75098 - UCS: Assault on Hoth

[Guest TabbyBoy]

20 minutes ago, Val-E said:

If it is good enough for TLG... Remember who sets RRPs.

Pricing can be confusing as RRP (Recommended Retail Price) and MSRP (Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price) are only guidlines and retailers can charge what they want within reason. For example, Harrods & Hamleys often charge 10-15% above and WH Smith charge 15-20% above. Anybody can charge what they like a long as the buyer is prepared to pay. Just be careful when you see "offers" at the likes of WH Smith as they rarely work out cheaper then anywhere else. Even supermarkets in the UK now charge a little extra by rounding up the '99p to the nearest pound where a £17.99 set at LEGO costs £18.00 and so on. It's a shame that retailers set out to mislead us and this is rife at UK supermarkets with their so called "offers".

I'm not sure about the EU, but do mainland member countries (eg, DE & NL) have different rates of VAT (and maybe another tax?) which may account for the price differences?

[Darth_Raichu]

Wake me up when it is >70% off

 

[Guest TabbyBoy]

3 hours ago, Darth_Raichu said:

Wake me up when it is >70% off

 

That'll be after EOL when buyer's remorse sets in ;-)

[fossilrock]

1 hour ago, TabbyBoy said:

That'll be after EOL when buyer's remorse sets in ;-)

Very doubtful.  Hoth sets always go up. 

[Guest TabbyBoy]

1 hour ago, fossilrock said:

Very doubtful.  Hoth sets always go up. 

I was pulling yer leg ;-)

It's a nice looking set but is a little overpriced esp with recent iffy UCS performances.

[Guest TabbyBoy]

1 hour ago, fossilrock said:

Very doubtful.  Hoth sets always go up. 

I was pulling yer leg ;-)

It's a nice looking set but is a little overpriced esp with recent iffy UCS performances.

[Brian Briggs]

15 hours ago, TabbyBoy said:

I'm not sure about the EU, but do mainland member countries (eg, DE & NL) have different rates of VAT (and maybe another tax?) which may account for the price differences?

Yes, VAT rates are different, e.g. 19% (Germany) vs. 21% (Netherlands).

[Brian92007]

15 hours ago, Darth_Raichu said:

Wake me up when it is >70% off

 

Me 2 I don't think I'm gonna buy it at rrp. Unless is 50 to 75% off.  

[cardensb]

I love this set! So many things going on with it. I want more snowspeeders from it.

[dcdfan]

[exciter1]

https://shop.lego.com/en-US/Assault-on-Hoth-75098

[ravenb99]

Winter is coming snow is falling...

 

[emmers]

Order from Amazon during the Force Friday finally arrived today with 09R6 seals. If Amazon still has original production run boxes, this thing is really not moving much at all. 

[Huskers1236]

After building this set about a month ago, I have to say that while it's a nice playset, it leaves a lot to be desired and the price tag is outrageous.  I get that Lego wants play features and all, but adding the Tauntaun feeding area, Wampa cave and crow's nest are a waste.  It feels a lot like a snowy version of Winter Village Market.  The separate builds are larger obviously, but you don't feel wowed when you are done.  I won't buy any unless really discounted and even then I'll part them out, I have no good feels about this one.  The fact that the Empire is attacking an ice fortress with a speeder and a tripod mounted cannon has a lot to do with that as well.

[exracer327]

Fall 2017 LEGO Catalog advertises Assault on Hoth as "Last Chance."  So is the UCS Tie Fighter, which I think many of us saw coming, as well as the SHEILD Helicarrier, and CREATOR Ferrari F40.  

I agree this set is a way over priced rehash of many other Hoth sets, many of which have better minifigures.  It's a shame they didn't include at least an AT-ST instead of the crows nest, speeder bike, and wampa cave - all of which were not needed for this set.

20% off 75098 was a nice idea during Force Friday II, but I'm still having a hard time justifying even $200 for this set.  However, if LEGO ends this set "early" I wonder if that would drive demand.  So is "Last Chance" an advertising ploy or is it really going to be retired shortly?  After all, 75098 was released just last year.  That is a VERY short run for an UCS if it is the end.

Additional thought:

LEGO shop@home has limit of 2 for both Slave 1 and Tie Fighter, both of which debuted in 2015.  There is a limit of 5 for Snowspeeder and Assault on Hoth, both of which debuted in 2016.  It seems odd that Assault on Hoth would be listed "last chance" and Slave 1 not.  Unless Disney is really hoping to pull off that Boba Fett stand alone movie and have the UCS set available during the premier.

Edited September 9, 2017 by exracer327

[eliminator]

I really do think it's on it's way out. I spoke with a manager at my local Lego store and they indicated that the set is a very slow seller.

Last week's FFII was a decent deal if you factored in the freebies: 20% off + double VIP points + Scariff Trooper + FF MF poster + Suitcase mini fig set...

Personally I only picked one up to serve as a quick way to get some Hoth elements as I'm working to have a display with scenes from each of my favorite  OT worlds (Tatooine, Hoth, Endor).

[Martae54]

51 minutes ago, eliminator said:

I really do think it's on it's way out. I spoke with a manager at my local Lego store and they indicated that the set is a very slow seller.

Last week's FFII was a decent deal if you factored in the freebies: 20% off + double VIP points + Scariff Trooper + FF MF poster + Suitcase mini fig set...

Personally I only picked one up to serve as a quick way to get some Hoth elements as I'm working to have a display with scenes from each of my favorite  OT worlds (Tatooine, Hoth, Endor).

I think your right!

[exracer327]

1 hour ago, eliminator said:

I really do think it's on it's way out. I spoke with a manager at my local Lego store and they indicated that the set is a very slow seller.

Last week's FFII was a decent deal if you factored in the freebies: 20% off + double VIP points + Scariff Trooper + FF MF poster + Suitcase mini fig set...

Personally I only picked one up to serve as a quick way to get some Hoth elements as I'm working to have a display with scenes from each of my favorite  OT worlds (Tatooine, Hoth, Endor).

I agree, I was very tempted to get one @ 20% off + all the other stuff you listed above.  But I fully expected it to run another year, as has been the cycle for UCS sets.  If they end it after just one year, it'll make this set a collector item just for the lack of circulation, not from popularity.  Strangely enough, there currently isn't a single ebay listing under $250.  At that rate, you still could have flipped the set, made a small profit and basically gotten the bonus items from FFII for free.

re: 20% sale for Assault on Hoth (AoH); I picked up an UCS Tie Fighter last year during Amazon Christmas in July for $125.  I have to admit, I was hoping for something like that for AoH.  The Tie has been on sale, even from LEGO, quite a few times.  This was the first sale I have seen for AoH.  I doubt (read - hope) it won't be the last.

Edited September 9, 2017 by exracer327

[eliminator]

9 minutes ago, exracer327 said:

I agree, I was very tempted to get one @ 20% off + all the other stuff you listed above.  But I fully expected it to run another year, as has been the cycle for UCS sets.  If they end it after just one year, it'll make this set a collector item just for the lack of circulation, not from popularity.  Strangely enough, there currently isn't a single ebay listing under $250.  At that rate, you still could have flipped the set, made a small profit and basically gotten the bonus items from FFII for free.

If it goes this year (as indicated by Lego and their "Last Chance" tag in the 2017 winter catalog) I feel bad for those UCS collectors that will end up paying over retail price for this set just to complete their collection.

It's hard to believe that we're already taking about AOH retiring and and it's potential value due to a limited run.

Edited September 9, 2017 by eliminator

[mauro23]

Could it be that LEGO plans an early improved rerelease of this set like they did with Death Star...?

[Val-E]

25 minutes ago, mauro23 said:

Could it be that LEGO plans an early improved rerelease of this set like they did with Death Star...?

What was early or improved about the DS remake?

AoH is pretty much a remake compilation of other sets anyway.

[mauro23]

25 minutes ago, Val-E said:

What was early or improved about the DS remake?

AoH is pretty much a remake compilation of other sets anyway.

Early: Half year after retirement the new one appeared...

Improved: Only the small ship was improved as I can remember

[Val-E]

Yeah, but they had 8 years to improve on the set and all they could do were the minifigs, redo the ship and only make some fine detail changes to the DS itself. It makes the new MF seem like a Boticelli.

I reckon there is not a big market for UCS movie scenes - even the playset ones struggle and that this is one set that will likely not be remade in a while.

They´ll get way more out of doing the more iconic spaceships.

[mauro23]

2 minutes ago, Val-E said:

Yeah, but they had 8 years to improve on the set and all they could do were the minifigs, redo the ship and only make some fine detail changes to the DS itself. It makes the new MF seem like a Boticelli.

I reckon there is not a big market for UCS movie scenes - even the playset ones struggle and that this is one set that will likely not be remade in a while.

They´ll get way more out of doing the more iconic spaceships.

It is clear when you look more deeply into AoH - the Snowspeeder is surely not UCS... ;-) 

But they have already made all iconic ships so I am expecting mostly remakes...

Edited October 9, 2017 by mauro23

[kumas]

I wouldnt be that harsh about DS, I think the design of the old was very good and theres no room for many improvements so the only problem is  50% price markup