DDM: Player's Handbook Heroes - Dissapointed?

AnthonyRoberson · Apr 10, 2009

Has anyone actually laid eyes on the new Player's Handbook Heroes miniatures yet? I thought they were supposed to be painted to the level of a 'rare' from previous sets. The pics that I have seen so far on the web don't look good at all. I have also heard grumblings from several commentators that the assortment of minis chosen for the sets was a little questionable. Do they look better in person? What minis are in each set?

Adso · Apr 10, 2009

AnthonyRoberson said:
Has anyone actually laid eyes on the new Player's Handbook Heroes miniatures yet? I thought they were supposed to be painted to the level of a 'rare' from previous sets. The pics that I have seen so far on the web don't look good at all. I have also heard grumblings from several commentators that the assortment of minis chosen for the sets was a little questionable. Do they look better in person? What minis are in each set?

Well, you can color me a corporate man or whatever, but I have these guys sitting on my desk right now (Bill Slavicsek delivered them to our desks yesterday, the gaming equivalent of Santa that he is) and I think they look great. And they’re definitely of rare quality or better.

I'm not just blowing smoke either. I'm a miniatures painter...a pretty darn good one too. I've done paint masters for the Dungeons & Dragons and Star Wars lines. I know how detailed I can get to hit rarities, and all of these would be either rares or of the "I'll turn it in and they’ll probably ask me to simplify in second paints" variety.

You’ll get you chance to see in the very near future. They’ve got an open faced box, so check them out when they hit your game store.

AnthonyRoberson · Apr 10, 2009

Thanks for the reply Stephen! Is there anywhere that breaks down what minis are in each set? I will definitely keep an eye out for them.

kilamanjaro · Apr 10, 2009

I haven't been impressed with the photos on the web for the last couple sets, but I think they always look better in hand.

crazy_cat · Apr 10, 2009

Basd on the quality of teh previews to date I have cancelled all my preorders for these minis. I might pick up a few singles on eBay.

Adso · Apr 10, 2009

AnthonyRoberson said:
Thanks for the reply Stephen! Is there anywhere that breaks down what minis are in each set? I will definitely keep an eye out for them.

Well, we've been putting up previews. Looking at the ones on my desk, and looking at the photo previews, I don't think the photos do the minis justice. The strong lighting mutes the details.

Here are the links to those articles:

Martial Heroes 1
Divine Heroes 1
Arcane Heroes 1
Primal Heroes 1

More previews are coming out next week.

I love minis. I have a bunch of metals painted and unpainted, and use our pre-painted too, and I’m absolutely thrilled with this product. It's a fully painted, good looking miniature, for a price lower than what I would pay for an unpainted metal mini. Some of you may be snorting, but I would have killed for this product when I was a kid. And that makes me more than a little giddy.

Now move along, or I'll hit you with my cane. B-)

Zaukrie · Apr 10, 2009

What I've read:

From those that were at D&D XP - the minis look much better in person thatn online. The minis in this set are kind of interim - they are in between what the minis were, and what they will be. Therefore, some may not be up to the new standard yet.

From what I've experienced over the last few sets:

WotC stinks at photographing minis. They have all looked better in person than online for several sets now. It boggles the mind that they don't spend the little time/effort it would take to take better pictures. (or maybe it really is that hard to take good pictues, but that seem unlikely).

All that said, I own a ton of these things (DDM, not this set....), and probably won't buy a lot of the PC based minis, not unless the poses and paint jobs are quite different than the minis I already own.

I'm looking forward to the monster sets....

Peter Lee · Apr 10, 2009

Just to add to what Stephen said, the second arcane box is also previewed in this month's April and Beyond article: Previews for April and Beyond

Next week I'll be showing the last Martial 2 box preview and possibly starting the monster previews.

Riley · Apr 10, 2009

If these miniatures actually look good in person, you guys have got to get some better photos up online, quickly. It's 45+ minutes to the nearest game shop for me, and these promo photos make the paint jobs on these look terrible - so much so that I haven't gotten around to ordering them, and I've bought into every set since WOTDQ.

MadLordOfMilk · Apr 10, 2009

I do like the concept of the PH Heroes minis! However, at the same time, it's hard justifying buying the package when I can get three minis that'd work as PCs for under $2/ea online (sometimes, under $2 total. heck, if you're not picky you can get three for under a buck) as singles... but that's mostly because the new minis look really, well, awful based on the pictures online. Looking just at those, I can't really justify the price. They don't seem to be any better than other thirty-cent minis singles that work OK but not great.