Review: 31109 Creator 3-in-1 Pirate Ship alternate models
Posted by Huw,
Skizz has done what I haven't got round to yet: dismantling the main model of 31109 Pirate Ship and building the alternate models:
In Huw's review of this set, he only looked at the main model. Based on that review, I bought this set and, like Huw, I was impressed by the build.
However, he didn't review the alternate builds on the grounds the main set was too good to take apart. Some of us, however, don't have anywhere to keep models (not jealous of some of the Storage Solutions articles at all, honest!) so taking them apart is more of a necessity if we want space to do anything else.
So, I took mine apart and built the alternate models and here's what I thought of them.
First Alternate Model - Pirate's Inn
The first thing to note, the mini-figures are the same! Not really a surprise, but one of the pirates now has an accordion to play! It not a perfect representation but is recognisable so not bad at this scale.
The shark has been replaced with a horse and cart carrying the pirates treasure haul. It's a brick built horse with articulated legs and neck. Again, given the palette of parts available it does a good job representing what it is. And finally, the bird has changed to a mainly red one that's a bit less bird like than the blue one in the main model.
The main part of this build is the inn which looks great from the front, although I don't remember water wheels as a common feature of inns. It does have the required, for pirates anyhow, crow's nest which I guess is to let the pirates know when the guards are on their way, so they can cast off in their ship! Like the water wheel, there's a hammock, which is not what pops into my head when the idea of an inn is made. It does add an element of fun to the model, somewhere for the accordion player to put his feet up and relax. The rustic look to the inn is in keeping with the set's theme and, to me, looks good.
The rear of the inn is hinged so you can look inside. There're three beds upstairs and downstairs there's a bar, I think, there's no serving area and the water wheel axel protrudes into the bar for some reason. It's a fairly blank canvas onto which kids can let their imaginations come up with ideas.
The only thing about the model I think is odd is the rear elevation, or rather, lack of it. It looks like it's the front half an inn which, considering the parts available, is all that could be done. On the plus side, it does provide a starting point to continue the build using parts you already have.
Second Alternate Model - Skull Island
I prefer this model to the inn, it's a bit more imaginative than the other model. This time, the animal with this model is a monkey / orangutan (I can't decide which) which is OK I guess. There's also a small boat for the pirates to get from their ship to the island and a raft. The landing craft is definitely the better model of the two in my opinion.
The island has one feature on it, a big skull guarding a cave, which does give an air of menace these places usually have in films. Turning the handle at the rear makes the skull's head raise and lower which adds to the overall feel of the set. Inside there's the mandatory treasure chest the pirates are after.
Overall
These two models make a good addition to what is already a good set, it's just a shame you have to take the ship apart to build these, but then, I guess that's the aim of these sets, to make you want more than one of them. If you already have a pirate ship then these alternate builds will add to the overall play value of the ship, somewhere for the ship to visit.
On the downside for me (and it's not just this set) is that the instructions can be hard to follow if there are multiple dark brown pieces in a step (OK, my eyesight isn't the best!) and can be easily overcome using the red-highlights some other sets use. Not sure why this is only used on some sets.
My verdict: 5 pieces of eight out of 5!
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32 comments on this article
I quite like the idea of Skull Island plus the leftover pieces to make an extension to the back of Barracuda Bay in island form, close off the back of the ship and extend the base around..... but alas no space to build it at the moment!
I did my usual Creator thing and built these before the main model, since that's usually the one to keep.
I too prefered the skull island to the tavern. The chomping motion is nice, and it felt fully realised. The tavern is something I'd like to see as a main build, since as an alternate model it ends up with the sort of compromises you always have to worry about.
Mine is now the pirate ship, and the pirate ship it will stay, even if it looks a bit dinky opposite the 2017 Destiny's Bounty. Still, if you had the space, patience and cash, a few copies of the ship might fill out a fleet nicely, with the Bounty as the flagship.
I’d say it’s a monkey. Orangutans are more orange.
That inn is great in a City diorama.
Thanks for bringing us the other two models, Skizz! It's nice to see some angles other than the official ones. And it's great to hear someone else acknowledge that brown-on-brown-on-brown is impossible to follow in the instructions...
I'm not sure that the aim of these sets is "to make you want more than one of them" , though that's certainly a side-effect! Creator 3-in-1 sets are about demonstrating that at least three viable models can be built from one set of bricks, thus giving a great MOC starting point for builders.
@Slobrojoe said:
"I’d say it’s a monkey. Orangutans are more orange. "
Whatever it is, it's pretty abstract! Probably leans more toward an orangutan (ook) because it doesn't have a tail; monkeys have tails.
Thanks for the review. This was really helpful. I thought I would be very interested in the Inn, but, after seeing the images from various angles, these alternate builds are too much of a mish-mash for my taste, and do not inspire me to buy multiple sets. I can certainly see how children would enjoy the play aspects, though. I might be inspired buying multiples just for the ship, but I will have to wait until the set is available in the U.S. so I can build one for myself before deciding.
@bananaworld said
@Slobrojoe said:
"I’d say it’s a monkey. Orangutans are more orange. "
Whatever it is, it's pretty abstract! Probably leans more toward an orangutan (ook) because it doesn't have a tail; monkeys have tails."
Yes good point. It’ll be an ape of some kind then.
According to the internet, there are 5 main types of apes: orangutans, chimpanzees, gorillas, bonobo and humans. The first three are ruled out because it isn’t orange (orangutan) or black (most gorillas) and isn’t small (chimps) and not big (gorillas). Of course it’s not a human, so through a process of elimination, it is probably a bonobo due to being a medium sized, dark brown-black ape. I’d never heard of it before but there you are, with a quick google.
I brought this primarily for the Inn, having got a lot of Pirate ships ready and not too appreciative of the lego brick sails as opposed to the usual material ones.
When I saw the different sets created out of it, I did wonder if it would be worthwhile buying multiple sets, either for the ship and or another half for the Inn. The set certainly lends itself towards doing that.
The Skull Island freaked me out to be honest! So I'm not bothered about that, although I may change my mind when I build it.
After reading the reviews, - as I'm saving the set for xmas - I still wonder if this is something I might do, although it might have to be 2 sets if the ship turns out to be as good as Huw's review made it out to be.
Something to ponder.
That’s a really cool set! I think that the inn is the better out of of the two in my opinion? The boat and raft on the other one are really cool. The minifigures look good as well (I don’t know if it is a monkey or orangutan). I like the 3 in 1 sets (I have a lot of them) so that might be why I like it so much, but you have to agree, it’s sooo cool!
Nice review but I don’t understand that verdict “5 pieces of eight out of 5!”. This seems to be a scale I don’t understand… ;)
The Skull Island build looks really fun, lots of play and photo opportunities. Thank you for the review of the alternate models, I know not every 3-in-1 set needs a review of the alternates but a review for a larger set like this is a refreshing bit of news.
Good review. I too agree with the brown pieces in the instructions ,y eyesight not the best and have to keep ,picking up the booklet to see what I should be using. Apmodel already on list for next store visit.
While I like the skull of the Ninjago Skull Dungeon a bit more, this is a great alternative build, especially as a 3rd build, the raft and boat are cute as well, certainly in the classic pirates size.
I do have a soft spot for Creator 3-in-1 scale buildings, so the Tavern is great as well.
Does it open all the way to make a wider build, or just 90 degrees?
Even so, the Tavern has a lot of potential of improvement, or adding on, replacing some of the plants with actual plant pieces, and a bigger interior.
Certainly looking out for this set, as it has multiple-set potential for sure.
Also Pirate Ship is a much better value set compared to the 2020 Caravan set which is sadly priced at €89,99 here, which is €10 less then the Pirate ship, but it also has 66% less pieces.
The brown thing is 100% real. I think I've become personally adjusted to it, but my wife is building her first set and the brown issue is VERY prominent on her list of complaints with the manual as a beginner (she's building 10273.)
It's been fascinating building this with her as I try very hard to not get involved but many of her issues have pointed out - to me at least - that the barrier for a new AFOL is an interesting one for sure. That alone is possibly worth an article if I was writing one!
I agree that the red outlining should be in all the directions!
Nice review! I was hoping someone would review the alternate models - I would have volunteered but I can't get the set yet....anyway, I'm with you on the brown on brown pieces in the instructions. I've usually have to use the flashlight function on my phone to make sure I'm seeing everything!
Darkbrown with Black was already an issue in the Nexo Knights sets of 2016, as those colors were used together, made it hard to see the outlines.
Excellent review! That skull island looks phenomenal
Hey, are we having a brand new pirate set in the stores?? I totally missed that. I’ll celebrate today, like a real pirate!
The inn looks great and looks like a stand alone set.
@aaybes said:
"Nice review but I don’t understand that verdict “5 pieces of eight out of 5!”. This seems to be a scale I don’t understand… ;)"
noun (historical)
plural noun: pieces of eight
a Spanish dollar, equivalent to 8 reals.
@leviness said:
"Hey, are we having a brand new pirate set in the stores?? I totally missed that. I’ll celebrate today, like a real pirate!"
How could you missed it, the news was all over the lego websites and forums!
I am also curious whats with the pictures, i have never seen so noisy and blurry photos on a brickset review...
I already built a kinda sloppy back wall and roof out of the extra pieces
@thor96 said:
"I am also curious whats with the pictures, i have never seen so noisy and blurry photos on a brickset review..."
The pictures are a bit subpar because they're not photographed by a professional set reviewer. Let's give @Skizz a break, they're better pictures than I could have done!
I loved all three models in this set. Built them with my 5 y.o. and had a ball. So much fun with the Skull Cave taking to the pirates, scaring them and eating them. We also built a big wrecked ship with left over pieces with the Skull Cave. The Inn was much better than I expected for the third model. Between the three you can get a great story going for those pirates.
@bananaworld said:
"
Thanks for bringing us the other two models, Skizz! It's nice to see some angles other than the official ones. And it's great to hear someone else acknowledge that brown-on-brown-on-brown is impossible to follow in the instructions...
I'm not sure that the aim of these sets is "to make you want more than one of them" , though that's certainly a side-effect! Creator 3-in-1 sets are about demonstrating that at least three viable models can be built from one set of bricks, thus giving a great MOC starting point for builders.
@Slobrojoe said:
"I’d say it’s a monkey. Orangutans are more orange. "
Whatever it is, it's pretty abstract! Probably leans more toward an orangutan (ook) because it doesn't have a tail; monkeys have tails.
"
Curious George doesn't have a tail. MandelaEffect
What no one has mentioned - and something that my little boy and I loved about this set - is that it forms a perfect partner to the Lego Creator Treehouse (31078). It's like there's a matching build for each of the childrens' play zones. For their Treehouse, we have the Tavern; for their pirate ship, the main ship; for their skull island, a larger more detailed skull island! We've been bringing them together and creating stories around the two kids literally bringing their imaginations to life. They scale up in size and details beautifully! All in all, this is a superb set at a good price point.
@twentythree said:
"Curious George doesn't have a tail. MandelaEffect"
I've spent altogether too long researching George's species today! Cheers for that ;-)
Noöne seems to know just what George is. How curious.
This was always going to be more difficult to transform into a pirate inn, with only halve the pieces of Barracuda Bay 21322. Given this they did a fantastic job on the front, but the back looks unfinished. It would be interesting to know how many pieces were left over to try and improve the look of the back of the inn? Similarly on skull island there must have being loads of brown pieces left over to make more of a mountain and cave either side and behind the skull.
It's now August 1st, and this still hasn't released in the US. C'mon, LEGO!
Good article. Some typos and grammatical errors, but good.
This set makes me want some Monkey Island sets. They would be a no brainer.