LEGO Contest Round-Up for January 2023
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[Our current monthly LEGO contest round-up can be found here.]
A new year is upon us, and with it a new month of competitive building! Are you ready? Here’s the latest batch of LEGO contests and challenges from all around the AFOL community for January 2023 to help you find some inspiration and motivation to build! There’s nothing quite like a theme or a prompt to take you out of your comfort zone and give you something new to try. Besides, contests are the perfect place to interact with other contestants and judges and get to know your fellow builders. And if you’re like me, a deadline helps make sure you actually finish!
We’ve listed them in order of deadline so you can plan your building time to the best advantage. Make sure to check the LEGO activity calendar for local challenges and events near you. Here at BrickNerd, some of our fondest memories, greatest building achievements, coolest trophies, and best friendships came from LEGO contests, so we really hope you try some of these out. We look forward to seeing what you build!
Explore the fictional world of Pandora with your own builds! Anything from landscapes or wildlife from the planet, to giant trees or valleys - just make it breathtaking! Maybe even a Banshee? Show off what a beautiful place it is.
Deadline: January 5th (6:00 am EST)
Prize: Pretty much the entire LEGO Avatar lineup, along with other Avatar-related goodies! Two runner-ups will also receive four sets and some other good Avatar-themed stuff.
Where to enter: LEGO Ideas
Put your building skills to the test in an epic transformation challenge designed to elevate existing storyworlds! Build anything transformative in nature, whether by design (like a mech suit that can turn into a vehicle), through a natural process or through the power of magic, science, or anything else!
Deadline: January 13th
Prize: The Grand Prize Winner will receive 80045 Monkey King Ultra Mech!
Where to enter: Instagram or Discord
Iron Forge is back and will test your creativity, perseverance and skills! Do you have what it takes to challenge one of the current Iron Builders?
Deadline: First round ends January 13th
Prize: The chance to compete in the prestigious Iron Builder competition!
Where to enter: Discord
Sharpen your swords and grind out your axes! With categories ranging from Microscale to Finding a medieval Waldo, Brickscalibur has something for every castle lover.
Deadline: January 15th
Prize: The builder with the highest total score across all six categories will receive 21325 Medieval Blacksmith. The team category winners will receive a brick-built trophy each. Each other category has two prizes, one a brick-built trophy, the other a set. The set prizes include 43192 Cinderella’s Royal Carriage, 21186 The Ice Castle, 60346 Barn & Farm Animals, 40567 Forest Hideout, and 76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit.
Where to enter: Discord or website submission
Pick a photo from when you first started LEGO photography and share it alongside a new or recent picture to show off the difference your experience has made!
Deadline: January 28th
Prize: One contest winner will receive 21333 Vincent Van Gogh and one community vote winner will receive 10308 Main Street (or sets of equivalent value).
Where to enter: BrickCentral Discord
Eurobricks is celebrating LEGO's 90th anniversary and the release of 10497 Galaxy Explorer by hosting a spaceship-building contest!
Deadline: February 17th, 2023
Prize: First Place: 10437 Galaxy Explorer. Second Place: 76832 XL-15 Spaceship.
Where to enter: Eurobricks
After the experimental round last year, the BrickLink Designer Program has returned! Do you have what it takes to be one of the next fan designers to have their models turned into BDP LEGO sets?
Submissions accepted: February 1st-28th
Prize: Five models will be accepted to become the next bunch of sets produced through the program!
Where to enter: BrickLink
Eurobricks’ Guilds of Historica is one of the oldest and longest-lasting RPGs in the LEGO community, recently celebrating its tenth anniversary—and now the final anniversary contest has rolled around with three great categories and lots of amazing prizes!
You are required to have two other Guilds-related MOCs to participate, but with a deadline in February, there’s plenty of time to hop on in and join the fun!
Deadline: February 28th
Prize: Awesome sets for first and second place in each of three categories and a raffle!
Where to enter: Eurobricks
Happy building! See you here next month for our next LEGO community contest list. And if you would like us to add a contest, please email dave@bricknerd.com.
What are your experiences with LEGO contests? Are there any you know of that we missed? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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