LEGO 11377 The Lord of the Rings: Minas Tirith announced!

Eagerly awaiting to see a number for its depth; whether or not it can fit on one of my shelves will determine whether or not it lands in my home! The GWP is finally a solid one, so if this set can fit in my IVAR unit… it all might be just enough to make me cave at release.

This is incredible!

@budterence said:
"Looks great… where is everyone putting all these big sets?!!"

I'm starting to wonder where I should be putting mine.. ';-)

And is it me, or does the castle look out of scale with the minifigs on it? I haven't seen any of the movies since they came out, but I remember this building being grander in scale. Then again, I find it hard to get any sense of scale with movies that have so much CGI going on.

Well, that's my entertainment budget for the next three months sorted. This will be a day one purchase. I'll even brave the mall to get it.

@EtudeTheBadger said:
"Bloodye hell, that's the price I'd expect Isildur to be hocking the One Ring for on eBay."

@Freddy_Hodson said:
"but ultimately ~£600 I just don't need to spend... "

@Angry_Warlock said:
"Even after adding tax the US price is around 10% cheaper than the UK price. Not good."

Sigh…

$649.99 / £579.99 / €649.99

That £580 includes tax, but
£580 is $784, or 668€

So, US buyers, would you pay $784 for this? Yes I know you will pay tax on that $650, but it’s not 20% tax!

It’s still going to be bought by this household, but that price difference stings.

I don't think I can afford it space-wise. 60x60x40cm is a bit much...

Looks like Grond doesn't have any unique parts so I should be able to BrickLink it. I'll need to save up for this one over the next year.

Absolute Cinema

Also Arwen’s shield is too big and she doesn’t have a sword ;)

GROND!!!

@stefwaffles said:
" @EtudeTheBadger said:
"Bloodye hell, that's the price I'd expect Isildur to be hocking the One Ring for on eBay."

@Freddy_Hodson said:
"but ultimately ~£600 I just don't need to spend... "

@Angry_Warlock said:
"Even after adding tax the US price is around 10% cheaper than the UK price. Not good."

Sigh…

$649.99 / £579.99 / €649.99

That £580 includes tax, but
£580 is $784, or 668€

So, US buyers, would you pay $784 for this? Yes I know you will pay tax on that $650, but it’s not 20% tax!

It’s still going to be bought by this household, but that price difference stings."

Yeah, with taxes it’ll be about $700 in the U.S.

A mí me preocupa más el peso del set en el estante que lo que ocupa en el estante...

Mitad de figuras porque comparte doble escala...

Stunning. The set I aways dreamed of a kid :)

I was waiting for this to drop so I could find out how much it was in pounds, as I can never seem to find that price online.

I like the look of it, not a LOTR fan but I like set and build will prove interesting.

Can't afford it on day one, not interested in the gwp, so this will have to wait until my insiders points can buy it, wiping out getting points for it. Or the inheritance from my maternal grandfather's estate, after the house is sold, now his alcoholic, narcissistic, money grabbing, abusive partner has finally died. What with the housing market being what it is, I think the insiders points will come first.

Questioning legos's expectations in terms of what buyers can afford during June, what with BLDP, Star Trek and a certain cathedral that is coming too, the latter two rumoured to be the same price.

So, the UK price, if you remove VAT (at 20%) is... roughly £483, which is roughly $653 USD?

Is my math right there? If so, the UK US price is comparible. It's not like LEGO takes all that juicy govt. VAT for themselves, and they don't include VAT on US prices because their VAT isn't decided at the country level, like the UK.

@stefwaffles said:
" @EtudeTheBadger said:
"Bloodye hell, that's the price I'd expect Isildur to be hocking the One Ring for on eBay."

@Freddy_Hodson said:
"but ultimately ~£600 I just don't need to spend... "

@Angry_Warlock said:
"Even after adding tax the US price is around 10% cheaper than the UK price. Not good."

Sigh…

$649.99 / £579.99 / €649.99

That £580 includes tax, but
£580 is $784, or 668€

So, US buyers, would you pay $784 for this? Yes I know you will pay tax on that $650, but it’s not 20% tax!

It’s still going to be bought by this household, but that price difference stings."

I don't love the price by any stretch, but surely this shows that the price difference is entirely due to the 20% rate of VAT in the UK? The US just gets to see the base rate before tax, that's all.

LEGO screwing people in Switzerland yet again. The country has lower VAT, CHF is worth more than the EUR, yet they charge 749 CHF instead of 649 EUR. In other words, Swiss people getting screwed over for approx. 150 CHF.

I will still buy day one however.

@bnic99 said:
" @dimc said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"For a set this large/grand . . . just 10 minifigs seems underwhelming."

Very true. I'd have thought double would be entirely reasonable.
Eowyn
Theoden
Merry
Another Gondorian guard
6x orcs (while I'd appreciate Gothmog as an orc, I can see not wanting to make a Harvey Weinstein minifig)"

Agreed more figures are needed,
Eowyn absolutely needs a figure at some point, as does the Witch King, both could have been here.

Also, a pair of Citadel Guards with the big winged helmets would have been fun and added variaty to the Gondorian soldiers.

Gothmog already has a figure in Barad-dûr, so also could have been thrown in here."

TIL Gothmog had already been made. Definitely could have been here, along with the Witch King. I'm not that interested in Barad Dur, it's cool but I can't justify it. I only got Rivendell used for half price (though it's missing a few pieces, so I need to disassemble and inventory it, and rebuild it), and I have a few from the OG line.

Are there any other sets with 800 parts per minifig?

Like the minifigures, so I'll have to Bricklink them at some point.

@dhaas06 said:
"I'm afraid of how yellowed this set may end up looking in a few years, that will be sad if it tarnishes an excellent design. Hopefully these bricks don't suffer the same fate as Saturn V."
What's wrong with your Saturn V? Mine has been on display since the day I built it years ago, and it still looks like new.

As for this Minas Tirith set, I have to be honest it doesn't really wow me. The mix of scales throws it off for me, and the iconic rockface/cliff doesn't look good at all imho.
There used to be a smaller microscale version a couple of years ago without figures that got the shaping right much better for me. Plus it cost a fraction of this one of course.

@dimc said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"For a set this large/grand . . . just 10 minifigs seems underwhelming."

Very true. I'd have thought double would be entirely reasonable.
Eowyn
Theoden
Merry
Another Gondorian guard
6x orcs (while I'd appreciate Gothmog as an orc, I can see not wanting to make a Harvey Weinstein minifig)"

I’ve been wanting an Edoras set more than anything to do with Gondor, so that would be an ideal time to roll out the first three. Although, we did already get a Theoden King during the original run. Maybe they could do a possessed Theoden.

@Freddy_Hodson said:
"The option "no, it's too big" disappears and then a set turns up that it's actually true for. If this had had nanofigures like Hogwarts or the Helicarrier then it might have been a must buy for me, but as is the mixed scale just messes with my head. Lovely set, but ultimately ~£600 I just don't need to spend... except of course on hoovering up the minifigures on the aftermarket!"

Lord of the Rings nanofigs are a thing! https://brickset.com/minifigs?query=lord+of+the+rings. Not necessarily the most appropriate selection of characters, but still.....

This looks just like -- and I mean this in the most demeaning way possible -- many of the Bricklink Designer Program submissions. Too busy. Too many tiny pieces. A completely overdone model that's more expensive that any desire for it.

Grond, OTOH, is a set I would buy if it were sold. (Just like the Star Trek shuttle...)

No better hair piece for Arwen? No shorter hair & beard piece for Gandalf the White? No accurate shield for the Gondor soldiers? No proper orc helmet for the GWP orc?

@budterence said:
"Looks great… where is everyone putting all these big sets?!!"

Back in the box

As a LOTR fan I really want to like it, but my OCD just can't get past the hybrid scale. Money saved unfortuntely.

The beacons are lit! The set looks cool, but I would never be able to spend that much on a set or have the space. I appreciate what they were trying to do with the mixed scales, but I don't think it works for the exterior. The interior looks splendid though! The minifigures look pretty good, but I'm not sure I like the hairpieces for Aragorn and Faramir, and I definitely still dislike Aragorn's head piece. The beard is still too full. They had it right the first time. Maybe one day we'll see affordable sets again...

Grond looks too silly. Needs a molded head element like 4591627 HELMET 5 (WOLF)

That price with that few minifigs ain't it. I can live with hybrid, but not getting all the MCs plus that issue is meh.

Folk hoping for Edoras... If the next big set isn't Meduseld I'd be mildly astonished. Maybe even more astonished than that

@ACubeInABox said:
"Five thoughts at the exact same time:
1) Glad they fixed Arwen's face. I still don't think it looks much like Liv Tyler, but it's better than the Rivendell one.
2) $650 minifigure pack
3) Did they want this to be micro, midi, or playscale? All the figures look horrendously large when placed on top of the model, especially since the White Tree of Gondor is three pieces and shorter than Gandalf. I think LEGO was trying to make the exterior seem more playable than it actually is for the lifestyle pics.
4) Would it *kill* LEGO to give us a cheap LOTR set? The Grond looks like an amazing $20-$25 set and I think a lot of fans would have gotten it day one if it was sold seperately. I can't speak for everyone, but I most certainly would rather spend $650 on two waves of LOTR sets that cover a wide variety of memorable locations and characters than one giant display piece.... especially with how many giant display pieces there are.
5) Top 10 worst LEGO sets to get sunbleached lollll"

1) ...
2) Correct. Put all of your money on the table, and you might get nice things... unless they decide to undercut the market later.
3) The scale is... yes. For it is all scales. It must be everything to everyone. Cast the wide net, catch all of the fish.
4) I believed this was already proven with Star Wars. Low price sets cause pain and anguish in Billund. Many nights of restless sleep occur if they do not get all the moneys. The only cure is to roll around in the pile of cash deep under the headquarters. We must think of the suffering it would cause the impoverished executives if they sold cheaper sets.
5)...

(sarcasm has expired and is now set to off. end transmission)

Wow. I really wish I could afford this one . Faramir, Shadowfax with no saddle or harness whatsoever, Aragorn as a King, and so much more to see... Beautiful. Expensive, far above my threshold, but beautiful. The White City. The only thing that is a bit underwhelming (even if I know that they cleverly mixed scales) is the White tree. It deserved a better treatment IMO.

@HangedSanchez said:
"Lord of the Rings nanofigs are a thing! https://brickset.com/minifigs?query=lord+of+the+rings. Not necessarily the most appropriate selection of characters, but still....."

Those are microfigs, not nano.

@budterence said:
"Looks great… where is everyone putting all these big sets?!!"

They’re an excuse for buying a nice sideboard to put them on, something which modern life otherwise sadly lacks.

@Joce1275 said:
" @guachi said:
"LotR was the first real book I read when I was 6 back in 1980."

I am a voracious reader, but even I didn't tackle this trilogy until I was in my early teens!"

You couldn't - because there is no Lord of the Rings book trilogy. It is a single novel that was published in three books because of the paper shortage & cost during wartime.

GWP looks pretty easy to recreate. Is the orc head the only new element?

Form over substance should become Lego new motto.

I don't know.....granted, I've never been much of the LotR franches (after all, it's just three movies of people walking to a volcano) so I was never gonna buy this set anyway, but still, that didn't stop me from appreciating several of the sets that came before, particularly Rivendell which is about as perfect as any Lego set can be. But this.....at first glance it sure does look cool, and I do like the interior. But the defining aspect of Minas Tirith was that huge cliff, and exactly that just doesn't work for me here. There's just a bit too much going on there, making it look smaller. than it is supposed to be. The inner walls on the other hand look too clean, and could have used a bit more greebling to convey the massive scale of the city.

And then putting minifigs on those walls in those pictures obviously doesn't help either. Nanofigs obviously would still have been way too big to be properly scaled, but it would at least have given the impression we're looking at something huge. And then also throw in a couple of microscale fell beast...

And then that GWP....now that could have been a set I would have actually bought. Even more than the Tie Fighter GWP from the Death Tortilla this feels like a big middle finger to fans who don't have an unlimited budget and display space.

What a beautiful model

@Brick_t_ said:
"Wow. I really wish I could afford this one . Faramir, Shadowfax with no saddle or harness whatsoever, Aragorn as a King, and so much more to see... Beautiful. Expensive, far above my threshold, but beautiful. The White City. The only thing that is a bit underwhelming (even if I know that they cleverly mixed scales) is the White tree. It deserved a better treatment IMO. "

I really hoped for GWP representing The White Tree with fountain and the citadel guards guarding it. This Grond seems too childish and lacks trolls operating that huge battering ram. Also, we need better ways of amounting more orcs.

@dimc said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @dimc said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"For a set this large/grand . . . just 10 minifigs seems underwhelming."

Very true. I'd have thought double would be entirely reasonable.
Eowyn
Theoden
Merry
Another Gondorian guard
6x orcs (while I'd appreciate Gothmog as an orc, I can see not wanting to make a Harvey Weinstein minifig)"

I’ve been wanting an Edoras set more than anything to do with Gondor, so that would be an ideal time to roll out the first three. Although, we did already get a Theoden King during the original run. Maybe they could do a possessed Theoden."

Theoden would be a great candidate for a dual head, though it might be best to have swappable heads since his possessed version is very gray.

Wormtongue would have to come down in price if they made Edoras.

I have to imagine some people have made Edoras out of a couple of copies of viking village, right? Feels like that wouldn't be too hard. "

Maybe, but you have to remember to strip it back down to the original set when you’re done. Can’t leave any evidence it was ever built on that set.

@YanVanLan said:
"This is one of those sets I will have to see in person to make up my mind.
Right now I'm not certain it is worth the price.

The rockwork doesn't look very convincing in the pictures and the city feels very empty, so I would like a better look at how much detail is tucked away behind those walls.

Also a probably unpopular opinion, but I could do without the minfigs.
Don't get me wrong: I like that they make use of the internal space that would otherwise go to waste, but in my case the back of the build is going to be facing the wall 99% of the time anyways...
So I can't help feel a purely nanoscale approach, with a 100% of the budget going into the front of the build may have been better.

I do have to note that I more or less felt the same way about Barad-Dûr and I ended up loving that set once I got to see it in person."

I reckon the figures will be quite pricy, so buy the set and sell the figures to get a nice discount.

Denethor, Denethor, and his horse Concord.

Such a beautiful set and probably improved by the genius of Mike more than people would think. But, it wouldn't be me if not nitpicking on something. Don't you feel that it's penny-pinching to allow 20 minifigs in 4000 pcs. BDP sets and only include 10 in a set with double the piece count and double the price? The least TLG could do is release the Gondor soldier and orc parts to PaB for army building and expanding if they don't even plan to make affordable play-scale sets for this massively popular and highly profitable IP. I know, never gonna happen.
Don't forget the final price of this set got pumped up by 50$/€ compared to the rumored RRP which retailers got. You can argue that this is not really minifig scale, but at least out-beating Rivendell by a couple figs would have been proper, if the highly requested Witch-king of Angmar had to be omitted. At least the GWP actually ties in to the set perfectly. TLG knows exactly how to make people open up their wallets on day one.

@WizardOfOss said:
"And then that GWP....now that could have been a set I would have actually bought. Even more than the Tie Fighter GWP from the Death Tortilla this feels like a big middle finger to fans who don't have an unlimited budget and display space."

It looks pretty easy to put together something very similar with existing parts for those that don't need the exclusive box. I like GWP like that as if you're going to build it you don't really need the official set.

@WizardOfOss said:
"And then that GWP....now that could have been a set I would have actually bought. Even more than the Tie Fighter GWP from the Death Tortilla this feels like a big middle finger to fans who don't have an unlimited budget and display space."

I don't pay as much attention to SW, but that GWP felt worse because the Death Star just has a hole where it's supposed to go. At least here, the city is complete, and of course Minas Tirith does exist outside of the battle of the Pelennor Fields so it's fine to have without Grond. Plus, if what people say is correct, Grond can be built with existing parts. The unique orc, eh.

While I'd love to get this set (and we shall see what the future holds), the GWP really doesn't affect my desire. It's cool, yes, but if I can easily make it on my own, no worries. The Witch King GWP was disappointing in that regard.

Great set, love the idea and execution - but soooo costly. I don't know if I can justify the price for myself.

While the set as a whole is very large, there isn’t a wealth of sensible places to put minifigs. I suppose they didn’t want to exceed the number you could fit onto the set all at the same time without crowding each other too badly.

@dhaas06 said:
"I'm afraid of how yellowed this set may end up looking in a few years, that will be sad if it tarnishes an excellent design. Hopefully these bricks don't suffer the same fate as Saturn V."

If you're displaying your Saturn V in an area with direct sunlight (UV) exposure or close to a heat source this is probably the cause. Luckily you can reverse this by using water/hydrogen peroxide solution and ironically sunlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlFYMmd14wA. A couple years ago I used this method on my nephew's 75212 which had many yellowing pieces.

Does Grond have any unique pieces? I’d be ok with “no” so people could construct their own. Of course, people can’t just pick-a-brick the Orcs unfortunately.

Way too expensive over here.

It's just okay. I cannot help but agree with many of the other previous comments and criticisms regarding the mixed scale, lack of minifigures and some design choices, especially surrounding the cliff.

As I've said before, I would much rather purchase sets based on the source material for the Hobbit and LotR, such as Germanic, Celtic, Greek and (above all) Norse mythology. I think it's fair to proclaim that most people know of Tolkien's books and Peter Jackson's film adaptations but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on, with even fewer having any semblance of understanding for it.

It's mind-boggling to me that even so-called super fans can be so clueless.

It's alright but definitely not as 'wow' as Rivendell was.

@dimc said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"For a set this large/grand . . . just 10 minifigs seems underwhelming."

Very true. I'd have thought double would be entirely reasonable.
Eowyn
Theoden
Merry
Another Gondorian guard
6x orcs (while I'd appreciate Gothmog as an orc, I can see not wanting to make a Harvey Weinstein minifig)"

Gothmog is in the Barad-dur set

What would do sets be then? A runestone and druid battle pack?

Lord of the Dust....

@dhaas06 said:
"I'm afraid of how yellowed this set may end up looking in a few years, that will be sad if it tarnishes an excellent design. Hopefully these bricks don't suffer the same fate as Saturn V."

Yellow Castle Knights would definitely disagree on this matter.

I really like it. Have no clue where I would display it but I will most likely buy it eventually. I didn't buy Barad Dur because I rally don't care for the orcs though it is an impressive set. Likewise, though I know it's part of the story, I don't need Grond so this will not be a day one purchase for me. I will wait for 2x points or some sort of deal before biting the bullet on this one.

Gonna be sweet getting the lepin version of this for like 150 in a few months.

@Bycougars said:
" @stefwaffles said:
" @EtudeTheBadger said:
"Bloodye hell, that's the price I'd expect Isildur to be hocking the One Ring for on eBay."

@Freddy_Hodson said:
"but ultimately ~£600 I just don't need to spend... "

@Angry_Warlock said:
"Even after adding tax the US price is around 10% cheaper than the UK price. Not good."

Sigh…

$649.99 / £579.99 / €649.99

That £580 includes tax, but
£580 is $784, or 668€

So, US buyers, would you pay $784 for this? Yes I know you will pay tax on that $650, but it’s not 20% tax!

It’s still going to be bought by this household, but that price difference stings."

Yeah, with taxes it’ll be about $700 in the U.S."

Depends on the taxing district you buy it in. If I order it online it will be about $680, if I buy it in store it will be about $715. I almost always order online just for this reason. Why drive and spend gas money to pay more?

@Brick_t_:
There already is a white horse with no bridle, and most horses have bare backs unless you install a saddle yourself. I haven’t done anything with mine, because I didn’t have a spare Gandalf the White to pair with it, but I picked one (two, actually) up when the parts for 76266 were on OPAB.

@lordofthedreams9:
I’ve never heard of war rationing being the reason LotR was split into a trilogy. Every explanation I’ve run across said his editor was realistic and knew that a book the size of Snoopy’s doghouse would be a hard sell.

@CCC:
If they sold the minifig parts on OPAB, they might get in trouble with WB because those are all IP prints on the torsos and legs, and IP molds for stuff like the helmets.

for that price, it should have the whole fellowship, the witch king, eowyn, and theoden.

The three volume novel was a typical way of publishing. Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte among others, had their novels published in three volumes, the separation is often indicated in some editions.

Oscar Wilde mocks the trend in The Importance of Being Earnest.

@PurpleDave
I guess it was a bit of both - but as I remember it the rationale was it would be a hard sell because it would have been too expensive due to raised paper prices (driven by the shortage).

There are currently 6 sets in the Lord of Ring Lego theme. The average price of those in Canada is: CAD$464.99. Of those, 4 are locations; you can get all 4 for only CAD$2549.96 or CAD$2932.45 with taxes. I'm still accumulating Lego points for 10316 before it expires in December.

Even if Lego had used the trophy statue for the terrace at the top, that would still be too big for the scale. At the end of the movie, there are hundreds (if not thousands) of people on that terrace.

This will be an unpopular opinion but, as much as Star Wars produces many grey triangles and other grey shapes, this seems to be a gigantic white pyramid with some texture and a protruding grey wedge. Very happy for the fans though - in the end, you cannot be a hardcore fan of every single theme - looks like Rivendell will suffice for me (for now - I'm open to smaller sets if Lego would consider that).

This set is awesome, but it feels as if they held back on it. This could’ve easily topped $1k, included many more minifigs, and would’ve still sold to LOTR enthusiasts.

Scale is weird, it feels more like architecture set than LOTR one. Would never but it either way, but can't say I find a well designed set. Oh well.

A fantastic job. Look forward to seeing more of the interior and possible easter egg shenanigans. But ONLY 4 soldiers! For a set this size! For a set at this price! Double that amount and make everyone happy. Just as with Barad-dur - less is not more.......more is more.

I’m glad they didn’t stick Eowyn in that Grond set, at least. Images spread on the net indicate that the Palantir is printed on two sides with Theoden opposite Sauron, so hopefully a Riders of Rohan set is next on the docket.

@eiffel006 said:
"Wow, surprised, I had not seen this one coming (I'm kidding, it's been "revealed" for months now).

It's a day one purchase for me! I really love it. "

And leaked by a Lego Ambassador none the less!

@lordofthedreams9 said:
" @PurpleDave
I guess it was a bit of both - but as I remember it the rationale was it would be a hard sell because it would have been too expensive due to raised paper prices (driven by the shortage)."

I could see it being a bit of both. I mean, war rationing wasn’t just about what you were allowed to buy, but also about what you could afford to buy. Essentials were critical, and a massive novel just wouldn’t have been a responsible purchase at the time. From the publishing side, it would have been very risky, but cutting a third off and selling that first would have either reduced the loss of it didn’t sell, or helped pay to publish the next section if it did. Smaller books would have felt less risky as a purchase, even if three volume cost more overall than a single tome. If you hated it, you could back out without spending as much. If you liked it, you could spread the cost out over time so it didn’t hit you in the pocket so hard.

But even in the years since, just consider how massive a book that would have been if it wasn’t split up. War & Peace would have looked like light reading in comparison. I read the trilogy once, and that was enough for me. I didn’t like his prose, the way he has so much of the action take place “offscreen”, or certain “diversions” from the main plot. Otherwise the story is solid, though, and I own three copies of the film trilogy.

Easily one of the best sets of the year, but Canada got screwed over with the price. Why is it $30 CAD more than the large Pokemon set, despite both being the same USD price!?

Amazing, I love it!... but is waaaay above my wallet power and space in my tiny Japanese apartment... :(

Good set. Already saved up like months ahead. If the gwp is readily available, I will buy it. If not, no issue. Price is high then again, star wars stuff regularly hits those levels.

Unless you are worried about the gwp, I imagine this will sit on shelves for a while. Rivendell and barad dur regularly get backordered. I think this set will have similiar demand. Lego has done a good job keeping these LOTR icon sets on shelves.

Back during the hobbit movies, the lotr sets left shelves fast.

@eiffel006 said:
"With taxes, it's going to be $1,070 CAD in my province, which is $780 USD, £576 or €665.

Usually, sets are cheaper in Canada than anywhere else in the world. Not this time. Yikes. "

The death star certainly is. But let's be real, I think the death star, millennium falcon are overall the more desirable sets.

@HOBBES said:
"There are currently 6 sets in the Lord of Ring Lego theme. The average price of those in Canada is: CAD$464.99. Of those, 4 are locations; you can get all 4 for only CAD$2549.96 or CAD$2932.45 with taxes. I'm still accumulating Lego points for 10316 before it expires in December.

Even if Lego had used the trophy statue for the terrace at the top, that would still be too big for the scale. At the end of the movie, there are hundreds (if not thousands) of people on that terrace.

This will be an unpopular opinion but, as much as Star Wars produces many grey triangles and other grey shapes, this seems to be a gigantic white pyramid with some texture and a protruding grey wedge. Very happy for the fans though - in the end, you cannot be a hardcore fan of every single theme - looks like Rivendell will suffice for me (for now - I'm open to smaller sets if Lego would consider that)."

Well said. If I had to choose between LOTR Icons or Star Wars UCS, star wars ucs stays and lotr icons goes. Rivendell being first LOTR set in a decade, having entire fellowship, cheaper probably will be people's pick over this set. Minas Tirith is more like specialized for people who are already building a middle-earth collection. From what I noticed, I don't see nearly as many people talking about this set over rivendell, barad dur, and especially not the death star. Only time will tell how well this sells on release. Not going to complain if the set with gwp sells out before I wake up. Saves me money.

@dimc said:
" @WizardOfOss said:
"And then that GWP....now that could have been a set I would have actually bought. Even more than the Tie Fighter GWP from the Death Tortilla this feels like a big middle finger to fans who don't have an unlimited budget and display space."

I don't pay as much attention to SW, but that GWP felt worse because the Death Star just has a hole where it's supposed to go. At least here, the city is complete, and of course Minas Tirith does exist outside of the battle of the Pelennor Fields so it's fine to have without Grond. Plus, if what people say is correct, Grond can be built with existing parts. The unique orc, eh.

While I'd love to get this set (and we shall see what the future holds), the GWP really doesn't affect my desire. It's cool, yes, but if I can easily make it on my own, no worries. The Witch King GWP was disappointing in that regard. "

Yeah I don't sense the same urgency of Grond over the Tie Fighter. Since the Tie Fighter was a direct add on, while Grond not only isn't but feels like wackier build. I also think more people will gravitate towards the Death Star than this set. Death Star is like a good generic starter set while Minas Tirith feels specialized for people who already have the other Middle Earth sets.

The front side is about what I imagined. What I didn't see coming was the downright striking Hall of Kings on the flip side - a great representation of that chamber. Looking forward to seeing some lighting effects.

Also impressed with the modular slide-out rooms. Grond is disappointing, but either way it looks like a solid win for LOTR collectors.

@sjr60 said:
"It's alright but definitely not as 'wow' as Rivendell was."

I disagree. I think it has the same "wow" factor as Rivendell. Which is the better set will come down to building techniques/experience for me. Rivendell has a really high bar to beat for those.

I'm probably in the minority, but I totally hate how they mix different scales.

@rebelpilotJYZ said:
"Good set. Already saved up like months ahead. If the gwp is readily available, I will buy it. If not, no issue. Price is high then again, star wars stuff regularly hits those levels.

Unless you are worried about the gwp, I imagine this will sit on shelves for a while. Rivendell and barad dur regularly get backordered. I think this set will have similiar demand. Lego has done a good job keeping these LOTR icon sets on shelves.

Back during the hobbit movies, the lotr sets left shelves fast."

All the LotR settings released under the Icons theme have been fairly expensive D2C sets, which usually entails being available for at least two years before being retired. Most of the previous run were regular retail sets that typically have a one-year run.

@PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
"Good set. Already saved up like months ahead. If the gwp is readily available, I will buy it. If not, no issue. Price is high then again, star wars stuff regularly hits those levels.

Unless you are worried about the gwp, I imagine this will sit on shelves for a while. Rivendell and barad dur regularly get backordered. I think this set will have similiar demand. Lego has done a good job keeping these LOTR icon sets on shelves.

Back during the hobbit movies, the lotr sets left shelves fast."

All the LotR settings released under the Icons theme have been fairly expensive D2C sets, which usually entails being available for at least two years before being retired. Most of the previous run were regular retail sets that typically have a one-year run."

The 2012 lotr wave went on sale. This lead to the 2013 lotr wave being much harder to come by. Not to mention they had to share shelf space with the hobbit sets, which was primary focus back then. But I expect a smaller edoras next year. Probably making saruman from the cheap $10 set only real desirable 2012-13 lotr figure.

Rivendell will be available for like 4 years. (2027 end of retirement). Which will be ample time for anyone to pick that set up

First Lego set with a funeral pyre?

@chronoso said:
"GROND!"

Yeah, I was like, "What's the GWP?" and then I was like, "Ooh...."

@dimc said:"Well there goes all my money. "

And a chunk of your storage space, too.

@Darth_Dee said:"Grond looks too silly. Needs a molded head element like 4591627 HELMET 5 (WOLF)"

First, hashtagging an element number dorsnt't link to the element, you need to copy/paste the URL of theelement's page: https://brickset.com/parts/4591627 Second, I'm 99% positive that GWPs don't get new molds.

@WizardOfOss said:"I don't know.....granted, I've never been much of the LotR franches (after all, it's just three movies of people walking to a volcano)..."

That's unnecessarily reductive. You can diminish any story that way. Apollo 13 is just about the crew of a spaceship having a problem. Superman is just about a strong guy who can fly. Airplane! is just about something going wrong on an airline flight...

@Maxbricks14 said:"Glad Lego is making a set based on such a well-known battle in New Zealand's history: the battle of Auckland City. The minifigures are so well done too, very accurate to the real people they are portraying."

Two things I never get tired of: People acting like The Lord of the Rings films depict New Zealand history, and people pretending that Mad Max depicts Australia's current state.

@Murdoch17 said:"My deepest sympathies and sincere condolences for the people who want this set: at least your wallet will have died a mercifully quick death. (though it's not as quick as it being instantly vaporized by the $1000 Death Star, but still...)"

"Witness the power of this fully built and operational battle station!"

@ rvnlord said:"I'm probably in the minority, but I totally hate how they mix different scales."

Actually, I've seen a lot of complaints about that.

@TheOtherMike said:
"And a chunk of your storage space, too."

TBH, large as this may be, it'll pale in comparison to a bunch of modulars, icons, BLDP, and who-even-remembers what else that I haven't got space to build and couldn't let go by before they get aftermarket price inflation.

@dimc said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
"And a chunk of your storage space, too."

TBH, large as this may be, it'll pale in comparison to a bunch of modulars, icons, BLDP, and who-even-remembers what else that I haven't got space to build and couldn't let go by before they get aftermarket price inflation. "

It will definitely take less space than that one Minion set.

Wonderful set despite the microscale design. Too bad Aragorn only gets a generic sword instead of Anduril.

Would look great in the aquarium 10366

I will take 2 please!

OMG I Love this set! And the GWP?!?! So excited!!!

Is room an issue? Yes.
Will I make room, or find a space 100% I will.

I will take this over an overpriced, gimmick filled Star Wars set any day! And I have SW license plates and SW checks and just picked up the AT-AT popcorn bucket from my local theater for the Mando movie next week!

Maybe Buckleberry Ferry, or the Prancing Pony or Fangorn Forest or Edoras!! Just a few ideas Lego.

To your battle stations!!!!

This was going to be a day one purchase... until I lost my job. Still looks fabulous.

@TheOtherMike said:
" @WizardOfOss said:"I don't know.....granted, I've never been much of the LotR franches (after all, it's just three movies of people walking to a volcano)..."

That's unnecessarily reductive. You can diminish any story that way. Apollo 13 is just about the crew of a spaceship having a problem. Superman is just about a strong guy who can fly. Airplane! is just about something going wrong on an airline flight..."
Come on, even the trees walked in those movies!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3ZItMfPaG4

uh, thats ugly

No goat, no buy.

@PurpleDave said:
" @lordofthedreams9 said:
" @PurpleDave
I guess it was a bit of both - but as I remember it the rationale was it would be a hard sell because it would have been too expensive due to raised paper prices (driven by the shortage)."

I could see it being a bit of both. I mean, war rationing wasn’t just about what you were allowed to buy, but also about what you could afford to buy. Essentials were critical, and a massive novel just wouldn’t have been a responsible purchase at the time. From the publishing side, it would have been very risky, but cutting a third off and selling that first would have either reduced the loss of it didn’t sell, or helped pay to publish the next section if it did. Smaller books would have felt less risky as a purchase, even if three volume cost more overall than a single tome. If you hated it, you could back out without spending as much. If you liked it, you could spread the cost out over time so it didn’t hit you in the pocket so hard.

But even in the years since, just consider how massive a book that would have been if it wasn’t split up. War & Peace would have looked like light reading in comparison. I read the trilogy once, and that was enough for me. I didn’t like his prose, the way he has so much of the action take place “offscreen”, or certain “diversions” from the main plot. Otherwise the story is solid, though, and I own three copies of the film trilogy."

Currently, there are single volume (as intended by the Author) editions on the market parallel with the three-volume editions. Originally, the Lord of the Rings was divided into six 'books' intended to be published in one volume and, according to Tolkien, grouping the middle two together separately didin't make much sense:

"Tolkien wrote in a letter to his publisher ('Letters' 136 24 March 1953):
P.S. I have given some thought to the matter of sub-titles for the volumes, which you thought were desirable. But I do not find it easy, as the 'books', though they must be grouped in pairs, are not really paired; and the middle pair (III/IV) are not really related."

Gonna need a whole new coffee table for this one.

I'm the target audience, I have the other large lotr sets and I want to live this. But I don't. There's nothing much wrong with it from the usual terrible lifestyle photos, but so much of the build and part count will be hidden. It doesn't topple Rivendell as the most interesting and eye pleasing Lego lotr model.
I will say that the price in Australia is not great, but if I could part with $1000 for Lego, I would take this over the Pokemon set without a moments hesitation.

@lordofthedreams9 said:
"Currently, there are single volume (as intended by the Author) editions on the market parallel with the three-volume editions. Originally, the Lord of the Rings was divided into six 'books' intended to be published in one volume and, according to Tolkien, grouping the middle two together separately didin't make much sense:

"Tolkien wrote in a letter to his publisher ('Letters' 136 24 March 1953):
P.S. I have given some thought to the matter of sub-titles for the volumes, which you thought were desirable. But I do not find it easy, as the 'books', though they must be grouped in pairs, are not really paired; and the middle pair (III/IV) are not really related." "

They are related in the fact that they take place concurrently, but the fact that he split the back 2/3rds of the story into just four chunks made it very frustrating to read, since it really felt like you were reading two different novels. I sorta get why he did it, meaning to keep the fate of the One Ring and Frodo/Samwise completely unknown through the battle at the Black Gate, but it made it very difficult to feel invested in the two halves of the story when you step away for such extended periods of time. Most authors (haven't read ASOIAF, so don't know how that one works) prefer to alternate chapters back and forth. Especially if you fudge the synchronization a bit, there's still room to keep surprises until you're ready to reveal them, but it feels like you're following a more cohesive story with multiple threads. Imagine watching Ep1 only to have the entire land battle play out in full, then the entire space battle, and finally the entire Jedi battle, instead of bouncing back and forth between them. I think this is also why I wasn't that enamored of Dunkirk, since the retelling of the events on land, sea, and air, since those events span one week, one day, and one hour respectively, and it's only really obvious if you read an addendum explaining the mixed chronological scales. Otherwise, it just feels like something is off between the land and air events.

People need to stop asking for "cheap" LOTR sets because it will never happen. The original ones didn't sell well and kids these days are not interested. At most we will get a $130+ diorama like Jaws/Zelda/Jurassic Park, but there will never be wave of anything cheaper.

@AustinPowers said:
" @dhaas06 said:
"I'm afraid of how yellowed this set may end up looking in a few years, that will be sad if it tarnishes an excellent design. Hopefully these bricks don't suffer the same fate as Saturn V."
What's wrong with your Saturn V? Mine has been on display since the day I built it years ago, and it still looks like new.

As for this Minas Tirith set, I have to be honest it doesn't really wow me. The mix of scales throws it off for me, and the iconic rockface/cliff doesn't look good at all imho.
There used to be a smaller microscale version a couple of years ago without figures that got the shaping right much better for me. Plus it cost a fraction of this one of course."

Mine was 2 feet adjacent from a north-facing window. Nevertheless... :(

@PurpleDave said:
" @lordofthedreams9 said:
"Currently, there are single volume (as intended by the Author) editions on the market parallel with the three-volume editions. Originally, the Lord of the Rings was divided into six 'books' intended to be published in one volume and, according to Tolkien, grouping the middle two together separately didin't make much sense:

"Tolkien wrote in a letter to his publisher ('Letters' 136 24 March 1953):
P.S. I have given some thought to the matter of sub-titles for the volumes, which you thought were desirable. But I do not find it easy, as the 'books', though they must be grouped in pairs, are not really paired; and the middle pair (III/IV) are not really related." "

They are related in the fact that they take place concurrently, but the fact that he split the back 2/3rds of the story into just four chunks made it very frustrating to read, since it really felt like you were reading two different novels. I sorta get why he did it, meaning to keep the fate of the One Ring and Frodo/Samwise completely unknown through the battle at the Black Gate, but it made it very difficult to feel invested in the two halves of the story when you step away for such extended periods of time. Most authors (haven't read ASOIAF, so don't know how that one works) prefer to alternate chapters back and forth. Especially if you fudge the synchronization a bit, there's still room to keep surprises until you're ready to reveal them, but it feels like you're following a more cohesive story with multiple threads. Imagine watching Ep1 only to have the entire land battle play out in full, then the entire space battle, and finally the entire Jedi battle, instead of bouncing back and forth between them. I think this is also why I wasn't that enamored of Dunkirk, since the retelling of the events on land, sea, and air, since those events span one week, one day, and one hour respectively, and it's only really obvious if you read an addendum explaining the mixed chronological scales. Otherwise, it just feels like something is off between the land and air events."

Plus Dunkirk is mainly about Chamberlain appeasing Hitler.... and the British best modern effort- a heroic retreat.

@Rowia said:
"Who's saying it's super expensive on the poll???
Huge licensed set for $649.99 with 8,278 pieces? Really nice Minifigures too! Seems like a steal. "

I would gladly pay the US price of $649. The problem is that this set costs 200-300 $ more in several countries.

@strangeworld said:
" @Rowia said:
"Who's saying it's super expensive on the poll???
Huge licensed set for $649.99 with 8,278 pieces? Really nice Minifigures too! Seems like a steal. "

I would gladly pay the US price of $649. The problem is that this set costs 200-300 $ more in several countries."

I would gladly enjoy a Swedish Bikini Team hamburger today, that I could pay for, tomorrow.

"@ rvnlord said:"I'm probably in the minority, but I totally hate how they mix different scales."

Actually, I've seen a lot of complaints about that."

K

But how else would they do it? An entire micro scale interior, and all the figs stand outside and say "WTF?"

I can just imagine the drama if LEGO opened up that can and started churning out a new series of micro figs for LOTR or SW. I suppose I could bring a torch and a cup of water down to the basement archives and research how the HP fans reacted when they pulled that with Hogwarts...but less than half of me cares.

I think the scale change is clever and looks pretty great. I'm tempted by this one - perhaps I'll build one and then sell it to a Bricks & Minifigs before it starts yellowing.

...which brings me to the other topic. My Saturn V is all yellowed after standing on the floor in a bright room for several years. Oddly, some of the elements like the large cone pieces suffered no discoloration at all, while the smaller slope elements that make up the rocket body have all turned. Frustrating.

@vzarmo said:
"I like the minifigures, shields and flags. They are awesome, but I won’t pay that much for them. "

People are already splitting the set on eBay - over £300 just for the figures!!!

@lekalog said:
"People need to stop asking for "cheap" LOTR sets because it will never happen. The original ones didn't sell well and kids these days are not interested. At most we will get a $130+ diorama like Jaws/Zelda/Jurassic Park, but there will never be wave of anything cheaper."

As someone who was buying Lego LOTR/Hobbit around 2012, the sets went on severe discounts. Whereas Pirates of the Caribbean a year prior barely had any. Goblin King Battle often went 40% off and Moria, Helms Deep, Warg attack can easily found 20% off. I think bag end was hard to find on discount but that got remade now. I think Lego severely overestimated demand for Middle Earth stuff, expecting it to sell like Star Wars. 2013 wave felt short printed. 2014 hobbit wave had huge discount aisles at my lego store

Personally I prefer the icons approach. It keeps sets on shelves and avoids clutter like the cheaper harry potter and super hero sets. Cheaper stuff probably wont happen due to increased hollywood licensing fees

@Murdoch17 said:
"My deepest sympathies and sincere condolences for the people who want this set: at least your wallet will have died a mercifully quick death. (though it's not as quick as it being instantly vaporized by the $1000 Death Star, but still...)"

Death Star is way way more expensive from a more culturally prevalent ip and was coming out when Lego was releasing like an expensive icons/harry potterset every week in september. Not to mention after August waves are expensive. Plus with Holiday shopping scene around the corner, and gwp that needed to fill a hole in the set.

Minas Tirith is releasing in middle of not really any expensive set releases, before the august wave.

I also see the Death Star being the more desired set. Death Star is a good starter set (has entire Episode IV/VI cast, way more figures).

This doesn't have much figures, lacks the central fellowship cast. So people buying this likely already have some if not all the other middle earth sets recently released. I also see way fewer people talking about this than the Death Star

@budterence said:
"Looks great… where is everyone putting all these big sets?!!"

I have space on top of one of my Kallax's for it next to Orthanc and Bar-a-dur - the challenge is going to be finding enough space for S.F. in July which is likely to be the same size....

@MrBedhead said:
"LEGO screwing people in Switzerland yet again. The country has lower VAT, CHF is worth more than the EUR, yet they charge 749 CHF instead of 649 EUR. In other words, Swiss people getting screwed over for approx. 150 CHF.

I will still buy day one however. "

Why don’t you just wait? Maybe you can buy it much cheaper later from Galaxus.

The “Swiss prices” are one of the main reasons why I rarely buy Lego these days.

Every time I look at the Great Gate bit of the set I get terrible cravings for mint chocolate.

Ok, jaw-dropping set for sure. Gimme...

It looks like a nice set for LOTR fans, and for once having only half a building is not that much of an issue as the city 'was' built into a mountain (an excuse the less-than-great Barad-dûr set does not have...). The film version, which the LOTR sets are based on, shows it as more than semicircular though, and for the eye-watering amount lego asks for it, they should have given it the approximately 2/3-3/4 circle form and added the mountain flank in the back.

Leaving value for money and the form aside, the part we get does look good and, without being a specialist, the scale looks about right too (again unlike the wonderful Barad-dûr set).

Nice but far too few minifigs for the money, no matter that the set isn't to scale. Damn, value for money again.

The GWP is absolutely awesome! Only... can someone use that battering ram on lego's head please? This is an unqualified GREAT little play set in its own right: a more or less medieval setting, nicely detailed toy with actually swinging ram for attacking a play castle, couple of minifigs: Insert story here - eons of fun. What more can we ask for? Why don't our kids get these anymore? Why does one need to spend a fortune on the megaset to get access to a fantastic toy?

@MrBedhead said:
"LEGO screwing people in Switzerland yet again. The country has lower VAT, CHF is worth more than the EUR, yet they charge 749 CHF instead of 649 EUR. In other words, Swiss people getting screwed over for approx. 150 CHF.

I will still buy day one however. "

Agreed on the screwed part, but there's a simple solution: the Euro zone is all around, just buy it there.

@Bricky_Dee_Williams said:
"This is incredible! For thirteen years, I’ve said Minas Tirith was my dream set after the original LOTR line ended.

I am the target audience. Thank you, LEGO.
All is forgiven for Smart Play. "

Forgiven? I thank them for it! Never knew they had such a self-deprecating sense of humor

@lowlead said:
"I can just imagine the drama if LEGO opened up that can and started churning out a new series of micro figs for LOTR or SW. I suppose I could bring a torch and a cup of water down to the basement archives and research how the HP fans reacted when they pulled that with Hogwarts...but less than half of me cares."

It was less of an issue with HP, because both microscale versions of Hogwarts were still made at significantly larger scales than this. I don’t know if the scale on either actually matched the trophy figs, but at least they didn’t look ridiculously oversized like they would on Minas Tirith.

@CCC:
I’m pretty sure I’m not even the first in this comment section, but a scene of the White Tree in minifig-scale would have been even more thematically appropriate a GWP than even Grond. Problem is, that would have locked much more desirable minifigs behind Day One Purchasing. Funny thing is, there was a time when I misremembered them having actually made a White Tree courtyard set, but I believe I was thinking of 79015.

Based on average weights, 8,500 LEGO pieces weigh approximately 10 kilograms (22 lbs).

@SamDS said:
"It for sure is not minifig scale. Otherwise you would have to take a loan to afford it."

for mini figure scale…
“You’re not gonna lose the house , everyone has three mortgages nowadays”
Dr Pete Venkman

@iwybs said:
" @Vesperas said:
"As I've said before, I would much rather purchase sets based on the source material for the Hobbit and LotR, such as Germanic, Celtic, Greek and (above all) Norse mythology. I think it's fair to proclaim that most people know of Tolkien's books and Peter Jackson's film adaptations but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on, with even fewer having any semblance of understanding for it.

It's mind-boggling to me that even so-called super fans can be so clueless."

You don't need to know all the social, mythical, and historical background of a fictional work to enjoy a good story. Not knowing all the background material that went into the making of a work of fiction isn't being "clueless", and knowing it all isn't something to expect of every "super fan". Nor does knowing all that stuff mean you should act snooty towards people who don't. Are you not truly a "super fan" of LotR if you like Tolkien's writings and Jackson's movies better than studying Germanic, Celtic, Greek, and Norse mythology? Do true "super fans" of LotR actually, deep inside, prefer Wagner's Ring Cycle because it's more straightforwardly connected to Germanic mythology and it also has "Ring" in the title?

It's mind-boggling to me that someone can gatekeep like this.

"

/ Sigh

1) I'm not convinced that you know what 'gatekeeping' means. I suggest looking it up so that you can use it properly in the future.

I have no control over any information related to what is being discussed. The vast majority of it can be found online quite easily.

2) I'm advocating for people to better themselves and their appreciation for Tolkien's works by looking into what inspired them (the opposite of gatekeeping). Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King," etc., are inspired by the same works, not on each other.

3) As implied in my comment that you quoted but did not properly read, I've met people that claim to be super fans only to reveal they haven't even read Tolkien's books, nor do they have any idea what inspired his works, hence "but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on...".

Finally...

4) I'm not talking about people who kind of like LotR, nor am I even talking about fans--I wrote 'super fans.' Generally speaking, yes--I'd expect people that claim to be super fans to be familiar with the subject matter and know what inspired it.

Reading is a prerequisite to understanding words and understanding is imperative to achieving an intelligent written response. Just FYI.

I am running out of space. I need to sell something else to make room for this. And that's including unassembled sets!
But I'm already short of stuff I want to give up on!
But if I sell a bit more stuff I could afford a larger house...
But what am I going to fill it with?
So many doubts...

@Rimefang said:
"Based on average weights, 8,500 LEGO pieces weigh approximately 10 kilograms (22 lbs)."

Esa estantería terminará cediendo...

@TheOtherMike said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"I also see the Death Star being the more desired set. Death Star is a good starter set (has entire Episode IV/VI cast, way more figures)."

You and I have very different definitions of "starter set.""

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SiaRGZG-9vg Sean Astin rather get the Death Star than his own theme. SW ip that is worth 10x the other. And one set that spans multiple movies, way more figures, 10+ more rooms. Even on discussingfilm, Death Star got like way more likes.

As for cheaper sets, it is just not happening. Everyone in comments said why.

@lekalog said:
"People need to stop asking for "cheap" LOTR sets because it will never happen. The original ones didn't sell well and kids these days are not interested. At most we will get a $130+ diorama like Jaws/Zelda/Jurassic Park, but there will never be wave of anything cheaper."

Kids have stopped buying toys for a while now. They have free time to play minecraft, roblox, free to play games, anime reaming apps, demon slayer movie, socialize etc. Yes you will see parents to take their kids to the lego store. But they are walking away with like one small speed champions, kai mech battle pack. Which will they will build in like 10 minutes, and leave in toy bin, and go back to playing games. Lego probably done research and found out enough adults buying icons sets to stare in their room before they go to work will make them more profit than kids only getting the smaller stuff

@Vesperas said:
"/ Sigh

1) I'm not convinced that you know what 'gatekeeping' means. I suggest looking it up so that you can use it properly in the future.

I have no control over any information related to what is being discussed. The vast majority of it can be found online quite easily.

2) I'm advocating for people to better themselves and their appreciation for Tolkien's works by looking into what inspired them (the opposite of gatekeeping). Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King," etc., are inspired by the same works, not on each other.

3) As implied in my comment that you quoted but did not properly read, I've met people that claim to be super fans only to reveal they haven't even read Tolkien's books, nor do they have any idea what inspired his works, hence "but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on...".

Finally...

4) I'm not talking about people who kind of like LotR, nor am I even talking about fans--I wrote 'super fans.' Generally speaking, yes--I'd expect people that claim to be super fans to be familiar with the subject matter and know what inspired it.

Reading is a prerequisite to understanding words and understanding is imperative to achieving an intelligent written response. Just FYI."

1) Colloquially, to gatekeep an interest or hobby is to treat the way other people enjoy the same interest or hobby as inferior. You do that when you call people "clueless" about LotR because they don't have the same depth of knowledge about its mythological background as you do.

2) Obviously, I know that Wagner's Ring cycle, Grieg's musical compositions, etc, are inspired by the same works, not by each other, nor by LotR. Obviously.

3) Stop gaslighting. That's not what you said. You didn't say that you've met people that claim to be super fans only to reveal they haven't even read Tolkien's books, nor do they have any idea what inspired his works. What you said was this:

"As I've said before, I would much rather purchase sets based on the source material for the Hobbit and LotR, such as Germanic, Celtic, Greek and (above all) Norse mythology. I think it's fair to proclaim that most people know of Tolkien's books and Peter Jackson's film adaptations but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on, with even fewer having any semblance of understanding for it. ... It's mind-boggling to me that even so-called super fans can be so clueless."

What you said was that you rarely find people who are aware of the mythological source material for LotR. You then called those people clueless super-fans.

The obvious inference was that LotR fans are clueless and not "real" super-fans if they don't know much about the mythological source material. That is gatekeeping.

If you wanted to say what you said in your reply to me in the first place, you should have said it in the first place. I read your comment in full and I understood the words you actually wrote. Maybe you didn't proofread your comment before you posted it, so you thought you said more than you actually did.

@Vesperas said:
"It's just okay. I cannot help but agree with many of the other previous comments and criticisms regarding the mixed scale, lack of minifigures and some design choices, especially surrounding the cliff.

As I've said before, I would much rather purchase sets based on the source material for the Hobbit and LotR, such as Germanic, Celtic, Greek and (above all) Norse mythology. I think it's fair to proclaim that most people know of Tolkien's books and Peter Jackson's film adaptations but rarely do I find people that are aware of what it's based on, with even fewer having any semblance of understanding for it.

It's mind-boggling to me that even so-called super fans can be so clueless."

I only seen Jackson's films, rings of power, and read the lotr and the books. From what I seen, most of the interested buyers of the sets really only just seen Jackson's films (never read the books) and probably seen way more Star Wars than they did consuming Tolkien stuff. Like it is common knowledge that Jackson completely cut Tom Bombadil, but LOTR super fans still treat LOTR as best movies/adapation ever made. Which is why I find it odd so many of them are trashing Star Wars, and propping up Lord of the Rings as the best theme/movies/etc, despite stuff like Ninjago existing, which anyone can afford and is way better looking than most sets.

The Death Star, Falcon (way more iconic let's be real) was probably out of their price range, and they just need to find another big set to buy for that dopamine hit.

Ironically those who hate Rings of Power the most only watched the Jackson films

@guachi said:
"I am the target audience for this. LotR was the first real book I read when I was 6 back in 1980. But, heck no, I'm not buying a $650 set with over 8,000 pieces. That's 1/3 of my annual Lego budget on one set and I'm trying to cut back.

I'd be afraid to move the set and I know I'd get bored building it."

Just take up Lego reselling like me then you can comfortably double your budget ;)

After deliberation, I think I will buy the GWP off bricklink and wait a bit with the set itself until I figure out where to put it....

@rebelpilotJYZ said:
"I only seen Jackson's films, rings of power, and read the lotr and the books. From what I seen, most of the interested buyers of the sets really only just seen Jackson's films (never read the books) and probably seen way more Star Wars than they did consuming Tolkien stuff. Like it is common knowledge that Jackson completely cut Tom Bombadil, but LOTR super fans still treat LOTR as best movies/adapation ever made. Which is why I find it odd so many of them are trashing Star Wars, and propping up Lord of the Rings as the best theme/movies/etc, despite stuff like Ninjago existing, which anyone can afford and is way better looking than most sets."

I remember one of the LotR bonus features includes a clip of John Rhys-Davies saying he told the rest of the Fellowship actors that their trilogy was going to be bigger than Star Wars, and I laughed. As someone who grew up on Star Wars, I can honestly say the LotR trilogy is a better set of films than the OT, but nothing since 1977 except other Star Wars films has come close to capturing the public’s attention like Star Wars Just Star Wars did 49 years ago. I can also objectively say that LotR never would have happened without standing on the shoulders of Star Wars. Ep4 was not just revolutionary in the way stories were portrayed on the big screen, but George Lucas basically had to invent entire ancillary industries to get there. That one film directly spawned Industrial Light & Magic, Skywalker Sound, and THX. Through THX, the entire first-run cinema industry was brought in line with a measurable standard for quality. I don’t know that LotR used any of those companies for any portion of production (Weta Workshop basically exists because of LotR, and covered a lot of the same needs), but Weta absolutely built off of what Lucasfilm started.

I am really torn on the scale. I understand why they did that, but it can't make up its mind of display or play set. Not to mention the price. And the real concern of white bricks discoloring. Hmm...I know I'm just trying to talk myself out of it because I have too many other financial obligations and I've skipped all the other LOTR sets since they are all too expensive for me these days. I'd love the figures though, but I know aftermarket will be ridiculous.

@rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"I also see the Death Star being the more desired set. Death Star is a good starter set (has entire Episode IV/VI cast, way more figures)."

You and I have very different definitions of "starter set.""

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SiaRGZG-9vg Sean Astin rather get the Death Star than his own theme. SW ip that is worth 10x the other. And one set that spans multiple movies, way more figures, 10+ more rooms. Even on discussingfilm, Death Star got like way more likes.

As for cheaper sets, it is just not happening. Everyone in comments said why."

All I'm saying is that the most expensive set in the line (or that Lego's ever done) isn't what you would start your collection with.

@PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
"I only seen Jackson's films, rings of power, and read the lotr and the books. From what I seen, most of the interested buyers of the sets really only just seen Jackson's films (never read the books) and probably seen way more Star Wars than they did consuming Tolkien stuff. Like it is common knowledge that Jackson completely cut Tom Bombadil, but LOTR super fans still treat LOTR as best movies/adapation ever made. Which is why I find it odd so many of them are trashing Star Wars, and propping up Lord of the Rings as the best theme/movies/etc, despite stuff like Ninjago existing, which anyone can afford and is way better looking than most sets."

I remember one of the LotR bonus features includes a clip of John Rhys-Davies saying he told the rest of the Fellowship actors that their trilogy was going to be bigger than Star Wars, and I laughed. As someone who grew up on Star Wars, I can honestly say the LotR trilogy is a better set of films than the OT, but nothing since 1977 except other Star Wars films has come close to capturing the public’s attention like Star Wars Just Star Wars did 49 years ago. I can also objectively say that LotR never would have happened without standing on the shoulders of Star Wars. Ep4 was not just revolutionary in the way stories were portrayed on the big screen, but George Lucas basically had to invent entire ancillary industries to get there. That one film directly spawned Industrial Light & Magic, Skywalker Sound, and THX. Through THX, the entire first-run cinema industry was brought in line with a measurable standard for quality. I don’t know that LotR used any of those companies for any portion of production (Weta Workshop basically exists because of LotR, and covered a lot of the same needs), but Weta absolutely built off of what Lucasfilm started."

Lotr is more like a 9 hour movie broken into 3. While SW is more like each standalone film having an individual story, being part of a saga. Fellowship sort of worked well as a standalone. But two towers, return of king sort of dragged out its runtime vs the book. Jackson added a bunch of battles in Two Towers, Return of King. Which problems ran into the Hobbit. lots of filler battles. SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever. Plus I think the Han, Leia tought talk romance aged better vs more shakespearean dialogue.

The SW model ultimately beated middle earth. Sequels made way way more than the hobbit movies did, and that trickled into goods. But I don't want to get too much Star Wars vs LOTR. Personally, I think OT SW is kind of swept under rug by general public because it was long ago, OT Star Wars almost feels like a myth just by how old it is. Those who got into in 70s and 80s probably went more with Trek or collect Kenner.

LOTR movies will probably be seen in more positive public eye by 30-40 year olds since let's be real, you have to be at last in your 50s-60s to seen OT in original theatrical release. Star Wars mainly benefitted from prequels, clone wars bringing whole generations into star wars. So 30-40 year olds are probably not that into OT Star Wars, which is main focus of the UCS sets. Falcon had benefit of being heavily shown in the Sequels, but Cloud City, Hoth didn't.

In end of the day, these large sets are mainly nostalgia purchases. Lego knows kids today, have chipmunk attention spans, and change favorite anime to another., vtubers, gacha games, etc. This kind of let toy sales collapsed among younger gens. So toy companies have no choice but to appeal to adults.

@rebelpilotJYZ said:
"Lotr is more like a 9 hour movie broken into 3. While SW is more like each standalone film having an individual story, being part of a saga. Fellowship sort of worked well as a standalone."

This doesn't actually mean anything. Whether one film leads directly into the other, or after a gap of years is irrelevant to how enjoyable and/or successful the films will be.

"But two towers, return of king sort of dragged out its runtime vs the book. Jackson added a bunch of battles in Two Towers, Return of King."

They absolutely did not. There are still whole sections of those books that got cut entirely, and still more sections that got cut for the original theatrical releases. There are scenes that we get to watch in the films that were sort of glossed over in the text, like ancient Greek plays where battle scenes are described after they're all over, rather than being staged for the audience to watch. But the amount of stuff that was padded into those films pales in comparison to what got axed during the script writing process.

"Which problems ran into the Hobbit. lots of filler battles."

The Hobbit is an entirely different beast. The original text is more a novella, with the Dwarves being caricatures rather than characters, and undergoing zero character development during the story. Taken strictly by itself, the book would have made a single middling film that felt largely unrelated to the LotR trilogy.

"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy.

@PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether.

@TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether."

I did a search on “most quotable movie”, and the AI generated response identified TPB as being most frequently picked. Airplane! is definitely quotable, but I don’t think it’s something many people younger than Gen X actually watch.

We’re not exactly short of LOTR quotes in pop culture, either. One does not simply walk into Mordor, PO-TA-TOES, They’re Taking The Hobbits (The Hobbits The Hobbits) To Isengard! (To Isengard!), etc etc. I think both LOTR and Star Wars are quotable less because the lines are good (although they are pretty good) but because (almost) everyone knows them and the cultural significance gives the lines additional weight, whereas stuff like Princess Bride and Airplane! are quotable because so many of their lines are perfectly crafted.

I'm not a huge fan of LoTR (mostly because of Smeagol/Gollum) but love the Lego sets as I'm a huge fan of medieval fantasy. I really just want the minifigs but I know they will be ridiculous on the second hand market so I'll probably buy the set. If the figs are going to cost me hundreds of dollars just to get might as well spend the $650 and get another 8,000+ pieces. I have all the other LoTR/Hobbit sets except the Shire so I can display together. Guess that means I have to get the Shire as well. What estimates do you guys have on the price of the figs on the second hand market?

@Hiratha said:
"We’re not exactly short of LOTR quotes in pop culture, either. One does not simply walk into Mordor, PO-TA-TOES, They’re Taking The Hobbits (The Hobbits The Hobbits) To Isengard! (To Isengard!), etc etc. I think both LOTR and Star Wars are quotable less because the lines are good (although they are pretty good) but because (almost) everyone knows them and the cultural significance gives the lines additional weight, whereas stuff like Princess Bride and Airplane! are quotable because so many of their lines are perfectly crafted."

There are many movies that have quotable lines, and both SW and LotR rank amongst them. Heck, even the Disney sequels have quotable lines (but mostly for the wrong reasons, like, “Oh, Hi Mark!”). But the reason TPB gets short-listed so frequently is because, if you threw a dart at a spread of all the script pages and fail to hit a line that gets frequently quoted, it’s because you hit a blank space on the page. And where Airplane! has fallen out of favor with younger generations, TPB is something that parents have no problem sharing with their kids. They couldn’t even figure out how to market the thing, and it has blown up on home video and word of mouth. I know of at least three times it has been screened locally in the past decade (once with a shadowcast acting out the entire film on stage in front of the movie screen, with a huge crowd of fans who paid $20 a pop to watch a movie they could buy on DVD or maybe even Blu-Ray for less), and I have never seen Airplane! get screened since its original run concluded. Airplane! may have a huge following among the Brickset crowd, but I don’t even hear about it anywhere else these days.

@PurpleDave

I can’t speak for America, obviously, but Airplane! still gets shown on (normal, free-to-watch) tv every so often here, and has remained semi-relevant as a result. No need to put effort into seeking it out to show to your kids if it’s just there when they’re channel-hopping and — aside from some jokes that really haven’t aged well through either the references becoming less well known or because that stuff isn’t okay anymore — it’s still very funny and very quotable.

TPB absolutely has the bigger *fanbase*, though, yes.

@PurpleDave said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether."

I did a search on “most quotable movie”, and the AI generated response identified TPB as being most frequently picked. Airplane! is definitely quotable, but I don’t think it’s something many people younger than Gen X actually watch."

I won't disagree with it here, but I don't put much stock in AI summaries. Over-reliance on AI is one of the classic blunders.

@TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether."

I did a search on “most quotable movie”, and the AI generated response identified TPB as being most frequently picked. Airplane! is definitely quotable, but I don’t think it’s something many people younger than Gen X actually watch."

I won't disagree with it here, but I don't put much stock in AI summaries. Over-reliance on AI is one of the classic blunders."

An author I like semi-regularly reports on false things various AIs are saying about him and his books, so. Yes. I agree.

@Hiratha said:
" @PurpleDave

I can’t speak for America, obviously, but Airplane! still gets shown on (normal, free-to-watch) tv every so often here, and has remained semi-relevant as a result. No need to put effort into seeking it out to show to your kids if it’s just there when they’re channel-hopping and — aside from some jokes that really haven’t aged well through either the references becoming less well known or because that stuff isn’t okay anymore — it’s still very funny and very quotable.

TPB absolutely has the bigger *fanbase*, though, yes."

I meant being screened in an actual theater, not slotted into a TV lineup. Not all theaters are first-run, and even those that are have started bringing older films back for limited engagements. I forgot to go watch Monty Python's Holy Grail earlier this month, but I'm trying to remember to catch the original Shrek sometime during the next week (ideally on Tuesday, since $5 tickets and free popcorn).

@PurpleDave said:
" @Hiratha said:
" @PurpleDave

I can’t speak for America, obviously, but Airplane! still gets shown on (normal, free-to-watch) tv every so often here, and has remained semi-relevant as a result. No need to put effort into seeking it out to show to your kids if it’s just there when they’re channel-hopping and — aside from some jokes that really haven’t aged well through either the references becoming less well known or because that stuff isn’t okay anymore — it’s still very funny and very quotable.

TPB absolutely has the bigger *fanbase*, though, yes."

I meant being screened in an actual theater, not slotted into a TV lineup. Not all theaters are first-run, and even those that are have started bringing older films back for limited engagements. I forgot to go watch Monty Python's Holy Grail earlier this month, but I'm trying to remember to catch the original Shrek sometime during the next week (ideally on Tuesday, since $5 tickets and free popcorn)."

Oh, I understood that. My point was that children/young adults see old films elsewhere just as often if not more as they do in cinema reruns.

@Hiratha said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether."

I did a search on “most quotable movie”, and the AI generated response identified TPB as being most frequently picked. Airplane! is definitely quotable, but I don’t think it’s something many people younger than Gen X actually watch."

I won't disagree with it here, but I don't put much stock in AI summaries. Over-reliance on AI is one of the classic blunders."

An author I like semi-regularly reports on false things various AIs are saying about him and his books, so. Yes. I agree."

And then there's when AI just goes completely off the rals:
https://www.tumblr.com/oneheadtoanother/778129330892095488/common-expanded-universe-win?source=share
https://www.tumblr.com/idiot-riker/190874055378/according-to-google-the-guy-who-plays-elnor-is?source=share

@TheOtherMike said:
" @Hiratha said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:"SW also started the movie sequels being bigger, better than the first with Cloud City part being like most quoted movie ever."

Yeah, no, the most quotable movie of all time is The Princess Bride. There's hardly a single line of dialogue through the entire film that isn't quoteworthy."

While I agree that The Princess Bride is eminently quotable, you might also make a case for Airplane! as "most quotable movie ever." But that's an entirely different kind of flying, altogether."

I did a search on “most quotable movie”, and the AI generated response identified TPB as being most frequently picked. Airplane! is definitely quotable, but I don’t think it’s something many people younger than Gen X actually watch."

I won't disagree with it here, but I don't put much stock in AI summaries. Over-reliance on AI is one of the classic blunders."

An author I like semi-regularly reports on false things various AIs are saying about him and his books, so. Yes. I agree."

And then there's when AI just goes completely off the rals:
https://www.tumblr.com/oneheadtoanother/778129330892095488/common-expanded-universe-win?source=share
https://www.tumblr.com/idiot-riker/190874055378/according-to-google-the-guy-who-plays-elnor-is?source=share"

The disinformation AI spreads is awful, all the worse the less immediately obvious it is, and the other nonsense AI thingamebobs have been up to really drove home the idea that I wanted nothing to do with it. I like my spreadsheets and databases entirely unmolested, thank you. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/29/claude-ai-deletes-firm-database

@Hiratha said:
"Oh, I understood that. My point was that children/young adults see old films elsewhere just as often if not more as they do in cinema reruns."

Definitely more. Locally, I know of one theater that almost exclusively shows older films, but they’re an all-volunteer operation, and only screen films every other weekend, usually limited to three performances. Otherwise, one or more chains show older films, but they’re usually limited to one film per week, frequently get put in the smallest theaters, and may only have one or two people in the audience. But being able to pack a large audience in for a film that most attendees already own on home video is very different from getting random couch potatos to pause on your channel.

@PurpleDave said:
" @Hiratha said:
"Oh, I understood that. My point was that children/young adults see old films elsewhere just as often if not more as they do in cinema reruns."

Definitely more. Locally, I know of one theater that almost exclusively shows older films, but they’re an all-volunteer operation, and only screen films every other weekend, usually limited to three performances. Otherwise, one or more chains show older films, but they’re usually limited to one film per week, frequently get put in the smallest theaters, and may only have one or two people in the audience. But being able to pack a large audience in for a film that most attendees already own on home video is very different from getting random couch potatos to pause on your channel."

Well, yes. That requires fandom, and TPB has - as I said - a much bigger fandom. I’m not sure Airplane! was the sort of film to have a real *fandom* even at its height. But fandom isn’t the same as awareness and quoting.

Damm am I the only one that wants the GWP more than the actual set? lol

No Wormtongue? :(

@Hiratha said:
"Well, yes. That requires fandom, and TPB has - as I said - a much bigger fandom. I’m not sure Airplane! was the sort of film to have a real *fandom* even at its height. But fandom isn’t the same as awareness and quoting."

Airplane! made nearly 50x its production budget at the box office. TPB fell short of making 2x its budget. But Airplane! was a screwball comedy that came out at the height of screwball comedies. That genre is basically dead these days. Both films have their fanbases, but for Airplane! that means older adults who may own a copy, or will sit down and watch it if they run across it while channel-surfing. For TPB, that means people of all ages who buy merch, may cosplay as the characters, and will show up in large numbers when the film is screened.

The difference is, one fandom is actively introducing the film to their children, causing that group to keep growing. The other hit a generational barrier, and while there are always exceptions who will give older movies a try on their own, the majority of the fanbase are no longer raising young kids, so opportunities to introduce them to favorite films are dwindling. They can always choose to watch it on their own, but at that point you lose more fans due to attrition than you can through random discovery. Films like Gone With The Wind or Casablanca were massive successes back in their day, but while they still rank highly among film critics, and I can quote lines from both, I’ll probably never actually watch either one. I could if I wanted to, but they weren’t films that either of my parents felt I needed to watch growing up, and I don’t even know if they’ve ever watched them. I don’t know if any of my coworkers or friends have watched them either. I know Casablanca, at least, gets screened every few years at one local theater, but I expect the age demographic skews older than me, and eventually will reach a point where they have to stop showing it because it just stops bringing in enough money to pay the bills.

@Autoboty said:
"No Wormtongue? :("

No. Wormtongue was only ever seen in Edoras and (if you watch the Extended Edition) Orthanc. And if you read the books, the Shire. He was helping Saruman corrupt Theoden of Rohan, while Sauron was using the Palantir to do the same to Denethor in Gondor.

The set is so boring and bland I’m in shock. When I want to put together a set with thousands of white bricks I’ll remake the rollercoaster.

@PurpleDave said:
" @Autoboty said:
"No Wormtongue? :("

No. Wormtongue was only ever seen in Edoras and (if you watch the Extended Edition) Orthanc. And if you read the books, the Shire. He was helping Saruman corrupt Theoden of Rohan, while Sauron was using the Palantir to do the same to Denethor in Gondor."

I was going to say that someone must have their movies/books mixed up.

@TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @Autoboty said:
"No Wormtongue? :("

No. Wormtongue was only ever seen in Edoras and (if you watch the Extended Edition) Orthanc. And if you read the books, the Shire. He was helping Saruman corrupt Theoden of Rohan, while Sauron was using the Palantir to do the same to Denethor in Gondor."

I was going to say that someone must have their movies/books mixed up."

I don't think he ever showed up in Minas Tirith in the books, either.

@PurpleDave said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @Autoboty said:
"No Wormtongue? :("

No. Wormtongue was only ever seen in Edoras and (if you watch the Extended Edition) Orthanc. And if you read the books, the Shire. He was helping Saruman corrupt Theoden of Rohan, while Sauron was using the Palantir to do the same to Denethor in Gondor."

I was going to say that someone must have their movies/books mixed up."

I don't think he ever showed up in Minas Tirith in the books, either."

I've read them multiple times, and I'm pretty sure he didn't.

Estimated aftermarket cost of some of these figures?

I may just end up waiting and hoping some of the figures are decent enough to justify.

I ended up buying just the figures from the Gringotts Bank set since I knew that set was expensive and I'd never build it since I opt to build my own stuff/versions instead of solely relying on LEGO designers. So in that instance I'd saved money. In this instance, I don't know if I'd build Minas, especially the way it is designed since the varying scale wrinkles my brain. I may opt to try to build a microscale version sometime instead (it's been on my list for long enough as it is. But still so was Diagon Alley and my MOC there took 7 years before I actually started on it...)

Day one purchase, if only for Grond.

SHOCK HORROR!!!! WHO COULD HAVE POSSIBLY THOUGHT THIS SET IS COMING!?!?!