Let me start by saying that when designing new subclasses, spells, feats, etc. being able to maintain both a solid theme and good mechanics is important. What I am wondering is what you choose to give more weight to when you design homebrew? 

To try and frame this question, lets say you are designing a new subclass. Do you:

a) Start with your theme, come up with interesting subclass features to fit that theme, and then figure out how those features work mechanically

b) Start with how you want it to work mechanically (i.e. what "role" you want it to fill), come up with interesting subclass features to fill that role, and then flavor them thematically

I think everyone is gonna be a mix of option a and  option b, but speaking personally I think I lean more heavily into option a , starting with theme and flavor and then figuring out mechanics of it afterward. 

I usually start with theme but every once in a while I build for mechanics 

I have to say that I go for theme first - I come up with an idea and then I work out how to make it work properly, trying to make it balanced enough that people will consider using it, but not a no-brainer!

I hate polls that are polarised. Why is there no option for both for those of us who treat both equal level of importance?

I almost always start with a theme. For monsters, the theme usually implies a role as well. Mechanics come later, and require a bit more research generally. There are merits to starting in the other direction, however. I occasionally work on something thematically interesting only to come to the conclusion that an existing option can provide good mechanics with a bit of reflavoring. This is actually where I am with my dwarven defender subclass. I liked the idea of a fighter whose role is to act like an environmental feature, only to eventually come around to the existing cavalier archetype with some minor revisions.

Also, when a new book comes out that includes monsters and subclasses, I scrutinize them carefully to see if any of the mechanics can be stolen to improve my other homebrews or used as a foundation for an idea I've had but never created.

Quote from Cyb3rM1nd >>

I hate polls that are polarised. Why is there no option for both for those of us who treat both equal level of importance?

 I didnt include it because that seemed like too easy of answer to me. I feel like most people will try to get it as close equal importance as possible, but I find it unlikely that most actually do so exactly equally. Even if its not fully one way or another, I am curious which side of the scale everyone leans more towards.

What I am wondering is what you choose to give more weight to when you design homebrew? 

To try and frame this question, lets say you are designing a new subclass. Do you:

a) Start with your theme, come up with interesting subclass features to fit that theme, and then figure out how those features work mechanically

b) Start with how you want it to work mechanically (i.e. what "role" you want it to fill), come up with interesting subclass features to fill that role, and then flavor them thematically

 This is still a little confusing. The title and the part quoted in red are asking which is more important, but your options given are more just which do you start with.

I generally start with a theme but I spend waaay more time on mechanics. Theme comes pretty easy and provides the motivation to build it out, but mechanics take a lot more time to get right. At least that's how it goes for me.

Quote from scatterbraind >>

What I am wondering is what you choose to give more weight to when you design homebrew? 

To try and frame this question, lets say you are designing a new subclass. Do you:

a) Start with your theme, come up with interesting subclass features to fit that theme, and then figure out how those features work mechanically

b) Start with how you want it to work mechanically (i.e. what "role" you want it to fill), come up with interesting subclass features to fill that role, and then flavor them thematically

 This is still a little confusing. The title and the part quoted in red are asking which is more important, but your options given are more just which do you start with.

I generally start with a theme but I spend waaay more time on mechanics. Theme comes pretty easy and provides the motivation to build it out, but mechanics take a lot more time to get right. At least that's how it goes for me.

 The title asks which is more important to you, so its not about what is objectively more important. I am asking entirely looking for opinions

I do a bit of a mix-n-match.  I come up with the character option idea, I cobble together themed mechanics, and then I realize someone else (generally Matt Mercer or WotC) has already come to my conclusions and my work is useless.  

It depends for me. Sometimes I have an idea for a theme, sometimes I have an idea for a cool mechanic, sometimes I take both and smash them together.

Quote from Thauraeln_The_Bold >>

It depends for me. Sometimes I have an idea for a theme, sometimes I have an idea for a cool mechanic, sometimes I take both and smash them together.

 Same with me.

Quote from Kaboom979 >>

Quote from scatterbraind >>

What I am wondering is what you choose to give more weight to when you design homebrew? 

To try and frame this question, lets say you are designing a new subclass. Do you:

a) Start with your theme, come up with interesting subclass features to fit that theme, and then figure out how those features work mechanically

b) Start with how you want it to work mechanically (i.e. what "role" you want it to fill), come up with interesting subclass features to fill that role, and then flavor them thematically

 This is still a little confusing. The title and the part quoted in red are asking which is more important, but your options given are more just which do you start with.

I generally start with a theme but I spend waaay more time on mechanics. Theme comes pretty easy and provides the motivation to build it out, but mechanics take a lot more time to get right. At least that's how it goes for me.

 The title asks which is more important to you, so its not about what is objectively more important. I am asking entirely looking for opinions

 That's still confusing because both are obviously important to anyone trying to make something that's not bad. It's like saying which part of a hamburger is more important, the bun or the meat.

From what I can understand, you're asking what inspires us to make a homebrew feature in the first place. If there's an unrepresented theme or concept we want to add to the game, or if we have an idea regarding mechanics and start from there. Which side sparks the initial idea.

Theme is what inspires me to make something in the first place, so I guess that's my answer. Mechanics is the hard part, and I spend 90% of my time here. Clearly it's important too or I wouldn't spend so much time on it. You might even say I'm giving a lot more weight to it because it's definitely where I put most of my energy. It's important to me to make both aspects as good as I possibly can, so in the end I can't weigh one above the other.

For me it’s six oranges or half a dozen apples, and why I think you should alway provide an "other" option in any poll if you want honest results (regardless of whether or not you think it too easy of an answer for yourself.) Today I worked on both an anti-magic barbarian I’m calling the Path of the Rune Scarred (thematic) and a Strength based/grappling Monk subclass (mechanic) They’re both equally interesting and challenging, and at the end of the day that what motivates me.

Personally, I prefer to, when possible, make the two undivorcable.

The mechanics ARE the theme, I suppose that one could say.

Quote from Acme >>

For me it’s six oranges or half a dozen apples, and why I think you should alway provide an "other" option in any poll if you want honest results (regardless of whether or not you think it too easy of an answer for yourself.) Today I worked on both an anti-magic barbarian I’m calling the Path of the Rune Scarred (thematic) and a Strength based/grappling Monk subclass (mechanic) They’re both equally interesting and challenging, and at the end of the day that what motivates me.

 I could be wrong, but I predict that if I included a "both" or "other" option in the poll, everyone would pick that choice since (as I already said) I believe most people who make homebrew will do their best to balance both flavor and mechanics. The issue is that would make the poll completely uninteresting. It has been made apparent to me that I worded the original question incorrectly. What I am trying to find out is what do you "start with" or what "inspires you" usually to make homebrew. I'm interested in the weird cases where you have a bunch of ideas you're trying to fit into your homebrew and you have to choose between options which are more true to your "theme" and options which are more mechanically interesting. 

I start with purpose. Is there a reason this homebrew needs to be here that isn't already solved by multiclassing or someone else's homebrew?

Quote from Kaboom979 >>

Quote from Acme >>

For me it’s six oranges or half a dozen apples, and why I think you should alway provide an "other" option in any poll if you want honest results (regardless of whether or not you think it too easy of an answer for yourself.) Today I worked on both an anti-magic barbarian I’m calling the Path of the Rune Scarred (thematic) and a Strength based/grappling Monk subclass (mechanic) They’re both equally interesting and challenging, and at the end of the day that what motivates me.

 I could be wrong, but I predict that if I included a "both" or "other" option in the poll, everyone would pick that choice since (as I already said) I believe most people who make homebrew will do their best to balance both flavor and mechanics. The issue is that would make the poll completely uninteresting. It has been made apparent to me that I worded the original question incorrectly. What I am trying to find out is what do you "start with" or what "inspires you" usually to make homebrew. I'm interested in the weird cases where you have a bunch of ideas you're trying to fit into your homebrew and you have to choose between options which are more true to your "theme" and options which are more mechanically interesting. 

 Respectfully, when you’re predicting the outcome of a poll, why are you polling? Polls should be uninteresting, they should just provide data. However you did inspire an interesting and fun conversation, which is where I think these questions should exist, rather than a binary poll.

Quote from Acme >>

Quote from Kaboom979 >>

Quote from Acme >>

For me it’s six oranges or half a dozen apples, and why I think you should alway provide an "other" option in any poll if you want honest results (regardless of whether or not you think it too easy of an answer for yourself.) Today I worked on both an anti-magic barbarian I’m calling the Path of the Rune Scarred (thematic) and a Strength based/grappling Monk subclass (mechanic) They’re both equally interesting and challenging, and at the end of the day that what motivates me.

 I could be wrong, but I predict that if I included a "both" or "other" option in the poll, everyone would pick that choice since (as I already said) I believe most people who make homebrew will do their best to balance both flavor and mechanics. The issue is that would make the poll completely uninteresting. It has been made apparent to me that I worded the original question incorrectly. What I am trying to find out is what do you "start with" or what "inspires you" usually to make homebrew. I'm interested in the weird cases where you have a bunch of ideas you're trying to fit into your homebrew and you have to choose between options which are more true to your "theme" and options which are more mechanically interesting. 

 Respectfully, when you’re predicting the outcome of a poll, why are you polling? Polls should be uninteresting, they should just provide data. However you did inspire an interesting and fun conversation, which is where I think these questions should exist, rather than a binary poll.

 Its like one of those questions where "If you had to choose between X and Y, which would you choose?" A person might be "Well, realistically, Id prefer both. I dont see why I have to choose."  "Well, yeah, but if you HAD to choose, which would you pick?" because unless they choose the question isnt interesting and there could be something interesting to be found in their answer for why they would choose X over Y even if it (realistically) is not a binary choice. 

EDIT: To add to this, as we agree most people would choose both. From that you might expect that a binary poll between the two options would produce 50/50 results. BUT as the poll above is currently trending, if they HAD to choose between them almost 90% of people would put more interest into theme than mechanics, which I think is interesting even if the two options are not actually mutually exclusive 

Polarized questions produce polarities.  As many are saying the choice here is forced and not really how anyone actually plays.  How does the false insight better anyone's game?

The real question is right centered in the truth, how do DMs strive to strike a balance between a game's thematic and mechanical elements.  It's not as glib as a poll, but it's a more productive conversation.

Quote from MidnightPlat >>

Polarized questions produce polarities.  As many are saying the choice here is forced and not really how anyone actually plays.  How does the false insight better anyone's game?

The real question is right centered in the truth, how do DMs strive to strike a balance between a game's thematic and mechanical elements.  It's not as glib as a poll, but it's a more productive conversation.

 I wasn't asking the question to try to better anyone's game or figure out a more efficient and correct way to make homebrew. I was asking out of personal curiosity for what type of homebrew other people like to make and what aspects are more important to them in its inception and execution. Perfect balance will not always be achieved

The insight gained is not false. If forced to choose between the two, more people favor theme and flavor over filling a mechanical role, even if ideally they will strive to find a balance between them. That is interesting, to hear that when people make homebrew they might put even a smidge more effort into ensuring it is flavorful and interesting as a character over ensuring it has perfect mechanics. Questions like these are interesting because they prompt the question "why"

There are tons of questions like this like "If you were stranded on a desert island, what is the one item you would bring with you?" The answer to this question is absurd as if you WERE ever stranded on an island, there's no way you would only have one thing and that that thing is exactly the one thing you want. But figuring out WHY the person wanted that item, what their motivations or attachments or reasoning were is what makes the question fun and interesting. 

I know my question isnt exactly the same as my above example, but it is more interesting to listen to why someone would favor mechanics over theme or vice versa. The reasoning behind why they find one more important than the other is what makes the answer interesting, not the answer itself or how realistic it actually is.