There's Nothing Like Friendship

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Here at BrickNerd we like to reminisce about the past...

Fellow friend and LUG-er Simon Liu was one of the first members of ToroLUG to welcome me into the group. Back then he was a shy nerd, and although not much has changed, he has been a great support for me in the LUG through all these years.One of the first MOCs that I noticed of Simon's was his section of FRIENDSHIP for the Fairview LEGO Store Community Window (oh the good ol' days). I pointed out the cool technique behind the back panels and called it “messy building” and later learned the term was “greebling”. The Friends theme was just released and with the up-roar of a new theme separating genders came some cool new pieces and colors too!

FriendSHIP One -
FriendSHIP One -

Some of my favorite details are the classic space logo with a purple ribbon at the end and the medical area with the red classic space guy on the examination table.

Simon is also the reason I got stuck into building a giant Unikitty, and then later four...so I guess thank you?

Karate Jedi

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I personally never felt that Star Wars Rebels was anywhere near as good as Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which is the show I could say I grew up watching.  I loved it like most fans.  However, Rebels has finally started to get interesting.  Thanks to Tristan, we now have an amazing recreation of the Jedi training room (dojo?) in the temple on Lothal that our rebels visit in the last few episodes of season 2.  What's interesting about this build is that the creator not only focused on the main ground floor, but also took the time to build high walls surrounding the iconic scene with Kanan Jarrus and the Jedi Temple Guard.  I don't believe many builders would have done that, which makes this build stand out at a higher quality!  Also, you must admit, it looks a bit like a Karate Kid moment...right?

Star Wars Rebels- Shroud of Darkness Jedi Dojo
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Nathaniel Stoner

     My name is Nathaniel Stoner, and I am an very active LEGO builder.  I mostly build in the themes of castle and science-fiction, but I also dabble in other genres and create occasional random MOC's (My Own Creations). 

     When I was younger, I would get and build small LEGO sets for my birthday, but I was never really into them.  When they fell apart, I would become frustrated attempting to put them back together and would throw them in a box in my closet.  I couldn't stand them!

     Then, miraculously, I became addicted to the LEGO brick later in my teen years.  Ever since, I have continued to build up (pun intended) my collection of bricks and to expand my knowledge of techniques and building skills.  LEGO is truly more than a toy, its an art form and a way to express yourself.

     For the most part, I collect LEGO Star Wars (mainly the minifigs), which is probably my favorite LEGO theme.  I have a fairly decent collection, including some of the original 1999 sets, such as the Snowspeeder, X-Wing, and Naboo starfighter.  I also collected LEGO the Lord of the Rings when those sets first came out.  The minifigs are great, and the story remains one of my favorites ever. 

     My hope is to inspire other young (and perhaps even older) LEGO builders to unleash their inner creativity!  You can find me on my Flikr here. 

Vespa P200

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The Arvo brothers are back with another brilliant MOC, this time of a more humble nature but no less appealing. This captures the classic lines of the venerable Italian scooter perfectly. One of my friends in high school had a classic Vespa, it seemed most of my friends had a scooter of some sort, they were all the rage (except me of course, I was dirt poor and spent what little I had on art supplies and make-up...and food). Someday I want to convince my wife to rent a couple while we visit a foreign place, and try not to crash into each other.

P200 Moto Front
P200 Moto Back

Sir Wizard Mecha-Nic Stronghold

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This ramshackle castle punk fortress by builder hrtx is as confusing to the eye as it is appealing. So many angles, so much detail, so much storytelling, it's lovely. I don't know what they get up to in this complex structure, but one look and you ache with curiosity. I guess that's why it's a stronghold, to keep you from finding out.

Sir Wizard Mecha-Nic Stronghold 01
Sir Wizard Mecha-Nic Stronghold 06
Sir Wizard Mecha-Nic Stronghold 08

Some Light Reading

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This library scene by henrik_zwomp makes me want to go read a book. I hear good things about Lord of the Rings, maybe I should read those again. Anyway, this is a lovely build. I really like the way the walls are angled outward, making the room feel open and spacious. The subtle forced perspective out the window is also superb and gives a great feeling of depth to an otherwise fairly small scene.

A Scene in a Library

Frozen Shack

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First off, everyone look at the front door of this shack and acknowledge the NPU. I mean, seriously, a boat for a front door it doesn't get much better than that folks! I'm also loving all the angles, so many unnaturally delicious ways jaapxaap has put this house together yet made it look congruent. I am, however, a little disappointed in the lack of murder(?) in this scene, though I am hoping we will see that in part 2 of this build.

Murder in Mitgardia part 1

United or Divided?

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POW!  WHAM-O!  Two of your favorite Avengers have been brought to life with Tyler's creative character build technique!  The remarkable recreation of these classic characters is well represented with amazing facial and body detailing.  It's easy to tell that a main focus in these guys is enabling them to be posed.  I personally would love to see a stop motion film using these two to recreate the great sequence in Captain America: Civil War!  Whose side are you on?!

The Blue and the Red
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Nathaniel Stoner

     My name is Nathaniel Stoner, and I am an very active LEGO builder.  I mostly build in the themes of castle and science-fiction, but I also dabble in other genres and create occasional random MOC's (My Own Creations). 

     When I was younger, I would get and build small LEGO sets for my birthday, but I was never really into them.  When they fell apart, I would become frustrated attempting to put them back together and would throw them in a box in my closet.  I couldn't stand them!

     Then, miraculously, I became addicted to the LEGO brick later in my teen years.  Ever since, I have continued to build up (pun intended) my collection of bricks and to expand my knowledge of techniques and building skills.  LEGO is truly more than a toy, its an art form and a way to express yourself.

     For the most part, I collect LEGO Star Wars (mainly the minifigs), which is probably my favorite LEGO theme.  I have a fairly decent collection, including some of the original 1999 sets, such as the Snowspeeder, X-Wing, and Naboo starfighter.  I also collected LEGO the Lord of the Rings when those sets first came out.  The minifigs are great, and the story remains one of my favorites ever. 

     My hope is to inspire other young (and perhaps even older) LEGO builders to unleash their inner creativity!  You can find me on my Flikr here. 

Cobbley Cobblestone

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Cobbley...that's a new adjective. 

But it describes this build perfectly!  Jonas has managed to capture such a beautiful scene in a limited space, with common pieces every builder has at home.  The street is what I am really fascinated by.  I've seen many cobblestone roads made out of LEGO before, but I've rarely seen the layered stone effect that he has done here.  By not showing any studs, the builder has created a smooth road that seems to make the surface of this build pop.  The other details, such as the sign and wagon, are also well executed with common elements.  All in all, I think that wagon has a smooth ride ahead!

Iron cart
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Nathaniel Stoner

     My name is Nathaniel Stoner, and I am an very active LEGO builder.  I mostly build in the themes of castle and science-fiction, but I also dabble in other genres and create occasional random MOC's (My Own Creations). 

     When I was younger, I would get and build small LEGO sets for my birthday, but I was never really into them.  When they fell apart, I would become frustrated attempting to put them back together and would throw them in a box in my closet.  I couldn't stand them!

     Then, miraculously, I became addicted to the LEGO brick later in my teen years.  Ever since, I have continued to build up (pun intended) my collection of bricks and to expand my knowledge of techniques and building skills.  LEGO is truly more than a toy, its an art form and a way to express yourself.

     For the most part, I collect LEGO Star Wars (mainly the minifigs), which is probably my favorite LEGO theme.  I have a fairly decent collection, including some of the original 1999 sets, such as the Snowspeeder, X-Wing, and Naboo starfighter.  I also collected LEGO the Lord of the Rings when those sets first came out.  The minifigs are great, and the story remains one of my favorites ever. 

     My hope is to inspire other young (and perhaps even older) LEGO builders to unleash their inner creativity!  You can find me on my Flikr here. 

AVISPA IP-NU3V3

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Check out this nifty starfighter by F@bz.  Certainly a unique design combining both armored bulk and lightweight airfoils.  Gotta love the use of those skateboard ramps in the nose assembly.  It even carries a little rover in the back.  Swooshable and practical, a winning combination! 

AVISPA IP-NU3V3

Not sure why the driver looks so perturbed, must have been a rough landing...

Rover TAC

Balrog

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The first thing about this stunning mech by Benjamin Cheh that grabbed my attention was the pose. It's dynamic and compelling, so much so that at first I assumed it was an illustration. Then I clicked through to discover this absolutely badass and super pose-able mech. I find it difficult to judge exact scale and weight of MOCs sometimes, but judging by the beefiness of that stand, this thing is a beast.

AMS FS18 Balrog Part 2 Series
AMS FS88 Fuhrungsmachine “Balrog” Part 1 series

Just Droning On

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Everyone loves a good drone. But Devid VII took this already cool drone up a notch by putting it inside an awesome garage/workshop scene. The attention to detail in this is superb, from the bench vise and tool chest in the back to the band saw (at least, I think it's a band saw) in the corner. Not everyone takes the time to build such a realistic environment for their robots, which is a shame considering how cool this one is.

The creation...

Colonial Mining Ship

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My good friend and fellow Battlestar Galactica fanatic, Garry King, has outdone himself with this colossal Colonial Mining Ship.  It was featured in the 2003 re-imagined series as well as the original 1970's show, with only brief appearances outside the standard Fleet shots.  However, the scale, at twelve feet, yeah, you read that right, and jaw dropping attention to detail, this SHIP is the star of the show!  So Say We All!

Here she is on public display in Tasmania, a Bricknerd exclusive!

Bored to Death of Reading

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Welcome to the Library of the Undead where Deus Otiosus draws inspiration from one of my favourite TV shows 'Adventure Time' and the video game 'Heroes of Might and Magic 2 - the Bone Dragon'. This MOC scene depicts an undead dragon and allie defending the medieval library from the living. I love all the skulls in this piece and I keep finding little details each time I look - like the teddy in the pile of rubble and the LEGO tile. The weapons of those who previously tried their luck can be seen scattered.

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"Library of the Undead

Shields Up!

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When I was fresh out of high school an old buddy of mine and I moved into his parent's rental house here in town. We had no furniture, no money and no clue, but we were pretty happy. Our nightly ritual at 11pm was to grab a Klondike bar,  plop down on our crappy couch, and watch a classic episode of Star Trek. It was really the first time I watched it on a regular basis, and I became a fan. Now whenever I see images from the classic series, like this wonderful pair of mini ships from derjoe, I can't help but think back to those simpler days.

Star Trek

The Scordiscian Druid

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Although I admire all types of LEGO creations, it's not often that I see a creation and awe in the same way as I do a painting or a sculpture. Legophthalmos has really done that in this beautiful MOC, from the symmetry in the foliage to how it's photographed. The warmth from this build is what made it so memorable to me, so much that I instantly recalled it when choosing a MOC to write about in my first post for BrickNerd! 

Check out Legophthalmos’ photo stream for more fun and lovely creations! 

the druid

The Happiest Maze On Earth

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My wife and I were talking about Disneyland just this morning, and then I happen across this wonder maze overlay by builder Oky - Space Ranger. There's several recognizable rides and attractions here, from Sleeping Beauty's Castle to the Haunted Mansion, and it looks like a magical good time to play. I'm totally OK with the omission of Mickey's Toon Town, but this thing's gonna need a major overhaul when Star Wars land opens.

Disneyland Maze
Disneyland maze 2