18 replies to this topic

[Velika314]

I went to comic-con and saw this set, so I decided to pick it up as I was excited to see the new sword. This is my first review here on Eurobricks, so comments and criticism are helpful!

Set Name: 2254 Mountain Shrine
Theme: Ninjago
Released: Summer 2011
Pieces: 169
Price: $19.99
Place of Purchase: San Diego Comic-con

Let's start with the box:

Box Front



Box Back


This is pretty much your standard Ninjago box. One thing I noticed was that on the back of the box it shows an interesting way to display the sword on top of the shrine.

Instruction Booklet

This shows a random page from the slightly bent instruction booklet.

Parts List

Sorry if it's too far away to see.

Parts, DSS, Cards, and Instruction booklet


The Parts

This has a very nice variety of parts, but I find the spinner to be somewhat useless.

Pieces of Interest

I haven't seen these pieces in these colors in sets before. I'm really liking the dragon sword. The flame coming out of it's mouth is a nice touch.

The Cards

The Ninjago sets with the spinners tend to get cards as well. These fit into the game with the spinners I believe.

Treasure!

Metallic gold tiles!

The Minifigs

We get Kai DX with his detailed golden dragon printing and a skeleton dummy figure in tan!  


Kai, like the other DX figures, has his name printed on the back of his torso.


Unfortunately it is covered up when he has his mask on.  

The Build

The base of the shrine is laid out. It's obvious that there will be some kind of opening/closing feature judging by the hinges.


The sides are built up with a nice green roof structure.


The central tower is built and looks as if it can store the chest.


The weapons and training materials are added to the sides.


An spinning axe machine of sorts is built ..


and added to the side of the shrine.


The set is complete!

Extra Pieces


Just your usual bits and pieces are left over.

Features


The sides are open and the axe machine removed.


Ta-daa! They close to make the shrine look more compact.


I suppose the spinner is a feature as well.  

Conclusion

Playability: 3/5 Having only 1 play feature (not including the spinner), which is opening and closing outcrops of rock, the set is lacking. Bonus points for including a treasure chest which gives Kai a purpose for going to the shrine.
Design: 5/5 The set is very stable and cleverly uses the red piston-like pieces to achieve height and a nice look.
Build: 4/5 For a $20 set the build is satisfying, but no outrageous building techniques are used and it is fairly symmetrical.
Parts: 5/5 A great selection of parts and a chance at the fire sword for those who don't wan't to spend the money on the Fire Temple.
Price: 3/5 This set would be better if it were $15; the price-to-parts ratio is a little off otherwise.
Overall: 4/5 A great set for any Lego fan.

2012?

What is the future of Ninjago? Only time will tell...

Edited by Peppermint_M, 24 July 2011 - 10:43 AM.

[Oky]

Nice review, thanks! But I don't believe that that's Chrome Gold. Looks like metallic gold to me.

[prateek]

Nice review. This set looks a bit small in these pictures. I think the Blacksmith Shop is better, but this one has a cool spinner, so I guess that can justify the price.

[lightningtiger]

Thanks for this review 'Velika314', one set that might be worth buying especially for the golden sword.
Keep on spinning everyone !

[Ceroknight]

Thank you for the review!
I can't wait for these to be available!

[Velika314]

Oky Wan Kenobi, on 24 July 2011 - 03:18 AM, said:

Nice review, thanks! But I don't believe that that's Chrome Gold. Looks like metallic gold to me.

Your right, it is metallic gold. I just fixed it.

[KristofBD]

I actually like this set.  It is sufficiently detailed and includes some nice parts.

[deskp]

This set looks quite cool for the price!


Is there another thread where we can talk about general ninjago? Like the teaser on the back of the instructions.

[Velika314]

deskp, on 24 July 2011 - 04:13 PM, said:

This set looks quite cool for the price!


Is there another thread where we can talk about general ninjago? Like the teaser on the back of the instructions.

I think this topic is the closest topic to what your looking for.

[Masked Builder]

Thanks for the review!  It looks like a great set!

[horizon]

This set is just a spinner with extra's. But that's cool. A normal spinner costs about 9 dollar. For 10 more you get a shrine with it.

The problem is that this set and the blacksmith set have Kai (regular and dx). This shrine has the pro of the firesword and the dx version of Kai. So no Fire Temple needed to get those.
The blacksmith would've been cooler with Kai in his blacksmith outfit (as in movie), to have something special on it.


So in the end this shrine is much more interesting then the blacksmith shop. And the kids have about 6 spinners so they can play with this one as well. heh

[LandShark]

Nice review
This wouldn't look out of place in my Kingdom. If I did some minor tweaking, it could easily pass for a troll camp.

[Ecclesiastes]

The new skeleton colour is a nice to have!

[r1chard]

Thanks for review!

horizon, on 26 July 2011 - 07:09 AM, said:

This set is just a spinner with extra's. But that's cool. A normal spinner costs about 9 dollar. For 10 more you get a shrine with it.

The problem is that this set and the blacksmith set have Kai (regular and dx). This shrine has the pro of the firesword and the dx version of Kai. So no Fire Temple needed to get those.
The blacksmith would've been cooler with Kai in his blacksmith outfit (as in movie), to have something special on it.

I agree, and the hair piece would have been a nice piece to have.

Edited by r1chard, 02 August 2011 - 06:56 AM.

[ziljin]

I am tempted to get this set soley for the dragon sword and ax clips as bonus. The sword is 5+ USD on bricklink ugh. Might get cheaper later, but still a few dollars for one weapon. That's the cost of a minifgure! At least the set comes with other bricks.

[Big Cam]

I did not realize that the new ninja's actually had updated outfit's, Kai looks great!

[LandShark]

Big Cam, on 06 August 2011 - 07:32 PM, said:

I did not realize that the new ninja's actually had updated outfit's, Kai looks great!

I'm pretty sure that's just his Dragon Riding outfit (called 'Kai DX'), he's like that in the Fire Temple and one of the first wave sets, I believe.
But yes, he does look great like that.

[Velika314]

LandShark, on 08 August 2011 - 04:44 PM, said:

I'm pretty sure that's just his Dragon Riding outfit (called 'Kai DX'), he's like that in the Fire Temple and one of the first wave sets, I believe.
But yes, he does look great like that.

The Kai DX in the Fire Temple set is the same minifigure as the one in Mountain Shrine. I prefer Kai DX to the normal Kai suit by a lot. The level of gold detail is amazing!

[horizon]

Bought the set a surprise for our son. He wanted a spinner and I gave him spinner + more. haha. Plus both he and daughter now have their own firesword...

Easy enough build, only the picture of attaching blades on the axe machine was not the usual clear instruction.

Son had a lot of fun spinning Kai and hitting all the objects and skeleton. So, all cool. :)