2015 LEGO Pirates Rumors and Discussion

[BrickOn]

I too like the new wave of pirate lego, because

a) its what I was waiting for when I came out of my dark age (aside from more CMF which is what got me out of the dark age) and also when I compared it to some of the 2009 sets,

and b) I like the fact the fort was built from bricks not those large panel pieces.

The reason I moan (oh no, do I moan?) is because I am greedy and I want more, more lego, here, now all of it... but I know from experience that when I flood my collections with new stuff, I stop appreciating the individual items and inevitably lose interest in the collection. This is why Lego is good, because you can MOC as well as collect :-)

Its seems the original complaint which kicked off this flood of LEGO appreciation, was against the chess set. Which I recently bought, despite the shakoless soldiers and want to defend, a bit, then complain about it.

I have to say I really liked it... okay you don't get shakos but you get eight 16x16 plates, four in blue and four in sand... and four 8x16, again half in blue and the other half in sand. Which gives a much more impressive raised chess board with sides to play with... And the overall appearance is just much cleaner with each square being covered with tiles, I would say its an improvement, because it is no longer just a good army builder, but a nicer set as well. Also the 2009 set skimped on shakos too, there were only 2 on the bishops, so this is not a new thing, it must really add to the costs?

But its not a perfect set, in terms of playing chess, the heights and sizes are all wrong for the pirate's Bishop, Knight and Rook. And the there is no height difference between the Bishop and Knight on the Imperial's side (makes it very hard to play once you've started a game!

But if you buy the set to play chess (as I did, well it's one reason) you can modify that... I'd like to post my MOD later, but briefly, I took out the Pirate Rook completely and switched the grey skull Knight to the Rook position, and built really cool new Knights with ladders and monkeys (before I even googled the 2009 set, mine are better though ;-p) finally I built up the Bishops on both sides and switched the top of the Imperial's to a black stud shooter, modified to be a bit more cannony so both sides have equal fire power.

Not sure about "Golden age" but maybe we've never had it so good - could just be the disposable income and no-one telling me to pick up Lego off my bedroom floor though...

[Aanchir]

Well, I don't know if I'd go as far as to call this a "golden age" of LEGO Pirates. There are a lot of great things about the current sets, the availability of older sets, etc! But many critics of this year's Pirates range make a good point that it is, in many respects, "just the basics". The same thing was observed of the 2013 LEGO Castle range, and to be honest I think it is almost inevitable with any LEGO series that gets just a single wave every few years.

The 90s, especially the late 90s, were generally not the best time when it came to the quality of LEGO set designs. I'll readily admit that even as somebody whose childhood was during that period. As much as I love many of the sets back then, their complexity and general building value pales in comparison to many of today's sets! But with that said, the 90s were a great time for the variety of sets. Again, I think that might have been partly out of desperation, since the LEGO Group's sales had already started declining by that point. But another factor was having new sets one year after the other. Because of this, and because back then sets tended to stay in stock longer instead of just retiring after a year and a half, each year's sets had to go out of their way to stand out from those of the previous year, meaning much more variety from year to year.

I mentioned in my last post my nostalgia for 6262 King Kahuka's Throne. It and some of the other sets of that era are etched firmly in my memory, in part because my brother and I dressed as an Imperial Guard and King Kahuka, respectively, for Halloween 1994! But slightly niche subthemes like Islanders and Imperial Armada which expanded the world of LEGO Pirates beyond generic imperial forts and pirate ships don't have an opportunity to come about unless those basic elements of the theme are already established.

Same goes for other themes like LEGO Castle. While the first wave of LEGO Kingdoms was fairly generic (a good castle, an evil castle, a good outpost/gatehouse, an evil prison carriage), the second year of sets was able to expand the scope of the theme to include a little peasant village. The most recent iteration of LEGO Castle, which only lasted one year, didn't get that opportunity to expand. Unfortunately, judging from the 2016 leaks so far, it doesn't seem like the latest iteration of Pirates will get that opportunity either. Which means that when LEGO Pirates does come back, it might very well have to start off with the basics — a pirate ship, an imperial fort, a treasure island, a raft, a shipwreck — all over again.

On the plus side, next year's Ninjago range seems like it'll be pirate-themed, albeit with more of a science-fantasy flavor than a historical flavor. Maybe it'll offer some valuable parts for Pirates fans to expand their crews. One of the drawings that CM4S has shared has what certainly has to be one of the most realistic palm trees I've seen to date, and that's speaking as someone who was a fan of both this year's Technic palm trees and the classic flexible palm trees!

Edited September 29, 2015 by Aanchir

[Captain Dee]

Make no mistake - the current one-year wave of sets is NOT a "Golden Age" of any type; rather, I use the term to describe the availability and variety of the entire life of the theme, including the new stuff. The 2015 sets are certainly basic, and the minifigs are probably the best part. The variety of the older sets was nice, but I likewise don't think we'll see that again from one-and-done waves in the future. The current sets are okay, but at least they make decent parts packs...

[Sigolf Brimabane]

I also think that as standalone sets, the new ones are not that appealing as compared to for example the original line of Pirates sets. I have Eldorado Fortress, Black Seas Barracuda and Caribbean Clipper "on display" at home. I would never put Brick Bounty on display. But it looks better than for example Redbeard Runner. The new sets have cooler minifigs than the old ones (apart from the bandanas). And they make good parts packs. Otherwise I agree with the great posts on here lately, we're not being cheated by Lego in any way. And Lego seems more popular than ever, which means they are apparently doing something right. For fans of the classic themes such as Pirates and Castle, it seems we might not see such sets for a long time though, because that doesn't seem to be what's hip with the kids these days. They want more fantasy and sci-fi elements. Vehicles seem to be really popular as well.

[Captain Fortune]

...

Again, awesome explanation. By the way, I'm an other fan -and owner- of the Islanders sets.

I only would add that the 2009 wave was nearly excellent. The more I think about it, the more I see it. We have ALL we need: Big bases for both sides, battle packs, impulse sets, and two ships. And one of them, the IFG, is the most complete ship that we ever seen in Lego.

To be honest, giving the circumstances we could'nt ask for more.

Edited September 29, 2015 by Captain Fortune

[TalonCard]

I also think that as standalone sets, the new ones are not that appealing as compared to for example the original line of Pirates sets. I have Eldorado Fortress, Black Seas Barracuda and Caribbean Clipper "on display" at home. I would never put Brick Bounty on display. But it looks better than for example Redbeard Runner.

It really is more a matter of personal taste than a debatable point, but having assembled both recently I'd argue that the Brick Bounty is really a better ship model than the Caribbean Clipper, and looks as good or better on display. And Shipwreck Defense does more with its 84 parts than just about any other similarly sized Pirate set. (I wouldn't trade my Clipper or Shipwreck Island for these sets; but that's nostalgia talking.)

Of course, I would put them all on display if I could. ;)

I mentioned in my last post my nostalgia for 6262 King Kahuka's Throne. It and some of the other sets of that era are etched firmly in my memory, in part because my brother and I dressed as an Imperial Guard and King Kahuka, respectively, for Halloween 1994! But slightly niche subthemes like Islanders and Imperial Armada which expanded the world of LEGO Pirates beyond generic imperial forts and pirate ships don't have an opportunity to come about unless those basic elements of the theme are already established.

:D That's a great picture--How long did it take to make that Kahuka mask?! It's perfect!

I'm curious, how many people count the relatively recent Pirates of the Caribbean sets as some kind of installment in the greater LEGO Pirate genre? Because that was a line that introduced a great amount of variety: an abandoned mill, a treasure cave, water fall, captain's cabin, lighthouse, inn with carriages, and the delightfully ostentatious QAR...I didn't really mind going "back to basics" after those sets. But I could see how going from Pirates 2009>Pirates 2015 could be a bit of a letdown if you didn't really count POTC. (Or the Sea Cow, which is a marvelous, marvelous set.)

I guess I just see the kind of variety we'd get from an ongoing theme spread throughout the Pirate-related releases, so I'm more okay with the regular Pirate theme defaulting to a kind of 89/92 tribute whenever it pops up. Maybe I'll get tired of it after twenty years when I've got six or seven red sailed "Brick ______ Bounty" sets sitting on my shelf, I dunno. ;)

And the flip side to it staying "classic" is that at least it means we're not actually getting steampunk cyborg pirates fighting Ninjas within the theme itself. (LEGO Battles aside...) If they'd tried to continue the Pirate theme with a new, updated installment each year, I think that's where we'd end up.

TC

[Hive]

I think both the 2009 and 2015 waves were really good and would have loved for them to be expanded upon in subsequent waves. Were they perfect? No, they had their flaws. But they were still pretty damn good and sported some impressive minifig designs. I'd even say that both 2009 and 2015 Pirates are among the best waves LEGO has made in this millenium in any theme, but that is, of course, a biased opinion given my thematical preferences.

[Dannylonglegs]

Re: Shakogate.

So, I also noticed how benuded the poor imperial soldiers seemed to be in the chess set, as I too had hoped to purchase it for an "armybuilder". I brought this issue up to the Lego Store employee with whom I was conversing at the time, and he pointed out that for 10 dollars more, I could simply get 16 (should be 15, but he's pretty lax) accessories in a "build your own minifigure" box. He then explained that they had the shakos, the epaulets, and the backpacks in stock, if not out front, then in the back to be brought out by request (I don't know if this is the case in all Lego stores, but it is in Bridgewater Mall). If I so desire (which I might, come double points week) I could buy the chess set, then the 8 missing Shakos, and either 4 epaulets and 4 backpacks, or 8 backpacks and use my stash of extra epaulets from home to complete the set. That resolves the issue for me.

Of course this solution doesn't change the fact that they're missing in the first place, nor does it solve the expensive accessories issue. Just the completion problem.

~Insectoid Aristocrat

[Captain Pirate Man]

Has their been any news reguarding a possible blue coat ship as the grand finale for this line, like their was in 2010?

I finally bought the 2 blue coat sets yesterday, and I like them both. I already had the 2 pirate land sets. I haven't bought the pirate ship yet, and may or may not. I already have 6 big ships, so that wasn't my priority, I was more interested in the forts.

As far as the discussion going on here about golden age of piracy, let me add my 2 cents. I grew up in the late 80s and early 90s, and I indeed had pretty much all of the best sets from that era. I no longer have them, they didn't survive my teenage years sadly. So when I got interested in lego again, I knew what was good and what was not. As a whole, these current sets don't compare to the ones of the 80s and early 90s, they just don't. One of my favs was the imperial trading post, and that set was miles a head of the current line. But having said that, the fact that those old sets can still be purchased, if you want them bad enough, does play a factor here.

I took the 2 blue coat forts, put them on a base plate, and redesigned them slightly, and it turned into a pretty nice set. Pretty comparable to anything the old days had to offer. Honestly the only blue coat fort that was ever made that is better than the one I just modded, was Eldorado fortress. So even though I did make some changes, added a blue base plate, and squared it up, I am very pleased with the final result. Which that's the beauty of lego, making changes.

So would I classify this era as the "golden age of piracy?" no, the late 80s and early 90s were better. But all things considered, it's probably the 2nd best time to be a pirate or castle fan for that matter.

Edited October 1, 2015 by Captain Pirate Man

[Mister Phes]

The Golden Age of LEGO Pirates was 1989-1993...

The 2009 and 2015 releases are part of the LEGO Group's current product cycle. As the LEGO Pirates target age range is 7-12 years, the LEGO Group intends release a new wave of "Classic" pirate sets approximately every 6 years, because after that period the youngest of those children will have exceeded that age range, I.e. the 7 year olds will be 13. So with this cycle they can effectively sell to a new "generation" of 7-12 year olds with each wave.

[Captain Dee]

I concur with respect to the first several years of the theme, and everything else just adds to it. TLG can call it what it wants, but reimagining a small number of the same types of things every 5-7 years indicates to me that Pirates isn't terribly important to them. Not totally unimportant, but not very important either.

Edited October 1, 2015 by Captain Dee

[Mister Phes]

TLG can call it what it wants, but reimagining a small number of the same types of things every 5-7 years indicates to me that Pirates isn't terribly important to them.

Exactly. They're just strategically cashing in on the popularity of the theme.

[Jellyeater]

I think that their love pirates as we do. That's why they resume this theme sometimes. Pirates are unique for Lego. It was one of the longest themes in golden age of Lego.

[Mister Phes]

I think that their love pirates as we do. That's why they resume this theme sometimes.

No, they love the income generated by the sporadic pirate releases, hence the 5-7 year product cycle.

[The_Cook]

No, they love the income generated by the sporadic pirate releases, hence the 5-7 year product cycle.

Cynical but ulitmately true; they're a business not a charity.

[CaptainToad]

ok, if they think releasing a new pirates theme every six years is the way to go then why not add a second wave to it? like two or three more sets - by doing so they could check how popular the pirates theme actually is among the newcomers.

[Captain Fortune]

ok, if they think releasing a new pirates theme every six years is the way to go then why not add a second wave to it? like two or three more sets - by doing so they could check how popular the pirates theme actually is among the newcomers.

Well, I think that the explanation would be the same that Aanchir gave above:

But many critics of this year's Pirates range make a good point that it is, in many respects, "just the basics". The same thing was observed of the 2013 LEGO Castle range, and to be honest I think it is almost inevitable with any LEGO series that gets just a single wave every few years.

The 90s, especially the late 90s, were generally not the best time when it came to the quality of LEGO set designs. I'll readily admit that even as somebody whose childhood was during that period. As much as I love many of the sets back then, their complexity and general building value pales in comparison to many of today's sets! But with that said, the 90s were a great time for the variety of sets. Again, I think that might have been partly out of desperation, since the LEGO Group's sales had already started declining by that point. But another factor was having new sets one year after the other. Because of this, and because back then sets tended to stay in stock longer instead of just retiring after a year and a half, each year's sets had to go out of their way to stand out from those of the previous year, meaning much more variety from year to year.

I mentioned in my last post my nostalgia for 6262 King Kahuka's Throne. It and some of the other sets of that era are etched firmly in my memory, in part because my brother and I dressed as an Imperial Guard and King Kahuka, respectively, for Halloween 1994! But slightly niche subthemes like Islanders and Imperial Armada which expanded the world of LEGO Pirates beyond generic imperial forts and pirate ships don't have an opportunity to come about unless those basic elements of the theme are already established.

[Ardelon]

I consider the golden age to be the early to mid 90s, based on output and variety of what was available. Its true that today we have access to everything that came before, and whatever else we may fancy on the secondary market, but thats no golden age - thats living off past glories.

I think the six year cycle is too pessimistic. That would mean a long time with no pirate sets on the shelves after each theme retires, and I would assume TLG would want to catch youngsters newly arrived to the system/minifigure scaled themes. So they would keep a pirate ship and related sets on the shelves every 2-3 years (though that would mean simpler sets to cater to the younger builders). After all, PotC is right between the six year cycle.

[blackdeathgr]

Dont despair! PotC is coming 2017 and there will be sets to feast upon this movie's marketing galore.

Also 2016 ninjago has some (asian?) pirate stuff coming and after all these you have the "regular" 3-6 year LEGO pirates line cycle to hope for.

There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Edited October 3, 2015 by blackdeathgr

[Mister Phes]

ok, if they think releasing a new pirates theme every six years is the way to go then why not add a second wave to it? like two or three more sets - by doing so they could check how popular the pirates theme actually is among the newcomers.

They must have determined their current "one wave" strategy is the most profitable.

[mattb483]

I think Pirates in general has been becoming more and more popular over the years. Much thanks to the POTC franchise which has helped alot! The problem that is faced here is that everyone needs to look at the pirates theme from a childs point of view. Lego has a huge variety of themes now vs. The 80' and 90's. Also kids are pry getting Lego sets mostly for bdays and Xmas, so most kids now when going to the store want super heros,star wars, and ninjago etc. Also back in the 80's and 90's lego didnt have as many different themes as they do now so that would allow alot more sets per theme. Like others have stated I love the pirates theme but if it comes down to it every 6 years or so releasing a new theme im happy. The only thing is I wish theu would change it up, and now always do a small fort, big pirate ship etc.

[CaptainToad]

I think Pirates in general has been becoming more and more popular over the years. Much thanks to the POTC franchise which has helped alot! The problem that is faced here is that everyone needs to look at the pirates theme from a childs point of view. Lego has a huge variety of themes now vs. The 80' and 90's. Also kids are pry getting Lego sets mostly for bdays and Xmas, so most kids now when going to the store want super heros,star wars, and ninjago etc. Also back in the 80's and 90's lego didnt have as many different themes as they do now so that would allow alot more sets per theme. Like others have stated I love the pirates theme but if it comes down to it every 6 years or so releasing a new theme im happy. The only thing is I wish theu would change it up, and now always do a small fort, big pirate ship etc.

thats the problem of serving a theme every six years, it doesnt make really sense to change it - if someone is to be introduced to something they will start with the basics - treasure island, pirate ship, soldiers fort - everythen else is meat for a second wave - which may never come :(

Edited October 6, 2015 by CaptainToad

[Hive]

If Playmobil can have great success with a large Pirate theme, so can LEGO - if they want to.

[x105Black]

If this is a Golden Age of Pirates in any way, it's the minifigures and that alone.

I'd love revamps of some older sets with the newer minifigures.

And Islanders would be amazing. The Island Warrior and Aztec Warrior CMFs would be fantastic starting points.

[parksroad]

If they did a multi-wave pirate theme now, it would need some kind of tie-in to a Cartoon Network show and some kind of twist--radioactive pirate princes collecting the six trans neon elemental crystals to take over the moon and return to their pirate planet. Then the blue coats, led by Captain Cyborg Minifig, will come after them in an amphibious tank. That's what multi-wave themes look like now...