While you’re waiting for the sixth Game of Thrones book to arrive, check out this LEGO build by /Sam\! For those of you looking for a new haircut, you might not need to look that far. The snowbanks on either side of the entrance to this cozy windmill are made from minifigure hairstyles! There’s also a couple helmets detailing the top of the chimneys. Don’t forget to take a closer look at all the work that went into shaping the windmill tower and the neat use of bars on the windmill blades!
As an American, I’ve always envied Europeans and the fact that they can’t seem to throw a rock without hitting a gigantic, majestic castle in their backyard. So I adore Jako of Nerogue‘s LEGO Dovern Castle, which has all the things I love about its real-life counterparts: soaring banners, jagged ramparts, and of course towering walls! And speaking of walls, let’s talk about my favorite part of this model: the rich, textured look of the stone. Plates, ingot bricks, SNOT (studs not on top) bricks, and the occasional exposed stud give the stone a weathered, uneven look. To that end, one of the most ingenious aspects of the build is the organic use of sun-faded gray bricks. I used to have a box of those, which I threw out because they didn’t match the rest of my gray elements. Here, however, Jako has blended the old bricks with the new to give the castle wall a look that says, “Behold! I’ve been here for many a year and shall endure for many a year hence.”
Lego castle builds always seem to tell a story at just one glance, or perhaps it’s simply my overactive imagination. Lego builder Taylor has titled this one “Unexpected Visitors”, giving us a starting point to envision the scenario presented here. Is the visitor the king and his personal guard? Or do we see a herald on an important mission delivering a message? The bridge in this scene could tell a story on its own, but the inclusion of the minifigures deepens that narrative to another level. The façade of the bridge conveys both its age and strength while the rockwork and plants create the impression of the bridge connecting two mountains. What do you see? The start of a battle? The start of an alliance between factions?
“Halt! Who goes there?” A lonely warrior, his cloak billowing in the frosty air, approaches ZCerberus’s formidable tower known as Crow’s Nest. Along the way, our intrepid LEGO hero passes an assortment of slopes and angles used to evoke snowdrifts and half-buried evergreens. He gazes upon the light bluish great accents on dark bluish gray stone and steps beneath inverted sloped elements used to create dramatic battlements. My favorite part of all, though, has to be the brick-built coat of arms above the door, including upside-down feathered wings. We don’t know what this solitary traveler seeks within those sturdy stone walls, but we know what he’ll find: an impressive display of building techniques that bring this wintry scene to life.
While it’s hard not to fall in love with the LEGO Icons 10305 Lion Knights Castle, it still has its roots in imagined lore. But what about a real castle? An honest-to-goodness fortification built in 1882 by a German baron, Schloss Drachenburg has had quite the history through several owners, two world wars, near-demolition, and finally attaining “monument” status in 1986. Builder -Brixe brings the castle to life in this stunning LEGO model, featuring a combination of microscale techniques of the verdant and architectural varieties. I particularly like the ingenious use of a dark orange 2×2 brick with grooves on all sides. You can see its underside under one of the dark nougat arches in the build. Original architects for the project Leo von Abbema, Bernhard Tüshaus, and Wilhelm Hoffmann would be proud!
A vertical kingdom of stone surrouned by towering pines overlooks a pale blue lake in Eli Willsea‘s stunning LEGO diorama titled Heart of the Kingdom. The whimsical architecture, lovely colors, and striking verticality are reminiscent of the Monument Valley games, but the details are utterly original and evocative. This build marks Eli’s return after a busy 2023 when he competed in three heats of the Iron Builder competition and is a clear reminder of why he’s a NPU (Nice Parts Usage) star. How to pick a favorite detail? The elegantly angled tooth bars serving as micro stairs? The grey roller skates adding a decorative touch to the 1×1 towers? The wands still on their sprue for the portcullis? I have to go with the grey popsicles flanking the cave beneath the castle. Even though there is nary a stud to be seen, with its right angles and clean lines, Eli’s model celebrates the aesthetic of the brick.
When LEGO builders work together, great things happen! Kat (@k._harmon) and Samuel (@darksamishgray) have collaborated to create a stunningly beautiful fairy castle that built out of an old tree stump. Through the crack in the trunk you can see the cozy architecture of the fairy folk. There’s so much detail and great building on display for an observer to dig into. The bluebells (blue flowers) are fastened to their stems by a pair of grass pieces attached through the loop by a twig. The ferns are made from crocodile tails, and I love the little glider made from a variety of LEGO leaves.
What could be more refreshing after a day of knighting around in full armor in the forest than a sweet ice cream treat? But take a closer look at this LEGO scene by Jérôme Barchietto and you will see that all is not as it seems. Is that the Falcon queen disguised as an innocent shopkeeper? And while our good and loyal Lion knights are distracted by dripping soft serve and brain freeze, a group of Falcon knights are slowly closing in for a delicious ambush.
The textured roof with plenty of thatch pieces and the real-world mossy setting combine to make this scene stand out. Also, with so many joyous faces on those Lion Knights, I almost feel sorry for them. What a cold trick to play.
No-one likes a show-off. Now I’m not accusing Peter Botcher of being one – although his builds are certainly worth bragging about. But the owner of this enormous LEGO tower? That’s a different story! At the bottom, you’ve got two medieval small businesses: one a bakery, the other a small kiosk. I imagine the owners have to work really hard to get customers. But an alchemist has moved into town, and built their potion shop to tower over the others. What a nerve! I suspect it may backfire on them, though. Elevators won’t be invented for another few hundred years, and going up all those stairs may put off all but the most athletic of clientele…
When Black Falcon knights need room and board between tracking down bounties on Wolfpack hooligans, where better to stay than Ben Cossy‘s beautiful Black Raven Inn? Ben’s latest medieval LEGO build innovates on classic half-timbered designs. I especially apprecaite the mix of white bricks with tan and sun-yellowed white to give the plastered walls a weathered look, constrasted with the dark brown timbers. For the foundation, Ben plays with a new technique of offset stacks of 1×1 tiles clipped to tubes. While the building is striking on its own, the sand green landscaping and voluminous trees really sell the scene.
For details how how he pulled off that unique foundation and to hear what inspired this amazing build, watch and listen as Ben guides you through the process.
If you, like us, give this inn a ten, then consider revisiting Ben’s past models featured on TBB.
Despite being named Castle of LEGO Sword, most of the knights defending this fortress are armed with literally anything else. Luckily for them, this build by Yujie Jiang is instead named after the giant stone sword mounted inside the keep. This build has character as big as its gigantic sword. For starters, said giant sword is an outstanding up-sized replica of the classic LEGO sword that was produced in multiple forms between 1978 – 2016. This sword makes excellent use of 4×4 round bricks and is studded with neat little gems. The tower’s design is effective as well, with a door made of tiles mounted inside a 1×6 arch, and the general structure using 1×2 profile bricks, chisled pentagonal shields, and the extra touch of the carved lion head above the door.
That sword, though, is a thing of beauty. It’s approximately human-sized and can be pulled out by any friendly giants passing by that would be willing to offer a hand to defend the kingdom. Would you be worthy of pulling the sword from the stone tower?
Since May 2010, when the first LEGO collectible minifigure series was released, enthusiasts have eagerly awaited the introduction of new characters with each subsequent minifigure lines. Some characters readily fit into past or present LEGO themes, like the Vampire Knight, while others evoke thoughts of a whole new world. Salt_city_bricks has brought imagination to life with one of the characters from Minifigures Series 25.. The structure in this build carries us to a world of fantasy and mystical wonder. However, if you were to remove the Mushroom Sprite from the foreground, the building would undoubtedly fit in wonderfully with a castle or other medieval-themed build. Titled “Curvy,” do not let your thoughts wander too far before appreciating the builder’s lack of square edges in this creation.
