ETNAK Class Frigate

Yes, SHIPtember is here. For the uninitiated among you, this is the time of year when you are challenged to build a SHIP (Seriously Heavy Investment in Parts), a space cruiser of 100 studs length (or more). It's the time of year when large space ships pop up every day and we can all collectively drool at some serious building skills, like this magnificent, multi-faceted frigate by builder FLAVIO, spectacular.

A Herculean Effort

I know what you're thinking. "A post about a SHIP? It's not September yet!" But Migalart apparently didn't get the memo, and I'm not complaining. He says this was his first attempt at a SHIP, which makes this awesome build, named Hercules, even more impressive. There's a lot of great detail in this, from the texturing on the main panels to the center greebling. I particularly like the tiny windows on the front, they really give the ship a great sense of scale. And that photo edit is just gorgeous!

Update: Migalert uploaded a new pic with some tweaks and no effects, what an insanely cool design and execution.

Vaygr Carrier

If you think this ship by Tim Schwalfenberg is cool, just imagine a whole fleet!  You may recall his Corvette, Missile Frigate, and of course, the Vaygr Battlecruiser.  And if that isn't enough for you, imagine playing a game of Battleship with giant LEGO ships.  That's exactly what happened at this year's Brickworld!  But I'll get to all that in a future post.  So for now, admire the style and detail Tim put into this sci-fi creation.  That takes serious skill.  But tossing it up in the air to watch it smash into a million pieces?  That takes guts!

Colonial Mining Ship

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!

Callisto

This is one of those "wait, that's LEGO?" MOCs. One that's so unusual and slick that you pass right over it in Flickr, and one so beautifully sculpted it defies logic. This is the Callisto from Legohaulic, and it's absolutely gorgeous.

B-5 Manta

"Ghostrider, this is HQ, I have a new target for you"

"Copy HQ, go ahead"

"Grid 21-45, northwest corner of combat zone"

"Copy 21-45...wait, that's not in the combat zone"

"This is a covert op, proceed to target"

"Hey, isn't that the Megabloks factory?"

"That is on the need-to-know basis, proceed to target"

Vaygr Battlecruiser

Tim Schwalfenber has just completed his Iron Builder round, and really kicked things off for SHIPtember with this stunning beast.   I'm at a loss for words...  Click the link and enjoy! 

Camo SHIP

This is 63 inches of camouflaged awesome. The size is impressive, the style and design is unique, the display on the shipyard is novel and the detailing is superb. But the intricate camo on this scale is mind-blowing. Click through for more pictures and try to wrap your head around this magnificent vessel by xtofcorthay.

Hurricane Fleet

You may remember, back in SHIPtember, Tim Schwalfenberg's award winning Hurricane Battlecruiser.  Well, he's been a busy guy building an entire fleet to go with it.  Scroll through the photostream to see the intricate details and recurring design cues that tie the whole fleet together.  Although I'm more of a rag-tag fleet kinda guy, this is a pretty awesome collection!

AZR Anunnaki

David Collins has gone all out with this massive project.  He started with minifig scale mechs, then a hangar big enough for three of them.  The next step was to build a ship big enough for the hangar.  So he ended up with this six foot monster SHIP!  "I've seen a lot of ships built over the years with hanger bays in them but it looked to me like frequently the hangar bay was an after thought and what goes in the hanger even more so."   Even without the hangar, it's an impressively detailed creation, plastered with cannons and yummy greebles that run all the way up and over the length of the ship.  He presented it at BrickSlopes 2015 where he took Best of Show, Best of Space, and Best original Spaceship.  Congrats, David!

FK ANTROTTA

Well, SHIPtember is coming to a close, and that's when the big guns come out. Builder and SHIP evangelist S--MOCs has revealed his beast and it's pretty epic. The main thing I love about this vessel is the attention to detail in areas of little detail. Even areas with simple planes are subtly and expertly panel lined and broken up, for scale at any distance.

Zero G: Not An Option

If we're ever going to truly strike out into the cosmos, we're going to have to overcome a simple problem: humans need gravity. And until some super big brains somehow develop artificial gravity, some other super big brains need to build a vessel like this, with a spinning axis to make sure we don't get muscle atrophy and can properly play ping pong. Builder El Barto has some inspiration here, go big brains go!

King Fisher Assault Unit

You don't see very many SHIPS (seriously heavy investment in parts) on this blog. It's not that I have anything against them, I just generally find them a bit ho-hum. Size does not equal impressive in my opinion. But when it comes to design, that's where you'll get my attention. And this MOC by KingBrick is off the charts. The color combinations, the contouring and levels of detail, the overall proportions and form factor are just stunning. I want to see it in a movie, now!

The Elinyes

It's 2014, where are all the huge spaceships and flying cars? If you watch any TV or movies from the 50's through the 80's, they all seemed to think by now we'd have self-drying jackets and robot assistants. And ships like this awesome MOC by The Steads should be taking off every hour, or at least cruising through the cosmos.