Review: 75198 Tatooine Battle Pack
Posted by CapnRex101,
Ten years have passed since the first LEGO Star Wars Battle Packs became available in 2007 and characters belonging to numerous factions have been featured during that time. 75198 Tatooine Battle Pack offers something entirely different, containing a few of the desert planet's best known residents and an Astromech Droid.
I often enjoy conventional Battle Packs but this unusual set looks rather interesting, not least because Jawa and Tusken Raider minifigures are fairly rare. Furthermore, these Jawas include exclusive torsos and Astromech Droids are highly collectable so this figure should prove popular, particularly as the set is affordably priced at just £12.99 or $14.99.
Minifigures
Jawas first appeared in 10144 Sandcrawler but have since become much more common. Nevertheless, I am pleased to see these scavenging creatures in such a small set and they look superb, wearing reddish brown robes and featuring bright yellow eyes beneath their hoods. These simple designs are shared with past Jawa minifigures but both torso prints are new and include several pouches fitted to straps over ragged clothes.
I love the worn designs on the straps and the metal buckles look great too. Short reddish brown capes might have been a useful inclusion, particularly for integration with the hood, although the present design works quite well in my opinion. Each minifigure is equipped with a stud shooter which launches a trans-light blue 1x1 round plate, loosely resembling the ionisation blasters used by the Jawas in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
A lone Tusken Raider is also included. These brutal warriors are only available in a few sets and they look marvellous, featuring fantastic printed detail across both sides of the torso and the legs. The tan robe is realistically wrinkled and I like the reddish brown bandoleers that cross the chest. A rusted moisture trap is worn below the Tusken's neck and the dark tan band around his waist provides an attractive contrast with the rest of the clothing.
Matching dark tan rags are worn around the head, protecting Sand People from the harsh suns of Tatooine. I love the dark bluish grey goggles that cover the eyes and the reddish brown breathing filter looks superb too, closely resembling the design in the movies. The minifigure is armed with a gaderffii and this accessory includes a rare light bluish grey ice cream cone which can only be found in four previous sets.
The set also comes with an Astromech Droid who could be captured by the Jawas. This droid is based upon R3-T2 and features a new domed head which is printed with a white design, although the base colour bleeds through slightly so the panels have a pink hue. This would bother me were it not for the obscurity of the droid. I think the combination of a red dome and dark blue panels on the body looks a bit odd but this is faithful to the movie and suits the kind of Astromech unit one might find on Tatooine, as though parts of scrapped droids have been united to create a new one.
The Completed Model
This tracked vehicle is reminiscent of a Sandcrawler, befitting its Jawa occupants. I like the reddish brown colour scheme and even the Technic liftarms that represent the tracks look pretty impressive, although rolling treads would have been even better. Like the Sandcrawler, this model features a raised prow which allows the Jawas a good view of their surroundings and provides a better vantage point for identifying wayward droids and scrap.
Two stud shooters protect the front of the vehicle and a couple of tools are fitted to the sides. It is somewhat disappointing that there are no clips for the Jawas' weapons and controls are also absent from the cockpit. Nevertheless, I like the trans-black windscreen and there is room to stand two Jawas on board, although it looks better with just one in my opinion.
The colours become more muddled towards the rear of the crawler. This would often detract from the appeal of a model but in this case I think it works quite well, matching the similarly worn exterior of a typical Sandcrawler. A simple crane is placed on the back of the vehicle, allowing you to lift the Astromech Droid into a waiting slot, as shown below. The crane assembly could hardly be simpler, consisting of two Technic liftarms, but it works perfectly and I like the tan colour of these elements.
Overall
This set has definitely exceeded my expectations! The four minifigures are excellent and multiples of most could be useful, should you wish to purchase more than one Battle Pack. I like the new printed designs on the Jawas and the Tusken Raider looks magnificent, as ever. Even the Astromech Droid works remarkably well given its seemingly mismatched colour scheme and I am pleased to add another of these droids to my collection.
Models found in Battle Packs are rarely impressive but this service vehicle is quite reasonable in my view. Its worn design suits Tatooine very well and a pleasing selection of functions have been packed into a relatively small area. The crane on the back is particularly fun to play with, offering a good range of motion so you can load the droid onto the vehicle before moving on in search of more items to be sold. I would therefore recommend this set, especially if your collection does not currently include a Jawa or a Tusken Raider.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your thoughts on the set in the comments below.
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18 comments on this article
A nice way to expand the new Sandcrawler that's coming out next year. Or add some character to the upcoming Mos Eisley Cantina set. I like it!
I gotta have it. Love the minifigs. Very useful set.
As to a new $andcrawler, never heard of thi$ new$. We are getting another $andcrawler when we already got a pricey one 4 year$ ago? I'll $tick with thi$, thank you.
Its on my to buy list simply because Jawas.
Though its a good point that additional scavengers for the upcoming new Sandcrawler will be welcome.
When will we get pictures of the summer Star Wars sets?
@LuvLegos_Cool_J, the new sandcrawler is confirmed, set number 75220. It will be normal size so much cheaper than 75059. I think many of us didn't want the big and expensive one and are looking forward to this!
Too bad the droid doesn't have an exclusive print for the body, but luckily this one is accurate, so it's okay.
@ altair1970 could you please be more specific what is "normal size" in terms of pieces?
I’ll pick it up just for the Jawas. JAAAWAAAAAAAAAAS!!!!
I don’t collect Star Wars but I might have to make pass for this one!
Well, In jawa society, there is both a chief (who is always male), and a shaman (who is always female. If exactly two of these figures appear and they are different from the ones in the sand crawler, then perhaps these can be both a shaman and chief jawas.
I'm building 75059 this weekend and I can't wait to pick up at least 2 of these battle packs. This may be one of the best battle packs ever.
@crayxmp: The leaked catalogue pic has the piece count X'ed out, but its got 6 minifigures and is apparently smaller then the 10144 sandcrawler.... Soo.. around the 1000 pieces mark I'm guessing.
@ GrizBe - thanks!
Well, I certainly am interested in this set. I like this set, as this battle pack is different from the normal rebels versus imperials or republic versus separatists. Plus, it includes some fairly rare figures, so all in all, I think this is a very good battle pack.
I like that it's not another speeder, but a vehicle with character. But it'd be cooler to have it entirely Jawa-centric, IMHO, like a Jawa used droids and fix shed or something like it.
Not getting the new Sandcrawler but this set I am gladly adding to my desert diorama. The Tusken Raider is protecting the poor droid from those thieving Jawas, go Tusken.
I've gotta get this to go along with the T-16 Skyhopper.
Both Jawa and Tusken Raider were available in some inexpensive sets in the past years, and the astromech has only one new part, so this is a bit lazy. Also, once again the price increased from 14,99€ to 16,99€, which is a bit too much in my book. I would have gladly welcomed it, if it came with a Sandtrooper instead of the second Jawa, but that's probably just me.
Is it a bad set? Not at all, there were worse battle packs. But it could have been easily improved and become a standout / Bounty Hunter level battle pack.