Which LOTR set should I buy first?

[Aragorn]

I have been looking at pictures of the LOTR sets and I can't wait till they come out! I was wondering which set sould I buy first,kinda like a cornerstone for the rest of the sets i want from this theme.Here are the options:

Helms Deep
Mines of Moria

The rest of the sets are kinda small so I thought 1 of these sould work for the "cornerstone".

Thanks!

Matt

[bulwark]

Personally, after seeing Helms Deep, I'm not really keen on getting it. At least not until it's seriously discounted. So I guess if I were going to get one of the two, it'd be the mines of moria.

[silvashado]

I'm more impressed by Mines of Moria than Helms Deep, but the one I really can't wait for is Weathertop.

But knowing my lack of control, I'll end up buying all of them at once and putting it on my credit card.

[Aragorn]

Your right! After seeing newer pictures of weathertop I am IMPRESSED!!!!!

I need that set!

Matt

[Brickmythic]

I'd hold off on helms deep till it goes on sale. also, you can make Helms deep with several Uruk hai army builder sets and bricklinking 100 or so pieces.

Helms Deep has really bad character selection in my opinion for a $130-150 set (after tax), Theoden being the only big figure from the set that isnt in other sets.

Mines of Moria
Gandalf Returns
Uruk hai army builder

will probably never go on sale other than occassional BOGO sales.

Helms Deep
Forge

will get discounted pretty deep methinks

Weathertop will be on sale fairly often since its price point is specifically for retail sales. I think once people have gollum, Shelob sales will pop up.

With so many good $100 price range sets coming out this summer, Helms deep is going to be off the radar after initial sales bubble .

Fire Temple (retiring)
Epic Dragon Battle
Monster Vampire Castle
Town Hall
Kingdoms Joust
Hogwarts Castle (retiring)
Jabba's Palace
Black pearl (retiring)
(plus all the other awesome sets like VW Bus, Maersk train, MMV, that might be retiring, and lets not forget the new Haunted House mystery)

All of which are arguably better than Helms Deep.

Mines of Moria is a solid set. its also the likely to get first big TRU tax hike as well.


I like Helms Deep. Its just that I like Epic Dragon Battle, Vampire Castle, and Jabba's Palace more. And the fact I can make Helms Deep with Uruk Hai army builder set which nets you so much more for the value.

[Deathleech]

Those two are probably my top picks as well, Helm's Deep and Mines of Moria. I think Mines of Moria edges out Helm's Deep though.

With MoM you get so many more figures not available in any other sets right now. You get Legolas, Boromir, Pippin, 2 Moria Orcs (Goblins)... and of course the awesome Cave Troll! With Helm's Deep you only get King Theodin, Haldin, and the Berserker Uruk-Hai for exclusives.

The fact you can get the Uruk-Hai Army set and get the same amount of Uruk-Hai Orcs as in Helm's Deep also diminishes it's appeal imo. I will say though, in terms of the actual buildings Helm's Deep looks a lil cooler than Mines. If only it were 100 bucks though instead of almost double...

[prozac]

I'm all over helms deep myself. That and the Urul set will be the first I buy. I think its great that the wall piece from the uruk set attaches to helms deep. PLus the ROhirrim are my favorites from the movies.

[Deathleech]

Ya, I love that about the Uruk-Hai Army set as well. Not only do you build up your Uruk-Hai army with each additional set you buy, you also can build up your Helm's Deep fortress!

My only complaint is the set comes with Eomer. I'm not a big fan of a named character coming in an "army builder" set. I would of much rather seen Eomar in the Helm's Deep set, and 2 Rohan soldiers in the Uruk-Hai Army set (along with the orcs).

[legitimatealex]

Only three sets from the line seem really cost effective for what they're giving you in the set: the wagon, Weathertop and Shelob Attacks. The rest are so so so so so very bland.

[Deathleech]

I dunno, there seems to be pretty mixed reactions for almost all the LotR sets. The Uruk-Hai Army one being the only exception. I think that's the one that everyone pretty much unanimously loves.

From what I have seen and heard the Weathertop set seems to have pretty mixed views. Some people think it's over priced and others just feel like it's "meh". The Gandal wagon set is the only really cheap unit, but it's also pretty bland (I wouldn't even get it if not for the fact it's the only set with Gandalf). I have heard a number of people say the Helm's Deep set seems way over priced for what you get, and to a lesser degree the Mines of Moria one.

I haven't really heard much of anything about the Shelob or Orc Forge set. The fact they cut one of the orcs from the Forge set though really hurts it in my eyes.

[nick91884]

I wasn't supposed to be buying any lego until next payday but I couldn't help myself with the $12.99 price tag on that gandalf arrives set, hope my wife doesn't get mad ($13 is certainly closer to 0 than say, mines of moria which looked really cool!).

I'm pretty pleased with this set considering the price point.

[jeremyp4]

I got the Orc Forge set first.. though my next purchase is for sure going to be the Gandalf Arrives set... I may buy a couple of those

[Deathleech]

Only three sets from the line seem really cost effective for what they're giving you in the set: the wagon, Weathertop and Shelob Attacks. The rest are so so so so so very bland.

Just out of curiosity, what are you basing this on? Because Gandalf Arrives ends up costing almost 16 cent per piece, Weathertop is 14 cents, and Shelob Attacks is 9 cents. Out of those three, Shelobs attack is the only one that beats any of the other sets in terms of PPP. Mines of Moria and Helm's Deep both come out to be 10 cents per piece, The Orc forge is 11 cents, and the Uruk-Hai Army is 12 cents.

Of course since Gandalf Arrives is a smaller set that is going to definitely inflate the PPP. The biggest draw for me with Gandalf Arrives is the fact it's so cheap and comes with an exclusive Gandalf/Frodo, and a horse. If it didn't have these figures though this set would probably be one I would pass up in all honesty.