scottjs

Since I'm stubborn, in denial, or crazy I think we'll see something at the end of this year or bright and early in 2015. The LEGO Movie sets will only be around for a year I'm guessing, and they take up a ton of shelf space. Plus the new Star Wars sets won't be out until I would think closer to the release of the movies. Just some food for thought. Based on what everyone has been talking about here and what I think would sell well for Lego here are some quick set thoughts. I bet LEGO could/will do a brick Balrog set for $25-$30. Just the Balrog, Gandalf, and maybe an Orc. A collapsible bridge would be cool but it isn't needed and will keep the set price down. I really love this http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/41453 model for a fell beast. Throw in Eowyn, and Merry and I'm sure you could keep the cost much lower then Dragon Mountain. $30-$35ish? Brick built Mumakil with Legolas and 1 or 2 Gordon soldiers and a bunch of Haradrim for $50. Something similar to Attack of the Ward's for price and minifigs count as long as the Oliphant looks good. Lastly 2 sets for Minas Tirith. I want big as do many others (excluding Alcarin, he seems to love the Cuusoo MOC

That's a tough choice as Lothlorien could boast new minifigs and some amazing trees like Ewok Village. On the other hand Prancing pony would appeal to many because of it's "modular" building style and you could fit in some amazing detail. I'd have to go with Prancing Pony (just barely) as it reminds me of one of my favorite builds, MMV.

Ditto. Until I have 1600 Uruk-hai (which will be never) I don't consider my posts to be bragging. My collection pales in comparison to what many of you have.

I'm in Canada so my collection may have been been a tad more :) . I have managed to grab a few clearance deals though which helps a lot. I'm going to send an email off to TLG as well and see what they say. I imagine I'll get a generic response along the lines of "we can't say anything". Unless an employee wants to risk their job they won't say a word nor would a customer service rep answering emails have a clue as to the future of the line. I'm still voicing my concerns which helps.

I understand the hate towards Pirate Ship Ambush if it replaces another better LoTR set but I still love it and plan to buy another 2. A fleet of 3 just seems right. In terms of "buying my part" I think I'm doing alright. I've picked up one of every set (minus this wave of the Hobbit, that'll be next month) except 8 Helm's Deep, 17 Uruk-Hai army, 10 Orc Forge, 5 Weathertop, 3 Mines of Moria, 6 Attack of the Wargs, 4 Unexpected Gathering, 3 Goblin King, 2 Mirkwood Spiders, 26 Mirkwood polys, 2 Frodo polys, 2 Gandalf polys and 40 Lake town polys. If TLG would have produced battle packs I would have bought 20 of each.

Thanks for the info Fives and deskp, I'm glad to know the events won't be completely fabricated. I'm a lot more excited for this wave then I was for the first, new info can't come soon enough.

I have considered this idea in the past but I really don't think it's the case. I know there quite a few people that like everything and then budget comes into play but there are also quite a few people that gravitate towards one maybe two specific themes and this way TLG gives them choice and still gets there money. If we were choosing from double the themes then I'm sure they would be looking at their numbers and would want to change things up. The trailer looked awesome but I'm confused about something. I always assumed that the "events" that took place at Dol Guldor were on the small scale of things. We're they ever discussed in another book or is this PJ doing his own thing?

Personal preference I would say. When 70404 was released it didn't have the best reception (among non-kids anyways). I prefer 7946 for the lack of tan bricks at the bottom, the red roof area, the design of the draw bridge, and the minifigs. 70404 is still nice but like others have said it seems more orientated towards the younger age group and LotR can grab the older kids and AFOL's. The last part is anyone's guess though. It sounds like you don't have any issues (as do many others) with 70404 which is great because financially that is definitely the better option.

I completely agree with you, Hollywood does tend to ruin a lot of good stories. HOWEVER, there are some scenes in LotR and The Hobbit that need that Hollywood touch. The opening of The Two Towers for instance (I paused the movie to come post this). Seeing Gandalf battle the Balrog on my big screen with my house shaking is something you just have to experience visually as they don't really cover it in the book. I love both the books and the movies for their own reason as I'm sure a lot of us do. Back on topic, we MUST have a Balrog set. Seriously TLG you can't miss the boat on this one.

I had the same dilemma earlier this year about acquiring a 7946 and at that point I could have paid $150 CDN for a MISB shipped but I ended up passing it up. Overall I think 7946 is a better castle, and that's just my personal opinion as I like the red better then the blue and the dragon knights just don't do it for me. However I still don't regret my decision to not pick one up as the price difference (I always try to pay maximum 20% under MSRP with a few exceptions) was just not worth it. I generally have a hard time paying a premium on any Lego though as I'm not a hard core collector. The Joust set is a really nice set and since the lion knights are the same as the chess set that combo is a no brainer to me. I plan to buy everything from the current Castle line even though I don't love the line compared to the last but it is growing on me. One thought since the minifigs are equal in your eyes is that the red guys or whoever you have less of could be a special faction or a neighboring kingdom if you really need a reason as to why they're different.

I think that would be more reason to keep suggesting the top sets we want. I know it can be tiresome to read the same requests over and over but as new people join the forum and voice their opinion on certain sets it reinforces that fans want to see said sets happen. There are a number of other things we could do though like starting polls or emailing directly. I'm thinking aloud at this point. No problem on the update. I don't know, is there really not that many other sets that could be done to keep the theme going? Are you thinking rehashing characters in different settings or completely new characters? As a die hard fan I can think of other locations but some of them may be to insignificant to TLG to justify production. I can't see Orthanc only being made for 1 year (again depends on sales), so would they release another big set so soon? So many questions that only time or a high up LEGO employee can answer. An entire wave of Army Builders would be amazing. I'm not holding my breath but wow that would get expensive fast! Unfortunately TLG does not release specific sales data as Infernum suggests we are all assuming at this point.

I found the thread slow for a couple of days that was why I suggested Minas Tirith again. I'm a big fan of anything Middle Earth and although I lurk more then I post this theme is hands down my favorite. TLG is monitoring these and other forums there's no question about that. If they see fans posting what they want in sets I'm sure they'll be more inclined to entertain those ideas if they hadn't considered them in the past. The sales of Orthanc are going to be a huge indicator for Lego if big LotR sets are worth it. So far my local store has been selling them very well, but I have no idea on a whole how the set is doing. I still haven't picked up a copy only because I'm playing catch up on so many other themes/sets that are getting close to retirement.

Yeah I agree. One huge Minas Tirith set would be better then 3 individuals sets. I was pondering how they would design a set like this over the weekend, making notes as I went. In my notes I used the Death Star as an example as I believe Minis Tirith would be comparable to the Death Star in terms of the amount of pieces and minifigures you would need to do it justice. If I had the bricks to undertake what I thought would be a marketable version I wouldn't hesitate. However I don't, so this is just a day dream for me. Also I'm trying to keep the new mould piece count to a minimum as that would play into the set being made. First off the minifigure count: Lego likes to stick with "the good guys always prevail" (which they do in LotR) but as an example the Battle of Helm's Deep in which the "good guys" are vastly outnumbered has 4 good and 4 bad minifigures. For this reason I can't see Minis Tirith having a large amount of baddies. At best a number evenly matched with the good guys. Also I'm reading through the books again and my memory isn't the best. So if I miss anyone let me know. Good Guys: Theoden (Helm's Deep minifigure) Aragorn (Black Gate minifigure) Gandalf the White w/Shadowfax (Black Gate minifigure) Pippin (New Citadel Attire/Printing) Eomer (Uruk-Hai Army minifigure) Faramir Denethor 2 Rohirrim (Uruk-Hai Army) 2 Gondorian Bad Guys: Gothmog Orcs x 3 (with armor) Troll Now that puts us at 14 minifigures plus the Troll. An existing mold would suffice for many of the characters and armor. Mostly we would need new printing which would keep costs down. I had in my head a minifigure count of 20 although the troll would take away from that number somewhat. Also I had originally thought of Eowyn, Merry, The Witch King and his Fell Beast but I believe this would be better suited as its own set. Although for a theme ending set it would be great to see them included. Minis Tirith: Obviously 7 levels isn't going to happen. I'm thinking more along the lines of 3 as others have suggested. The first level would be the outer wall (think Helm's Deep) with the Main Gate. This would include catapults as well as play features to break of part(s) of the wall. Next would be a level built up slightly with perhaps a black smith and pub for their play features. Depending on the size of the buildings there could be a sleeping quarters or something else to keep play features alive. In between these two or more buildings would be the start of the mountain that protrudes out. This would be built up higher then the tops of the buildings. The courtyard, white tree and Citadel would be at the top of this. Other Items: A decently large Siege Tower would be included which would be pulled by the troll and house some of the other bad guys and their weapons. There could be a smaller catapult as well. Obviously there would need to be some more detail but what does everyone think?

If Azog is from a new mold which to the best of my knowledge he is, then yes absolutely. It would be ludacris for them to spend $50,000 to $80,000 on mold, release 100 exclusive figures and then kill production. If anything the printing will be unique, but even that remains to be seen. It all comes down to sales in the end, but I agree that LotR and The Hobbit will end way before Star Wars. Heck I doubt Star Wars will ever end there is a ridiculous amount of content they can cover and once they do they can just go back and remake sets. I expect one more wave of both Hobbit and LotR sets and after that anything is a bonus.

Debateable, I'll expand the quote. "The majority of its revenue comes from refining classic LEGO lines such as City and Star Wars, licensing more recent megahits such as Lord of the Rings, and inventing Big Bang themes such as..." I would be amazed if the Grey Havens boat was the last big set to end LotR. I would think/hope Minas Tirith in Death Star proportions as it has much more significance/screen time/playability/awesomeness. Not that I don't want the boat I just want other stuff first. Lego (customers) sure love boats though.

Not that it actually means anything but I found it interesting that while reading Brick by Brick the author mentions "licensing more recent megahits such as Lord of the Rings" when talking about how well Lego is now doing. I know I'm reading into it but I still have hope that this theme is doing fantastic (much better then The Hobbit minus Unexpected Gathering), and we'll see sets for years to come. I've noticed in my local Lego store Orthanc sets seem to fly off the shelves at an alarming rate and I wonder if this would prompt TLG to do another huge exclusive for Lord of the Rings? Although Orthanc will probably stick around for a couple years would it not?

It would be nice if Lego sold polybags directly so customers that want them could skip the less adequate retailers and buy direct.

Looking at pricing I believe that 49.99 GBP is still an accurate price for Laketown Chase as that set could be mimicking Attack of the Wargs which is the same amount in both USD and GBP. I suspect that an actual model of Smaug is being kept under wraps until the movie comes out i.e. NDA agreement with Newline. TLG wouldn't release a Smaug set this year and next would they, seeing that dragons sell so well? I imagine no as they could not design him differently enough to warrant picking up the second version, I'm just thinking out loud.

This set will easily be the best selling set from this wave no questions. The only weak point of this set is the inclusion of another Frodo at a low price point as Gimli has only been in previously higher priced sets. I would rather have seen Boromir but that's just me nit picking. The white arches are amazing as well as the foliage making this set a MOCer's dream come true. I will buy boxes of the foliage pieces if they appear in the pick a brick wall. There would have to be people actually wanting to steal Mega Blocks for security to be needed lol.

That's awesome, post pictures when you're done!

I was going to post this in the 2013 thread but I figure I'll be a good member and keep my speculation separate. If we look at the 2012 vs 2013 LotR line up prices they are $368 vs $403, this is in US pricing including only sets. When looking at the 2012 Hobbit line up the total is $300, and for 2013 we have only the confirmation of Lake Town Chase which accounts for $50 so still roughly another $250 give or take could be used for others sets. If we have 5 or 6 sets I would assume they are going to follow a very similar price structure as the 2012 line up. Radagast on his bunny sleigh would be a good set for Riddles for the Ring, and Beorn's house could replace An Unexpected Gathering plus we know Lake Town Chase is replacing Attack of the Wargs. That would leave us with replacing The Goblin King Battle $99.99, Escape from Mirkwood Spiders $29.99, and Barrel Escape $39.99. I can easily see Dol Guldur as the replacement for Goblin King Battle and maybe Thranduil's Halls for Barrel Escape which would leave one more set. The only problem with my thought process is not including Smaug which when the name of the movie is DOS I would expect a big Smaug set. How about Smaug as the replacement for Goblin King, Dol Guldur as the replacement for Barrel Escape and Thranduil's Halls (or throne at this point) as the replacement for Mirk Wood Spiders. The cost of Dol Guldur could be bumped up a tad to give the ruined castle a little more punch and this would seem like a good line up. This speculation is freaking killing me!

DeskP, thanks for the clarification on the piece count for Lake Town Chase. I was getting worried that we would see significant price increase on Lego Hobbit sets, you've put my mind at ease. I loved the book, and I love the first movie. A straight book to movie adaptation would not have cut it in my opinion, sometimes changes have to be made to make things a little more interesting for viewers. Now granted I would rather have not seen the amount of changes that have happened thus far but I'm not part of the movie and the people that are responsible are huge Middle Earth fans so I'll leave it up to them. This goes the same with the Lego sets that are released, they may not always be 100% what I want but I'm just grateful were getting anything at all. When this theme is ultimately done whether that be next year or ten years from now we're going to have seen some amazing minifigures, and new parts released. People have been MOC'ing middle earth scenes for years already and now we'll have the tools to make them more authentic. I still don't see Pirate Ship Battle as this years flagship set for LotR. Is it not Orthanc, are S@H exclusives not considered to be part of the line directly? Speaking of Orthanc for those of you lucky enough to have a Lego store where you live how has it been selling, i.e. do they sit around long? At my Edmonton Lego Store (which has only been open just over a month) they're flying off the shelves with every shipment they get it. I don't think they last beyond a few hours of being stocked, or are at least sold out that same day. If this is a trend I can see it boding well for Lego LotR sets. How cool would it be to have Lego continue to release an Orthanc sized set for each LotR yearly theme and to have LotR continue for a few more years. I won't go into naming sets as that doesn't belong in this thread but we all know the possibilities. Edit: Moved my speculation to the correct thread.

Holy crap what are you building?!?! My lastest acquisition was Batwing Battle over Gotham City...for my wife!

Besides the licensing issue it was 10 years (I believe) before SW battle packs started to appear, so I don't see anything coming from LotR for a while IF ever. I don't agree with that, as would probably everyone here, but TLG will do what they think is most beneficial to them. I personally can't see how they wouldn't sell insane amounts of battle packs at this point though, as we Lego LotR fans have been used to the "battle pack" of Uruk-Hai Army. Can you imagine a Uruk-Hai (printed like Orc Forge) battle pack with 4 bad guys and a little ballista for $12.99 (USD), $15.99 (CDN) or £11.99 (GBP) and then a good guy battle pack with 2 Elves, 2 Rohirrim and a catapult or the like. I have to stop myself from even considering that Lego may produce battle packs at some point because I get so excited and then realize it probably won't happen and the sadness sets in lol. Back to the sets, I like the design of the Laketown set specifically the boat, as well as the new minifigs. The price is terrible IMO (334 pieces, 14.967c/p), comparing it to Attack of the Wargs that retailed for the same price of $49.99 (USD). AotW came with 5 minfigs as well, 2 wargs, and 400 pieces (12.498c/p). Lake Town is more interesting I'll give it that, but I'll have to wait for a sale before I pick it up.

That employee seems to be misinformed, you can buy all the sets including the ship on both Chapters and TRU's websites.