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Set Review: 44019 Rocka Stealth Machine
 Wednesday, December 4th, 2013 at 9:43pm by Benjamin, BZPower ReporterAlright, Heroes! It's time for another review of a yet-to-be-released Hero Factory set from 2014, thankfully sent directly from LEGO of the future (or something)! Reporter ChocolateFrogs reviewed the Stormer Freeze Machine on Monday, and today he is back with the Rocka Stealth Machine, intended for stealthy business. Perfect for sneaking up on the monsters! Read on to find out what this set has in store for fans. First, a quick reminder: These sets will not be available in North America until March 1st. They should be expected on shelves everywhere else starting January 1st. LEGO knows this is not the most popular decision among the fans, but it it set in stone for this wave. Keep your eyes peeled just in case they do appear in stores earlier this winter! Some things here are similar to my review of the Stormer Freeze Machine. The skeleton of the build is similar, as are the jumping features of the Visorak cousins. That said, don't fret in checking out all the exciting bits of this review. Presentation
The bag for the set is an exciting action shot of Rocka using his Stealth Machine against one of the Visorak cousins. This European bag doesn't contain a piece count, but all the other essential bits are there. The back shows off some features of the set, including the claws, the cockpit, the Hero as a minifig, and the monster's jumping action. Inside are plenty of pieces to make a big, bad, stealthy fighting machine. Plus stickers which will not be used for this review. Building
There's the usual Hero Factory skeleton build at first, but the real good stuff happens when the oversized shoulder armor gets put on. It just looks so cool and isn't something usually seen on HF sets of this size. As the arms are placed a presumably new Technic piece with bars is used for the right claw. Also notice on the torso a cool piece that places plus-rods at right angles instantly, which allows for the lightsaber blasters on the side of the cockpit. Rocka also has some tools attached to the thighs for quick fixes or last-minute weapons. Set Design
Aside from some cool pieces like the bulky armor and trans-green claws, notable new pieces include the storage container and minifig Hero parts. Especially interesting are the grey Technic pieces shown in the corner. It's been a while since I've built an HF set, so they were new to me, but they're pretty cool regardless of their debut.
From all angles, Rocka's mech is ready for action, with a cool Zamor launcher and some nasty claws. The cockpit snaps into the torso frame, and Rocka slips into a hole with a knob on his back armor. But I do take issue with the leg armor, or lack thereof. For a mech, one would hope it would be more bulked up. That, and the feet are precariously small, so the Stealth Machine tips easily.
The Visorak cousin is a pretty neat addition to HF and LEGO building in general. It looks pretty cool and, as partly seen in my Stormer review, jumps pretty well. It's bigger and badder than the Visorak from 2005 and should prove interesting for builders. Unfortunately only one of these comes in this set.
Rocka as a minifig is pretty cool too. His armor is a gunmetal as opposed to the silver found in Stormer. He also, unfortunately, does not come with an holo arm display. Next to a minifig he stands tall. I especially like how his helmet has a very castle knight feel to it and would go well on a knight with golden armor.
Standing next to the Stormer Freeze Machine, Rocka's powerhouse is the same height. Whichever packs a bigger punch is up to you! Playability
The biggest play features of Rocka are the claws, Zamor launcher, and containment unit. The Visorak cousin fits nicely inside the backpack but could probably jump out of the way of being caught if it tried. The Visorak cousin has a neat jumping feature which is awesome if you have a lot of space for it to jump across. Final Thoughts
Overall, this is a standard sized (and priced, probably $15) HF set that is built tough for the larger monsters also released in this wave. The tiny monsters are really neat, allowing for some different items to be of use to the Heroes and their battle mechs. The Rocka Stealth Machine is a worthy addition to this fight. Up next from ChocolateFrogs? These two guys form a rad combiner!
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