A Few Bricks Short: Castle

Here is the next micro castle module that I put together. I can't remember where I first saw the use of the grate tiles as fences, but I definitely can't claim credit for them. It took a bit of work to come up with a layout that would not have any gaps. Ultimately, I had to settle for a small bit of extra fence on one end, but overall I like the effect.

When I first set out to build castle modules in micro scale, I wanted to do things besides just castles. I think that this is a good first step in that direction. Soon I will have enough tiles to start playing with overall layouts of multiple modules.

Here's a picture of the finished module:

Here's a link to the Flickr Album with more camera angles and a view from above.

I have several other micro castle modules in the works, and have an entire list of ideas as well. If you can think of any suggestions, please feel free to post them in the comments.

Next week: A wizard's tower in micro size.

As I have been researching the idea of a standard for building castles on a micro scale, I have come across a few discussions in various places. Most are a few years old, and I haven’t been able to find anyone that is currently working on a standard. If you know of anyone, please point it out to me in the comments.

What I have taken away from all that I’ve read is that a Carcassone style of tile is probably best, at least for the roads and rivers. I find the idea of a “wall standard,” meaning modularized castle walls, to be somewhat restrictive. A standard would require all castles to be built with the same color and wall design, and I think this will result in less variety and creativity in castle design. So, rather than come up with a wall standard, I am simply going to say that all castles need to be contained on the module. Even if this means building a double module so that there is enough room for the castle.

Rock River Bridge

The size that I have chosen to start out with is 13x13. This allows for a plate six studs wide to be used on either side of a blue tile that represents water. The drawback to this, other than a need for multiple plates, is that the technic piece used to connect the plates has to be at least four studs long. I feel this is a better trade off than having the all water modules terminate with a spot two studs wide.

Another benefit of 13x13 is that an "adapter" can be created that allows a micro castle module to fit the micropolis standard, if the technic bricks are done correctly. Since the micropolis standard is much more widely used, this makes the micro castle modules a little more versatile.

Here are the first three modules that I have photographed. I have another castle on the way, and then I will be working on some forest land.