2021 Hogwarts Castle models combined
Posted by CapnRex101,
LEGO has developed numerous Hogwarts Castle designs since 2001, generally comprising several connected structures. This twentieth anniversary selection encompasses four such models.
Their design enables multiple arrangements and several such configurations are discussed during this article.
Splitting these four models into their constituent sections provides an exceptional collection of different components. These structures are designed primarily around 8x8 and 8x16 modules, ensuring excellent consistency between them. Certain outliers are provided though, including the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets and another from 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson which are both assembled on 4x10 plates.
Instruction manuals for these sets recommend this arrangement, comprising 76386 Hogwarts: Polyjuice Potion Mistake, 76387 Hogwarts: Fluffy Encounter and 76389 Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets. That design assures absolute consistency between differing levels, including Moaning Myrtle's bathroom above the Chamber of Secrets. However, positioning that bathroom with the third floor corridor appears comparatively bland from the outside.
Accommodating 76386 Hogwarts: Polyjuice Potion Mistake is actually quite difficult because that section noticeably lacks windows beside others. Of course, this is unavoidable when the interior requires extensive room and I think separating the bathroom from the aforementioned corridor enhances their combined appearance. However, this configuration separates spaces which should be connected inside.
76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson provides additional modules which provide tremendous versatility, especially because they are relatively generic. Two such modules support Gilderoy Lockhart's office, positioning that alongside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. This structure achieves superb scale, although the balcony from 76387 Hogwarts: Fluffy Encounter looks slightly awkward.
While these monolithic arrangements are impressive, Hogwarts Castle also integrates smaller buildings onscreen. For that reason, I think using 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson to unite bigger sections is effective, as demonstrated below. The internal spaces remain quite cohesive too, although issues with 76387 Hogwarts: Fluffy Encounter again prove detrimental.
Having attempted numerous configurations, I think this is my favourite. Keeping those interior spaces together was particularly significant for my display and this arrangement satisfies that need, while also looking marvellous when viewed from the exterior. In fact, I was surprised by the importance of 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson which allows the separation of various modules, when necessary.
Which arrangements have you found most effective and which other famous buildings from Hogwarts Castle are you hoping will expand the display in future? Perhaps you would favour a return to the previous connected system? Let us know in the comments.
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54 comments on this article
The possibility of doing this with a few sepparate sets is awesome! If only they gave us the same, with small location sets from the Death Star...
Boy, poor Fluffy just doesn’t fit in anywhere.
Is that why he never showed up again after the first book?
Are any of these hinged? Or angle-able? Or must it be configured in one straight line?
Awesome configurations! I am indeed surprised how nicely the slight separation can be done to the appearance by the small door section. Maybe by mirror building Fluffy's chamber should solve the issue of the trapdoor's location?
It’s fortunate that the books establish the interior as a kind of living being always in flux which supports multiple configurations. What’s frustrating though is that we just got versions of the great hall, astronomy tower and room of requirement that don’t match the style of these modulars such that it appears the only definitive version of hogwarts is in microscale.
@rhomenewild said:
"Are any of these hinged? Or angle-able? Or must it be configured in one straight line?"
just in straight line.
I think this is the anniversary wave’s strongest asset. Being able to rearrange different sections of the castle as you please definitely is a big plus for any collector.
I also tried reconfiguring these modules, and I must say they’re quite fun to do, despite me not being impressed with the overall look of the Hogwarts sets this year.
I thought you had combined 2021 sets... :P
This recombinant characteristic exactly what reminds me of the first two years of the Lego Harry Potter assortment from Lego. Similar modular design to build your own Hogwarts castle stacks.
I forgot to mention how much of an eyesore that Polyjuice set is from the exterior. It’s unfortunate that it can’t be relocated elsewhere since it needs to be directly connected to the “slide” (tunnel) leading to the Chamber of Secrets. I’m trying to modify it with some lattice windows to add some much needed texture.
Also, I used that arched balcony section of the Fluffy set to serve as an entrance way to the Great Hall. There would at least be some space in between the other parts of the castle. It always seemed awkward for me to have the dining hall positioned right next to the bathroom from the Polyjuice set, especially since there are no doors to separate those two.
Could you make a Hogwarts tower with this system?
Same idea behind the recent Disney princess theme from last few years. It looks nicer than I thought, but I'm still not a fan of changing the style mid-theme wave. It's not the same as the previous modular castle, so we didn't get any of the current wave sets. Hopefully winter wave will be a mix of the two, or back to the original modular system. While both systems have their pros and cons, this one feels for me a bit more like an 2D apartment building than a castle. However, if you can buy X4 of each set, you can MOC a nice full castle.
@elangab said:
"Same idea behind the recent Disney princess theme from last few years. It looks nicer than I thought, but I'm still not a fan of changing the style mid-theme wave. It's not the same as the previous modular castle, so we didn't get any of the current wave sets. Hopefully winter wave will be a mix of the two, or back to the original modular system. While both systems have their pros and cons, this one feels for me a bit more like an 2D apartment building than a castle. However, if you can buy X4 of each set, you can MOC a nice full castle."
The 2018 modular line is over as of now. This is a soft reboot of the line.
@khomps said:
"The possibility of doing this with a few sepparate sets is awesome! If only they gave us the same, with small location sets from the Death Star... "
Jedi temple...
@Mr__Thrawn said:
[The 2018 modular line is over as of now. This is a soft reboot of the line.]]
Unless I missed their statement, I don't think that they announced it officially, so who knows ?
It's just weird to change design style mid-way, as they weren't done with movies 6+7. Plus some of the sets are using the 2018 design style, such as 76388: Hogsmeade Village Visit.
Did it ever happened before ?
I was hoping to also see them combined with the older sets. They can still connect by the technic pins horizontally.
@elangab said:
[[ @Mr__Thrawn said:
[The 2018 modular line is over as of now. This is a soft reboot of the line.]]
Unless I missed their statement, I don't think that they announced it officially, so who knows ?
It's just weird to change design style mid-way, as they weren't done with movies 6+7. Plus some of the sets are using the 2018 design style, such as 76388: Hogsmeade Village Visit.
Did it ever happened before ? ]]
There was an interview with Marcos mentioning the switch to sand green roofing. And they mentioned not only anniversary year, but also a soft reboot. So I would expect next years castle sections to resemble these.
The idea is kids (ya know, the target audience) would be aging out of the 2018 sets by now so they need new versions to capture the new kids in the target range. Just like why they have tons of repeat Star Wars sets. It sells well because new kids are getting into the hobby.
@Sethro3 said:
[[ @elangab said:
[[ @Mr__Thrawn said:
[The 2018 modular line is over as of now. This is a soft reboot of the line.]]
Unless I missed their statement, I don't think that they announced it officially, so who knows ?
It's just weird to change design style mid-way, as they weren't done with movies 6+7. Plus some of the sets are using the 2018 design style, such as 76388: Hogsmeade Village Visit.
Did it ever happened before ? ]]
There was an interview with Marcos mentioning the switch to sand green roofing. And they mentioned not only anniversary year, but also a soft reboot. So I would expect next years castle sections to resemble these.
The idea is kids (ya know, the target audience) would be aging out of the 2018 sets by now so they need new versions to capture the new kids in the target range. Just like why they have tons of repeat Star Wars sets. It sells well because new kids are getting into the hobby.]]
OK, if it was announced as a soft reboot then I shouldn't expect more of the older ones. Oh well, t's big enough of a display as it is now :)
BTW, That means they will turn it into a permanent theme, unlike before. I think that what got me confused as they used to do it in cycles, and now it'll be like Star Wars with endless rotation of locations (ships). Interesting change.
I'll never understand the appeal of this system and why it replaced the 2018 modular system. Hogwarts should be three-dimensional, not some straight wall with a repetitive exterior and bland interior due to the limited size of each section. If LEGO continue this modular system I'm afraid I won't be onboard.
“Could you make a Hogwarts tower with this system?”
Technically, you could. However, your design options are limited to being “blocky” or “square-ish” as there aren’t any cylindrical wall panels from this wave.
@LJ_McGowan said:
"I'll never understand the appeal of this system and why it replaced the 2018 modular system. Hogwarts should be three-dimensional, not some straight wall with a repetitive exterior and bland interior due to the limited size of each section. If LEGO continue this modular system I'm afraid I won't be onboard."
I agree that the previous system offered certain benefits which the new one lacks, especially with regard to exterior appearance and accuracy.
However, I think there were few prominent locations from Hogwarts Castle which had yet to be represented in the earlier system. LEGO has already produced the Great Hall, the Marble Staircase Tower, the Astronomy Tower, the Clock Tower and the greenhouses. Beyond them, options seem relatively limited for further additions which would be recognisable enough to warrant their own set.
My dream Hogwarts system would comprise models that focus upon more specific sections of the castle. For instance, the Great Hall alone might warrant a £129.99 set, potentially standing atop a rocky base which would contain the Chamber of Secrets, or another underground area. Another set could provide the neighbouring Marble Staircase Tower and the Entrance Courtyard would also be sold separately.
Perhaps that would be interesting for another article.
I don't have any of these sets yet, but I already purchased dark bluish gray half-cones and such to replace the sand green ones from these sets. Then I'll integrate them with all the sets from the last few years. I'll figure out some way to make it work.
@CapnRex101 said:
"
I agree that the previous system offered certain benefits which the new one lacks, especially with regard to exterior appearance and accuracy.
"
One issue is that the movie itself is not accurate as to what the castle looks like. There's easily a dozen new students per year in each house, which means a total of ~80 students per house, for 240 total in the school, plus staff. You never see classrooms or dormitories able to hold that. You get glimpses of corridors with classrooms in some of the movies, but then the zoomed out views of the castle can't contain that. Especially with how many courses are supposedly taking place simultaneously. And that's not taking into account all the other big locations we don't hear about as much, like the Kitchen, the Library, the other Hall where they did the dancing thing, the Infirmary, the Botanical gardens, etc.
So I don't think an "accurate" version of Hogwarts will ever be possible, unless based only on the book, which itself doesn't describe everything. I do like the "living" interpretation that they push in the book, with things making sense and yet moving as well. And so your different builds are as good as they'd be, in my opinion.
@Phoenixio - I am not addressing absolute accuracy, which would indeed be impossible as the design sometimes changes during the movies. However, the approximate layout is quite consistent. Buildings immediately surrounding the Great Hall remain almost unchanged, for instance.
Frankly, I don't like the overall appearance of this iteration of Hogwarts. From the outside it does not look like Hogwarts at all, from the inside it's too small to play with. Surely, kids who don't own the last iteration will like it. But I see more negatives than positives here and am happy to have the older sets. There are one or two left in the stash for this christmas, and then, Harry and Co. had their big time in our children's room, I guess.
@CapnRex101: I have to say… it’s articles like this, which go beyond the basic review/announcements, that cements this place as my go-to Lego fan site. I really appreciate the thought you put into this feature.
This is the quality OC we come to Brickset for
@khomps said:
"The possibility of doing this with a few sepparate sets is awesome! If only they gave us the same, with small location sets from the Death Star... "
Yes. . . this . . . please!
I made the complete Hogwarts map totally inspired to the books. I think it's the only faithful way to combine the sets. For example: the kitchens are under the great hall; Fluffy is on the third floor, Myrtle's bathroom is on the second ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiHyIpM0tbM&ab_channel=PotterLex
This is just the article I was hoping to see and read. Thank you for taking the time, it is very much appreciated.
Wow, they look fantastic all combined together!
I like that this new system is still cross compatible with the 2018 system, meaning its easy to create a super Hogwarts display with them both if you don't mind the roof color clash (or willing to swap colors with your own parts).
Once I get last year's Astronomy tower, I will aim to finish up these 2021 sets then blend them into the 2018 line via making the newer sets represent what I call informally the "cathedral"(which in the films is the block of classrooms and quarters alongside the greenhouse that have very distinct blocky towers like these 2021 sets). I would love to see them also revisit that flat tower that Sirius Black was rescued from via Buckbeak as well, especially since it also had a classic Hogwarts set in the original line based on it (4753). Combined with the new Hogsmeade set and the Quiditch pitch from a few years back, all we really need now is a new Shrieking Shack and another train set this time based on Hogsmeade station... and we can really say that we have about a 100% complete representation of onscreen Hogwarts as seen in the films and the spin off video games.
@ohrmazd:
Very rarely will an author actually plan out the entire interior of a set piece, and over a series of books things inevitably change to accommodate new plot elements. This results in cases where incompatibilities slip in unnoticed. Hogwarts is a rare case where you can handwave it away by simply saying the location changed between books. It supports lazy writing, but it’s hard to argue against.
@Sethro3:
But why sand-green? I mean, I understand the throwback aspect to the original HP run, but what really stands out in my mind is HP4, with the Horntail chase...and dark grey shingles. Is there any legitimacy, for a theme based strictly on the movies, to make the roof any shade of green?
@Phoenixio:
The castle isn’t even consistent between the various movies. Back when the microscale set (which, BTW, appears to be based on the Florida theme park) was unveiled, people were complaining about how it didn’t match _the_ movie version. Well, the artist who did the original matte painting for HP1 never liked it, so he painted a new version for HP2. Then a new director movies the Whomping Willow for the third film, yet another director added the standing stones for the fourth, and the final director made even more changes for the back half of the series.
@xboxtravis7992:
You mean Azkaban?
This is an excellent webpage that theorizes the layout of Hogwarts based on clues from the books:
http://members.madasafish.com/~cj_whitehound/Fanfic/map_of_Hogwarts/castle.htm
No but its Lego so you can just make hinged connectors like the kind in the 2010 Hogwarts if you want. Use your spare parts or go on Bricklink!
@PurpleDave said:
" @xboxtravis7992:
You mean Azkaban?"
I think he means the Dark Tower; the one where Sirius is held until midnight (in the third movie) before sending him to Azkaban (again) so they have a chance to rescue him with Buckbeak (hence the flat roof on it to land on). It disappears in later movies to be replaced by the Astronomy Tower.
I was hoping to see various combinations made from just a few sets, rather than the whole lot together...
@LJ_McGowan said:
"I'll never understand the appeal of this system and why it replaced the 2018 modular system. Hogwarts should be three-dimensional, not some straight wall with a repetitive exterior and bland interior due to the limited size of each section. If LEGO continue this modular system I'm afraid I won't be onboard."
Me neither. I think I'll rather MOC my own versions of these new sets to fit with my 2018 style series of Hogwarts sets. Those sand green roofs are the main (but actually one of several gripes) reason I don't like the current sets. Just because they used the wrong colour twenty years ago doesn't mean they have to repeat the mistake for the anniversary. I'd rather they go for more than less accuracy.
Thanks for the article, this was really interesting! It also confirms that I will stick with the modded layout I have based on the 2018 sets. I only bought the flying lesson from this range, because I didn't have Madam Hooch yet and it also fits quite well with the other system.
I'm very curious to see what LEGO will come up with next if they continue the HP line.
Which set is the Marble Staircase Tower that Cap'n Rex mentioned?
@PurpleDave said:
" @ohrmazd:
@Sethro3:
But why sand-green? I mean, I understand the throwback aspect to the original HP run, but what really stands out in my mind is HP4, with the Horntail chase...and dark grey shingles. Is there any legitimacy, for a theme based strictly on the movies, to make the roof any shade of green?
I don't know why they chose sand green outside of the contrast and lighter color with the tan. Yes, dark bley would be ideal in terms of accuracy, but the sand green is a nice throwback. It does add a certain appeal. I know it isn't for everyone.
I got back into LEGO because of the 2010 HP line, so sand green will hold a special place in my heart. I love the dark bley roofing on 2018-2020 line and I'd love to build my own version of a larger scale Hogwarts. I'm assuming I'll use dark bley, but I do like the contrast with sand green since dark bley rockwork would exist under the Great Hall. But I guess I could use dark tan like the micro version and dark bley roofing...always decisions."
@kwickbrick said:
"Which set is the Marble Staircase Tower that Cap'n Rex mentioned?"
75954 Hogwarts Great Hall contains the Marble Staircase Tower, which is the large tower immediately adjoining the Great Hall onscreen.
@YanVanLan said:
" @PurpleDave said:
" @xboxtravis7992:
You mean Azkaban?"
I think he means the Dark Tower; the one where Sirius is held until midnight (in the third movie) before sending him to Azkaban (again) so they have a chance to rescue him with Buckbeak (hence the flat roof on it to land on). It disappears in later movies to be replaced by the Astronomy Tower.
"
Yep that's the one.
This seems better received compared to the 2017/2018 wave of 8x8/16x8 3-in-1's , but I wouldn't mind if LEGO kept this concept and expanded it for a new generation of 3in1 or Castle sets.
@11amauri11 said:
"I made the complete Hogwarts map totally inspired to the books. I think it's the only faithful way to combine the sets. For example: the kitchens are under the great hall; Fluffy is on the third floor, Myrtle's bathroom is on the second ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiHyIpM0tbM&ab_channel=PotterLex"
This is fantastic, both the work you've put into the map and also the Lego build. Any chance you could share the Excel file somewhere? Would love to expore myself.
Ok thanks. I thought the tower in the Great Hall was Dumbledore's Office with hidden staircase, as in set 4729.
@khomps said:
"The possibility of doing this with a few sepparate sets is awesome! If only they gave us the same, with small location sets from the Death Star... "
so true! wish this was adopted by other themes like Castle and the Batcave.
@Phoenixio said:
" @CapnRex101 said:
"
I agree that the previous system offered certain benefits which the new one lacks, especially with regard to exterior appearance and accuracy.
"
One issue is that the movie itself is not accurate as to what the castle looks like. There's easily a dozen new students per year in each house, which means a total of ~80 students per house, for 240 total in the school, plus staff. You never see classrooms or dormitories able to hold that. You get glimpses of corridors with classrooms in some of the movies, but then the zoomed out views of the castle can't contain that. Especially with how many courses are supposedly taking place simultaneously. And that's not taking into account all the other big locations we don't hear about as much, like the Kitchen, the Library, the other Hall where they did the dancing thing, the Infirmary, the Botanical gardens, etc.
So I don't think an "accurate" version of Hogwarts will ever be possible, unless based only on the book, which itself doesn't describe everything. I do like the "living" interpretation that they push in the book, with things making sense and yet moving as well. And so your different builds are as good as they'd be, in my opinion."
It’s smaller on the outside!
@MutoidMan:
Well, Dumbledore did regenerate...
@PurpleDave said:
" @MutoidMan:
Well, Dumbledore did regenerate..."
Respect points to you my good sir!!!
I have come to the conclusion that I do not like this.
Man. Reminds me of the posters that came with the original run of sets.
Will there be a separate review of 76395: Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson?
@Albus said:
" @11amauri11 said:
"I made the complete Hogwarts map totally inspired to the books. I think it's the only faithful way to combine the sets. For example: the kitchens are under the great hall; Fluffy is on the third floor, Myrtle's bathroom is on the second ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiHyIpM0tbM&ab_channel=PotterLex"
This is fantastic, both the work you've put into the map and also the Lego build. Any chance you could share the Excel file somewhere? Would love to expore myself."
YES! This is brilliant; I'm delighted that he found consistency enough to place the locations, Oh boy would that file be worth paying for.