Because this is a display model, the LEGO Hogwarts Castle and Grounds begins by constructing the display base and the grounds for the foundation on top of which the entire castle and surrounding areas will sit. LEGO is smart enough to use a variety of bright and bold colors for the pieces that are intended to create the base of the model, not only to differentiate between these necessary construction pieces and any of the castle’s detail, but also to make it easy to pinpoint where pieces need to be placed. If all of these pieces were the same color, it would be much harder to determine where to set all of these small pieces that create Hogwarts and the grounds.
In this beginning phase, you’ll be using a lot of wedge pieces to create the look of the rocks, hills, and cliffside upon which Hogwarts sits. Along with the actual grounds, you’re also building the surface upon which the castle will be built, as well as the walking paths through the school campus and grounds. If there’s one part of the building process that cuts you a bit of a break from the careful plotting of hundreds of tiny pieces, it’s using the transparent blue and clear pieces to create the Black Lake that surrounds Hogwarts.
However, no matter how tedious the tiny pieces make this process, it’s a LEGO set after all, and it’s still fun to piece together. LEGO makes the experience an educational one too, because as you build various parts of the model, you get a mini-history of Hogwarts, especially when you get to building some of the secrets that Hogwarts holds. Within the foundation of Hogwarts (on the right side of the model), there are also some secret rooms that you can see on a small scale. For example, there’s the Chamber of Secrets, which has perfectly placed gaps just above it on the model’s surface that allow light to shine in and illuminate the face sculpture where Tom Riddle and the basilisk attack Harry.
Other compartments include the Devil’s Snare, the room holding the Mirror of Erised, and the giant wizard’s chess board, all part of the Sorcerer’s Stone finale. There’s also the potions classroom where Snape has kept a watchful eye over Mr. Potter.