Weekly Set Review: Knight's Tournament

Post by **architect** » Sat Feb 14, 2004 9:52 pm

Join the weekly Classic Castle set review discussion. Please post your opinions on the set play ability, piece selection, design, etc. Which sets stand up to our catapult of critique and which ones crumble in shame!

This week’s set is 383/6083 Knight's Tournament.

Knight’s Tournament, released in 1979, was the first of many Castle tournament sets. This set has a pavilion with a lord and lady watching a joust between two knights. Two soldiers also look on. A variety of rare accessories including old helmets, visors, flags, and a cypress tree are included.

Barbapple · Post by **Barbapple** » Sat Feb 14, 2004 10:20 pm

This is a purly awsome set! I would pay good money for this, and you gotta love the chubby horses!
I rate this 8.976557624234 out of 10! Amazing work here.

Mr. D · Post by **Mr. D** » Sat Feb 14, 2004 10:25 pm

Ok, if this I saw this set for a pretty good price I'd buy it without thinking twice. I wouldn't pay overly much for it, though. It was a very good set when it was realized; two knights, and two squires; a lord and lady, and a fair amount of pieces. And the tree, can't forget that! Is this tree somewhat rare? I haven't seen a lot of it. I would like to have some of them. The pavilion is well designed, and those flags are definitely an asset. The main reason I don't like this set more than I do, is the horses. The later horses are definitely better that the early block ones.

Mr. D

ThomasBrickheim · Post by **ThomasBrickheim** » Sat Feb 14, 2004 11:32 pm

This is a great set. First there are those very rare parts. Very nice to have

Second, most of those things can easliy be made from ordinary bricks. Look at those horses! They Are great! And still there is not a single special part in it! And the same for the tent.

Post by **architect** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 12:35 am

I recently acquired this set and I like it alot. One thing that draws me to late 70's and early 80's sets are the quantity of basic bricks. You could build a bunch of different creations in different themes with this set.

I also like the minifigures alot. The horses are cool but tend to fall apart.

Ben

Jedipawn · Post by **Jedipawn** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 1:32 am

A "Classic"! First, one of the original sets, with the old rare pieces. The helms, tree, weapons, torsos, flags and shields. As has already been mentioned the basic piece selection is great. I also like the basic design. The horses have been talked about quite often, and generaly are loved. but the tent and thrones are quite well done also. Personaly I cant speak for the playablity of this set, having not yet had the chance to aquire it.
All in all I would give this set a 9/10

Jedipawn

LEGO_KNIGHT · Post by **LEGO_KNIGHT** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 1:55 am

I dont see anyihing special about this set. I know this is a rare set. But thats about it. I only like the knight's visor helmet. The rest of the parts are ok to me. I give a rating 6/10.

Just my 2 cents.

Thanks,
Erwin
_________________
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SICK DAYS:
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Sir_Marcellus · Post by **Sir_Marcellus** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 3:03 am

Even though it IS nostalgic, there have been better jousting sets and worse ones.

Teh Stud · Post by **Teh Stud** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 9:27 am

Even though it IS nostalgic, there have been better jousting sets and worse ones.

Really? I can't agree with this statement; sorry. This set is head and shoulders above any other jousting set. Just take a look at the shield variety! That's great stuff!

But don't take my word for it. Check out what people posted on Lugnet....

Erik Olson: "My first castle set, first minifig hair, first low slopes, first cypress tree... This set was magical (but see 6000 and 375)."
Christina Hitchcock: "Love that Tree"
James Keir Simpson: "My fondest Lego memories are of this set."
Yvonne Doyle: "Wonder set .. I wish I had it .. I do have the 2 flags !"
Johannes "Jojo" Koehler: "The blue knight is one of my alltime favourites."
Paul D. Pfeiffer: "Ahh... the old days"
Shane Moser: "I have the instructions, but missing all the specialty pieces"
John Patterson: "need box, will buy or trade for one"
Arne Nielsen: "Found April 2003 in a toy store - for $25! On the same shelf for 24 years without being bought - unbelieveable!!"
Jim Glendinning: "As unforgettable as the 375 castle itself! The only other set to incorporate those amazing Knight visors, and featuring the red hair, tree and ultra rare shields!"
Don Lee: "SWEEET!!!!"
Ryan Witt: "Build your own horses! And the first time I ever saw plates that didn't have studs on top!"

Sir_Marcellus · Post by **Sir_Marcellus** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 1:30 pm

I meant that only by some others are more playable with a centre divider and all that. I have one in mind, but I forget what it is.

This is DEFINITELY a wonderful set, though.

Jojo · Post by **Jojo** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 1:31 pm

Hello!

This set is great. 9/10 (I can't give 10/10 because that's only for my favouritiest favourites, 6067 and 6074

).

It is so colourful! This model reminds us that "Castle" doesn't mean just castles and towers and castles and keeps and castles and towns but also some life around those massive structures. And it's not a trist grey-black-war-model but a festive scenery.

As for the horses: Well, modern horses are erm.. more modern. But those blocky horses display the meaning of LEGO. Everything is built. That's how it used to be back then. Nowadays the rear wall of the stand would be one or two pieces, in 383 it has multiple blue beams that can be used for something else that's not necessarily 6 wide and 5 tall...

The fig selection in this set is superb. Right now I can't think of any better. A queen, a king, two gards with the royal coat of arms, two jousting knights with their own coats of arms. It's only a pity that there is not a shield with the tierced coat of arms. In that case I wouldn't be able to refuse the "10/10"

There exist two versions of the flags, one version has stickers and one is printed. From my current inquiries it seems as if both versions have been circulating at the same time, though the stickers most likely came with the very first edition.
Funniliy enough the emblem on the printed flags is inverted:

Ah, and yes, the blue knight is one of my alltime favourites.
Hm. 10/10 now.

Bye
Jojo

Linus · Post by **Linus** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 2:52 pm

I have a few pieces from this set. I have three of the figures, the black/maroon shield and one of the blue cups. I really want some of those helmets with visors...

Post by **rogue27** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 3:49 pm

This set is excellent. I wish I was fortunate enough to have one or two of these.

I think this set pushes the creativity and utility of the basic brick as far as LEGO has ever pushed it. Despite the blocky horses being pretty bad, the barding and tent designs made from bricks is wonderful, and it has a good assortment of figures for a jousting set. Much better than the 3 figures you would get from the joust set in the new KK line.

Too many rare elements for this to be a legend. If LEGO tried to re-release this set, it would not be the same with then changing many of the parts. Maybe I'll be lucky and find it in a toy store somewhere, but I think that sort of thing only happens in Europe.

Jojo · Post by **Jojo** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 4:50 pm

Hello!

rogue27 wrote:Too many rare elements for this to be a legend. If LEGO tried to re-release this set, it would not be the same with then changing many of the parts. Maybe I'll be lucky and find it in a toy store somewhere, but I think that sort of thing only happens in Europe.

The only rare pieces are the tree and the helmets with visors. Those would be replaced by modern type pieces like the replaced cyprus tree in the 6390 legend. And a re-released Set is supposed not to be the same as the original. So the orginal remains a "legend".

And I never found anything that old in a toy store :-)
I wished.

Tschüß
Jojo

wlister · Post by **wlister** » Tue Feb 17, 2004 9:56 pm

This was the second castle set I ever owned and it has always remained a favorite. I always regret selling it in a moment of financial weakness. It is number two on my list of sets to re-aquire. There has yet to be a better joust set in my opinion, but the 6060 does come close.

Will