Post-LOTR Castle Idea

[Fives]

Post-LOTR Castle Theme

With the LOTR and The Hobbit themes taking prominence over the castle line, the new castle line being introduced is quite bland and childish. When the LOTR / Hobbit theme ends, I believe LEGO needs to replace it with a very strong castle theme with a story. Something with named characters and places, much like Chima or Ninjago. So, here is my idea.

Good Side (colours gold and green)

The good side, rather than having a King, will have five Knights who are the ones who lead the kingdom, with the help of nobles. Kingdom crest is gold eagle on a white and green background.

Knights:

• Sir Maxwell (Max) the Chosen - the main hero of the theme, should be young, he is the one to defeat all evil in the land, rides a white horse, wields gold sword.
  
• Sir Everett the Honest - secondary main character, should be slightly older and more experienced than Max, rides a grey horse, wields gold spear.
  
• Sir Rinthwald the Headstrong - slightly bitter towards the other knights, could develop into wave three/four villain, rides a black horse, wields gold battle axe.
  
• Sir Fletsrom the Trustworthy - comic relief, counterpart to Sir Jetson, rides a brown horse, wields gold mace.
  
• Sir Jetson the Loyal - comic relief, counterpart to Sir Fletstrom, rides a brown horse, wields gold flail.
  

Nobles:

• Lord Barthus - elder bishop/wizard like figure, dark blue cloak, carries books and is Max's mentor
  
• Count Jolan - elder bishop/wizard like figure, dark red cloak, carries crow with him at all times, use of the new grandpa headpiece would be good. Jolan whispers lies into Rintwald's mind, making him want to turn evil.
  

Bad Side (colours pearl dark grey and purple)

The bad side has a King and Queen, but live in a mountain fortress to the north of the good kingdom. Kingdom crest is a dark red sun on a purple background.

• King Karadoth - leader of the evil faction, he left the kingdom to start his own and to challenge the good kingdom. Should be middle aged.
  
• Lady Laradoth - wife of the King, can influence magic to reanimate corpses, a witch of sorts, carries a short staff with a dark red skull at the top, wears a dark purple robe.
  
• General Oson - commander of all of the King's armies, wields a two bladed battle axe, rides in a chariot pulled by winged horses, missing an eye, is the only intelligent undead. Name Pronounced Oh-son.
  

The Story

When Max was a boy, Karadoth was a General in the King’s army. Magic was not very well known by the people, and there were few who could use it. Those who could were not proficient enough to be great wizards, and just merely used there powers to make money as sideshow magicians. One day, while patrolling the streets of a town near the Unyielding Keep, Karadoth saw a teenager trying to calm a horse down. The horse got the better of him and the teen was hit on the head by one of the hooves, killing him instantly. Karadoth ran to help the boy, but not before a young woman got to him first. She wore a long purple dress and had hair as red as fire. She knelt down to the boy, spoke a short incantation, and after a few short minutes, the boy’s eyes flickered open, and he was alive again.

Karadoth, unable to explain what he had just witnessed, approached the woman. He inquired about her abilities, but she refused to tell him anything. After a few months of Karadoth visiting the woman, she finally let her guard down and told him her secret. She had the ability to bring the dead back to life. The affects of her power differ depending on how long the person has been dead. The longer it has been, the more zombie-like the reanimated body will be.

Karadoth was able to convince her that no one could learn of her power, but that it could be used to create a new kingdom lead by the two of them. Enticed by the promises of power, the woman accepted Karadoth’s offer, and from then on she was known as Lady Laradoth. Over the course of the next two years, the two of them slowly built an army of reanimated bodies, varying in zombification. After they settled in the mountains to the north of the kingdom, Karadoth lead an assault on the Unyielding Keep, killing the King and bringing the kingdom to its knees. He then returned to his newly found kingdom in the mountains and declared himself King Karadoth, and began his own rule.

However, unbeknownst to him, the young boy named Maxwell was destined to fulfill the Chosen duty of destroying evil in the land and bringing peace back to the kingdom. After ten years of tutoring and training by Lord Barthus, Maxwell was ready to take up the mantle of the Chosen and wage a war against Karadoth’s tyranny. He, along with his trusted knights, began amassing an army of their own to battle against the evil in the north.

And this is where the theme would be set. I realize that this story is more in-depth and slightly darker than most LEGO themes, but I found it easier to develop the sets and characters if they had a slight background and setup first.

List of Sets

Wave 1

• $110 The Unyielding Keep - the flagship set of the first wave. The set would have a main gate section and two side walls that curve in to form a half circle. Then, the inner section is a tall rounded tower with and large gold basin of fire at the top. Treated like Orthanc, the back of the tower is open, and there are four rooms that have various details. Figures include: Sir Maxwell with on his white horse, Lord Barthus, two soldiers of good, three soldiers of evil with a siege ballista.
  
• $60 Laradoth’s Laboratory - the second largest set of the wave, depicts a section of Karadoth’s kingdom where Lara does her magic and builds the armies. I’m not quite sure how I imagine this to look, but I imagine it being eerie and cold, with snow on things. Figures include: Lady Laradoth, King Karadoth, one reanimated soldier, Sir Everett on horseback, one good soldier.
  
• $35 Attack at the Docks - medium sized set, a small tower attached to a short wood dock when a rowboat is tied. An evil catapult attacking. Figures include: Sirs Jetson and Fletstrom, one on horseback, two reanimated soldier wielding the catapult.
  
• $20 Oson’s Dark Chariot - a decently sized black chariot with purple accents, with two black winged horses (maybe printed to look zombified), and a small tree with collapsing function. Figures include - Sir Rinthwald on foot, Count Jolan, Oson with his battle axe.
  
• $10 Ambush at the River - a small frozen river with a short tree with snowy leaves. Figures include: two good soldiers, two reanimated soldiers.
  

Wave 2

I haven’t started coming up with a detail list of wave 2 sets because I want to see how people respond to my ideas.

[Faefrost]

It will be interesting to see what direction they go in after LotR ends. But it might not have as much impact on Castle as you think. Remember LotR was more a direct replacement for Harry Potter, not so much The traditional Castle line. I'm also not sure how eager TLG would be to revisit a multicolored named knights theme. The last time they did that was not real well received. Granted they have scored well with Ninjago and Chima since then.

[Fives]

It will be interesting to see what direction they go in after LotR ends. But it might not have as much impact on Castle as you think. Remember LotR was more a direct replacement for Harry Potter, not so much The traditional Castle line. I'm also not sure how eager TLG would be to revisit a multicolored named knights theme. The last time they did that was not real well received. Granted they have scored well with Ninjago and Chima since then.

My idea was to have a Castle theme that feels similar to Ninjago. And the knights all wear gold armour. Basically, a regular Castle theme, but with a story.

[tf_mxsh12]

Personally, I'd prefer if the set didn't just include a single female (who also happened to be an evil necromancer). I'd add in at least two more girls. The 1st could be a female warrior (like Max's sister) who would act as a second protagonist. The 2nd could be a female knight. That way, the sets could also appeal to both girls and boys.

Additionally, I'd also love it if the next Castle include a few more fantasy elements. I just loved the Trolls from the fantasy incarnation. Not only were they unique, but I thought that it was great that the Fantasy line included more than two factions.

[Fives]

Personally, I'd prefer if the set didn't just include a single female (who also happened to be an evil necromancer). I'd add in at least two more girls. The 1st could be a female warrior (like Max's sister) who would act as a second protagonist. The 2nd could be a female knight. That way, the sets could also appeal to both girls and boys.

Additionally, I'd also love it if the next Castle include a few more fantasy elements. I just loved the Trolls from the fantasy incarnation. Not only were they unique, but I thought that it was great that the Fantasy line included more than two factions.

I really like the idea of a female knight. Maybe if Jetson and Fletstrom's names were changed (I was playing with the idea of flotsam and jetsam for the funny names) then one could be changed to a girl, maybe Lady Jocelyne, and be sisters with Max.

And more fantasy elements would be cool, but I think that could become more prominent during the third and fourth waves when Rinthwald and Jolan are the villains. I was thinking of having those sets be more water and ship centric, so maybe some water species could exist and be used as soldiers by Rintwald.

[tf_mxsh12]

And more fantasy elements would be cool, but I think that could become more prominent during the third and fourth waves when Rinthwald and Jolan are the villains. I was thinking of having those sets be more water and ship centric, so maybe some water species could exist and be used as soldiers by Rintwald.

I love the idea of a 3rd, Water-based group. Between the old LEGO Troll ship and the new LOTR Pirate Ship, I've found that Castle-based ships can actually be pretty cool.

Anyways, I think that you have some great ideas: they definitely have promise! I just wish I knew more about how LEGO generates new iterations of their main themes. That is to say, whether LEGO is actually willing to take in suggestions from the community.

[Fives]

I love the idea of a 3rd, Water-based group. Between the old LEGO Troll ship and the new LOTR Pirate Ship, I've found that Castle-based ships can actually be pretty cool.

Anyways, I think that you have some great ideas: they definitely have promise! I just wish I knew more about how LEGO generates new iterations of their main themes. That is to say, whether LEGO is actually willing to take in suggestions from the community.

When I was younger I sent in a detailed outline of a better Star Wars Cantina set. The responded by saying they were glad to see the enthusiasm, but designers are not allowed to take suggestions from outside the company. Then again, this was a suggestion for a pre-existing licensed theme. Something like this, a completely original idea, could possibly be treated differently, but I doubt it.

EDIT: Updated version of the good side character list, as well as wave 2 ideas

• Sir Maxwell (Max) the Chosen - the main hero of the theme, Jocelyn’s younger brother, he is the one to defeat all evil in the land, rides a white horse, wields gold sword.
  
• Sir Everett the Honest - secondary main character, should be slightly older and more experienced than Max, rides a grey horse, wields gold spear.
  
• Sir Rinthwald the Headstrong - slightly bitter towards the other knights, could develop into wave three/four villain, rides a black horse, wields gold battle axe.
  
• Sir Ivan the Trustworthy - has a completely prosthetic silver arm, rides a brown horse, wields gold mace.
  
• Lady Jocelyn the Loyal - Max’s older sister, rather than wearing a full suit of armour, she just has a gold breastplate and chainmail printed on her, rides a winged white horse, wields gold bow.
  

Wave 2

• $130 Dead Mountain - the flagship of wave 2, this is Karadoth’s fortress in the north. I imagine it being made similarly to the new Lone Ranger mine set, only bigger, and grey with white snow. A big door made of bones would be cool. And a green and gold battering ram. Figures include: Max on foot, Jocelyn on her pegasus, Karadoth on a black horse with barding, Oson, two reanimated soldiers, two good soldiers.
  
• $70 Everett’s Victory - set in a snowy rock canyon in the mountains, with an avalanche function to collapse the rock onto Laradoth. Figures include: Everett on horseback, Barthus with explosives to take down the mountain, Lady Laradoth in a small carriage being carried by her soldiers, two reanimated soldiers.
  
• $40 Rinthwald’s Betrayal - set by the seashore in the north, with some frozen ice and snow and a snowy tree. Ice has breakable function so Ivan can break through. Figures include: Sir Ivan on foot, Sir Rinthwald on horse with new barding now bearing a dark red and silver symbol on his shield, and two turncoat soldiers (red shields with new emblem, possibly a serpent emblem).
  
• $15 each Battle Packs - each pack contains five soldiers, one pack for good, one pack of reanimated soldiers, each figure with assorted weaponry.
  

I thought the second wave could have fewer sets, but have them be bigger and focus on important story points, as well as provide battle packs so people could build up armies from the first act of the story before moving on to the second act.

Edited May 9, 2013 by Fives

[Bytor]

This is sort of like Knights Kingdom no?

They too had a story with named characters, as well as a reoccurring antagonist.

[Fives]

This is sort of like Knights Kingdom no?

They too had a story with named characters, as well as a reoccurring antagonist.

Kind of, but as you will see here with my thoughts for a second wave, it becomes a slightly Greek-themed story with a pirates flare.

Act 2 Characters

Good Side

Knights:

• Sir Maxwell (Max) the Chosen - the main hero of the theme, Jocelyn’s younger brother, he is the one to defeat all evil in the land, rides a white horse, wields gold sword.
  
• Sir Everett the Honest - secondary main character, should be slightly older and more experienced than Max, rides a grey horse, wields gold spear.
  
• Lady Jocelyn the Loyal - Max’s older sister, rather than wearing a full suit of armour, she just has a gold breastplate and chainmail printed on her, rides a winged white horse, wields gold bow.
  
• Captain Arrold - captain station by the sea to keep watch over the southern reaches of the kingdom, armour is printed on (has a greek feel), wields a gold sword.
  

During this act the knights now wear greek like armour and no helmets.

Nobles:

• Lord Barthus - elder bishop/wizard like figure, dark blue cloak, carries books and is Max's mentor
  

Bad Side (colours dark red and silver)

• Sir Rinthwald the Headstrong - new leader of the Eel Empire, rides a black horse, wields gold battle axe.
  
• Lord Eelison - self-made leader of the Eel Empire, handed over the kingdom to Rinthwald when he was promised riches, wields silver scimitar.
  
• Lady Eellesmera - sister and Queen to Eelison, wields silver trident.
  

Act 2

Wave 3

• $120 The Red Eel - Rinthwald’s command ship, I see it as a mish-mash of the Queen Anne’s Revenge and the Corsair ship. Red Corsair sail and maybe a red hull, with silver accents. Figures include: Rinthwald in a new dark red suit of armour, Jocelyn on her pegasus, Everett in a rowboat with another soldier, three eel soldiers (the new enemies, treated like the dino guy from CMF).
  
• $60 Seaside Village Attack - two buildings at a dock, one with a market stand, and a dark red rowboat. Figures include: Lady Eellesmera, Captain Arrold, two eel soldiers, two good villagers.
  
• $35 Giant Eel Ambush - large brick built dark green and red sea serpent, two rowboats, chunks of sea rocks, maybe with coral. Figures include: Max, two eel soldiers, one good soldier.
  
• $20 Seaside Prison Break - small seaside tower with prison bars facing the water, dark red rowboat. Figures include: Lord Eelison, one eel soldier, one good soldier.
  
• $10 Treasure Cart Robbery - small cart with treasure chest, small palm tree. Figure include: two eel soldiers, two good soldiers.
  

Wave 4

• $110 Underwater Fortress -Eel capitol, not sure how it would be done, but partly above ground. Figures include: Captain Arrold, Lady Jocelyn on her pegasus, Lord Eelison, Lady Eellesmera, two eel soldiers, two good soldiers.
  
• $70 Battle at the Cove - gate section that opens out to a rocky cove, two dark red rowboats. Figures include: Everett on horseback, two good soldiers, two eel soldiers.
  
• $40 The Bay of Judgement - a round bowl shape sloping down into the water with a small opening in the rock. Figures include: Max, Rinthwald, one good soldier, one eel soldier.
  
• $15 Battle Packs - each pack contains five soldiers, one pack for good, one pack of eel soldiers, each figure with assorted weaponry.
  
• 
  

Edited May 10, 2013 by Fives

[ZCerberus]

Does sound a little like jelly bean knights to me as well. No LotR means a 130 USD price point is likely a dud I think- but who knows.

Or LEGO could just make a few Guilds of Historica sets! That would be awesome.

[Bytor]

Yeah i read it, just that TLG has done stuff like this so they'll probably do it again.

[Fives]

I understand that people are seeing this as something similar to Knights Kingdom II, but the way that I intended it to seem is something like Ninjago or Chima but set in a medieval/fantasy world. And as the theme moves forward, the soldiers and designs take a more Greek mythology feel, with more Mediterranean sort of settings and armour. I'm still trying to figure out where the story will go for act 3, since that is where it will end.

[Alfadas]

Sounds cool to me! Maybe post some sets on Cuusoo, and get 10k supporters.

[Fives]

Sounds cool to me! Maybe post some sets on Cuusoo, and get 10k supporters.

I'm trying to post this on CUUSOO but the image isn't loading, so I an't submit my idea. This is frustrating.

[Zilcho]

This sounds like a good idea, as long as there aren't horrible vibrant colours like KK! I like the idea of combining characters with normal soldiers as it would allow more variation in armies, also meaning you can have stories along with big battles. Maybe reduce the character number and add more good guy soldiers.

What are your ideas for the bad guys soldiers in act 1? Zombie soldiers? not skeletons like castle and not ghosts like lotr. And these eel guys? What will they be like.

The sets sound really, and I would really like to see some more castle ships like the troll one. I like the idea of the mountain castle being like the mine as opposed to the standard tower, gate + wall.

[Fives]

This sounds like a good idea, as long as there aren't horrible vibrant colours like KK! I like the idea of combining characters with normal soldiers as it would allow more variation in armies, also meaning you can have stories along with big battles. Maybe reduce the character number and add more good guy soldiers.

What are your ideas for the bad guys soldiers in act 1? Zombie soldiers? not skeletons like castle and not ghosts like lotr. And these eel guys? What will they be like.

The sets sound really, and I would really like to see some more castle ships like the troll one. I like the idea of the mountain castle being like the mine as opposed to the standard tower, gate + wall.

The reanimated soldiers would be more zombie like rather than skellies. I never really liked the 2007 skellies. And the eel guys could be done in a similar fashion to the Chima figures. Almost like if Chima met Atlantis. And I suppose the character count could go down, but characters like Ivan and Arrold are there to help bridge the gap between the first and second acts. Ivan's death at the hands of Rinthwald signifies Rinthwald's absolute fall to evil, and Arrold is the captain in the south, which introduces the more Greek style of armour.

I'm still having a tough time figuring out the act three villains. I was thinking something more forest based, with a faction that pays homage to the Wolfpack, but they have actual werewolves in their armies. And these werewolves could be made in a similar fashion to General Grievous, to give them a thin, creepy appearance.

[TheLegoDr]

I agree. I think a major problem is the fact they were brightly colored. Obviously brighter colors can attract more children to a theme, whereas LOTR is using more Earthy tones and realistic cues from nature. That isn't to say the target audience wouldn't appreciate that. I'm sure LOTR/Hobbit are selling just fine with them as well.

I basically entered my dark ages right as Dungeon (Dragon) Masters was getting started, so I missed everything until Kingdoms. With that said, I would love some more variety in coloring. A new Eagle would be great though. I love the new Amazon warrior in the CMF series 10. She looks great, but her shield is amazing. Amazon (amazing)...weird.

Anyway, great story here. I'd love to see it come to fruition.

[Fives]

I've entered my idea onto CUUSOO, just waiting to hear back if it gets published. I'm interested in getting a wider selection of opinions and thoughts / ideas on this.

[Alfadas]

@Fives, how did you name it on CUUSOO, because I cannot find it.

[Hey Joe]

Please don't get me wrong; I like your characters and story, but I hope they wouldn't do something similar to Ninjago with the Castle theme (although, of course, Castle did have it's Ninja period).

Ninjago is just too fanciful for me. The basis of Castle is deeply rooted in historical fact and ancient myths and legends, but Ninjago is too far out there (jet planes and wrecking balls, for example).

Your ideas would make for an excellent theme to replace Ninjago and/or Chima in the future IMO, but hopefully they would continue to do the Castle line as well.

Thanks, Joe

[lego tripper]

We need a Bear faction.

That is all.

[Fives]

@Fives, how did you name it on CUUSOO, because I cannot find it.

We need a Bear faction.

That is all.

I'm not sure if its published yet on CUUSOO. It needs to go through the approval stuff. When I get the email saying its up, I'll post a link to it here.

And I've been playing around with the idea of a Bear faction, actually. I was thinking of having tribal wild men who wear bear skins and ride bears. But then I've also come up with the idea of the final villain being an alchemist whose experiments have caused him to become the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of werewolves. I'm not sure which way I'm gonna go, but I'm leaning more towards the wolves, since I have a bit more of a grounded reason for why they are evil.

[Fives]

My idea is now up on CUUSOO if people want to pitch in their support!

http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/40408

[Faefrost]

One suggestion on your CuuSoo presentation. "Say less, Show more". Right now it is a wall of text with one kinda dim fuzzy and unexciting picture. Nothing about the presentation pops. If I hadn't read your ideas here, I never would have made it through them on the CuuSoo page. It really needs more graphics, and a much more eye catching lead picture. LDD paired with LDD2POV can be your friend in this. You just need to generate a handful of good looking pics to draw people into the idea. (But really don't just post LDD shots with those cheesy backgrounds. They look awful and are an instant disqualified for a lot of AFOLs. Take a few hours to run the design through the rendering program so you get something that looks almost real.)

[Deathleech]

I really like your idea and think this would definitely make the Castle theme more interesting in future iterations. I think people are just a little turned off by the idea of another KKII wave, but like you said it sounds like you are going for a more story driven theme like Ninja or Chima, not necessarily the same style which is fine by me. The more substance the better. I believe a huge problem with the current Castle line is not only the bright kid-ish colors and lack of detail on the sets (when compared to LotR), but also the sets just feel really stale. It looks like Lego just took a bunch of existing models from past Castle sets, took the Crownies and the red lions, and mixed and matched them all and made a "new" (re-used) wave of sets.

Now, with that said I have to strongly agree with Faefrost. The idea definitely seems there but the Cuusoo presentation leaves a lot to be desired. I think some more pictures, and better quality ones could really help you out. As is it's one picture of 2 minifigures standing in a ruined little tower on a raised base plate. Most people won't even read your idea if that's what they think it will look like. You should really spruce it up to draw them in and have them read through it all and get interested. I especially find your wave 2 and 3 sets interesting because I don't think we have seen "eel" soldiers or a bear/werewolf centric band of evil doers before.

Edited May 14, 2013 by Deathleech