Turn recent LEGO Star Wars sets into Stinger Mantis, Ornithopter and more

New LEGO Star Wars sets have been on shelves for a couple of weeks, already inspiring alternate builds from the Stinger Mantis to an Ornithopter.

The relatively new 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter and the newer 75412 Death Trooper & Night Trooper Battle Pack are proving to be popular with the alternate builds segment of the online community, which should be useful when both builds include desirable minifigures, and builds that we've either seen before or aren't as good as others.

Here are four of the best alternate builds we've seen for 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter and 75412 Death Trooper & Night Trooper Battle Pack, with both models available to purchase right now.

75399 U-Wing Starfighter

Andor Season 2's only minifigure-scale LEGO Star Wars set, 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter revisits a familiar ship for the theme on a smaller scale. Since many might already have the older and more accurate U-Wing model, you'll be looking for alternate ways to use the included parts, but leaving the minifigures untouched.

Of the many fan-made alternate builds for 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter on Rebrickable, Wurger Bricks and codyaner.bricks are leading the pack with everything from a bigger Y-Wing for Captain Rex, to a small-scale Stinger Mantis to accompany Cal Kestis' exclusive minifigure from 75394 Imperial Star Destroyer. Considering the lack of Star Wars Jedi sets beyond 75335 BD-1, the latter build is especially enticing.

All options leave the minifigures alone, meaning you can collect the Andor characters, but keep them with the more accurate U-Wing set while you use the pieces to make something additional for your LEGO Star Wars collection. None of the highlighted alternate builds come with free instructions, but their costs won't break the bank.

75412 Death Trooper & Night Trooper Battle Pack

Those planning on picking up multiple copies of 75412 Death Trooper & Night Trooper Battle Pack soon, or with a few already in their collection, might be looking for alternative uses for the included dropship model, which has no specific source material in a galaxy far, far away.

Beachtrooper's free Patrol Gunship alternate build instructions switch one of the 75412 Death Trooper & Night Trooper Battle Pack dropships to a much more accurate design, recreating the gunships from Ahsoka Season 1.

Rossco311, on the other hand, has been focused on combining multiple dropships for their alternate builds. They've devised instructions for mixing three copies of the set (not including the minifigures) into a sizable walker, a stealthy LAAT gunship, and even an Ornithopter for the Star Wars and Dune crossover we've been waiting for.

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Featured image: codyaner.bricks

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