Will It Motu or Notu? Schleich Big Knights Castle

Schleich has been around for quite while. They specialize in super detailed animals and fantasy creatures. More recently, they have been adding figurines and now "action figures". These toys are all pretty awesome and are in a 3 3/4 scale, like Star Wars and G.I. Joe. They have been making playsets and dioramas, as well, and a few of them really caught my eye.

Since I have been on a vintage MOTU binge, my mind immediately began trying to figure out just how well these playsets would scale with my toys. I asked sellers on Amazon.com who responded negatively, but it didn't sit well with me. Being a toy collector for as long as I have been, my mind has become pretty adept at this. Many of you, I'm sure, can say the same. I decided to reach out on He-Man.org.

Nobody was negative on it but they weren't really sure either. One member, Barbecue17, had the playset I was thinking about and had covered it on his blog, which you can check out here - http://www.actionfigurebarbecue.com/2015/09/action-figure-review-big-knights-castle.html. I really liked what I saw from his coverage so he offered to sell me his set for $60, much more reasonable than Amazon and Ebay's prices, which were in the $140s.

So let's look at it!

Firstoff, this thing is HUGE.

As a size comparison, here it is next to Castle Grayskull

The drawbridge opening is much wider and around the same height as the Jawbridge.

So no clearance for He-Man on Battlecat but the Battle Ram can glide through with ease.

So far, my instincts have served me well.

Now, on the walls of the castle, there is a lot of standing room. The figures don't have as much coverage as Grayskull's Right tower but significantly more than its Left.

You can even spice it up with other MOTU offerings.

Aside from the drawbridge and wall, the castle comes with a large central tower. It is here, and only here, where scaling is a bit of an issue.

As you can see, the inner rooms of the tower are a no go but the walkway that opens up is wide enough for He-Man and Battlecat to stride across.

So, let's just get straight to play time and really see what this thing looks like.

You could use this as an extension of Castle Grayskull, or as I will probably use it, the Palace of Eternia.

Minas Tirith much? And yes, that is a custom Evil Warriors battle barge type thing that I made using a Sentinel 7 boat from Toys R Us.

Another cool thing is the dungeon which can be displayed separately from the castle.

"We can all call on the Ancient Spirits of Evil down here."

"Lots of room for activities."

Poor one out for the Jabba's Palace Rancor Pit we never got.

Behind the castle walls, I think, holds the most fun.

Besides what fun is it to storm a castle if you never break through?

So, will it Motu or Notu? I think the answer is definitely in the affirmative. It will definitely MOTU. I am super thankful for Barbecue17 offering this to me at such a reasonable price. There are a couple other sets like this that I think I will get my hands on as well.

Good Journey!

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