Last month, we wrote that ANVL had a new owner. I speculated on who the new owner was, got it wrong, and so made attempts to make up for the error by arranging an interview with Derek Kean
Derek is the new owner of the 3D model-and-print site.
Why did you buy ANVL?
I’ve always been fascinated by 3D Printing technology. My mind was blown when I was able to get a pair of replica RayBans printed using SLS (Sintered Laser Printing), and then customizing the shape & fit to perfectly match my face. Having grown up playing MTG and online fantasy MMOs, I’ve only recently started playing DnD, alongside my two kids. Being able to engage with them in a DnD setting has created some of my favorite memories. When I noticed ANVL for sale, I began talking with the former owners about the site, what has been put into it, and what their ambitions were – before selling was decided. Many of their ideas were the same as what I envision for ANVL. But where we go from now is radically different, given how the ecosystem is positioned, and the ever looming advancement of AI tools.
What did you like about the site?
ANVL as a site is very well structured. Not only is the design great and very powerful feeling, but the software is rock solid, and with a few tune ups and touch ups will be faster and more detailed than ever. The most impressive thing I have seen so far as the new owner of ANVL is the community engagement of creators already on the platform. We have sent out a few emails to active users for feedback, and have received loads of great responses that will help us guide where we go with designs, character bases, and products in general!
Is it too early to tell what customers want from ANVL?
The biggest ask is for things that don’t exist yet in the ecosystem. There are millions of customization options on ANVL for fantasy characters, items, and familiars – the same can be said for most all of the other players in the space. What doesn’t exist yet? Well, that’s coming soon ;)
Do you have any stats from the site? Are orcs more popular than dwarves? What’s the most popular weapon?
We do! As of now, Humans make up over 40% of characters created, with Elves making up around 13%, Dwarves at 7% and Dragons at 6.5%. Surprisingly not a lot of Skeletons. I can’t blame anyone on that though – especially with resin printing, they can be a tricky beast.
Do you think the COVID lockdown and the rise of VTT have forever moved a chunk of TTRPG online and away from the gaming table?
Totally have. But where VTT has risen in popularity, now that the “lockdowns” are well past over, there’s no substitute for in person gaming tables. If anything I would venture to guess that VTT and TTRPG keep consistent growth, and learn to be more collaborative, where the VTT apps can become a value-add to the TT gaming experience. One thing that would be interesting to see how it fits is the VR / AR space (Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality). We could see both augmented and pure virtual table top scenarios that are interactive in real time, in a virtual or near virtual space from anywhere on the globe.
I’ve not yet bought a 3D printer, and the urge to buy one is decreasing. Do you think the chances of them being commonplace in homes are on the wane? Why?
Having recently purchased a new resin printer for testing new resin mixes to improve print time and flexibility of final prints, I honestly do not believe they will be as common as the old sci-fi “press one button” dreams led us to believe. While they can be extremely useful in the right setting, for a home they would need to be completely odor and VOC free, able to handle multi-color and multi-tensile materials, and have absolutely no print failures (ok, maybe 0.01% failures). With fast delivery for home and common goods being too easy right now, and only getting easier, the need for customized products where 3d printing is the answer is still very niche in my opinion. Is it fun for us TTRPG players? Sure! Is it useful for a modern family household? Probably not beyond novelty (yet).
What can ANVL do to make the 3d printing experience more memorable?
Right now our focus is on print speed, shipping speed, and working to improve the design and purchase experience. Luckily we are not starting from scratch, however we are still having issues with getting items printed and shipped fast. My personal aim is to make the web (and mobile???) experience for creating a mini (or a biggie???) fun in it’s own right, and start to provide more options beyond STL downloads and Resin / Metal prints. Stay tuned on that.
Right now, I think I can use ANVL to design and print a mini or design and download the STL files. A lot of Kickstarters offer STL files, and I can get more on Etsy but can’t do anything with them. Why don’t more companies provide STL uploads and then 3D printing services?
There are some very good sites for uploading STL files to, and having them printed. The hard part is what we touched on before – print speed, print quality and print processing are tough jobs. While a print task can take anywhere from minutes to hours, depending on the material there is post processing work that must take place. This is still a very manual task, that requires hands on. Hands on means a bottleneck for timing. If one thing goes wrong in a print process – gotta start over again! Errors double the total time to output a single item easily. This past year, Shapeways, a super popular site for 3D printing, and one where I got started with SLS, went into bankruptcy. They have since returned, but it only highlights that this industry is tough – and many other services like them rely on networks, or marketplaces, where users can upload STLs and get quotes from multiple printers.
What would you like to see happening this year in the world of 3D printing?
I have a big dream, and that is we can get to a point where supports are no longer needed. Somehow, somewhere, someone has to be working on this. Supports are a huge pain, but a 100% necessary one. When we print minis, the detail on each mini is so small in scale that the supports sometimes are a true torture to remove. But its a labor of love I suppose. The past few years are no exception, but I can absolutely see another double in speed, resolution, and improvements in multi-color printing.
If people want to find out about what’s next for ANVL after this interview how can they do that? A newsletter, social media or something like that?
Head over to https://anvl.co/ and create an account – they are free, you can save your designs and have no obligation to print or download until you’re ready. From there, you’ll be subscribed to our newsletter – and we’ll keep everyone up to date about our new releases (which are starting in March)!
