In order to compile a list of the biggest and most challenging Lego sets, it was necessary to narrow down the criteria. First, the sets have to be mass produced by LEGO. In other words, we’re not considering any giant custom sets like the 6-meter Death Star Trench or insane 150,000 piece recreation of Helm’s Deep from Lord of the Rings. Second, we excluded expandable sets such as the Modular Building series that you can keep adding on to like the Town Hall (10224), Green Grocer (10185), and the newly released Palace Cinema (10232) that can be combined together to lay out enormous Lego city scenes. Furthermore, to define what we mean by “biggest” the list considers those Lego sets with the largest amounts of pieces and/or final completed size of the set. As far as “challenging,” most of the sets listed below are suggested for builders aged 16 or older, although I’ve personally seen kids half that age cranking out 1,000+ piece sets with hardly any difficulty. Some of the sets listed below are still available at Lego stores worldwide, while some are out of production.
But you may find retired sets listed for outrageous prices on Amazon or eBay, though, those ones are arguable the best LEGO sets. Once Lego stops selling an item, or if produced in limited quantities, third parties grab those products and jack up the price depending on demand. You’ll find Lego sets a purchase limit per customer on certain items. Last week we created a list of must-have movie-themed Lego sets. Now, here’s a list of the most challenging and biggest lego sets, ordered somewhat subjectively but with consideration of total number of pieces combined with level of difficulty. By the way, the number in the parenthesis represents the Item Number in case you decide to go on a hunt for one of these Lego sets. It’d be hard to argue against Lego’s Star Wars Collector’s Millennium Falcon as being one of the most challenging and largest Lego sets (it also probably ranks as our #1 LEGOs for adults). The $499 Millennium Falcon is suggested for ages 16-years and older but younger kids can probably get through it with some supervision.
The highly detailed scale model is made up of a whopping 5,195 pieces but only 5 mini-figures including Luke, Princess Leia, Han, Chewbacca, and a stormtrooper. Why the set doesn’t include C-3PO and R2-D2 mini-figures is sort of a mystery (weren’t they on the Falcon during the mission to rescue Leia?), but nevertheless the ship itself is more than enough to focus on. The Collector’s Millennium Falcon was released in 2007 and retired in 2010, but remains the most-expensive mass-produced Lego set to date. If you need a little break from science fiction-based Star Wars sets you can jump into an architectural project building the Taj Mahal. The $299 set gives you more bang for your buck than the Collector’s Millennium Falcon, boxing a total of 5,922 pieces (about 700 more than the Falcon). What also makes this set a bit more of a challenge for builders is that all the pieces are all generally the same color. This makes it especially difficult for those who like to dump all their Lego pieces into a pile rather than build bag-by-bag.
Puzzle builders will attest to the difficulty of puzzles that don’t vary too much in color or patterns. The Lego model of the famous Taj Mahal palace in India was released in 2008. The Super Star Destroyer is a massive Lego set with 3,152 pieces and five mini-figures including Darth Vader, Admiral Piett, Dengar, Bossk and IG-88. You’ll spend most of your time building the interior structure of this ship (which in the end you don’t even see), but the results are an extraordinary detailed rendition of the massive ship from the Star Wars saga that measures almost 50-inches and weighs almost 8 pounds. The Super Star Destroyer sells for $399 US.Who has time for pirate ships and space stations when there's Creepers to fight and mines that need exploring? There's a ton of cool and complex Lego sets out there, but any friend of Alex and Steve knows that the best bundles of blocks come from the Minecraft universe. But which sets deserve your money and imagination? We've complied 10 awesome Lego Minecraft sets that cover a variety of prices and play styles, leaving no Lego brick un-turned.
To see more awesome Minecraft loot, check out Gamepedia's Gamer Gift Guide here. Why not begin things at The End Portal? The Endermen need a lesson in manners, and there's no better teacher than Steve and his Diamond Sword. The library stacks of his secret stronghold are ready for discovery, as long as you can avoid the cave spider. View it on Amazon here. Sometimes your Minecraft building adventures need a little less structure and a ton of imagination. If you're the type that wants to snap things together and see what happens, the Crafting Box Set is a perfect addition to your Lego collection. From Redstone elements to TNT, every bit and block in this set can combine with other biomes to form something original and all your own. If you're in need of a gigantic set with everything from towns and monsters to heroes and watchtowers, the Village Building Kit might be calling your name. This 1,600 piece set may not take a village to raise it, but may very well require a lot of your time and dedication in the building process.
With so many individual pieces and buildings, this set is perfect for custom builds and beginning new adventures with each tear-down. We all need a place to get away from it all once in awhile, so why not take a break from the world with the Snow Hideout Building Kit? This smaller, inexpensive set features a snowscape escape that can build directly into other sets or stand alone. If the cold never bothered you anyway, grab your snow golem and set out for icy adventure. Every good adventure needs a fierce foe to overcome, and the Ender Dragon Set lets you build a villain worth its weight in Redstone. This set features a cadre of Endermen figures, a sandstone dueling ground to set the scene of battle, and the massive Ender Dragon, ready to defend the dragon egg clutch. The dragon itself is worth the price of admission, but the epic arena is just icing on the dragon-based cake. The Micro World sets are tiny bits of awesome, but none are as cool or haunting as The Nether Set.
This micro-scale Lego model has flying Ghasts, patrolling Pigmen, and a compact size that combines in big ways with other sets. These micro-mobs pack a wallop, so be prepared for anything if you're planning to set foot through the portal and take on an adventure of a different size. Need a hero with fresh looks and brand-new weapons? Get yourself a Steve who can do both with this skin pack. This pack includes additional shovels, axes, swords, and a few new looks to fit any adventuring occasion. Sometimes the only thing left to do is storm the fortress, or in the case of the Fortress Building Kit, construct the fortress before tearing it all down. Containing almost 1,000 pieces, the Fortress Kit has massive walls, looming watchtowers, and a plethora of skeletons ready to do battle. Tree-top adventures await those cracking open the Jungle Tree House Kit. This vertical abode features many crafting and accessory elements, trap-doors for fending off attacks, and multiple avenues of construction.