Dungeon & Dragons and LEGO Pirates be an unlikely crossover but Captain Pirate Man (also known as Mikey J Productions on YouTube) has made the improbable, probable!
Let’s discover how he’s achieved this unlikely feat…
Mikey J writes:
Long story short, I have come up with a Virtual Table Top Dungeons and Dragons experience. These videos will encompass the FOLLOWING themes: Pirates, Castle, LOTR, D&D, and Harry Potter. For more details, watch this!!
Ok, let’s watch this!
And for those who can’t view embedded videos here be a convenient button so yer catch watch the video upon YouTube:
Dungeons & Dragons (often abbreviated to D&D or DnD) is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974.
D&D is commonly recognised as the dawn of modern role-playing games and has influenced video, board games, and related media… and now an official LEGO set, 21348 Dungeons & Dragons: Red Dragon’s Tale*.
* official LEGO.com affiliate link provided for your convenience.
Who is Mikey J Productions?
Since 2010 Mikey and Jen Johnson have been a prolific husband and wife content creating duo with a focus on producing video media covering LEGO Pirates, Castle, Lord Of The Rings, Harry Potter, and now Dungeons & Dragons.
Their video coverage provides regular updates on official LEGO set releases, news from the AFOL community, speed builds and tours of their impressive LEGO collection.
The murmurings have started again! The voices are claiming this year’s LEGO Black Friday release is a ship, inspired by The Endurance. That be the ship in which Sir Ernest Shackleton embarked upon his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition between 1914 and 1917… “Embarked” because he didn’t return with it….
The following information has not been officially confirmed:
Spoiler alert! The Endurance run into a spot of bother along the way…
10335 The Endurance Ship will contain 3,500-4,500 pieces, retail for US$259.99 / £219.99 / €259.99 in Europe and be released on 29 November, 2024.
It will be accompanied by a 232 pieceGift With Purchase (set number 40729), although no further details are available at this time.
Remember, this all be rumour so these details may change… or prove to be fiction… just like that Eldorado Fortress remake rumour.
Where Did This Information Originate From?
The Classic Pirates knows a lad who knows a lad…
The Instagram rumour posts have been immortalised in picture frames
That lad being Itavixbrix on Instagram, who reposted the information shared by brick_clicker, also via Instagram.
What Is The Endurance?
It be a ship from maritime history!
Sir Ernest Shackleton procured a three-masted barquentine named Polaris in 1914 after one of its original commissioners, Adrien de Gerlache flittered his finances away on booze.
Ho ho ho! We’re not like that stupid Titanic – we can sail through ice!
Shackleton promptly renamed the vessel “Endurance” and proceeded to recruit a crew of 27 men. He warned them; the pay isn’t great, the weather abysmal, and a safe return… well, let’s not go into detail about that… but he did promise them honour and recognition – so how could an adventurous sailor refuse?
Later that year they embarked upon their voyage toward the Antarctic under the command of CaptainFrank Worsley.
This is an actual photograph of The Endurance trapped in ice
In January 1915 tragedy struck just 322km/200 miles from their destination when The Endurance became lodged in polar pack ice. No matter how much blood, sweat and tears they poured into their efforts, the crew failed to dislodge the ship from its icy incarceration. After ten months of turbulence, drifting and pressure, The Endurance could endure no more! The elements had taken their toll and the ice beneath breaking… so down the ship went… glug! glug! glug!
Shackleton inspects the wreckage just moments before The Endurance sank
Don’t worry, all the crew lived to tell the tale. Long before the ship’s final destruction, they escaped to Elephant Island using the ship’s lifeboats. A heroic rescue effort ensured they all arrived home safely, complete with records and photographs of the expedition.
The BBC reports…
But those pesky historians can’t let ships stay sunk, can they? From 2001 onward, a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to locate the Endurance’s wreckage. It wasn’t until July 2021 when an expedition named Endurance22 finally made some leeway on board the South African research vessel S. A. Agulhas II.
Captain clam at the helm!
Launched by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, and with help of amicable mermaids, the Endurance22 team located the remains of the ship in the Weddell Sea, on 5 March, 2022.
The team stated that the wreck was in remarkably good nick and went into a frenzy documenting it with their Ultra High definition equipment. Honouring their promise not to dredge up old junk the protected historic site and monument declaration set forth in the Antarctic Treaty System, no part of the wreck was salvaged.
So, it still lies in the depths as plunder for the taking!
Mini Documentary
If yer a history nutter buff, Cambridge University has put together a little documentary for yer viewing pleasure.
And for the elite historians, National Geographic released a documentary featuring The Endurance on 1 November, 2024.
This charming presentation recounts The Endurance’s voyage, demise, and modern rediscovery, complete with audio and video clips recorded during the historic voyage.
Official Synopsis
In a legendary feat of leadership and perseverance, polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton kept his crew of 27 men alive for over a year despite the loss of their ship in frigid pack ice. Over a century later, a team of modern-day explorers sets out to find the sunken ship. From National Geographic Documentary Films and directed by Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin and Natalie Hewit, ENDURANCE tells the inspiring stories of these two landmark expeditions, bound by their shared grit and determination.
If yer can’t watch embedded videos, be sure to view the trailer on YouTube.
Yer don’t need to be a seasoned historian to realise a ship commissioned during the early twentieth century be a completely different era from the Golden Age of Piracy of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
This be a wooden model – but imagine it’s made from LEGO
Sure, The Endurance may have flown sails and floated upon a wooden hull, but this particular vessel was steam powered, a technology that rose to prominence during the nineteenth century, decades after the sun had set upon the Golden Age.
Nonetheless, the LEGO Pirates theme attracts ship enthusiasts of all eras and The Endurance shares many characteristics with LEGO Pirate Ships. So with a little tinkering and rejigging, it could possibly be retrofitted to resemble a more authentic tall ship worthy of Captain Redbeard’s fleet.
It looks very sleek without all the ice
Concerns
Some of the biggest concerns raised by AFOLs is whether the ship will be minifigure scale, or if it will include minifigures, rigging and fabric sails. Some have postulated it may be a display piece like 10294 LEGO® Titanic* and lack the accoutrements many LEGO Pirate fans desire.
That would perhaps deter fans who prefer LEGO sets able to covertly blend among their classic set collection.
* LEGO.com affiliate link provided for your convenience.
The Wooden Model
Here be a video overview of the OcCre wooden model:
The Endurance already be known to some AFOLs and a couple have taken stabs at submitting their concepts to LEGO Ideas. Unsuccessfully mind you, so if this rumour be true, it will be the first official LEGO set based on the historic ship.
Here are some LEGO Ideas submissions that didn’t quite make it…
“HMS Endurance” by SuperSpruce101 with 3,363 supporters
Are these builds true to the photos and wooden models you may observe above?
Could The LEGO Group knock it out of the ice park with a 3,500-4,500 piece set?
What Do Yer Think?
If The Endurance was released as an official LEGO set would you be interested in acquiring one? To display as per the instructions? Or perhaps convert into something more piratey? Or would you prefer to save yer gold for a ship more authentic to LEGO Pirates?
Can The LEGO Group provide this design with justice?
Join us in the LEGO Pirates Forum so you don’t miss details of the upcoming set… and to share yer thoughts on The Endurance.
Posted by Mister Phes in Rumours | Comments Off on 10335 Endurance Ship to be released Black Friday 2024 [RUMOUR]
The Classic Pirates recently conducted an informal poll to gain a general consensus of the type of inspiration LEGO Pirate fans would prefer as the inspiration behind their entries in our next big building contest.
So now let’s review the poll results in scrutinizing detail to observe which option they found most appealing…
Fans were provided with four thematic poll options;
Monkey Island Madness
Distant Waters
Pirates of Pop Culture
The Infamous Steve.
A more comprehensive overview of these options can be found in the original Poll Blog Post or watch this video by Mikey J Productions to be brought up to speed.
Now, here be a break down of the results for each poll…
Facebook
Distant Waters and Pirates of Pop Culture were tied in third position with just 8% of the votes each.
With a 32% lead the winner of this poll is indisputable!
The Infamous Steve may have benefited from more wind in his sail, only reaching second position with 26% of the votes. Slightly less than half the votes of the mighty pirates, with Monkey Island Madness topping the poll with a massive 58% of votes!
It may be worth noting Facebook does not allow placing an image in conjunction with poll options. The closest an image can be displayed is within comments below, which unfortunately, will be hidden to mobile users unless they manually open the comments. And if they don’t, no visual illustration of the polls options is available to them.
For this reason, Monkey Island Madness and The Infamous Steve may have attracted more votes due to familiarity, whereas Distant Waters and Pirates of Pop Culture perhaps require clarification to enable poll-goers to understand what those options entail.
Nonetheless, Monkey Island Madness was the clear winner of the Facebook poll.
LEGO Pirates Forum
The LEGO Pirates Forum paints a completely different picture, with Monkey Island Madness plodding in last place at 11%.
We have a tie!
Pirates of Pop Culture fared slightly better at 15% but still firmly wedged within the least popular poll option zone.
Steve caught Distant Waters, then Distant Waters caught SteveThe remaining two options battled for the number 1 position! Initially, Distant Waters charged into the lead… but within a few days the The Infamous Steve leapt ahead and maintained the number one position for the majority of the poll.
We have a tie!
Well, that was until the last few days of polling, when Distant Waters made a sudden comeback to finish equal first with The Infamous Steve at 37% each.
Classic-Pirates.com
Pirates of Pop Culture barely scraped through at just 7% making it the consistently worst performing option.
Classic-Pirates.com perhaps attracts fans of the classic sets
Tied in equal second place is Distant Waters and Monkey Island Madness at 21%, yet both only garnered half the results of the highest performing option.
His infamy is growing…
The Infamous Steve sailed into the number 1 position at 42% – but surely this is a case of “classic” bias?
Averages
Each of the polls yielded a different result, so let’s analyse the data from a statistical perspective by using the magic of mathematics to determine the average score across all three polls.
Get yer calculators out and test this formula
So over the three polls the average result for each poll option calculates to….
Here be the combined totals of each option divided by three
Pirates of Pop Culture proved to the be least popular option with a mere 13% overall. Distant Waters took third position at 22%, and Monkey Island Madness achieved second position at 30%.
The Infamous Steve emerges victorious with 35% of the votes, not surprising given Steve be the strongest overall performer.
These poll results were recorded as of 9 May, 2024. As not all polls provide functionality that allow them to be closed, votes recorded after this date have not been included.
Conclusions
Averages aside, we may assume each platform has the potential to attract poll participants with voting preferences common to the users of that platform.
For example; Monkey Island Madness scored highly in the Facebook Group because it has a more “mainstream” following and thus “Monkey Island” is a more recognisable name to that audience. Yet, it scored significantly lower in the LEGO Pirates Forum and Classic-Pirates.com polls because those audiences are devout fans of classic LEGO Pirate sets, or builders with a strong desire to explore pirates from around the world, rather than just the traditional Caribbean setting.
Similarly, this may be the reason why Distant Waters scored higher in the LEGO Pirates Forum. That be the platform where the Brethren of the Brick Seas crowd frequents, and these particular fans are passionate about exploring MOCs inspired by pirates globally.
Let’s see what’s trending…
Trends
If any trends are to be observed; Pirates of Pop Culture did not lead any of the polls and consistently ranked last or no higher than third position, and thus could be interpreted as the least popular option.
As a side note; a couple of former Creative Critic participants confirmed voting for Pirates of Pop Culture, despite not having submitted building entries.
While not leading every poll, The Infamous Steve didn’t trail in any of them either, and was the best overall performing option across the three polls.
So does this make Steve the winner or should other factors be considered?
What Do Yer Think?
The Infamous Steve may have won by the law of averages, but Monkey Island Madness demonstrated a phenomenal lead in the Facebook poll, while Distant Waters gave Steve a run for his money in the LEGO Pirate Forum poll.
So what is a bloodthirsty pirate to decide?
So did Steve win this thing? Nay? Aye? Yay?
Maybe we could cleverly intertwine multiple options to afford greater creative freedom, but not widen the definition so broadly its open slather on choice.
The Return of the Classic Pirates was an engaging contest, resulting in fierce competition among its many great submissions. Just like the Indigo Islanders, the blue coat Soldier enjoyed considerable popularity, with remakes of two early Soldier forts claiming the second and third positions of the Main Building category.
This prompts us to wonder; what’s the most important aspect of MOCs inspired by classic sets? Is it the nostalgia? The attention to detail? Or both? Besides, who doesn’t love superbly executed remakes of these timeless sets?
In the second place position, “Saber Island 2023” by TomSkippy exudes the best of both worlds; it expands upon the original set, taking it from just 96 pieces to a whopping 948 pieces, as it fleshes out the nuances, while maintaining the original’s charm.
TomSkippy writes:
As I was thinking through different entries for the contest, I thought, “why not take a break and make a small moc that just clones a modern Lego Co technique?” 6265 Saber Island came to mind. I could just copy one of the tower builds from the new Disney castle. The set is 90% tower, it shouldn’t take long.
Side note: The set looks even better with physical bricks. It’s nice and imposing (didn’t want to spend booty on color coordinating everything, but it’s solid!
Let me know what you think!
The dirty laundry supplies have arrived – good thing they didn’t get lost at sea…
And isn’t it crazy how this build employs similar techniques to 43222 Disney Castle yet succeeds to be a radically different build?
But how good does it look in real life asks you? You’ll never know until you build it yourself! If you’re a fan of Soldiers, or even if you’re just a LEGO fan in general, the building instructions are available on Rebrickable so you can build your very own version. Give it a go!
A soldier just earned a bag of smelly long jonhns gold coins for all his hard work! Definitely worth the effort and he is ecstatic with happiness!
They keep insubordinate soldiers in the basement along with the spare swords
What a breathtaking view!
Notice the drunken supervisor upstairs?
There’s a special announcement for the soldier that just arrived…
The soldiers are protecting the fort at all times – in this version you get 5 minifigs
Isn’t this box art just amazing? Governor Broadside would be thrilled! If only this was an official LEGO set…
The Original 6265 Saber Island
As you may observe, TomSkippy’s recreation utilises more advanced building techniques than the original and offers more intricate detail and features.
Nonetheless, the original is an undisputed classic; released as the first small fort within the LEGO Pirates theme, priced around the US$15 (that’s US$36.95 in 2023 when adjusted for inflation) but you’d never come close to that low price these days on the secondhand market.
The original set was released in 1989 with just 96 pieces.
Also known by the name of Governor’s Bastion, this charming little tower fort includes a printed base plate, both large and small Soldier flag pieces, a palm tree (the kind you build from smaller pieces), a red dinghy, a cannon with 6 cannon balls, three white castle wall pieces (one with printed weathering to reveal bricks) and some lovely lattice.
It also includes a generous three minifigures; a commander and two soldiers, accessorised with muskets, a pistol, sabres, headwear (shakos/tricorn) and epaulettes. And let’s not forget the commander be one of the first minfigures to use a head piece with printed facial hair.
During early 2023, Bricksetconducted a poll to determine which classic LEGO set fans would like to see reimagined as a Gift With Purchase. More than 4,500 votes were cast with Sabre Island arriving in the number 1 position.
Despite the poll’s unofficial status, many fans hoped it would prognosticate future releases and result in an updated Sabre Island to compliment the new 10320 Eldorado Fortress… but alas! A pirate-themed Gift With Purchase eventually sailed our way, but it didn’t tickle the fans’ desires in the manner Sabre Island would!
What was the Return of the Classic Pirates Contest?
T’was a promotional initiative to inform the world the Classic Pirates have returned!
Second place winner of the Main Building Category won a set of their choosing to value of 70€
The Main Building Category offered three prizes; including a 10320 Eldorado Fortress for first place, a set to the value of 70€ for second place, and a set to the value of 35€ for third place.
TomSkippy is a regular contributor to the LEGO Pirates Forum. He’s especially good at reimagining classic LEGO sets, whether they be Pirates or even Classic Space. He also participates in Brethren of the Brick Seasand is great at building anything related to Pirates in general, as observed in his Flickr stream.
If you enjoy his builds and would like to support his work, be sure to rummage through his Rebrickable profile, where hopefully one day there be more building instructions available!
What Do Yer Think?
The Return of Classic Pirates contest attracted many great builds, yet only three could be selected as winners. Saber Island 2023 was definitely a fantastic entry and worthy of second place, but were there other builds that have been overlooked?
The remake in all its grandeur!
Did TomSkippy hit the nail on the head with Saber Island 2023? Or be there more he could have done to make it even better?
During August 2023, the Classic Pirates broke word that BrickLink Designer Program: Series 2 submission, Ominous Isle had passed review and would be available for Crowdfunding during June 2024.
Well, June 2024 is almost here and the official details have been announced by BrickLink on 1 May, 2024…
Welcome to your latest LEGO Pirates cove
The set will be able for pre-order on 6th Juneat 8am PT and cost US $239.99 /AU $339.99.
Crowdfunding will end 30th June with production commencing in November 2024. Sets will be shipped approximately six months after pre-ordering.
Remember, for the set to make it to production, BrickLink requires at least 3,000 pre-orders, and there is a maximum of 30,000 units.
BrickLink members may pre-order their favorite sets, with a limit of 2 of each set per household. All sets that receive over 3,000 pre-orders will be produced. Up to 30,000 of each set will be manufactured during a limited, one-time production run.
LEGO® Building Instructions
BDP Designer Program sets will feature digital building instructions and printable PDFs.
Jazlecraz writes:
My name is Jared Le Cras, a.k.a. ‘jazlecraz’ for anything LEGO related, and I have been a huge LEGO pirates fan for as long as I can remember. As a child, I was captivated by the sprawling pirate layouts seen in my LEGO product catalogues from the early 90s. Amazingly, these catalogues survived my lengthy ‘dark ages’ period and were a key inspiration in the creation of Ominous Isle.
We’ve passed 15,000 members so the Classic Pirates would like to extend a humongous thank ye to all the LEGO Pirate fans who have engaged and/or contributed content to our Facebook Group.
You’ve shared magnificent MOCs… fantastic photos and imaginative ideas! So keep them coming!
But there is more work to be done…
HURRAH! The gunpowder magazine has ignited!
Just think of how many AFOLs went into their Dark Age and have never awakened… We must rescue them from their slumber!
We also must pass the love of LEGO Pirates to our children… grandchildren… nieces… nephews… that annoying kid next door whose always losing their ball in your yard….
Whenever possible, share posts from the Facebook Group and Classic-Pirates.com blog to those who may be interested. Tag them in posts and comments.
So let’s ensure the love for LEGO Pirates remains stronger than ever and plot a course to 20,000 members!
