Review: 852922 Dragon Knight's Battle Pack

[natelite]

i think they should just fire the QC guy and hire a battle-hardened afol to test their chinese manufacturer!

[Princess Muttonchops]

Thanks for the review metalandi. My excitement kind of went on a reverse J curve, starting very high and then rapidly falling. There are obviously still some great parts here, but with the quality issues, it makes me want to wait until it goes on sale .

[blueandwhite]

Thank you for the review metalandi!

Well, I'm not sure what else there is to say other than, what a rather big letdown. These battlepacks were precisely what I was waiting for to purchase next, and then this disappointing continuation in poor quality persists. I mean, minifigs that can barely even hold their own accessories when just getting picked up? That's pretty bad. I would say that at least I can get the minifigs from Bricklink instead, once they start to show up there. But it will be very difficult if not impossible to tell whether you're getting normal quality figs from the regular sets or these sub-par ones.

I hate to keep complaining about this issue, I really do. I like to think I'm fairly open minded when it comes to Lego pursuing new ways with their product. This sacrifice in quality is just too much to ignore, though. The price for these packs is unfortunately higher than I can justify, considering the noticeably lesser product we are getting in return.

Actually, the best way to try to avoid low-quality figs is to buy figures you know that don't come from the battle packs. The figs from most of the sets have different heads making them easy to distinguish. For example, the figure in the prisoner wagon has stubble and is showing his teeth. Othe figures also have different heads. If somebody mixed and matched the heads to try and throw you off you could simply post a complaint. Once the line becomes readily available you should be able to get quality soldiers for a comprable price to those found in the battle packs and you'll know your army isn't filled with lazy soldiers who can't even be bothered to hold their own weapons.

[Mac-K]

You make a very good point, blueandwhite, I hadn't even thought of that. Thank you for the advice.

[Sir Fred]

Are these better, worse or the same quality as the Dwarves Battle Pack figures? Since I haven't had any real issues with my Dwarves losing their equipment.

[Calanon]

Thanks for the great review. I bought this set today at the Milton Keynes LEGO store and I too was highly disappointed in the quality of the mini-figures. I am also disappointed in the the fact that the weapons aren't pearl grey. The pearl silver weapons in this set and in the Prison Tower Rescue set seem to be worse quality than the silver swords of the Fantasy Era, since as soon as I tried to put any of the swords back on they wouldn't go back on and got extremely scratched up. The cape also seems to be a bit creased, so it'd of been nice to have the set in a box. Pleased with having two great helms in the pack though.

[Almirante Don Rodrigo]

I've checked the quality of my Castle knights Battle Pack and the problem with the weapons falling out of the hands is not present, maybe the legs of 1 or 2 of the soldiers are a bit easier to move /but this could be caused by the firm plastic sheet of the packaging/. I think the problem with the figures hands may vary from set to set, so the problem that remains is the light gray Chinese steel weapons

[Calanon]

I've checked the quality of my Castle knights Battle Pack and the problem with the weapons falling out of the hands is not present, maybe the legs of 1 or 2 of the soldiers are a bit easier to move /but this could be caused by the firm plastic sheet of the packaging/. I think the problem with the figures hands may vary from set to set, so the problem that remains is the light gray Chinese steel weapons

It either varies, or it isn't purely in the weapons. I tried it with some weapons from the Prison Tower Rescue set and the same problem was still present.

[josykay]

Maybe Lego made some undescovered mistakes during the production of the first battle packs, so that the problems exist in only some BPs but not in all. Remember, that Lego made mistakes during printing the Black Hawks. Some minifigs crest of the Black Hawks were printed mirrored.

[metalandi]

I'm fairly sure the usage of completely different plastic is not an "undiscovered mistake" but something that happened on purpose, unfortunately.

Edited June 5, 2010 by metalandi

[SWMAN]

I really am disappointed with Lego's lack of quality with the quality of the figures in these Battlepacks. I think that the reason these are low quality is that they are just figures. Unlike the Star Wars BP's, these simply contain figures and no vehicle or other item that can qualify high-quality plastic. I noticed the same problem with the Castle Giant Chess set. Because there were so many figures they used cheap plastic to cut down on cost. Still, this is a great set if you are just interested in dioramas and displays.

[Almirante Don Rodrigo]

There is a limit of 5 sets per customer for the Dragon Battle Pack :skull: !!! So the questionable quality can not stop the growing demand for the dark forces

[blueandwhite]

I really am disappointed with Lego's lack of quality with the quality of the figures in these Battlepacks. I think that the reason these are low quality is that they are just figures. Unlike the Star Wars BP's, these simply contain figures and no vehicle or other item that can qualify high-quality plastic. I noticed the same problem with the Castle Giant Chess set. Because there were so many figures they used cheap plastic to cut down on cost. Still, this is a great set if you are just interested in dioramas and displays.

Perhaps, but to me that doesn't make a lot of sense. It's only in the past few years that we've seen these low-grade minifigs and the sets they come in are actually sold at a fairly hefty price. Most sets don't have these cheaper figs including impulse sets which are essentially a single figure with a few bricks. I have no issue with LEGO being produed in China, but I am really concerned when the quality starts dropping. It's a slippery slope. If we sit back and say nothing these figs may become the norm. I don't care if the plastic is a bit different, but when the figures have lose joints or their hands are too soft to properly hold items I become a bit concerned.

[Sirens-of-Titan]

Well I think there is a solution to this dilemma, which unfortunately is rough on the ones who want to collect dragon knights and really great for those who want to collect lions.

Instead of buying 3 battle packs I am planning to get the following sets as army builders; 4 prison carriages and 2 knights showdowns.

Here's what each contains:

3 BP (2 lion BP's and 1 dragon BP):

15 minifigures, (10 lions and 5 dragons)

Also cheap plastic, issues with loose joints, only a few significant parts (breast plate+helms)

Price= 45 USD before tax

Now the 4 prison carriages and 2 Knights showdowns:

16 minifigures (10 lions and 6 dragons)

Best quality plastic (and a ton of bucket helms)

extra weapons (including lots of dark pearl)

4 horses/unicorns with armor

A ton of bricks useful for MOC'ing (carriage wheels, bars, torches, mini catapults, multiple color cheese wedges)

Price: 54 USD before tax (yes that's a price difference of 9 bucks but I think that's worth the quality, extra pieces, and the 4 horses.

So that's my plan until I see a change in BP quality. I guess the downfall is that if you only want to collect dragons this doesn't really make your life easier, but I like the knights and I'm gonna get a small force of each by this "formula" yes it will be a 5:3 ratio but I have no problem with that.

[Almirante Don Rodrigo]

Well I think there is a solution to this dilemma, which unfortunately is rough on the ones who want to collect dragon knights and really great for those who want to collect lions.

Instead of buying 3 battle packs I am planning to get the following sets as army builders; 4 prison carriages and 2 knights showdowns.

.....

So that's my plan until I see a change in BP quality. I guess the downfall is that if you only want to collect dragons this doesn't really make your life easier, but I like the knights and I'm gonna get a small force of each by this "formula" yes it will be a 5:3 ratio but I have no problem with that.

Interesting formula, but at the end of the day you will have an army without archers and Lion knights with cheap Chinese weapons/helmets ....

[prateek]

As I said before, this is good for army building or filling up your town. Since the quality isn't that good, I'll rate this Above Average, since the figs themselves are awesome.

[Legorski]

Thanks for the review, I'm hoping to get some of these to straiten out the uneven armies between the two factions (the Lion Knights seem to get plenty more figgies in the sets), but the quality is setting me off. Hopefully the quality won't be too noticeable, that way I'll buy a couple.

Legorski

[josykay]

Interesting formula, but what can we do, if we want to build a Dragon Knights Army? We can not use the BP, bacause of the quality and the Knights Showdown Box does not contain a regular soldier. Because of his chain armor and no crest he seems to play a special role like a dragon knights champion or a dungeon master.

The Battle Wagon is the smalest and cheapest set of the dragon knights, containing a regular soldier and some spears but it is a promational set and so not really available. And the person carriage costs 9.95 €. Thats to much for using it as dragon knights armybuilder. So the dragon knights are outnumbered all the time to the lion knights.

[Dan the Brickman]

eh sad about the quality, but its not a bad set overall. I really like this new castle line, and im gonna build a massive army out of it!

Thanks for the pics!

[Sirens-of-Titan]

Interesting formula, but what can we do, if we want to build a Dragon Knights Army? We can not use the BP, bacause of the quality and the Knights Showdown Box does not contain a regular soldier. Because of his chain armor and no crest he seems to play a special role like a dragon knights champion or a dungeon master.

The Battle Wagon is the smalest and cheapest set of the dragon knights, containing a regular soldier and some spears but it is a promational set and so not really available. And the person carriage costs 9.95 €. Thats to much for using it as dragon knights armybuilder. So the dragon knights are outnumbered all the time to the lion knights.

Yes, it doesn't look good if you want to collect only Dragon knights, but I want a force of each and that ratio seems pretty good for my liking, plus the set gives you horses, and that's something no battle pack includes. Just think about the number of figures as a total and accessories and horses and tell me that 16 figs, plus 4 horses and two catapults for 54$ doesn't sound better than 15 figures and nothing else for 45$. Plus the quality issue, I don't know, i am really picky for quality and I have old lion knight which have taken some ware over time.

I look at those and say, well, those were superb minifigures 10 years ago, and now they are a bit rough around the edges, but just imagine how the battle pack figures will look in a few years of use...

That is enough to make me pay the higher price and just get the small sets as army builders, and make a force of each.

[gladiator]

Come on, I already have this set. I think the quality is fair. NOT EXCELLENT, but STILL GREAT.

I rate the minifigures 5/5

and the shield 5/5

but the weapons 1/5

and the outer packaging is very nice

[Apache]

Well I think there is a solution to this dilemma, which unfortunately is rough on the ones who want to collect dragon knights and really great for those who want to collect lions.

Instead of buying 3 battle packs I am planning to get the following sets as army builders; 4 prison carriages and 2 knights showdowns.

Here's what each contains:

3 BP (2 lion BP's and 1 dragon BP):

15 minifigures, (10 lions and 5 dragons)

Also cheap plastic, issues with loose joints, only a few significant parts (breast plate+helms)

Price= 45 USD before tax

Now the 4 prison carriages and 2 Knights showdowns:

16 minifigures (10 lions and 6 dragons)

Best quality plastic (and a ton of bucket helms)

extra weapons (including lots of dark pearl)

4 horses/unicorns with armor

A ton of bricks useful for MOC'ing (carriage wheels, bars, torches, mini catapults, multiple color cheese wedges)

Price: 54 USD before tax (yes that's a price difference of 9 bucks but I think that's worth the quality, extra pieces, and the 4 horses.

So that's my plan until I see a change in BP quality. I guess the downfall is that if you only want to collect dragons this doesn't really make your life easier, but I like the knights and I'm gonna get a small force of each by this "formula" yes it will be a 5:3 ratio but I have no problem with that.

Yeah, I agree %100

$17 for a prison carriage and showdown gives you

Horse, Unicorn Head gear, 2 great helms, 5 figs and swords and LEGO QUALITY

$15 gives you no horses, 5 cheap figs. The Lion Knights have NO great helms while Dragon Knight set does give you two great helms, the cape and the Sweet Armor....

But for $2 more, I'll take QUALITY, the Horse and the extra pieces.

[Santhor]

The only other option would be thinking of the Battle Pack figures as "battle-hardened" knights/soldiers, I guess. But if lack of quality is now solved by imagination, I wonder where this new line is ging to end.

Well, at least you have a good attitude. But no, I kind of like the lighter yellow-green on the battlepack torso, but I'm also one who likes my armies to be consistent. *start rant* That's why I'm glad that Kingdoms figs all have the same color legs, unlike Castle.

Besides, I'm also a big Star Wars fan, and after the first 18 months or so of having all my clones, I was VERY disappointed to see that half of them have cracked arms or sides. This makes their hands come out easily, and their arms can't stay upright. *end rant*

My conclusion: TLG, if you're going to charge us $15 USD, you might as well give them the right colored weapons, and nice plastic! What I really want to see is a dark pearl mace/flail.

-Santhor

Edited June 9, 2010 by Santhor

[Santhor]

Please forgive the double post, but do you (or anyone) happen to have the Lion "Knight" Battle Pack? Does it have the same plastic and holding issues?

-Santhor

[chris_austin]

Instead of buying 3 battle packs I am planning to get the following sets as army builders; 4 prison carriages and 2 knights showdowns.

Here's what each contains:

3 BP (2 lion BP's and 1 dragon BP):

15 minifigures, (10 lions and 5 dragons)

Also cheap plastic, issues with loose joints, only a few significant parts (breast plate+helms)

Price= 45 USD before tax

Now the 4 prison carriages and 2 Knights showdowns:

16 minifigures (10 lions and 6 dragons)

Best quality plastic (and a ton of bucket helms)

extra weapons (including lots of dark pearl)

4 horses/unicorns with armor

A ton of bricks useful for MOC'ing (carriage wheels, bars, torches, mini catapults, multiple color cheese wedges)

Price: 54 USD before tax (yes that's a price difference of 9 bucks but I think that's worth the quality, extra pieces, and the 4 horses.

After reading the reviews, which I thank you very much for, and the price breakdown by Sirens I was about to go and purchase some sets instead of BP's.

There is a major price difference on Lego.co.uk though! Due to the lower price of BP's, it's nowhere near better value. Had a look on Bricklink and I can get between 6 and 3 minifigs for the same price of a BP. If I want a shield for them it's approx. 25% extra per minifig. I think i'll wait a while.