Colossal Castle Contest IV

[Mike Viper]

Does this mean the battles catagory must contain plenty of both sides?

Reason being:

My forces consist of only one large group, vikings. I was planning on having like five knights fighting off a horde as a last hope, but in noway do I have near enough the numbers to make an army.

[garraofthesand]

Precisly, could we have like a peasant horde attacking a small group of knights?

[DARKspawn]

Scenes should fit on 2 32x32 baseplates or smaller

From this sentance in the discription for the Battle Scene catagory I don't think anyone is expected to field 2 entire armies.

However some clarification might be helpful. Could the admins give us an indication of the bare minimum number of figs each side?

Also for the bridge building catagory ...

Create a ancient or medieval bridge crossing a stream, river, or lake.

(italics mine)

Does this mean that the MOC does not strictly have to be from medieval Europe?

I didn't thank the admins earlier but I would just like to say how impressed I am with their dedication to helping people out and their generosity in donating the prizes. A grateful nod to LEGO to for their contributions past & present too

[Azaghal]

However some clarification might be helpful. Could the admins give us an indication of the bare minimum number of figs each side?

Maybe . . . 2?

Seriously, though, I'm sure that the number of people who would enter for this category would go down as this hypothetical minimum number of figs goes up. I, myself, am kicking around an idea that would only need 4 figs - two attacking and two defending - and fielding anything larger would become problematic. On the other hand, I'm sure that a single combat/joust type of situation is not what the admins had in mind at all.

[Remyth]

Ok, I will post a few questions that I have thought of.

First off, a landscaping (mostly) MOC should go under 'Miscelanious', right?
Second, you cannot use the enterior of a MOC for, say, the Medieval Life, as an enterior for the Room category, coorect?

Thanks in advance,

[architect]

Also for the bridge building catagory ...

Create a ancient or medieval bridge crossing a stream, river, or lake.

(italics mine)

Does this mean that the MOC does not strictly have to be from medieval Europe?

The admins have decided that bridges can be traditional medieval European or cross mythical/fantasy terrain such as gorges and lava. The bridge should generally follow the rules of gravity and not be held up by mystical properties. By ancient we meant creations like Roman arch bridges, wooden Celt bridges, etc. Aztec or Mayan bridges would be pushing the limits too far.

First off, a landscaping (mostly) MOC should go under 'Miscelanious', right?
Second, you cannot use the enterior of a MOC for, say, the Medieval Life, as an enterior for the Room category, coorect?

Landscaping can be very important to the battles, bridge, and medieval life categories. A wheat field with rolling hills during harvest is an excellent example. You may be able to use the exterior of a creation for one category and the interior for another. But a castle's exterior wall is not well suited for the mainly peaceful medieval life category.

Ben
CC Contest Admin

[pacman110011]

This is great! I have been waiting for this contest for quite some time and planning, building, and scheming for almost that long. I have a few questions though. How much customization can we do to a fig? Can we do whatever we want as long as it is still a fig? And on the battle scene, can the factions be human and undead? I can't wait to see all of the creations for the contest!
-Pac
EDIT: Hate to kind of tell what one of my entries will be but.... may I enter a Chinese warrior to the custom castle figure catagory?

[garraofthesand]

do you have to make the fig combletley custom? Can you use all official pieces? I made a blue custom minifig out of all official pieces with no cutting or pasting. It is also medieval, so i have considered entering it

[Lamanda2]

Another question:
Are we allowed to use costumized figures in the MOCs and the battle?
Just curious because I was planning on using some of my Card faction fellows and some Goblins.

Thanks,

~Amanda

[The dark tide]

So the Battles contest is aimed to be on a smaller scale than the one Josh has held in previous years?By smaller scale I meen the number of figs and the battle are supposed to be smaller.

[architect]

So the Battles contest is aimed to be on a smaller scale than the one Josh has held in previous years?By smaller scale I meen the number of figs and the battle are supposed to be smaller.

The category should reflect the prize and vice versa. The battle should be a battle and not just a small fight. We will be requiring a minimum of 10 soldiers per faction with a minimum of 20 figures total. The factions can have different numbers of soldiers but still must have a minimum of 10.

The battle location is still being discussed. The original intent was a larger scale battle on landscaped terrain (or at sea perhaps) and not inside a building as this conflicts with another category (the castle room interior category). If there are any changes to this, we will post them.

Notes on custom figures:

You may use brick built custom figures for the custom figure category. They should however be a similar scale to minifigures.

In the past we have allowed minor customization for other categories. This includes custom stickers for figures torsos, shields, and flags, a small amount of painting, and an occasional custom accessory. Most of the other categories are focused on structures more than the figures and grading will take this into account.


Ben
CC Contest Admin

[Mike Viper]

I only have seven shadow knights. So, I was wondering, if I have knights verse vikings, is the fact that vikings wear horn helmets enough of a difference to throw in some non-shadow knight knights in the fray? The vikings would be evil, while the knights are the good? Or vice versa?

[Blasterman]

The category should reflect the prize and vice versa.

Exactly. I will only comment on the custom minifig category, for obvious reasons -

I see any minifig made from official pieces as minifig MOCs(a term that gets used incorrectly too many times), not as a custom. Anyone can mix and match official parts to get different minifig combinations, but to truly customize...you need to actually create something from nothing, using other parts and/or materials.

Take a look at my castle minifig customs for reference. Not to say that mine are the end of all customs, but they will give you a good idea to what I believe this category is all about. Fabric, decals, paint, special parts, etc. are what constitute a true custom (imo).

Having said that - you don't need to do anything to the degree/level that I do (as an example), but you can certainly take a "stab" at it!

[architect]

I only have seven shadow knights. So, I was wondering, if I have knights verse vikings, is the fact that vikings wear horn helmets enough of a difference to throw in some non-shadow knight knights in the fray? The vikings would be evil, while the knights are the good? Or vice versa?

This is not a problem. If you have need several additional soldiers to go with your knights, just make sure they do not look like vikings . As long as it is clear which side the soldiers are on, the admins will be ok with it.

I see any minifig made from official pieces as minifig MOCs(a term that gets used incorrectly too many times), not as a custom. Anyone can mix and match official parts to get different minifig combinations, but to truly customize...you need to actually create something from nothing, using other parts and/or materials.

While we allow people to enter brick built customs in this category, fans should take note that no brick built custom has ever won this category. Some actual customization with stickers, painting, and/or accessories is needed to win in a "custom category".

Ben
CC Contest Admin

[The dark tide]

Are brick beasts allowed to be in the battles? Say if I made a troll from scratch.