LEGO NINJAGO’s 2023 sets include the theme’s biggest sword

A LEGO designer has shared several behind-the-scenes insights into the latest wave of NINJAGO sets, as well as their varied design features.

The LEGO Group’s ninja-inspired LEGO theme, NINJAGO, has proven surprisingly resilient – with new sets releasing every year since 2011. 2023 is kicking things off with 10 new sets, which cover subject matter such as mechs, motorcycles, mechs riding motorcyles, and more than one dragon. 

From that perspective, long-time LEGO NINJAGO fans may feel a little fatigued. However, a tweet thread from Niek van Slagmaat (aka Toothdominoes) may lure you back, thanks to the rare peek at the design process it offers.

A particular draw of this NINJAGO wave is 71785 Jay’s Titan Mech, which offers a notably lankier design than we’re used to seeing. It also includes a massive bladed weapon that uses multiple pieces to capture the necessary detail. If you’re thinking this set produced some design challenges, you’re right. 

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“The Jay Titan Mech was my main focus”, Niek says in a tweet. “I did the sketch and finished the model. This one was super different from the mechs I usually do. We went super sleek and streamlined this time, which can be quite hard when it is this big.”

“Getting the proportions right, while making sure the joints were strong enough to hold not only the long limbs but also the biggest Ninjago sword ever was a challenge.”

Interestingly, some of the wave’s sets have been considered for some time. The two given examples are 71783 Kai’s Mech Rider EVO and 71787 Creative Ninja Brick Box, the latter of which encourages more freestyle building.

“The Kai Mech rider was a concept that I pitched a couple of times and thankfully, we found a spot for it in this year’s Core wave,” Niek says. “Our talented Design Manager Heiko then took the idea and turned it into the set you see here. I love how crazy this concept is!”

As such, if you’re a NINJAGO fan you may have a new appreciation for the theme’s design process – and a better sense of how it’s innovating. You can read Niek’s entire tweet thread here, or scope out the full wave in our article on the subject. All of the new NINJAGO sets will be available at LEGO.com from January 1, 2023.

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