Sculpting Legends: Inside the Fantasy World of ‘Guilds of Historica’

Builder Mathijs Dubbeldam gives us a glimpse into the LEGO medieval fantasy world created by Eurobricks, known as ‘Guilds of Historica’. The build, titled ‘Sculptor’, is presented with a prompt, “. . . a large order from the King. His majesty wants an enormous statue . . .” inviting us to delve deeper into the layout and characters within the scene. Despite the prompt, the concept of a sculptor diligently working to unveil a statue of significance is readily apparent. Additionally, the presence of a green-skinned character immediately indicates that this is no ordinary medieval scene, but likely one from a fantastical world.

[Rockwail] Sculptor

In the second image, a close-up reveals how the rockwork, or brickwork, as it were, has been carefully designed and thought out, offering us a glimpse into the ongoing formation of a legendary dwarf warrior. The ‘messy’ hair on the sculptor gives the impression this artist has been hard at work with no rest. I imagine his hands – do we call them hands for LEGO minifigures? – are calloused from his past and current sculpting endeavors.

[Rockwail] Sculptor

What happens when you cross a vulture and a dinosaur?

Joss Woodyard has a thing for creative LEGO creature designs (just look at what he’s got in our archives). But since 2024 is the year of the dragon, what better excuse than to get some awesome dragons out of him? April’s entry takes inspiration from birds both ancient and present for a striking feathered fiend. It’s part bearded vulture, part Archaeopteryx – the feathered flying dinosaur from the Jurassic period. And the feathers are what really make this build stand out, using a variety of pieces from the Bionicle and Chima lines of years gone by.

Draconis Gypaetus

This space cruiser was built in a ZNAP!

Even though it’s not September, we can still enjoy a LEGO SHIP when we have the space-time! This LEGO model by space_e has nostalgia built into its bones, with the skeleton of this behemoth built out of LEGO ZNAP parts. There really is a lot of nostalgia packed into this massive space ship; the windscreens are two different styles in trans-dark blue – including one with an Alpha Team logo! There’s also a few of that old type of Technic panel used on the main body, helping to round out the star cruiser. So climb aboard, and lets blast off into the retro-future!

Hyperspectral Cruiser

Here’s a different angle to help show how incredibly massive this beast is! And be sure to hit up space_e’s Flickr page for some WIP pictures and zoom-ins on the details.

HC - Vertical Side View

This LEGO Schloss is definitely boss!

While it’s hard not to fall in love with the LEGO Icons 10305 Lion Knights Castle, it still has its roots in imagined lore. But what about a real castle? An honest-to-goodness fortification built in 1882 by a German baron, Schloss Drachenburg has had quite the history through several owners, two world wars, near-demolition, and finally attaining “monument” status in 1986. Builder -Brixe brings the castle to life in this stunning LEGO model, featuring a combination of microscale techniques of the verdant and architectural varieties. I particularly like the ingenious use of a dark orange 2×2 brick with grooves on all sides. You can see its underside under one of the dark nougat arches in the build. Original architects for the project Leo von Abbema, Bernhard Tüshaus, and Wilhelm Hoffmann would be proud!

Schloss Drachenburg

Don’t scan so close to me, LEGO police drone

Gareth Edwards’ sci-fi epic The Creator recieved a mixed reception when it released last year. But whatever your thoughts about the film’s take on foreign wars and AI sentience, one thing’s certain: it features some of the most striking sci-fi imagery in recent cinema, from many of the same artists who contributed to Rogue One. I’m actually surpised we haven’t seen more LEGO models based on the film. Builder Tom Studs and friends have been correcting this with an Instagram Creator collaboration series, and Tom’s latest addition is a stunningly-recreated police transport. The insect-like vehicle has such an distinctive silhouette, with its bulbous helm and those menacing probe arms, here tipped with LEGO katanas. I love Tom’s mix of dark and medium azure to give the vehicle a weathered look.

Police vehicles from 'The Creator'

Believe it or not, this is Tom’s first spaceship build, a change from his inspiring fantasy works (like this library vignette that floored us last year). We certainly hope it’s not his last dip into the future!

Goats graze by a tranquil LEGO temple

For your daily dose of serenity, you should check out this LEGO temple by Andreas Lenander! There’s lots to love in this elegant and refreshing build. For starters, there are a host of animals that call this temple home; panthers, chameleons, birds, and goats oh my! In the pond on the right, Andreas has notably placed his water lilies upside down (using the power of gravity!) to mount blossoms on the stems, while the elegant temple itself is made from a selection light and dark tan bricks. I sure hope that panther is just passing through!

Temple Al-Jaba´

Behold! Busy bibliophiles blissfully browsing

If you’re the sort who lives to read, chances are you’ve dreamed of having a gigantic library filled with every book your heart desires. Consider that wish granted, even if it’s in tiny LEGO brick form. The “Scriptorium,” an eye-popping build by Montgomery Burns, has everything a book lover might want. Cozy reading chairs! Cool quasi-medieval ambiance! And of course, enough books to keep Albus Dumbledore (spotted on the fourth floor) or William Shakespeare (on his way to the third-level floor terrace) occupied with ample reading material. Said books come in different thicknesses and heights; along with actual minifig book elements, I can spot 1×2 plates with a slide thingy, stacked 1×1 slopes, ingot bricks, and even candle pieces (to represent scrolls), to name a few. (Who cares if you can’t actually read any of these books? They look darn good on the shelf.)

Scriptorium 2.0

The adorable deception of Tyler’s Bubble Dragon

LEGO Masters builder, and half of the winning team for the show’s debut season, Tyler Clites presents us with quite the adorable fellow in his Bubble Dragon build. While one wouldn’t typically associate a dragon with such a cuddly demeanor, Tyler has convinced me otherwise with this deceptively simple creation. At first glance, we’re drawn to associate the CGI bubbles in both the foreground and background to the title. However, a closer examination reveals rounded, or bubbled, claws on the feet, hands, teeth, wings, and the cutest rounded belly. It’s putting to use just about every curved slope and rounded plate and tile that one can find in turquoise and orange-yellow!

Bubble Dragon

A “train”-ing spaceship in blue and yellow!

If you need a space fighter to hunt bogies with, this LEGO ship by Linus Bohman might be just the thing you need. Linus built this fighter around a skeleton of railroad track parts including curves and straights from the 4.5V era and six Duplo curve sections. I’d argue that this build is all horsepower, no ballast, with huge engines embedded in each wing. All-in-all, the grey details between the rails provide a nice buffer, while the rails themselves couple everything together!

Overview

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 27, 2024 [News]

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the 4th week of April 2024.

TBB NEWS AND REVIEWS This week has been all about those love-able (or hate-able) yellow minions, and the rest of the Despicable Me crew, with reviews of four newly announced sets from the upcoming fourth movie coming out later this summer. We also got two new sets from the ever-expanding Space cross-over from Art and Icons. Lastly, Brickcon, the longest-running adult LEGO fan event in the country, has opened registration for the convention later this fall.

An interstellar waystation fueled by imagination

Space is big. Vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big. For LEGO explorers running on empty while traversing the deep cosmos, Bart De Dobbelear has you covered with the Liquid-Core refueling station. When filtered through the mind of this Belgian builder, even a gas station in the stars becomes a scene of wonder, where brilliant technique blends with evocative lore. Space is a popular theme for builders, whether inspired by the LEGO sub-themes, sci-fi films, or swooshable ships and chonky rovers. Bart is an artist who pushes the theme further, whose work feels truly cosmic, offering glimpses of a vast and ancient universe that we can only understand in glimpses. His builds often remind me of the sci-fi work from Jean Giraud (aka Moebius) in the way he blends organic and mechanical, where technology is so removed from our understanding as to border on the magical. You can see that here with the eerily reptilian solar fins, sourced appropriately enough from a Ninjago NRG Dragon, and the fuel chambers made from the milky green domes of Yavin 4. This Liquid-Core station is fairly unique among Bart’s builds in that it features inviting human typography, suggesting maybe we aren’t so alone in the great unknown of space.

Liquid-core refueling station

Once you’ve had your fill of this station, set a course for the Bart De Dobbelear archives to see why he is considered cosmic royalty around these parts.

A complex train build that never goes off the rails

Look, I’m not a train guy. I can barely tell a caboose from a boxcar, and yet even I am in awe of Smile Leo‘s amazing LEGO train, depicting a China Railways DF11G locomotive. The first thing to notice is the variety of angles at which the bricks and plates all fit together for the smooth, rounded angles of the train’s nose. Next, check out the intricacy of the machinery around the wheels. With another model, I might just classify it as a bunch of greebling (you know, little mechanical details that are there just to look cool rather than have any particular function), but it’s clear that every meticulously chosen element mimics an actual train part. I can almost hear the churning of pistons and the whine of wheels on rails.