The Ghost is the first set I have bought for myself and the second acquired in this new writing serial on Lego. It marked my expansion into the Star Wars Lego universe, combining two of my favourite interests.

Key Statistics

Official Page: Lego Store
Brick Instructions: Link
Pieces: 929
Age group: 9-14
Date assembled: 26 January 2015
Assembly duration: 2-hours

Review

Acs my second Lego set, the number of pieces in this set are twice as many as my first set – Lego #70812: Creative Ambush. Accordingly this set took twice as long to construct. With instructions split over two booklets, I was quite surprised that all those 900+ pieces would jam pack themselves into the finished spacecraft.

Characters

With four characters included, three of which fit quite neatly into the built unit, the remaining stormtrooper I hitched to the aircraft. The detachable modules add to the playability of the set – with each left and right escape pods detachable. Being my first Star Wars set, I was introduced to the way escape pods are assembled, and the Lego style of having the separate roof halves that completely detach. The escape pods are large enough to fit a lego character in very comfortably.

Having been watching Star Wars Rebels I know the spacecraft The Ghost reasonably well. Whilst the internal compartments have to be simplified, the essential details are available. Whilst I would have preferred to see Ezra, it was still good to see Kanan, Hera and Zeb. All three crew members have their designated positions within the model, with Hera situated in the upper front deck, Kanan in the lower front deck and Zeb in the middle gun turret.

The last and fourth character of this set is a storm trooper. Now, apparently, this storm trooper design in the Lego series differs from the previous storm trooper design. Apparently Lego have redesigned the storm trooper to align with a more modern look and feel that also reflects the Rebels series. If I want to get the Ezra character, apparently the complementary Lego set would be #75048 The Phantom…

Build

To construct the set, two instruction booklets cover the instructions which are also grouped into XXX bags of pieces. The first bag unpacks parts that make up the hull/base. Starting with Kanan, we then build the trapdoor as the foundation of The Ghost. The lower front access control area is added on to this “core”. This is where Kanan will be positioned later on. Initially, we build the structure which will house the detachable module where Kanan is located. The next level up is where Hera will be located. Above the central trapdoor section we begin to build the central core where Zeb and the gun turret will also slot in. Thus the first 24 steps complete this initial shell. We complete bag #1 by building Kanan’s detachable module over four simple steps, with the red “tow bar” snapping into place on the main structure.

The second bag introduces Hera and builds upon the foundation. A 13-step sequence completes the rear thruster module which is joined on the main structure immediately behind the trap-door. Around the single-brick width thruster module, we extend the frame of the Ghost, providing greater skeletal definition to the overall spacecraft. An 11-step sequence (where the final 11th step has 3 incremental steps within) fleshes out each side frame, showing where the future escape pods will connect in, as signified by Lego Part #488493 – known as the Technic Fork.

Bag #3 extends the set by adding the third layer, which covers the entire footprint of the model except for Hera’s control section at the front centre. The first stage completes the core central structure of The Ghost, with it looking at this point like a rectangle. A 10-step sequence is repeated to create a mirror reflection and demonstrate collectively that The Ghost is in fact highly symmetrical; the front left and rear right sections are identical, as are the front right and rear left.

Bag #4 is the final module within the first instruction booklet, and by the time this booklet is complete, the internal build of The Ghost is in essence complete. Starting off with some cosmetic additions, we then shift into defining the walls. The door frame starts this effort off, thereby partitioning off the rear access area from what will become the central gun turret where Zeb slots in. A 10-step sequence undergoes the same mirror reflection repetition to define the central walls and external roofing over each escape pod area. Importantly, the hinge brackets are now visible for where the slanting roofing will be added on. The final six steps for this section complete the structural covering for Hera’s front section of The Ghost.

The objective of Bag #5 as the first module from the second instruction booklet is to build the rear section of The Ghost, adding on the left and right engines, each being a five step procedure. Flipping The Ghost upside down, we then introduce the two “guns”, as represented by Lego part #6048898 – known as the Spring Shooter 1X4. This Lego part was introduced in 2014 and represents a fairly unique feature in that it can be loaded with arrow pieces. These arrow pieces (Lego part #6062599) typically represent the laser shots in the Lego Star Wars universe. The Spring Shooter has an internal spring mechanism, such that the arrow is easily loaded and set into place. In order to fire the arrow as part of game play, you apply an upward pressure on the arrow which releases the spring catch. After covering over the basic laser gun sections, we then start to flesh out the undercarriage side details which snap into place via the perpendicular-facing pieces (Lego part #4211636). A 6-step process defines the under-carriage gun, followed by the addition of the two see-through plastic coverings that close off Hera and Kanan’s cockpit areas. The external front left and right modules are built over another 6-step process to complete the bag.

The final sixth bag sees The Ghost set finalised. With the character of Zeb included in this final bag, his character comes together with his unique head mould. The sloping exterior coverings for each of the four corner sections are added on to the main ship and the effect of the angled sloping exterior is masterfully accomplished by the hinge connectors. Each side again is a mirror reflection design, The front left and right sections of the spaceship have lids defined so that the interior space is accessible.

For the final escape pods, each is constructed of a 3-step base and 8-step roof. When joined, there is no physical snapping of Lego bricks, and instead the roof segment simply covers the rear and front parts of the base snugly, so that it remains a single stable unit. A 7-step design creates a roof section that covers the middle section between Hera and Zeb. The last module to be built is Zeb’s gun turret section, complete with a final step where he is seated in the turret. In its entirety, there are 98 main steps and when adding up all internal sequences, there are a total of 200 steps, not counting the repetitions required!

Overall, this set is a pleasure to construct, and very visually appealing given the symmetrical nature of the spacecraft. The overall integrity of the unit is reflected in the design. Whilst four of the sides have detachable modules (Zeb, Kanan & two escape pods), the way they all connect together make the set highly playable and good value.