Lego set
A Lego set is, much like a preset on a synthesiser, the manufacturer's examples of what can be accomplished with their product. It includes the many Lego elements needed to make one or more specific models, along with the instructions describing how to build them.
Due to their use of minifigs, almost all Lego sets are roughly 1:44 scale.
Just like Kiddicraft's original interlocking plastic bricks, Lego sets originally consisted of simply some building blocks, with only your imagination guiding you. You choose what to make, and what scale to make it at. This is the basis of Basic sets (later Creator).
Before long, Lego introduced their main innovation: the Town Plan theme. This featured several matching sets, each with instructions for making a specific model, such as a garage, house, shop, petrol station, fire station, or church, and only the elements needed to make that specific model. Those models can then stand next to each other as part of a cohesive whole.
Ever since then, these prescriptive sets have been the company's main focus, with the more imaginative freestyle sets being relegated to a comparative niche. Apparently there seem to be more people who want to build models than who want to design them.
Thankfully, some amateur Lego fans do design their own models, known as MOCs, and sell or give away the instructions for them on sites such as Rebrickable. These are essentially unofficial sets, minus the elements and box, consisting of just the parts list and instructions to make a model.
Lego: BrickLink Common Palette | Lego brick dimensions | Lego clone | Lego colour | Lego element | Lego minifigure | Lego model | Lego part | Lego scale | Lego set | Lego storage | Lego theme | SNOT
Lego sets: Lego Technic sets
