Revival Project Digital: Expansion

At long last, I have finally finished building the mystery building that I plan on having next to the pet shop! The building is the Ghostbusters HQ and took so long because of how many pieces are included. I apologise for not posting for a couple of months but as you can imagine, this post has taken a lot of time to make. Amazingly, Lego Digital Designer hasn't crashed yet whilst I've been building so hopefully I can still build much more into this project. Currently, the brick count is at 10569 pieces. As you can see, I have also built a couple of extra things which I will talk about later in the post.

As you can see, the Ghostbusters HQ is both taller and longer than the pet shop. As the pavement creates a gap between the two buildings, I will extend the path to the back of the pet shop and create a proper garden area for the pet shop and house instead of leaving the back as plain green baseplate. This idea will probably also extend to the back of the shop, plus I will definitely try to extend the shop to make it fit in with the large modular buildings next to it.

If you look through the windows, you can see the internal decoration I have included in the Ghostbusters HQ instead of only building the exterior. On the ground floor, you can see some boxes, on the first floor you can see some beds and tiled floor, on the second floor, you can see a pool table, carpet, and a glimpse of machinery at the back.

I have also build a small police outpost which acts as a border between the main city area and the mines. Originally, I was going to make it so that some of the area behind this point was desert, however due to how little space it would take up, I have decided to make the terrain rocky instead to fit in with the mining area.

I have started work on the track which leads to the Power Miner's HQ, I will try and blend it into the road once I have finished figuring out how to build it. I might include a break in the left mound on the corner to indicate that vehicles can drive left, however, I may do something else instead.

This is what I hope the Power Miner's HQ area will look like in real life, however it might be a little bit too wide with the fences included to fit. The front gates can both open and at the two front corners, connecting the fences, are the bases of what will be two guard towers. I plan on placing many more crystals inside the HQ area, you can see a couple that I have already included. In reality I would have two large mining vehicles in this area, unfortunately as the programme won't et me place wheels on baseplates, all vehicles will have to be left until last. I think this area looks the most completed out of what I have done so far.

As the traffic light that is included in the Ghostbuster's HQ set is facing the wrong way, I might change the corner that lies in-front of it into a T junction and place a building or another corner on the other side of the HQ. If I decide not to do this, I will try and alter the traffic light.

As you can see, I have added lots of green and coloured two of the corner plates. The blue corner signifies roughly where ocean will start and the dark red corner indicated where volcanoes and lava related sets will be. The green area is roughly all of the available space I have for the fair ground. The next steps will be completing the track to the Power Miner's HQ, adding more terrain to that area, and working on the fair ground. I might also start building the area next to the police station, expanding the shop, and adding some non Lego related things, for example the shelves the lie behind the Power Miner's HQ.

I really hope that you have enjoyed this post, again I apologise for how long it has taken to release. I really hope the next post will be released soon. Please let me know if you have any comments or suggestions, I would love to know how the track leading to the Power Miner's HQ is looking so far and whether or not you enjoy the posts.

Samurai X Cave Chaos

The Set

I am going to start by apologising for how long it has taken for me to finish and release this post. I am also going to apologise for the quantity of pictures used in this post. I have tried to show as many different views of the set as possible and I assure you that the set is somehow different in each picture.

The set is titled 'Samurai X Cave Chaos' and is apart of the 'Lego Ninjago' line. The set features eight minifigures, a small robot, two vehicles, a mechanical suit (mech), and one large structure which can separate into three components, all of which have a movement function, for example a prison cell that you can open by turning something. The set currently sells for £109.99 ($119.99) on the Lego Shop online. I suspect the price may differ at different stores, for example I am sure that when I bought the set a year ago from a Lego shop, it cost £99.99. Not a huge difference but one which, if you are buying multiple sets, could either save you a fair amount of money or buy you another set. The set includes 1253 pieces and is 19cm high, 55cm wide, and 37cm deep. For those who don't particularly want to read the entirety of this post or for those looking for a quick review, I would say that my overall impression of the set is good. I would highly recommend pairing it with the Lego Ninjago Fire Temple set as it makes for an excellent back area to the temple, however I wouldn't buy the temple just for this purpose as it has been discontinued and costs over £100 to buy online. The set can look unfinished in areas but the minifigures and playability make up for that. I would say that the set is slightly overpriced and should be sold at around the £90 mark due to how much the vehicles and particular areas are lacking. If you want to buy the set, I would not hesitate as the set has been out for a while and I suspect it may soon become retired.

Please continue reading for a more in depth analysis of the minifigures, vehicles, and overall set.

Master Wu

The set comes with a grand total of eight minifigures which, in my opinion, is impressive, especially as they all seem unique in some way. The Master Wu minifigure isn't too different from past versions of the character. His hat is different from what I am used to seeing as it is a shiny creamy gold instead of just a plain cream colour. Fans of the Lego Ninjago TV programme will appreciate the back print of the minifigure as it includes Master Wu's sacred flute which he uses to entrance the serpentine villains in the programme. I am very impressed with the back printing because of how much detail is included.

Lloyd Garmadon (Full Accessories)

Lloyd Garmadon (No Accessories)

Lloyd Garmadon seems very special in this set. I am unsure on exactly how many versions of him have been made, but after looking at various versions and trying to find out, I can say that this version of Lloyd may be unique. This could potentially be the only set where Lloyd is wearing the 'normal' ninja outfit and is included with a mask. Unfortunately, he is not included with a hair piece but the mask is more than sufficient. There is very basic printing on the minifigure, however I feel like they do overdo it on his back by adding, what looks like, the sword holder he wears that is included in the set. I feel like this detail is pointless because then it seems like you can never take off his sword holder and it makes no sense to have a sword holder that doesn't hold swords.

Jay Walker (Full Accessories)

Jay Walker (Only Hair Piece, Smiling Face)

Jay Walker (Only Hair Piece, Unhappy Face)

Jay Walker (All Accessories, Unhappy Face)

The Jay Walker minifigure is very similar to Lloyd, except his suit is a blue colour scheme, he comes with a hair piece and half mask instead of a full mask, and he has face printing on both sides of his head. His back printing unfortunately includes the same detail I dislike in Lloyd's but he has different coloured arms and shiny detailing. His left arm is a dark blue and his right arm is a shiny silver which continues over onto the front printing on his right shoulder. One side of his face shows him unhappy, the other shows him smile. Jay is the only minifigure included in the set who has a double printed face.

Nya (Full Accessories)

Nya (No Accessories)

Nya is another minifigure which I am unsure about when it comes to past versions, however I am sure that this outfit is unique to the set. Past versions I could find are either in samurai armour or fairly normal clothing. As with the other ninja minifigures in the set, the gold symbol on the right shoulder is shiny. Unfortunately, as with the other ninja, Nya also has the printed sword holder on her back and isn't overly detailed. The detail on all of the ninja mainly consists of wrinkling in their suits. Unfortunately, like Lloyd, Nya also does not come with a hair piece but the mask is visually good enough to leave be.

Pythor

This variation of Pythor is one hundred percent unique to this set and so is his weapon. Past versions have been robeless, one in a purple colour and the other mainly white but with extended purple to the front of his tail. The weapon he holds is one of six unique weapons to a particular Ninjago set line. This weapon cannot be collected in any other set I know of. In my opinion, Pythor's weapon is not the best as it has minimal pose-ability and is very large in comparison to the minifigure. Pythor's head and tail are both special moulds, the head being more unique than the tail. I am disappointed that the mouth isn't on a hinge because it would be great to be able to open and close it. I also find his printing plain, however this works and the moulds make up for it.

General Kozu (Full Accessories)

General Kozu (No Accessories)

General Kozu is very impressive and remarkably detailed. His weapon isn't the best as the blade section is a bit bendy and looks flimsy, however the style certainly works for the character. I did not buy this set for this minifigure and when looking at pictures, I had low hopes for Kozu. I was very wrong. Not only is he unique to the set by having an extra torso piece, but every part of him (except his arms) is extremely detailed. There is detail from his chainmail armour on his legs and torso to his wrinkled up and menacing face on his head. Even the higher torso has shiny silver printing on it, a feature which is included on the normal torso as well as the legs. I wouldn't say that he is the overall coolest looking minifigure included, but he is definitely the most detailed. Also, his weapon is not unique to this set, it is also featured in the 'Lego Ninjago' 'Rock Roader' set.

General Cryptor (All Accessories)

General Cryptor (No Accessories)

In my opinion, General Cryptor is the coolest looking minifigure included in the set. He is not the most detailed but I love his half robot, shiny silver ninja mask. I believe that this minifigure is not exclusive, I think it has been used in a couple of different Ninjago sets either with or without the accessories. The same goes for his weapon as it has been included in at least one other set. I think that his weapon is the best in the set as it includes a special moulded blade piece at the end of a short chain. The chain allows for much more flexibility in the weapon and that allows for much more playability. The weapon is not exclusive to this set as it is also featured in the 'Titanium Ninja Tumbler' set. This minifigure does not have two faces, however it does include a metallic print on half of the back of the head.

Stone Army Swordsman (All Accessories)

Stone Army Swordsman (No Accessories)

I feel that the Stone Army Swordsman is the weakest minifigure in the set, besides from Master Wu. To me, he doesn't inspire or capture the imagination as well as the other figures do. Also, he uses the same torso and legs as General Kozu which is ok because of the astonishing detail, but it doesn't add any originality to the figure. His weapon is very weak as it is just some dynamite and there is no detail whatsoever in his hat or shoulder pad piece. His face is more or less identical to Kozu, the only difference being that instead of being printed on a white head piece, it was printed on a black head piece.

Small Robot

There isn't much to be said about the robot. It is very small and very basic, however despite these point, the robot captures personality and is a nice little feature and detail to have I the set. As I do not know much about the Lego Ninjago TV programme, I don't know if this robot is featured or is a character, I imagine it could be. I think that the build, even though small, is clever.

I find that the motorbike is much better in pictures than it is in reality. I find that the bike is one part of the set that looks very unfinished as the front half includes much more and is wider than the back half which leaves the back half looking like its missing a few pieces. As images of the cave make it look like the cave is in the desert, I can half forgive the vehicles for their simplicity and unfinished look as this does make them look like something you would find in a desert. The stickers on the front half of the vehicle look like advertisements for companies/products which could be used in the TV programme.

The jet is possibly the best vehicle included in the set. It has a cool feature where you can separate it into three sections and then replace the wings for hover engines. A minifigure can be seated in the jet and the jet always looks like it is weaponised, no matter which middle section is used. The jet is small and simplistic, however it does look finished and like a temporary use, desert based, short term solution kind of vehicle, something the vehicles in the set all have in common apart from looking finished.

With the hover engines, the jet, in my opinion, does not look as good. I much prefer the wings and find the hover engines to look strange both when used in the jet and when used in the mech.

The mech is very cool to look at but very impractical to use. You cannot place anyone in it and close the mech is the figure has something on their back and if you push the figure back against the mech to try and make them stand straight, the ninja mask pops off. The arms and legs can be rotated, however this can be difficult. I find that the back blades that are attached beneath the mech's arms are much more practical and proportionate weapons for this mech to use instead of the sai. The mech looks cool but it is very skeletal. It can be imagined that the sai which the mech holds could be used as an emergency feature for when the mech brakes down. The mech could 'fire out' the sai as Nya jumps out and catches them before engaging in one on one combat outside of the mech, this way the mech fits in with its 'useless' appearance and acts as a short term, temporary desert based solution.

I would say that the middle section is this set is my favourite. I love the oval shape and that it has a 'bat-cave' feel to it. This section has two, technically three, functions. One is that you can place the jet where it is pictured above in its separate sections and when you push down on a piece with a red button sticker on it, that are lifts up and pushed all three sections together to form the full jet. The other function which is technically two functions is that the floor can move forwards and reveal hidden compartments. This is technically two separate features because the left and right halves are not connected and can be moved separately. The right section opens so that the floor swings round and connects the middle area to the area that contains the mech.

This left section is very good with it's appearance and I especially like the giant skull that can lift up and acts as the entrance and exit to the cave. A criticism of this area as that if you look through the open skull, the track isn't central and the area where there is nothing looks unfinished because of the absence of track. I like the function where the track can lift up and reveal secret plans, and I also like how the prison cell can be opened so that the door acts as a security feature to prevent entry or exit to the cave through the skull entrance. I would have preferred it if the robot had a larger storage space as it is very fiddly to place the robot in such a small area. Also, the top half of the monitor can be rotated forwards and backwards to alter how much it faces the floor.

I really like this area and I think it looks really good, however it does have it's flaws. The mech is incredibly difficult to place in it's area and the lift is difficult to lift up and down. Quite often when lifting it up and down, the column piece which it slides up and down comes out of its place and is then awkward to put back in.

The monitors, like with the other side, do move. I find the back of the set to be disappointingly flat and plain. I know that this is not an area you are meant to see, however it would have been nice to see some more detail and shape in it.

The set looks amazing in both pictures and in person. I think, as with most Lego products, this set looks better in person. It has lots of playability and is very much like the bat-cave. As the set is supposed to be situated in a desert location, I can forgive it for looking rough and unfinished in places as that is what is expected from a desert. In my opinion, you get a good selection of figures with the set with half of them being hero's and the other half being villains. As the set is heavily biased towards the hero's, it would have been nice to have something buildable for the villains such as a vehicle or mech, for example the stone army warrior could have had a small buildable turret instead of some dynamite. As the set is supposed to be used in a battle situation, it would have been nice to have something for the villains to make them less disadvantaged. As mentioned earlier, I would recommend pairing this set with the fire temple set as they are a perfect match. If you would like to use this set for a battle scenario, I would recommend pairing it with either 'Garma Mecha Man' or the 'Salvage M.E.C.' set depending on how one sided you want the battle to be.

I would say that this is a very good set with lots of playability. In my opinion, it isn't quite worth the £109.99 when it comes to features and specific points, however it is worth it when it comes to the amount of fun and playability which this set contains. I would recommend this set to collectors of all ages as it looks very good on display, I imagine it would be amazing with yellow lighting. I would also recommend this set to all ages of Lego lovers due to the amount of playability. I would not recommend it to someone who likes to destroy lego sets as that would be a waste of money. When buying the set for a young person, make sure they are supervised when building as small pieces are included and they can easily go missing. Do not buy this if it is going to be destroyed within moments.