A damaged structure for BFE and SST

[BuShips]

Here is a sample of one of my new buildings while I wait for BFE. It will of course work in SST as well. The office building is in an "action pose" as it does show a little wear around the edges :wink: . I'll reveal the contruction process in an upcoming article, but I wanted to toss this into the new BFE forum area and you can try to imagine the new BFE troops doing a sweep through the area trying to dislodge the SST troopers :roll: .

 

[Witchsmeller]

Is it made out of a plastic create? Looks good.

 

[combatdroid113]

thats made out of a crate :shock: thats really clever!

 

[BuShips]

Yes, it's one of my better revelations. I had been seeing these for quite awhile at the local hardware stores and a few weeks ago as I was walking by a stack of these at a local dollar store I stopped dead in front of them. I had passed by these many times, but this time I had a quite startling epiphany :shock: and my perspective suddenly shifted as I looked at them. It was a really remarkable sensation, with that tingling of the hairs on my neck and all of that stuff :lol: . It reminded my of when I was in grade school and saw that drawing (you might know the one) that is created in a way that shows both a young woman with a hat and an old woman. When the teacher passed out a copy to each in the class, she asked which we saw. Of course some saw the young woman while others saw the old one. It took some awhile to shift our perception to the other view, and that moment in the dollar store was like that memory from the past. These pics don't even show the real possibilities that I've already explored- that of stacked boxes combined into varied office building heights just about as tall as you can imagine, or even adjacent clusters of different heights formed into some very nice shapes. I currently have two stacks made up into three foot tall urban skyscrapers (no, they aren't meant to look like the late-great WTC towers ). Just the other day I made a skybridge that joins the two structures that I really liked making. I probably won't post too many shots until the article makes an appearance, as there are many urban structure shapes I'm constructing to make a varied urban battlefield. My imagination has been working overtime, as I'm making use of these wonderful storage crates as well as paper mache boxes and of course traditional foam-core. I've made myself proud (in a humble way of course ) putting to good use something many have overlooked I think- LEGO bricks :idea: . Craps, but I even lit one up that I call a "bank" using small touch-on lights.

 

[BuShips]

Here is the bank, on page 2 of Reaverman's post about his nicely done plaster building-

http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/p...&start=15&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=

I'd sure like to take some piccies with some BFE soldiers posed by them... :wink: .

 

[nezeray]

I love LEGOs, they're just a bit on the expensive side, especially since I want to do lots of buildings

Nezeray

 

[roughneck GIR]

Haha thanks Bu, now I found a use for those 2 plastic crates I "borrowed" from the milk industry

Looking good dude, oh and yes I can imagine seeing usmc troops dashing through as some brits follow closely behind 8)

 

[BuShips]

nezeray, yes the cost is a neg, but the reuse aspect partly offsets this as how many things have the recycling abililty that LEGO bricks have, eh?

roughneck GIR, you've got it backwards. You're supposed to send in the brits first to see where the enemy fire is coming from (j/k mates!) :lol: .

 

[BuShips]

Cool, I just noticed that in my last photo you can see the end of the sniper rifle poking out from the attic. It's even in the shadow cast on the background panel. Cool, but maybe he should suck it back a bit :wink: .

 

[roughneck GIR]

Cool, I just noticed that in my last photo you can see the end of the sniper rifle poking out from the attic. It's even in the shadow cast on the background panel. Cool, but maybe he should suck it back a bit :wink: .

Yeah he sticks out to much, and I just noticed that too

 

[BuShips]

Cool, I just noticed that in my last photo you can see the end of the sniper rifle poking out from the attic. It's even in the shadow cast on the background panel. Cool, but maybe he should suck it back a bit :wink: .

Yeah he sticks out to much, and I just noticed that too

Yes, when I poked him in there, I did set him back at first and then thought no one would even see him in the photos. He probably cussed me out when I pulled him back out, heh. After all if you can see an enemy sniper he hasn't got long to live :wink: .

 

[roughneck GIR]

Cool, I just noticed that in my last photo you can see the end of the sniper rifle poking out from the attic. It's even in the shadow cast on the background panel. Cool, but maybe he should suck it back a bit :wink: .

Yeah he sticks out to much, and I just noticed that too

Yes, when I poked him in there, I did set him back at first and then thought no one would even see him in the photos. He probably cussed me out when I pulled him back out, heh. After all if you can see an enemy sniper he hasn't got long to live :wink: .

Yep, thats why I hide and snipe in airsoft

 

[Kristovich]

Nice work BuShips, I'd never even get close to such quality of work.

Nice work, really nice work.

 

[BuShips]

Nice work BuShips, I'd never even get close to such quality of work.

Nice work, really nice work.

Ah gee. Thanks . Really, though, thanks! Wait untill you see my skyscrapers. You might need to have your jaw pinned up from the dropped position :lol:

 

[chris_valera]

Awesome. What did you use for the roof?

--Chris
www.chrisvalera.com

 

[BuShips]

Awesome. What did you use for the roof?

--Chris
www.chrisvalera.com

Chris, I used 3/16" (5mm) foam-core art board. I cut the four triangular sides, then angle-trimmed them to fit together. I then hot-glued them together into a pyramid of sorts. That assembly was then just laid on top of a rectangular bottom piece, with coffee stir sticks to frame it so that it keeps centered. I used a hobby knife to score jagged cuts and then broke it with my hands. Some of the pieces were then chopped up for rubble. The six-inch high plastic crate allows for two levels, with as many crates as you want to stack (!). My two skyscrapers are about 3'-4' respectively, attached by a skybridge. One of my main considerations with almost all of my structures is that are meant to be "Fighting Structures" TM :roll:. By this I mean that infantry units will be allowed inside to play and do mayhem, climbing and fighting between levels. I haven't asked Matthew Sprange yet if the new Evolution rules will support this, but I'm sure they will discuss in in some length. I haven't tried to bother him much, as he would be too busy talking with everyone. That's why he has employees, I figure :wink: . This concept of modular structures has been in my head for quite sometime, but only over the past few months has it been baring fruit. At the same time, I'm making good use of my imagination as well as LEGO bricks and contructiing a series of varied structures that of course are multi-level. Each story (I think the Brits spell it storey, don't they? :wink: ) is countersunk into a lip on the previous level so that it will easily stay together, but can be lifted out for access. Here is a shot I took today that is a military jail or holding area that can be used by any of the countries by just the change of a flag or two. I'm thinking up functional buildings that would have a specific purpose, such as having a special ops rescue scenario with the jail as a target. It could be valid with any country playing the jailer and any country playing the SpecOps side. "Prison Break" would be the obvious title :wink: . Here's the shot I took today. Feedback? It's 15" on the long sides, consisting of two levels. It's a little over six inches high. The roof is cardboard, textured and finished to look well, like a roof (heh). Does this look like something you'd like to play in, er I mean break out of?

 

[127th Angry Angels]

Thats real nice work, might be time to head into loft and retrieve that lego that i'm supposed to have given to the charity shop (just...can't...let..go...still...young!!)

I think it has some other uses as an objective, it is after all essentially a building with bars on the windows. It could double as an embassy compound building, an armoury, testing facilty. It might be only one of a few buildings needed to get the overall effect but it would still fit in remarkable well.

Have you considered using any in scale model kits to add to the feel? It'd be cool to have a check point complete with burnt out hummer or Lannie. Or maybe a downed jet of some kind. Keep up the good work, Dude

 

[BuShips]

Thats real nice work, might be time to head into loft and retrieve that lego that i'm supposed to have given to the charity shop (just...can't...let..go...still...young!!)

I think it has some other uses as an objective, it is after all essentially a building with bars on the windows. It could double as an embassy compound building, an armoury, testing facilty. It might be only one of a few buildings needed to get the overall effect but it would still fit in remarkable well.

Have you considered using any in scale model kits to add to the feel? It'd be cool to have a check point complete with burnt out hummer or Lannie. Or maybe a downed jet of some kind. Keep up the good work, Dude

Oh yes, bars on windows can surely be used to keep people out as used to keep them in. I have another structure that has grille-covered windows that is a laboratory of sorts. Rumors about "enrichment" and "centrifuges" :wink: . All of what you said is possible of course, but for now it's a jail mostly because I have cells with bars that you couldn't see. That's what is soo cool with building blocks. You can rearrange the inside, and even add additional levels. I can even split several of what I've made down to ground level. What I mean is that I can use a 2-level structure as two 1-level structures by adding a second roof section. I have one building that is a split-level that the top comes off along with its roof and can be a stand-alone structure all very easily. The same goes for the plastic crates. Since they divide up into 2-levels apiece, you can stack them in just about any amount you wish, as a series of 2-level structures in a city's outskirts, or in higher combinations mre for core-city areas. I have really been busy lately making up some very useful gaming stuff for urban uses, and I'm unashamedly proud of them .

 

[127th Angry Angels]

It really is a great modular concept. Does it take paint well? Thinking that it might be easier to paint some blocs a uniform colour then find all the right colour blocs. I have some storage issues with terrain but i'm certainly inspired by the work you've done.

When it's released you have do some pics with units fighting in your cityscape.

It should also offer a quick way of turning out alot of small buildings too. I think a selection of small buildings for a MEA village ambush has alot of potential. Could also go with Mos Eisley feel with some of the buildings and use them in SST as well.

Can't wait for this game to come out!!

 

[BuShips]

The plastic crates are indeed a bit slippery regarding paint, if that was your question but I use Krylon Fusion spray paint for plastic and it does work acceptably. I have only painted a very few (and small) pieces of LEGO bricks, and only have the grey color you see because I ordered last year through the LEGO company website. Something that I will be telling about in the future article is that they have a down-loadable software program (LEGO Digital Designer) that lets you use CAD features to assemble from a predetermined set of brick designs. They had a sale so I bought a bunch of the same color bricks in their accessories website section and at the same time began to play around with the digital designer. The only thing I've bought using it are some custom roofs for some of my new structures and a bulk bunch of smooth grey finishing tiles in order to cover the LEGO "bumps" up with to make a more appealing look. Many will say this is expensive as a method to make buildings (and it isn't cheap), but there are positive arguments as well. I plan to mention in the writeup that the LEGO method is reconfigurable and thus completely recyclable and no other method has that strength. Once you make a scratch building, there it is, and you can't do much to it. There is also the feature of windows with clear panes and opening doors as a bonus, and it does help the models. This is most probably the last building that I am making with LEGO bricks for awhile. It is the fifth LEGO brick structure that I've built, and squeezed it out using the last pieces that I had left. It has 57 window pieces and 10 doors (lefts and rights). It stands 28" high, including the flagpole. I call it the "Pagoda" and it is meant to be an office building or maybe a TV station office center. The balconies are a sniper's heaven :wink:, or maybe their choice would be the roof (probably), laid out prone. I even have one, but he's from Starship Troopers and I didn't use him in this quick photo shot. I had a bunch of the 1-pip by six and 1-pip by eight grey bricks left and a bunch of windows and came up with this to make use of them. Each level can lift out and has a painted cardboard floor. Now I'm all out of money and all out of LEGO bricks .