Chances are you immediately recognize this ship built by Rubblemaker. Odds are equally good you don’t know its name. “EF76 Nebulon-B Escort Frigate” doesn’t stick in the mind like “X-Wing” or “Death Star,” but it has appeared in tons of Star Wars media over the years. It even served as the headquarters of the Rebel Alliance for a time. Rubblemaker’s midi-scale recreation of the ship is a fitting tribute to this often-overlooked piece of sci-fi history. Clocking in at 81cm long, 42cm high, and made from over 2500 pieces, this is actually Rubblemaker’s second attempt at the ship, and possibly the most accurate version ever built. Beautifully greebled and full of clever angles and elegant slopes, the ship looks amazing photoshopped against the cosmos, but you might want to take in an unedited view to really appreciate all the work that went into the build. Note the in-scale Millennium Falcon docked...

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Yes, it’s the holiday season, but it’s also the return of our annual LEGO advent calendar extravaganza. We’ll be opening our calendar windows every day in the run-up to Christmas. Our team will also share their thoughts, comments, observations, and jokes about each day’s builds! We have five advent calendars this year, across the City, Friends, Star Wars, Marvel (specifically Guardians of the Galaxy), and Harry Potter themes. This is the penultimate day, Christmas Eve’s Eve! Let’s get right into it and see what’s hiding behind the doors of day 23, shall we? Just like in the Friends calendar, we get a sleigh for our equine friend in LEGO City. However, Friends isn’t taking cues from City this time, as we get a rather ornate chair. Star Wars is also getting in the festive mood with a Santa Claus GNK droid. The penultimate...

A fair few of the Dutch builders that I occasionally hang out with are very much into building heavy-duty trucks and construction equipment, such as cranes or mining excavators. And they tend to like to build them BIG. I’ve dabbled a bit in the genre, but I’ve always been somewhat the odd one out in our little group, mainly building smaller models. And I’ve gone progressively smaller: in recent years more and more of my models are scaled for minifigures. I rarely have the time or patience to build really big things. I am also running out of space to display large models. If you take a big crane and build it to a small scale, you still end up with a fairly substantial model, though. Case in point: my Liebherr LTM-1350 mobile crane, as operated by the Dutch company Mammoet (Mammoth). Despite its relatively small scale, there is just enough...

There is a race track (or more specifically, a drag strip) in the UK called Santa Pod. I wonder if that’s where Sergio Batista‘s festive hot-rod is headed, to spread some festive cheer worthy if its name! It certainly wouldn’t be out of place. The custom chrome pieces, while not completely purist, really complete the look, particularly with that red-and-gold combination. It’s probably not the most subtle way of delivering presents – you’d definitely hear Santa Claus coming, looking at the size of the exhaust. I imagine it’s still fairly rapid though. What’s the conversion from horsepower to reindeer-power again? The post Milk and cookies? No, engine oil and gasoline, please appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Theo Spencer

I’ve earned a reputation in my LEGO circles for introducing fellow builders to a certain indie video game through one of my creations. And while I was building to express my love of Stardew Valley, NikiFilik is all about the equally-excellent Untitled Goose Game with their latest construction. This may look like a standard water fowl to the uninitiated, but the nameless goose was instantly recognizable to me from its head shape, simple color palette, and malicious gaze. The use of the plane fuselage for the bill is spectacular, as is the complex network of white slopes and wedge plates to nail the bust’s overall shape. Villagers beware, this bird is out for blood! The post The Untitled Goose Game build you didn’t know you needed appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Kyle Keller

Silly turkeys were on the menu for a recent Fun Friday group build, and Tommy Frost took his contribution into orbit. This Neo-Classic Space themed turkey mech is suitable for navigating alien terrain or walking the Macy’s parade route on a cold November morning. Bonus points for the red space suit getting an upgraded helmet, thanks to the Collectible Minifigures Series 23. The post We give thanks for this galactic gobbler. appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Norm Harper

This Pioneer Outpost by Ayrlego recycles the cabin from an earlier north-western themed build and a tower from an even earlier effort. Builders enhancing their earlier works is nothing new, but even recognizing the “seed builds” doesn’t diminish the achievement here. The cabin is now elevated well above the water line, fully integrated into a dense forest of greenery. Are those pink flamingos lawn ornaments or actual wildlife? Maybe one of each? But look beyond those pops of color and you can find great details like the vine on the roof – that looks like a cut up sprue from around the 3-leaf LEGO plant element. That’s some unusual part usage – and a great way to recycle. Love immersive scenes like this? Check out our achieves for more vignette goodness! The post An outpost from the past appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Chris Doyle

Siege weapons are cool and all, but Aidan Hayward adds some much needed flavor by infusing a trebuchet with the great taste of crab. A great meld of system and Hero Factory armor, this crustacean crusher has pincers for pinchin’ when the going gets tough. There are fun construction touches to be found, too, like the minifigure head and bandanna that help give the crab a suitably grumpy expression on either side of the black hot dog eyestalks. The shell-mounted rock-hurler is pretty nice, too, with a heavy looking grey counterweight ready to toss what looks like an enormous pearl (a silver Technic ball) at whoever is unwise enough to stand in the way. Does this build inspire the seafood lover in you? Check out what’s going on under the sea in our crab archives. The post The siege of Old Bay was entering the sixth week when the crabs came...

Alternate realities are all the rage these days. Consider, for example, the variant reality where Benny (the lovable 1980’s Spaceman from The LEGO Movie) was fixated on robots instead of spaceships. Psyro TtunTomato has been peering into this timeline and brings us a stunning rendition of Benny’s Titan Mech. The classic space blues and greys are there, as is the transparent yellow canopy we know to expect. But check out that arm rocket – a clear tribute to the 897 Mobile Rocket Launcher. I also love how Benny’s Space Squad is still ready to lend a helping hand as the ground crew. There are a lot of great construction techniques on display here – I’m particularly fond of the design on the feet and hands. Even the display stand is an interesting build, with integrated LEGO ingot elements creating a smooth-yet-greebled texture. I’d love to see this one animated…have they finalized...

Here’s something some of us can relate to: You gather the family for one of those formal portraits and dad has some unsavory opinions, mom worries about your eating habits, brother would rather dress as Batman and the less said about little sis the better. The end product is a study in angst and dysfunction forever immortalized over your parent’s dining table. LEGO builder Joseph Zawada has a similar vibe going here except this family is a bunch of mechs. They most certainly share a family resemblance. There are four mechs in all but, if you’ll indulge me, I’d like to show you just two of my favorites. This one is called Pentanant Engine. Joseph tells us; “To pilot a penitent engine is punishment for crimes where even endless flagellation and death are deemed too lenient.” That’s a rough family dynamic! Next on the roster of familial dysfunction is a mech...