Vladek's Dark Fortress - Most Fun LEGO Castle Set EVER!

[Graynar]

Greetings fellow Classic Castle!

I'm a bit late to post this but oh well.

Many of you here are talking about how Sava helped you want to buy this castle. Indeed, this castle is quite impresive. The combination of Black and dark red in the Castle's design is really worth drooling over. The taste the rainbow knights sadly, still look pretty bad. Well, i'm no critic(i think) but I think Santis looks more poweranger like than the first one. Mostly because of the big bear design on his sheild and armour.

But the the Knights do not upset the set at all really. You get three Metalic colored shadow knights, and those dudes rock! If you're a fan of the new metalic printing that is. I find the ballista design strange. How do you launch the missle? I guess I'll have to wait to find out when I purchase this dark fortress.

Anyway, I hope to see some new armours in the Kingdom of Ikros!

[Troy T. Moore]

Ordered mine today from S@H. I also got one for each of my 2 kids...for Christmas. So on the 26th of December I will be able to tell you how I like it Seriously though, ever since BloodJay's photo review on Eurobricks, I knew I must have it.... Anthony's approval confirmed it . Plus I can tell my wife it was his fault that I ordered them.

[Draygen]

I got mine last week, and I must say its everything I thought it could be. A great castle with an actual interior, built up high enough to do some real seiging. I suppose if I had the money, buying a 2nd and trying to connect the two to make a full all around fortress would be awesome. For now I'll settle for one cool looking place to do battle.

Sidenote, I LOVE the ballista and catapult that come with it. I know some people have spoken badly about them, but I Really think they're some cool seige engines that I wouldn't mind getting more of.

[kingkastle]

While I am still not a fan of the actual set I just ordered two more of these to accompany my other as parts fodder. Managed to snag them at $90 Cdn each through Ebay instead of the $140 Toys R Us is asking. WOOHOO more elite shadow knights and dark red Vladek Armor ( yes I actually do like the new figs, even the jelly bean armor )

[ottoatm]

I'm goin' to pick it up today... maybe in 20mins? I'll be able to give a better review then... I must say... most fun set of all time? Well... I am excited to find out!

[wlister]

You read that right, folks.

My dear, lovely wife bought me Vladek's Dark Fortress for my birthday this year, and after building it I have to say that this is the most fun LEGO Castle set ever produced.

I mean, this thing is loaded with some of the coolest gadgets, gizmos and siege engines ever included in one set. Both my nephews (8 and 6 years old) were over for my birthday party, and the had a ball playing with the set.

Set design wise, I'd say its the best LEGO Castle we've seen since the Black Knight's Castle. Better than Dragon Masters, Fright Knights, Ninja, KK1, and KK2.1. Built with old colors, I'd even say it approaches the level of the Black Monarch's Castle (as far as black castles go), though it does use too many 1x1x5 and 1x2x5 bricks.

Overall I give it a 7 out of 10, giving it an 8 or 8.5 if it were built with old colors. For playability alone (two kids, sitting on the floor with the set between them) I'd give it an 11 out of 10.

Why?

Well, lets start at the beginning. The set is BIG. 80 studs wide, and no shallower than 12 studs at any point.

The set comes with 8 figs - an equal number of bad guys to good guys. I'd say very few sets have ever done this.

The good guys get a horse mounted catapult (which is pretty fun, albeit silly), a horse drawn catapult (slammer), an oddly constructed but functional ballista, and a minifig held, brick built battering ram (which when combined with the castle's breakaway wall is very cool).

The bad guys get two flaming buzz saw catapults (which are really fun to fling), a working drawbridge with the neatest design, and a self loading, remotely pouring barrel of oil. The castle also comes with several nifty touches like a fireplace and a crystal ball, and walls with spears sticking out of them that reminded me a lot of something out of a trench warfare stock reel.

Now it does have a hefty price tag - $100 US, but it also comes with 300 more pieces than the previous KK2 castle for only $10 more (almost 1000 pieces total!).

And I will say this - For the first time in a very, very long time... I would be willing to pay the full price for this castle (if I were to want another one). The piece assortment (10 6x16 plates in dark tan, possibly the same number in dark red), the figs (chrome knights!), even the jelly bean knights look better in their new color schemes.

I happily put my stamp of approval on this set, and whole-heartedly recommend it. In my opinion, LEGO has finally begun to turn their design slump around.

--Anthony

Well after Anthony's Glowing review, I finally broke down and ordered this set. In fact I ordered 2. I needed something to play with until the Vikings arrive. There are a few sales codes out there that really help the Canadian buyer. I managed to get these for $99.99 ea regular $139.99. So I definitely hope it lives up to the hype.

Will

[Draygen]

140?? sheesh. I got mine for 99.99, off S@H, rather rough if they're uping the prices that hardcore some places.

[Bloody Jay]

140?? sheesh. I got mine for 99.99, off S@H, rather rough if they're uping the prices that hardcore some places.

Canadian dollars. In comparison, he got his for about $83 USD.

[wlister]

Hi All,

My two Vladek's Fortresses arrived today. I must say that Anthony was right! This is one heckuva great set. I am glad I broke down and ordered these. I also picked up 5 - 8874 Battle Wagons and 5 - 8873 Fireball Catapult. All at great discount prices! Thanks to the handy catalog codes we have available here in Canada. I also ordered another 3 Chess sets to go with my other 4. Now comes the tough part, sorting all this stuff...

I built one fortress, it took about 35 minutes, which is pretty good for a castle set. This is the longest I have spent building a Lego Castle set since the 6080, so I was definitly impressed. I can't wait to add all these figs into my collection.

The details in this castle are great and the assortment of figs while a little lighter than I would like are still great. I am not fond of the speckled look for the pikes, but the armor and barbute helms look all right in person. I do wish there were more of the Vladek oval shields in the set. I would love to outfit the whole Vladek army with them.

I also like the inclusion of more horses in this years sets, Now I hope we will see some reddish brown horses show up later this year, I know, its heresy, but more colors of horses would be sweet. I'd even like to see some bley horses. Some barding for the Jellybean knight horses would also have been a great bonus.

In all, this is if not the most fun large castle set we have ever seen, it is pretty close. Even with bley parts, this castle ranks right up there with the 6086 and the 6080 in terms of fun. I really like the fact we didn't get stuck with another giant useless baseplate as well, I hope this trend continues.

Will

[Graynar]

Hi guys!

I feel a little left out, not having this set yet. I've been staring at the picture in the catalog for a long time. Darn! Me wants it. Me very wants its.

Umm, does this castle have a lot of juniorized pieces? Looks like it does.

Just wondering, Graynar.

[The Hordesman]

Umm, does this castle have a lot of juniorized pieces? Looks like it does.

Just wondering, Graynar.

No. just a few.

[chump]

I built one fortress, it took about 35 minutes, which is pretty good for a castle set. This is the longest I have spent building a Lego Castle set since the 6080, so I was definitly impressed.

35 minutes? Is that all? Stop along the way and smell the ABS!

Mine just arrived today at the office. Three honking huge boxes of Lego, due to the awesomeness of the Canadian catalog codes. Conveniently they just barely fit underneath an empty desk so I don't have to explain their existence to co-workers.

[Nick]

Well, it is good for its parts but not for its building or visual value. None of these new castles are good, actually. I would not spend more than several pounds on this set.

[The Hordesman]

Well, it is good for its parts but not for its building or visual value. None of these new castles are good, actually. I would not spend more than several pounds on this set.

With other words, your quantity count is 0...

[Graynar]

Hello guys!

I got VDC for my birthday, but that's not for another 11 days! I gotta wait that long before I can construct this thing!

Oh man, I'm drowning in my drool.