DD Emilia V2

48 minutes ago, nami said:

I managed to get Emilia from the local (HK) Volks Friend Shop, Hoshitsukiya, the other day. They put her up for order a few days before Volks and there was a clickwar as well since Volks gave them a very small quota of dolls! She was sold out in 2 mins! 

Yeah that’s insane. First 2 mins of the Volks JP clickwar was pure blocking you out. I eventually figured out a good way. Instead of clicking return to homepage, hit back and go to the previous page. It’ll ask if you want to submit this again. Keep clicking yes until the same page opens. That’s how I finally got to the checkout page and was able to select PayPal and my order went through. 
 

That was 5 minutes into the war. It said low stock soon after and within 2 minutes of that she was gone. It’s crazy how popular she was THIS time when last time she wasn’t. I know the second season of the anime has a lot to do with it, but wow I wasn’t expecting the other doll to be available still for minutessssss longer. As soon as Emilia sold out the website went back to normal and stopped blocking me LMAO. Was able to make another purchase of a few things without hassle. 

7 hours ago, Ui- said:

As soon as Emilia sold out the website went back to normal and stopped blocking me LMAO.

That in and of itself makes me wonder if the main load wasn’t scalpers. If you had thousands of people trying to get her I’d expect the load would return to normal more gradually as individual people figured out she wasn’t available. A scalper using scripted tools to make hundreds of orders using many accounts would stop as soon as stock is gone so as not to tip their hand. 

I got pretty lucky with this click war and managed to get in within the first few minutes. It wasn't nearly as stressful for me as the Arle clickwar. Is it just luck of the draw?

I hope everyone who wants her manages to get her for non-scalper prices...

Just now, nettle_tea said:

I hope everyone who wants her manages to get her for non-scalper prices...

never know ... Uzuki just came back in stock after almost a week of sold out, and emilia has the same Awaiting restock as Uzuki did ... maybe they have a rolling production going that they have a set ammount of dolls they will make, but they release them into the wild in batches.

Also interestingly Scatch is still hanging in there with a low stock warning, so whats up with her not being appreciated by the quick buck peeps...

31 minutes ago, nettle_tea said:

It wasn't nearly as stressful for me as the Arle clickwar. Is it just luck of the draw?

I think they’ve made significant improvements to their web service. I’m guessing they used data from those early events to beef up their service. 
 

31 minutes ago, finnleo said:

maybe they have a rolling production going that they have a set ammount of dolls they will make, but they release them into the wild in batches.

I think that’s exactly what they do nowadays. They’ve moved to the clickwar model, but with the caveat that products will be stocked in batches in order to give people a more even chance. 

3 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

I think they’ve made significant improvements to their web service. I’m guessing they used data from those early events to beef up their service. 
 

I think that’s exactly what they do nowadays. They’ve moved to the clickwar model, but with the caveat that products will be stocked in batches in order to give people a more even chance. 

Must be. Even though it was hellish and there was so much anxiety and sweating, heart racing so fast it was like I was running a race up a mountain, it was nothing like Arle (still don’t have her) or Rem and Ram. Those two were just unfair IMO. Two at a time? I mean. From the same series. Idk. This wasn’t as bad but it still was too bad to be a working method. 
 

Your second response made me think. Isn’t that a good method to use against the scalpers who use programs to auto-buy? It gives everyone a chance. It’s just, there isn’t much more time until they deliver. I wonder how much longer until they release more or if they even have. It’s good to hear some people on this exact forum were able to get her without having to go with chance at the Volks USA lottery (good luck to you all). I hope more people who truly want the beautiful doll get her. 
 

If not, I can send customized photos of her holding your name on a piece of paper with heart hands.  lol.

I know she’s a lot of peoples grail doll. She was one of mine too. Now I can finally start looking for Hatsune Miku v2 and Sakura Miku. I wonder if she’ll get a reboot a couple months before the spring, like Snow Miku? Oh that would make me gleefully happy. 
 

Are we of the same mind that people who don’t have her and want her, should check stock periodically as often as they can, until it simply says sold out (and not awaiting restock. That is so confusing).

 

Again, congratulations to everyone who made it through with their hearts intact. Mine almost blew up. 7 minutes and it was over. That’s crazy. I seriously need just start going to Dolpa. I saw people trying to sell Rena Ryugu MDD for $1200-1500, and I wondered, how do you even have her yet, she isn’t released for months!
 

But I forgot about in-person events... it must be everyone’s dream to go to a Dolpa and wait in lines getting outfits and dolls and stuff they only release there, like Shiku in 2005 or so. Didn’t announce her, was by lottery at the event, and they only sold 100 + some after so I’m not sure how many. I have seen her sell for over $10,000-13,0000 too. She isn’t a DD though; an SD-something. Can’t remember lol midi maybe. Did they have those in 2005? Ahhhh. It doesn’t matter. Just making a point lol. 
 

It’s like the Komiket of doll exhibits. (I’m pretty sure a lot of us here want to go to Komiket at least once as well 😂 ) My excitement won’t wane until I’ve gotten her. And my birthday is the 19th next month.  This’ll be the craziest birth month ever! I can’t wait to show you all. I moved. I have such nice. Display space. There’s a place between in China hutch where I want a lot of my dolls... ok I’m rambling now  lol I’ll post my own thread about all of my dolls and make them their own pages, etc. I’m sooo happy hahaha. I feel like a kid who just got an OK to go into the candy store at a mall by Mommy. Lmao. 😂 ty almighty Momma Volks 🙇‍♀️ 🙏 

4 minutes ago, Ui- said:

This wasn’t as bad but it still was too bad to be a working method.

It’s possible that data from this event will be used to further improve store performance. I can get not just buying a monster server farm or cloud host solution in anticipation of high load only to have it not materialize. A more data driven approach where you find the sweet spot in baseline or bursted resources makes a lot more sense for a smaller business. Bursting can get expensive fast, and you end up having to pay the bill even if you lose money on the transaction. 
 

7 minutes ago, Ui- said:

I wonder how much longer until they release more or if they even have.

It is possible that the next restock will be unsold stock from physical stores in a few weeks, and in that event I would expect Emilia to be a small restock like Lina Inverse, whereas Caster may well be up for sale for months.

Still, I think people should keep an eye on the web store and Twitter in case they add more stock this weekend. 

4 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

That in and of itself makes me wonder if the main load wasn’t scalpers. If you had thousands of people trying to get her I’d expect the load would return to normal more gradually as individual people figured out she wasn’t available. A scalper using scripted tools to make hundreds of orders using many accounts would stop as soon as stock is gone so as not to tip their hand. 

And this is why I think it is scalpers. Because real humans would continue to try. Just out of hope or desperation. I know I would’ve spent the next 5-6 hours refreshing and waiting to see if they restocked any lol. 
 

Once the Scalper Scripts successfully score, they probably back off too. Unless they want other limited items. I knew EMT would be popular, but I had no idea she’d sell out like *snap*. I thought there wasn’t as much interest in her last time? I guess it really is both the more Emilia-tan-esque face up, and the fact that Season 2 was double wilder than season 1. This would be a PERFECT time for a Betty MDD release. 
 

Where are you, Betty, my love!! I’ve been holding off on making her. If they don’t release her in the next year, I’ll make a Beatrice (not the almighty God Beatrice that also needs a re-release lol) MDD from re:zero. Oh how I want her to go with my other three girls. (I’m making the Witch of Envy now that I finally have two Emilia. So excited, but a little worried, to modify a LE sculpt/face up. 
 

EDIT: In reply to the above post. They very well may be collecting data. I just think they would’ve been doing that for years by now, yet the improvements really aren’t going by much. They could buy cloud data as they need it too. Like, once it hits a certain amount of users it automatically raises the cap. I just don’t think Volks is so poor that they can’t afford to do this. They’re a luxury collectible goods manufacturer, after all. I’m going to be buying a couch for $250. I see real human couches cheaper than that (obviously not high quality, but you catch my drift). They have to make so much money. I wish I knew someone closer to Volks to be able to ask a few of these questions. 

Edited August 21, 2021 by Ui-

16 minutes ago, Ui- said:

Once the Scalper Scripts successfully score, they probably back off too.

Not necessarily. Some of the Chinese companies involved in scalping get away with dozens or even hundreds of dolls at each event. 
 

16 minutes ago, Ui- said:

They could buy cloud data as they need it too. Like, once it hits a certain amount of users it automatically raises the cap.

That’s bursting, but the problem is you are on the hook for the costs. I.e if a scalper figures out they can open 10,000 connections they will, as will all the other scalpers, and you have to pay the bill even if it consumes all the profits from the event and then some.  
 

17 minutes ago, Ui- said:

They very well may be collecting data. I just think they would’ve been doing that for years by now

They only have a few events each year, the pandemic year has skewed things, and not all their events have been identical in nature over the last 2 years. 

Glad to find another crazy Emilia fan, lol. She's my favorite anime girl ever and I also share a name with her. 😊

I'm sure the 2nd season of Re:Zero has made her more popular, but I feel like the popularity of the DD Emilia is based on her attractive head sculpt and elf ears that people use for customs. I've been searching for her for a long time, and when I saw the post announcing a 2nd version that looks even more show-accurate, my heart dropped. I've been anticipating her release since that post and I was so anxious that I might not be able to get her that it was eating me up inside. I'm so grateful that I was able to make a purchase because I was fully prepared to 1. Enter the VolksUSA lottery on Sep 1st, and 2. Cry if I lost the clickwar

This is actually the first time I've ever won a clickwar since I notoriously have bad luck and internet problems

5 minutes ago, BeyondTime said:

Not necessarily. Some of the Chinese companies involved in scalping get away with dozens or even hundreds of dolls at each event. 
 

That’s bursting, but the problem is you are on the hook for the costs. I.e if a scalper figures out they can open 10,000 connections they will, as will all the other scalpers, and you have to pay the bill even if it consumes all the profits from the event and then some.  
 

They only have a few events each year, the pandemic year has skewed things, and not all their events have been identical in nature over the last 2 years. 

All good points, especially the second one. I didn’t think that through enough. *facepalm* Sorry to waste your time. Thanks for clarifying. I understand now. Yeah, that would be terrible. Even worse than it is now, which leads to your third point. Data collection to figure the best way to solve this. Definitely no overnight solution. 
 

Just wanted to say I appreciate you taking the time to read my replies. I enjoy your posts and many opinions you have, and so I like to pick your brain on certain topics. Thank you for responding.  

33 minutes ago, Ui- said:

And this is why I think it is scalpers. Because real humans would continue to try. Just out of hope or desperation. I know I would’ve spent the next 5-6 hours refreshing and waiting to see if they restocked any lol. 
 

Once the Scalper Scripts successfully score, they probably back off too. Unless they want other limited items. I knew EMT would be popular, but I had no idea she’d sell out like *snap*. I thought there wasn’t as much interest in her last time? I guess it really is both the more Emilia-tan-esque face up, and the fact that Season 2 was double wilder than season 1. This would be a PERFECT time for a Betty MDD release. 
 

Where are you, Betty, my love!! I’ve been holding off on making her. If they don’t release her in the next year, I’ll make a Beatrice (not the almighty God Beatrice that also needs a re-release lol) MDD from re:zero. Oh how I want her to go with my other three girls. (I’m making the Witch of Envy now that I finally have two Emilia. So excited, but a little worried, to modify a LE sculpt/face up. 
 

EDIT: In reply to the above post. They very well may be collecting data. I just think they would’ve been doing that for years by now, yet the improvements really aren’t going by much. They could buy cloud data as they need it too. Like, once it hits a certain amount of users it automatically raises the cap. I just don’t think Volks is so poor that they can’t afford to do this. They’re a luxury collectible goods manufacturer, after all. I’m going to be buying a couch for $250. I see real human couches cheaper than that (obviously not high quality, but you catch my drift). They have to make so much money. I wish I knew someone closer to Volks to be able to ask a few of these questions. 

Also funny you mention Beatrice, I'm in the process of making a Beatrice doll. I actually think that DDP fits her better than MDD. I commissioned someone to make the overly complicated dress, and I'm using a modded DD-01 head for her

21 minutes ago, Islenski said:

Also funny you mention Beatrice, I'm in the process of making a Beatrice doll. I actually think that DDP fits her better than MDD. I commissioned someone to make the overly complicated dress, and I'm using a modded DD-01 head for her

I’ve never seen a DDP in person, but you may be right. I love Dollce head sculpts and I’ve already used a few of them for my MDDs and I think the same sculpt with some modding would fit her puffed up cheeks really well. 
 

I have her eyes and the outfit already patterned (just needs to go from paper to cloth) but I’m waiting. Few reasons. I think there’s a high likelihood of an official release and depending on how she looks, it may be better than my custom altogether. I’ve done quite a few good ones who look spot on. I’m not, I think, going to commission out much in the way of outfits anymore. I pay so much more and it never turns out how I like it. When I state my complaints about whatever they did wrong, “I said I wanted like *blahblah*” I get, “MAKER’S CHOICE. NO REFUNDS.” 
 

Once, when I complained how the outfit was made entirely wrong from even official designs, my designs and instructions, colors and all, not only did they not ship the outfit, I never got a refund. “Ok fine. I’ll keep it if you don’t like it.” Last I heard of that person. I honestly don’t know any good costume commissioners. 
 

Who is making Betty’s dress for you, if you don’t mind me asking? If I went to the same person (after seeing yours), I’m sure they’d have a much easier time with a second, not having to make a pattern or anything. Well, we both have the same idea at least, roughly. Haha. Good luck with your Betty!! I’m working on the Witch of Envy right now while I wait to see if Betty will get a release. 
 

And why had nobody complained about this yet? WHY NO PUCK PLUSHIE FOR EMILIA. It makes absolutely no sense. I saw v2 and figured for SURE. But no. So I guess I’ll make one myself. Emilia needs her Puck.

(if you have any of your in progress pics I’d love to see, like the modded DDH-01 sculpt, if you’re willing to share. Feel free to PM me if so!) 

Edited August 22, 2021 by Ui-
Spelling errors

6 minutes ago, Ui- said:

I’ve never seen a DDP in person, but you may be right. I love Dollce head sculpts and I’ve already used a few of them for my MDDs and I think the same sculpt with some modding would fit her puffed up cheeks really well. 
 

I have her eyes and the outfit already patterned (just needs to go from paper to cloth) but I’m waiting. Few reasons. I think there’s a high likelihood of an official release and depending on how she looks, it may be better than my custom altogether. I’ve done quite a few good ones who look spot on. I’m not, I think, going to commission out much in the way of outfits anymore. I pay so much more and it never turns out how I like it. When I state my complaints about whatever they did wrong, “I said I wanted like *blahblah*” I get, “MAKER’S CHOICE. NO REFUNDS.” 
 

Once, when I complained how the outfit was made entirely wrong from even official designs, my designs and instructions, colors and all, not only did they not ship the outfit, I never got a refund. “Ok fine. I’ll keep it if you don’t like it.” Last I heard of that person. I honestly don’t know any good costume commissioners. 
 

Who is making Betty’s dress for you, if you don’t mind me asking? If I went to the same person (after seeing yours), I’m sure they’d have a much easier time with a second, not having to make a pattern or anything. Well, we both have the same idea at least, roughly. Haha. Good luck with your Betty!! I’m working on the Witch of Envy right now while I wait to see if Betty will get a release. 
 

And why had nobody complained about this yet? WHY NO PUCK PLUSHIE FOR EMILIA. It makes absolutely no sense. I saw v2 and figured for SURE. But no. So I guess I’ll make one myself. Emilia needs her Puck.

(if you have any of your in progress pics I’d love to see, like the modded DDH-01 sculpt, if you’re willing to share. Feel free to PM me if so!) 

This is what the dress looks like. It has actually been commissioned before by someone else, so I was confident in the appearance of it. Is is being made for DDP and the colors and materials will be slightly altered to better match her dress in the anime. The artist is actually out of China and takes commissions for doll clothing, but the wait time is usually pretty long since they get a lot of requests, so I might not receive this dress until winter.

The head I'm using hasn't been painted yet, but I used a dremel to sand down the lips of the DD-01 head. I do think that the head matches her and her expression pretty well. I'm still waiting for Jadepixel to restock her shop with the Beatrice eyes so I can buy them. I just bought a pair of Emilia eyes from her

25 minutes ago, Ui- said:

I’ve never seen a DDP in person, but you may be right.

Taller, thinner, and having no baby fat compared to an MDD. I don’t know much about the series, but a lot of the images I see on the internet make me think DDP.

I look at that drill hair and it makes me think an official doll is unlikely. They might be able to make it work with glue and wire, but it’s hard to say. 

1 minute ago, Islenski said:

This is what the dress looks like. It has actually been commissioned before by someone else, so I was confident in the appearance of it. Is is being made for DDP and the colors and materials will be slightly altered to better match her dress in the anime. The artist is actually out of China and takes commissions for doll clothing, but the wait time is usually pretty long since they get a lot of requests, so I might not receive this dress until winter.

The head I'm using hasn't been painted yet, but I used a dremel to sand down the lips of the DD-01 head. I do think that the head matches her and her expression pretty well. I'm still waiting for Jadepixel to restock her shop with the Beatrice eyes so I can buy them. I just bought a pair of Emilia eyes from her

That’s amazing. Ok. I’ll probably PM you in the next day or two if you don’t mind sharing who it was (and once I get it, I’ll make a Puck plushie for you too as thanks. xP)

6 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

I look at that drill hair and it makes me think an official doll is unlikely. They might be able to make it work with glue and wire, but it’s hard to say. 

Well, as a ranko owner you do know volks has at least attempted drills ... would they be the perfect spiral one's and symmetrical is another, and how to transport it safely.

a random chinese company made this 15 or so years ago, and its just chilling by what I assume is just being twisted by a curler:

shino158

So based on that, I wouldnt see it impossible to make it a tighter and longer... especially with hairproduct ... I think I have a wig in storage that is a porcupine of small tight wound drills.

Though if I were a betting man, I would think Felix was ahead of Beeko in terms of possible character dolls ... although there is the thing with volks and ears ... and Echidna

17 hours ago, finnleo said:

So based on that, I wouldnt see it impossible to make it a tighter and longer... especially with hairproduct ... I think I have a wig in storage that is a porcupine of small tight wound drills.

This just seems to go beyond gravity defying and straight into defiance of many of the laws of physics though. 

They would either need to build some serious support structure into the wig, or just accept that they are going to make an approximation that realizes the character in accordance with the laws of the natural world. 
 

In the case of Azone’s Mami Tomoe they made an approximation, but one that works fairly well because Miami’s drill hair is really meant to look like curling ribbons. 

FWIW, Sakuya Crimson had good curly twin tails. They were also a nightmare to deal with.

Sakuya: Weapon of Choice by bodolza, on Flickr

 

2 hours ago, BeyondTime said:

They would either need to build some serious support structure into the wig, or just accept that they are going to make an approximation that realizes the character in accordance with the laws of the natural world. 

One solution that comes to mind is Lily sabers wig, where the base by itself is pretty much an onion bulb (think Little-Myy out of moomin), and the ponytail is glued on (juu-yuki did a repair thing on one, though I guess that was on her blog and not here...). In a similar fashion you could use wood glue to make the base of the curl to get the outwards and upwards thing initially going, and hide most of the sins with the ribbon. though would this solve the more volume going out than in which is my own biggest pondering with it .. then again Ranko's curls do end up quite fluffy in the end.

Interestingly enough the anime design is actually a little tamer compared to the original novel illustrator where the few images I found even the curls have a outgoing arc, though a few reasonable poses do exist.

37 minutes ago, finnleo said:

then again Ranko's curls do end up quite fluffy in the end.

Ranko’s wig style makes a good compromise IMO. If Volks did make Beatrice I think people would need to have realistic expectations for her wig, and as foo pointed out it’s probably going to be a nightmare to maintain. There is a reason my Usagi wears a blond bob and her default wig is carefully set aside for photos as Sailor Moon. XD

Just wanted to say that the HK Volks Friend Shop, Hoshituskiya, tried to ask Volks for more Emilias, but Volks told them that she's sold out... 

Their previous answer from Volks was that Volks had to see if there were any Emilias left after the After Event to see if they could give Hoshitsukiya more, and now they've given them a definite answer that there is no more.

Edited August 23, 2021 by nami

On the slightly derailing subject of possible curls ...

Maintenance you say...

Nighmare you say ...

I give you curlpocalypse:

(or with the model in question, what happens when Sabers pull the pin on their librarian danish...)

saber297

saber298

things012

So yea, this is my benchmark for over-achieving wigs, note also the styled horns, that I think are made with wood/elmers glue, or some industrial grade hair gel.

Dunno what this thing was originally meant as, since it came to me early on in my collecting days as part of a rather sad DD2 combo deal off yja ... but sort of prooves the point, that you give a skilled enough individual too much of their favorite catnip, weird things might happen.

1 hour ago, finnleo said:

On the slightly derailing subject of possible curls ...

Maintenance you say...

Nighmare you say ...

I give you curlpocalypse:

(or with the model in question, what happens when Sabers pull the pin on their librarian danish...)

saber297

saber298

things012

So yea, this is my benchmark for over-achieving wigs, note also the styled horns, that I think are made with wood/elmers glue, or some industrial grade hair gel.

Dunno what this thing was originally meant as, since it came to me early on in my collecting days as part of a rather sad DD2 combo deal off yja ... but sort of prooves the point, that you give a skilled enough individual too much of their favorite catnip, weird things might happen.

She’s totally stunningly gorgeous. That wig is amazing. The outfit is amazing. What dress is that..? I love those horns. I can picture it on so many dolls. 
 

you’ve kept it in such good shape, and that also proves that it HOLDS its shape even after hears and years pass. No need for wires at all. There are some many different gravity defying hairstyles than Beako’s that I also think it’s weird to say Volks wouldn’t do it because of a wig that’s too hard? They have a VERY similar SD wig. The curls aren’t as tight and don’t run up as high. I have it in light brown. I think the blonde was sold out but it wasn’t limited or anything for all I know, so it could be back in stock. I’ll check when I wake up. 
 

I’ll take pictures later. But I already have a Betty wig. Just take a wig and use some Volks wig spray and voila... perfect drills. They work in real life too. Tested it on myself even.

Same as how I did Shiro’s disheveled hair. Style it with some spray/cream and you have yourself a perfect wig. They can just come pre-styled for a little more, and cheaper with styling instructions.

3 hours ago, nami said:

Just wanted to say that the HK Volks Friend Shop, Hoshituskiya, tried to ask Volks for more Emilias, but Volks told them that she's sold out... 

Their previous answer from Volks was that Volks had to see if there were any Emilias left after the After Event to see if they could give Hoshitsukiya more, and now they've given them a definite answer that there is no more.

Wow. Game over, then. 
 

*heaves sigh of relief* She was popular!!! Wow! Way more interest than in 2017.