Author: Tim

An animator, video producer, Lego artist, and author—I am moderately skilled at a lot of different things.

Categories
Lego

8mm Home Movie Camera

8mm Home Movie Camera in Lego

Introducing your new 8mm Home Movie Camera!

Vote for this to become a real LEGO set
in the Bricklink Designer Program!

Features include:

  • Adjustable zoom lens to frame the perfect shot!
  • Working trigger
  • Comes with one cartridge and one reel of developed film
  • Camera body opens to insert film cartridge
  • Working rolling shutter: simply turn the crank on the side to recreate that film look!
  • Light meter in viewfinder ensures the proper exposure
  • Removable lens cap
  • Carrying strap

I own a collection of 8mm and Super8 cameras that I love shooting with, and have even developed my own film! I packed this model with lots of little features to show how much fun small-format filmmaking can be. Watching 8mm home movies of old family outings is a delightful window into the past!

Categories
Lego

Retro Ant Colony

Retro Ant Colony
Retro Ant Habitat set made of Lego

Industrious little ants have carved out a colony right before your eyes! Keep them fed with little sugar cubes plus the occasional lollipop, donut crumb, and… chocolate bar?

The reverse reveals more surprises for those willing to dig for treasure.

Enjoy the tiny details, and relive the childhood enjoyment of a retro ant habitat. What other treats will you sneak down into their maze of tunnels? And why do they appear to have eight legs?

Instructions for this set were available for purchase through the Bricklink Designer Pop-Up Store in November 2023.

(Originally the Vintage Ant Farm MOC)

Categories
Games

Journals of the Travellers’ Aid Society

I wrote several entries in the Journal of the Travellers’ Aid Society (JTAS) supplements for Mongoose Publishing’s Traveller RPG:

Journal of the Travellers’ Aid Society Volume 7

Immigration in the Imperium: Rules for gaining citizenship. Registration is a valuable asset for those looking to establish a permanent home within the Imperium, with all the accompanying rights and privileges associated with a safe and prosperous world.

Dr. Izikai Nafir: Recklessly credulous for a scientist, he embraces curious and unproven theories with a conviction that is difficult to question. In conversation, he is overly flattering and self-aggrandizing to those he may be able to exploit, yet condescending and dismissive to his critics.

Here comes Mr. Steal Yo’ Data
Continue reading “Journals of the Travellers’ Aid Society”
Categories
Blog

The Making of Lego Myst

I had initially considered this project in 2014, but instead I quit my job, moved to Australia, got a masters degree, and then moved twice. A global pandemic caused me to run out of excuses to procrastinate, and I got to work in time for Myst’s 30th anniversary.

Part I – The Landmarks

As the recognizable elements of the game, the buildings came first, and I would build the island around them.

Clock Tower

This was my first effort, made in Lego Digital Designer. My skills were not quite what they are now.

First was the clock tower, which I am most proud of. The border of the clock was originally silver, as round 1/4 circle tiles did not exist in gold when I had started!

Continue reading “The Making of Lego Myst”
Categories
Lego

Lego Myst Island

In 1993, video game developer Cyan released the CD-ROM puzzle game Myst, which became the best-selling video game title of the 20th century.

Building the island from Myst in Lego bricks took over six months of design and building, and approximately 20,000 elements, to complete. It measures 4×7 feet and was unveiled at 2023’s Mysterium fan convention in Spokane.

For more info, read my post about The Making of Lego Myst.

Categories
Games

JTAS Vol. 12 Errata: Airships

It just wouldn’t be Mongoose Publishing without an avoidable copyediting gaffe.

Here are the actual stats for the HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH OUTPOST airship in Journal of the Travellers’ Aid Society Volume 12:

An ongoing list of Mongoose Traveller errata has been compiled in the Classic Traveller Orientation Pack.

Categories
Lego

Griffith Observatory

What would be the third (and unfortunately final) con kit for the now-suspended BricksLA in 2022 was the iconic Griffith Observatory. This was a lot of fun to design, with a hidden feature inside of a printed globe and information panel, like the exhibits in the museum’s lower level.

Includes a 32-page information booklet and instructions. Limited run of 200.

Categories
Lego

Bricks by the Bay: Cable Car

Bricks by the Bay Cable Car
Bricks by the Bay Cable Car

Like the previous year’s Brick Brunch Truck for BricksLA, 2021’s Bricks by the Bay requested a small kit for their virtual convention, and what could be more distinctive for the bay area than a cable car?

For a small build with under 60 parts, there are some clever connections to place the trolley on the street and connect a section of open seating. Instructions fit on a folded two-sided flyer, replicating Lego polybag sets, with custom-printed bricks exclusive to the set. Limited run of 250.

Categories
Lego

The Brick Moulding Machine badge

Moulding Machine badge

As part of the unveiling of the new set The Brick Moulding Machine (40502) for Lego House, employees were given small brick-built badges. From reference images, I have reverse engineered a badge you can make yourself!

(Magnetic back not included.)

Categories
Games

Trade Goods Generator for Traveller

Sir Poley’s On Creating a Frictionless Traveller, Part I: Trade points out that calculating trade dice modifiers is drudgery, but only needs to be done once.

The Trade Goods DM Generator for the Mongoose Traveller RPG calculates the modifiers on available & illegal trade goods from an eight-character Universal World Profile. It is written in pure JavaScript. Run it in a web browser or download the source code on GitHub.

trade codes table