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.

LEGO Icons 10305: Lion Knights’ Castle : Part Two – The Minifigures [Review]

In Part I of our review of LEGO Icons 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle, we explored the building at the center of this massive, 4514-piece love letter to the Castle theme. Here in Part II we’ll meet each of the twenty-two minifigures that accompany it. This set will be available to VIPs on August 3rd (and everyone on August 8th) for US $399.99 | CAN $499.99 | UK £344.99, but you can continue your early look now!

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

It takes a village

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The dark towers demand that you enter

While not a copy of the famed Two Towers from the Lord of the Rings novels, this dark castle from LEGO builder Poul-Erik Borre is exactly what every dark sorcerer needs.

The symmetrical architecture immediately grabbed my attention, forcing my eyes up the highly-detailed stonework. I was impressed to see so many light lime-green bricks and dark-green bricks used as a contrasting colors against the black. The trees continue that same color palette. Looking more closely, I spotted a clever use of light lime-green hair pieces as all of the leaves and blossoms.

What I also didn’t realize at first was that there are actually three towers, not just two. A truly impressive fantasy creation.

LEGO Icons 10305: Lion Knights’ Castle : Part One – The Castle [Review]

The Castle theme was an early cornerstone of the LEGO line. Starting out in 1978 with the set 375 King’s Castle, we’ve seen dozens of sets over the years. The theme fell mostly dormant in 2014, with only a recent return with 2021’s Creator 3-in-1 31220 Medieval Castle and 910001 Castle in the Forest sets. But just wait until you check out what LEGO has unveiled for their 90 Years of Play celebration. LEGO Icons 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle is a massive, 4514 piece love letter to the theme that will be available to VIPs on August 3rd (and everyone on August 8th) for US $399.99 | CAN $499.99 | UK £344.99. This set is SO massive, in fact, that we had to split our our review of the twenty two included minifigures into “part two”. For starters, though, we take a very close look at the surprises and secrets in the Lion Knights’ Castle itself. Are you ready for a trip down memory lane?

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

It’s just a little bigger than the one from 1978

Plan your day the dwarven way

Ever wonder what your a day looks like for your average dwarf? Well, builder Ids de Jong provides the answer in this great LEGO scene. First off, dwarven hygiene is of the utmost importance, so we have a pair scrubbing off all the dirt from the mines in a subterranean river. The minifigure torso choices here are excellent, showing their bottom halves submerged below the trans-blue water. The droid-arm ladder next to the bathing pair is a classic choice, and feels right at home in this scene. I absolutely love the pillar right next to it, with its center turned 45 degrees creating an interesting look.

Mine for more pictures below!

Miniature Dungeon Master’s Castle is a perfect replica

With new LEGO castle and space sets coming out this year as part of the company’s 90th anniversary celebration, the nostalgia is hitting hard. And Koen Zwanenburg is here for it, with this microscale model inspired by another classic LEGO castle set, 6086 Black Knight’s Castle from 1992. This miniature scene taken straight from the box design pays homage to the castle, including a brilliant recreation of the molded green baseplate with rock printing. The yellow-orange color gradient was a common background for many castle sets from this period, and it even turned up in the recent Classic Castle remake of the Forest Hideout. I wonder which Classic Castle set will get the fan treatment next?

LEGO 90 Years of Play 40567: Forest Hideout – A Nostalgic Gift With Purchase [Review]

The hype for the new 90 Years of Play LEGO sets is rising! We’ve already seen a fun tribute set in Classic 11021 and there are a couple of amazing sets on the horizon. But while we wait for those to hit the market, we can whet our appetites on an updated version of 1988’s Forestmen’s Hideout. LEGO 90 Years of Play 40567 Forest Hideout is available now through 6/22 from the LEGO Shop Online with qualifying purchases of US $150 | CAN $150 | UK £150. This 258 piece set reimagines the Castle System classic with updated parts and techniques. Come along and see if this set justifies the hefty price of admission, and see just how it looks next to it’s vintage inspiration!

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

Click to read the full hands-on review

LEGO reveals 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle and 10497 Galaxy Explorer as throwback sets for 90th anniversary [News]

Today LEGO has revealed two brand new sets that pay tribute to classic themes from yesteryear. 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle is a 4,514-piece stronghold featuring a working drawbridge, a dungeon, secret passages, and more. The 22 included minifigures pit the Lion Knights against Black Falcons and Forestmen factions. It will retail for US $399.99 | CAN $449.99 | UK £344.99 when it debuts on August 8 (but VIP Early Access members can pick it up on August 3). Leaping into the future, 10497 Galaxy Explorer gives us a modern take on the fan-favorite spaceship that originally debuted in 1979. Keeping the classic space color scheme, this 1,254-piece set includes four classic spacemen, a robot, and classic play features like a rover than can deploy from the rear of the craft. It will retail for US $99.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £89.99 and drops August 1.

See more images of the two sets below, and also check out more LEGO News on TBB.

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Songwriters’ block is a thing of the past in this bard’s abode

I love seeing castle-themed builds that are a bit different. Francis Wiemelt (Hubba Blooba) has built this charming residence for a mediaeval bard, and there are so many cool little details! The most striking aspect is the roof, which has a very satisfying colour gradient using various shades of purple. The walls are also nicely done, with a neat cross beam at one end of the house. Light aqua pieces are judiciously placed to stop the pristine white making the place look too nice. It is the middle ages, after all; this place looks like it would be found in a clearing on the edge of town, it’s probably not easy to get decorators out that far. There’s plenty of life around this little cottage, including the bard herself with cuffs on her sleeves using 1×1 round plates. Take a look down to the bottom left, though – the tree has mushrooms growing on the side, in this case, tiles held on by clips; and best of all, there’s a little snail down there as well!

Surely you joust

Sometimes a LEGO build can take you to unexpected places. Clemens Schneider initially found inspiration for this scene from the Horse and Groom from the Series 22 Collectible Minifigures, but eventually decided on a brick-built horse. I like how the theme is a little ambiguous — sure, these could “just” be cleverly built microscale knights, but don’t they also look a bit like robots? In my head canon, this is a scene from one of those alternate universes where technology and magic comingle — but it looks like these robo-knights need to decide if their wagon is a bit too heavy for the road. Those wheels are clearly embedded in the muck. Maybe walk a bit until you’re back on pavement, lads.

Castles are cool. We all know that. But you know what’s even cooler, and coincidently in our archives? LEGO castles.

Moist bottom or sunkissed top

This LEGO castle by lego_monkey_ is here as a reminder to all that LEGO castles can be colourful and still look amazing. The tower of this creation starts bluish dark grey, gradually fades to sand blue to end up light bluish grey on top. The ombre effect makes me question what is going on with the building. Did the bricks on top of the tower fade due to higher exposure to sunlight? Is the soil on which this tower was built very moist and are the porous bricks at the bottom of the tower soaking up the moisture? I love the addition of the bright blue colours for the rooftop. It matches the bluish tints used for the tower itself but the contrast in brightness really ups this creation. Using orange, which is the complementary colour of blue, as a backdrop is aesthetically pleasing and therefore a really smart choice.

I really FALL for this simple design

While LEGO builder Carter Witz tells us he has kept this design pretty simple I’m still smitten with it anyway. Granted it doesn’t have mind-blowing techniques and complex gear trains but you can go a long way with a well-appointed layout. I love the trees, the smiling minifigures and the rock patterns. That waterfall though really makes the piece special. The look and feel takes us back to a specific time in LEGO history right in the sweet spot of childhood memories. You know, before all the backaches and sore knees. This builder frequently takes us to special places. Check out the Carter Witz archives to see what I mean.

This outpost is in vogue

As we’ve seen in the past, Ayrlego knows how to throw together a pretty rad LEGO building. And this new Mokolei Outpost is no exception! But where their previous constructions typically show the wear of time, with nicks in the walls or peeling plaster, this tan and turquoise tower looks fresh and new. Of course, there’s the typical cobbled feel to the terrain. And the other wooden structures bear a weather-worn patina. But all of this comes in stark contrast to the crisp edges and detailed texture work on the outpost, with pristine lion-head sculptures and ornate patterns carved into each wall. It’s a design fit the chicest sheik.