So no Yellow Bellied Red Dragon?  I'm so relieved that Huge Red Dragon and Fiendish T-Rex didn't have a love child.

Go Death Priest of Orcus! Kalima! Kalima! Kalima! Kalima! 

I like this set.�

IMO the HUGES are better than the last set (with the exception of the two dragon gods).�

And yes I agree it seems like the gallery is up early.�

I don't think I'm the target consumer for WotC anymore.  I'm sticking with 3.5 D&D and don't play DDM yet.  (I'd like to, but haven't been able to find a game to join and learn.)  That being said, only 10 of the rares appeal to me and only one of the huge uncommons strikes my fancy.  The rest don't really have a place at my 3.5 D&D table.  I used to be a whole set collector, but this set is the perfect opportunity to curb my habit.

My lack of fervor for this set is good news considering that I am trying to reduce my consumerism in general and specifically WotC products.  However, I do want almost all the other commons and uncommons in the set.  Perhaps I'll buy some boosters after all and trade away the rares I don't want for the uncommons and commons I do.  Man, I wish Reaper's prepainted looked this good or my skill with a brush would allow me to complete a mini in a reasonable time - then I might be able to resist WotC miniatures.

I hope WotC is listening to the opinions being expressed here, which I believe they are at times.  My concern is some of the 4th edition art work and mini designs are starting to seem a bit cartoonish.  If this trend continues I will quit buying the new products, and especially the mini's.  This set looks decent and I did buy two cases even though I wasn't sure what to expect.  I just want to warn the designers that the cover art on the new products is pushing into that cartoon look and I see some miniatures that appear to do the same.  That huge red dragon looks terrible and I can only hope that once it is in hand it will be much better, as often seems to be the case.  I love the look of the huge white though, well done!

One last thing I notice in the pics of the minis is the lack of an ink wash, why?  The painting of the minis just looks flat and poor without the proper shading.  I thought the blistered starters pack with the green dragon looked great and in large part not only because the sculpts were nice but they looked to be ink washed.  No ink wash often makes the paint job look caroon-like once again.

Just some suggestions from those of us that dread our precious D&D being turned into cartoons or anime!  Next thing that will happen is someone will try making Dragonlance into a cartoon movie and butcher it to death - oh wait that already happened :-(

It's probably been mentioned elsewhere (I'm only an intermitent lurker these days) but it's an odd distribution for this set.  24 rares, 27 uncommons and only 9 commons.

Frank

Hm.  OK, here are my first thoughts, commenting on all of the Rares and Huges (I play RPG and not the Minis game):

Angel of Retribution: I really dislike the new "jelly worm" look of the angels in 4E.  No exception to that here.

Boneclaw Impaler: This guy isn't too bad.  I already have a Boneclaw that I've never used though.

Armored Guulvorg: I don't care for the Guulvorg so my opinion may be biased.  I'm not fond of this sculpt.  If nothing else the armor forces me to further alter the only stand-in choice I could make for this guy in my Eberron campaign -- he'd have to be an ARMORED advanced horrid wolf.

Blackroot Treant: A Nightwalker wearing a Tiki mask.  Nuff said.�

Chain Golem: I actually like this guy.  Wouldn't mind pulling two of him.  The level of detail doesn't look bad and I could use this as a monster in my game.

Cockatrice: Only an Uncommon, but worth mentioning.  I like this piece.  Decent sculpt, decent pose, and we needed a cockatrice.

Cloaktrick Rogue: I'm worried about the lack of facial detail on this one.  Might be good as an Uncommon, rather disappointing as a Rare.

Doresain, the Ghoul King: The name is more impressive than the mini IMO.  Too much white.  Would it have broken the bank to have put shading in the skull's eye sockets?

Death Titan: Decent pose.  I wouldn't mind pulling this guy.  The axe haft should have been thicker though.  And what's with the air or water swirling around him?

Dragonborn Defender & Dragonborn Myrmidon: OK, these guys tick me off.  They're actually decent sculpts and it's clear they were earmarked for extra detail.  The poses and paint jobs (other than the Defender's curiously white sword) are good.  The problem is that I hate the Dragonborn.  I think WotC wants to create more Dragonborn love and these sculpts were an attempt to do that, but all I can think when I see them is how the level of detail on these was taken away from other sculpts that I'd actually WANT.  I hate them and I can't help but feel doomed to pull both of them when my case comes in.  Die Dragonborn Die!!!

Earth Titan: Yeah, I can use a Huge Earth Elemental.

Efreeti Flamestrider: I'll want to repaint this guy to make him a darker red.  Otherwise he looks like he has potential.

Enourmous Carrior Crawler: My current campaign is in Eberron and the main villains are aberrations led by the Daelkyr.  I'll actually be using this guy -- I even hope I pull more than one -- but I recognize that my personal situaiton isn't typical and may be coloring my opinion of the mini.  Still, even outside of my situation, this guy is one of the better looking minis in the set IMO.  As with many of this set's minis, there is room for more sculpt detail, but its pose is dynamic enough.  He could be an evil psionic mastermind -- THE BOOKWORM!

Elder Red Dragon: He looks like he was put together by a 5-year-old with a lump of red clay and a pile of crudely detailed plastic parts.  Seriously.  Color me unimpressed.

Elder White Dragon: In contrast the the Red, this guy has a decent dynamic pose and hints at decent sculpt detail.  In addition I've been waiting for a Huge White for some time now.  Nice.  This guy is one of my "top three" rares for the set.

Fire Giant Raider: I like the fire giant minis overall (past and present) for their dynamic poses and interesting sculpt details.  This guy looks to be no exception.  I like him and hope to pull him.

Fire Titan: See Fire Giant Raider, above, although I'm no fan of the orange Jell-O and this guys detail level seems lower to me.

Furious Owlbear: More like "Puffball Owlbear" or just "Fat Owlbear".  Maybe it's just the angle of the shot but this guy looks too roly-poly to take as seriously as the previous two Owlbear sculpts.  Just move back and fire arrows as he tries to waddle up to you.

Galeb Duhr: Only a Common but worth mentioning as it is clearly the "WTF" piece of the set. 

Mighty Blademaster: Meh.  Disappointing rare that I'll probably pull two of.

Roper: This guy is actually a lot better than the Roper from Underdark (not that that is a great accomplishment, but still).  Even aside from that comparision he looks like a good piece to me, one of the best in the set actually.  Again, nice dynamic pose for an enemy and good level of detail.  Hope I pull one.

Shadow Hulk: High-Tech Hulk.  This guy looks like a robot or psionic construct to me.  Which isn't all bad.  Not my favorite piece but I wouldn't mind pulling one.

Shifter Claw Adept: A claw fighter without claws?  Meh and double meh.  Another piece I'll pull two of and curse.  Could have been much better if they'd taken a look at the Gnoll Clawfighter before designing it (that guy I like).

Skullcleave Warrior: Another fighter with an axe.  Meh.

Storm Giant Thunderer: A passably good giant.  I like the maul.  I'm worried that the paint job looks extremely basic/undetailed.

Thunderblast Cyclone: Yeah, I can use a Huge Air Elemental.

Tiefling Gladiator & Tomebound Arcanist: I want to call these yawners, but I have to admit I do like their poses.  Don't want either one eating up my precious rare slots though (so of course I'll end up pulling both).

Voracious Ice Devil: I know we already had an Ice Devil recently (and I have him), but still I like this guy.  If I pull him I'll just have to design an encounter for my campaign featuring two Ice Devils.  Curious why they didn't go with clear blue "ice" for the spearhead though -- it would have worked.

Young Adamantine Dragon: A decent dragon that I'd be happy to pull.  Repaint him and it looks like you'd have a classic Green dragon.

Yuan-Ti Anathema: When I first heard this mini was going to be in the set, I was very excited -- until I actually saw the preview image.  My dislike for this sculpt probably stems less from the fact that it's a poor sculpt than from the fact that they deviated too much from the fantastic look that the YTA had in its original artwork (in the MM3, I think).  That was a very cool looking monster, while this guy looks too much like a "snaked up" Animal from the Muppet Show to me.  The snake fingers are a nice touch but not enough to compensate for losing the cool look of the original.

That's it!

   - Ron   ^*^