Is it just me or is Army building really really expensive?

[Alcarin]

I remember like a few years back I managed to score figures for aroudn 3EUR / piece, regular soldiers, now its all depleted... figures going for 5EUR+ if you dont want ot buy 1 solo fig from seller with 12 EUR shipping and shields and spears also pushing price marks of 2 EUR+ regulary...

 

Feels like a really really expensive hobby, seeing as its near impossible to find a decent amounts of figures for Army building of atleast 30-40 soldiers...

 

So what do you Army build now? I am still trying to score some Dragon Knights and Black Knights foot soldiers but its getting out of hand...

[Black Falcon]

There are a lot more people doing this, than let´s say ten years ago, so a higher demand and the fact that there is no castle theme anymore, where you can get those figures in small sets and the overall inflation are the main reasons IMO.

The cheapest way to get minifigures right now is probably if you buy them from BAM or in Legoland Germany, though of course you will only get figs that are in production right now/ or in case of the BAM just the Lion Knights (and that only helps you if you have one near you, not to mention that a trip to Legoland itself would be expensive ofc.) Aside from that CMF, though it is very hard to get the desired figures there nowadays, as the Castle/Fantasy are normally quite desired - and them selling for a high  price makes it even worse.

That being said, with all mentioned above, the easiest way is probably PAB, as it is accessible to everyone and you get the figures around 4 Euro each - which ofc isn´t cheap either, but it is actually cheaper than using brickllink to get them. 

If you want older figures however, it depends on your luck whether you find some for a good price but often that would happen in when someone sells a bunch of used Sets, so might depend whether you can use the sets too.

[Alcarin]

3 minutes ago, Black Falcon said:

There are a lot more people doing this, than let´s say ten years ago, so a higher demand and the fact that there is no castle theme anymore, where you can get those figures in small sets and the overall inflation are the main reasons IMO.

The cheapest way to get minifigures right now is probably if you buy them from BAM or in Legoland Germany, though of course you will only get figs that are in production right now/ or in case of the BAM just the Lion Knights (and that only helps you if you have one near you, not to mention that a trip to Legoland itself would be expensive ofc.) Aside from that CMF, though it is very hard to get the desired figures there nowadays, as the Castle/Fantasy are normally quite desired - and them selling for a high  price makes it even worse.

That being said, with all mentioned above, the easiest way is probably PAB, as it is accessible to everyone and you get the figures around 4 Euro each - which ofc isn´t cheap either, but it is actually cheaper than using brickllink to get them. 

If you want older figures however, it depends on your luck whether you find some for a good price but often that would happen in when someone sells a bunch of used Sets, so might depend whether you can use the sets too.

Yeh I guess you are correct... Sadly no PAB nearby, closest is like 350km away so like 4h drive :( 

 

Guess I am stuck with 9-10 EUR/complete fig (Fig+Shield+Spear)

[Black Falcon]

15 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Yeh I guess you are correct... Sadly no PAB nearby, closest is like 350km away so like 4h drive :( 

Guess I am stuck with 9-10 EUR/complete fig (Fig+Shield+Spear)

Well, you wouldn´t get a different minifigure from Build a Minifigure, than you would get from their online PAB, the only difference really is the price (8€ for 3 figures in BAM vs around 4€ for one figure in PAB - though you only get one accessoire in BAM, so you would have to order the sword seperately). And if you order online, you get some insiders points and I generally only order when there is a nice GWP there anyways + you get a higher variety online anyways. In the BAM tower you only have like three usefull heads for knights, because the others look way to modern (glasses, hearing devices etc.) and well, you only get Lion Knights anyways. On BAM you get Black Falcons (which I prefer over Lion Knights personally) as well as Forestmen, Wolf Pack Bandits and most important you also get civilian figures.

Edited March 30 by Black Falcon

[Alcarin]

Yeh, my next problem is LEGO doesnt send to my Country even though we are inside EU as Slovenia... such fail really... we have some fake LEGO company that sells for LEGO in whole country and has PAB in main capitol but only paying per GRAMS not per small or big bucket... 

 

I gave up and paid 10 EUR/fig for 30 soldiers of Dragon Knights so thats it I guess :P 

 

[Black Falcon]

6 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Yeh, my next problem is LEGO doesnt send to my Country even though we are inside EU as Slovenia... such fail really... we have some fake LEGO company that sells for LEGO in whole country and has PAB in main capitol but only paying per GRAMS not per small or big bucket... 

I gave up and paid 10 EUR/fig for 30 soldiers of Dragon Knights so thats it I guess :P 

Huh? I mean, I know they don´t have their own shops in some countrys, but they still have their Online shop and also deliver to all country - I just checked and your country aswell: LEGO® Pick a Brick | Official LEGO® Shop SI

[Alcarin]

25 minutes ago, Black Falcon said:

Huh? I mean, I know they don´t have their own shops in some countrys, but they still have their Online shop and also deliver to all country - I just checked and your country aswell: LEGO® Pick a Brick | Official LEGO® Shop SI

WOAH, must say I did not know this, and they have Falcon torso on :O 

 

Amazing, thanks for that... do you know perhaps under what are flags? Cant seem to find Falcon flag :D 

[Cyprinus]

24 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Amazing, thanks for that... do you know perhaps under what are flags? Cant seem to find Falcon flag :D 

I don't think there is a falcon flag currently available. No modern set had one.

[Black Falcon]

30 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

WOAH, must say I did not know this, and they have Falcon torso on :O 

Amazing, thanks for that... do you know perhaps under what are flags? Cant seem to find Falcon flag :D 

Unfortunately, there is only a Flag for the Lion Knights, since those were included in the Lions Knights castle (if you buy those, there are both flags and the queens cape included, since those three come in a multipack). The Black falcons were only using the normal Lego flags, you can find those searching for the word streamer.

On a side note, if you go one step back from Pick a Brick to the Bricks and Pieces Mainpage you can also directly browse different categories like Medieval, Vikings etc., though there might be fitting pieces missing (the Big Flag is missing for instance)

 

[Alcarin]

2 hours ago, Black Falcon said:

Unfortunately, there is only a Flag for the Lion Knights, since those were included in the Lions Knights castle (if you buy those, there are both flags and the queens cape included, since those three come in a multipack). The Black falcons were only using the normal Lego flags, you can find those searching for the word streamer.

On a side note, if you go one step back from Pick a Brick to the Bricks and Pieces Mainpage you can also directly browse different categories like Medieval, Vikings etc., though there might be fitting pieces missing (the Big Flag is missing for instance)

 

Yeah realized that... well thanks to that info i purchased 100 Falcon knights + Falcon Commander... guess ill buy Lions knights castle and buy some more Lions knights and forget on Dragon knights and Black knights and sell them :( 

[SpacePolice89]

A good idea is to visit local thrift stores that sells toys. I know a guy that sells bulk Lego and minifigs and from him I can buy 80s Black Falcons and Lion Knights for € 1.50/minifig. Selection is of course very varying but when he gets new stock he lets me build the minifigs that I want. 

[Alcarin]

52 minutes ago, SpacePolice89 said:

A good idea is to visit local thrift stores that sells toys. I know a guy that sells bulk Lego and minifigs and from him I can buy 80s Black Falcons and Lion Knights for € 1.50/minifig. Selection is of course very varying but when he gets new stock he lets me build the minifigs that I want. 

Yeah I bet thats a good idea, but nothing like this exists in my near vicinity of probably 300-500km radius :P 

 

[Black Falcon]

54 minutes ago, SpacePolice89 said:

A good idea is to visit local thrift stores that sells toys. I know a guy that sells bulk Lego and minifigs and from him I can buy 80s Black Falcons and Lion Knights for € 1.50/minifig. Selection is of course very varying but when he gets new stock he lets me build the minifigs that I want. 

Well then you are lucky, since most of those shop owners nowadays know Bricklink, their prices are quite similar to those online.

 

1 hour ago, Alcarin said:

Yeah realized that... well thanks to that info i purchased 100 Falcon knights + Falcon Commander... guess ill buy Lions knights castle and buy some more Lions knights and forget on Dragon knights and Black knights and sell them :( 

Well, one can never haven enough different Knight factions ;). 

[Alcarin]

Its just so sad, that Castle fans are etting it the most rough with the least variety for Army building... I feel like Star Wars fans have much more to choose from :) 

 

 

[SpacePolice89]

2 hours ago, Black Falcon said:

Well then you are lucky, since most of those shop owners nowadays know Bricklink, their prices are quite similar to those online.

 

Yes, I have made some great buys from him. He doesn't sell online at all and mostly sells used toys at swap meets and local weekly markets besides his store. I bought the minifigs from 6103 from him for six euros (I get a discount if I buy several minifigs), with the weapons but with no shields and pitchfork. Most of his minifigs are in very good condition. I'm very lucky that he has very low prices. 

2 hours ago, Alcarin said:

Yeah I bet thats a good idea, but nothing like this exists in my near vicinity of probably 300-500km radius :P

Are there any local online marketplaces where people sell old toys and stuff? Those are also good places to find deals on Lego and minifigs.

Edited March 30 by SpacePolice89

[Alcarin]

11 hours ago, SpacePolice89 said:

Yes, I have made some great buys from him. He doesn't sell online at all and mostly sells used toys at swap meets and local weekly markets besides his store. I bought the minifigs from 6103 from him for six euros (I get a discount if I buy several minifigs), with the weapons but with no shields and pitchfork. Most of his minifigs are in very good condition. I'm very lucky that he has very low prices. 

Are there any local online marketplaces where people sell old toys and stuff? Those are also good places to find deals on Lego and minifigs.

Yeh there are local online marketplace but it seems everyone is overpricing LEGO in local hehe :) Guess we are LEGO nation

[MAB]

15 hours ago, Alcarin said:

Its just so sad, that Castle fans are etting it the most rough with the least variety for Army building... I feel like Star Wars fans have much more to choose from :) 

 

 

Classic Space and Pirates fans have it worse. Castle fans have had it rather good recently with all the parts for Black Falcon and Lion Knights on PAB so easy to build large armies, along with barding for horses and shields if needed. When first released before the price increases, you could get torsos for about 80p, legs about 50p, a head for 20p and a basic helmet for 20p. So that is equivalent to about 2 Euro for a complete figure. Plus castle fans have access to Wolfpack figures now and Batlord figures for parts to build a dark army if willing to put in the effort to search for them. And for peasants, the goatherder can be picked up for about 2 Euro (without goat). There have also been various civilian torsos and those from the vikings available on PAB, all good for castle settings.

[Alcarin]

3 minutes ago, MAB said:

Classic Space and Pirates fans have it worse. Castle fans have had it rather good recently with all the parts for Black Falcon and Lion Knights on PAB so easy to build large armies, along with barding for horses and shields if needed. When first released before the price increases, you could get torsos for about 80p, legs about 50p, a head for 20p and a basic helmet for 20p. So that is equivalent to about 2 Euro for a complete figure. Plus castle fans have access to Wolfpack figures now and Batlord figures for parts to build a dark army if willing to put in the effort to search for them. And for peasants, the goatherder can be picked up for about 2 Euro (without goat). There have also been various civilian torsos and those from the vikings available on PAB, all good for castle settings.

Yeh maybe a bit unfair, its just that I guess I am bored of Lion Knights alltogether and would prefer something like Black Knights etc... and thats why it feels that way...

 

yeh Pirates probably have it worse with Armada soldiers army building etc...

[MAB]

46 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Yeh maybe a bit unfair, its just that I guess I am bored of Lion Knights alltogether and would prefer something like Black Knights etc... and thats why it feels that way...

That is where using what is available is necessary. I collected a number of the Basil / Batlord figure. I keep one as the leader, then use black arms and legs and a plain black  conical helmet to make foot soldiers using the other torsos. 

I never really got into Black Knights, I found them too multicoloured. But I have a faction based on the Hun torso plus black helmets. It is a case of when you find a good torso, get them as they usually work well with plain legs, matching arms and helmet. And if they have a shield, that is even better.

Edited March 31 by MAB

[Alcarin]

43 minutes ago, MAB said:

That is where using what is available is necessary. I collected a number of the Basil / Batlord figure. I keep one as the leader, then use black arms and legs and a plain black  conical helmet to make foot soldiers using the other torsos. 

I never really got into Black Knights, I found them too multicoloured. But I have a faction based on the Hun torso plus black helmets. It is a case of when you find a good torso, get them as they usually work well with plain legs, matching arms and helmet. And if they have a shield, that is even better.

Yeh maybe i love Black Knights because I still to this day think Black Knights Castle is the best LEGO castle there is... especially with Dragon Knights addition it really is something special that subtheme...

 

never liked either of the original LION knights... Black Falcons are ok, but I missed those seeing as I was born at the end of the 80s... i mostly entered LEGO at 1993-2000... then dark ages begun until LEGO LOTR... with brief rejoining for 2 years, then again dark ages until Rivendell... now im here and want to army build.

 

But this topic halped me find PAB stuff that I can order, and getting Falcons and Lion knights for like 4-5 EUR/figure with all accessories is fine, and aiming to get 200 Falcons and 100 Lion Knights...

 

 

[SpacePolice89]

16 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

I still to this day think Black Knights Castle is the best LEGO castle there is

I agree. That set is very special and also my favorite Castle set. The knight with the white dragon plume from that set is one of my favorite minifigs.

[Alcarin]

Btw how long do you guys anticipate Lion Knights and Flacon knights will remain on LEGO to purchase figs separetely? 

[SpacePolice89]

10 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Btw how long do you guys anticipate Lion Knights and Flacon knights will remain on LEGO to purchase figs separetely? 

I believe that they'll retire when the sets that include them are retired. The current retirement date for Lion Knights Castle is late 2025 and it is the same for Medieval Town Square so both will be available for the rest of this year and then discontinued unless new sets are released.

https://www.brickfanatics.com/every-lego-set-retiring-this-year-and-beyond/#retiring-icons-sets

Edited March 31 by SpacePolice89

[MAB]

22 minutes ago, Alcarin said:

Btw how long do you guys anticipate Lion Knights and Flacon knights will remain on LEGO to purchase figs separetely? 

I imagine they will be available while any sets that contain them are still on shelves, plus a few months. That is when they usually retire them from PAB but still have stocks for replacement parts. Although it could be longer if they have large stocks available. Of course, you cannot buy complete figs on PAB, but actually the parts for the figures. This means that some parts might go out of stock before others. So even if the shield or the legs went out of stock, you could still buy other parts, for example.

However, I doubt the bricklink price will go above about 1.50 Euro for the BF torso or 1.00 Euro for the legs for next five years. There are huge amounts already on bricklink and in reseller storage ready for bricklink. That will keep the price down for a long time if you miss the PAB stock.

I know people like their new modern look, but I prefer the modern BF torso to be paired with black arms and plain black legs, with a black conical / neck protector helmet. They look a bit more traditional and can also be posed without the printed legs looking strange.

Edited March 31 by MAB

[Alcarin]

Thanks to this topis now i spent like 800EUR ordering 200 falcon knights + commanders... my wallet is crying.