Color us impressed by this Middle Eastern medieval library masterpiece

When you think of medieval LEGO builds, you probably picture a lot of grey bricks (or yellow, if you’re feeling extra nostalgic). In this spectacular scene from German builder Marcel Veit, there’s nary a grey brick to be found. Instead, we’re treated to carpets, mosaics, and bookshelves popping with rich colors. The build was created for the Arabian Knights category in this year’s Brickscalibur competition, but with all those hues, it’s clear Marcel also has his eyes on the “Cerulean Count” prize – a bonus award for builders who get creative with color.

While Marcel has collaborated on RogueBricks projects, it’s been a full year since he’s shared a personal MOC, making this immersive build all the more exciting. Marcel is a builder whose clean designs, ingenious use of elements, and command with color have influenced many other builders. And while Middle Eastern settings have become more common in the Castle community, Marcel was an early advocate of exploring that setting in MOCs.

What I love about Marcel’s builds, and especially this one, is how dense with detail they are. Furniture, potted plants, lamps, and fixtures are both innovative and cohesive. The raised mosaic carpet looks so plush. Like a good book, I want to curl up and lose myself in Marcel’s world.

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Aren’t you a little short for a Mûmakil?

War elephants were a staple of combat in North Africa, but what makes them legendary in the battle against the Romans is Hannibal’s march across the Alps. Builder Tylar pays tribute in LEGO to Hannibal’s last standing elephant, Surus, at the battle of the Trebia. Cloaked in red with a howda on its back, Surus might look a little small by Oliphaunt standards, but he is surprisingly close to scale for the now-extinct North African elephants used by the Carthaginians. Tylar completes the scene with wintery terrain on the Trebia banks and a fun mix of historical minifigs, including some Roman soldiers with wolf hoods.

A six-wide Alfa Romeo with a storied history

Car fans know that the love of an Alfa can haunt you, and Sam Andreas knows they can haunt LEGO fans too. Sam had to put this build aside before coming back to get it right. This specific iteration of the Alfa GTV 2000 comes with the storied history of a pristine car that fell off a flat-bed tow truck, only to be redeemed as an off-road vehicle, then totaled on an infamous video. Cars, whether in metal or LEGO, can break our hearts – or lift them!

She sees the flowers and she wants them painted black

The LEGO Botanicals sets have offered a steady source of bright colors and inspired plenty of builders to arrange their own bright bouquets. For Taylor (@bricksandchaos), whose builds explore “elegant unease,” flowers became a way to express feelings ranging from elation to anxiety. Her blooms don’t blossom – they writhe. Taylor’s monochrome flower series riffs on Botanicals designs using all black parts, supplemented with spines and tentacles that fuse beauty with seething unrest.

Taylor’s latest MOCs add red eyes to each flower and hand-like prongs at the end of the tendrils to chilling effect. Do these roses stop to smell the humans?

More of Taylor’s flower series follows

An alabaster fortress on the brick sea

Alex (bryckland) leaves no part wasted as this fortress protects the coast. Built for the French Feodalis roleplay campaign, every part selection by Alex is a joy. From a door handle to a ballista, from mushrooms to window bars, every piece has been placed with intention. And don’t miss the color selection either from top to bottom. The fortress’s dome gives a beautiful flair of faded copper, while the base shows its wear against the battering waves.

Alex also uses an approach for a classic castle feature that I had not seen before. Using the newer Brick 1×3 Half Arch back-to-back, Alex tops the fortress with great crenelation (word of the day!).

Take a break from winter’s chill with this sunny summer palace in LEGO

LEGO castles, both official sets and fan creations, tend to focus on medieval fortresses, but most of the royal palaces still standing in Europe are built around gardens, not garrisons. Palaces like this one from Swedish builder Mikael Norling. While the builder doesn’t list a specific inspiration, the design, with the mix of light nougat and white, captures the aesthetics of 17th and 18th-century palaces inspired by the grandeur of Versailles. The Baroque touches use boomerangs, forks, ferns, flowers, and more to provide texture and detail.

Take a tour of the palace gardens after the break

LEGO livery debuts at Las Vegas F1 Grand Prix, coming March 1 to Speed Champions

No partnership has been more significant for LEGO in 2025 than Formula 1. LEGO’s line of F1 cars are among the best Speed Champions sets ever, and putting the F1 drivers in life-size brick-built cars at the Miami Grand Prix caused a viral sensation. The latest piece of news may top even those, though: next year, LEGO is going racing in real life! In a partnership with the all-female feeder series known as F1 Academy, the newly formed LEGO Racing is debuting car number 32 in LEGO colourways, with Dutch racing driver Esmee Kosterman behind the wheel.

And, of course, you will be able to buy a LEGO version of the car from next March 1. 77258 Speed Champions F1 Academy Car fits in the same bracket as other F1 sets in size and price, albeit with a reduced 201 pieces. (Hey, funding an F1 Academy drive won’t come cheap!) On a serious note: barely a week goes by that we’re not talking about LEGO tying in with some brand or a new product activation. And yes, this is fundamentally a move driven to make money for both parties. But it would’ve been easy to just produce a set and be done with it; it’s nice to see LEGO going the extra mile and trying to make a positive difference in the sport.

LEGO Speed Champions 77258 F1 Academy LEGO Race Car | 201 Pieces | Available March 1 |US $27.99 | CAN $34.99 | UK £21.99

More set details and LEGO’s official press release follow

This foe is beyond any of you. Run!

Mitch Phillips is back at it again with another incredible beast build: this time the Flame of Udûn itself. The Balrog is arguably the most popular creature in The Lord of the Rings films (and likely set to appear again in the upcoming season of Rings of Power), and this monstrous build does it justice. Of course, it wouldn’t be a MitchBuilds build without some great part usage.

The impressively massive wings are comprised of a plethora of plastic glider wings from the old Ninja and Adventurers sets, there are translucent orange Hero Factory torsos hiding in the flames atop its back, and you might find more than one color of hot dog featured throughout the build. This is a Balrog build poised to strike fear into even the bravest of the Fellowship.

As always, you can check out the full assembly of Mitch’s Balrog build on YouTube:

Team Rocket, bricking off at the speed of light

There’s been plenty of chatter about which Pokémon will make the cut for the first waves of LEGO sets, but there hasn’t been enough talk about the true MVPs of the franchise: Team Rocket! Korean AFOL nunsseugae brings the trouble and makes it double with brick-built versions of James and Jess and their most dangerous Pokémon partners – Meowth and Wobbuffet. The builder has created dozens of Pokémon over the years, but this foray into villainous trainers is my favorite of nunsseugae’s creations so far. The hair and posing are perfect, and of course, James has his rose.

Of course, for all their bluster, James and Jessie aren’t truly wicked. Evil has a face in the Pokémon world, and nunsseugae has built that too!

Vicious TIE Viper is ready to SHMUP some Rebel scum

In these parts, NoVVember always has two Vs in celebration of the Vic Viper starfighter and the memory of builder who inspired the tradition. Builder WyndGekko shows that the tradition is also held in a galaxy far, far away with this fresh upgrade to her 2022 TIE Viper design. The ship bears all the necessary traits of a Vic Viper – the twin prings, single dorsal fin, and rear lateral wings – while also looking like a design that might have been heisted from the Seinar Test Facility, alongside the TIE Avenger. Viper traits aside, it’s one of the best custom TIEs I’ve ever seen, especially for the color-blocking on the struts and the subtle greebling.

Feeling nostalgic for NoVVember? Check out our extensive Vic Viper archives.

LEGO rings in 2026 with new Garden, Architecture, and Art sets

Today LEGO revealed three attractive new display sets for adult builders across a range of themes. LEGO Art 31218 Japanese Cherry Blossom Landscape doesn’t adapt a particular iconic work but rather evokes the style of ukiyo-e style in a lush and textured scene. LEGO Architecture 21064 Paris – City of Love takes iconic Parisian landmarks (some of which have appeared in brick before) and assembles them in a stylized shadowbox. Finally, and probably of most interest for readers of this site, LEGO Icons 11372 Autumn Cottage Garden is the third “Gardens of the World” set and combines a Tudor-style cottage (complete with a tiny gnome!) and fall foliage, including a new leaf mold and two new bird prints. We have two observations from this mix – first, an English autumn set in January? Second, LEGO is really blurring the line with these themes. As with the Fauna Collection and Restaurants of the World, traditional themes seem less important for these non-IP 18+ sets. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

LEGO Art 31218 Japanese Cherry Blossom Landscape| 1892 Pieces | Available January 1, 2026 | US $139.99 | CAN $179.99 | UK £99.99

Bring colour and nature into your home with this LEGO Art Japanese Cherry Blossom Landscape (31218) building set for adults. Inspired by the beauty of springtime in Japan and the country’s Ukiyo-e artists, this brick-built 3D Japanese wall art features Mount Fuji, a teahouse, a bridge, a waterfall, flying Japanese cranes, and cherry blossom, ‘Sango-Kaku’ maple and Japanese umbrella pine trees.

This colourful home office decor piece comes in a black lacquer shadow box frame and has 2 display options. It can be mounted on a wall with a hanger or freely stood on a flat surface.

The artwork’s waterfall flows beyond the frame so that on a wall it pours directly out, or can be adjusted to spill out onto a flat surface. This LEGO 3D wall art set offers a calm, immersive and mindful experience for adults as you build the set from LEGO bricks. A treat for yourself or a Japanese gift idea for women and men who are art lovers, this model includes instructions to guide you through a creative activity.

LEGO Architecture 21064 Paris – City of Love | 958 Pieces | Available January 1, 2026 | US $79.99 | CAN $99.99 | UK £69.99

Embrace your fascination with Paris and its iconic landmarks with this collectable LEGO® Architecture Paris – City of Love (21064) home decor building set for women, men and adults aged 18 and over. Create a display piece that makes a stunning architectural gift idea for you or any history or travel lover. Explore the starry sky and cityscape as you build. Discover the details of the Eiffel Tower, Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, the Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre. Finish the set with the decorated ‘City of Love’ brick and the brick-built frame, then hang it on a wall or display it on a shelf in your home or office. As you create the framed wall decor artwork, enjoy enhanced building with the LEGO Builder app, zooming and rotating with 3D instructions while saving and tracking progress – all from within the app. This premium set will appeal to you or any creative adult who loves history, travel or Paris architecture, and it makes a great gift for LEGO building fans. Set contains 958 pieces.

LEGO Icons 11372 Autumn Cottage Garden | 1102 Pieces | Available January 1, 2026 |US $119.99 | CAN $149.99 | UK £99.99

Capture the essence of autumn with the LEGO® Icons Autumn Cottage Garden (11372) model building kit for adults. Craft a seasonal centrepiece bursting with autumn colours. Unwind as you build each intricate detail, then rearrange the trees, plants and cottagecore decor elements to create a vibrant display for the home or office. Inspired by storybook cottages, this addition to the Gardens of the World collection features birch, weeping willow, blue spruce and maple trees, plus seasonal flowers. Other highlights include a sundial, birdhouse, vegetable cart, a garden gnome and a stream with stepping stones. A cottage with a cosy kitchen and woodland creatures including robin and nuthatch birds, a squirrel, frog, and snail add the final touches to this model – a perfect gift for adult fans of creative home decor. Build smarter with the LEGO® Builder app – zoom, rotate in 3D, track your progress and follow step-by-step digital instructions. Contains 1,102 pieces.

Monster Mash collab is an NPU smash

Halloween may be in the past, but we’re still haunted by a collab of classic movie monsters reinterpreted in LEGO by top character builders.

Fresh off winning the 2025 Bio-Cup, Hlebo Bas gets back to the mad NPU science with this wild and inspired take on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Both the good doctor and his alter ego feature wonderfully expressive faces from a fun mix of parts. Just as impressive is the sinewy sense of movement that the builder excels at.

Another Bio-Cup alum, GiiKei, unearths this stunning Mummy. The delicate limbs wrapped everything from rubber bands to minifig helms to balloon panels looks phenomenal in the leonine pose, but the showstopping piece here is the buildable Rey face painted gold.

Click to see the rest of monster mash, if you dare