If you are a fan of wither Star Wars or Lego then you are aware of the popularity of Star Wars Lego. Apart from the fact that it is a merging of two huge properties it is also really cool to see the locations, ships and characters of Star Wars come to life in Lego.

In 2009 Lego celebrated 10 years of making sets based around the Star Wars franchise and one year later, we take this opportunity to look back at the sets that are simply too cool to pass up, no matter how old you are.

The big daddy of Star Wars Lego sets, both in minifigure count and basic coolness is set 10188, The Death Star. Released in 2008 and with a massive total of 24 figures, including multiples of the main characters in different costumes this set is how all playsets should be made. With 3800 pieces and measuring Death Star measures 16'(41cm) tall and 16'½'(42cm) wide. It is a 360 diorama with rooms on each side representing different landmark moments in the original trilogy including the trash compactor from A New Hope and the Final Battle between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker in the Emperor's Throne Room. At $399 get it now before it blows out on the secondary market.

Speaking of blowing out on the secondary market, chasing down the Cloud City set now is going to set you back just under $1000. Another Star Wars playset it comes in at 705 pieces and features 7 rather hard to find figures. With an open layout it depicts the various important moments in the Empire Strikes Back finale, set on Bespin, otherwise known as Cloud City. It is a cool set that has many play features and makes a cool display piece.

The UCS Millennium Falcon is the biggest Star Wars Lego set produced so far at 5195 pieces. It was the first UCS release to feature minifigures and fans appreciated the ability to use it as a playset, on the outside at least. Inside there is not much to speak of, due to the restraints put on the layout by design requirements of such a large and flat ship. Despite this small grip it remains one of the most popular sets with fans.

The AT-AT has always been a favourite design for Star Wars fans. Few original fans can forget that moment in the darkened theatre when these All Terrain Attack Transports walked out of the Hoth snowscape in The Empire Strikes Back. Lego has produced a number of versions of the AT-AT but the most popular has to be their motorized version. Purists will baulk at this suggestion but it is a very fun set and making the transport walk by itself for the first time is s sight to behold.

Other popular models include Jabba's Sail Barge (set 6210) which has almost all the major characters including rare figures Lando and Boba Fett in one place (just missing Chewbacca and C3PO). A similar character set exists in the Battle Of Endor (Set 8038) which is popular kids with because of its various elements and collectors because of the cool ewoks.

The sets above just skim the surface of the cool sets released over the last 10 years and hopefully, with the Star Wars franchise still going strong, Lego will continue its great relationship with the galaxy far, far away.