Why you like Castle

Mr. D · Post by **Mr. D** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 3:09 pm

Ok, something came up recently when I was corresponding by e-mail with a friend who is an Adventurers fan. I told him that I had changed to Castle (I use to like the Adventurers the best), and here are the reasons I gave for liking Castle best (keep in mind that I'm comparing and contrasting Adventurers with Castle): "I still like the Adventurers, but…well…It seems like there’s more playability in Castle. I mean, Adventurers is basically about a treasure, go after it, villains try to stop them, they have to avoid age-old traps and curses, and finally they get the treasure. That’s pretty fun, but they have to find the treasure sometime and go home, they can’t keep roaming about forever. Also, there’s only about one or two basic categories for buildings in Adventurers; old temples, and palace/castles in which treasure is hidden. In Castle, the hero can be a peasant, or a king, or anything in between, and they can have an Adventurers type of adventure (looking for treasure), or they can fight villain armies. They can find dragons and defeat them; they can roam around winning jousts

, and much more. In other words, the possible story lines are much broader. Buildings can be lots of different styles of houses and/or shops; and there are thousands of different styles and sizes of towers, walls, and keeps; not to mention a huge variety of castles. Maybe it’s just my creative bent, but I find it a lot easier to build and create in Castle." What do you think? Why do you like (or not like) Castle the best?

*EDIT* Ok, he replied and pointed out that Adventurers can go anywhere in time and space, while Castle is limited to medieval Europe. He's right, except that UK is usually not considered Europe, and neither is Japan

; so I'm wrong in that you have more building freedom with Adventurers. Don't get me wrong, I still like Adventurers. The Johnny Thunder head makes an excellent hero knight's head, though.

Mr. D

Kev · Post by **Kev** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 7:28 pm

I like the adventurers, and occasionally have them "raid" one of my castles, looking for long-abandoned treasure. 6086 is especially good for this.

SirCumferance · Post by **SirCumferance** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 7:52 pm

I like castle because of its simplicity. For example, with space, (which I also like) things can get so complicated. Like having to have a hyperdrive on your ship, engines, cockpit, and its just harder to build things. With castle, however, it is based on more simple, less chaotic (I think) times. All I have to do is lay brick on top of brick, and it reminds me of when I was around 4, and I got my first box of Legos from my brother. (not that I am very old, only 13

) I like the swords, armour, and all the cool stuff. So, uh, yeah.

Post by **SavaTheAggie** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:06 pm

The reason why I'm drawn to Castle is that I hate guns.

No, I'm not someone who wants to take people's guns away, in fact I own a few myself. I love guns, I do.

But I feel the sword and the arrow and the axe are things that have much more honor and skill attached to them. Anyone can point a gun and shoot someone, granted, it takes skill to do it at great distance, but it's not terribly difficult. It really takes skill to defend yourself and attack someone with a sword or axe, and it takes much skill to learn how to fire an arrow. I know, I've tried

I'm not bad with an arrow though.

And there's really no such thing as an annoymous killing with swords and axes and arrows. Yes, the arrow is lethal at a good distance, but no where near as great a distance as with a gun, and there's only so far you can shoot an arrow before it becomes useless to aim. I believe the maximum range is a football field. And with swords and axes, well, you have to be almost at arms length.

With space and other themes, city life is much the same as it is in castle, but warfare is much more annoymous and not nearly as honorable. And that's why I like Castle... and why I was a violent child on the playground

--Anthony

Mani · Post by **Mani** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:26 pm

I love castle because I love fantasy books and movies. Then I'm not building real-time medieval stuff, but Tolkien-inspired fantasy stuff. There's also the fact that castle is the Lego theme I have most of. And the reason I love fantasy is possibly that when I'm feeling uncomfortable in the real world with wars and fools and destructed earths, it's good to have another world to read about. Or build in Lego.

LEGOFREAK · Post by **LEGOFREAK** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:31 pm

I love castle because ... well.... it's all about castle. Ever since I was a kid I have liked Knights, swords, armor, castles, etc. Anything to do with this stuff I love.
Lego Castle is awesome for the fact that it lets me take some of the stuff in my brain and make it a reality.
Would that the rest of my life were so simple

LF

David Girard · Post by **David Girard** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:34 pm

I'm agree with you Mr. D that there is a lot of possibilities for playing in Lego Castle. That's probably one of the main reason of the success of this line. Space and Town also have a lot of posibilities.

But the main reason is because I'm really passionate by the Middles Ages. I read a lot of books on this subject. And my favorite period is th early middle ages, after the roman falling. From about 450 to 700. What's interest me the most is the melting of 2 differents culturs to make another: Germans and Romans. This is the beginning of occidental society.

I guess that Lego is one of many things that make me love more and more this era. But it's not the main reason. I remember being interested by robin hood and castles before I got my first Lego Castle (7 years old).

One of the other thing that made me be more interested in middle ages was 2 video games called "Wonder boy II" (1988?) and "Golvellius" (1988). It was on Sega Master system. I was addict of this game Golvellius. Maybe some of you know it.

The origin of this passion stay unknown, it's maybe a sum of many good experiences with books, films, Lego, and video games.

SirCumferance · Post by **SirCumferance** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:54 pm

David Girard wrote:The origin of this passion stay unknown, it's maybe a sum of many good experiences with books, films, Lego, and video games.

Yeah, playing Warcraft 3, and just the general stradegy games inspires me. It makes me want to play games like BrickQuest and Brikwars. Have any of you played the RPG maps for WC3? Very, very fun.

Post by **Bruce N H** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 9:27 pm

Like Mani, I love fantasy literature (Tolkien, Lewis, LeGuin, McCaffery*, etc.), and that spills over into my LEGO passion.

BTW, Mani, could you post pictures of your Tolkien creations, I'd love to see them.

Bruce

*Yes, I know, the Pern books have a sci-fi cover story, but the world is essentially fantasy in all but a couple of the books.

JPinoy · Post by **JPinoy** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 12:17 am

I was a space and town fan when I was much younger. I then got tired of the pretending that lasers were being shot and moved to a theme with weapons. At first Pirate, but the darn ships just cost alot and there some things that I felt were a bit limited. So I then moved to Castle and have been on it til around 1998 when I decided to Ancients, all thanks to Age of Empires.

Since then its been Ancients theme using mostly Castle figs, weapons, parts, and etc. Then around 2000, I thought I'd push it back further by making things "ante-deluvian" rather than just plain old aicnets. This made me keep on looking for info on THE OLDEST possible era of a particular civilization. Example: instead of Greece around Alexander's time, it was the oldest form of Greek culture (but after the arrival of Dorian and Ionian cultures), the culture of the Mycenae.

Then I thought.... screw timelines, make it a historical-fiction/fantasy theme.

Have Mycenae soldiers use 8-shaped shields rather than Hoplons, but have long Alexandrian era pikes, while having heavy plate armor of the classical greek hoplite.

Toxotes, Hippikons, Myrmidons, and Panolpies

Troy T. Moore · Post by **Troy T. Moore** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 12:22 am

The short of it is, that I really have a strong attraction to the middle ages. Particularily castles/fortresses, arms and armour. Like Anthony, I am not fond of gunpowder nor the detachment when taking anothers life with a firearm.

I have a few real swords (Del Tin) as well as some maille I have made. I have made leather armour and steel helmets also. I occasionally get dressed up in tunic and trews and the 14th century turnshoes which I also crafted. I have books on arms, armour and castles. I prefer decent medieval flicks; Robin Hood- Prince of Thieves, Braveheart, etc.

Truth be told, for the average person living in that time period, life was short and miserable. But for the lords and ladies... I like some Viking stuff through the 15th century and have no tolerance for gunpowder (I also own two rifles) in my Lego castle world. Roman arms and armour is also of some interest.

I got the "yellow" castle when I was 6 (which I still have all but 2 shields which were broke years ago, I have the visors

) and undoubtedly that has had a profound effect on my interests. I like all Lego, in th e sense that it offers the same creativity to others with different base interests. Castle Lego is almost the most realistic castle toy there is, but is certainly the most versatile.

lemon_squeezer2 · Post by **lemon_squeezer2** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 12:36 am

I really don't know why I like castle. I think its almost something of a mix with what is in my history cirriculum this year (middle ages through the french revolution) and my facination with the epic battle scenes in the Lord of the Rings, The Last Samuiri (sp), etc.

Linus · Post by **Linus** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 1:21 am

Castle is my favorite theme. I don't know why, but mabey it's the fact I hate guns. I have always liked midevil weapons. Castles and knights have always seemed so much cooler than tanks and guns.
Here's a list of my favorite themes:
1.Castle

2.Town/Trains
3.Pirates
4.Adventurers
5.Space

Glencaer · Post by **Glencaer** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 1:25 am

Truth be told, for the average person living in that time period, life was short and miserable.

I'm not sure this is entirely correct. I saw a show called "Medieval Life with Terry Something" (a guy from monty python) about Peasants. Their conclusion was that life wasn't as horrible as we often think. One number I found interesting was that the time a peasant had to work for their lord was less than the time the average auto-worker has to work today. And given humanity's ability to make the best of not-so-good situations, I'd say there was a fair amount of happiness.

Why do I like the medieval ages?

Because i feel there was so much potential back then - more community and connection with the earth.

I'm more impressed with someone who can use a sword or bow (having tried both fencing and archery).

I like the concepts of honor and virtue, things I think we've forgotten now a days.

I like massive buildings like castles. I've been to the fort at St.Augustine, which is hardly a castle, and it is really a powerful looking structure.

hmm.. i think thats all.

-lenny

akochan · Post by **akochan** » Thu Feb 05, 2004 3:03 am

I think all the lego classic set lines (Space, Town, Castle, Pirates) and even /some/ of the newer ones are good. But the reason I love castle so much is because long before lego made castles, I loved castles. One of the first non-picture books I owned was the Hobbit, one of the first reference books I owned was the David McCaulley (sp?) book Castle.

-Andy