Yeah in that situation you describe I wouldn't be surprised if Lee was only interested in busting out characters that he could do quickly with little though. A lot of the artists I have gotten commission information from include costs for custom character creation. I know my two favorite locals (Mina & JCW) love to do that sort of stuff. But I haven't worked with an extraordinary number of artists and I can only speak to my experience.
I'm pretty sure I once promised Mina that I wasn't stalking her
Anyway, where are you getting these Victra pieces? Post or PM me a link