plus take a look at JAPAN’S SACRED LEGO LAND, Nasu Highland Park—the site of the BrickFan events and a pilgrimage site for many Japanese LEGO fans. Also, a feature on JAPAN’S TV CHAMPIONSHIP OF LEGO, a look at the CLICKBRICK LEGO SHOPS in Japan, plus how to get into TECHNIC BUILDING, LEGO EDUCATION, and more!

LEGO EVENTS ISSUE covering our own BRICKMAGIC FESTIVAL, BRICKWORLD, BRICKFAIR, BRICKCON, plus other events outside the US. There’s full event details, plus interviews with the winners of the BRICKMAGIC CHALLENGE competition, complete with instructions to build award winning models. Also JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customizing, building tips, and more!

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LEGO SUPERHEROES! Behind-the-scenes of the DC and Marvel Comics sets, plus a feature on GREG HYLAND, the artist of the superhero comic books in each box! Also, other superhero work by ALEX SCHRANZ and our cover artist OLIVIER CURTO. Plus, JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customization, building tips, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

LEGO CAR BUILDING! Guest editors LINO MARTINS and NATHAN PROUDLOVE of LUGNuts share secrets behind their LEGO car creations, and present TECHNIC SUPERCAR MODELS by PAUL BORATKO III and other top builders! Plus custom instructions by TIM GOULD and CHRISTOPHER DECK, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” section, and more!

LEGO PLANE BUILDING! Top builder RALPH SAVELSBERG takes off with his custom LEGO fighter models, there’s a squadron of articles on Sky-Fi planes by FRADEL GONZALES and COLE MARTIN, find instructions to build a Sky-Fi plane, plus our regular feature on minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, other step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

STAR WARS issue, with custom creations from a long time ago and far, far away! JACOB CARPENTER’s Imperial Star Destroyer, MARK KELSO’s Invisible Hand, interview with SIMON MACDONALD about building Star Wars costume props with LEGO elements, history of the LEGO X-Wing, plus our regular features on minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

LEGO TRAINS! Builder CALE LEIPHART shows how to get started building trains and train layouts, with instructions on building microscale trains by editor JOE MENO, building layouts with the members of the Pennsylvania LEGO Users Group (PennLUG), fan-built LEGO monorails minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, microscale building by CHRISTOPHER DECK, “You Can Build It”, and more!

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BRICKJOURNAL #29

MEDIEVAL CASTLE BUILDING! Top LEGO® Castle builders present their creations, including BOB CARNEY’s amazingly detailed model of Neuschwanstein Castle, plus others, along with articles on building and detailing castles of your own! Also: JARED BURKS on minifigure customization, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, and more!

CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL with builders SEAN and STEPHANIE MAYO (known online as Siercon and Coral), other custom animal models from BrickJournal editor JOE MENO, LEGO DINOSAURS with WILL PUGH, plus more minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, and more!

GUY HIMBER takes you to the IRON BUILDER CONTEST, which showcases the top LEGO® builders in the world! Cover by LEGO magazine and comic artist PAUL LEE, amazing custom models by LINO MARTINS, TYLER CLITES, BRUCE LOWELL, COLE BLAQ and others, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, & more!

Learn what went into the making of The LEGO Movie and other brickfilms with moviemaker DAVID PAGANO, chat with brickfilmers The Brotherhood Workshop, sit in on a talk with the makers of LEGO: A Brickumentary, a look at MINDSTORMS building, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, & more!

TECHNIC hot rod builder PAUL BORATKO and editor JOE MENO diagram instructions on adding functions to your models, shoptalk with LEGO TECHNIC designers, and more surprises to keep your creations moving at top speed! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR mag) SALE: $5 (normally $8.95) • (Digital Edition) $3.95

BRICKJOURNAL #30

BRICKJOURNAL #31

BRICKJOURNAL #32

BRICKJOURNAL #33

BRICKJOURNAL #34

LEGO ARCHITECTURE with JONATHAN LOPES, a microscale model of Copenhagen by ULRIK HANSEN, and a look at the LEGO MUSEUM being constructed in Denmark! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS building with DAMIEN KEE, and more!

Building LEGO bricks WITH character, with IAIN HEATH and TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Manga-inspired creations of MIKE DUNG, sculptures by Taiwanese Brick Artist YO YO CHEN, Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS building, and more!

LEGO ARTISTRY with builder/photographer CHRIS McVEIGH; mosaic builders BRIAN KORTE, DAVE WARE and DAVE SHADDIX; and sculptors SEAN KENNEY (about his nature models) and ED DIMENT (about a full-size bus stop built with LEGO bricks)! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, MINDSTORMS building, and more!

LEGO ROBOTS! A talk with MINDSTORMS EV3 builders MARC-ANDRE BAZERGUI and ANDY MILLUZZI, designer LEE MAGPILI, CHRIS GIDDENS with his amazing robot sculptures, plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, other looks at MINDSTORMS building, and more!

TOMMY WILLIAMSON on the making of his YouTube sensation BATMAN VS SUPERMAN, BRANDON GRIFFITH’S COMICBRICKS PROJECT recreates iconic comic book covers out of LEGO, JARED BURKS and his custom Agents of SHIELD minifigs, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR mag) SALE: $5 (normally $8.95) • (Digital Edition) $3.95

GET THE ORIGINAL DIGITAL ISSUES!

BRICKJOURNAL #35

BRICKJOURNAL #36

HISTORY IN LEGO BRICKS! LEGO pro RYAN McNAUGHT on his LEGO Pompeii and other projects, military builder DAN SISKIND on his BrickMania creations, and LASSE VESTERGARD about his historical building, JARED K. BURKS on minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

MICROSCALE BUILDING! With JUSTIN McMILLAN’s micro house and other buildings, a look at the MICROSCALE Standard by TwinLUG, and featuring some of the best microscopic LEGO work from around the world, plus JARED K. BURKS’ minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR mag) SALE: $5 (normally $8.95) • (Digital Edition) $3.95

Before becoming a print magazine, there were nine DIGITAL-ONLY issues of BRICKJOURNAL produced from 2005-2007, which are still available as DIGITAL EDITIONS for only $3.95 each at www.twomorrows.com (NOTE: These are DIFFERENT ISSUES than the ones shown in this ad.)

CONCLUDING the twomorrows cross-over CELEBRATION!

THE FORCE IS STRONG IN THIS ONE!

We’ve got a great feeling about this! The entire magazine line of twomorrows has been featuring two-page spreads of comic book characters -- somehow associated with one of our own editors -- All running to the right… so why not include brick journal and a whole squad of star wars characters from the first trilogy running in the other direction? You can find out just what the heck everyone is running to in Alter Ego #137. kudos to Lego man Jared burks who set up this awesome array! you’ll see spreads #1-5 in Alter Ego #136, Back Issue #85, comic book creator #10, The jack kirby collector #66, and Alter ego #137, respectively. a key identifying all the contributors appears in draw! #31.

Community Ads

Last Word You might wonder how this magazine is made. I can tell you it’s not by having the Editor wear a Sorcerer’s Hat, as seen on the left. There is no magic behind making the mag, just a lot of people happy to write about their love of building, and happy to show off their work. What is magic is seeing the creations that end up in this book—seeing the photos impress me to no end—and reading about the builders is always interesting. So many different people call themselves AFOLs compared to just a decade ago, when the AFOL community was starting to grow. BrickJournal began then as an online publication. We took the jump to print seven years ago and continue to show great builders and great models. Who are we? We are the writers, photographers and builders who fill the pages of BrickJournal. Many thanks to them for showing the best of the community! See you next time!

LEGO fans: You Can Build It!

YOU CAN BUILD IT is a new ongoing series of instruction books on the art of LEGO® custom building, from the producers of BRICKJOURNAL magazine! Spinning off from BrickJournal’s popular “You Can Build It” column, these FULL-COLOR books are loaded with nothing but STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS by some of the top custom builders in the LEGO fan community. BOOK ONE is for beginning-to-intermediate builders, with instructions for custom creations including Miniland figures, a fire engine, a tulip, a spacefighter (below), a street vignette, plus miniscale models from “a galaxy far, far away,” and more! BOOK TWO has even more detailed projects to tackle, including advanced Miniland figures, a miniscale yellow castle, a deep sea scene, a mini USS Constitution, and more! So if you’re ready to go beyond the standard LEGO sets available in stores and move into custom building with the bricks you already own, this ongoing series will quickly take you from novice to expert builder, teaching you key building techniques along the way!

(84-page FULL-COLOR Trade Paperbacks) $9.95 • (Digital Editions) $3.95

BOTH BOOKS ARE NOW AVAILABLE!

TwoMorrows—A New Day For LEGO Fandom.

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 E-mail: store@twomorrowspubs.com • Visit us on the Web at www.twomorrows.com

A very special If you weren’t sure what Jared Burks’ image on pages 76-77 was about, here’s a hint! A certain TwoMorrows editor was responsible for bringing Star Wars to Marvel Comics in 1977 (which helped save Marvel from bankruptcy). Marvel published that first issue prior to A New Hope debuting into theaters, leaving comics fans enthralled. Cartoonist Greg Hyland and BrickJournal are proud to join in a Crossover Celebration of the mystery editor’s 75th birthday, and 50th year in comics, with this special tribute to the cover of Star Wars #7.

To see how Jared’s image fits into the Crossover Celebration (above), check out this month’s TwoMorrows mags: Alter Ego #136, Back Issue #85, Comic Book Creator #10, The Jack Kirby Collector #66, and the “big reveal” in Alter Ego #137, on sale in December. A key identifying all the contributors appears in Draw! #31. All characters TM & © their respective owners.

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Monthly box lled with loot for the ultimate brick fan! The Brick Loot Online Store has the largest LIGHTING selection to make your LEGO® creations POP!

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