BrickMatit

@akaseim Main suggestions, based on my experience and purchasing habits: 1) don't buy directly by LEGO, never , unless you can't avoid it; 2) don't rush, but don't even wait the last moment . In general, the only two reasons I can see to buy directly from LEGO are: a set is exclusive, so you can't buy it in any other place or there's a GWP you're interested in. No other reason, for me, to pay full price at LEGO. I don't know in Spain, but even in Italy, that for what I know it's not a place with so various discount occasion on LEGO, you can simply wait a bit and look for interesting discounts. LEGO double points give you nearly a 10% value in Insider Points, but it's not properly a discount, because you have to use them on the next direct purchase on LEGO. Of course, you have also to consider shipping costs, but for example Amazon - in Italy - has a threshold of 35€, that can easily be overcome with a medium-sized LEGO set. Just as an example, I bought the Great Hall from an italian seller, paying 149€ - so 25% of discount. It's pretty rare for LEGO to have similar discounts: I see it for set that are going to be retired, but waiting for the last moment can be risky. When for some reason you have to buy directly from LEGO, of course try to maximize your expenditures, waiting for GWPs or double points. As you say, LEGO Back to Hogwarts on 1st of September is the best occasion. There are GWPs tied to a purchase threshold - for example it was 130€ for Gringotts Vault, Borgin and Burkes: Floo Network and also Room of Requirement - so I tend to keep some sets for my September purchases and deciding wheter or not to buy them looking at the GWP. That's why I haven't bought any Winter Wave sets yet. Let's just say I'm almost always behind on LEGO releases . Other GWPs are tied to a specific set. I admit that I was not interested in those, so I was not on a rush when buying Hogsmeade or The Burrow - and in the end I bought only Hogsmeade the next double points occasion. But if you interested in them, of course you have to buy them in that occasion. We don't really know, at the moment, if there will be a Collectors' set this year. There's an unknown set, said to be 129,99$, but with no other info. In my opinion it's too cheap for being a Collectors' set, so maybe there's another unknown set, even if it's strange to not know its existance now. CONCLUDING If I were you, I would likely look for interesting discount for Main Tower from seller outside from LEGO. I don't think LEGO will discount it - I don't really know if LEGO has ever discounted Great Hall - surely not this year, considering the Main Tower is said to be retired in summer 2027. And I would keep Hospital Wing for Return to Hogwarts event, so to have surely something to buy in order to reach the threshold for the GWP - if there will be one - with some of the summer sets (if you buy only playsets, there won't be a so hard choice, however, considering we know about Knockturn Alley, Expecto Patronum and East Wing). If there will be a Collectors' set you'll interested in with an interesting GWP you can buy only this set and very likely have every GWPs available that day. Sorry for the length of the comment

that was the funny part. But agree on waiting for info from some reliable source.

Unibrick on IG has this update on creator ship: "The Pirate ship is a near spitting image of the last Creator Pirate ship". It's hard to imagine how much a spitting image is spitting, I suppose.

I would take info from that site with a very very very big pinch of salt - it has some very wrong info about East Wing. However, if you are not easily impressed or upset, you can read description of all other summer sets. For example, Forbidden Forest: Expecto Patronus is said to have only 2 minifigures (and in this case it's easy to understand there won't be Sirius). Knockturn Alley Shops with 5 minifigures is said to let you recreate Harry's accidental Floo powder journey or Lucius Malfoy’s secret dealings (if this would be the case, character would be Harry, Lucius, Borgin and, I assume, Hagrid and the Witch in the alley). So a CoS set, even with references to HBP (cursed necklace and vanishing cabinet).

@JS038 Not that is written in stone, but until now LEGO has always released new castle and big sections of the castle in summer. So I won't expect a new system in January 2027. Maybe there will be a minor set, like Flying Lessons or Hospital Wing and/or some HBP/DH or interior sets. I don't know how wise can be to start a new castle based on movies, with a TV series on air. LEGO could continue producing adult targeted set based on movies and starting a smaller and more affordable castle based on the TV series targeted at children.

My idea - locations: Chamber of Secrets, Slytherin Common Room, Myrtle's Bathroom, Empy space for Viaduct opening, "Chamber has be opened..." hallway, Library with Restricted Section, Lockhart office (?). - characters: 1) Ginny; 2) Tom Riddle; 3) Bloody Baron; 4) Draco Malfoy; 5) Millicent Bullstrode; 6) Harry in Gryffindor robes (eventually with Goyle alternative face); 7) Ron in Gryffindor robes (eventually with Tiger alternate face); 8) Dumbledore or Filch; 9) Hermione in Gryffindor robes; 10) Lockhart or Filch; 11) Hufflepuff student (Justin?) 12) Ravenclaw very random student. - creatures: A) Basilisk, B) Flying Fawkes *, C) Mrs. Norris. Going into details: -> Underground section: - 1 module for Chamber of Secrets with Slytherin statue head, likely with a mechanism to make the Basilisk come out from the mouth, maybe entering from the rock section and 2 snake statues. I don't think there's place for the snake entrance. Characters: 1) Ginny 2) Tom Riddle. Creatures: A) Basilisk B) Flying Fawkes*. - 1 module for Slytherin Common Room. Even here I don't think there's place for the wall entrance. Characters: 3) Bloody Baron 4) Draco Malfoy 5) Millicent Bullstrode. -> First floor: - The central part would be empty, as in the Main Tower, cause there's the opening bringing to the viaduct. - Girl's bathroom with a slide play feature above the Chamber of Secrets. Characters: 6) Harry in Gryffindor robes 7) Ron in Gryffindor robes (eventually, they could also have Goyle and Crabbe alternative faces, but I'm not sure about it). - Hallway with the "Chamber has be opened..." written. Characters: 8) Dumbledore and/or Filch. Creatures: C) Mrs. Norris. -> Second floor: - Library, eventually with a Restricted section. Characters: 9) Hermione in Gryffindor robes. - Maybe a Lockhart office. Characters: 10) Lockhart (Dueling Club was recently retired) or Filch (more likely if there's not Lockhart office). Other characters: 11) Hufflepuff student, maybe Justin again as in 2021; 12) Ravenclaw very random student. * A new Flying Fawkes mould could serve also for a phoenix patronus I think that could be in the collection, not in this set however.

@Roebuck Yes, there is an outline of the castle, the LEGO puts in instructions booklet to show where to put sets or how to combine them. The image depicts the three big sets - Great Hall, Main Tower and East Wing (with both Viaduct and Stone Bridge) - and Boathouse (you can look at it here Assuming a 3-year-lenght of this castle would have been an educated guest even in 2024 - when Great Hall come out - simply considering that LEGO had some reasons to use the same scheme for the 2018 castle (grey roofs) and the 2021 castle (sand green roofs). But considering LEGO put in each big set a Common Room (and the House ghost) and the fact that there was at least one important location missing from the iconic castle layout - Astronomy Tower - also the idea of at least a fourth big set was arguable. This january LEGO put Ravenclaw Common Room inside a minor set - Hospital Wing - and that - at least for me - strengthened the idea that likely there won't be a fourth big set, otherwise why putting Ravenclaw there? Astronomy Tower, while important, it's not as necessary as completing all the Houses when you've already planned 3 out of 4 of them inside big sets. So the fact that Ravenclaw isn't in the fourth big set strongly suggests that there won't be a fourth big set at all. I'll add that the new TV series is scheduled to air in 2027, so it's the perfect time for a new castle—whether or not it's related to the new TV series. New collectors need to have a new castle on shelves, not an incomplete one - Great Hall is said to retired in july and other sets like Boathouse already retired.

I think that if the set will have Lockhart, his office could be part of the set. And Library could have also a restricted section. Maybe there could be something Astronomy related (if there won't be an Astronomy Tower set). For what I remember, there's not something else missing from CoS or PS. So any other location could came from following movies (Divination?).

While we all can open a new thread for 2026, it's just up to moderator pinning it at the top of the forum. And it's some time I don't see the moderator that usually do it for Harry Potter. You have also to consider the door, I suppose. So the ground floor central part will likely be empty. Girl's Bathroom could be on ground zero, it would be logic, if LEGO put a play feature connecting it with the underground Chamber of Secrets. At this point, maybe the ground zero could also be the location for the hallway.

Troll, Fluffy and, I suppose, Basilisk.

Unfortunately, at this point we can only expect a January 2027 last minor set, but likely there will be a new castle in summer 2027.

On the contrary, I expected that LEGO wouldn't have put the stone bridge in East Wing, because it would be a point of instability and incompleteness of the East Wing set and something LEGO avoids.

Bloody Baron and a small Chamber of Secrets with a new basilisk? So likely a two modules base with both Slytherin Common Room and Chamber of Secrets at this point. The moc up doesn't show the stone bridge and this matches with what I expected.

@Gryffindor - The set I'd most like is the Leaky Cauldron. Unfortunately, I'm now afraid the set I'd have liked to see—a modular set to add to Diagon Alley and Gringotts—won't happen, and I'll consider myself lucky if LEGO makes a set for smaller, stand-alone shops, at least to use as a starting point for a MOC. A rough guideline for the set I'd like would be a room - like Harry's in PoA - a section of the Muggle sidewalk, the brick wall, and, of course, the ground-floor room with the fire, Tom's counter, table, and chairs. - My second choice is a DHp1 set like the one you described. With, finally, DH Ron and with the tent and some of woodland scenery. As for Harry Potter based on videogame, isn't he dressed as the minifigure in Main Tower set (red sweater and dark tan legs)? True that he misses the black robe, something that in 2001 would have been solved with a black cape with stars

Well, likely it is. The first few movies are the expression of that fantastic, colorful and whimsical world hidden behind a brick wall which made Harry Potter the huge success it is even nowadays. Sets based on the first movies better served as starting point of a collection, simply because they are the starting point of the saga, both for adult collectors that want to recreate that world and for children. And the first movies are more kid-approachable and better suited to play-oriented and kid-friendly sets. This is something pretty clear and in the past was also spoken out by one of the designer: it was ages ago, maybe he was Marcos Bessa, but I don't really remember. And talking about Hogwarts, the very majority of the saga is set in Hogwarts or its grounds and iconic scenes take place in there. BUT Of course lifetime of a set it's not related only to how well it sells. In general, LEGO sets average lasting time seems to be between 1 year and half and 2 years. Grimmauld Place and Ministry of Magic lasted 1 year and half as well as Diagon Alley shops; Malfoy Manor will retire in june, after 1 year and half, while Great Hall after 2 years.

The prototype is the background image LEGO use in instructions to show where to put sets. The "usual place" is likely Reddit. Just write "Reddit Hogwarts East Wing prototype" into your browser bar and you should easily find the thread @brickbride refered to.

Agree. At the moment we don't even know how large it will be and so how much locations could accomodate in it.

Maybe in US and UK, but in EU the last Advent Calendar was available also after Christmas, with a 50% discount.

@Virginia_Bricks that's a nice guess. And I think the best thing for us would be having the East Wing underground only for Chamber of Secrets and a further set with Slytherin Common Room.

But wasn't she a substitute? Maybe in that period Kettleburn was in hospital recovering for losing one of his limb

@Accio Lego agree to disagree, but for me we're talking about a non issue. Only someone who knows nothing about Harry Potter, but really nothing, would have a problem, but I doubt it would be someone who could spend $250 on a Harry Potter playset. Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank enter the chat yes, that would be a very creative choice.

I agree with the first part, but, really, who could be confused by having the Slytherin Common Room near the Slytherin Chamber of Secrets Anyway, it would be better than having a Mirror of Erised under the roof while all of the path bringing to it is in the dungeons. That was confusing

@Gryffindor I suppose any of us can open a new thread for 2026, but it's up to an administrator to pin it in the upper part of forum and transfer the last 6 pages messages from here to there. Or maybe it's just better to modify the title of this thread into 2025/2026. This thread was opened by @Clone OPatra but maybe in these days he is busy in other things.

@sebastian666 Well, but it's one year that there's the Flying Lessons set on shelves. And it's hard to tell, at the moment, if it will ever be shown connected. If they wanted to create something to be connected to East Wing, they would have simply called it Library Annex or Long Gallery and fan would have immediately understood that there will be an East Wing set. They're trying to make a castle that's faithful in its exterior appearance to the movie material and it's hard to believe they can act in that way. Hospital Wing is too different from Library Annex, Long Gallery or Bell Towers - the latter are square tower, the one in Hospital Wing is round.

@sebastian666 Why even showing the set connected? If you look at instructions of the set (6621417.pdf) you can see that LEGO show with no problem Flying Lessons set, not connected to anything else (page 112-113). It would have been so easy for LEGO showing the Hospital Wing on the right of the layout on its own. The most logical thing is that the set is meant - and LEGO considered and showed it in this way - to be the right side of the Quad.