After almost 7 years I say goodbye to my Black Baron's Castle. When preparing the set for the eBay listing, I experienced that the ballista fragmented upon launch: its brown plastic has become brittle over the years. I had another one: same dramatic result! Perhaps it is a poorly designed part, but perhaps there is more to it. Luckily I could order a spare part and still sell a complete set, but what is worrisome for us collectors: is Playmobil plastic deteriorating over time? Until now I only experienced that bronze-coloured parts are very brittle from the start, but perhaps the effect sets in with some delay in parts of different colours?