The Proud Sons Of Durmstrang

When Hogwarts held the Triwizard Tournament the Durmstrang school arrived by boat, magical boat. Builder Swan Dutchman seems to have a little wizard in him too, crafting this tiny boat somewhere around 20 studs in length, but cramming 400 parts into it (not including the water). It's a wonderfully crafted micro scale ship from the wizarding world.

The Bellonatus

Why oh why can't we live in a world with beauties like this gracefully moving through the sky? This is the Bellonatus by builder Mark of Falworth, and it's gorgeous. But don't let it's lovely appearance fool you, it's also armed to the teeth with no fewer than 14 cannons and a fearsome bow ram. Beauty and beast in the same vessel.

Rough Water

The ship in this diorama by builder Kloou is lovely, and deserving of attention. But really I can't stop looking at the water. This looks incredibly tedious, fragile, frustrating, time consuming and maddening, not to mention the part count. It also looks absolutely marvelous, and is worth all the heartache (easy for me to say, I didn't have to build it).

French Galleon

This gorgeous French galleon was inspired by the 17th century man-of-war "Royal Louis". Builder mattlincoln4040 hasn't provided much information on this gorgeous vessel, but it's clearly minifig scale, spectacularly detailed and a serious labor of love. I would love to see this in person. Click through for many, many more pictures.

Lunar Meetup

Builder dvdliu proposes an interesting scenario. What if two lunar explorers were to meet up for a friendly vehicle exchange? We have a classic Apollo type lunar rover, and a very retro spaceship, personally speaking I think the ship is probably more fun, but I'd have a blast taking either for a spin.

Norse ship!

Get it? Nice...Norse... I know, I know. I'm sorry. Anyway, Mark of Falworth built this awesome Viking-esque ship for CCC 14. It seems that building a curvy wooden ship like this would be difficult, but Mark does a fantastic job with it. The shaping on the bow is phenomenal: it has a nice curve overall while still looking like individual planks, just like in real life. Also, the subtly shaded green water makes for a nice change from the slightly unrealistic bright blue water we're used to seeing.

The Flying Dutchman

I've always loved the Pirates of the Caribbean, from endless trips through the ride to the movies (well, maybe not At Worlds End, that was a bit of a train wreck), I dig a bit of salty swashbuckling. So this rendition of Day Jones' ship The Flying Dutchman by W. Navarre caught my eye instantly. You can practically hear the epic soundtrack and smell the popcorn can't you? 

La Saignante

This post is one week early for international talk like a pirate day (no really, look it up, it's a thing), so I'll avoid any cheesy "arrggs" and "avasts" and just present this absolutely wonderful pirate ship by builder Kloou. This lovely craft has three masts, a functional crane, fully decked out interior and fourteen guns. She's a formidable vessel you don't want to see approaching on the high sea.

Regis Commdor Hyperion

Ancient shipbuilders sure knew how to make a statement. I can't speak to the accuracy of this ancient Greek galley, but it's impressive and absolutely beautiful. With a combination of wind and man power, these ships could transport soldiers quickly and quietly, and judging by the number of oars on this, it was pretty fast.

The Shipyard

I always love a good collaborative build, and this one by Si-mocs and Zachmoe is no exception. Zach built the spaceship and Simon built the shipyard around it. Both parts are equally fantastic: the ship has wonderful color blocking and gorgeous shaping, and the shipyard is packed with lots of clever micro-scale details. I especially love the little trucks made from roller skates and the genius two-piece tanks.

Steaming Gracefully Through The Clouds

Now this is how you make an entrance! Builder baz is a newcomer to the AFOL scene, and this is quite the way to jump in. This is his first built, and it's 3 feet long, 3 feet high, 2 feet wide, and weights 10 pounds. But size isn't everything (in fact, it's not much in my opinion), this is just some stellar building and lovely steampunkery. Welcome to the fold baz!

Terror From The Deep

Nothing like being attacked by a kraken to ruin an otherwise peaceful day at sea huh? This latest Iron Builder entry from Legopard uses loads of the seed part, a silver technic connector. But they're so well integrated you barely notice. That's not to say they're hidden, that's not the point, just click through and check out the high res picture, you'll see what I mean. And that water work, stunning! It captures the motion and intensity of the scene perfectly.

AV-36

This thing would be right at home in a James Cameron movie. This is the AV-36, it's a expeditionary combat support craft designed for high-intensity, low-gravity environments according to builder AFOL-anon. I have to admit, the first thing I think when I see a ship this badass is "let's get this thing on a pylon and program some motion control", but then again I'm a VFX nerd too.

To War!

Few weave together history lessons and MOCs better than James Pegrum, and this excellent little depiction of King Richard's landing on Acre is a perfect example. On it's own this is a marvelous ship, but reading the description (especially what a badass King Richard was) makes it even more special.

Batten Down The Hatches!

Here's another fun fact, I get sea sick. Or more to the point, motion sick. I've only been out on a boat a few times, and I was feeding the fish before very long every time. So I cannot fathom the shade of green I'd be aboard this totally amazing MOC by peggyjb. Of course the ship is lovely, but the waves and the composition of this shot is excellent.

From The Depths It Came...

I keep pausing to look at this MOC by pif500, which means I should really be sharing it. It's a fine example of how to don't have to build big to build well. And how a simple photograph, well executed, elevates that build. I love the new swirly pieces as tentacles, genius!