Tom Loftus' Fractal 45 spaceship MOC

Continuing today's reflected wedge extravaganza, Arno Knobbe challenged me to dream up something swooshable using some of the geometric delights we saw in his technique article about building off the LEGO grid with reflected wedges. Let's escape the grid in a spaceship!

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First, let's have a quick refresher of the 'seed technique' in question. 

Exotic parts combinations like these are pretty much synonymous with MOC inspiration. While both tablescraps have spaceship potential, the allure of the unlikely LEGO® NEXO Knights wedge (22391) and Vulture Droid wings (30382) combo proved too strong for me. I've also had those elements knocking around since forever, so I jumped at the chance to finally use them.

With such a solid starting point, it didn't take long to establish a rough outline for a ship:

Keeping the craft small ensured the seed technique remained prominent. It was also favourable for my limited selection of sand blue, especially as most things had to be in multiples of 4. 

At its core are two tipper ends (30022); a fitting choice for today's geometry-centric themes and a recurring favourite for the New E team. In fact, fellow contributor Eero wrote a whole article about using tipper ends. 

Nearby are two 2 x 2 slopes with moulded piston details (30603). A short-lived element from the early 2000s, its unusual 2 plate elevation was perfect to set the angle of the ship’s underbelly. For that alone, I feel I owe it some further examination but that'll have to wait for a future article – there is still the finished ship to present after all.

The Fractal 45

As is so often the case, one of the hardest things about the model was pinning down a name! Eventually I settled on Fractal 45 – for its appearance of spikes upon spikes, and a nod to the technique that started it all.

It's is probably my favourite MOC I've made for New Elementary. I had a blast building (and swooshing) it, taking inspiration from spaceship extraordinaire Nick Trotta and The LEGO Group’s own Chris Perron along the way. Most importantly, thank you to Arno for handing me such a fantastic cornerstone to play with. 

Be sure to check out Arno's articles on New E for even more enjoyable angle-based befuddlement.

READ MORE: Arno's series 'Escaping the grid':
Part 1: Building at angles
Part 2: Reflected wedges

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