Review - 7041 - Troll Battle Wheel
Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 10:17 pm
7041 - Troll Battle Wheel
508 pieces
$39.99 (MSRP)
Box
The whole hulking battle wheel
Just the battle
Just the wheels
Knights' barricade
Good guys
Nasty stinky orcses
• Gallery (once moderated)
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Parts: 6/10
The first thing that jumped out at me are the 2x6 plates that make up the wheels– they're a dark brown color I hadn't seen before, or at least not in a large quantity like this. They're somewhere between regular brown and black and give a nice evil edge to the model. There are also plenty of black hinge bricks, silvery tooth pieces, brown 2x2 cylinders, and silvery spears. I could easily see building MOCers getting some good use out of the brown and dark brown parts.
Minifigs: 8/10
You get three crown knights (two with the new Impulse "cloth" torso) and three "trolls" (orcs, from here on out). The knights come with several weapons and a shield, while the orcs have one of the new bronze blades, a black skull armor, and three new orc helmets– two speckled silver, one bronze. The crown knights what we've come to expect from other Castle sets with the only exciting bit being the Impulse torsos. I'm honestly not sure how I feel about the new orc helmets– I think I'd like them better if they were just black or dark bley rather than shiny or speckled. One big annoyance is that, because the helmets lay flush against a minfig's body, putting one on an armored fig will more often than not end with the helmet wobbling off when you pick the fig up because it sits so high. Very annoying. Overall, getting three mostly generic figs for each side is nice in that both groups can fill in an army nicely.
Detail: 5/10
I'll be honest: it looked a lot better on the box. The wheels are massive and creatively built, but once you get beyond them there really isn't a whole lot to the set: unless you're looking at the set at the angle depicted on the box, the whole thing just looks "there". I was one of the people that thought it was a very funny idea and seemed very "crazy goblin"-like, but in person it just isn't that impressive. The knight's barricade isn't anything to write home about.
Playability: 8/10
I'm trying to think from a kid's perspective for this one, and I think TLC got it right. You've got knights getting ready to smooshed flat, crazy orcs riding around a massive war machine, a firing missile (of course...?) to poke your sister's eye out, and enough figs to arm both halves of the conflict. From an AFOL's perspective, I think the set serves a better role of inspiring alternate building ideas: I can imagine a ridiculously menacing six-wheeled battle machine using these same wheels, for example.
Price to parts: 5/10
Simply put, this "limited edition" set seems way overpriced for what you end up with. I don't know if it's because it's a TRU thing again, but if I had the choice I would not buy it again when the best parts (the minifigs) are all going to be readily available in 2008.
Availability: 5/10
It's still hard to find, from what I hear.
OVERALL RATING: 5/10
After I purchased this set, I gave myself a couple days debating whether I wanted to return it or not but (obviously) decided to keep and build it for this review. I took it apart almost immediately after taking the pictures and have put most of the pieces in my storage bin for parts. Being a minifig enthusiast I'm happy to have more crown knights and a few of the newly armored orcs, but I'm hard-pressed to find other positives. For a set that seemed like a lot of fun at first glance, it ultimately seems over-priced and flat.
---------------------------------------------
Ratings (on a scale of 1 to 10):
Parts: 6/10
Minifigs: 8/10
Detail: 5/10
Playability: 8/10
Price to parts: 5/10
Availability: 5/10
OVERALL RATING: 5/10
m19
508 pieces
$39.99 (MSRP)
Box
The whole hulking battle wheel
Just the battle
Just the wheels
Knights' barricade
Good guys
Nasty stinky orcses
• Gallery (once moderated)
---------------------------------------------
Parts: 6/10
The first thing that jumped out at me are the 2x6 plates that make up the wheels– they're a dark brown color I hadn't seen before, or at least not in a large quantity like this. They're somewhere between regular brown and black and give a nice evil edge to the model. There are also plenty of black hinge bricks, silvery tooth pieces, brown 2x2 cylinders, and silvery spears. I could easily see building MOCers getting some good use out of the brown and dark brown parts.
Minifigs: 8/10
You get three crown knights (two with the new Impulse "cloth" torso) and three "trolls" (orcs, from here on out). The knights come with several weapons and a shield, while the orcs have one of the new bronze blades, a black skull armor, and three new orc helmets– two speckled silver, one bronze. The crown knights what we've come to expect from other Castle sets with the only exciting bit being the Impulse torsos. I'm honestly not sure how I feel about the new orc helmets– I think I'd like them better if they were just black or dark bley rather than shiny or speckled. One big annoyance is that, because the helmets lay flush against a minfig's body, putting one on an armored fig will more often than not end with the helmet wobbling off when you pick the fig up because it sits so high. Very annoying. Overall, getting three mostly generic figs for each side is nice in that both groups can fill in an army nicely.
Detail: 5/10
I'll be honest: it looked a lot better on the box. The wheels are massive and creatively built, but once you get beyond them there really isn't a whole lot to the set: unless you're looking at the set at the angle depicted on the box, the whole thing just looks "there". I was one of the people that thought it was a very funny idea and seemed very "crazy goblin"-like, but in person it just isn't that impressive. The knight's barricade isn't anything to write home about.
Playability: 8/10
I'm trying to think from a kid's perspective for this one, and I think TLC got it right. You've got knights getting ready to smooshed flat, crazy orcs riding around a massive war machine, a firing missile (of course...?) to poke your sister's eye out, and enough figs to arm both halves of the conflict. From an AFOL's perspective, I think the set serves a better role of inspiring alternate building ideas: I can imagine a ridiculously menacing six-wheeled battle machine using these same wheels, for example.
Price to parts: 5/10
Simply put, this "limited edition" set seems way overpriced for what you end up with. I don't know if it's because it's a TRU thing again, but if I had the choice I would not buy it again when the best parts (the minifigs) are all going to be readily available in 2008.
Availability: 5/10
It's still hard to find, from what I hear.
OVERALL RATING: 5/10
After I purchased this set, I gave myself a couple days debating whether I wanted to return it or not but (obviously) decided to keep and build it for this review. I took it apart almost immediately after taking the pictures and have put most of the pieces in my storage bin for parts. Being a minifig enthusiast I'm happy to have more crown knights and a few of the newly armored orcs, but I'm hard-pressed to find other positives. For a set that seemed like a lot of fun at first glance, it ultimately seems over-priced and flat.
---------------------------------------------
Ratings (on a scale of 1 to 10):
Parts: 6/10
Minifigs: 8/10
Detail: 5/10
Playability: 8/10
Price to parts: 5/10
Availability: 5/10
OVERALL RATING: 5/10
m19