Lord of the Rings Ongoing Discussion

[BrickBob Studpants]

2 minutes ago, BlockyJames said:

Has anyone seen this? I don't know how reliable it is though.

He‘s very reliable. A Shire set it is then!  

Not the most exciting choice in terms of minifigs (unless it‘s based on both FOTR and AUJ), but the build itself could be pretty incredible! Fingers crossed it‘s cheaper than the previous two sets though.

[FullBrickDev]

Hopefully it's cheaper than the previous sets, although I do hope for many minifigures (e.g., some dwarves?) which might raise the price a lot, considering the average mould price is somewhere around 70k USD from what I recall. I do wonder what they will include. The party area and the Hobbit hole itself are pretty good choices, but they could try including some more obscure buildings as well. 

[RichardGoring]

6 hours ago, kuzyabricks said:

If TanDbricks story says "it's going to be a shire fire hit" as it appears and the Gandalf quote I am almost certain we are getting the shire from the Hobbit

Why from the Hobbit and not LOTR out of curiosity?

My preference would be from LOTR, where they might be able to do a smaller internal build of Bag End and the facades of other hobbit holes, and maybe Bilbo's birthday, so more outside stuff and lots of generic hobbit figures.

If they did the Hobbit version, then we'd presumably have to include the entire company of dwarfs and the interior of Bag End would have to be a lot bigger to accommodate all of them, so less of the other stuff.

23 minutes ago, BrickBob Studpants said:

He‘s very reliable. A Shire set it is then!  

Not the most exciting choice in terms of minifigs (unless it‘s based on both FOTR and AUJ), but the build itself could be pretty incredible! Fingers crossed it‘s cheaper than the previous two sets though.

Coming in at $1 less than previous Lord of the Rings sets...

[Renny The Spaceman]

7 hours ago, kuzyabricks said:

If TanDbricks story says "it's going to be a shire fire hit" as it appears and the Gandalf quote I am almost certain we are getting the shire from the Hobbit

I doubt it'll be the Hobbit one, the quote is from fellowship 

[Seaber]

This is great! 

My guess is it will be Bag End and the Party Tree with Gandalf's Horse and cart and maybe some more Hobbit Holes, but not the mill, pub, or bridge.

For figures: FotR Bilbo from his party with proper hobbit hair in grey. 

Gandalf with hat/hair combo (probably not a new molded staff though?) 

The four main Hobbits, hopefully wihh new outfits (although the reuse of Rivendell torsos in Barad-Dur for Frodo and Sam doesn't bode well) 

Rosie Cotton. 

Some party guests, perhaps recognisable named Hobbits, perhaps just background ones. 

I think the hobbit house doors will now be smaller dishes than in the 2012 set too. 

[0sx0]

Hello everybody,

I was a bit frustrated by the Sauron's Mace from the set 10333 Barad-Dûr, so I have design mine with existing part, if it can inspire some of you :)

 

 

[CallumPears]

Might be a hot take but personally I didn't care for Rivendell and I doubt I'm gonna care for any set related to the Shire (though it does slightly beat Rivendell at least in theory). Great scenes in the movies, but not really what I'm looking for in a set. I want soldiers and orcs and stuff.

[RichardGoring]

14 minutes ago, CallumPears said:

Might be a hot take but personally I didn't care for Rivendell and I doubt I'm gonna care for any set related to the Shire (though it does slightly beat Rivendell at least in theory). Great scenes in the movies, but not really what I'm looking for in a set. I want soldiers and orcs and stuff.

Wow. That take is hotter than the fires of Mount Doom! 

But if you like armies and orcs then I can see why. For me, Rivendell really does live up to the hype. It was amazing to build and I think it looks terrific. I love the colours, organic shapes, the way it flows, the general impression, and all the small details. And if they get it right, then Hobbiton/the Shire could have very similar feeling.

[JohnTPT17]

I honestly don't want it to be another huge, $500 set - just let it focus on a clean Bag End, throw in a few tents and party decor outside, and let the set be in the $200-250 range. If others really do want the entire Shire, they could buy two copies of the set to make it bigger. That's just my hopes, though (and honestly what I'd like the most is just a "normal" wave of sets in the $10-100 range, but that doesn't seem to be the way the reboot is going).

50 minutes ago, 0sx0 said:

I was a bit frustrated by the Sauron's Mace from the set 10333 Barad-Dûr, so I have design mine with existing part, if it can inspire some of you :)

Nice mace (and welcome to Eurobricks)! It looks like it's mostly made up of Batarangs, but what is the middle part holding them together?

[0sx0]

10 minutes ago, JohnTPT17 said:

Nice mace (and welcome to Eurobricks)! It looks like it's mostly made up of Batarangs, but what is the middle part holding them together?

Hello JohnTPT17, thanks you :)

This a part used during Exo-Force 1st wave sets :P

https://www.brickowl.com/fr/catalog/lego-medium-stone-gray-gear-with-8-teeth-tachometer-32060

Just to reconnect on the current discussion, I'm also expecting some more little set that show some scene as Khazad-Dum bridge for example, the Mithlond port, the Sammath Naur forge, etc...

I know it's not realistic but as the Falcon Millenium or AT-AT from Star Wars, have a Minas Tirith 800€ set looks nice for me (just need to save some money before ^^)

 

[kuzyabricks]

$400 Shire is a bit underwhelming. Although at 5k pieces it will be very impressive. Just wish it was something else. I'm still going to buy it but that's just way too much for it. Also wish it was the Hobbit version, 2025 D2C versions of all the hobbits would be amazing. 

[MAB]

I don't want another big set (especially for the Shire), and I've already got Bag End. So whatever they do, I'll probably skip it.

I've also got all the hobbits and dwarves from the first time around and lots of purist custom hobbits, so even the minifigs won't be interesting for me whichever movie they base it on.

[BlockyJames]

1 hour ago, kuzyabricks said:

$400 Shire is a bit underwhelming. Although at 5k pieces it will be very impressive. Just wish it was something else. I'm still going to buy it but that's just way too much for it. Also wish it was the Hobbit version, 2025 D2C versions of all the hobbits would be amazing. 

Has the price and brick count been leaked somewhere or is it still speculation?

[mirkwoodspiders]

3 hours ago, JohnTPT17 said:

I honestly don't want it to be another huge, $500 set - just let it focus on a clean Bag End, throw in a few tents and party decor outside, and let the set be in the $200-250 range. If others really do want the entire Shire, they could buy two copies of the set to make it bigger. That's just my hopes, though (and honestly what I'd like the most is just a "normal" wave of sets in the $10-100 range, but that doesn't seem to be the way the reboot is going).

Same. I wonder though - will it be Bag End or Bag End + a portion of Hobbiton? The former would almost certainly be in the $250-$350 range, but the latter might push $500. I'd prefer just Bag End, but a portion of Hobbiton would be neat display too.

[kuzyabricks]

1 hour ago, BlockyJames said:

Has the price and brick count been leaked somewhere or is it still speculation?

tandnbricks said its 5000+ pieces and $400 coming out in the END of 2025(((((((((

[JohnTPT17]

5 minutes ago, kuzyabricks said:

tandnbricks said its 5000+ pieces and $400 coming out in the END of 2025(((((((((

I must've missed the part and price confirmation - dang it. That's probably going to put it well out of my price range.

I still stand by what I said earlier - there needs to be some less expensive offerings. Disney was able to do it with Simba - surely a smaller $80-100 Bag End could work alongside a more expensive offering. I guess that's just another set I'll only look at from a distance...

[THELEGOBATMAN]

I'm kind of tired of only getting huge, 400€+ sets.

Like I get it, they're collectors' items and all, but there are people out there who love The Lord of the Rings that don't want to spend hundreds of euros for a single set.

The Shire is my favourite location in all of Middle-Earth, and I might even consider getting that set if I find a good discount. Still, it'd be really good if there was a smaller option for this theme.

I don't mind it if it's like a single, huge set for something that won't become a yearly thing (D&D is a good example), but if they want to keep it going, I don't see why they can't produce anything more.

[Kaijumeister]

Is a Hobbiton set really necessary? Knock a couple of hundred dollars / pounds off and just make a mahoosive set of Bag-End, that would’ve been much better. The overall minifigure potential isn’t the greatest to be honest, unless they reintroduce a young Bilbo variant along with Thorin’s company too.

Overall, I’m glad more LotR sets are on the way, even if it’s only for those with wallets and physical space grander than the depths of Khazad-dûm. It seems the door is shut on Lego at least trying to make this theme a little bit more accessible. 

Above all though, we really need a new hair / hat mould for Gandalf. The minifigure just doesn’t look right.

[Lordhelmet]

11 hours ago, TheDoctor said:

LEGO's refusal to acknowledge Gondor is just funny to me now 

Seriously :)

 

If it is the shire I am hoping it is less expensive.  I would be good with a small bag end again, or hoping for two companion sets, like a party tree and bag end.  That way we could have two price points this year. (like a $250 bag end, and a $100 party tree)

 

Excited to see some strong rumors though!

[Horation]

2 hours ago, THELEGOBATMAN said:

I don't see why they can't produce anything more.

Ok, I'm going to try and explain this one (I did say explain it, not agree with it, I'd love some cheap sets).

LOTR is undeniably more of an older audience thing, it's not to say kids hate it, just that fewer kids know and like it than say, Superman, or Harry Potter.

So lets say there's 1000 Lego fans of LOTR globally. 

Lego makes a 10$ LOTR set, with say Gandalf and Bilbo, so with few reasons to buy more than one. Most of those fans will buy it, say 95%, so that's 950 people times 10$ which equals 9 500$ of revenue.

Now Lego tries a 100$ LOTR set instead, again with lots of named characters, and little incentive to buy multiples. Now its obvious that the quantity sold will drop, but it will still be significant, so maybe 50% of fans will buy it, that's 500*100$ which equals 50 000$

So revenue went way, way up, and yet the number of people who bought a set went down by nearly half, and even if it went down by more, it'd still be worth it . You can repeat this with larger prices, and a similar line of thinking leads to similar results ; selling fewer very expensive sets will make more money that a larger number of smaller sets.

Ok, you'll say, but then why do they make smaller sets for other themes? Because those sets target a different market which involves kids, whose parents are likely more budget-conscious than most collectors, so they need to sell toys at a lower price to better compete with other manufacturers. 

Edited October 3, 2024 by Horation

[kuzyabricks]

8 minutes ago, Lordhelmet said:

Seriously :)

 

If it is the shire I am hoping it is less expensive.  I would be good with a small bag end again, or hoping for two companion sets, like a party tree and bag end.  That way we could have two price points this year. (like a $250 bag end, and a $100 party tree)

 

Excited to see some strong rumors though!

It's pretty much confirmed to be $400 by tandnbricks unfortunately 

[MAB]

2 hours ago, JohnTPT17 said:

I still stand by what I said earlier - there needs to be some less expensive offerings. Disney was able to do it with Simba - surely a smaller $80-100 Bag End could work alongside a more expensive offering. I guess that's just another set I'll only look at from a distance...

The original Bag End was $70 and would probably be $120 these days for the same thing, so an $80-100 version would be not as good as that one. Anything cheaper would probably need to be just a bit of interior.

[JohnTPT17]

22 minutes ago, Horation said:

Ok, you'll say, but then why do they make smaller sets for other themes? Because those sets target a different market which involves kids, whose parents are likely more budget-conscious than most collectors, so they need to sell toys at a lower price to better compete with other manufacturers. 

You're forgetting another big plus for those smaller sets: army building, where many people are likely to buy multiple copies. Yes, some people may only buy one, but many others could buy two, or five, or ten. It's not just about targeting kids - it's targeting people who want the minifigures, and based on recent Star Wars waves, there's at least some acknowledgement from Lego about this. That's nothing to say of other smaller, minifig-based sets. Just look at the Captain Rex microfighter - a $20 Sauron vs Isildor set would also probably sell quite a lot (and I think the claim that 50 percent of all fans of a series would buy a $100 set is greatly exaggerated). That, and I'm not sure what "other manufacturers" you would be referring to - even in the realm of knockoff Lego Lord of the Rings, they're either cheap and of poor quality, or anywhere from $10-25 per minifig for ones that look decent.

And, yes, there's plenty of counterarguments one way or another for these. Cost of designing and shipping sets, licensing deals, keeping them exclusive to Lego versus a wide release, etc.  But, frankly, none of us know what Lego's actual financial spreadsheets are, so speculation doesn't really get us anywhere. 

2 minutes ago, MAB said:

The original Bag End was $70 and would probably be $120 these days for the same thing, so an $80-100 version would be not as good as that one. Anything cheaper would probably need to be just a bit of interior.

The inflation calculator I used said that $70 in 2011 would be $98 these days. Plus, that set was possibly just slightly overpriced because it had several exclusive, non-reused molds - A new one probably wouldn't need any new molds, just some new prints. So, I think there would be room to expand it a hair, or add in another minifigure.

Clean up the design, switch out the dwarves for Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, and maybe Rosie - or, heck, make it a little bigger and make it $120 - and I'd be all over that!

[Lego Nostalgia]

I'm happy it's the Shire, I hope the next one will be Helms Deep

[Horation]

3 hours ago, JohnTPT17 said:

A) You're forgetting another big plus for those smaller sets: army building, where many people are likely to buy multiple copies. Yes, some people may only buy one, but many others could buy two, or five, or ten. It's not just about targeting kids - it's targeting people who want the minifigures, and based on recent Star Wars waves, there's at least some acknowledgement from Lego about this.

B) That's nothing to say of other smaller, minifig-based sets. Just look at the Captain Rex microfighter - a $20 Sauron vs Isildor set would also probably sell quite a lot (and I think the claim that 50 percent of all fans of a series would buy a $100 set is greatly exaggerated). That, and I'm not sure what "other manufacturers" you would be referring to - even in the realm of knockoff Lego Lord of the Rings, they're either cheap and of poor quality, or anywhere from $10-25 per minifig for ones that look decent.

C) And, yes, there's plenty of counterarguments one way or another for these. Cost of designing and shipping sets, licensing deals, keeping them exclusive to Lego versus a wide release, etc.  But, frankly, none of us know what Lego's actual financial spreadsheets are, so speculation doesn't really get us anywhere. 

I've restructured your comment so I can more easily reply :

A) I'm not forgetting it, if you were to go back and fully read my comment, you would notice my example accounted for this, here the relevant text : 

4 hours ago, Horation said:

Lego makes a 10$ LOTR set, with say Gandalf and Bilbo, so with few reasons to buy more than one. 

Now it's true that they could make army-building sets, but people around these parts way overestimate the sales this would generate, I've in my whole life rarely seen a Lego army of even a hundred figs, and almost all of these were from "clone bros" buying loads of sets because of the community around Star Wars army-building. The truth is that the additional sales would be relatively small, since few people really buy more than one set, and even then, you'd need a lot of sales to make up the difference. Now do you really think a 20$ battle pack would sell 25 times more copies than the 500$ Rivendell? Don't forget that lots of people who'd buy 10 or 20 battle packs would also buy the bigger set. 

B)  I was talking about Lego sets in general and how they have to compete with other manufacturers for the KID'S TOY market, I really don't understand how you could understand this part, which clearly talks about the buying habits of parents to be about counterfeit LOTR set, I'm saying that focusing less on themes popular to kids costs them sales against the likes of Hasbro, Mattel, etc... .As for the "claim" that 50% of fans would buy a 100$ set, that was not a claim, but a hypothetical example, the point was that a set which costs 10 times as much needs to sell a tenth of the copies to make the same profit, which in the case of a theme with fewer fans would likely be a limited degree of sales. And the example with Isildur vs Sauron is exactly what I was talking about before, they'd need to sell a lot of such sets to make up the difference vs a very big set AND the opportunity cost (the cost of renouncing to another option and choosing this one) would be huge since they could instead have sold a small set from a theme which has a lot more buyers. 

C)Speculation doesn't, but observations do, if making small LOTR sets was such a good idea, they'd surely be doing it, yet we see the opposite, and since we can't see their spreadsheets, why would we think that we know better than they do?

Edited October 4, 2024 by Horation
Rewrote