River Knights Watch Tower

About this set:

Many hours were poured into tailoring this watchtower. I drew much inspiration from classic castle themes and colors, and did my best to incorporate them into the design.

The build consists of a main floor, suspended over the river by arches, there is a bridge leading to a small library whit a reading nook and below that an alcove with a door that holds a spooky secret!

Under the main foundation lies a blacksmith shop and above all this sits the main entry hall. Here the captain of the guard meets with merchants at a table laden with good food, strong drink and many maps and charts. Owls preside over the hall with hooded eyes, listing to the affairs of men with an aloof disinterest. 

Moving from the main hall we climb a ladder to the storeroom where barrels of drink, chests of food and other supplies are generously packed, this room also leads to a balcony with a view of the river.

Above the main hall is also an attic haunted by bats and the remains of some poor soul who never found their way back down. Here the blueprints to the tower are stored and forgotten about.

Above all this is the bedroom, a lavish place of comfort for the ladies of the tower. We have a wash basin, wardrobe and canopy bed nestled snug in this room with windows opening on all sides.

Above this is the treasury, a shallow attic space filled with treasure! Strong boxes of gold bars and coins, and other wealth are pack into this area and guarded by deadly archers.

Play features:

There are many places to place figures with most of the floors and rooms all accessible by doors, stairs and ladders.

There's a hidden treasure stash under the main building.

The water wheel spins and causes the large hammer in the blacksmith shop to move up and down.

Pull the center stone and send unwanted guests through a trap door in the floor of the main hall!

There are several removable sections of tower as well as three removable wall panels, making play and accessibility exceptionally easy.

The roof of the ferry is removable as well, allowing access to the hold and the ramp can be lowered to let passengers and cows on and off.

Minifigures:

Captain of the Guard

Ferryman

Ferryman's Daughter 

Huntress

Blacksmith

Wizard Skeleton

2 River Knights

4 Foot Soldiers

A bit of lore:

Allow me to introduce the River Folk, a faction of merchants and ferrymen who provide a thriving network of trade and commerce to the waterways of the royal kingdom. 

They are a primarily peaceful group, though they will not hesitate to defend their vast wealth with sword and pike!

The River Knights garrison these majestic watchtowers to keep an eye on their holdings and to defend the Ferrymen and traders from river pirates and thugs.

The River Folk love good drink, lively music and gold trinkets of all kinds. They enjoy mapping and exploring the lakes and rivers of the kingdom, forging strong blades, and fostering a close connection with the surrounding wildlife. They live off the land, harvesting honey, fish and apples as their primary food source.

The queen has granted them the guardianship of the waters, making them highly sought after allies for many of the surrounding factions.

​The inspiration:​

I came up with the idea of the River knights or River Folk a few years back with my wife Kathryn, we talked about the introduction of a new faction that would mix well with the current ones but stand out with a unique style and color pallet of it's own. I played with this idea for a couple years and decided to integrate it into a set for the bricklink designer program. I didn't just want to build another castle with the same knights and factions we have already, I was looking for something different that would add a new chapter to the castle scene. The River Knights seemed to do the trick, a new faction integrated into an existing world. With their own lore, culture and connection to the water I feel like they have accomplished what I set out to do.