After accidentally bringing a legendary hero back to life, a young wild-magic elf and her newfound friends must stop a Dragon Cult conspiracy and save Baldur's Gate. A treat for fans of Dungeons and Dragons is coming ? We'll find out soon, because here's Dungeons & Dragons for you. Legends of Baldur's Gate .
I’m armed to the teeth and I have… a hamster?
I must say at the outset that the plot of the first volume is rather simple, but it does not lack interesting plot twists interspersed with humorous inserts. From the first pages, we witness the escape of the young sorceress Delina, who comes to the city to save a member of her family. When we meet her, she is chased by winged demons and tries to defend herself by casting usually random and rather unreliable spells. When one of them accidentally hits the statue of Minsc, the respected (and long-dead) guardian, he appears in front of us as if he had just returned from a long trip to come with his rat… erm… I mean “miniature, huge, space hamster ”, named Boo to save a poor elven maiden.
In the meantime, our heroes meet two thieves and together they set out to look for Delina’s twin brother. On their way there will be city guards and Flame Fist with probably the most stereotypical paladin in the world – Prince Ulder Ravengard, and you can’t forget about the Cult of the Dragon. In addition, we get some flashbacks from the life of the elf and her brother, and a whole lot of funny Minsca one-liners that Thor Stormcloak himself would be proud of. The fact that the character of our “beloved hunter” may be a bit exaggerated, but it seems to fully fit the presented story, which is supposed to be simple, pleasant and not too long. That the people of Baldur’s Gate call the hunter a bald fellow with a great sword and a hamster on his shoulder probably speaks for itself.
The screenplay is by Jim Zub ( The Avengers , Conan the Barbarian ), whose love for Dungeons & Dragons reverberates through every panel of this comic. The Canadian screenwriter mixes humor with intriguing mystery and a genuine sense of danger. Although, admittedly, it’s hard to take a legendary hunter seriously when he stops for a moment to come face to face with murderous stone gargoyles and just lets his pudgy pet hiss and squeal at them.
A lanky guy with a purple mouth
What’s more, the plot constantly takes the reader to different places taken straight from the world of Dungeons and dragons . So we have the cobbled streets of the title Baldur’s Gate or the famous market located in the upper city. Other than that, one of Legend’s greatest strengthsis the way Zub outlines how complicated it really is to coordinate and manage a large city. Be it the fiendish criminal underworld of the main port, full of sailors and nameless cutthroats, or the supposedly more honorable gentry districts, where the city guard dares not bother the wealthy citizens, even after the deaths of two of their comrades. Such attention to detail really helps to sell the menacing world around the characters, and also promotes the vast conurbation as a very real, living metropolis, full of merchants, warriors, priests and thieves.
Okay, the script is one thing, what about the line? Another Canadian artist, Max Dunbar, is responsible for the drawings. Although at first I had some doubts about the graphic design, the characteristic style of this artist seems to harmonize with the story being told, imbuing it with a kind of energy and dynamism. Of particular note are the swashbuckling sword fights on top of some of the city’s tallest buildings. Great emphasis was also placed on the facial expressions of each character (even the hamster). On the faces of the characters we will see a whole range of emotions: from fear, through anger, pain and sadness, ending with joy.
At this point, I will add that the edition provided by Egmont publishing house contains preliminary sketches of the characters, as well as some very detailed landscapes that I would gladly frame and hang on the wall. For the sake of justice, I will also say that the colors are the responsibility of John-Paul Bove and Joana Lafuente, whose color choices are inconsistent and tend to jump chaotically between chapters. It is good or bad? On the one hand, this procedure also adds dynamism to the whole, and on the other hand, the muddy colors and bright backgrounds at some moments seem to obscure the presented characters.
Life is adventure or emptiness
Dungeons & Dragons. Legends of Baldur’s Gate is a good comic, although it is not without its flaws. Paradoxically, this lightness and simplicity are both its great advantage and disadvantage. It lacks character building (apart from fragments referring to Delina and Krydel). Even the ending of the story, which should impress the elf, is not shown properly. The character seems more interested in what comes next than dealing with what just happened.
Overall, the main focus is on action and shouting spells and attacks that follow the D&D gamer’s handbook. And here again we have to ask ourselves: is this good or bad? On the one hand, such a procedure may seem a bit forced when reading fight scenes (because how many times does a character have to shout “magic bullet”?). On the other hand, fans of the history of Dungeons and dragons should not be bothered.
Ultimately, it’s a very funny, slightly silly story set in a world designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. Set in five chapters, the events pick up speed very quickly and are almost saturated with powerful blows, well-aimed arrows and deadly attacks … of a miniature, yet gigantic rodent. The graphic design does its job, deftly showing the emotions on the faces of our heroes. Aside from the sheer ferocity shown during the climatic fight sequence, one of the highlights is how well the artists portrayed the venomous jealousy on Deniak’s face and Delina’s sincere concern for her beloved brother’s well-being, despite the circumstances.
Is Dungeons & Dragons. Legends of Baldur’s Gate is a comic worth recommending? Definitely yes, and not only for D&D fans, although there is no denying that it contains a lot of vocabulary and spells from this universe. The peer-reviewed volume provides a seamless entry point for casual readers. Elven magic and monsters add an adventure element without promoting D&D itself. You don’t have to approach it as an extension of the source material, but as a completely separate entity that provides action, suspense and humor. Nothing prevents this comic from becoming an inspiration and a learning tool for beginner Dungeons & Dragons players , who can easily recreate certain patterns or archetypes and enjoy them while playing their own campaigns.
