Ninjago

Lloyd's Golden Ultra Dragon

The biggest dragon Ninjago ever made, gold from every angle, nine figures deep.

Brick Rated Score

3.9/5

Set 71774 · 2022

Pieces1,002

Minifigs9

Year2022

Set number71774

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The verdict

This one is pure spectacle, and I mean that as a compliment.

It's the largest dragon Ninjago has ever put out, four heads, wings that fan into three blades, all of it in pearl gold, and it comes with a genuinely loaded nine figure lineup. The catch is the price, because at 150 dollars for around a thousand parts you're paying for the gold and the drama, not the piece count. If your kid is deep in the Crystalized story, or you just love a big poseable creature on the shelf, it delivers.

Best for: Ninjago-obsessed kids and dragon collectors who want maximum gold on the shelf

The full review

What it is

Let's be honest about what pulls you toward this LEGO® set first, and it's the gold. Lloyd's Golden Ultra Dragon is a wall of pearl gold parts shaped into the biggest dragon Ninjago has ever released, and when it's finished and posed it looks like something that belongs at the end of a season, which is exactly what it is. This came out of the Crystalized story, the final chapter of the original Ninjago run, and the whole thing feels like a victory lap. Four separate heads, each on its own ball joint, a body you can twist and rear back, and wings that fan open into three golden blades. It's a big, dramatic, unapologetically flashy creature, and if that's the kind of thing that makes you grin, it absolutely lands.

The catch

There's a real catch though, and it's the price. At 149.99 for right around a thousand pieces, this is one of the pricier ways to buy Ninjago by the part, and reviewers flagged it hard at launch. You're paying a premium for all that specialty gold and for the nine figures, not for a fat piece count, so if you measure sets by brick value this one won't win you over. The build itself is also on the simple side. It goes together fast and it's satisfying to watch the dragon take shape, but you'll place the same gold slopes and wedges again and again, and it never really challenges you. Add that it retired at the end of 2023, and the sticker you'll see now is usually well north of the original price on the resale market.

Who it's for

The people who'll love this are easy to spot. Kids who are living inside the Ninjago world will adore it, because you get almost the entire hero roster in fresh golden outfits, the terrifying Crystal King, and a squad of Vengestone baddies to throw at them. Play value is high and the dragon can genuinely take a beating. Collectors who want a big golden centerpiece will be happy too, especially anyone chasing that Golden Oni Lloyd figure. If you're a builder who lives for clever engineering and dense, surprising technique, you might find this one a little too easy and a little too expensive for what it teaches you. But as a display piece and a play piece, it's a lot of set, and it earns its shelf space.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

The build breaks into clear chunks and moves quickly. You start with the body core, then work outward through the poseable legs and the long segmented tail, which is where the stiff rotation joints come in and hold a pose without drooping. The four heads each go together the same way and clip on via ball joints, so you can splay them out or gather them up. The wings are the cleverest bit, a small mechanism that lets them fold shut or spread into three blades. A lot of the surface is SNOT slopes layered for that scaled, textured look. None of it is hard, and that's the point, it's a fast satisfying assembly rather than a puzzle.

For parts people, the appeal is the gold. There are close to 300 pearl gold elements in here, so slopes, bricks, and wedges you rarely see in that finish are suddenly plentiful, which makes it a quiet goldmine for anyone building their own dragons or ornate MOCs. Look out for the new Wedge Sloped 4x4 Triple with three ridges, ten of them, great for scales and armor, plus a fresh rotation socket with dual pins that powers the poseable joints. There's a golden weapons pack with new molds and a trans dark pink crystallized blade too. The cost per part sits around 14 cents at retail though, so this is a set you buy for the specialty colors and the figures, not for bulk value.

Fun facts

01This is the largest dragon LEGO has ever built for the Ninjago theme, with four heads and wings that unfold into three separate blades.
02It arrived as part of the Crystalized wave, the closing chapter of the original Ninjago saga that had run since 2011.
03The set packs nearly 300 pearl gold pieces, making it one of the goldest builds in the entire theme by part count.
04The exclusive Golden Oni Lloyd minifigure was widely called the standout figure of the whole Crystalized lineup, not just this box.