LEGO Ideas 21356 River Steamboat pays homage to classic Pirates sets
The fan designer behind 21356 River Steamboat has revealed how classic LEGO Pirates sets influenced the look of the upcoming LEGO Ideas model.
LEGO Ideas officially revealed 21356 River Steamboat yesterday, with the 3,955-piece build due to arrive in April. The model is based on a winning creation by fan designer Aaron Hall, who’s Western River Steamboat managed to successfully hit the 10K supporters mark before being selected as a future LEGO Ideas release.
In a new interview with Aaron on the LEGO Ideas blog regarding 21356 River Steamboat, the designer discussed the many challenges he faced when it came to approaching the look of the build and the vessel’s nods to classic LEGO Pirates sets of yesteryear.
“Typically, when I design a model, I already know the scale I’m going for (minifigure scale is my favourite),” said Aaron, “so the next thing I do is imagine what the hardest part of the model will be to recreate in that scale, given the elements I have available.”
“Once I had that area of the model worked out. I then designed the rest around it. For the River Steamboat, there was no problem area really, so I sort of created one by deciding to use boat hull elements to pay homage to the old Pirate ship theme. I used those as the base and designed up from there.”
In addition to 21356 River Steamboat drawing some of its inspiration from past LEGO Pirates sets, the designer was also faced with the task of keeping the upcoming model as authentic as possible.
“The real challenge was trying to keep the proportions and scale accurate,” Aaron explained, “while also keeping it playable for minifigures. Everyone knows LEGO minifigures aren’t strictly proportionally accurate, so designing models for them that also look real-world accurate is always a challenge.
There’s no other ship that looks like a paddle wheel. People may not know the history, but one look at a paddle wheel and you know you are looking at something that has stood the test of time and is still making its way up and down the river.”
21356 River Steamboat will set sail for Insiders members on April 7 and everyone else on April 11, priced at £289.99 / $329.99 / €329.99. The LEGO Ideas set will also receive its own GWP in the shape of 5009157 Amelia Ticket Booth, a 152-piece model available from April 7 to 13, while stocks last.
LEGO Ideas sets confirmed and rumoured for 2025
| LEGO set | Price | Pieces | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21354 Twilight The Cullen House | £189.99 / $219.99 / €219.99 | 2,001 | February 1, 2025 |
| 21355 The Evolution of STEM | £69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99 | 879 | March 1, 2025 |
| 21356 River Steamboat | £289.99 / $329.99 / €329.99 | 3,955 | April 7 (Insiders), April 11 (wide release) 2025 |
| 21357 TBC | $69.99 | TBC | June 2025 |
| 21358 TBC | TBC | 1,343 | TBC 2025 |
| 21359 TBC | $59.99 | 3,251 | September 2025 |
| 21360 TBC | TBC | 2,026 | December 2025 |
| 21361 TBC | TBC | TBC | TBC 2025 |
| 21362 TBC | $59.99 | TBC | October 2025 |
| 21363 TBC | TBC | TBC | TBC 2025 |
| 21364 TBC | TBC | TBC | TBC 2025 |
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