Weekly Set Review: Crossbow Boat

[Sir Dillon]

I like Sava's explanation
this set isn't enything great, but it's O.K. for two bucks. It has a nice fig, crossbows, oars and a shield
5/10

[TheOrk]

Not that great a set but you get oars. 5/10

[Dusty]

I have one. Wish I would have gotten more to kinda build up my army. Oh well. 7/10

Dusty

[Formendacil]

My younger brother has this set. I used to be somewhat jealous, but I think that had more to do with the fact that it was a Royal Knights set I didn't own than because of any intrinsite value in the set itself.

Designwise, the set is nothing much. No real building pieces, lack of good weapons (I've never been a huge crossbow fan). On the plus side, I like the soldier, and oars are great to get (although I think I'm good by now). But I've always thought that the mounted crossbows made the "front" too lopsided.

Parts: 4/10
Playability: 5/10
Figs/Accessories: 6/10
Design (then): 4.5/10
Design (now): 5/10

Overall Score: 4.9/10

[TwoTonic Knight]

A nice little set. You get a shield, a couple of crossbows and a small boat to go punting around the local lake or moat. I wouldn't put the shield or crossbows actually on the boat. 7/10

[JoshWedin]

Mr. Sava's explanation is the best! I just had a discussion with my son about his pirates facing the wrong way as they row and I didn't even notice it in this set.

I don't own this set but never really wanted it. The boat design is boring and it doesn't come with anything I ever really needed or wanted. I have never really liked the Royal Knights either. At the time, it was probably a good buy and a decent army builder but not much more.

Josh

[Loneranger]

Ahh ye! I remember playing with this set after opening 6044. I was pretending our light blue carpet was the ocean., as he made his way to a strange dark blue sand beach

To make a long story short the King's Carriage passed by the dark blue sand beach and rescued him.

As a child I found this set to have rare items in it, I didn't have any crossbows untill I got this set and I was overjoyed to get two.

I'll give this set a 6 out of 10

[Nicholas]

Ahh, the Royal marines one man support vessel. Naval Superiority!! hmm, all these little boats annoy me a bit yet makes me wonder, why dont they built a real ship. The biggest i have seen this far is the black knights ship and that has nothing to rival it.
this is not a verry good set, but I guess it may be worth something as an armybuilder (if you want an army concisting mainly of crossbowmen) for the royal knights. personally I think this is a rather pathetic set.
(there i hope i got it right this time )

[Farithdir]

A boring set......very little point as i see it.......I never really understood how a set designer was payed to come up with something crude like this. It would have been slightly better maybe if it was a wagon instead of a boat.

[Jyp]

It's an Escape and Life Raft.

Yesss!!
These is the only reason about this design. But an escape raft for just one soldier is unrealistic: the royal army must have much money to offer one boat to each soldier!

Stupid set.

Indeed, stupid, incoherent set!

Only two more studs longer would be very better as a realistic small boat:
- for another soldier (using the crossbows);
- for place to carry anything else that these weapons which cannot be used;
- for a barrel or weapons to supply the army;
- for a soldier who rows and one or two people he carries, for example to cross the castle ditches or a river;
- etc.?

These two studs = one euro more? not very expensive!

So: 5.5/10

[Norro]

This is the only Royal Knight set I missed, except for the catapult/fire truck? combo.... I guess that's where the regret stems from...

God Bless,

Nathan

[TwoTonic Knight]

I mean, look. The guy is rowing in the boat, right? Ok, well, to those who are uninformed - when rowing a boat, the direction you are facing is the opposite direction in which you travel.

This is not entirely accurate. You can row in the direction you are facing, but it usually done while standing up - you use your legs to push your upper body forward, adding to the rowing motion.

Flat bottomed boats turn very quickly with oarlocks. You can't compare them to kayaks or canoes.

But, yeah, that's a "shoot my pursuers" configuration.

[Jim]

The set certainly has some valuable parts - I never seem to have enough crossbows. Anthony covered design pretty well, so my only contribution is along Lone Rangers discussion of playability. I also got this set, and the plate on the bottom of the boat tends to catch in the carpet, and it doesn't glide along as it should.

I mean, what's the use of a boat that you can't sail the family room carpet with?!? A little boat like this can't feasilbly get from room-to-room, even Thor Heyerdahl wouldn't attempt it!

Jim

[ottoatm]

It's an Escape and Life Raft.

This is what I've used it for in my lil' story... as the Batlord and his cronies are storming across the royal drawbridge set and attacking this caslte... I have one lion night escape anihilation by jumping in the boat and running for his life...

someday i'll actually have to post my story,


anyway...OK set, if you take it for what it is... lots or nice little parts you can't just find anywhere, and a minifig to boot. What you do with it from there is up to you.

6/10

[DraconisTerrena]

I'd be shocked if it had more than 20 pieces, but it seems like a decent army builder. You get a Royal Knight footman with a shield and two crossbows. I'd have preferred a spear or some other sort of close-combat weapon, but crossbowmen are a good army addition too. And close-combat weapons aren't especially rare, really. Especially spears; I have more than I know what to do with. I'd give it a 7/10, purely as an army builder.