What do you think?
Rate this book
Winterworld #2
Dungeons & Dragons: Legends of Baldur's Gate
Generations have passed since the original Heroes of Baldur's Gate saved the city and the Realms. Now a new threat rises and an unlikely group of misfits are thrust into adventure with Minsc, the legendary Ranger do-gooder with a heart of gold, brain of lead, and hamster of pronounced wisdom.
124 pages, Paperback
First published May 5, 2015
55 people are currently reading
442 people want to read
About the author
Jim Zub
917books302followersJim Zub is a writer, artist and art instructor based in Toronto, Canada. Over the past fifteen years he’s worked for a diverse array of publishing, movie and video game clients including Disney, Warner Bros., Capcom, Hasbro, Bandai-Namco and Mattel.
He juggles his time between being a freelance comic writer and Program Coordinator for Seneca College‘s award-winning Animation program.
He juggles his time between being a freelance comic writer and Program Coordinator for Seneca College‘s award-winning Animation program.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
February 10, 2016
Eye candy? Yeah. Fairly entertaining story? Sure. Shameless trading on a gimmick character from a late-90s video game? Undoubtedly.
All things considered, this was better than it had a right to be when I realized a major component of the story was Mr. Squeaky Wheel Gets the Kick! from the 1998 PC classic Baldur's Gate.
Chinese food is the lazy comparison--tastes good, but you're hungry an hour later--so let's say it's more like a monkey...sure, it's pretty awesome for a while, but eventually you want to tell it that it's got to come up with a move besides flinging poop at your friends.
(That said, I'm feening for more good fantasy comics, and there seems to be a dearth...I've read pretty much all of the D&D stuff as well as Warlands and some other things, so suggestions are welcome if anyone has good ideas...)
All things considered, this was better than it had a right to be when I realized a major component of the story was Mr. Squeaky Wheel Gets the Kick! from the 1998 PC classic Baldur's Gate.
Chinese food is the lazy comparison--tastes good, but you're hungry an hour later--so let's say it's more like a monkey...sure, it's pretty awesome for a while, but eventually you want to tell it that it's got to come up with a move besides flinging poop at your friends.
(That said, I'm feening for more good fantasy comics, and there seems to be a dearth...I've read pretty much all of the D&D stuff as well as Warlands and some other things, so suggestions are welcome if anyone has good ideas...)
March 25, 2023
I've been on a Baldur's Gate bender lately - and in between my previous playthrough and the present, someone spat out some comics loosely based on it. I thought I'd pick them up, see if they're up to snuff.
Turns out, not really. The art's fairly simplistic, the new characters shallow cardboard cut-outs, the old characters feel like exaggerated caricatyres of what they were like in the games, and the plot tying them all together is simple, done many times, and not all that interesting. It plods its way through a story that could have been told with half the pages, yet also characters that would have needed twice the pages to know them and their circumstances - rushed and stalling at the same time. On the whole it brings very little new to the table, and I think it would have been better if Minsc were allowed to lie in peace rather than being resurrected to star in a story that's rather far beneath him.
But then, very few things aren't far beneath Minsc and Baldur's Gate. They're legends. If you haven't played the games yet, you should.
Turns out, not really. The art's fairly simplistic, the new characters shallow cardboard cut-outs, the old characters feel like exaggerated caricatyres of what they were like in the games, and the plot tying them all together is simple, done many times, and not all that interesting. It plods its way through a story that could have been told with half the pages, yet also characters that would have needed twice the pages to know them and their circumstances - rushed and stalling at the same time. On the whole it brings very little new to the table, and I think it would have been better if Minsc were allowed to lie in peace rather than being resurrected to star in a story that's rather far beneath him.
But then, very few things aren't far beneath Minsc and Baldur's Gate. They're legends. If you haven't played the games yet, you should.
July 22, 2019
A goofy and fun but predictable read. The story feels like someone's D&D adventure put to paper. The art was surprisingly good.
November 26, 2018
A more than good read if you ever played Dungeons & Dragons RPG, storyline was like a first party-bonding one evening intro session, characters were interesting (at last they understood their desperate need of a cleric...) and adding to them Baldur's Gate videogames fan-favourite Minsc and his Miniature Giant Space Hamster was a real cherry on cake touch of genius.
Loved it!
"Go for the eyes, Boo! FOR THE EYES!"
July 22, 2019
Great fun, even if some of the glibly "anachronistic" dialogue rang a little odd.
(I'm aware that Faerûn isn't a real place in a real era of human history, but Moon Elves saying "OK" is kind of a stretch for me)
Can we talk about That Art, though?
Right from this initial panel it does such a great job of inserting you into this fantastic place, and there's one two page spread toward the end that is jaw-droppingly magnificent, so much so I wouldn't dare ruin it by trying to copy and paste some scan here.
Bottom Line: If you ever liked Forgotten Realms gaming or books this one's worth checking out.
(I'm aware that Faerûn isn't a real place in a real era of human history, but Moon Elves saying "OK" is kind of a stretch for me)
Can we talk about That Art, though?
Right from this initial panel it does such a great job of inserting you into this fantastic place, and there's one two page spread toward the end that is jaw-droppingly magnificent, so much so I wouldn't dare ruin it by trying to copy and paste some scan here.
Bottom Line: If you ever liked Forgotten Realms gaming or books this one's worth checking out.
January 7, 2017
A Typical Fantasy Story
9 September 2016
Well, I am currently sitting in economy class about an hour away from Melbourne airport, on the final leg of a rather exhausting trek. Even though I have spent most of the last seven hours in some sort of daze while my body clock tries to catch up with Australian Eastern Standard time (and the fact that I have spent the last 28 hours either in an airport, or in the air � though in reality we left London Thursday morning and will arrive in Melbourne Friday evening, which makes it around 36 hours, though eight of those hours are technically missing hours � then again we did gain them on the way over, if it wasn't for the fact that six of those eight hours involved the plane flying up, dumping all of its fuel, flying back down, and then forcing us to change planes).
Anyway, I still had this one graphic novel to read, and fortunately in between snippets of sleep (I am too stingy to pay for anything more than economy class), I did manage to read it, not that it was a huge story. In fact it was just your basic fantasy novel in comic book form � a lone elf comes to the city and stumbles upon a dragon cult, and in the end they fight, and kill, a dragon. Okay, maybe that was a bit of a spoiler, but honesty, what to you expect from a fantasy story? Isn't that what happens in ? The difference is that this story is done in comic book form (though I'm sure there is a comic book version of the Hobbit floating around somewhere).
One thing that I noticed though was something that C.S. Lewis touched on in the previous book that I read: : the idea of why the comic book is loathed so much as a form of literature. His suggestion is that it is loathed simply because it mixes two forms of art, and both of them tend to be pretty bad. Not only do you have what is in effect a play (the comic book artists tend to create a script prior to drawing the pictures), but you also have multiple drawings that go with the story, and act to explain what is happening. Actually, I have seen some comics based on Shakespeare plays, and while the story is basically Shakespeare, the art is anything but, and because the actual art is to bad then the book is dragged down with it (it is short of like a bad performance destroying a great play).
The other interesting thing is that like science-fiction it does take a while for comics to enter into the mainstream. This hasn't always been the case, particularly with the Francophone comics such as Tintin and Asterix. However putting them aside (particularly since I don't view the Francophone comics the same as I do the Anglophone), when many of us think of comics we usually think of superheroes, bad artwork, and things that children read (ignoring the fact that quite a lot of adults still enjoy comics). However, it is interesting that even then I tend look down on the comic book as a lesser form of literature, and while I have read some, I really have no desire to go out and pay money for any more (unless I am reviewing a comic book store).
Oh, and since it is set in Balder's Gate apparently there is a reference to the computer game of the same name in the form of Misnc the ranger and his miniature giant space hamster. The problem is that I played the game so long ago that I barely remember anything about the game, that is until the connection was pointed out to me. I sort of remember Minsc, but since, like books, I tend to only play a game once, an once finished I tend to forget all about it and go and do something else. I do know that the game had something to do with Balder's Gate, but then that is pretty obvious from the title.
9 September 2016
Well, I am currently sitting in economy class about an hour away from Melbourne airport, on the final leg of a rather exhausting trek. Even though I have spent most of the last seven hours in some sort of daze while my body clock tries to catch up with Australian Eastern Standard time (and the fact that I have spent the last 28 hours either in an airport, or in the air � though in reality we left London Thursday morning and will arrive in Melbourne Friday evening, which makes it around 36 hours, though eight of those hours are technically missing hours � then again we did gain them on the way over, if it wasn't for the fact that six of those eight hours involved the plane flying up, dumping all of its fuel, flying back down, and then forcing us to change planes).
Anyway, I still had this one graphic novel to read, and fortunately in between snippets of sleep (I am too stingy to pay for anything more than economy class), I did manage to read it, not that it was a huge story. In fact it was just your basic fantasy novel in comic book form � a lone elf comes to the city and stumbles upon a dragon cult, and in the end they fight, and kill, a dragon. Okay, maybe that was a bit of a spoiler, but honesty, what to you expect from a fantasy story? Isn't that what happens in ? The difference is that this story is done in comic book form (though I'm sure there is a comic book version of the Hobbit floating around somewhere).
One thing that I noticed though was something that C.S. Lewis touched on in the previous book that I read: : the idea of why the comic book is loathed so much as a form of literature. His suggestion is that it is loathed simply because it mixes two forms of art, and both of them tend to be pretty bad. Not only do you have what is in effect a play (the comic book artists tend to create a script prior to drawing the pictures), but you also have multiple drawings that go with the story, and act to explain what is happening. Actually, I have seen some comics based on Shakespeare plays, and while the story is basically Shakespeare, the art is anything but, and because the actual art is to bad then the book is dragged down with it (it is short of like a bad performance destroying a great play).
The other interesting thing is that like science-fiction it does take a while for comics to enter into the mainstream. This hasn't always been the case, particularly with the Francophone comics such as Tintin and Asterix. However putting them aside (particularly since I don't view the Francophone comics the same as I do the Anglophone), when many of us think of comics we usually think of superheroes, bad artwork, and things that children read (ignoring the fact that quite a lot of adults still enjoy comics). However, it is interesting that even then I tend look down on the comic book as a lesser form of literature, and while I have read some, I really have no desire to go out and pay money for any more (unless I am reviewing a comic book store).
Oh, and since it is set in Balder's Gate apparently there is a reference to the computer game of the same name in the form of Misnc the ranger and his miniature giant space hamster. The problem is that I played the game so long ago that I barely remember anything about the game, that is until the connection was pointed out to me. I sort of remember Minsc, but since, like books, I tend to only play a game once, an once finished I tend to forget all about it and go and do something else. I do know that the game had something to do with Balder's Gate, but then that is pretty obvious from the title.
March 9, 2022
A decent enough adventure about how Minsc is unfrozen after a hundred years of being petrified as a statue in Baldur's Gate, only to stumble into an adventure involving a young Chaos Wizard as well as her brother plus the Cult of the Dragon. It's about a 3.5/5 story and I'm inclined to give it a four stars because I'm being generous and the art is tremendous. I will say the best part of the book is the dragonslaying section as that is some very well done action. Sadly, Minsc needs someone more serious to play off of and our heroine isn't a big enough personality to contrast him. I will say it's better than most tie-in fiction.
December 12, 2015
First off, I have to give credit to the art and coloring work in this book - it is beautiful; especially some of the gallery work of dragons at the end; at least two are spectacular images that deserve to be posters.
And then there's the story - it's kind of slight (an elf goes to Baldur's Gate to find her missing brother; havoc ensues), but it fits Jim Zub's style to a T. I wouldn't have been surprised if the Skullkickers had wandered through at some point. And Zub's writing style works great for Minsc as well; I picked this up because of Minsc and a chance to see Zub write him, and was not disappointed. The classic quotes appear (and are used well), but even the new stuff was very much in tone with the character. Ultimately, this is a very fun, kind of silly, AD&D story that makes great use of a favorite character. Any fans of Minsc must read it; AD&D fans in general should read it, and actually anyone that enjoys Fantasy wouldn't be ill-served with picking it up.
And then there's the story - it's kind of slight (an elf goes to Baldur's Gate to find her missing brother; havoc ensues), but it fits Jim Zub's style to a T. I wouldn't have been surprised if the Skullkickers had wandered through at some point. And Zub's writing style works great for Minsc as well; I picked this up because of Minsc and a chance to see Zub write him, and was not disappointed. The classic quotes appear (and are used well), but even the new stuff was very much in tone with the character. Ultimately, this is a very fun, kind of silly, AD&D story that makes great use of a favorite character. Any fans of Minsc must read it; AD&D fans in general should read it, and actually anyone that enjoys Fantasy wouldn't be ill-served with picking it up.
April 13, 2015
If you are into illustrated D & D adventures, this is a book for you! Delina, an elf wild mage, arrives in Baldur's Gate hunting for her brother. Magic goes astray and awakes a statue of the Happy Ranger and Hamster who goings in the hunt. Add to the group two thieves, and to the mess, a murdered guard and a dragon cult, and the plot winds itself up and spins chaos over the city! A fun quick read with the possiblity of future adventures with the Happy Ranger, the Hamster and company!
March 13, 2016
Goofy, fun little graphic novel. Not too much depth (at this point), but amusing. I don't think I'd buy it, but I might continue reading it on Hoopla through the library if they keep getting new issues. Cover art really lovely, though it's quite different in style from the actual art of the comic itself.
December 12, 2018
Fun high fantasy action/adventure, set in the Dungeons and Dragons city of Baldur’s Gate. I loved the nods to D&D content (spells and abilities used, etc.), and although it was over the top and a bit tropey, it was enjoyable enough to forgive that. I’ll be reading more of this series!
April 6, 2018
Quite fun, quite nostalgic. This is what a good old RPG session would look like if you only had ONE wacky player in the party, but overall good chemistry and a creative, well prepared DM.
Contrary to many Forgotten Realms adaptations, it also has quite decent artwork
Contrary to many Forgotten Realms adaptations, it also has quite decent artwork
March 29, 2016
I really enjoyed this! The characters were distinct and likable, the plot was simple but fun, the city was pretty cool, and I liked how it tied in to the Tyranny of Dragons campaign season.
November 7, 2016
Beautiful art, fast-paced action, and a story that has me curious to see more.
December 19, 2020
Uma rápida, mas gostosa viagem pelos portões de Baldur
January 25, 2025
3.75
Pięknie przetłumaczone!
Pięknie przetłumaczone!
May 16, 2015
'Dungeons & Dragons: Legends of Baldur's Gate Volume 1' comes along with the new 5th edition of D&D. It's a fun story, but not a great story.
We meet young magic user Delina who is in the city to save her twin brother. When we meet her, she is being chased by winged demons and using her random and sometimes unreliable powers to defend herself. When her powers hit a statue of Minsc, the revered (and long gone) ranger, he shows up in the flesh to help out, along with his space hamster Boo. After adding a couple of thieves into the mix, we're off to find Delina's twin brother. Except that the city guard and another faction are also in the mix chasing our little band. We get some back story on Delina and her brother, but mainly we get hilarious wise-cracking from Minsc.
The art is only ok, but the story is fun enough. I loved Minsc, and who wouldn't love Boo? The thieves are fairly standard, but I liked Delina's random, uncontrolled magic. A nice sword and sorcery graphic novel for those looking for one.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
We meet young magic user Delina who is in the city to save her twin brother. When we meet her, she is being chased by winged demons and using her random and sometimes unreliable powers to defend herself. When her powers hit a statue of Minsc, the revered (and long gone) ranger, he shows up in the flesh to help out, along with his space hamster Boo. After adding a couple of thieves into the mix, we're off to find Delina's twin brother. Except that the city guard and another faction are also in the mix chasing our little band. We get some back story on Delina and her brother, but mainly we get hilarious wise-cracking from Minsc.
The art is only ok, but the story is fun enough. I loved Minsc, and who wouldn't love Boo? The thieves are fairly standard, but I liked Delina's random, uncontrolled magic. A nice sword and sorcery graphic novel for those looking for one.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
April 10, 2016
This was a quick and fun read that follows some pretty basic fantasy roleplaying game standards. It introduces several new characters, but draws in fans of the Baldur's Gate series with the inclusion of Minsc. I'm not familiar with the character, but what's not to love about a man who leaps into battle wielding a big ol' sword and a hamster and yelling things like, "If there is danger, then I shall dange it!" The other characters are a formulaic heart of gold rogue duo, and an elf sorceress who is searching for her brother. She is hunted by a dragon cult who, oh I really don't have to explain it. This is the plot of just about every basic fantasy series ever. But as I said, it's quick and it's fun in both art and story and sometimes, that's good enough for me.
August 2, 2020
An entirely OK fantasy comic. There's a group of heroes. No, don't think too hard about their reasons for coming together, which is entirely appropriate for a D&D adventure. They have a quest. There are some major twists along the way.
The Realmslore content of this comic is relatively low. Baldur's Gate is very loosely sketched out. (In fact, it kept feeling a lot like Waterdeep to me.) The only thing of particular interest is the secret dragon cult, which could be easily introduced into a roleplaying campaign, and is a nice link to recent D&D storylines.
As for the rest: fast-paced action and occasional humor (which is occasionally funny). The real highpoint is the very beautiful (but cartoonish) art.
The Realmslore content of this comic is relatively low. Baldur's Gate is very loosely sketched out. (In fact, it kept feeling a lot like Waterdeep to me.) The only thing of particular interest is the secret dragon cult, which could be easily introduced into a roleplaying campaign, and is a nice link to recent D&D storylines.
As for the rest: fast-paced action and occasional humor (which is occasionally funny). The real highpoint is the very beautiful (but cartoonish) art.
December 20, 2020
І хотілося б сказати, що це за мотивами класичної рольової гри, але все, що тут від неї залишилося - це місце, де розгортаються основні події, та кілька персонажів. Мінск та Бу в коміксі присутні лише для задоволення фанатів. Мінск висловлюється так само, як і у грі - чого вам ще треба? А треба захоплюючий сюжет, якого немає.
Головна героїня шукає свого брата. У брата свої грандіозні плани. Бійки-бійки-бійки.
Малюнок неоднозначний. З одного боку, персонажі намальовані чудово, з живою мімікою та приємною деталізацією. З іншого - дуже посередні локації та бекграунд. Місто майже пусте, натовп малюють, коли необхідно зобразити паніку. Задній фон одноманітний, всі приміщення надто великі, вулиці надто широкі. Відчуття, що ніхто не хотів особливо концентруватися на промальовці оточуючого середовища.
Діалоги дуже стандартні і тримаються у рамках цієї прямої історії.
Нецікаво. Немає відчуття, що комікс відноситься до сеттінгу Воріт Балдура.
Головна героїня шукає свого брата. У брата свої грандіозні плани. Бійки-бійки-бійки.
Малюнок неоднозначний. З одного боку, персонажі намальовані чудово, з живою мімікою та приємною деталізацією. З іншого - дуже посередні локації та бекграунд. Місто майже пусте, натовп малюють, коли необхідно зобразити паніку. Задній фон одноманітний, всі приміщення надто великі, вулиці надто широкі. Відчуття, що ніхто не хотів особливо концентруватися на промальовці оточуючого середовища.
Діалоги дуже стандартні і тримаються у рамках цієї прямої історії.
Нецікаво. Немає відчуття, що комікс відноситься до сеттінгу Воріт Балдура.
April 28, 2020
Though it was nice to see Minsc again, overall this is just an OK series. The plot is quite simple and entertaining, but doesn't get to do much with the setting or the characters; still a good start for Jim Zub's work on D&D and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of his work.
October 9, 2020
Loved every singe page of it.
August 30, 2022
A fun romp, bringing Minsc back. Decent art.
June 14, 2023
I was entertained by this one. I really enjoyed it. I loved that they called out the spells the characters used as they did it.
June 26, 2024
najbardziej polubiłam Boo
July 2, 2024
3,5/5
March 19, 2025
a pretty interesting, standard dnd story, starting off point for more adventures
the drawing style isn't really to my taste
the drawing style isn't really to my taste
April 23, 2024
друг подарил издание на русском. кринжанул я, конечно, знатно� комикс весёлый, но такие вещи абсолютно невозможно читать в переводе
May 2, 2023
Średnia fabuła, ale świetnie napisane teksty Minsca ratują ten komiks.
March 13, 2015
I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
"Life is adventure, or nothing at all"
I, like many more will, picked this book up because the cover had Minsc on it. However, it was not what I expected.
The book takes place years after Minsc's death in the city of Baldur's Gate. A female elf, running away from a couple of gargoyles, uses her magic and brings to life the statue of one of Baldur's Gate's most recognized heroes, The Beloved Ranger. As those who have played the games know, Minsc character is in fact a ranger but it's hardly good at being one. Through out the book, he keeps being referenced by this tittle but does not show any of the common skills of a ranger. Instead, he acts like a fighter. This is nothing but a minor nit pick of mine.
The story on itself, is pretty self-contained but cliché heavy. I won't say much but even if I spoiled the story, you wouldn't be surprised. The characters show promise, but could be developed better. Boo, of course, being the exception.
Lastly, the art. It's nothing mind-blowing nor is it bad. It just... is. There are a couple of great pannels but nothing that really stands out on this department.
Overall, it's a good book that could have been way better because of all its potential.
"Life is adventure, or nothing at all"
I, like many more will, picked this book up because the cover had Minsc on it. However, it was not what I expected.
The book takes place years after Minsc's death in the city of Baldur's Gate. A female elf, running away from a couple of gargoyles, uses her magic and brings to life the statue of one of Baldur's Gate's most recognized heroes, The Beloved Ranger. As those who have played the games know, Minsc character is in fact a ranger but it's hardly good at being one. Through out the book, he keeps being referenced by this tittle but does not show any of the common skills of a ranger. Instead, he acts like a fighter. This is nothing but a minor nit pick of mine.
The story on itself, is pretty self-contained but cliché heavy. I won't say much but even if I spoiled the story, you wouldn't be surprised. The characters show promise, but could be developed better. Boo, of course, being the exception.
Lastly, the art. It's nothing mind-blowing nor is it bad. It just... is. There are a couple of great pannels but nothing that really stands out on this department.
Overall, it's a good book that could have been way better because of all its potential.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.