Collection Rating 10 out of 10
Pro: wonderful castle with the “old” design (without plastic bases used in later sets). Decorated pieces and no stickers at all. It acquired a great value in the years and also many minifigs of the old style (especially the knights).
Cons: to buy it now it will require a lot of money. |
6085 Black Monarch Castle (1988)It is the most ancient castle in the East and, when see from the hills, is stunning with its three black towers and its huge entrance with the drawbridge, the interior movable grid and the vessels of the Black Knights. The interior is basically empty with a big green grass and on the right corner there is a guarded jail for the enemies. The castle is well protected by four armed guards with axes and spears and two other guards with arches. The king of the castle has also three brave knights at his service. The main entrance with the drawbridge has also a big frontal tower with a protected interior place and on top a watch place for the archers (there are watch places also on the two towers in the back)
Knights Black Dragon Knight: he is the king of the castle and the most powerful knight in the East. No one has ever defeated him in a lance tournament. His rank can be evinced by the blue trappings on his black horse and by his red cloak on his black armour. He is the heir of the most ancient and noble family in the East and was the one able to unitize all the kingdoms and make them join the Confederation. Red Dragon Knight: he the right arm of the king and can be distinguished by the red trappings on his white horse. He is indeed the young brother of the king and as much powerful as him in the fights. He is a wise mine and a brave knight. Blue Seal Knight: with his blue armour and red plume on a brown horse, he is the guard knight of the king and his duties are to protect him in every battle. He was made knight by the king himself and, despite his young age, he is very brave and strong. Yellow Fox Knight: he is the other young knight of the castle and with his red armour and yellow plume he is the guard knight of the Red Dragon. His skill in using the sword is simply outstanding. |
Collection Rating 7 out of 10
Pro: the dragon head is very nice and also it has the shield of the old black knights (the one with the eagle).
Cons: if you have enough money go for the bigger ship set, the Sea Serpent. |
6018 Battle Dragon (1990)To have the control of the Gral Lake the Black Knights built this small ship equipped with two soldiers (one with a crossbow and the other with two paddles): the boat was also used to transport small treasures from one side of the lake to the other or even to navigate the Cold River. It is characterized by a red dragon head in the front.
Knights n/a |
Collection Rating 6.5 out of 10
Pro: the knight is one of the new models with a separate armour and two lances. A ghost is also included in the set.
Cons: the “house” of the ghost is very poorly built. |
6034 Black Monarch's Ghost (1990)Within the mountains in the Black Knights territory there is a place in which they believe that the spirits of the ancestors of the King’s lineage rest in peace. To protect this place the King ordered to build an outpost protected by a lonely knight with his falcon.
Knights Grey Wolf Knight: he is the guardian of the outpost. It is told that he loves to live and travel alone although loyal to the King; it is also told that he’s able to talk with the spirits. Anyway he’s indeed a powerful and very quick knight, equipped with his grey armour and with his white horse. |
Collection Rating 8 out of 10
Pro: nice additional set than can also be combine with the walls of the Black Monarch Castle. The catapult is also nice.
Cons: without the Monarch Castle it doesn’t have much sense. |
6059 Knight's Stronghold (1990)During the war with the Crusaders, the Black Knight built this stronghold just in front of the castle in order to have an additional line of defence. It has a big wooden door protected by a black piece of wall and it is guarded by three soldiers. The front door is decorated with shields and torches. To have also an additional offensive weapon, the stronghold was equipped also with a catapult and another soldier was assigned to this task.
Knights White Falcon Knight: he is a knight loyal to the Black Dragon knight and he’s the guardian of the stronghold.. He is famous for being the heir of the old family of the Falcon Knights (now disappeared from the world of Altaria). It is equipped with the shields and the armour of that family and he’s very proud of it. |
Collection Rating 6 out of 10
Pro: nice knight with the new helm with dragon red plumes and a complete set of weapons.
Cons: it is only the knight so it could be only a starting set. |
6009 Black Knight (1992)This is basically the knight with his equipment. So see the description of the character.
Knights Black Falcon Knight: he is a knight loyal to Cedric the Crow but loves to travel alone and does not live in the castle. He is famous for being a winner of tournaments and was beaten only once by the Black Dragon Knight. It is equipped with grey armour, any type of weapons and of course a black horse. |
Collection Rating 7.5 out of 10
Pro: nice set with interesting details such as minifigs from the old castle series, a beautiful painted sail, a golden cup and many decorated shields.
Cons: the dragon head of the smaller ship is nicer than the dragon symbol of this set. |
6057 Sea Serpent (1992)It became soon evident that the small ship was not enough to control the lake and therefore the Black Knights built a bigger vessel; the Sea Serpent is equipped with four paddles and even a sail painted with a dragon. There is a real crew on board: the captain with a crossbow, the quartermaster and three soldiers (one is an archer). There are also shields of decoration and there is of course place to storage small treasures. There is a small dragon symbol in the front.
Knights n/a |
Collection Rating 9 out of 10
Pro: the knights of the castle are beautiful and equipped with new helms. The interior is accurate: I loved the well and the yellow walls of the internal storage house. Also the front tower looks great.
Cons: compared to the Black Monarch castle is kind of an evolution although it is build on a big plastic painted base (which is the new line of castle sets) and has less minifigs. |
6086 Black Knight's Castle (1992)This is the castle of Cedric the Crow, king of the same lineage of the Black Dragon and therefore part of the Black Knights. This castle is build on a rocked hill and has a big drawbridge and an iron gate at the entrance. The front tower as a watch point on the top with two guards and on the front there is also a smaller tower with another guard. On the back there are another small tower in which is told to live the ghost of the dead wife of the king and also a small house (with a dining room) used to storage goods and food. The interior of the castle contains a small square with a well and an hidden cave to store treasures. The kings lives there with other three knights.
Knights Cedric The Gold Crow: he is the king of the Castle and he’s the Dragon Knight’s cousin. His wife died at a young age and her ghost is told to live within the castle. He’s a very strong warrior and rides a black horse with red trappings (symbol of his rankings) and has a grey armour with yellow plumes (the reason for the nickname Gold Crow). Compared to his cousin is more keen on war than on politics. White Swan Knight: he is the prince of the Castle and, despite his young age, he’s very expert on riding his white horse equipped with grey armour and white plumes. He’s a free spirit and loves enjoying life and beautiful women. Brown Bear Knight: he is the personal guard knight of the king and as strong as him. Equipped with old armour and helm he rides a brown horse; during the fights he’s not so quick but has an incredible strength and could cut a big tree in two with his sword. Silver Dolphin Knight: he is another guard knight and rides a white horse with blue plumes. He’s a very clever man, more interested in literature and poetry than in fighting and wars. Anyway he comes from a noble family and was trained in combat since he was a child. |