Born in the mid 80s the only LEGO I remember owning or playing with as a child was at my Grandparents house, every Saturday when I would go and visit them. I missed out on the golden era of LEGO including the Castle and Knights themes which is an utter shame and, looking back, would of been so cool to own and play with!

I have no idea how I became so fascinated in this side of LEGO but I’m sure glad I find it and in turn have this new LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith set, better late than never they say.

With the added rumours surrounding the Summer release of a LEGO Medieval Castle has really spiked my interest and will no doubt rush out and grab that too!

Waiting up to purchase LEGO sets from their online store has now become a way of life and to secure your copy before the dreaded ‘on back order’ notice appears. I’ll be honest and say that I don’t like how this is done but also realise it can’t really be accomplished any other way.

I placed my order later than I usually would as LEGO had released details of a special Amelia Earhart Tribute GWP and wanted to time my purchase with this. After a few days of waiting my package turned up, in pristine condition as always, and put together a quick order unboxing Instagram Reel – I know, I’m slightly addicted to this new fad and genuinely do enjoy making them!

The set was very enjoyable to put together and was made even more special with help from my Wife. She has never been into LEGO and does give me grief, in jest of course, when a new package turns up or I bring home a new set or two from the supermarket, but yet she shows interest in modular buildings and loves to get involved. Having that time together and building a set of this size, or bigger, is wonderful and makes for life long memories.

Now onto the main event and why you’re really here, the review. Starting off with a bag by bag account of the Blacksmith building followed by the side build before finishing with the Minifigures, enjoy, and don’t forget to drop us a comment with your thoughts, and did you know if you register you can leave your own mini review and rating right here on this page, give it a go!

We also uploaded a show & tell review video to our Youtube:

The build:

The LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith (21325) is one of these sets that grabs you right from the get go, with the box art being the first thing you see once the set is in your hands. Continuing the trend of the new 18+ Adults Welcome line we get a black box with the finished set off to the right and the usual details on the left. I’m a big fan of this colour scheme for the boxes and it gives it a more Adult feel and the sense of ‘Collectable’ about it.

Slice open the tabs at one end and carefully slide out all 14 bags, which is quite reasonable for a set of this size. You’ll also notice a smaller bag that holds a few 16×16 baseplates, these will eventually be the base for each floor.

14 bags!

The instruction manual is filled with information about both the original fan designer and the LEGO designers, as is usual with all LEGO Ideas releases.

Bag one:

Bag one

we primarily put together the base on which this bad boy sits. With a 16×16 being the main piece with additional smaller plates and curved plates you get the final layout that is both very sturdy and looks the part. This is of course a handful of other pieces that are placed, these make a start on the buildings foundations.

Bag two:

Bag two

adds a bit more to the foundations and the ground floor which is the main Blacksmith workshop. The forge is almost complete and your can see there is a sword ready to be heated and finished off. 

The log pile under the stairs is a very nice surprise and uses the traditional 1×1 round brick and 1×1 circular printed wood tile. The uneven-mess of them really adds to the overall look.

Bag three:

Continuing up the stairs and fleshing out the walls a little more. The forge is finished with the inclusion of the light brick which illuminates the hot coals when you push in the bellow at the side. I really like how they’ve done the bellow and is Minifigure scale.

Relight my fire!

Bag four:

Bag four

The ground floor building is now complete with all the added accessories, which include:

• Two anvils, one with a heated Iron bar
• Barrel and swords
• Crate of raw Iron reserves
• Extra armour, helmet and shield
• Grind stone
• Coal for the forge
• Pots & pans

Blacksmith’s Workshop

The Blacksmith’s workshop looks incredible complete with all the  details and accessories. The grind stone turns, but unfortunately there isn’t a special knob to achieve this as you simply give the circular tile a flick.

There is plenty of floor space in order to get your hands in and position the Minifigures.

Bag five:

Arching tree

Bag five purely focuses on the tree and tiny Well builds which are rather quite intricate.

The Well isn’t a spectacular build as only comprises of a handful of parts. Two 4×4 ring plates with smaller 1×2 parts wedged in between make the base with four or five bits constructing the canopy which in itself is very one sided and leaves the opposite side bare.

Apples galore

When it comes to trees I am useless at MOCing them and they tend to fall apart, here however at first glimpse you’d think this particular tree would crumble at the lightest of touches but it’s quite the opposite, it’s very well designed and the build process is interesting to say the least. There are many techniques in play here and most would surprise anyone, there are parts that are reserved and upside-down within in the trunk section. My Wife insisted on building this part and managed to get one of the steps backwards which resulted in the tree not sitting correctly on the base, I had to take most of I apart to find out where she went wrong.

Target practice

The tree has a load of red Apples hanging from it, when wander around the other side you’ll find a target which is obviously used by one of the Minifigures.

Bag six:

Bag six

We start the first floor here in bag six, adding a few bits of furniture along the way including a table and a keg. Throughout all the bags we slowly add more to the chimney with bag six we start on the stove and its fire. More exterior wall parts go into place and the colour scheme changes to white, tan brickwork, and timber frames.

Bag seven:

Bag seven

Again more exterior wall building here in bag seven, adding SNOT (studs not on top) bricks along the way ready for the final timber frame detail.

We finally add a printed piece in the form of the Blacksmith’s sign, which looks great hanging from the sloped roof. The use of the slightly different shades of blue shield tiles is actually what drew me to this set, it’s so unusual to see this colour scheme on a traditional building of that era but it just works!

Bag eight:

Bag eight

This is perhaps my most favourite part because we add the timber frame detail to the outside of the first floor building. It’s looks so good and adds so much to the look of the whole build, both the Fan and LEGO designers did an excellent job here!

We also add another door, built in the exact same way as in the Blacksmith’s workshop.

First floor exterior detail

First floor interior

Bag nine:

Bag nine

Here we make a start on the top floor which will be the sleeping quarters. We add a writing desk with a stool, ink pot and feather pen.

Writing Desk

I think this is the first time LEGO has designed a bear-skin rug and I must say it looks stunning, the proportions of it are spot on and suit the Minifigure amazingly well.

Bag ten:

Bag ten

LEGO has been upping their Bed game every set it seems, the LEGO Sesame Street set had two beds that were designed really well, the bed in this set is even better. It features a snazzy green quilted duvet and a wooden frame.

Bed time

Bag ten finishes off the window which jutts out and again adds blue shield tiles to tie it all together. The roof beam is placed on top of the support pillar ready for the roof to be built and popped in place.

Bag eleven:

Bag eleven

This bag is relatively small compared to the rest as it consists of only the two roof ends. The two ends are identical but reversed in their build.

They slot over the triangle piece at the top of the roof and are held at in place at the base with Technic pins. The whole process is straightforward and isn’t as all fiddly, and the end result looks pretty good!

Roof ends

Bags twelve & thirteen:

Bags twelve & thirteen

I decided to join these two bags together as they roughly make the same thing, the roof.

Each side of the roof if slightly different as the ‘main’ side has a window and chimney to take into account, but the construction is roughly the same.

Roof segments

We start with joining a few larger plates which are stepped, we then add more of the blue, sand green, and black shield tiles to cover the roof. The two sections are help together by ball & socket joints so we can angle in perfectly once in place.

Ball & socket

Bag thirteen also adds the rest of the chimney, it needs to be added after bag twelve as the roof is too tight to slide on/off if the chimney is in place.

Chimney

The Brick work on the chimney itself carries on from the very bottom and keeps the grey colour from the forge.

After constructing these two bags that is the end of the main build and the Medieval Blacksmith is done!

Done!

The side build:

As with other LEGO Modular sets in the past there have been side builds in the for of vehicles, most notably the Pink Cadillac from the Downtown Diner set.

Here we have a vehicle but it’s very apt for the era, a Horse drawn cart. Bag fourteen contains the whole build and the two Black Falcon Knight Minifigures!

Horse drawn cart

The cart itself is quite basic but then you don’t want to over complicate it as for the era it looks spot on. The four cart wheels really look the part along with the brown fence pieces as the sides. There is plenty of room for all the Knights weapons, spare shields, and helmets.

Where the Knights sit is very open and there aren’t any reins which is a little odd, perhaps the inclusion of LEGO rope (the thread and two studs element) would of been nice and added so much more playability to it.

The Horse figure is absolutely stunning and having it in a tan colour makes it so much more unique

Horsie

LEGO does such an amazing job when it comes to their designs and prints and the Horses head it beyong anything I’ve seen recently. It’s so crisp and the colours stand out extremely well, although due to the way they are printed there is a slight which is more prominent on the nose, you can see its also not lined up 100%, but other than that the design and print is top notch!

Doggie

There is another animal included in this set, a Husky. It seems a little out of place in this setting, perhaps a recolouring of this particular piece would of been in order. A German Shepherd dog may have been more suited the time period.

The Minifigures:

The Black Falcons and the Blacksmiths

Being a big Minifigure collector these really peaked my interest, at long last I have some ‘new’ LEGO Black Falcon Knights, get in!

Like I mentioned above at the very start of this review, I just missed out on all the cool classic Castle sets and have been longing for a revival, I guess this will have to do until LEGO pull their finger out and do what us fans want.

Black Falcon Knight

Both Knight Minifigures have the same torsos and legs and they are amazing, the Black Falcon logo takes centre stage and it done extremely well. The print continues on the legs with the belt, blue shirt, and chain mail.

As this is a Female Minifigure the torso is still the same as the Male’s and there isn’t any signs of a waistline and is unisex, which is great for us collectors as we can build the Black Falcon army that much quicker.

The hair piece is short and looks the part, it covers part of the headband, which in itself is an odd inclusion.

Into the Male Knight now and again his torso and legs are identical to that of the female Knight.

The armour is slightly different as it only has one larger shoulder guard. Perhaps he’s a higher rank or he just likes that setup more, how knows, but they both look great!

Black Falcon Knight

His hair piece is a new colouring of the centre parting style and I must say looks good in this configuration, along with the older, more experienced head print.

Sadly neither of them have an alternate face, I would have loved an expression of anger or a grimace of some sort, used for when they’re in battle.

Archer

Onto the Blacksmith Minifigures now and the lady of the house who looks a dab-hand at archery.

Her torso is very reminiscent of the classic LEGO Forestmen, right down to her bow and arrow. The printing is a little off particularly the neck area, printing a lighter colour onto a darker one has always been hard for LEGO.

Unlike the two Knights the Blacksmith Minifigures both have alternate faces and expressions. The Female has a nice little smirk on one side and the other is suited to when she is performing her archery skills and features one eye closed ready to take aim!

Blacksmith

The blacksmith’s alternate face is him concentrating at the job in hand, most likely crafting a sword or piece of armour.

He’s sporting a rather fetching leather apron which continues on his legs. On the back of the torso you’ll see the apron straps, the attention to detail always fascinates me. The level of design and print standards is high again here.

I particularly like his beard and hair combo and they really finish this Minifigure of well. I can picture olden day Blacksmiths looking exactly like this!

Conclusion:

Overall the main Blacksmith building, the cart, and Minifigures are done incredibly well. The level of detail that’s included sure does makes this a highly collectable set. The part to price ratio is also good at just 6.2p (GBP) for 2164 pieces, you can’t go wrong.

Each floor of the building represents the era well and the accessories are a great addition. Within the Blacksmith’s workshop we also get a light brick which illuminates the coals in the forge.

The first and second floors are the living quarters and its nice to get a full suite of furniture, usually other modulars have very limited room. There is ample space for positioning Minifigures and getting your fingers into tight spaces to replace parts etc.

Each Minifigure has their unique points and the inclusion and revival of the Black Falcon Knights is awesome to say the least!

Thank you for taking the time to read our review of the LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith (21325) set, we hope you enjoyed it just as much as we did building it.

Please let up know in the comments below your thoughts not only about the review but the set itself, do you have it or would like to purchase it? Head below and get in touch!