Lego Kingdoms at 2010 Toy Fair

[Heir of Black Falcon]

That is how I understand the rule as well B and W.

I am liking some of the torso designs. Especially the generic ones I can use how I wish. This looks like a good new spin on Castle. It will be nice to have a new baddie faction!

Heir

[Ye Olde Republic]

Pics from the New York Toyfair are starting to show up as well. These are from figures.com so they just don't really have the types of pics and views we afol's like to see but there are some interesting things to be seen.

The Harry Potter stuff looks like it will supplement Kingdoms nicely! Oh yeah, TURKEY in the Hogwarts castle!

Also of particular note (to myself anyway) is that the burrows seems to contain quite a bit of that new nougaty color, plenty of dark red slope and some new hair pieces. Yes, dark red slope in a fairly decent quantity and in shapes we've not seen before, such as 3x3 corners. It also has a pig, lattice panes in a colour that doesn't seem to be white (tan maybe?) and the dark tan bushes.

[DNL]

A new large picture of the great helm:

LINK
It looks very nice!

[Blueandwhite]

I'm absolutely loving the new great helm. Early photos really didn't do it any justice! The figures are amazing, but so are many of the new pieces including the portculis and the new 2x2 window brick. I love that neither faction have truly 'evil' faces like the Bulls or Vladek. It's nice to have two essentially neutral factions here. And finally a clear shot of the princess who has Weasly orange hair!

I'm still a bit disappointed that the breatplates continue to be faction specific, however the lion is generic enough that I suppose it could be used with any of the other lion based factions. I can find almost nothing negative to say about what looks to be an instant classic (with me at the very least). I suppose the only thing I've got against the tower set is that it almost looks as if it would be better served as an outpost for Forestmen or some other bandit group. The design is phenomenol but it doesn't feel like something that would be occupied by knights. The back is stunning though with it's staircase and ladders.

[Forestboy]

New pictures have arrived from the NY Toy Fair and someone from "From Bricks to Bothans" got high quality images of everything there...including Kingdoms! Here's the links

7946 King's Castle - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 436240830/ - $99.99* (USD) - 933 pcs
7947 Prison Tower Rescue - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 436303550/ - $49.99* (USD) - 365 pcs
7948 Outpost Attack - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 436282626/ - $19.99* (USD) - 194 pcs
7949 Prison Carriage Rescue - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 436382958/ - $10.99* (USD) - 50 pcs
7950 Knight's Showdown - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 311775731/ - $6.99* (USD) - 61 pcs
7953 Jester - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 311794169/ - $3.49 (Assumed)* (USD) - 22 pcs
7955 Wizard - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/se ... 311848505/ - $3.49 (Assumed)* (USD) - 19 pcs

For the most part, I predicted all of these prices. Some for the better, and some for the worse...

Enjoy! FBTB also has a vast majority of all the sets in high quality (like harry potter) so here's the link to the photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/

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My Thoughts:

7946 King's Castle - Honestly, I don't know what to think of it yet...you tell me!
7947 Prison Tower Rescue - I'm not really excited about the design of this one, it's got some great pieces and minifigs though. The price per piece ratio is pretty bad, in my opinion. The princess has a nice design and new hair color, but the same face...boo.
7948 Outpost Attack - This is going to be the one that, I'm guessing, is going to be bought the most (At least by AFOLs)((If you're offended by this, please, by all means, prove me wrong )). You've got three minifigs, a reasonable price per piece ratio, great pieces for making castles and expanding a piece collection (Like the corner ones).
7949 Prison Carriage Rescue - ...The price is waaaaayy to steep for this one. 50 pieces for $11 bucks? You're kidding right? Well, I'll probably buy it once, just so I can say I have it. It's nice for the minifigs right?
7950 Knight's Showdown - Personally, I'm a sucker for cheap sets, and I'm lovin' this one. Two minifigs, accessories, and good pieces. I'd probably buy a couple.
7953 Jester - Once again, sucker for cheap sets, and this one is looking great! This set is awesome for somebody who doesn't have one already. The only thing I don't like is the flags at the top. They look too awkward...
7955 Wizard - Yes! Black beard? I'm in heaven! So getting this set although the price is a bit steep. The only other thing that I don't like, is that the minifig doesn't have a printed chest! I'm still getting it though... (One more time, I'm a sucker for mini sets...)

Minifigs: Honestly...they're just reprints of crownies, not that they're anything wrong with that...for me. Crownies *In my opinion* are great. I've got about twenty, and I'm looking forward to having a three way battle with the two new ones in Kingdoms, but they're JUST REPRINTS. Just different colors and emblems, for the most part.

Concerns: Stickers...

Overall: Pretty stinking sweet...

Tell me what you think!

[Username]

I just keep refreshing the Kingdoms tag folder:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/tags/kingdoms/

[Blueandwhite]

Tell me what you think!

Since you asked...

I really like the Tower Rescue. While the piece count isn't particularly great, the figures and accessories in the set make a purchase worthwhile. The design is a bit different, but it's grown on me. This is really the spiritual successor to the Skeleton Tower right down to the pricing and the piece count. The fact that it has many of the elements I want (portculis, princess, brown bricks) makes it an easy purchase given that the figs and the horse's barding will likely be quite expensive on Bricklink.

Ironically, I'm totally unimpressed by the Outpost Attack which I consider to be the weakest set in the line. Another generic tower thrown together from the same few bits with another generic catapult. The price to piece ratio may be better than in the Tower Rescue, however there are fewer unique elements I actually want here. I think I'd rather just pick up a few generic soldiers from each faction off of Bricklink instead. Carrying forward that line of thinking, the Prison Carriage Rescue isn't as bad as you're making it out to be either. 3 figures and a horse for $9.99 isn't horrible by any stretch of the imagination. It's certainly going to be the easiest way to stock up on generic soldiers in this line unless something cheaper comes along.

I like the large castle quite a bit, however I would have liked to see a golden Great Helm instead of the standard King's crown which has been done to death. It looks like a solid set with a number of excellent elements which should be great for MOCing.

The minifigs actually look quite nice to me. I would hardly call them 'reprints' as they are actually fairly distinct from the earlier Castle line. It's quite nice to see some knights with back printing which seems to have become a standard for LEGO these days. Overall I'm quite excited for this line. I will definitely be looking to add a few of these guys to my collection.

[maniac29]

The sets are looking better and better.

So is the forestman from the figure line. http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=420470

[Nicker]

The sets are looking better and better.

So is the forestman from the figure line. http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=420470

If I had to take a wild guess I think Lego may introduce a third faction in Kingdoms for 2011 that may just happen to be a redo/update of the forestmen faction. It makes sense to me especially with the initial sets int he Kingdoms lien being similar to older Lego castle sets and themes.

[rogue27]

Prison Tower Rescue is my favorite of the bunch. 6 figs, 2 of the new helmets, two new plumes (one in a new color), barding, a good looking building, and some dark greens. However, the king's barding in the castle is much cooler, but the stickers are a real turn-off and the red/white color scheme of that faction doesn't interest me as much.

Regarding Robin Hood, it is cool and I want at least two, but I don't like how mushy and dull the forestman cap looks compared to the original. They also blew their chance to make the bow and quiver in dark brown which would have been a crowd pleaser. Likewise for not making the plume in a new color. Purple, orange, or dark blue would have been awesome.

[The Wolfpack Boss]

Wow. A new Robin Hood figure. Excellent, excellent. (I'll gladly try to "forget" about Elves if this means that an updated Forestmen theme is forthcoming)

So ... on faction names ... what are we looking at here?

Red Lions, Green Dragons?

[Forestboy]

Wow. A new Robin Hood figure. Excellent, excellent.

So ... on faction names ... what are we looking at here?

Red Lions, Green Dragons?

I guess so. In brickipedia, right now it's just "The Red Kingdom" and "The Green Kingdom". But I guess those names would make sense. They're not very interesting, you gotta' admit though.

[rogue27]

Wow. A new Robin Hood figure. Excellent, excellent.

So ... on faction names ... what are we looking at here?

Red Lions, Green Dragons?

The set names and packaging do not appear to suggest faction names. Hopefully they'll leave that to the imagination.

[The Wolfpack Boss]

Wow. A new Robin Hood figure. Excellent, excellent.

So ... on faction names ... what are we looking at here?

Red Lions, Green Dragons?

The set names and packaging do not appear to suggest faction names. Hopefully they'll leave that to the imagination.

That itself is in keeping with the throwback to the old early-80's Castle stuff, too. I don't recall the Crusaders/Lions and the Black Falcons ACTUALLY having those names. They were just the names of some of the sets (Crusader Cart, Black Falcons' Fortress) that stuck with the fans. It's smart. I do see "Dark Knight Tower" on the prototype box for the Prison Tower ... but I think "Dark Knights" seems both way too plain and way too much like Batman.

Ah, my imagination is already going wild. A new branch of my ever-expanding "Coalition of Lions and Crowns" ... and some new mercenary knights from houses of less repute. Very good, indeed.

[Forestboy]

Wow. A new Robin Hood figure. Excellent, excellent.

So ... on faction names ... what are we looking at here?

Red Lions, Green Dragons?

The set names and packaging do not appear to suggest faction names. Hopefully they'll leave that to the imagination.

That itself is in keeping with the throwback to the old early-80's Castle stuff, too. I don't recall the Crusaders/Lions and the Black Falcons ACTUALLY having those names. They were just the names of some of the sets (Crusader Cart, Black Falcons' Fortress) that stuck with the fans. It's smart. I do see "Dark Knight Tower" on the prototype box for the Prison Tower ... but I think "Dark Knights" seems both way too plain and way too much like Batman.

Yes, but 7946 King's Castle is just "King's Castle" so far and "Castle" at the NY toy fair.

EDIT: Oh and on "Dark Knight Tower", the set name is 7947 Prison Tower Rescue (So far!). The box is still a preliminary image though meaning, it could be "Dark Knight Tower", but not likely (Prove me wrong )

But weren't crownies made up by fans (for the most part)? Fans just took the thing that was all over their armor and turned it into the name. Maybe that will happen with these two new ones. Lionknights V2? Dragon Masters V2?