Tag Archives: Castle

Dragons! Knights in shining armor! Trebuchets & ballistas! From enormous LEGO castles buttoned up for battle to peaceful village market scenes, we’ve got your LEGO Castle needs covered right here.

MOCs of the LEGO Masters: Medieval farm brings buckets of charm

Maia (mbbricks) is one busy builder! She and her father are making their LEGO Masters debut next week, representing Canada in the US edition of the show. She’s also prepping an epic elven village for next month’s Brickworld Chicago that sends Rivendell-style architecture into the mountains. But the build I’m most excited by is this medieval farm, with a slick half-timbered top atop a rocky foundation.

Maia says this is her first time using the SNOT (studs not on top) technique for the irregular stonework. It’s always a joy to see builders stretching their wings with new skills. The woven fence technique is always a favorite of mine as it’s a technique still used to this day in some farms near where I live in Sweden.

Good luck on LEGO Masters, Maia and Jamie (BricksDad)!

This is part of our series on MOCs of the Masters where we preview the work of the newest batch of LEGO Master contestants. Have a look at creations from other builders in the lineup.

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A fantastic full-hearted build of a half-timbered hovel

Classic LEGO Castle sets could loom large with a few hundred parts thanks to molded wall pieces and base plates. When your goal is to capture craggy stonework, weathered walls, and rolling terrain, hundreds of parts becomes thousands. Peter (forestArcher) wanted to build in the maximalist medieval style for a long time, with whimsical angles where everything feels on the verge of collapse, but never had the parts to pull it off. After an infusion of new pieces, Peter was finally able to tackle the fantasy architecture. Take a moment to admire that crumbly foundation that mixes SNOT techniques, profile bricks, and subtle slopes. It’s a beautiful half-timbered house that looks like it would come tumbling down if you blow on it!

Peter shares the builds that inspired this journey into medieval brickwork. Each is a wonderful model on its own, and a reminder of how much innovation and iteration exists in the castle genre: Gloomy Gulch by Luke Watkins Hutchinson, Eldford Barracks-GoC by Roanoke Handybuck, The Pilgrim by Joe (jnj_bricks), Awakening by Classical Bricks, Fin the farmer by The Maestro, The four seasons – Birth by Brickleas.

The world’s smallest LEGO castle? [Building Techniques]

I’ve seen some small castles in my time, heck, I’ve even built some, but this island castle by Nikita Filatov has got to be one of the smallest. The minifigure binoculars are great as tiny towers, but my favorite part is the rounded white tile balanced on the back of an ingot. But the great techniques don’t stop there. The water base is made with studs-not-on-top connections which adds a bit of visual weight to this microscale build.

Doorway to the imagination

Home to “a civilization spoken of in legend and lore”, Gareth Gidman’s recent LEGO creation “The Door to the Hidden City” presents a scene that conjures more questions than answers. Drawing inspiration from the OG masters of fantasy, Gareth started this build “without having a specific purpose in mind, which made the build process much more relaxing and free flowing.”

Perhaps being in the zone is how he achieved such natural-looking stone and snow forms. Though there are certainly some deliberate details of note, like the subtle color variation giving depth to the icy water, and, given the choice between four different verdant shades that the 3×4 Plant Leaves LEGO element has come in, the use of Sand Green reinforces the chilly tone. I also love how the tooled parts of the rock face – the light bluish gray stairs, arch, and columns – are differentiated from the natural stone. Gareth says he’s “really pleased with how the texturing and the composition of the model turned out”… and for good reason!

A LEGO encampment where legends train for battle

As much as we love a colossal castle, a brick-built LEGO encampment can be just as inspiring when depicting life in the Middle Ages (see our thoughts on the latest Bricklink Designer Program Siege Encampment). French builder Gus (Faëbricks) erects a training camp for House Austren in what promises to be the first chapter of a LEGO roleplaying scenario called Féodalis. Duke Galdric, accompanied by his wife Elyanna, trains for a joust against the Duke of House Clawthorne. The scene is packed with details of camp life like serfs unfurling a tarp over an a-frame tent and crossbow training.

I love the colors of House Austren, pairing the Forester stag crest with fur collars and dark green capes.

Click for a video tour of this model!

Miniature LEGO castle on the water

I’ve been a fan of microscale LEGO master Jeff Friesen for many years and have created more than a few microscale builds inspired by his work. I recently made a series of castle builds on a 10×10 base, each using a limited color palette. This is one of my favorites from that series, using bright yellow/orange elements for the roofs. The series of waterfalls gives the castle a bit of character and is also heavily influenced by Jeff’s many waterway-filled builds. One of my favorite modified bricks to use in castle builds is the 1×2 brick with a vertical gap, which makes great tower windows.

This LEGO castle’s a keep(er)

No stranger to The Brothers Brick, prolific Australian LEGO builder Ben Cossy seems to dabble in just about every building theme, turning out a string of quality creations both large and small. Of his latest, Ben says it “might actually be my favorite castle creation that I have made.” Understandably so! A closer look at his striking and retro-inspired Black Falcon’s Keep reveals why.

See more of Ben’s great castle below!

“Invaders from the very far north, my King!”

Extraterrestrials have generally been projected as quite the “grabby” culture, be it in film, literature, or LEGO. With a reputation for taking things, via tractor beams and all kinds of abduction tech, they’re no doubt to blame for my missing socks and car keys. Just look at them trying to make off with a microscale castle in this vignette by Zapalski! The details in this creation are superb. I appreciate the small field made of grill plates, and the large chunk of rock exposed by the flying saucer lifting the castle. And what a tractor beam it’s using, using a Ninjago Spinjitzu piece to great green glowing effect!

Five flavors of fantasy from one talented Swedish builder

LEGO fan contests like Brickscalibur can push even the best builders to new creative heights through creative prompts, tight deadlines, and friendly competition. One builder whose creations consistently caught our eye during the latest competition goes by T-86 (Swe). What impresses with T-86’s builds isn’t just the stellar medieval brickwork, but the variety of approaches that capture the breadth of “castle” as a building theme. Let’s take a moment to celebrate each of T-86’s five submissions.

First is “The Traitor,” submitted for the Perspective Matters category. This build is a showcase for brickwork in the modern castle aesthetic, creating walls that are deceptively simple at a glance, but upon closer inspection are a web of clever techniques. The arches on the right, capped with a jigsaw of “cheese slopes” are a highlight, as is the door with its deep notches. By framing the shot with wall-to-wall LEGO bricks and simulating natural lighting, the immersive scene pulls you in. T-86 sticks to a grounded setting but adds a fantasy twist using elves for the tale of deception playing out in the courtyard.

Next, for the Adventuring Party minifig-centric category, T-86 goes full fantasy in an eye-catching way, using almost entirely black elements. Dubbed “The Shadowmolded,” they make a nightmarish ensemble, softened somewhat by a mix of animal companions. The brick-built dragonraven is especially nice.

Press on for more enchanting castle builds from T-86

LEGO Bricklink Designer Program Series 4 – Siege Encampment: The biggest battle pack! [Review]

Here we are on the cusp of another round of pre-orders for the LEGO Bricklink Designer Program. And once again, TBB has got its hands on one of the sets ahead of time: Siege Encampment by builder Sleepless Night. This is the same fan designer that came up with Mountain Fortress from Series 1, which was well-received by the community as an excellent rendition of a new Black Falcons castle. But will lightning strike twice for this renowned LEGO Castle builder? Can this 2,598-piece set (with a whopping 18 minifigures!) stand out amid all the medieval love shown in the BDP program thus far? You’ll have to read on to find out! And if you want to get your hands on a copy of Siege Encampment, pre-orders for BDP Series 4 will begin on February 4th, 2025 at 8:00 AM PT, where the set will retail for $229.99.

The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Enter the camp below and see how the Black Falcons prepare for an invasion!

Knight bricks and chill

This crisp mountain scene by LEGO builder Nicholas Goodman is a lesson in atmosphere. The visuals are engaging – strong and clean, conveying depth and detail with terrific balance in both color and texture (studded and smooth) – but also evoke the other senses. As my eye is drawn in, I can practically smell the frozen air and hear the slushy hoof-thumps. The scene itself is deceptively simple, leaving much room for imaginative interpretation. Will the “Guardian of the Pass” and his faithful companion warmly welcome this traveler? Has he come with the thaw to relieve their solitary duty? Or is this chilling moment a prelude to mounting conflict between two nations…

Rock solid colossal castle

When we checked in with Louis of Nutwood last week, the builder took to the seas on itty bitty sailing ships. This time Louis puts those ace LEGO skills to work at colossal scale with the impressive Fortress of Hyrrefur. The castle features distinctive brickwork that incorporates SNOT techniques, profile bricks, and sloped corners for an impressive chiseled look. That intricacy extends to the rocky base with nary a foothold for would-be invaders.

The fortress is even more impressive up close.

Click to explore Hyrrefur Fortress from every angle