Peppermint_M

Well, I went back to the prelims for the current wave. Having seen the sets on the shelf now. Sets where I thought: "Meh, snake skull hats are cool I guess" to hand wringing over which set to get first (curse this budget I have to live with) and having my sister do the eyebrow thing (you have to know the sort I mean) at my reaction to just "How cool they look!!" is a pretty big turnaround. This isn't even "Oh, cool parts" this is wanting the set for the set alone. So these prelims will be much different to the finished product.

As I noted above, the game mechanic and action figures seemed to perform really poorly if by what I saw sticking on the shelves (from toy shop, supermarket and official LEGO Store). It had a good run and a TV series, that is a lot more than plenty of other Action Themes. Chima has lasted a few years with a number of waves, it isn't "evergreen" like City and even some of the other so called evergreen themes have gaps and off years (Pirates, Space and Castle), so it has got better than expected.

How do you want to do the Nile? I have been experimenting with decent river builds but it is very very part heavy so far...

Amazing build, but I think it will be more at home in Special Themes, so I will pop it over there. Great job by the way.

Classic is lovely, I have seen them in the shops now. I helped set up a LEGO club in a local library so I had a look through the e-mail exchange with the librarian: One bit of advice, if you are going to get baseplates for any of the club, you have to have enough for everyone attending. They all want one! If groups are seperated in different classrooms then you can get away with providing different things to each (of course you probably already know that from working in the school). Also, as you have a budget but as you are a school group, do the local supermarkets have any sort of community engagement? ASDA is part of Walmart, it is the UK branch these days, and they have some provision for local community 'outreach' which meant the LEGO club in the library had vouchers and cupons to use in-store to get supplies. Plenty of national chains will engage with School, Community and Charity groups for a bit of good press and good feeling.

Classic is coming soon or may even be out. Boxes of bricks in lots of colours is a great start. As a school you might have access to LEGO Education too. There are some sets with plenty of minifigs out there, but build-a-figure is a good idea to quickly make a collection. Mixels are perfect. I bought the lot of one red group and there is a lot you can do with them.

It probably hinges on the fact that the game mechanic didn't take off as well as hoped, not to mention the constraction figures. LEGO developed franchises always have to compete with licensed properties and each other. Maybe if Chima had been lined up to replace Ninjago after it's eventual retirement then the market split wouldn't have been an issue. As it is, between Superheroes and Star Wars and the return of Bionicle it probably isn't economical to keep Chima going. Sad but true locally the only 'action' theme sets still on shelves of the mostly (cleared-of) LEGO area are the Chima sets.

Invision and IE do not get on, well known problem across all kinds of forums that use Invision software. Compatibility Mode can clear up some problems with using IE if you have to use IE (because there are so many vastly superior browsers out there...).

It depends what you want to get out of a MOC really. I build because it helps me relax, I find it fun to create things from my LEGO and MOCing is my hobby. I do not get a chance to display often but I do post my MOC photos online, so there is some sharing aspect to it. If you are unsure of what you need to build a MOC, then as suggested: Use LDD (assuming you have computer access) you can build as big or small as you like and draft a MOC that you may want to build for real so you can get the exact parts you need.

"I went to fight in the northern kingdoms, bloody great headache that. Then I decided it was time to put some things in order and went up to the mountains again. Put the word about to all the other wandering Hightribe and the second children of tribe branches that I'm looking to rebuild the Hightribe. So I am gathering my giants you could say Skralll!" Tesni laughed. "There are enough about around the mountains who would like a new start. I'm waiting for word on who is coming so I thought to get down here and make my way to Chieftan, earn some more coin and then return to my tribe."

Tesni clambered out from her favourite resting place. She had heard some familiar voices and a commotion for a new quest. Reaching the board she noticed her name had been overwritten on one. Tesni signed her name on 122 and 126. Looking around she spotted two faces she knew. "Skrall, Atramor! Well met friends!"

Ah, the raptor buggy is wonderful! Great design and look with so few parts involved.

I have a collection of beer glasses and interesting beer bottles and bottles with lables for limited or rare brews. (Having drunk the contents already ) My glasses are packed away but the bottle collection lives on my highest shelf. They are all brown, but the lables are cool ones. I might get more decorative with them once I have more space.

I might do from the supermarket when I next go there. Possibly.

No no no! It is all tough and manly llike:

Ah, the boat is at a lovely price point. I can get that without being too concerned about the cost.

It is also a film that challenges a lot of the rules in a colourful and appealing manner. Because everyone knows that Conform, Consume, Obey is the best way of life!

I also look with the Zoids with desire... LEGO and Zoids were my two childhood loves. Regretably, while one is still fully accessable and only improving, the other is very expensive even before I enviosion a custom design!

Guys, this is a discussion thread about the LEGO not the media franchise. Keep it on topic thanks!

That was very clever and certainly funny.

Oh, my friend on facebook posted a link to that! Sadly it skips some of my prime Argos catalogue browsing years (1995-1999) but it has got a little bit of nostalgia for me in there.

I've been following back LEGO "Action" Themes for years, Aquanauts and Aquasharks, Hydronauts, Aqua Raiders, Atlantis... Rock Raiders and Power Miners, Alpha Team, Agents, Ultra Agents. If it isn't a pattern there is as much a cycle in these action themes as there is in City or Technic. (Say, Police-Fire-Hospital-Delivery/Trasport. And Technic has supercars, heavy duty vehicles, helicopters etc) Market and Media patterns might dictate how something is developed and what is released and licenses might disrupt some things but the phenomenal success of Bionicle and Ninjago means it isn't impossible for TLG to develop in-house franchises. Though I am not one to demand a franchise (too much of a headache managaging a seperation between Media property and Toy/Sets) a new or returning subtheme is always welcome.

Also people who are UK based! Keep an eye out for Merlin 2 for 1 tokens on packaging, I think some cereal brands had them and possibly some other boxed groceries. They last to the end of June, It means two adults will have half price tickets with each token, as it is one free entry with a full-price ticket. Anyone without an annual pass can pair up and pay half each for the ticket you need to buy.

Chima is ending soon, there isn't much word on a replacement. There is the fact that the pattern of products is rolling back around to some of the old favourites: City is getting a few Space Port sets, there are more Pirates out there. Ultra Agents is a return to the Spy sub-theme. So you look at it like this: Agents was a 2007/8 theme Power Miners were a 2009/10 theme Pharaoh's Quest was 2011 Atlantis was 2011/12 Dino was 2012 There is a slight pattern or cycle that is sort of followed and may come up with a return to an old favourite or some new experiment (Like World Racers or Time Twisters). Who knows? The joy of LEGO is that we can adapt what is out there to make our own stories, sets. MOCs and games to play!

Tesni looked at the quest board again, there was one other that seemed acceptable as she had no ken with the mad wizards. "I thought I was done with sheep when I left the mountains but it seems those wool-bags are dozy wherever in the world I am!" She signed her name under #122