Is TLG now definitely phasing out baseplates?

[merman]

The new road-system does not make use of baseplates anymore.

The leaked picture of an upcoming set shows bricks where baseplates would be more common

All modern sets use large 16x16 plates in stead of baseplates

 

so question is; is Lego now phasing out baseplates? Would be a big issue with the modulars, of which the old ones are bulld on baseplates and therefore half a plate lower than buildings built on regular plates. Impossible to connect and the sidewalk tiles no longer line up.

 

and most importantly: how do we feel about baseplates disappearing?

[MAB]

3 hours ago, merman said:

The new road-system does not make use of baseplates anymore.

The leaked picture of an upcoming set shows bricks where baseplates would be more common

All modern sets use large 16x16 plates in stead of baseplates

 

so question is; is Lego now phasing out baseplates? Would be a big issue with the modulars, of which the old ones are bulld on baseplates and therefore half a plate lower than buildings built on regular plates. Impossible to connect and the sidewalk tiles no longer line up.

 

and most importantly: how do we feel about baseplates disappearing?

I doubt they are disappearing completely, as you say modulars will not align properly without them.

 

Diagon Alley is a modern set (and not a modular) and that uses baseplates.

Edited October 3, 2020 by MAB

[tafkatb]

No.

[Aanchir]

52 minutes ago, MAB said:

I doubt they are disappearing completely, as you say modulars will not align properly without them.

Diagon Alley is a modern set (and not a modular) and that uses baseplates.

Yeah, baseplates already largely stopped appearing in most non-D2C sets around 2012/2013, so it's not as though there's much left to "phase out" in the first place. And the only shift we've heard about among the current 2021 rumors is a new road system which would (presumably) take the place of printed road baseplates. If LEGO was already able to keep baseplates in production for this many years even at such an infrequent level of use, then I can't imagine that they're in any huge hurry to stop using them now.

That said, I certainly wouldn't complain if LEGO did eventually do away with baseplates entirely — after all, from a compatibility standpoint, it's usually no more difficult to replace thinner baseplates with full-thickness plates than the other way around. Full-thickness plate foundations have already been prevalent since the mid-1980s (for reference, the 1984 LEGO Castle range only used thin baseplates for its largest set), so people who are truly committed to adapting all their sets to the same "standard" have had plenty of time to get used to that sort of modding.

And if anybody DOES find it frustrating to reconcile two different base standards like this… well, that's all the more reason that we might all be better off with LEGO using the more versatile of those standards universally in future sets.

[TeriXeri]

Unless the currently sold non-road baseplates 10700 10701 10714 11010 are all retiring at the same time, I don't see baseplates going out of production yet.

That said, they did re-launch a Classic set with the inclusion of 4 16x16 regular plates not that long ago.

Edited October 4, 2020 by TeriXeri

[Vindicare]

1 hour ago, Aanchir said:

That said, I certainly wouldn't complain if LEGO did eventually do away with baseplates entirely — after all, from a compatibility standpoint, it's usually no more difficult to replace thinner baseplates with full-thickness plates than the other way around. Full-thickness plate foundations have already been prevalent since the mid-1980s (for reference, the 1984 LEGO Castle range only used thin baseplates for its largest set), so people who are truly committed to adapting all their sets to the same "standard" have had plenty of time to get used to that sort of modding.

It would be a huge pain for people like myself with towns. I’d have to buy a crap ton of plates to replace all the 32x32 baseplate I have in my layout, which is 42 of them. That would be expensive, and a huge waste.

It would completely ruin the Modulars. Even if they started next years on plates, that still leaves me having to waste a ton of money on buying plates for the old Modulars, of which I have all, or also buying a baseplate every year I buy the Modular. 

[danth]

4 hours ago, Aanchir said:

That said, I certainly wouldn't complain if LEGO did eventually

I mean, did you even have to complete that sentence?

[Blondie-Wan]

3 hours ago, TeriXeri said:

That said, they did re-launch a Classic set with the inclusion of 4 16x16 regular plates not that long ago.

What was that?

[TeriXeri]

4 minutes ago, Blondie-Wan said:

What was that?

 11717: Bricks Bricks Plates (May 2020) , basicly the same as 10717: Bricks Bricks Bricks from June 2018, but with added 16x16 and an updated set number.

 

[Aanchir]

17 minutes ago, danth said:

I mean, did you even have to complete that sentence?

Believe it or not, there's quite a lot that frustrates me about LEGO. The lack of a more versatile road system to take the place of the numerous limitations of road plates is something I've been bringing up here on Eurobricks for many years now. I've also been grumbling for a long time about their lack of apparel in adult sizes (the new LEGO x Levi's partnership is a step in the right direction, but even then I'm frustrated at the limited range of sizes, styles, and colors). And I don't think it's been more than a couple days since I mentioned my disappointment that the new road system is apparently going to still be branded as LEGO City, rather than as part of a more "theme/setting-neutral" branding like Xtra.

I'd also love to see more visible LGBTQ+ representation in their products and media, more gender diversity in a lot of their product lines, and jdeally even some kind of stand against J.K. Rowling's recent obsession with transphobic fearmongering… but based on my past experiences, Eurobricks is not an especially healthy environment for those sorts of discussions.

Overall, if there's one thing that seems to set my gripes about LEGO apart from the ones I disagree with, it's that I tend to be more frustrated with the ways TLG can often seem stuck in a rut or bound by tradition than with the newer ideas they've been exploring or the parts of their past they've moved away from. But then, I think that kind of describes a lot of my mindset in general, not just in regard to LEGO.

I certainly wouldn't be as happy or fulfilled as I am today if I just settled for the safe, predictable path I expected my future to take when I was a child, instead of taking the chance to thoroughly consider some of the exciting possibilities that I could never have imagined back then…

[Mylenium]

13 hours ago, merman said:

Would be a big issue with the modulars,

Depends on how you use them, I guess? Since I only have them for decorative purposes it always kinda riles me up when stuff falls off just because the baseplate is bending a little when moving things around during dustbusting. I could totalyl go for conventional plates, even with raised sidewalks, parking bays and other stuff you could do then.

Mylenium

[merman]

5 hours ago, Aanchir said:

 

I'd also love to see more visible LGBTQ+ representation in their products and media, more gender diversity in a lot of their product lines, and jdeally even some kind of stand against J.K. Rowling's recent obsession with transphobic fearmongering… but based on my past experiences, Eurobricks is not an especially healthy environment for those sorts of discussions.

 

I had a small conversation on Twitter with Marcos Bessa (himself being part of the community just like Jamie Berard) regarding LGBTQ+-representation in sets. TLG, as the biggest toy company in the world, is not prepared to make a stance on this. Bessa’s reply was a vague one: with a bit of imagination you could see two female figs with a baby as being a love couple. It would make such a big difference if they’d release a groom-groom or bride-bride set. 

[Mylenium]

5 hours ago, merman said:

TLG, as the biggest toy company in the world, is not prepared to make a stance on this.

What else is new? *lol*

Mylenium

[JintaiZ]

Well... I'm not quite sure...

I understand that a lot of people doesn't like them, but how are the modulars going to live without them!?

[Lyichir]

On 10/6/2020 at 3:39 PM, JintaiZ said:

Well... I'm not quite sure...

I understand that a lot of people doesn't like them, but how are the modulars going to live without them!?

I don't really think they will have to. These days modulars are some of the only sets to use traditional baseplates and to be honest I don't see that necessarily needing to change. They could easily continue to use the classic baseplates for compatibility's sake, while other themes move on to other types of bases.

It's not like modulars were ever really easy to use with road plates in the first place—the lack of built-in curbs on this new road system could arguably make it more easy to use with modulars, rather than less.

[Vindicare]

13 hours ago, Lyichir said:

I don't really think they will have to. These days modulars are some of the only sets to use traditional baseplates and to be honest I don't see that necessarily needing to change. They could easily continue to use the classic baseplates for compatibility's sake, while other themes move on to other types of bases.

It's not like modulars were ever really easy to use with road plates in the first place—the lack of built-in curbs on this new road system could arguably make it more easy to use with modulars, rather than less.

Huh? It’s ridiculously easy to use. People either just tile over the studded area on the road plates, make parking spots, or leave them open. I take the light grey 1x tiles from the Modulars, leaving two rows of studs on the road plate, then tile over the rest.

[Aanchir]

16 hours ago, Vindicare said:

Huh? It’s ridiculously easy to use. People either just tile over the studded area on the road plates, make parking spots, or leave them open. I take the light grey 1x tiles from the Modulars, leaving two rows of studs on the road plate, then tile over the rest. 

Certainly that's one possibility. But using the modular buildings with the new road system would be even simpler, without any need for modding. Just scatter a layer of plates between the roadways and set your modular buildings on top, like so:

Obviously, stuff might slide around a bit until all your buildings and streets are laid out, since the bottom of a baseplate has no connection points. But that's just all the more reason that building stuff on standard plates is a more versatile system to begin with: builds with anti-studs underneath can easily be raised up as much as you like.

Edited October 9, 2020 by Aanchir

[Vindicare]

2 hours ago, Aanchir said:

Certainly that's one possibility. But using the modular buildings with the new road system would be even simpler, without any need for modding. Just scatter a layer of plates between the roadways and set your modular buildings on top, like so:

Obviously, stuff might slide around a bit until all your buildings and streets are laid out, since the bottom of a baseplate has no connection points. But that's just all the more reason that building stuff on standard plates is a more versatile system to begin with: builds with anti-studs underneath can easily be raised up as much as you like.

That’s not even simpler...that’s an entire extra step needed in order to get what I already have. All I have to do is lay down the baseplates & I’m set. Plus, I would need to buy a bunch of 2x2 plates, as I don’t buy sets & sort them, I keep them together as sets when stored. 

Edited October 9, 2020 by Vindicare

[Aanchir]

2 hours ago, Vindicare said:

That’s not even simpler...that’s an entire extra step needed in order to get what I already have. All I have to do is lay down the baseplates & I’m set. Plus, I would need to buy a bunch of 2x2 plates, as I don’t buy sets & sort them, I keep them together as sets when stored.  

What I meant is, it's simpler to do from scratch, since instead of needing to lay out a bunch of Dark Stone Grey 2x2 tiles on road baseplates, you can just a bunch of plates (any size or color will do; I just picked red 2x2s in this render on a whim).

I get that if you've already stockpiled a bunch of road baseplates and tiled them, there's not much point in changing systems. But at the same time, if you've already taken all of those steps, then it seems like you don't really lose much from LEGO finally launching a new road system. Whereas for those of us who've been hoping for a more customization-friendly road system for years (especially since 2012 when standard plates became the default bases in nearly all non-Modular Building sets), this is a monumental step forward.

[Vindicare]

1 hour ago, Aanchir said:

What I meant is, it's simpler to do from scratch, since instead of needing to lay out a bunch of Dark Stone Grey 2x2 tiles on road baseplates, you can just a bunch of plates (any size or color will do; I just picked red 2x2s in this render on a whim).

I get that if you've already stockpiled a bunch of road baseplates and tiled them, there's not much point in changing systems. But at the same time, if you've already taken all of those steps, then it seems like you don't really lose much from LEGO finally launching a new road system. Whereas for those of us who've been hoping for a more customization-friendly road system for years (especially since 2012 when standard plates became the default bases in nearly all non-Modular Building sets), this is a monumental step forward.

Fair. 

From the few people I’ve talked to about this(which is 4 including myself), we were caught unaware & some are buying en masse. Some are buying in big lots. Myself, I have two packs that were recently bought & I hope to get a few more soonish. I would buy as I needed them, but now I’m going to have to stockpile a few. 

[MAB]

A clever move by LEGO to shift road baseplates at full price.

Edited October 10, 2020 by MAB

[danth]

I don't really understand the new road system yet. I guess it's just big gray tiles shaped so you can put white tiles in between to make lane markers? And the tiles would go on top of one layer of plates?

I guess you could use the new tiles on top of base plates if you want.

Edited October 10, 2020 by danth

[Aanchir]

6 hours ago, danth said:

I don't really understand the new road system yet. I guess it's just big gray tiles shaped so you can put white tiles in between to make lane markers? And the tiles would go on top of one layer of plates?

I guess you could use the new tiles on top of base plates if you want. 

Sort of! Best I can figure (based on trying to reconcile the piece count we've heard for 60304 with the preliminary image that was leaked), the new system is largely based on new 8x16x2/3 and 16x16x2/3 slabs. The 2x4 and 1x4 tile cutouts are used both for decoration and for linking the road segments together with each other or with other builds on the side of the roads. Proportionally, the new slabs are somewhat similar to the two-plate-tall interlocking bases that appear in Juniors/4+ sets, except with the cutouts more evenly spaced. So they don't need an additional layer of plates underneath.

Here's my mock-up on Stud.io parts designer showing about what I expect the new road pieces to look like (according to prototype versions that show up in some of the leaks):

The lane markings also appear to use gray tiles 2x4 tiles printed with white stripes, rather than just white tiles.

You're right that you could definitely still use baseplates under these new roads. Many of the new sets also include https://brickset.com/parts/design-15625 at each end of the roads, which could be used to connect the new roads with the existing road system.

In any event, this new system is gonna be a godsend for stuff like bridges and inclines (two things that traditional road baseplates were never especially conducive to). Previously, some of the most effective parts for building that sort of stuff were ones like 30401, 30477, 2617, and 2642. But given that all that stuff has been retired for decades, and that most of them were fairly limiting in terms of how wide you could make your roads), I think it's gonna be awesome to have a newer and more versatile solution that seems like it'll be getting more widespread use than any of those parts typically did.

[MAB]

If those parts do turn out the be correct, I wonder why they didn't go for an 8x8 module (only). It would have similar functionality and strength and without the need for the holes for the middle tile sections to remove them. 

[White Phoenix of the Crown]

9 hours ago, Aanchir said:

 

New road parts ?