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<blockquote data-quote="Peter Lee" data-source="post: 4666217" data-attributes="member: 57579">The Spawn of Tiamat probably came from someone in R&amp;D thinking, &quot;Wouldn't it be cool to have a new type of monster related to dragons?&quot;&nbsp;The Dragonborn probably came from someone in R&amp;D thinking, &quot;Wouldn't it be cool to have a new type of PC related to dragons?&quot;&nbsp;Now -- tell me how many miniatures to make of each before you've seen any concept art?&nbsp; Hindsight makes things a lot easier.&nbsp; I don't unfortunately have that luxury -- I'm sure there will be figures coming out in the next year that you'll hate.&nbsp; Hopefully there will be more that you like than you hate.&nbsp;So much of the process is subjective, and ideas that seem strong in the conceptual stage may not turn out to be as cool once realized.&nbsp; Anything can sink a good idea -- bad art, bad mechanics, bad delivery, lack of context, etc.&nbsp; It's also subjective for the consumer -- some people like the dragonspawn, some don't.&nbsp;There are a ton of lines I walk when creating a miniature set list:&nbsp; -appeal to new collectors&nbsp; -appeal to established collectors&nbsp; -appeal to new fans of D&amp;D&nbsp; -appeal to D&amp;D fans that can name all the lords of hell&nbsp; -aimed to support the core books&nbsp; -aimed to support books currently being released&nbsp; -monster innovation&nbsp;For miniatures, the hardest two are to support books currently being released and to do monster innovation.&nbsp; You can imagine how difficult it may be to do any sort of monster innovation coordinated with a release schedule.&nbsp; (Look at the hatred towards the Wrackspawn, and then look at it's monster entry in MM4; I think it's a pretty cool monster, but not the greatest miniature ever made.)&nbsp;There isn't anyone breathing down my neck telling me what to make.&nbsp; I do have people suggesting good miniatures, and I need final approval of a set list to make sure it's in line with the overall department's direction.&nbsp; Mostly, it's discussions with people in and outside the department on what would be cool.&nbsp; (I frequently read the message boards for ideas.)</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Peter Lee, post: 4666217, member: 57579"] The Spawn of Tiamat probably came from someone in R&D thinking, "Wouldn't it be cool to have a new type of monster related to dragons?" The Dragonborn probably came from someone in R&D thinking, "Wouldn't it be cool to have a new type of PC related to dragons?" Now -- tell me how many miniatures to make of each before you've seen any concept art? Hindsight makes things a lot easier. I don't unfortunately have that luxury -- I'm sure there will be figures coming out in the next year that you'll hate. Hopefully there will be more that you like than you hate. So much of the process is subjective, and ideas that seem strong in the conceptual stage may not turn out to be as cool once realized. Anything can sink a good idea -- bad art, bad mechanics, bad delivery, lack of context, etc. It's also subjective for the consumer -- some people like the dragonspawn, some don't. There are a ton of lines I walk when creating a miniature set list: -appeal to new collectors -appeal to established collectors -appeal to new fans of D&D -appeal to D&D fans that can name all the lords of hell -aimed to support the core books -aimed to support books currently being released -monster innovation For miniatures, the hardest two are to support books currently being released and to do monster innovation. You can imagine how difficult it may be to do any sort of monster innovation coordinated with a release schedule. (Look at the hatred towards the Wrackspawn, and then look at it's monster entry in MM4; I think it's a pretty cool monster, but not the greatest miniature ever made.) There isn't anyone breathing down my neck telling me what to make. I do have people suggesting good miniatures, and I need final approval of a set list to make sure it's in line with the overall department's direction. Mostly, it's discussions with people in and outside the department on what would be cool. (I frequently read the message boards for ideas.) [/QUOTE]

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