I think in many ways, this theme is a bit overhated- and yes, I say that as a critic of this theme. I think it this was a classic case of good idea, bad timing. LEGO’s decision to make an affordable castle wave with 5 sets all around 200 dollars was quite noble, but releasing this just a year after arguably the greatest LEGO Castle line wrapped up was a massive mistake. I wish these sets came out in 15 or 16, would’ve been received better imo
Yes they should have taken a year break on castle but Lego over milk themes just look at Star Wars and all the other licensed garbage . They are starting to run out of ideas.
I don’t if its hated for the correct reasons. All these sets were as expensive as the previous ones and had far less flair. It’s rightfully seen another step of decline of the entire theme. Today all thats left are the big Icon sets, many of which are entirely feeding of nostalgia and a big part of the reason for that is that this very series buried classic castle. Just take a look at the previous castle battle packs. 5 minis for 15$ or 10€. This theme only had 4, for the same price.
I agree with your assessment. My main gripe was with myself honestly... back in the 2010's I was in elementary/highschool and I simply could not afford all the sets. The fact that LOTR/Hobbit were being released as well didn't help either. I started Castle with Fantasy era, then the (greatest one) Kingdoms, and finally Castle. I remember discussing the topic in my country's LUG at the time... we all felt that it was too soon after Kingdoms and that the colour scheme was "childish". The fact that the Green Knights from the predecessor are some of the very best looking LEGO knights didn't help. I do love the Red Dragons from this theme but they are still red, which is overused. Also the set designs somewhat regressed, and were kinda basic but I never really cared about that, since I disassemble everything and build my own shit. Give me brown Wolfpack, give me scary Fright Knights, Orks from sand-green all the way to the color red.
@@Arcaryon Yes this theme is now pricey now cause it become limited but back in 2013 $12, 20, 30,40 and 100 was not expensive at all. I bought castle 3 years for $110 that cost $100 in 2013.The battle packs costing $15 was kinda on the high side but they had so much detail.
I always loved 2013 castle. Sure, I can understand the criticism for some of the builds as I have heavily altered mine but the minifigures, gear and many of their war machines are so well made and underrated.
This was my theme back when I was a kid. This is the theme that got me into Lego. So I have deep nostalgia for it lol. I can see though now that the building style is very simple.
Fun fact: kingdoms tended to have small guard posts, similar in size to the “gold getaway” one, along the kings highway close to cities. It allowed the guard to extend their influence without building a whole guard house; a guard would take a shift there, either standing in the little kiosk or sitting at a table or chairs near it, weather depending. Once the shift was over they’d just walk back to the city (or catch a ride with a merchant, usually. Medieval Guardsmen were famous for Gold-Bricking).
You literally found the exact same run of sets that i got as a kid. I think i was old enough that I had one or two smaller kingdoms sets as well, (notably i DID get mill village raid) but this made up the majority of my lego castle stuff. Glad getting your hands on them could change your mind. For me as a kid i know i liked the lion knights in particular because i really loved the look of the fantasy era crown knights, but my parents thought i was too young to have lego then, so seeing some of the crown motifs come back on the figs really made me appreciate them.
These were the exact 3 sets that I had growing up (plus the dragon tower set). I followed Castle all the way from Castle fantasy, through kingdoms and into Castle 2013. know I’m a bit nostalgic so I can’t be objective, but I think out of the 3, this wave was my favourite. The builds were full of play features, the armies were diverse and it incorporated fantasy elements in a smart way. Obviously they aren’t super attractive to AFOLs but as a kid these sets were amazing. I even tried to “convert” the Kingdoms joust set from the Red lions to the blue lions because I preferred Castle over kingdoms. Something I obviously regret now but I was a kid that didn’t know better. Also for the “using a basic torso underneath armour so you can use the unique knight prints” thing: I love using this hack! The torso that I think works the best for this is the Harry Potter school uniform, because they have some small grey and gold texturings that are visible under the armour, making it look like there’s still a castle torso underneath.
Also when kingdoms last set had a falcon knight in the joust, everyone was expecting the theme to expand to have falcon knights too, as the lion knights were already seen as a newer version of the 80s lion knights.. so when 2013 castle came out… it was a big opportunity missed by Lego
While these came out 3 years after I got out of Lego, these are fire 🔥🔥. And I miss Knights Kingdom II, I don't see a lot of love for it, but man did I love it. One thing I miss about Lego is the comics that used to come with the sets! They added so much value IMO
I entered my "dark age" around 2013 so I missed out on these as well. Knights Kingdom 2 gets a lot of hate but there are some really sick sets from that theme.
If they make a new castle theme I think they shouldn’t make any new factions. They should use the factions they already have and make a huge wave of different castles and factions that connect together in the lore of Lego castle. It would be cool to see all the generations come together for an epic wave.
Those sets were great! I really love building and playing with it with my kids! Do miss that they aren’t playing anymore with LEGO, but they have excellent memories doing so. Thanks for the review!
I saw your army video a month or two ago and was super impressed by the amount of cavalry you had! They have definitely grown on me now that i have some. 😁
What I don't like about newer castle themes: The knights/soldiers all look the same. not much variety. Back in the ol' days they may have used the same torso for most figures but changed the arms, helmet, pants and belt. And the torso was more basic: just a plain armor, no fancy parts. And the second point: The new bad guys look like bad guys. Everybody has an angry face and the builds also say 'bad'. 30 years ago the factions and figures were more neutral. You could decide which one is bad. It was not mandatory.
I would love it SO MUCH if we get a new Castle wave and the first set is similar to the first one here or Kingdoms 7950, Knight's Showdown, just a basic, cheap set with 2 or 4 well designed figures. Would love to see Wolfpack/Fright Knights as the "villainous" faction and new Lions/Falcons as "good" guys.
Would love to see you get your hands on the strange and limited release 10176 Royal King’s Castle. It was the 2006 limited edition set only sold online and at Costco for the holiday season, and was meant as a throwback to Knights Kingdom I. A lot of the build feels very reminiscent of late 1990s Castle builds while also incorporating new pieces, feeling a lot like a transition set between classic Castle and what was becoming modern Castle. Did definitely feel more toyetic and playset-ish versus being a detailed display model. Given that it actually featured elements from KKII and even the minifigure of Sir Adric from KKII, I always thought it was meant to bridge KKI and KKII. I received the set as a child as basically one of my only Castle sets and I got a *lot* of mileage out of it, being the biggest system set I’ve ever owned until late last year when I bought the Creator 3-in-1 Castle. Sold quite badly it seems, though, and the set has become especially hard to find combined with its lower production run. Most pieces are reused from other sets, thankfully.
Wonderful video as always! And I told you so! :p Castle 2013 might not be revolutionary, but it still has a lot of charming features, I'd argue that Lego usually wants you to take the shields off of builds though! In the fantasy era crown knight's catapult instruction you can see that one of the soldiers actually ripped out one of the shields, because the set comes with 2 shields and the photos for it show the shield on the catapult and one of the minifigs holding another. Also more people need to learn to take off torsos from breastplate minifigs, it's the easiest way to get some extra figures for your armies!
I find it super interesting how you were salty about this theme replacing Kingdoms. My childhood theme was Castle fantasy era (2007-2009) and I hated Kingdoms as it replaced my favorite theme. Recently I bought a bunch of Kingdoms figs for pretty cheap from a friend and was so impressed with how good they are. I mean the dragon knights aren't as good as the troll warriors, but they're still so awesome and somehow even better than crown knights (I kind of regret not getting kingdoms back then). I think that a couple years age difference can affect your view on what theme you love and hate
@@Fire_2000If Lego brings back a medieval fantasy theme it should go like this Wave I - Human vs Human knights (can include wizards) Wave II - Bandits (Wolfpack) and Forest thieves (Forestmen) introduced Wave III - Trolls, elves and dwarves (also real dragons introduced)
i never had the 2 smaller sets, but i had the gatehouse and the castle growing up. i still have all the figures and i added them to the creator 3n1 castle
Try to purchase the lego movie castle cavalry, it will perfecly compliment with these 3 sets you owned speaking of the minigfig designs and the brick colors
IF YOU HAVE THE NEW 2021 BALCK FALCONS CASTLE could you do a review so I can see if it is a good buy? I think it is a good set but I would like if you could give a review or thoughts on it. I am a big fan of this channel and bless you with tremendous success in the future.
I didn’t buy any 2013 stuff bcoz I preferred kingdoms which I was still buying at that time. And at the time didn’t like the new horses.. but now ever since the 90th anniversary castle came out, I began buying the 2013 castle stuff like their horses in black and white color they don’t make anymore and barding and horse armor which they don’t make anymore.. but thanks to this video I am no longer going to use the horse head armor on my black or white horses but instead use them on the brown horses that u can get plenty of from pab
They print chestplates then....but Leave them blank now Lion Knight castle queens chestplate at the very least should have been printed especially for its price
I don't like overly complicated medieval builds that much. Like overly detailed stuff works for rough factions like wolf pack. But even forest should look relatively clean cut. Forest men building should look like they where built to be over grown.
This sub-theme always seemed like an unnecessary replacement to Kingdoms, but it does look cool. Maybe if Kingdoms got another year or two of love and then this theme came out I would have been more on-board.
This castle line-up looks so unfinished. These factions never got name, and it also seemed like a repeat of Fantasy Era but with a lot less sets and not enough different enemy designs. A missed opportunity on continuing indeed. Around this time, Pirates and Space suffered the same fate, and all the fun we loved went away.
Yeah, I can’t stand how Lego has been making super cheesy faces for all yellow heads lately. I don’t know why they can’t make mean and grumpy faces anymore.
I think in many ways, this theme is a bit overhated- and yes, I say that as a critic of this theme.
I think it this was a classic case of good idea, bad timing. LEGO’s decision to make an affordable castle wave with 5 sets all around 200 dollars was quite noble, but releasing this just a year after arguably the greatest LEGO Castle line wrapped up was a massive mistake. I wish these sets came out in 15 or 16, would’ve been received better imo
You're 100% right, if these came out around the same time as nexo knights it would have performed much better.
Yes they should have taken a year break on castle but Lego over milk themes just look at Star Wars and all the other licensed garbage . They are starting to run out of ideas.
I don’t if its hated for the correct reasons. All these sets were as expensive as the previous ones and had far less flair.
It’s rightfully seen another step of decline of the entire theme. Today all thats left are the big Icon sets, many of which are entirely feeding of nostalgia and a big part of the reason for that is that this very series buried classic castle.
Just take a look at the previous castle battle packs. 5 minis for 15$ or 10€. This theme only had 4, for the same price.
I agree with your assessment. My main gripe was with myself honestly... back in the 2010's I was in elementary/highschool and I simply could not afford all the sets. The fact that LOTR/Hobbit were being released as well didn't help either. I started Castle with Fantasy era, then the (greatest one) Kingdoms, and finally Castle.
I remember discussing the topic in my country's LUG at the time... we all felt that it was too soon after Kingdoms and that the colour scheme was "childish". The fact that the Green Knights from the predecessor are some of the very best looking LEGO knights didn't help. I do love the Red Dragons from this theme but they are still red, which is overused. Also the set designs somewhat regressed, and were kinda basic but I never really cared about that, since I disassemble everything and build my own shit.
Give me brown Wolfpack, give me scary Fright Knights, Orks from sand-green all the way to the color red.
@@Arcaryon Yes this theme is now pricey now cause it become limited but back in 2013 $12, 20, 30,40 and 100 was not expensive at all. I bought castle 3 years for $110 that cost $100 in 2013.The battle packs costing $15 was kinda on the high side but they had so much detail.
Those 3 for $8,- sealed? That is a hell of a steal. Awesome deal!
I was extremely lucky! The bags were sealed and included the instructions but not the boxes. Yard sales are the best for finding deals on lego.
I wish I had that luck
I wish I was that lucky not even a genie can get me that lucky😂
I was just about to to comment the same ..... That's a ridiculous find
I always loved 2013 castle. Sure, I can understand the criticism for some of the builds as I have heavily altered mine but the minifigures, gear and many of their war machines are so well made and underrated.
This was my theme back when I was a kid. This is the theme that got me into Lego. So I have deep nostalgia for it lol. I can see though now that the building style is very simple.
Same
The Lion Knights in this wave always reminded me of Alliance troops from Warcraft, love it.
4:30 this side build is actually essential because they needed a place to put the frog
lol
I own 2 of these and it makes me wish Lego would do a medieval theme again
I would kill for a new castle theme! It's crazy that the last one retired almost a decade ago at this point.
I bought these a while back and it makes me happy when you upload
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked these sets! And thank you so much :)
Fun fact: kingdoms tended to have small guard posts, similar in size to the “gold getaway” one, along the kings highway close to cities. It allowed the guard to extend their influence without building a whole guard house; a guard would take a shift there, either standing in the little kiosk or sitting at a table or chairs near it, weather depending. Once the shift was over they’d just walk back to the city (or catch a ride with a merchant, usually. Medieval Guardsmen were famous for Gold-Bricking).
Great point actually. I might have to keep that in mind for my mocs :)
You literally found the exact same run of sets that i got as a kid. I think i was old enough that I had one or two smaller kingdoms sets as well, (notably i DID get mill village raid) but this made up the majority of my lego castle stuff. Glad getting your hands on them could change your mind.
For me as a kid i know i liked the lion knights in particular because i really loved the look of the fantasy era crown knights, but my parents thought i was too young to have lego then, so seeing some of the crown motifs come back on the figs really made me appreciate them.
These were the exact 3 sets that I had growing up (plus the dragon tower set). I followed Castle all the way from Castle fantasy, through kingdoms and into Castle 2013. know I’m a bit nostalgic so I can’t be objective, but I think out of the 3, this wave was my favourite. The builds were full of play features, the armies were diverse and it incorporated fantasy elements in a smart way. Obviously they aren’t super attractive to AFOLs but as a kid these sets were amazing. I even tried to “convert” the Kingdoms joust set from the Red lions to the blue lions because I preferred Castle over kingdoms. Something I obviously regret now but I was a kid that didn’t know better.
Also for the “using a basic torso underneath armour so you can use the unique knight prints” thing: I love using this hack! The torso that I think works the best for this is the Harry Potter school uniform, because they have some small grey and gold texturings that are visible under the armour, making it look like there’s still a castle torso underneath.
Also when kingdoms last set had a falcon knight in the joust, everyone was expecting the theme to expand to have falcon knights too, as the lion knights were already seen as a newer version of the 80s lion knights.. so when 2013 castle came out… it was a big opportunity missed by Lego
That's a really great point that I haven't even thought about. A third full wave with black falcons being added would have been very cool to see.
While these came out 3 years after I got out of Lego, these are fire 🔥🔥.
And I miss Knights Kingdom II, I don't see a lot of love for it, but man did I love it.
One thing I miss about Lego is the comics that used to come with the sets! They added so much value IMO
I entered my "dark age" around 2013 so I missed out on these as well. Knights Kingdom 2 gets a lot of hate but there are some really sick sets from that theme.
If they make a new castle theme I think they shouldn’t make any new factions. They should use the factions they already have and make a huge wave of different castles and factions that connect together in the lore of Lego castle. It would be cool to see all the generations come together for an epic wave.
I had this exact same sets as a kid, and I am working on rebuilding them right now.
You finally release the great thing about my favorite lego castle theme 🎉.
Red Dragons are my fave faction! Hope I can find some second hand ❤️
Those sets were great! I really love building and playing with it with my kids! Do miss that they aren’t playing anymore with LEGO, but they have excellent memories doing so. Thanks for the review!
How did he get 3 sealed for $8! What a deal! I am also glad that happened so then he created this channel!
This series got me into Lego castle! I still have the giant castle for this theme! I loved it as a kid!
I have a specail spit in my heart because these are the castle factions I grew up with. That carriage was my first castle set.
the red dragon knights are one of my favorite factions, and my collection of their barding is one of my favorite things i own
I saw your army video a month or two ago and was super impressed by the amount of cavalry you had! They have definitely grown on me now that i have some. 😁
@@Goldfyre thanks, and I definitely think they look even better in mass
This battle pack was one of my favourite sets of all time. 4 cool knights in such a small set? I'm in.
What I don't like about newer castle themes: The knights/soldiers all look the same. not much variety. Back in the ol' days they may have used the same torso for most figures but changed the arms, helmet, pants and belt. And the torso was more basic: just a plain armor, no fancy parts.
And the second point: The new bad guys look like bad guys. Everybody has an angry face and the builds also say 'bad'. 30 years ago the factions and figures were more neutral. You could decide which one is bad. It was not mandatory.
I would love it SO MUCH if we get a new Castle wave and the first set is similar to the first one here or Kingdoms 7950, Knight's Showdown, just a basic, cheap set with 2 or 4 well designed figures. Would love to see Wolfpack/Fright Knights as the "villainous" faction and new Lions/Falcons as "good" guys.
Would love to see you get your hands on the strange and limited release 10176 Royal King’s Castle. It was the 2006 limited edition set only sold online and at Costco for the holiday season, and was meant as a throwback to Knights Kingdom I. A lot of the build feels very reminiscent of late 1990s Castle builds while also incorporating new pieces, feeling a lot like a transition set between classic Castle and what was becoming modern Castle. Did definitely feel more toyetic and playset-ish versus being a detailed display model. Given that it actually featured elements from KKII and even the minifigure of Sir Adric from KKII, I always thought it was meant to bridge KKI and KKII.
I received the set as a child as basically one of my only Castle sets and I got a *lot* of mileage out of it, being the biggest system set I’ve ever owned until late last year when I bought the Creator 3-in-1 Castle. Sold quite badly it seems, though, and the set has become especially hard to find combined with its lower production run. Most pieces are reused from other sets, thankfully.
Those are the Stormwind Knights, that's about it 😂 Great video 👏
Keep up the bangers, you're one of my new favorite lego youtubers!
Thank you so much! 😄
Wonderful video as always! And I told you so! :p
Castle 2013 might not be revolutionary, but it still has a lot of charming features, I'd argue that Lego usually wants you to take the shields off of builds though!
In the fantasy era crown knight's catapult instruction you can see that one of the soldiers actually ripped out one of the shields, because the set comes with 2 shields and the photos for it show the shield on the catapult and one of the minifigs holding another.
Also more people need to learn to take off torsos from breastplate minifigs, it's the easiest way to get some extra figures for your armies!
Never realised how much critisicm these sets got they were my entire childhood and I loved them so much
You can actually buy the Lion knight and Falcon knight horse barding from LEGO Pick a Brick.
True!
Well yea but the one on pick a brick is not the one from the castle 2013 theme
now Goldfye just has to buy some royal knight sets to finally enjoy the faction.
Bro, I wish I was younger when I got into the Castle theme because this set would’ve been perfect for me in 2013
Just love the red dragons from castle 2013! Honestly think the entire sub theme is a bit under rated.
I find it super interesting how you were salty about this theme replacing Kingdoms. My childhood theme was Castle fantasy era (2007-2009) and I hated Kingdoms as it replaced my favorite theme. Recently I bought a bunch of Kingdoms figs for pretty cheap from a friend and was so impressed with how good they are. I mean the dragon knights aren't as good as the troll warriors, but they're still so awesome and somehow even better than crown knights (I kind of regret not getting kingdoms back then). I think that a couple years age difference can affect your view on what theme you love and hate
I actually also grew up with fantasy era! I just think kingdoms was a really stellar theme.
@@Goldfyre oh nice! Fantasy era is what got me into Lego
@@Fire_2000If Lego brings back a medieval fantasy theme it should go like this
Wave I - Human vs Human knights (can include wizards)
Wave II - Bandits (Wolfpack) and Forest thieves (Forestmen) introduced
Wave III - Trolls, elves and dwarves (also real dragons introduced)
i never had the 2 smaller sets, but i had the gatehouse and the castle growing up. i still have all the figures and i added them to the creator 3n1 castle
I'd really like to get the two largest sets now that i've built the smaller 3
Seems like you changed your mind a bit!
I love your videos!
I really did! Thank you so much for watching :)
Try to purchase the lego movie castle cavalry, it will perfecly compliment with these 3 sets you owned speaking of the minigfig designs and the brick colors
Little late I am, but i had the large castle from this theme and have almost everything still
I had all of them but the best were the ones from 2010 (kingdoms line)
IF YOU HAVE THE NEW 2021 BALCK FALCONS CASTLE could you do a review so I can see if it is a good buy? I think it is a good set but I would like if you could give a review or thoughts on it. I am a big fan of this channel and bless you with tremendous success in the future.
He bought all the sets I have and it brought me back soo fast
😁
bro that’s insane 😮
I didn’t buy any 2013 stuff bcoz I preferred kingdoms which I was still buying at that time. And at the time didn’t like the new horses.. but now ever since the 90th anniversary castle came out, I began buying the 2013 castle stuff like their horses in black and white color they don’t make anymore and barding and horse armor which they don’t make anymore.. but thanks to this video I am no longer going to use the horse head armor on my black or white horses but instead use them on the brown horses that u can get plenty of from pab
I really wish the white & black horses we're available on pab. They are the two most classic colors imo
They should rubberize the horse head armor, it would prevent scratching i think
good idea actually
Can you make more videos about the lion knights?
Great video
I have all these sets😢😢😢
They print chestplates then....but Leave them blank now
Lion Knight castle queens chestplate at the very least should have been printed especially for its price
I don't like overly complicated medieval builds that much. Like overly detailed stuff works for rough factions like wolf pack. But even forest should look relatively clean cut.
Forest men building should look like they where built to be over grown.
2012 Green dragon knights on top for sure for me
The green dragons are one of my favorites!
This sub-theme always seemed like an unnecessary replacement to Kingdoms, but it does look cool. Maybe if Kingdoms got another year or two of love and then this theme came out I would have been more on-board.
i like the prints for this theme but i should have been released along side kingdoms as a cheaper more junior option instead of a replacment
100%
It saddens me that this replaced kingdoms. Kingdoms had a lot more going on compared to this.
Never liked this last gen of castle either, but might have to give them a second look after watching this video.
I haven't understood a thing: do you prefer these Lego Castle or Lego Kingdom?
Your channels awesome
How do you know when people host these garden sales?
People will put up signs near their houses. People will also post them online
Ok. thx for reply ;)@@Goldfyre
@@Goldfyre Btw, maybe this is something that's not that common where I come from (the Netherlands).
I find it so weird he just says bastard out of nowhere
Lego Nijago movie fish guys, have great medevil faces.
8 dollars?????? I want to find these sets soooo bad but just the gate house is like 60 used my god
I love castle 2013 I have all but the kings castle always loved it (almost all of my breastplates) have broke I have all of the sets in a moc
Really the breastplates broke? I've never had that happen to any of mine before.
This castle line-up looks so unfinished. These factions never got name, and it also seemed like a repeat of Fantasy Era but with a lot less sets and not enough different enemy designs. A missed opportunity on continuing indeed. Around this time, Pirates and Space suffered the same fate, and all the fun we loved went away.
Yeah, I can’t stand how Lego has been making super cheesy faces for all yellow heads lately. I don’t know why they can’t make mean and grumpy faces anymore.
Yeah I wish they had a balance of angry faces and more cheerful ones. This theme had it right imo.
I think the figures are decent. The builds were just pretty basic.