Deep Sea Exploration: Whale Fall

The Deep Sea Exploration crew, tasked with exploring the depths of the immense ocean, have made an exciting discovery! A natural phenomenon on the ocean floor known as a whale fall. This final resting place of the gentle giants of the sea creates a unique ecological hot spot with exceptionally high biodiversity, including mollusks, fish, crustaceans, and more in every crevasse. In their approach to the whale fall, mega fauna appear from the murky abyss, but these trained explorers continue with steady nerves as they approach the unknowns of the depths. Sticking to their safety guidelines, two dive buddies travel in pair to document the encounter in close detail, while the sub carries the expeditions senior researcher, his young protégée, and their reliable mechanic in the sturdy Submarine.

Description:

This model depicts the real life natural phenomenon of a whale fall. It is made to represent oceanography and marine science practices, with some fantastical embellishments. The main body of the model is the whale fall itself and surrounding terrain that houses the several animals found throughout the set. The main attractions of this part of the set are the whale skeleton itself, along side a natural arch that houses the smaller male angler fish. There are two attachment points for both the larger female angler fish as well as the submarine. The whale skeleton can be easily removed from the base and be posed independently from the rest of the model.

The Submarine is modular and can be easily disassembled for access to various parts. The ceiling can be removed to access the the cockpit which can seat three of the minifigures included. The aft end of the submarine houses the engine module which can be viewed through grates when removing the side panel of the submarines stern.

The octopus is a side build to the rest of the model and can be posed endlessly with its ball joints and many segmented parts.

This marks the third and final version of this model I have made for the Bricklink Designer Program series. The octopus, angler fish, and whale skeleton remain mostly unchanged from the previous iteration with only minor tweaks, whereas the submarine and base design for the model were completely overhauled. This started as a personal project I started in 2024, and has become an idea I just kept revisiting, revising and adding to. It is a deeply personal project to me as it has taught me so much about design, construction, BDP, Stud.io and the wonderful Brinklink community through feedback and revision received through the lifespan of this project. Thank you all for your comments and encouragement every time I have submitted, new and old.

This was the end of the original description and it rings true now even more; As an ecology enthusiasts and Stud.io model designer this was an immensely fun project for me and I'm very excited to share this with you after several weeks of designing and tweaking the model to make the presentation as appealing to myself as I hope it is to you all. I'm looking forward to seeing all the models of my fellow builders shared in this program across all skill levels and sizes!