How to Create a LEGO World

Familiarize yourself with available Lego products. Toy and department stores will often carry only the most popular Lego toys, so if you're designing your own world, check out the official Lego website (www.lego.com). Look at some of the more unusual and useful products that will help, such as bulk bricks and large sections of base plates (work surfaces with Lego brick bumps for attaching structures). Click on "shop," then "by category" to see everything available.

Choose a genre for your world. If you intend to borrow from existing Lego play sets, look to see which sets might be combined to suggest a new era and location. For example, combine pieces from some of the many Star Wars play sets with other robotic and futuristic sets, or combine pirate play sets with castle and medieval sets.

Build parts of your world from standard pieces. Lay out the groundwork for your world with base plates and use standard bricks to make the basic building structures. Attach buildings directly to the base plates.

Add special pieces to your basic structures to give your world character. Special accessories include trees, vehicles, special architectural features (like windows or building tops) and lots of Lego people.