As always, Pirates need a place where they may rest and drink a keg. For that we have pirate pubs taverns and thankfully, The Plastic Brick treats us with an amazing build, entitled “Brick-Terre Tavern”.

The back can open up to create an illusion of a bigger building. Quite devilish, so to say…

The Plastic Brick writes:

This MOC is designed with play in mind, so it is sturdy and provides access to the interior rooms. The building opens in the back and reveals a variety of scenes.

I really enjoy the color scheme, brick arches, balcony and the details of interior. The little nook table with Redbeard is my favorite, though.

Aye, this MOC indeed includes all the things listed above. Many non-pirate elements are used throughout the build, like them vehicle mudguards. All of this sounds exciting and I be sure that this tavern might remind ye of another one, but I can assure ye that this masterpiece is of its own class.

Come, join yer mates for a keg (or two) of rum! Ye won’t regret it…

A look from behind. So many details and things to see! Even the stairs can move just like in Hogwarts any self-respecting pirate tavern!

Now that ye have a great idea how it all looks, let us take a closer look on the present characters in this holy building.

The bartender seems to be rather happy about her job. She should be careful, though, that ship in the bottle shouldn’t be standing like that…

I can’t seem to figure whether these pirates are about to fight or have a drinking contest

Captain Redbeard is overseeing everything in the tavern with his trusty parrot Popsy

Brick-Terre Tavern is such a popular place that even Captain Redbeard visits it! There have also been rumours about his nemesis around the area…

And there he is! Governor Broadside seems to be Admiral Broadside now. Wonder what is he discussing? A plan to capture all pirates?

These two pirates seem to be having fun, so monkey shows his best tricks!

All of these people are having fun! Apart from demoted Admiral Broadside and his Imperial Guards, he has important plans to attend to. Besides him, everyone else has enough to drink for at least five days!

And here be the back of the tavern. Quite splendid too, given the fact that the only people that ye may meet here are those who had too much to drink…

About the Builder…

Some of ye may wonder, who is The Plastic Brick (also known as Ryan)? Truth be told, he can’t be found on Eurobricks but opposed to that he is on Instagram and Flickr. So check him out on these sites as he has a wide range of amazing MOCs, among them being few pirate MOCs too! He also has a store with the same name which sells retired LEGO sets, so if yer interested, check it yerself (Classic Pirates does not profit or encourage anyone to buy from any stores, spend yer Reales at yer own risk). Of course, be sure to visit LEGO Pirates Forum and Pirate MOCs subforum for more amazing pirate builds, including this one.

LEGO Pirate fans have lamented the lack of smaller vessels officially released in the LEGO Pirates Theme.  With the exception of the “Merchant’s cutter” in 6272 Imperial Trading Post, there weren’t any smaller ships released, despite the Castle and Adventurers themes enjoying ship sets constructed upon brick-built hulls.

So when a talented builder like Marooned Marin appears on the scene with a pint-sized vessel, it really packs a punch! Not only has built a fine craft, he’s also produced a slick comic backstory to accompany it!

The Warty Crab under the command of by Captain Red (who is not all inspired by the box art of Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag)

Marooned Marin writes:

Dear all,

It all began one night, I believe this summer, as I roamed the vast oceans of Internet something small (simple) but utterly genius caught my eye on Classic-Pirates blog. I’m talking about “Caribbean Ribbit” by Legostein, a wonderful creation which immediately posed an old challenge for me: Can I Do More With Less?

I decided to put on hold work on two mayor vessels and go out and try to find the answer. I gave it my best, and so here I am.

I would like to point out my deep admiration for the massive amount of work you all do at this forum and on the Classic-Pirates blog. It is mind-boggling how much useful information and ‘know-how’ is accumulated. Bravo!

Stern of the Warty Crab – such an infectious name!

Specifications

• Parts: 191 parts (without minifigure)
• Dimensions: Width: 10.3cm (4″) | Length: 22.1cm (8.7″) | Height: 18.4cm (7.2″)
• Weight: 107 grams
• Estimated Cost of Parts: 24-30€ ($26-$34 USD) on BrickLink in 2021
• Instructions available at Rebrickable.com

Rare Parts

The use of rare and unique parts is minimal with only one section of the build relied upon them. Three pieces of 2736 Technic and one Axle 1L with Tow Ball in black for bowsprit. The same part was obtained in gray and painted it black, bringing terrible nightmares to LEGO purists because of this abomination, but there was little choice!

Here you can see the fine craftsmanship of the bowsprit

A small but tidy deck providing easy access to the necessary equipment

Description

The Warty Crab is a two sail, single masted vessel that bares a closer resemblance to a medieval cog than the average pirate sloop. Built for efficient light transport rather than warfare, it gives the impression of an easy target. But, what it lacks in firepower, it succeeds in unparalleled speed. Or put another way… “Catch me if you can dare, Imperial Guards!”

Despite its petite structure, the vessel contains two compartments; the first is a visible cabin on the stern, in which the crew hunkers down in during squalls.  The second is concealed in the bow to provide convenient storage space to conceal gold from the treasure-hungry Imperial Amarda patrols.

The hold… that’s where you’ll find the hidden gold!

Marooned Marin

went to great lengths to ensure the build is sturdier than it looks. And boy is it sturdy! Well, as far as he’s concerned. While its not indestructible and cannot withstand a sudden fall from a tabletop (do let him know if yours survives), it won’t fall apart through general handling.

Comic Backstory

As I was marooned for a long time from LEGO and brick-world I was not aware of this community and can only regret I didn’t joined earlier, but that’s the price for being marooned.

Since I’m a new member I come to you bearing a small gift in a form of a short backstory. Enjoy.

When will Part II Become Available?

We don’t know! Marin has not dropped any hints as to when he’ll be sharing new content so you’ll have to follow us on social media for future updates.

About the Builder…

As the name suggests, Marooned Marin was stranded on a dessert island, isolated from the AFOL community and thus oblivious to the existence of the LEGO Pirates Forum. Never fear! For he managed to escape that desolate island to share this wonderful creation with us.

If you’d like to build your own Warty Crab, you can acquire the instructions from Marin’s ReBrickable profile, and the images for both the MOC and comic are available on Flickr and BrickSafe.

Finally, if you’d like keep up with his future work, he’s just setup an Instagram account.

Now come, there is much discussion to be had in the LEGO Pirates Forum where you can meet Marooned Marin yourself! We’re waiting for you…

NOD, the digital design master has built many fantastic pirate ships, and yet another has just slide from his dry dock! Like all his vessels, he casts prefab hulls and clothe aside, in favour of their brick built counterparts.  He doesn’t skimp on detail either and even bothers to fully rig the sails, which is not something all digital builders can boast.

NOD writes:

Brethren of the Brick Seas: Class 7

Brethren of the Brick Seas

Rating system of the Royal Navy: 6th rate

Rating system of the Royal Navy

The hull leans slightly outwards on the side, then inwards. I don’t like Tetris on the ship’s deck and railing. That’s why I built it mostly flat and with few height differences. I want to see curves and as few corners as possible.

The captain’s cabin is a little wider. Here the hull is built towards the outside at the bottom and towards the inside at the top.

Light cannons have been added on the upper deck. Because the ship is wider, the cannons can also be operated. There is enough space in width. These must of course be smaller than the cannons on the cannon deck.

Isn’t this a gorgeous vessel?

Swivel guns are always useful. I moved the main mast further back. A longer row boat was built.

All hands on deck… ready the guns!

I improved the shape of the ship. I like the view from above. I can even see that the hull is getting narrower towards the top.

You know those car number plates with people’s names on them?

My ships are similar but not the same “learning by doing”. Correcting and changing is too time-consuming, changes to the ship’s hull have consequences for the entire ship, building a new one is easier. Every ship is a new build with improvements.

Look at that Broadside – enough strike fear into the bravest of Imperial Guards!

I’m not entirely happy with the bow of this ship. Maybe I can build the bow differently and better. I don’t know, at the moment I have no idea. I like the rest, maybe just small improvements.

The deck. Take note at the number of cannon.

Specifications

I like that I can build the ship wider and more realistic with the Custom Hull.

The widest point on the main deck 24 studs (included railing).

The main deck is from the aft to the forward railing 87 studs (included railing), at the feet of figurehead 96 studs.

The waterline is 87 stud. | Total length 117 studs | LEGO Scale Converter

Captain Ironhook hasn’t seen the ship yet, but he will most likely want to commandeer it

It’s good that I building digitally. So, I don’t have to spend any money for bricks to build a ship that I don’t like when it’s finished. Sails are just decoration, with real bricks I use cotton sails. Masts and rigging are adapted to the existing sails. A digital build should also look good and realistic. That also includes minifigures.

Even in a digital design, NOD does not overlook the rigging

Port side view of the ship

About the Builder…

NOD is a regular contributor on Eurobricks. He specializes in building pirate ships and all his creations are digital built so he never has to endure the pain of stepping on LEGO barefooted. If you are interested in viewing more of his creations, follow him on Flickr. You’ll even find a nice doll action figure collection there.

We have plenty more LEGO Pirate creations by Eurobricks members so go to them. Cherish them. Lose yourself in the Pirate MOCs forum, a sub-forum of the mighty LEGO Pirates forum.

Or hit the red button below to discuss the “Tobago” with the Classic Pirates.

Aren’t LEGO layouts wonderful? They’re like having multiple MOCs working together in harmony (well, you’d hope). Builder SpinX125 demonstrates this in “Bay of Lost Treasures” by seamlessly weaving together a hefty fortress, a bustling imperial harbour, a desert island and all the trimmings in one magnificent diorama.

No detail has been spared, so read on for a closer look…

SpinX125 writes:

I want to share some pictures, of the layout I have been working on for the past year.

Since 21322 “Pirates of Barracuda Bay” came out last year, I was aware that I would try a pirate layout, this super cool set really set the memories back to the first pirate sets that came back in ’89 / ’90.

My brother and I had many good times with the pirates from that time, we unfortunately did not have many of the big sets. My brother had one of the ships (I mean it was 6274 Caribbean Clipper) and I had some of the small sets including 6251 Pirate Mini Figures and 6257 Castaway’s Raft. (still have these 2 sets and they are well used)

The Story

Bay of Lost Tresures is an island in the pirate land, many miles from Barracuda Bay. The crew from Black Seas Barracuda has come ashore on the island and has found themselves comfortable here, they live side by side with the Imperial soldiers who guard the island, maybe it is very good that the soldiers do not know Captain Redbeard and his crew’s past.

Most of the crew stays around the inn, as long as they have something in the bottles, they do not cause trouble. Tattooga spends most of his time in the company of his fishing rod.

Please ignore the shoddy background removal on the photo…

Panoramic view – observe the magnificence of the fort

Wait a second! The race hasn’t started yet…

Don’t worry, he won’t be going anywhere… yet

The naughty Redcoats are trying so hard.

The Imperial Guards are training hard, as always…

Are unwanted guests about to enter here? If so, the Redcoat is doing his job very well!

He’s even feeding the horse… very thoughtful!

The Redcoats finally out of bed ready to guard the fort

The beautiful garden is a nice place to relax and feed the plants…

Even the streets are busy! But who collects the horse dung?

Bird’s eye view

Is it too late to join?

Another smooth day on the harbour

The fish is about to be killed! Too bad nobody wants to save him because it’s time for dinner…

This is the most affluent port in the region

The poor pig has nothing to eat. Looks like he just found something!

HARR HARR!!! He’s scared of a chicken!

Looks like someone forgot to unmoor their boat…

About the Builder…

SpinX125 occasionally contributes to the magnificent LEGO Pirates Forum on Eurobricks (okay, so it’s more like once in a blue moon) and he has more MOCs on Flickr.

For another impressive layout check out “El Puerto de Cartagena” by Stoertebricker which also features an entire street of buildings, but with a LEGO Harry Potter influence. Or, for even more fantastic LEGO Pirates creations, visit the Pirate MOC forum, a creative hub of the ridiculously popular LEGO Pirates Forum.

Evancelt, an expert builder specializing in Duplo building for the Brethren of the Brick Seas game, is back with a brand new creation! He wanted to create an island without the usual tan elements (and Duplo), so he built Smuggling Tower, Tarani… a fort manned by wenches (we may have entered oxymoron territory)… or is that captured? You’ll notice both the Soldier and Imperial Guard flags have been put aside in favour of a Jolly Roger.

You may note it does bare some similarities to the classic set, 6265 Sabre Island, but it features a hefty crane, capable of lifting a tonne of marmalade.

The Story

Franz Koran saw an opportunity and took it. With the war in Terraversa over, the city of Tanari on the western coast was located away from Oldis’ tax collectors in King’s Port, the Eslandolan trade barons in Pamu, the strict rule of law in the Oleon territories and Corrington’s orderly influence in Westface.

He and his crew claimed a small rocky island in Tanari cove and built a tower. From the tower, they could quickly unload goods from ships and then row them ashore – tax free of course.

He specialized in the finer goods: books, sherries, scented candles, rum. The luxuries went for a pretty penny once they reached the island.

When he saw a ship approaching, he would fire his flintlock pistol into the air and wait to hear the correct countersignal.

Koran kept a stash of Terraversa, Oleonese, and Corlander flags at the ready in case some sort of authority showed up and they needed to appear legitimate.

Shooting at the sky… will she succeed?

That is one angry looking woman.

This picture provides a nice view of the gorgeous interior.

Evancelt writes:

OOC: My submission for CH IV – CAT F: Smugglers Den.

Wanted to try making an island that didn’t have any tan or dark tan! Didn’t have any wedge plates in nougat, so used quarter round tiles. Also experimented with a stepped SNOT base for the tower.

About the Builder…

Evancelt continues to kick ass support the Brethren of the Brick Seas, by not only by sharing his amazing builds but also by providing feedback to other players in the game. You can view more of his builds on his Eurobricks profile, Instagram and Flickr, or better yet, check out his very own website where you can get a complete view of all of his creations.