The 2013 Holocron Chamber Promotional Set

The Most Valuable Item in the 2013 Yoda Chronicles Campaign — And Almost Nobody Knows It Exists

Mailed to press before the Times Square event. 413 pieces. Three exclusive minifigures. Current value $5,400.

Of all the items produced for the 2013 Yoda Chronicles campaign — the Toy Fair diorama, the Empire Strikes Out blister card, the Times Square Yoda minifig — the one that commands the highest value today is the one most collectors have never heard of. The Yoda Chronicles Promotional Set was mailed directly to members of the press before the Times Square X-Wing event as both a teaser and an invitation. It is the most substantial physical object in the entire campaign and, at approximately $5,400 in current value, the most valuable.

Distribution

The set was mailed to journalists and media contacts in May 2013 to promote the premiere of The Yoda Chronicles and the May 23rd Times Square X-Wing event. The mailing served as both a gift and a press invitation — the tip-in sheet inside the box (described below) included RSVP contact details for media credentialing and VIP access to the event.

According to Brickset, the set was also available at the Times Square event itself on May 23, 2013, suggesting a dual distribution — mailed in advance to press and available in person on the day. The total production quantity is not known. No numbering appears on the box or contents.

The Box

The box is immediately distinctive — heavy premium cardboard, significantly thicker than standard LEGO retail packaging. It uses a tuck-top format where the lid lifts and two front flaps fold back into the sides to close, giving it the feel of a gift box rather than a toy package.

The box is predominantly black. The front and back are covered entirely in a repeating grid of diamond shapes, each with a blue circle at the center — a direct visual reference to the holocron symbols that define both the build inside and the broader Yoda Chronicles aesthetic. The effect is striking and unlike anything in the standard LEGO Star Wars packaging lineup.

The top edge of the box carries the campaign’s recurring slogan: “SECRETS TO REVEAL THERE ARE.” The two sides carry the LEGO and Star Wars logos along with standard warnings and copyright information. The bottom carries both logos and the following product details:

Ages / Edades: 16+
408 pcs/pzs
Building Toy
Jouet de Construction
Juguete para Construir

The 16+ age rating is notable — unusually high for a LEGO Star Wars set of this era, most of which carried 8+ or 14+ ratings. It signals that this was positioned explicitly as an adult collector and press item rather than a toy. The trilingual labeling — English, French, and Spanish — is standard for North American distribution.

A minor piece count discrepancy exists between sources: the box states 408 pieces, while Brick Ranker lists 413 and Bricklode lists 391. The box is the primary source and 408 is the figure documented here.

The Tip-In Sheet

Inside the box, tucked with the contents, is a single sheet measuring 4 inches by 5¾ inches, printed full color on both sides on medium weight paper — heavier than standard paper but lighter than card stock.

The front features an image of Yoda holding a kyber crystal — the same visual motif used on the X-Wing box sleeve — with the following press invitation text:

A HUGE LEGO® STAR WARS™ EVENT
JOIN US ON THURSDAY, MAY 23RD
IN NEW YORK’S TIMES SQUARE
YOU SHOULD!

The big unveiling will be at 11 A.M.,
and you will not be disappointed!

Be ready to take photos and videos
of the world’s largest LEGO model.

RSVP to Ashley Edwards (775-229-2649)
or Peter Day (650-804-6238) to receive
further details of media credentialing
and VIP access.

If you can’t attend but are interested,
we can send assets to you.

Followed by the LEGO and Star Wars logos and The Yoda Chronicles branding with standard copyright text.

The back of the tip-in carries the holocron diamond pattern fading to black at the top and bottom, with the following text:

BUILD THIS
EXCLUSIVE SOUVENIR
TO CELEBRATE THE PREMIERE
OF “THE YODA CHRONICLES™”
YOU SHOULD.

TUNE IN
TO CARTOON NETWORK
ON MAY 29TH
YOU MUST.

Followed again by logos and copyright text.

The tip-in sheet is almost certainly the least documented element of this entire set — it has not been described in detail anywhere publicly before this article. The RSVP contact details for Ashley Edwards and Peter Day are period artifacts that confirm this was a genuine press mailing with named media liaisons managing the Times Square event. The instruction to call for VIP access and media credentialing confirms that recipients were journalists and press contacts, not collectors or retail partners.

The Contents

Inside the box are a printed instruction booklet on slightly heavier paper stock than standard LEGO sets, and three numbered bags of parts — bags 1, 2, and 3 — with multilingual warnings. The bags use a resealable glue-strip flap format rather than the standard sealed bags found in retail LEGO sets, a small but telling detail that reflects the premium nature of the packaging.

The Build

The completed build is the Holocron Chamber — a room from The Yoda Chronicles animated special where Jedi store their holocrons, the glowing cube-shaped devices used by both Jedi and Sith to preserve knowledge and teachings. The build features curved walls and translucent blue pieces representing the glowing holocrons, with the same diamond-and-circle motif that covers the exterior of the box integrated into the design. It is a display-oriented build consistent with the 16+ rating and the adult collector audience it was designed for.

The Minifigures

The set contains three minifigures, all exclusive to this set and not available in any other LEGO product:

• Yoda (sw0446a) — Clone Wars version with gray hair and back printing on the torso. A different variant from both the gray-haired sw0465 in the Toy Fair Diorama and the white-haired sw0465a from the Times Square event.
• Female Padawan (sw0517) — an original character from The Yoda Chronicles animated series, not previously produced as a minifigure. Note: some databases list two variants (sw0517 small eyes and sw0517a large eyes), suggesting a possible running production change. Both examples in this collection have the same eye variant.
• Holocron Droid (sw0516) — another original Yoda Chronicles character, exclusive to this set.

All three minifigures are exclusive — they do not appear in any retail set. The Female Padawan is the most valuable of the three at approximately $194 new according to Brickset.

Value

The Yoda Chronicles Promotional Set is currently valued at approximately $5,400 according to Brick Ranker — making it the most valuable item in the entire 2013 Yoda Chronicles promotional campaign, ahead of the sw0465a Yoda minifig (~$4,337), the NY Yoda Diorama, and the Empire Strikes Out blister card (~$367). The three exclusive minifigures account for only about 5% of the total set value — the set itself, sealed and complete with tip-in sheet, is where the value lies.

What We Don’t Know

• The production quantity — no quantity has been established for this set. It was mailed to press contacts and available at the Times Square event but the total number produced is unknown. If you have a primary source for the quantity please leave a comment.
• The piece count discrepancy — the box states 408 pieces, Brick Ranker lists 413, and Bricklode lists 391. Which is correct? Has anyone done a full parts count on a sealed example?
• The Female Padawan eye variant — databases list two versions (sw0517 small eyes and sw0517a large eyes). Were both distributed, or did the production run change mid-way? If you have an example with large eyes please leave a comment.
• Ashley Edwards and Peter Day — the two LEGO PR contacts named on the tip-in sheet. Are they still in the industry? If anyone has additional context about the Times Square media campaign they managed, we would love to hear from you.

Yoda Chronicles Promotional Set — Holocron Chamber
Produced: 2013
Distribution: Mailed to press, May 2013; also available at Times Square X-Wing event, May 23, 2013
Quantity: Unknown
BrickLink: yodachron-1
Brickset: YODACHRON-1
BrickEconomy: YODACHRON-1