Pirates and castles just shook hands, and the result sits on a jagged spit of stone at the edge of the map. Tentacle Rock is a 2,343-piece fortress home to the Kraken Knights, a faction that claims to guard the world against sea monsters. Or do they? The legend has a twist, and designer sir Achille has spun it into a build that just hit the full 10,000 supporters on LEGO® Ideas.

The story goes like this. Ships vanish in these waters at dusk, and sailors whisper of a small, agile vessel that slips out of the fog. Could the Kraken Knights be the very privateers doing the sinking? That question hangs over every corner of Tentacle Rock, and it makes the whole build far more fun to explore.

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What a lot of build it is! You get a little harbor with the harbor master's office, a getaway sloop tucked behind the docks (always ready for a quick escape), and a pub where the crew plays cards over rum. A bridge crosses to the main castle, which packs in a dining hall, a storage room for stolen goods, a meticulous archive of loot, and a dungeon for unlucky prisoners. Climb the tower and you reach sleeping quarters, an archers' terrace, a lookout post with an armoury, and a working cargo crane for hoisting treasure inside.

Here is the part that makes me want to grab the tub of dark grey bricks. sir Achille is new to set design and discovered digital building only a few months ago, then produced a fortress this rich on the first real outing. That is the beauty of LEGO® Ideas, isn't it? A fresh builder with a strong story can stand shoulder to shoulder with the veterans.

With 10,000 supporters banked, Tentacle Rock now sails into the LEGO® review phase, where the team decides whether the Kraken Knights get an official flag. Will these salty knights surface as a real set, or slip back into the fog? Keep your spyglass trained on the horizon.