Classic-Castle.com

I just loved the design of this set and the minifigures worked perfectly with the design, but to call it a mountain fortress....well I would expect it to be somewhat higher although the baseplate does make it look like its built into the rock all secluded but a tough castle at the same time. The baseplate ws one of the best things about the castle sets but the last one I remember was in the set 10176 Royal Kings Castle, not the exact same baseplate but a good one at that. Overall I'd give the set 8.5/10 because of its great design and minifigs but there could have been a more mountainish look to it.

I wish i had this set! looks really great, with lots of nice details and standard grey bricks. 10/10

A_V

timber_wolf899 wrote:I also like the early use of the big doors, and the secret enterance.

The secret entrance... is that what the trap door in the pit of the base plate is supposed to be?!? That idea never occurred to me. I thought it was either a cellar or a dungeon and wondered why the treasure chest wasn't down there... but a secret entrance is a much cooler thought!

Of course, if your comment is referring to some other secret entrance I haven't thought of, please explain so I can have another duh moment!

Truly this set is/was a gem of the old LEGOland Castle themes, and in my opinion the best Castle of the 1990s. From the box you get a sense that it has a hidden visual appeal, almost as if you were looking up a real mountain to see this fortress on top. After building it I was surprised how detailed and fun it was, as I wasn't expecting that much. The building process is very satisfying, and the baseplate is so well incorporated into the fortress that you almost don't notice it. So many fun characters and elements included with it and play features that create as much imagination as you can cram into an afternoon makes this one of my top-TOP favorite sets.

10/10 for me.

This wins the "worst-of-the-best" award from me. The design has that classic Legoland feel (like 6080, 6073, 6086, etc) in terms of color scheme and construction, but it's got to be the WORST use of the CRAPP baseplate, and illogical uses of space I've seen in any enclosed castle set from Lego.

One of the first odd things I recall was wondering what was up with the 2nd floor of the keep. The hinged door on the back made it look like a prison, but there's a trap door inside (for... escaping?) and there's an unblocked doorway that leads out onto the battlements.

The interior space is also sort of odd. The majority of the raised space looks like it's used as some sort of garden rather than a proper courtyard, since there's a tall wall that sort of unnecessarily divides the 'entryway' from the 'garden'. Plus, the low wall on the outside makes it look more like a small stone wall for property delineation (even though, yes, being on the top of a raised hill makes it properly defensible). Anyway, it has the look of the princess's flower garden rather than a courtyard.

The other major chunk of the interior section is the ramp, which hardly looks conducive to anything other than an entryway. And the only other interior spaces left are the 2nd floor of the keep (which looks like a prison), the battlements, and a small area under the keep. So to me, there's no sense of genuine interior space that's usable.

The other odd part was that the height of the ramp-side battlements (where the single connection point is) is actually LOWER than the rest of the castle connections system. ... And there's just one connection point, so you can't wrap a bigger castle around it. The funny part is that the battlements around the "garden" are technically about the correct height for classic-castle style walls: 1 baseplate + 6 bricks rather than 1 baseplate (or 1 plate) + 6 bricks + 1 plate. But they don't actually connect to anything!

Otherwise, it's got some charm to it. I was never a fan of the black castles (since they look cartoonishly evil)-- in comparison the gray castles look a bit more "real", even though in this case the design is so bizarre. And for parts, this set has got some gems: the princess, body armor, visored helmets, horse barding, the black bird, foliage, and the large door elements (which at the time were a new element).

All in all, I can't say I really like it as a set, but there are a lot of elements to it that still make it a good addition to the castle lineup.

DaveE

This was a great castle. I rather enjoyed the raised baseplate and how it looks like it is perched up on top. The low wall did not bother me as the ramparts make up for it being low. I really wish TLC would bring back these small-medium castles!

I do admit the back gate/window grate is odd. I just figured it was for play.

Heir

domboy wrote:

timber_wolf899 wrote:I also like the early use of the big doors, and the secret enterance.

The secret entrance... is that what the trap door in the pit of the base plate is supposed to be?!? That idea never occurred to me. I thought it was either a cellar or a dungeon and wondered why the treasure chest wasn't down there... but a secret entrance is a much cooler thought!

Of course, if your comment is referring to some other secret entrance I haven't thought of, please explain so I can have another duh moment!

The only actual trap door in this castle is up in the main tower the other door you speak of is simply a cellar style door for hiding stuff like treasure.

Nicker wrote:

domboy wrote:

timber_wolf899 wrote:I also like the early use of the big doors, and the secret enterance.

The secret entrance... is that what the trap door in the pit of the base plate is supposed to be?!? That idea never occurred to me. I thought it was either a cellar or a dungeon and wondered why the treasure chest wasn't down there... but a secret entrance is a much cooler thought!

Of course, if your comment is referring to some other secret entrance I haven't thought of, please explain so I can have another duh moment!

The only actual trap door in this castle is up in the main tower the other door you speak of is simply a cellar style door for hiding stuff like treasure.

Which is what I had assumed as well... so where is the secret entrance??

domboy wrote:
Which is what I had assumed as well... so where is the secret entrance??

It's on the front of the castle next to the main gate. It's that window build out with the little roof on top that opens like a door. I don't think I would call it a secret entrance but I guess you could. To tell you the truth I'm not even sure why it's there other than to play peekaboo with the ghost.

This was my first and only Crusader castle (I previously only had the Falcons' Knight's Castle 6073). It was also my first castle after getting back into Castle. I got way into Pirates the first couple years of that line, and then got back into castle when in the fifth grade we did a year long history project on The Middle Ages.

I think a lot of people are being overly critical of the baseplate. As a kid when I got this, it was one of the most exciting things about the set. Remember, this is on a mountain top. Also, the short walls, if you consider that they run around the top of a rocky slope, are not any less defendable than the other lego castle walls. One of the things that was son great about this set for kids is that its open design makes it much more playable than previous castles (I was always irritated that to play with 6073 I had to unhinge and open the entire castle which seemed highly unrealistic, the same gripe I have with the Forestmen's Hideout).

I do think they should have included more minifigs, but it seems that they figured that out by the time they released Black Knight's Castle 6086, which came with way more minifigs.

I'm just coming out of about a fifteen year Dark Age (fortunately all my old sets are still boxed up in my mom's basement), and was very excited to find this site. It's really informative and full of inspiration. I'm planning a few MOCs, the first two of which will probably be a Samurai Fortress (great addition to the castle line), and an Arab Castle (never understood why Lego never offered Arabs as enemies to the Crusaders) which I'm thinking I'll build in a mix of light grey and tan bricks. I was very excited to see that some of the custom weapons makers now offer more Arab types of weapons and armor. As a kid i tried to make my own custom minifigs with sharpies and Fimo dough that turned out good for a kid, but sloppy when I look at them now.

Not a bad set. The raised baseplate makes it look unique and with two of those baseplates, you could make a ravie ambush scene. fill the bottom with blue bricks, make a bridge and there you go

Nice.... Good collection of figs.

This was always one of my favorites of all time. They hit the payload with this one. I've tried to get my hands on this for a long while now. I always had a friend, who owned this set. Maybe I can convince him to dig it out.

I got this set a month ago as part of a bulk lot from a certain online recycling shop for unwanted junk... [Old Lego doesnt die .. it just ends up on ebay]

Anyway ... suprising enough the bulk lot had all the pieces to build this set.. apart from bits of the tree and the black bird.
This has to be one of the weirdest designs for a castle/fortress ever. [In Australian catalogues it was called Haunted Castle]
When I hear the word fortress I kinda think of tall impenetrable walls not walls that can be looked over by a guy on a horse.
It could pass as a tiny castle.. its got the gate house and keep with surrounding walls.

If found it looks better if you use it as the keep and use set 6080 as the gatehouse and outer walls . But by itself it doesnt seem as secure as the other castles from the early 90's and 80's.

Creativity 9/10 [i'm still not sure whats going on with the tower.. is it an open prison?]
Design 9/10 [it got marks for the use of a weird baseplate and drawbridge connection]
Parts 7/10 [maidens face doesnt suit her.. black knight torsos?]

Overall I think its great, it stands out from the other castles and its fun to build.


my main problem is .... why are the crossbow men wearing the Black Knights tops?

This parts list from Peeron is just one of the quick ways to see how much fun was packed in this box.
http://www.peeron.com/inv/sets/6081-1
Great for just about any occasion and a plethora of goodies to build with. Priced Back In The Day = A Reasonable $58.00 average here in the USA. Today a set like that would probably run up around $80+.