The zaLUG Landscaping Standard (LS) is a standard, modular way of doing landscaping to facilitate large collaborative displays.
The zaLUG landscaping standard is based on http://www.abellon.net/MILS/. Please read it for a better understanding of what a landscaping standard is. Our standard does however differ from theirs significantly, so the two standards are not compatible.
Key for this standard.
Bricklink Colour | Lego Colour | |
Personal Identifier | Yellow | |
Any colour can be used | Purple | |
Any colour or brick can be used | Pink | |
Vegetation | Green | Dark Green |
Path | Dark Tan | Sand Yellow |
Cobblestone base | Dark Tan | Sand Yellow |
Cobblestones | Light Bluish Gray | Medium Stone Grey |
Dark Bluish Gray | Dark Stone Grey | |
Water base | White | |
Medium Blue | ||
Blue | Bright Blue | |
Water | Transparent Light Blue | |
Beach Sand | Tan | Brick Yellow |
Road | Black |
Base Unit (BU).
The Base Unit (BU) is the building block of any module for a collaborative display. A module can be any size but must be in multiples of the BU.
The bottom of the BU is always a baseplate. The size of the BU is always 32×32. EG 1 32×32 baseplate or 4 16×16 baseplates.
The corners of the BU are important. They contain both the personal identifier and the interlocking system. The personal identifier helps you claim your BU’s when packing up a large collaborative display and the interlocking system helps it all fit and stay together. At least one corner should have the identifier.
Examples of personal identifiers. The middle one is the best example as other builders are less likely to have the same combination.
The height of the BU is 7 plates high (or 2 bricks and 1 plate).
When a BU will be on the edge of a display it needs a decent standard edge to round off the display.
The standard for the edging is Dark Bluish Gray (Dark Stone Grey) bricks.
A build can then be any combination of the BU.
The diagram below illustrates the parts of the BU that are critical to successful integration with other builder’s BU’s.
When building for displays, most of the display tables allow builds 3 baseplates wide. In this case only the side of the build would have to integrate with other BU’s and the front would have the standard edging.
Specialised Base Units.
Often in building large displays there are elements that would run across several modules, like rivers and roads. To make integration easier these elements are always centred on the edge of a BU.
Path Base Unit.
A path is set one plate down from the top of the BU or 6 plates up from the baseplate and is 4 studs wide at the centre of the BU. The base colour for a path is Dark Tan (Sand Yellow).
Cobblestone Road Base Unit.
The base of a cobblestone road is set one plate down from the top of the BU or 6 plates up from the baseplate and is 8 studs wide at the center of the BU. The base colour for a path is Dark Tan (Sand Yellow). The cobblestones are a combination of 1×1 and 2×2 plates and tiles in both Light Bluish Gray (Medium Stone Grey) and Dark Bluish Gray (Dark Stone Grey).
Tarred Road Base Unit.
The tarred road is placed on top of the BU and not inset into it. A tarred road is built using black tiles.
This allows pre built modular buildings to be added easily as they can just be placed next to the roads.
River Base Unit.
Rivers start with a colour plate on top of the baseplate and is 8 studs wide at the centre of the BU. These plates can be: White, Medium Blue, Blue (Bright Blue), Dark Blue (Earth Blue).
For the water, 1×2 tiles in Transparent Light Blue.
The banks are then staggered up to reach the 7 plates high BU standard.
Shore Base Unit.
For a sea shore or lake shore water is the same as a river and covers half the baseplate. Land covers the other half. Rocks are in Dark Bluish Gray (Dark Stone Grey) bricks and slope bricks. Sand is in Tan Brick Yellow) plates.
The banks are then staggered up to reach the 7 plates high BU standard.
Below is an example of a modified shore BU with the interface parts.
All the LDD files used here can be found at here.