LEGO NINJAGO's best display set can easily be a Castle creation

LEGO NINJAGO's best display set is a handful of steps away from being a convincing castle creation, and such a makeover is easily affordable.

The BrickLink Designer Program and other recent releases have some facets of Castle extensively covered, including siege weaponry and the fortresses themselves. That's not to say that everything from the glory days of LEGO Castle is back, with one notable aspect yet to return.

LEGO Castle has been known to explore magic and mythical creatures, including dragons, on rare occasions, but the revamped era of the theme has been much more grounded so far. Those pining for the more fantastical side of the nostalgic theme can thankfully be satisfied with a recent NINJAGO set.

The modern era of LEGO Castle has only explored dragons through 31161 Medieval Dragon, so far, and while that build is impressive, it doesn't quite compare to NINJAGO's 71847 The Guardian Dragon, thanks to the fact that the newer set is almost entirely static. As mentioned in our review, the decision to remove almost any posing options from 71847 The Guardian Dragon means that the designers can fill in any gaps usually left for ball joints to move, resulting in a far more realistic design.

The dragon itself is heavily reminiscent of NINJAGO's distinct art style, with plenty of angular features, but some of its most whimsical elements can be easily removed. This includes the halo-like crown on its head, and doing so helps the dragon feel much more grounded, but still leaves it with the alluring level of detail that makes the set stand out, as it stands imposingly over the base.

This is just the start of a simple, but dramatic transformation that can turn this NINJAGO model into the centrepiece of a Castle display. The intricate base is where we'll be focusing much of this Castle makeover, and a lot of the work is done for us, with only some minor modifications needed to remove the core NINJAGO design features.

The stone lanterns and torii gate can be easily removed from the build, and the red round 2x2 bracket pieces attached to the ground can be switched out for a few of the set's many grey versions of that element.

This leaves you with a fairly blank slate to decorate as you wish with grounded, natural features that go nicely with a medieval or fantasy setting. We've used 2020's 11940 Castle polybag and a couple of Collectible Minifigures to demonstrate the potential of a castle makeover of 71847 The Guardian Dragon, even for anyone on a significantly smaller budget after buying the NINJAGO build.

A small fortress structure over one of the streams works well to keep the eye drawn to the right side of the build, without intersecting with the rocks on the left side. You can fill in the gaps left by the removal of the stone lanterns by adding the likes of a flag and a campfire. Switching out the fantastical sword in the middle of the pond for a chest wrapped in roots helps keep the set grounded in Castle's core aspects, while still embracing some level of whimsy.

The base of LEGO NINJAGO's 71847 The Guardian Dragon isn't huge, but it serves as the perfect canvas for a Castle makeover of the LEGO model. You don't necessarily need that many pieces or an extensive budget, especially after picking up the £139.99 / $149.99 / €149.99 set.

You can expand on our suggested rebuild with an increased budget, adding everything from a wizard riding the dragon to an expanded footprint for the base for bigger battles. How far you go depends on how much you are willing to spend, but a bigger budget isn't a requirement to make a convincing LEGO Castle version of 71847 The Guardian Dragon.

71847 The Guardian Dragon is available now for £139.99 / $149.99 / €149.99, and castle-adjacent elements for such a makeover can be found in 31168 Medieval Horse Knight Castle for £109.99 / $129.99 / €119.99. Those on a budget can rest assured, though; you don't need a lot of extra elements to make 71847 The Guardian Dragon a convincing castle model. Click here to read our review of the recent NINJAGO display set.

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