FOFC Lego Thread

[ColtCrazy]

Sounds like a plan to me!

On my trip to Evansville, I did manage to snag a few minifigs. Got the genie, the outlaw (very cool), the wind-up robot, and 2 of the roman solider (makes for a great army piece). Roman soldier is fairly rare, but easy to tell if you find one. The spear sticks out pretty well.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by ColtCrazy

Sounds like a plan to me!

On my trip to Evansville, I did manage to snag a few minifigs. Got the genie, the outlaw (very cool), the wind-up robot, and 2 of the roman solider (makes for a great army piece). Roman soldier is fairly rare, but easy to tell if you find one. The spear sticks out pretty well.

I went to the Toys R Us in Greenwood and then on Washington Street and was 3 for 3 on the series 5 and 6 minifigs I was looking for on Friday night. After going through at least 50 packs at the Lego store in Castleton last week and not finding a clockwork robot, I found one in the second pack I picked up in Greewood! Couldn't find a head and found the wrap around neck piece and I figured my luck had to be too good. Got to the checkout and I was happy.

At Washington Street, they still have a ton of Series 5. I kindof had been wanting the detective and the first pack I grabbed, I could feel the magnifying glass's unique shape so I decided to keep it. It's cool that it actually does magnify. A few more in, I found a giant hat that I didn't think was the ice fisherman's so I crossed my fingers and hoped it was the Royal Guard. I checked out in the video game area and chatted a little with the girl working there and then opened them up and I was right on both accounts.

We won't talk about my luck the rest of the night that involved driving to IND after midnight and falling asleep on one of the couches in the open area until my wife arrived from Atlanta at around 2:30

So, I have my Royal Guard but I'm game for another trade or just a giveaway if we bump into each other next week at BrickWorld. "Busy" weekend ahead with going to the Big Ten Tourney on Thursday and then BrickWorld probably on Saturday.

SI

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by CarterNMA

SI,

You're best bet is joining BrickLink - Unofficial LEGO® Marketplace. There you can buy individual pieces, full sets, minifigs, instructions, etc. I've spent way too much money there but I have a serious collection nowadays.

Oh, BTW, curse you. Nothing like finding you can get sets from people around the world for "reasonable" prices and perfectly indexed.

SI

[ColtCrazy]

SI, which series 6 guys are you still needing? Our Walmart has them now and I might swing by there again before I head up this weekend. If I find one you need, we can swap that. Doesn't matter what I get in return, if it's an extra, my son will gladly take it.

I managed to find my 3rd Roman Soldier for series 6. Hoping to end up with about 6 to form a small legion on the shelf in my classroom. Wanting another Statue of Liberty as well.

Thought I had a minor coup when Walmart had the Black Pearl on clearance for $75. I snagged it only to realize it had been opened and seemed to be missing a bag. Shame, what I had seen of it it looked good. Might force me to pay more for it later. Would make just a nice regular pirate ship.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by ColtCrazy

SI, which series 6 guys are you still needing? Our Walmart has them now and I might swing by there again before I head up this weekend. If I find one you need, we can swap that. Doesn't matter what I get in return, if it's an extra, my son will gladly take it.

I managed to find my 3rd Roman Soldier for series 6. Hoping to end up with about 6 to form a small legion on the shelf in my classroom. Wanting another Statue of Liberty as well.

Thought I had a minor coup when Walmart had the Black Pearl on clearance for $75. I snagged it only to realize it had been opened and seemed to be missing a bag. Shame, what I had seen of it it looked good. Might force me to pay more for it later. Would make just a nice regular pirate ship.

I saw a Black Pearl go on ebay for $65-ish over the weekend and I almost pulled the trigger but I've been spending too much lately as is. I was thinking about it- growing up, Lego had space, ships, and castles all locked down. Now it has the same only it's Star Wars, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Lord of the Rings coming this summer- same ideas, but now it's all licensed.

As for the minifig, I think I'm good with Series 6. I suppose if you have spares, Minotaur or Sleepyhead or if you have a spare Lizardman or Small Clown from 5. But, like I said, it's not really necessary: just a gift since I already have extra.

SI

[ColtCrazy]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

I saw a Black Pearl go on ebay for $65-ish over the weekend and I almost pulled the trigger but I've been spending too much lately as is. I was thinking about it- growing up, Lego had space, ships, and castles all locked down. Now it has the same only it's Star Wars, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Lord of the Rings coming this summer- same ideas, but now it's all licensed.

As for the minifig, I think I'm good with Series 6. I suppose if you have spares, Minotaur or Sleepyhead or if you have a spare Lizardman or Small Clown from 5. But, like I said, it's not really necessary: just a gift since I already have extra.

SI

Don't have extras of those from 6, if I can find them, I'll bring them. If not, I know I have an extra of one of those from 5. Thanks for the ebay info on the Pearl. I really liked what I got to see of it. I've always wanted to get the Imperial Flagship and I think I may have to jump on it this year because the price is starting to creep up on it. The Pearl would be a nice pirate ship to go with the imperial one.

I agree, the Castle series is my all time favorite. I hate that they only have one scheduled (so far) this year...albeit it's a great one. I don't mind the Lord of the Rings stuff, it'll be cool. But I can't even see how someone could keep up with the Star Wars stuff they produce.

[ColtCrazy]

Got to go to Brickworld Indy today. Also got to meet SI, which was the highlight of the day (at least for me...he had a much more successful day than I did).

Some really great looking scenes were set up. Loved the Lucas Oil Stadium, the castle diorama, and all the pirate/viking ships on display. Learned about a few "new" sets. Sure, they are 20 years old, but they are new to me. Ended up buying one when I got home tonight.

The eldest offspring faired much better. Added a few figures to his batman collection. He seemed pleased.

[sterlingice]

I only picked up one set, tho (autographed Sydney Opera House) and quite a few minifigs. Tho I would pick up some more Legos later on in the day.

Here are some pics for anyone interested:

Entry Room

Spoiler

Entrance room had a big "Brickworld" airport display


It also had an area with a somewhat disinterested and annoyed woman (not pictured) who had to keep flipping over battling robots as screaming kids slammed them into each other


The biggest highlight of the show for me, that didn't involve meeting a fellow FOFCer, was purchasing one of the Lego architecture sets, the Sydney Opera House, signed by the designer and chatting with him about the Lego architecture line.

MTron Display

Spoiler

This was easily my favorite display. I loved the MTron set growing up as a kid. It had a distinctly early 90s color palette: red, black, and neon green/yellow. It was space. And it had magnets! This display was like heaven for me. I chatted up a couple of the guys who worked on this set for at least 20 minutes to get some ideas. This was such an amazing display as there were less than 10 MTron sets ever made so almost all of these were original creations.

Lego Star Wars

Spoiler

Star Wars is hugely popular right now and has been for the last 10 years with Lego

Clone Wars Battle


Hoth




Van Gogh and da Vinci... between Anakin Skywalker and Yoda.


"Troops, in formation! Forward march! Wait- what the heck is with that guy who looks like he lives in a pineapple under the sea."

Lego Castle

Spoiler

Another one of the huge displays had a castle and sea battle. It's funny to walk from one table where there is Yoda dueling Count Dooku to the next table where there's a line of 10 Yodas being used as goblins to attack a castle. This one had a lot of "recycling" of pieces like that. Who knew that the attacking armies had Wampas and Pirates of the Caribbean ships.





I'm actually considering one of the two Pirates of the Caribbean ships. They're cooler looking in real life than I expected.


Sea serpent attacking the ships


I absolutely love this crystal castle. One problem: the guy who made it said the giant clear baseplate cost him $50

Lego Modular City

Spoiler

Modular cities are big right now and I can see why. They're really detailed and realistic but the price point is just crazy. I went to the Lego store in Indy after this yesterday and watched someone buy the giant box with the Tower Bridge. But it's $270 in one fail swoop (including tax). That's just too rich for my blood. If I'm going to spend $270, I'm going to spread it out across a ton of stuff. This display was the most compact of all the ones out there- it was like a Lego San Francisco.






Two great sets at the front of this display


And a bunch of the Lego Architecture sets off to the side

Random Pics

Spoiler

Finally the hodgepodge of the rest of my pictures:

Lucas Oil Stadium - Hard to get pics of the scale of this thing or to get pictures without lots of people in front of it as it was wildly popular at the Super Bowl and also here. The roof is motorized and there's a little screen inside that serves as a jumbotron.


Blacklight on some glow-in-the-dark Legos


Giant minifigures


Lego Space Shuttle


Who you gonna call (in the alien attacks display)?



Lego Etch-a-sketch

Oh, and for the record: 3 nerd/fanatic activities going on in Indy yesterday and today, apparently. Brickworld is at the convention center, the Big Ten tourney is at the Fieldhouse, and, on the way back to my car, I stopped at Subway for lunch and there is apparently a Magic national championship tournament of some sort going on at Lucas Oil.

SI

[ColtCrazy]

I did like the huge town set up as well. Like you, I agree that you could spend crazy money to keep up with it all. The town hall one that is released this year would be neat though, just as a stand alone piece. I'm sure it's price point is upwards of $200 though.

[sterlingice]

Ok, I've decided on the next uber set I want but probably won't ever get:

http://www.brickset.com/detail/?Set=10210-1

SI

[ColtCrazy]

You and me both. Would LOVE to have that set. But the only chance I have is when I'm A) flushed with money and B) away from the wife. So unless I can get it while I'm in England this summer, I probably won't. Shame, I can see that one going for $400-500 in a year or two.

[ColtCrazy]

Ended up going back to Walmart to see what I could get from series 6. Ended up finding another outlaw, another highland warrior. Couldn't find a single Roman Soldier, but I did find 2 more Statues of Liberty. Considering that I never saw one up in Indy, I'll keep these in bags, one to keep and one as trade bait down the road.

Also, my son got As and B+s on his last report card. I told him if he could get everything back up to As on this report card (due next week) I'd buy him one of the bigger Batman sets. Let's just say it looks as if I'll be spending some money next week!

[ColtCrazy]

Brickset has posted pictures of the Lord of the Rings sets due out this summer. They look good, especially the Mines of Moria one.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by ColtCrazy

Brickset has posted pictures of the Lord of the Rings sets due out this summer. They look good, especially the Mines of Moria one.

Other than the minifigs, I find myself a touch on the disappointed side. Maybe the front of the box doesn't do them justice.

[ColtCrazy]

It's hard to get a scale of the bigger sets. I do like the minifigs a lot. Like the look of Moria, maybe the others will look good in person.

[stevew]

good deal on some lego watches @ kids.woot today

[sterlingice]

8831 Minifigures Series 7 - Brickipedia, the LEGO Wiki

Series 7 Minifigs starting to trickle into stores. Found some at a local TRU last night (Greenwood) and picked up 3 of the 4 I most wanted.

* I love the Scottish bagpiper- that bagpipe piece is awesome as is his hat and(!) a paper kilt!
* The headpiece for the Aztec warrior is amazing. It's gold plastic and not shiny gold so keep that in mind but it's still cool.
* I can't wait until they are clearing out series 7 minifigs because I'm going to load up on the Galaxy patrol. It's a nice space figure and there are 5 per box

I felt through about 30 packs and it took me a long time to find an Aztec in a box towards the back of the shelf so I'm sure it's going to be one of the hot ones. I never found one of the Evil Knights and I'm sure they're going to be pillaged, too. I think I felt all the others except the Rocker Girl.

The other one I really want (for my desk) is the Computer Programmer. I felt a couple of those but I think they're going to be one of the generic ones that's out there and not terribly possible. So I'm going to wait until they're no longer $3.49 per pack.

SI

[ColtCrazy]

I finally made my big purchase. Bought the castle jousting set. Haven't opened it yet as I want to wait till I have the time to dive into it. It looks amazing. Like you, SI, I also picked up some series 7. Got the good ones at the TRU in Castleton. Tried down around Louisville but they'd been searched. You'll have to tell me the hint to getting the Aztec. Never found him and would like to get 3-4 of him. I ended up splurging on some..

Bagpiper - love this one, may get a few more to go with the small army of British soldiers I got from series 5.

Space trooper - easy piece to find. Bought 1 but found 2. Passed since they are high priced, will get more once I see them at target. Great looking piece,

Evil knight - probably my favorite one from this series. Looks incredible, even the sword is not the standard Lego one. Will buy them as I see them.

Tennis player - had to have one. Nice, nothing special though

Hippy - fun one. Only need one but cool to have.

Poseidon - excellent piece. Can't see the need to have more than one, but easy enough to find if it hasn't been picked.

Daredevil - another have to have one but no more. Would look great with a bike.

I think my favorite from six ended up being the bandit. It'll be another bad guy from this one. I want the IT guy too, Aztecs, and more knights for sure.

[sterlingice]

Aztec was all about the spear (identical to the Roman soldier, I think) and the same circle shield we keep feeling (Highlander, Gladiator, etc). There are quite a few in this series with large headpieces or large hard to figure out parts (Space armor, Knight hood, Riding Hood hood, Poseidon's tail, Hippie hair) so I think trying to do it by the tri-helmet is tough. As silly as this is, I find it hard to differentiate between the Hippie hair and Galaxy Patrol armor so I was looking for the space gun since it's fairly easy to figure out.

But, like I said, I think them and the Evil Knights are going to be picked over so it's probably not that you couldn't identify them but that there are none there.

Also, I ran across two Meijers a week or two ago when they had Series 5 for $1.49 and then 74c so I have have a complete set of those and quite a few spare Royal Guards and Gladiators. Now they're back up to $2.99, tho (huh?)

SI

[sterlingice]

Also, last night I picked up the Batski polybag from TRU. It's an ok set but it's really all about the cheapest way to get a black Batman instead of blue and get a little cheap vehicle for "free".

I picked up the Funhouse Escape after we talked at Brickworld as the figures in there are excellent: Batman, Robin, Joker, Harley Quinn(!), and Riddler! All that for $40 ($30 with a coupon I had) was excellent and the set itself is actually quite fun with a little rolling train car, the mallet trap, crane, and trap door. The batcycle is a little ugly but is fun to play with as it rolls great and always keeps its balance.

Also, I've been a little busy on eBay, Bricklink, etc completing some little collections:
* Once my order arrives from the UK, I'll have collected all 14 Mini Creators. Those are some of my favorite sets. They're like $6 each for between 70 and 120 pieces in a nifty canister and you can pick which three sets to build.
* I also have picked up all of the Star Wars battle packs (10 total, I believe). A couple of the older ones can get a little pricey but I like the standard $10-12 for a couple of ~100 piece vehicles and 4 minifigs.

On eBay, I've been going after some M-Tron, Unitron, Blacktron, and other old space sets. I grew up with these and they're not so much in demand any more as they have very 80s and 90s color schemes. I've picked up a half dozen or so smaller ones on the cheap (~$5 apiece) but I've also found some pretty good deals on larger things. A couple are missing a few small pieces but I'm looking to address that on Bricklink
* Blacktron II spaceship for $30 (tho it smelled like smoke and I got to learn about washing Legos): http://www.brickset.com/detail/?set=6981-1
* Classic Futuron Base for $25: http://www.brickset.com/detail/?set=6953-1
* Great Space Police Base for $50: http://www.brickset.com/detail/?set=6955-1
* A set of about 20 vintage astronauts for about $20 from the old classic mono-color with oxygen tank up through M-Tron, Blacktron, and Unitron guys

SI

[spleen1015]

Every time I read this thread, I want to go buy some Legos.

[Chubby]

we went to the lego store in rochester last week, didn't buy anything as tyler isnt even 3 yet but got some cool ideas!

i think i freaked my wife out when we looked at the price of the death star and imperial destroyer

[sterlingice]

Oh, that reminds me. I exhibited a lot of willpower last week in Chicago. I was driving up from Indy to pick up my wife from O'Hare. Her flight was delayed and so I had a couple of hours to kill and went to the Lego store in Orland Park. I got a pick-a-brick cup and was talking with the guy working the register. We talked about what I was building with the pick a brick pieces and I had picked up a ton of translucent 1x1 circles and squares and I mentioned that I was working on some old space sets and was picking these up as accent pieces. We talked about cost of them online and I told him it wasn't really prohibitive as the colors are out of style so you could get some decent large sets in the $20-$50 range.

Then, I offhandedly mention I try to keep it within budget or else I'd go after some of my aspirational sets like The Tower Bridge but they're just too much. Well, he mentions he had 2 in the back that had significant box damage but the set was alright and they were priced at 30% off. Man, I walked around the mall and thought long and hard about that one before ultimately deciding against it. That's "only" $168 plus tax but it's rare to ever see it below its retail $240. The only time I've seen that is at the rare Lego store 10% off sales and the big sets sell out in a few minutes.

So, if you're in Chicago and have less willpower or a higher budget than I do, they might still be there.

SI

[ColtCrazy]

I think I'd lose the 30% in the gas to get up there! Not sure I would have had the willpower, but I was determined to get the Jousting set, so I might have passed anyway. No way I could have justified both and the lego store in Indy was the first time I'd seen the jousting set anywhere. The girl working there said that they are shutting down the castle series. They seem to do this, and I'm sure it'll be back eventually. Just a bit of a bummer, the castle series has always been my favorite.

I'm going to start a bit of a project too. I have the mill, the medieval village, the jousting set. I'd like to get the main castle and then try to buy just generic walls and stuff and create a walled village with a castle. Still want to pick up some of those old space things that you pointed out. They are cool looking.

Forgot to mention, I did buy one of the Lego Power Miners sets. TRU in Clarksville, IN had the Lavatraz set on clearance for $30 (normally a $50 set). Has a really cool super large lava monster with it and a rock monster as well.

I will be on the lookout for the Aztec. I'm hoping my local Walmart gets the guys in. They get bought here fairly fast, but are never picked through. I usually just see mothers buying wads of them and not searching. If I can get one, I'll be happy, but would like a few more. The evil knight is going to look cool with the jousting set. Looks like some sort of elite guard for the black knight that is the jouster.

I'm about half way through the set. Looks great so far. There's a lot to it, and with 9 minifies, it's got great playability.

I'll probably only get one more set before I leave for England. My son is going to reach the academic incentives I've given him. He wants the Ninjago Fangpyre truck. I'll get that at the end of May so I can snag the exclusive Hulk mini fig they'll have at the Lego store that you can get with a $50 purchase. Then, it's saving up to get all the LOTR sets in England this summer. I figure I'll get them there..even if they are more expensive it'll save me money in the long run by keeping me from going to the pub too often!

[sterlingice]

I think they're just putting the castle set on hiatus so they aren't competing with the Lord of the Rings line. Like you said, it'll be back in whatever the next incarnation is but the LotR line is basically a licensed castle line just like they aren't putting out a standard Pirates line while they're making the Pirates of the Caribbean stuff.

SI

[Matthean]

Nerdgasm: The Official Lego Back to the Future Set Is Almost Here!

[Mustang]

Our Lego store in Milwaukee opens in May so, looking forward to that. Only been to the one in the Mall of America and that really wasn't a pleasant experience.

[ColtCrazy]

Originally Posted by Matthean

Nerdgasm: The Official Lego Back to the Future Set Is Almost Here!

Very cool. Several interesting sets on that site. Hoping they do the western town, that looked incredible.

[sterlingice]

It's hard to get the licensing for something like Back to the Future worked out so it seems a long shot at best. Something like a modular western town seems like it has a legit shot, tho

SI

[PilotMan]

I don't play Minecraft but my son thought that this was cool. Apparently this is going to be available sometime this summer.

[ColtCrazy]

Making a special trip to the Lego store in Indy next weekend. My son managed to make all his academic goals (all while impressing me by reading 2 grades above his current grade), so he gets his reward, the Fangpyre truck. Personally, I think the Ninjago line is hit or miss, but it has really gotten my son into Legos so I can't complain.

As for me, I have decisions to make. I had originally intended to get the Lord of the Rings sets in England. Even though they'd be more expensive, I'd have more disposable cash there and give me something to do. Of course, they have been released early. I've gotten a couple of the cheaper Avengers sets, and now want to get at least one of all the Avengers minifigs. I have Iron Man, Hawkeye, and Captain America. Will probably get the Quinjet to get Thor and Black Widow and then get the promotional Hulk figure. Not sure if I like that Hulk or the bigger one. Then, there's this new line called Monster Fighters. Most of the sets are hideous, but there's a couple I wouldn't mind getting (the Vampire Castle being the main one). What seemed like a simple plan is now complicated. So many sets...so little money!

[sterlingice]

I'm in the "want one of every Avenger minifig" boat but haven't figured out how to do it on the cheap.

30163 ($5): Thor (no helmet, tho)
6865 ($12): Captain America
6867 ($20): Loki, Hawkeye, Iron Man
5000022 (Free with purchase): Mini-Hulk (but it's only Mini-hulk)
Missing: Black Widow (only in 6869)
Also: I demand a Nick Fury minifig!

Other Superhero Set Haves:
6857 ($50): Batman, Robin, Joker, Harley Quinn, Riddler
30160 ($5): Batman (black suit)

Other Superhero Set Wants:
6866 ($20): Wolverine, Magneto, Deadpool
6862 ($20): Superman, Lex Luthor, Wonder Woman
7781 ("old"/rare): Old school Two Face

This should solve your Hulk dilemma:

It's pretty obvious which is better

Then again, I want one of everyone in the Fellowship and that's even more expensive...

SI

[ColtCrazy]

HAHAHA Ok, that was an amazing visual. It's done then. I'm getting mini-Hulk since I'll get it free anyway, sell it and use the money to buy the regular Hulk. The QuinJet is the best way for me to get the remaining figures I need. I don't know if I'll keep both Iron Man figs. I know they are slightly different, but I could sell one and at least get some money back. My son may argue against that though, but it would cut the cost down. I did buy 2 of the Captain America sets. Oddly enough, you can part it out, sell the Captain and his bike and pretty much make your money back. Just gave me more bad guys for the figures to fight. I was going to do that with the escape set, but it's suddenly doubled on Amazon and become impossible to find in the store. The Iron Man was selling for almost as much as the SRP.

The LOTR sets will be a must purchases. I want the sets as well, just because of the cool diorama Helms Deep will make. If, and it's a big If, I can swing it it I'd like to get a could of the army sets just to build up a good # of baddies. I'll part out the good guys and sell those then.

[Peregrine]

I have to agree that the Uruk-Hai army set is screaming to me for multiple sets - not only to build up the bad guy forces but because it gives you more wall pieces. Now that the LOTR sets are out I'm wondering if I should just grab them all at once off Amazon or do them one by one.

[sterlingice]

So, ColtCrazy:

Good news, bad news for the Lego store. I might have done some advance reconnaissance for you.

Bad news: You can't do the $55 All-but-Black-Widow-and-Thor-Avengers. The cosmic cube truck one is out of stock. So, I picked up the Wolverine and Superman ones. What else did I get? Pick a brick? Why? Because they had horses!

SI

[ColtCrazy]

Peregrine - That's what I was thinking as well. The extra wall pieces will be great for expanding the Helm's Deep set. I think I'm picking up a set here or there, but since they are already out...they should stay out for awhile. At least until The Hobbit comes out, so we have time I would think.

SI - Hmm, not surprised. The Cosmic Cube set is the best value for what you get. What about the Quinjet set? Still around? That one would at least let me get the Hulk to sell to buy the other Hulk. If not, I'll just snag some LOTR sets and buy the Avengers piece meal when they die down some.

[sterlingice]

Yeah- 3 main characters for $20 is hard to beat and it's out of stock on Lego.com even (available on Amazon, tho). I don't recall the Quinjet set being missing. I think it was still there.

Black Widow is still $15+ on ebay so that's just not worth it for me. I'm really hoping the Thor polybag makes it stateside or this will be even more of a problem

SI

[ColtCrazy]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Yeah- 3 main characters for $20 is hard to beat and it's out of stock on Lego.com even (available on Amazon, tho). I don't recall the Quinjet set being missing. I think it was still there.

Black Widow is still $15+ on ebay so that's just not worth it for me. I'm really hoping the Thor polybag makes it stateside or this will be even more of a problem

SI

Yeah, the only way I do it now is if I get the Quinjet to get Thor and Black Widow...sell the Loki, and decide if I want both versions of IronMan or not. Then swap the puny Hulk for the big one (they seem to sell for about the same).

That's the plan...but should I see the LOTR sets in person, then who knows!

The monster fighters sets may end up getting passed up for money sake. Wouldn't mind picking up the main hero sometime later, just for the cool bowler hat and special sword.

[ColtCrazy]

Went to TRU to get my son his reward for making his reading goal (mine, not the teacher's..mine was higher). He ended up picking up 3 skeleton ninjagos since they are phasing those out and going toward the snakes.

I had an impulse buy. No LOTR sets, but the monster fighters were there. Yeah, I know, I was going to avoid them, but I got the cheapest set, the Swamp Monster, just because the mini fig was cool.

Not going to end up going to the Lego store after all. If I buy the Quinjet, Amazon has it for about $15-20 less than I would pay up there. That savings, plus gas, is worth skipping out on the Hulk. I'll use the savings to get the Hulk I want.

I am planning a trip to the Lego store in London this summer. Might even go to Legoland one day, they have the largest store in Britain.

[Peregrine]

Just got the bunch of LOTR sets I bought and finished putting together Gandalf Arrives - nice little set with Gandalf and Frodo - I love how Frodo is actually very small, about 2/3 the size of a normal minifig I would say.

I love the new lego horse - the back legs move so you can adjust them between a regular pace and a run. I also like how the set is very earth toney - a few grey pieces but mostly brown and beige, except for the fireworks!

[Peregrine]

Second set I did is the Shelob Attacks one - very cool. The spider is huge and impressive, and the legs are fully bendable in two different places. I especially like that they have some string that is wound out of gears inside and is used for her silk so you can "spin a web." Another slick thing is that Frodo and Sam have two sided heads - one normal and one terrified when they see Shelob.


[IMG][/IMG]

[ColtCrazy]

Thanks for the pics. Now I have to see if the budget as a little extra wiggle room in it!

[Peregrine]

I ran into a snag when putting together 9473 The Mines of Moria - the instructions are broken into several pieces for various parts of the set, but my instructions are misprinted and I am missing about 10 steps of the part I am working on. Not sure what to do next - I guess I will call Lego and see if I can get some new instructions - or if someone else has the set and a scanner maybe we can work something out.

edit -- Called Lego and they were nice enough to not only mail me new instructions but sent me a .PDF file of the instructions by email as well.

[Chubby]

I picked up The Padawan Adevntures bluray/dvd. Had a young Han Solo minifig

[Peregrine]

Just ordered the first three of the Star Wars Planet Set - really lke the idea of over time being able to build up a mini galaxy of important Star Wars planet, as well as small relevant vehicles.

Also recently bought the 9491 Geonosian Cannon Star Wars set - very, very cool.

[ColtCrazy]

Managed to walk into a Target that had a fresh box of Series 7 figs. Found 2 Aztec Warriors, 2 more Black Knights (might find a use for them with the LOTR sets), and Red Riding Hood.

Later, we went grocery shopping at Meijer and they had all the LOTR sets. They looked awesome. I couldn't spend a lot, but I got the set with Gandalf's firework cart. Very cool set and the Gandalf figure is amazing. My goal is still to get one of each set, and 2-3 of the Uruk-Hai army set since it attaches to Helm's Deep and gives me a much bigger army.

[Chubby]

damn Targets near me are out of Marvel minifigs grrrrr just as my son is getting into them!

[sterlingice]

Where I will be going in 2 weeks:

Brick Fiesta | A celebration of LEGO in Texas

SI

[Grover]

The Brick Testament

[sterlingice]

Question for those with the Lego Lord of the Rings sets: how playable are they?

I picked up Attack on Weathertop and was a bit disappointed. It's kindof small, it's not very playable, and really only worth it for the minifigs and that it only cost me $40 because of a BarnesandNoble.com sale (long story to that one, tho- it cost me a lot of time because they shipped it to my Indy address despite me putting in my new Houston address; So, ColtsCrazy, there's probably a Lego set sitting outside my old address for the past month if no one has picked it up ).

I'm looking to get all of the Fellowship minifigs but I'm not sure I want to shell out the rest of the cash to do it. You pretty much have to get Mines of Moria ($80) for Gimli, Legolas, Boromir, and Pippin. Frankly, I'm resisting here since I just don't think the set it worth it. Tho if someone has the set and can speak to it, maybe I'm being unduly harsh.

Gandalf comes in the cheapy $12 set so that's no big deal or some of the future Hobbit sets.

Then we get to Shelob Attacks. Peregrine did a nice little writeup above but I'm torn on it. Sure, it's "only" $20 but I'm probably already going to be sinking a lot of cash into this so is it worth that price? It's the only place to get Sam and Gollum.

I'm starting to think maybe the best way to get the most playable LotR fellowship is to go for Helm's Deep (Aragorn, Gimli), Shelob (Sam, Frodo), Gandalf Arrives (Gandalf, another Frodo), and suck it up on ebay for Legolas ($20), Pippin ($10), Merry ($10), and Boromir ($10). Heck, I dunno. They aren't making it easy this time out. If there were a Hobbit set with Sam, Pippin, Merry, and Frodo out there- it would uncomplicate matters. And some fighting scene with Legolas, Aragorn, and Gimli. But that's likely not going to happen as Lego does a pretty good job of spacing out the sets so you can't get all the major characters on the cheap.

The closest I can come up with on that end was the Avengers set I described above:
30163 ($5): Thor (no helmet, tho)
6865 ($12): Captain America
6867 ($20): Loki, Hawkeye, Iron Man
5000022 (Free with purchase in May): Mini-Hulk (but it's only Mini-hulk)
Missing: Black Widow (only in 6869)

SI