Brickspace Dictionary: n x n x n

n x n x n (n.)
When measuring Lego bricks, we usually use the n x n x n system. This is much like normal measurements in which we provide the width x length x height of the brick, though sometimes the height is not required.

Most Lego bricks and plates can be classed as either 1xn or 2xn. In these examples, n could be any number. So 1xn means any brick that has one of its measurements (apart from height) as 1. This could be a 1x2 brick, a 1x4 brick or even a 1x16 brick! Similarly, 2xn bricks can have any length, but have to have a width of 2 (we usually put the shortest measurement as the width, but in the case of square (eg. 2x2) bricks, it doesn't matter).

This measuring system has a flaw, however: the units of width and length (sometimes shown by □ (a square)) are not the same as the unit of height (sometimes shown by ◇ (a diamond)). However, they can be interchanged using the 5:6 ratio, which is that every 5 brick height units equals 6 horizontal stud units.

You may often see a brick has a height of 2/3 (eg. 2 x 2 x 2/3). This is the only height measurement <1, because for every one height unit, three plates can take its place. Thus, 2/3 means that the brick is two plates high: say, for example, a cheese wedge. As I said, this is the only fraction measurement: 1/3 would just be a plate, and 3/3 is a whole, a 1.

The width and length measurements can also be fractions, though only 1/2s. If you use a jumper plate (a 1 x 2 plate with a single stud in the middle of it), you can offset the length or width by 1/2.

Brickspace Dictionary: Joe Vig

Joe Vig (n.) (Joe Vig)
Joe Vig is a minifigure thought up by Mike Crowley, Nelson and Patrick Yrizarry. He is a common figure used in Vignettes who is always in danger.

Crowley and the Yrizarrys' first idea was to have 'Joe Food', a minifigure which they would photograph in different restaurants and post the pictures on LUGNET. They then changed the name to Joe Vig ('Vig' being short for 'vignette').

Joe Vig has brown hair, a red shirt, red trousers, and the first Ron Weasley face. Other hats and accessories must be white to keep with the Joe Vig theme.

The first Joe Vig contest was held in June 2005 as Joe's popularity soared in the early years of the 21st century. A full list of Vignettes with Joe Vig in them can be found on the LUGNET page here .

Information for this article was taken from the official LUGNET article .

Brickspace Dictionary: URPs

URP (abbrev.) (Ug·ly Rock Piece)
The URP family consists of two large hollow rocky pieces that are used commonly in landscaping and creating mountains. The URPs are also found in many Castle MOCs.

'URP' usually stands for Ugly Rock Piece, though it can also stand for Ugly Rock Part. They are 'ugly' because of their square, blocky and un-rock-like look. There are two types of URP:

LURP, standing for Little Ugly Rock Piece. These are roughly triangular in shape.









BURP, standing for Big Ugly Rock Piece. These are quite wide and square in their shape.








BURPs and LURPs are generally meant to be built upon with more bricks in the same colour:

Brickspace Dictionary: BBC

BBC (abbrev.) (Bi·o·nicle Based Cre·ation)
The term BBC is used to signify a Bionicle creation. Though the abbreviation may also relate to the British Broadcasting Corporation, in the LOC it refers to a creation which uses Bionicle, Technic and some System bricks. BBCs are usually named with a mock-Toa name or a variation on a usual Bionicle name, such as that of a Bohrok or Rahi.

On the Bionicle fansite BZPower, there is a monthly contest held called BBC.

Brickspace Dictionary: Cheese Wedge

Cheese Wedge (n.) (Cheese Wedge)
The Cheese Wedge, sometimes known as the Cheese Brick, or Cheese slope, is a relatively new addition to the slope family of Lego bricks.

The cheese wedge, so named because of its cheese-like shape and minifig compatibility, measures 1 x 1 x 2/3, meaning it is 2 plates tall.

An addition to the cheese wedge is the cheese grater brick, named by AFOL Mike Yoder. The cheese wedge is a 1 x 2 x 2/3 slope and has a grate on it, making it look like a cheese grater. It was released in 2008.

Brickspace Dictionary: Sigfig

Sigfig (abbrev.) (Sig·na·ture Fig·ure)
A Sigfig is a defining minifigure for you and your user in the Lego Online Commuinty. Sometimes called a 'sigfiggy', the abbreviation groups Signature and Figure (from minifigure) to create Sigfig. 'Sigfig' is usually spelt with a capital S or no capitals at all.

Sigfigs can be shown to the public on sheets such as the one to the right, which is Joris Blok's. On these sheets, MOCers outline the best points of their Sigfigs and what they mean.

On many forums you can add an 'avatar' of yourself. A Sigfig is just this: a minifigure representation of yourself that other users can recognise. Sigfigs do not necessarily have to resemble you: they can be whatever you want them to be.

The Sigfiggy Abuser's Club on MOCpages is a popular club which holds an annual competition to see who can abuse other users' Sigfigs in the best way possible, called the Darwin Awards.

Brickspace Dictionary: Fleebnork

Fleebnork (n.) (Fleeb·nork)
Fleebnorks are fictional Lego creatures that were popular at teh start of the 21st century. They consist of a 2x2 parabolic disc attached to a 'scorpion' part.

Fleebnorks eat through power couplings and any other metal and Lego space-related objects they can get their claws on. Currently the only way of stopping a Fleebnork is burning it with a plasma flamethrower.

Fleebnorks, sometimes abbreviated to 'Fleebs', make a distincitive sound like 'pleh'. They are usually trans. light green or yellow. If a Fleebnork does not keep with this colour scheme, they are called 'Pseudofleebs'

New Fleebs are being made up all the time, the most notable being the Pimpnork, a Fleebnork with a sliver shell and a black body.

Information on Fleebnorks taken from Fleebnork.com .

Brickspace Dictionary: Dark Age

Dark Age (n.) (Dark Age)
Used mainly by AFOLs, 'Dark Age' is a popular phrase used to sum up a period in one's life when you were not interested in Lego or active in the Lego online forums and community. This mainly happens because a person is a fan of Lego as a child, then grows out of Lego when they go to University or get a job. They then rediscover Lego later, and become active in the LOC. The period when that person is not interested in Lego is called their dark age.

This can also mean a dark time when a MOCer is online, and when they only build one thing.

Brickspace Dictionary: COW

COW (acr.) (Curved Out Wedge)
The acronym 'COW' is short for Curved Out Wedge. In the early 2000s, Lego started releasing curved versions of the classic straight slopes. Though they are much rarer than the slopes, they are used widely in MOCs as they offer a smoother, more interesting alternative to the usual straight slope.

Brickspace Dictionary: Chibi

Chibi (n.) (Chi·bi)
The word 'Chibi' is used as a suffix before the name of a MOC to show that it is a smaller version of another MOC or set. For example, the MOC shown on the right is Jacob's Chibi Monarch. It is a smaller, 'cuter' version of his other creation called Monarch, shown below the Chibi Monarch.

The word 'Chibi' comes from a series of manga drawings and cartoons of small, nose-less and large-eyed cute-looking characters. This series is called Chibi.

Brickspace Dictionary: Greco Joint

Greco Joint (n. / tecn.) (Gre·co Joint)

The Greco Joint is a little-known SNOT 180 technique that works on all LEGO pieces with long tubes.

The Greco Joint is the trademark technique of Felix Greco, and used famously in his Rabbit creation. The joint needs only three parts: two bricks (with long tubes: only plates are exempt from this) and as many small cross-axels as there are tubes that line up between the two bricks.

The cross-axels are wedged into the tubes, and they join the two bricks together. However, this joint is known to be notoriously hard to undo. It is a tight fit in the tubes, and it can be very hard to take the cross-axels out of the joint.


As with the Enjary joint, the Greco joint is not necessarily Felix Greco's original idea. If you know of someone who has discovered the joint before Greco, email me. Thanks!

Brickspace Dictionary: Enjary Joint

Enjary Joint (n. / tecn.) (En·ja·ry Joint)

The Enjary Joint is a particular type of SNOT 180 joint. SNOT 180 means that the technique combines two bricks that point 180˚ away from each other (ie. mirrored at their base or top).

The Enjary Joint was found and publicised by Didier Enjary, though he is not the creator of the joint. The joint consists of three elements: two plates to join (they must be plates) and as many levers as possible. The flat end of the levers is pushed between the tubes on the underside of one plate, and another plate is placed on top.

If you know who created the joint, please let me know at my email , and I will change this accordingly. However, I have found a Brickshelf member called Kerouac who has tried the. If anyone knows his real name, or someone else who has tried the joint before him, let me know.

More Dictionary articles ☛ 

Brickspace Dictionary: AFOL

AFOL (abbrev.) (A·dult Fan Of Le·go)
'AFOL' is an abbreviation used to describe an adult Lego fan. Pronounced in one of three ways ('ey-foll', with 'ey' as in 'hey'; 'afol', with 'a' as in 'apple', and 'AFOL', pronouncing each letter), AFOL is a commonly used Internet Meme that has sparked many slight variations, from TFOL (teenage fan of Lego) and FFOL (female fan of Lego, though many FFOLs do not like the name as it implies that they are separate from AFOLs. AFFOL (Adult Female Fan Of Lego) is sometimes used instead.).

The AFOL community is a sacred place in the Lego online community (LOC). AFOL groups and forums are usually not viewable by other fans of Lego, but those that are (like the LUGs) are very welcoming. AFOLs are usually very sociable and are responsible for most, if not all, of Lego conventions. Different countries have different types of AFOLs, who conduct conventions and social events in different ways.

Thanks to Doctor Sinister for the checking that all this is correct, and advising me to put in the separate meanings and the note about FFOLs.

More Dictionary articles ☛ 

Brickspace Dictionary: Vignette

Vignette (n.) (Vi·gnette)
A vignette (pronouned 'Viñett') is , put very basically, a small Lego creation that expresses a scene, usually played out by minifigs.

The word 'vignette' means, according to the Oxford American Dictionary,

"A brief evocative description, account, or episode"

Put in layman's terms, the word vignette means a small scene that expresses a moment, a freeze-frame in time.

Lego vignettes are very popular, and there are many MOCers who build only vignettes. Vignettes have become a playground for SNOT techniques, as you can be much more creative with Ss (Studs on side) rather than St (Studs on top). This, as productive as it can be, has caused havoc amongst the Lego Online Community.

I remember having a heated discussion on a MOCpages  group about what should be the border between vignettes and their counterparts dioramas. After much discussion, we came onto this decision:

"A Vignette can fall under three categories. If it is on an 8x8 or smaller base,  regardless of height or SEs (SE = Significant Event - a large event happening, and many events happening to one minifigure still counts as 1 SE so long as they do not affect outside minifigs or other SEs), it is a vignette."

" If it is on an 8x8 to 16x16 base, it should have no more than 3 SEs to be considered a vignette."

"If it is on a base larger than 16x16, it must have only one SE to be considered a vignette. Any more and it is a diorama. "

Even with these SE rules set out by Shannon Young, Makuta Bane, me and others in the 'Vignettes' group on MOCpages, the line between Vignettes and Dioramas is always fluctuating.

Thanks to Makuta Bane and, ultimately, Shannon Young for helping refine the definition of Vignette, and aiding me in my eternal quest to persuade them it's not just about size for a Vignette.

More Dictionary articles ☛ 

Brickspace Dictionary: Steampunk

Steampunk (n.) (Steam·punk)
Steampunk is the name given to a genre of MOCs, comics, and other items that fall into the category that can be described generally as 'Neo-Victorian'. Neo-Victorian is an alternate history in which the technological workings of the Victorian era are applied to the technologies of the modern day, or even the future. This mainly means taking things like spaceships, trains, hot-air balloons or mechas and adding a Victorian style to them: so transposing a brown-and-dark gray colour scheme, with pumps and chimneys and pipes and grilles and pistons and clockwork greeblies. The Steampunk theme has become very popular amongst MOCers.

Steampunk has also affected the movie industry. Films such as The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen  are based on a Steampunk theme.

More Dictionary articles ☛

Brickspace Dictionary: VTOL

VTOL (n.) (Abbrev. Ver·ti·cal Take-Off [and] Lan·ding)
VTOL is the name given to craft, specifically spacecraft, that can both take off and land vertically. For example, a traditional NASA rocket is a VTOL craft: it takes off in a vertical position, and lands in a pretty much vertical position (though only one part of it lands). A non-VTOL craft would be a traditional passenger airplane. The airplane needs a long run-up to take off, and does not land directly down, it curves.

VTOL craft are often seen as Lego MOCs, as space MOCs tend to be more futuristic, and VTOL craft are seen as futuristic, because they don't need a long and tedious run-up.

More Dictionary articles ☛

Brickspace Dictionary: Greeblies

Greeblies (n.) (sing. : none)

Greeblies are the intricate details on the sides of spaceships and sci-fi MOCs that define the mechanics and workings of what the MOC is meant to be. They were famously used in the giant Star Destroyer Lego set a few years ago, and also in the more recent Death Star II set. Plates with rails are often used for greeblies because they have a protrusion that only sticks out half a stud without needing a jumper plate.

More Dictionary articles ☛

Brickspace Dictionary: VOAT

VOAT (adj.) (abbrev. Va·ri·a·tions On A Theme)

VOAT is the term used to describe a series of MOCs, commonly seen on MOCpages and used widely by Shannon Ocean. VOAT, standing for Variations On A Theme, is usually a prefix for a MOC's name. A VOAT MOCpages article is one with more than one MOC on it. Usually, the MOCer experiments with a certain theme: say, using rigging in a spaceship. The webpage would have a series of pictures following the MOCer's creative instinct as they refine and add new parts to the MOC. However the aim of a VOAT MOC is not to end up with one creation that it finite and better than the rest, but to have a wide array of creations and to explore new building techniques in the process.

More Dictionary articles ☛ 

Brickspace Dictionary: Bley

Bley (n.) (Bl 'ay')
Back in the days of Lego under Kjeild Kirk Kristiansen, all Lego sets were packed with dark-gray coloured bricks. The dark-gray colour Kristiansen was using became faded and brownish in colour after a long period of time or after exposure to harsh light sources and heat (ie. the Sun).

Then, in the early 21st century, Lego discovered this fault and ammended it by creating a new colour of blay - nickname 'Bley' by the Lego Online Community.

In the picture opposite, you can clearly see the difference between the new Bley and the old dark-gray colours.

More Dictionary articles ☛

Brickspace Dictionary: MOC

MOC (n.) (abrev. My-Own-Cre·ation)
MOC is a commonly used term in the Lego online community for a Lego creation of any sort. Standing for 'My Own Creation', MOC is a new-ish term that has only come into wide use as a result of Sean Kenney's MOCpages, though the term is used very little outside of the site.

More Dictionary articles