OK, this is a pretty simple one, but very effective. The good old mayan/aztec/whoever temple. It is a pretty good starter piece, as all you are doing is making some straight cuts for the pieces. I think we've added something really nice, though.
First, you will notice that the base piece has a "hollow" part. You can do this since in the temple final layout, the piece on top covers the hole. By leaving two "block widths" around the outside, you still get a firm, solid piece when you stack them up. The hole itself is actually the Tier 3 piece, so it's like an extra (small) piece for free. I like free. And cutting this out doesn't require mad hotwire or knife skills. You can just cut the piece into two block strips, cut out Tier 3, and then glue the base pieces back together.
The second thing I like about this approach is we don't have a fully assembled piece and the big slabs are broken up (without sacrificing stability). This makes it much easier to store (can you Tetris it back into a rectangular prism?) and transport. It also allows for multiple configurations. I like being able to use a terrain piece in multiple ways. It's like getting a bunch of temples all for the price of one!
Click the picture to slideshow through the breakdown of pieces and some assembly options.
