Upcoming Changes to D&D Minis Line

[Glyfair]

But, if you're going to make a cool, unique monster that's only ever been used in that adventure...then make a cool, unique mini to go with it in the boxed set. Cool, unique minis are things that DM's love...something that could get them to buy a $75+ box of minis...especially if the adventure is good.

The issue with this is that plastic miniatures have a very high upfront cost. The costs are kept relatively low on plastic miniatures because of the number printed. Given the low print run of the set, as you concede, you would not be spreading that cost very far. A "cool unique" monster could easily cost the $75 you want for the set.

 

[Glyfair]

I think these ones:

Amazon.com: D&D Basic Game (Dungeon & Dragons Roleplaying Game: Core Rules) (0653569012214): Wizards of the Coast: Books

Amazon.com: Dungeons & Dragons Basic Game (2006) (Dungeons & Dragons Game) (9780786939442): Matthew Sernett: Books

Which came with a rulebook, adventure, about 16 minis, and 4 double sided 10x10 game boards that fit together to make a dungeon.

The black dragon set was far better in my opinion, but both were well done enough to run several hours right out of the box as well as make your own adventures up.

Ah yes. I wasn't thinking RPG.

I will note that WotC decided miniatures were too expensive to include when they put out the 4E set and only went with tokens.

 

[Zaukrie]

The minis in the game day kits are from the DDM line, which are printed by the thousands, that's why they can give them away.

Look, if Reaper or anyone else could give you non-random minis in large volume, they'd be doing it. Fact is, no one has been able to pull it off. IF there is a void the market, someone will fill it....given the terrible range of minis from Reaper, I'm guessing they couldn't pull it off.

 

[Glyfair]

Making the adventures smaller would also go a long way in 'fixing' this issue.

Remember, the old Giants series started off with an eight page adventure.

I took that 8 page adventure and look at what miniatures would be needed to run the adventure as written. I looked at the eBay Buy It Now prices for the miniatures (none were particularly high priced except maybe the Stone Giants) and took the lowest costs. The miniatures to run Steading of the Hill Giant Chief would run $261.

Spoiler details

[SBLock]I substituted as reasonable (Ogres could be the Young Giants...didn't separate out female Giants except for the Chieftan's wife). Of course, a big chunk went to the bugears in the underground complex (33 of them in very close proximity) and the troglodytes as well (33 together, not including their young). That was about $70 there.[/Sblock]

Still, an 8 page adventure it might be. A monster light adventure it wasn't.

 

[Festivus]

The minis in the game day kits are from the DDM line, which are printed by the thousands, that's why they can give them away.

Look, if Reaper or anyone else could give you non-random minis in large volume, they'd be doing it. Fact is, no one has been able to pull it off. IF there is a void the market, someone will fill it....given the terrible range of minis from Reaper, I'm guessing they couldn't pull it off.

Actually, WoTC no longer is giving out minis at the gameday events. We get essentially pogs for player tokens and monster tokens... which is ok because you get better encounters with more variety... but the minis were a bit of a draw to the events I was running at least.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Actually, WoTC no longer is giving out minis at the gameday events. We get essentially pogs for player tokens and monster tokens... which is ok because you get better encounters with more variety... but the minis were a bit of a draw to the events I was running at least.

part of me misses the minis already...the other part of me is now begging for monster pogs...

 

[S'mon]

Making the adventures smaller would also go a long way in 'fixing' this issue.

Remember, the old Giants series started off with an eight page adventure.

Yes, I'd much prefer a ca 32 page, probably single-level adventure (8-10 encounters typical) that was richly supported with nicely painted colour battlemaps of all the areas included, and associated minis packs to buy separately. The alternative woiuld be a big book of lots of short adventures, like Dungeon Delve but preferably by tier, using listed Dungeon Tiles and minis packs.

 

[Stormonu]

I took that 8 page adventure and look at what miniatures would be needed to run the adventure as written. I looked at the eBay Buy It Now prices for the miniatures (none were particularly high priced except maybe the Stone Giants) and took the lowest costs. The miniatures to run Steading of the Hill Giant Chief would run $261.

Spoiler details

[SBLock]I substituted as reasonable (Ogres could be the Young Giants...didn't separate out female Giants except for the Chieftan's wife). Of course, a big chunk went to the bugears in the underground complex (33 of them in very close proximity) and the troglodytes as well (33 together, not including their young). That was about $70 there.[/Sblock]

Still, an 8 page adventure it might be. A monster light adventure it wasn't.

Out of curiosity, are you counting as if you were to have ALL the miniatures on the board at one time, or only one room's worth at a time? If you're doing the former, that would be overkill, you'd only need to supply those minis for a portion of the adventure at a given time.

By the way, consider S2 - White Plume Mountain; the number of minis for that adventure would be quite smaller (not counting random encounters, gynosphinx, 3 shadows, gray ooze [recolored ochre jelly], air elemental, 5 flesh golems, Ctenmiir the vampire, 2 kelpies [new minis], Burket the fighter, Snarla the sorceress, giant crab [that'd be a new mini], Sir Bluto, 8 fighters, 8 ghouls, 6 giant crayfish [another new mini], 6 giant scorpions, 4 sea lions, 3 manticores, Qesnef the ogre mage [and possibly a halfling mini] and [maybe] 2 efreet)

 

[Glyfair]

Out of curiosity, are you counting as if you were to have ALL the miniatures on the board at one time, or only one room's worth at a time? If you're doing the former, that would be overkill, you'd only need to supply those minis for a portion of the adventure at a given time.

I assumed 1 room or wandering monster encounter at time with one exception...
[Sblock]The bugbear area is very close together and would have a decent chance having all of them active at one time. So, I included all of them.[/Sblock]

 

[El Mahdi]

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