Forgotten Realms and other D&D comics are available now as part of a Humble Bundle

Sorry for the delay in posting, but things have been crazy at work recently.  However, considering how much time on this blog I have spent recapping the old DC/TSR Forgotten Realms comic book series, I would be remiss if I didn’t note that the entire series is now available as part of a Humble (Book) Bundle.

And it is not just the old Forgotten Realms series either.  The old Advanced Dungeons & Dragons series is also part of the bundle, not to mention several of the newer Dungeons & Dragons series produced by IDW.

This is a seriously good deal and at the time of this post it is still available for five days or so.  So if you have enjoyed my postings on the old comic series and want to check it out for yourself, now is the perfect time to do so.

Forgotten Realms Annual 1: Waterdhavian Nights (Chapters 5 & 6)

Chapter 5: Leaders

This chapter opens with Foxilion examining the smoking ruin that used to be the Temple of Gond.  While he is trying to figure out if there is anyway he can turn a profit on this disaster, Conner from the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic sneaks up behind him.

It turns out the two rogues know each other.  Conner’s sharp eyes notice a gem as large as his fist lying at the bottom of the pit.  Conner offers to split the price of the gem with Foxilion if he agrees to climb down and retrieve it.  As soon as he picks it up though, he is attacked by a headless golem.

Hmmm… I may have skipped over a key bit of exposition during my review of chapter 2.  Remember the Gondsman who looked like Lex Luthor in a stupid hat?  Well, in addition to selling the cultists smoke powder, he tried to upsell them on a golem with some very dubious properties.

Even though the golem in the picture above only vaguely resembles the one that attacks Foxilion and the control “gem” looks more like an orb than the red gemstone Foxilion stole, I think we can all agree that they are supposed to be the same, right?

Anyway, Conner helps Foxilion escape from the pit, but the golem is still in hot pursuit.  Conner tells Foxilion to make a run for Selune’s Smile.  Conner considers following, but then decides he has better things to do with his evening.

Chapter 6: Bar Tales

Captain Omen is at Selune’s Smile, which is where Agrivar told him the artifact the Eye of Selune is currently located. He plans to get his hands on it by flirting with Luna, the bar’s owner (not mention possibly getting his hands on other things).

Omen’s  plan seems to be working, as Luna eventually agrees to show Omen the eye.  Before she can though, all of the villains from earlier show up.

Ever a slave to fashion, Kyriani has taken the opportunity to change out of her dress and back into the pant suit combo she was wearing earlier.  For that matter, the cult leader has decided to put on a different helmet.  Sadly, the Yuan-Ti is no longer wearing the mailed gloves he was so proud of earlier.

The battle for the artifact begins, and Luna takes a hand crossbow bolt to the chest that was intended for Omen.  Feel free to ignore this though as Luna is totally fine on the next page.

Before the cult leader can get his hands on the Eye, Kyriani betrays him and reveals that she has been working on the side of angels all along!  Agrivar then makes his dramatic (and non-disintegrated) reappearance by jumping through a window and clocking the Yuan-Ti.

The Yuan-Ti learns that if you live by the sucker punch, you die by the sucker punch.

Before the cultists can regroup, the remaining members of the Realms’ Master crew (minus Foxilion) and the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons cast arrive.  As you can imagine, the combined group makes short work of the cultists.  When Foxilion arrives shortly afterwards being pursued by the headless golem, that threat is dispatched just as easily.

Flush with victory, the two groups of adventurers swap stories about their evening.  Luna manages to trick Captain Omen into agreeing to leave the Eye of Selune at the bar with her and gets drunk.  What a happy ending!

Well, at least until Luna tells them she expects them all to chip in and repair the damage to her bar.

Thoughts

• I have now reviewed the entire  Forgotten Realms comic series.  I have been doing these for so long I find it hard to believe that it is over. I have been thinking of starting a similar series reviewing the current IDW Dungeons & Dragons comic series though.  If anyone is interested in seeing that, let me know in the comments.
• I found the art shifts between the chapters to be distracting.  Considering how common this practice is in the comic book industry for annuals and other oversized books, I am not sure why it bugged me so much in this one.
• I must admit that Captain Omen is quite the ladies man.  I wonder if he still would have flirted with Luna if he realized she was an aspect of the goddess Selune.

Forgotten Realms Annual 1: Waterdhavian Nights (Chapters 3 & 4)

Chapter 3: Soul Mates

Onyx, the dwarf from the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic, is attempting to lose the golem he spotted following him in the city streets.  Unfortunately, he doesn’t realize he is being followed by evil cultists as well.  Onyx runs right into the Yuan-Ti from earlier, who cold cocks him with a chainmail glove.

Oddly, the Yuan-Ti is extremely proud of himself for this maneuver.  Standing over Onyx’s body, the Yuan-Ti taunts him, talking about how the dwarf never expected a “snake-man” to have a mailed fist.  It is a surprisingly long monologue about his ability to punch someone, but I guess as a “snake-man” he is just glad to have arms or something.

He is still going on when Minder shows up and cleans his clock.  Minder dotes over Onyx’s unconscious body when Kyriani shows up with a barrel of poison under her arm.  Apparently, Kyriani also took the opportunity to change outfits as she is wearing a dress with thigh-high boots instead of the pant suit number she was wearing in chapter one.

Kyriani and the Yuan-Ti decide discretion is the better part of valor and escape while Minder is occupied.  While they are running away, I can only assume that the Yuan-Ti tells Kyriani about how awesome it was that he punched the dwarf with his mailed fist.

Back in the alley, Onyx wakes up and is startled to have a golem hovering over him.  Minder convinces him that she means him no harm, then asks Onyx if dwarves fall in love.

Somehow Onyx is able to tell Minder is a female dwarf by looking in her eyes, but he isn’t bright enough to realize that she is not wearing some golem shaped suit of armor.  She recaps her origin story for him, which takes just long enough for the remaining cultists to wake up.

The cultists have a glass ball filled with grey ooze which they throw at Minder.  It seems a bit odd that they would carry this around, but it provides Onyx a chance to shine as he takes out the cultists and saves Minder from the metal eating ooze.  The pair witness the explosion of the Temple of Gond from chapter two which they take as a sign that they should be a couple (I don’t get it either).  Onyx asks Minder to come with him to the bar Selune’s Smile so he can show her off to his friends.

Chapter 4: The Trouble With Humans

So Vartan has apparently decided to visit a brothel. 

Well, the caption calls it “one of Waterdeep’s more affordable ‘festhalls’”.  Note the word affordable and the quotation marks around the word festhalls.  Those are both from the original narration box.

Unfortunately, Vartan runs afoul with a mountain of a man named Troggoth who claims to be the women’s husband. I personally take this to mean he has paid them upfront for the full night.  In any case, Troggoth decides Vartan will pay for his impudence with a severe beat down.

Vartan decides to flee and jumps through the window unto a horse.  Well he thinks it is a horse, but actually it is Timoth, the centaur from the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic book.  Timoth politely asks Vartan to dismount, when Troggoth breaks through the stone wall?!?

Seeing the incredible Hulk’s uglier brother bearing down on them, Timoth takes off at a full gallop with Vartan still on his back.  Once they are safely away, Vartan and Timoth belatedly introduce themselves to one another.  Timoth suggests going back to Selune’s Smile, but before they get there they spy a burglary in progress.

The burglary is of a mind flayer “statue” which Timoth knows is an actual mind flayer who was turned to stone.  Timoth realizes that the cultists are probably looking to bring the mind flayer back to life and decides to put a stop to it (with Vartan along for the ride).

There is a  perfunctory battle with the cultists, which features both a runaway horse cart and Vartan’s somewhat racist belief that centaurs can speak with horses.  During the battle, the mind flayer’s stone body falls from the cart and is shattered.  Vartan is also thrown from the cart, but somehow manages to avoid being crushed by either the cart or the statue.

Hearing the commotion, Onyx and Minder rush in from one direction, while Ishi and Vajra rush in from the other.  This brings most, but certainly not all, of our heroes together.

Well at least you can’t accuse Vartan of taking credit he doesn’t deserve.  I disagree that it would have been easier for him to take his pummeling though—Troggoth was capable of smashing though stone walls after all!

Thoughts

• I was not a huge fan of the Dwarven soul mate idea.  The fact that Onyx can tell Minder is a female dwarf by looking into her eyes just seems hokey to me.
• Note that despite being “soul mates”, neither Minder or Onyx ever mention each other again after this issue is over.
• It is interesting to see the arrogant, skirt-chasing Vartan again after just reading issues featuring the somber and contemplative Vartan.  He definitely changed more than any of the other characters during the course of the series.

Forgotten Realms Annual 1: Waterdhavian Nights (Chapters 1 & 2)

The first and only Forgotten Realms annual was set before the events of the Time of Troubles.  It was a simpler time for Captain Omen and the Realms’ Master crew.  Captain Omen explains that Agrivar has informed him that the artifact called the Eye of Selune is being kept at a bar called Selune’s Smile.   Omen has decided that it is his duty to “collect” this artifact for the owners own good.

Captain Omen is concerned though because the crew’s recent adventures in Baldur’s Gate and Saelroon have left them less than welcome in those cities.  He asks everyone to be on their best behavior while they are in port.

Unfortunately, they arrive during what appears to be the Waterdeep equivalent of Mardi Gras.

Agrivar sees his half-sister in the crowd and takes off after her.  The rest of the crew uses this as an excuse to scatter and see the sights.  Even Minder, who Omen expects will stick by his side, leaves when she sees a handsome young dwarf.

The comic then splits into chapters, each following a member of the Realms’ Master crew.

Chapter 1: Siblings

Agrivar follows his half-sister Kyriani through the crowded streets.  He sees her come to a door guarded by two ogres, who she gets past by providing a password.  Agrivar is concerned because she looks different than the last time he saw her and she has had problems with her “dark side” before.

Perhaps I should take a moment to explain a few things about Priam Agrivar’s half-sister.  In the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic book, Kyriani was the daughter of Ostus Agrivar and a drow sorceress.  When she was born her father called her Cybriana and she was left to be raised by elves.  While under the elves care, they noticed a growing evil in her and cast a spell that split her into two beings: Cybriana (who appeared as a blonde elf) and Kilil (who appeared as a drow). 

During the first story arc of the comic the two beings were merged back into a frizzy-haired brunette elf.  This is how she looked when Agrivar last saw her. 

Sometime after that, Kyriani was split apart again.  This time she was reintegrated into a sexpot with raven black hair that had a silver streak in it.  You may remember her from when Omen was hitting on her in issue 24.

So Agrivar is definitely right when he says she “looks different”.  Frankly, I am stunned he was able to recognize her from across a crowded street in Waterdeep.

Back to the story.  When Agrivar peeks in the window to see what his sister is up to, he sees an almost comically diverse gathering of evil creatures.

Kyriani appears to be collaborating with these cultists to help them locate the Eye of Selune.  About this time Agrivar is discovered spying by the ogres.  The drow elf believes this is a sign of Kyriani’s treachery, but she decides to prove her loyalty by disintegrating her half-brother.

Well, I guess that is what he gets for ignoring Captain Omen’s request to be on his best behavior.

Chapter 2: Fireworks

The story now moves on to Ishi, who is shopping in the Waterdeep marketplace. A mischievous street urchin decides to play a prank on Ishi using fireworks.

Ishi is pretty pissed, but before she can act the street urchin is caught by Vajra from the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic.

Realizing the street urchin is no threat, she lets him go after confiscating the rest of his fireworks.  Ishi and Vajra introduce themselves, and the two warrior women take an instant liking to one another.

While they are talking, Vajra becomes distracted because she sees the cultists from chapter one walk by with a Gondsman dressed like Lex Luthor wearing a stupid hat.  Ishi offers to help her new friend find out what they are up to.

The pair follow them to a Temple of Gond where the cultists are negotiating for smoke powder (i.e., the Forgotten Realms equivalent of gunpowder).  The Gondsman is offering them enough smoke powder to blow up a small building, and it is implied that they plan to use it to blow up Selune’s Smile (the bar that the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons comic is based out of).

Obviously, there is no way that Vajra and Ishi are going to let this happen, so they bust in to break up the deal before it can be completed.  The two swordswomen make short work of the majority of the cultists, but the cult leader and escapes by summoning Chasme to fly him away (Chasme are the weird bug people who were with the cultists in chapter one).

Deciding not to leave anything to chance, Ishi uses the fireworks she confiscated from the street urchin to blow up the smoke powder reserves, taking out the entire Temple of Gond in the process!

To be continued…

Thoughts

• This annual is the only team up between the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and the Forgotten Realms comic.  Pairing off members of the two teams does a good job of introducing the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons characters to readers who might not be familiar to them.
• In the initial meeting with the cultists, it is somewhat awkwardly established that the drow woman cannot understand the language of the surface elves.  This obviously so she can’t tell what spell Kyriani is casting when she “disintegrates” Agrivar.  Luckily for Kyriani this is before the days of third edition where she could make a Spellcraft roll to figure out what is really going on.
• Since Gondsmen are the “mad scientists” of the Forgotten Realms, I have a feeling that making the Gondsman leader look like Lex Luthor is not a coincidence.

Forgotten Realms Issue 25: Wake of the Realms Master

The Realms’ Master crew is still with the human merchants and Tashira the elf leader when this issue begins.  Tashira is filling the arrogant gold elf role that used to be Vartan’s domain before he found humility.  Meanwhile, the human merchants are helping Captain Omen prepare a “wake” for the Realms’ Master as it is a tradition among their people.  The merchants believe that the passing of a ship should be treated like the passing of a family member.  Captain Omen seems inclined to agree with them.

While everyone is distracted by the pretty fireworks, Labelas Enoreth decides to appear to his former priest and attempts to make amends.  Vartan doesn’t take this well.

Labelas takes the punch without complaint and pleads his case to Vartan.  He tells Vartan when he was cast down from the heavens that it was like being blinded, deafened, and crippled all at once.  Labelas says he went mad, and without Vartan’s strength of character to help him through it, things would have been even worse.

Vartan is skeptical and demands to know what Labelas wants.  Labelas insists he is only here to apologize and offer restitution in the form of a godly wish to his favored servant.  Vartan demands that Labelas instead grant his companions their wishes instead, as recompense for the misery he caused them when he possessed Vartan’s body.

Labelas reluctantly agrees and decides to start with Agrivar.  Agrivar finds himself in a brewery, or as Labelas calls it, “a drunkard’s heaven and a former drunk’s hell.”  He then makes Agrivar an offer.

Labelas protests that he must grant Agrivar a wish, but Agrivar’s tells only wish is that Labelas leave them alone.

Having failed in his first attempt, Labelas decides to try his luck with Foxilion.  Not surprisingly, Foxilion is much more practical and tries to decide what to do with this once in a lifetime chance.

Unnerved by the fact that Agrivar refused his wish, Foxilion decides it is wise to refuse Labelas’ offer as well.  Having failed twice, Vartan suggests that Labelas try his hand with Minder.

Minder is amused that this elven god wants to grant her wish, but she really only has one: that Labelas help Captain Omen.  Omen is somber when Labelas appears before him.  The old wizard has spent years in fear of death, but he knows that even a god like Labelas cannot stave off death forever.  Labelas is also unwilling to speed Omen into death’s arms.  In the end though, he decides there is one thing the god can grant him.

Omen finds himself back in the land of his birth.  When he inquires about Gabrella, Labelas tells him she is waiting for him. The reunion does not initially go as Omen had hoped.

The two wizards engage in a magical battle, using elementals to fight as their proxies.  It is too much strain for Omen, who collapses in a heap.  Seeing Omen in his weakened state breaks Gabrella’s resolve.  She simply can’t stand to lose Omen as well.  As the two make their peace, Grimwald stirs in his bed.  Omen tells Gabrella to go to Grimwald, all the jealousy and hatred having left him.  He then thanks Labelas and asks to be returned to his friends.

The only person left to grant a wish to is Ishi, the friend of Vartan’s that he wronged the worst.

Despite most of his companions refusing his godly wishes, Vartan is pleased with Labelas’ efforts.  Vartan isn’t quite ready to return to Labelas’ priesthood, but he no longer hates his former deity and the two part on good terms.  Perhaps some day Vartan will even be ready to return to the fold.

The next morning, the Realms’ Master crew awakens.  They only remember the previous evenings events as a dream, but they all feel renewed.  Omen decides to make the trip overland to Halruaa to settle accounts and perhaps even get a new boat.  Everyone in the crew agrees to make the journey with him.

Thoughts

• Foxilion’s outfit in this issue is simply atrocious.  Seriously Foxy, I thought you had better taste.
• Considering how little time Jeff Grubb had to tie everything up, this is a very nice ending to the series.
• I am glad that Labelas got a chance to redeem himself, at least a little bit.
• I never cease to be amazed at how far Vartan has come from the arrogant elf he was in the first issue.  While all of the Realms’ Master crew changed over the course of the series, he experienced the most genuine growth.
• Although the series is over, I am not done with my reviews.  For the next installment prepare to go back in time for a look at the Forgotten Realms annual!

Forgotten Realms Issue 24: Everyone Wants To Run The Realms

This is a very unusual issue of Forgotten Realms.  I think it is best just to let Vartan explain it.

Yep, it is an inventory issue.  You don’t see these much nowadays since comic book companies no longer seem to care whether a comic ships on a regular schedule or not.  Back in the 80’s or 90’s though you would see them from time to time when an artist or writer fell behind.

Of course, this issue isn’t being run because the creative team fell behind.  This time it is because next issue is the last one, so the creative team obviously decided to use this issue while they still could.

This is also going to be a very difficult issue to recap, since it doesn’t have much plot in the conventional sense.  Rather, it is an opportunity for Jeff Grubb to have a little fun showing the “behind the scenes” process and for Rags Morales to draw pretty much every character in DC’s Dungeons & Dragons comic book line at the time.  I mean, look at this page:

Vartan’s first stop on his behind the scenes tour is to talk to some of the magical luminaries in the Forgotten Realms.  Specifically, he stops to talk with Captain Omen, Kyriani (Agrivar’s half-sister from the AD&D comic series), and Khelben “Blackstaff” Arunsun.

When Vartan tries to ask how magic works, Khelben and Kyriani quickly remember they have places to be.  Vartan does manage to corner Captain Omen though, who stalls for awhile before admitting that “if you knew how it worked, it wouldn’t be magic now, would it?”

I should note that while they are discussing this, they walk past Elminster discussing “12th century Mulhorandain pottery” with two rather harried looking individuals.

The man with the stunned look on his face is Jeff Grubb, who in addition to being the writer of this comic was the Forgotten Realms lead in the games department at the time.  The man changing out the tape recorder is James Lowder, who wrote the portion of the TSR Worlds Annual that contained the Realms’ Master crew and was the Forgotten Realms fiction line editor.

The next stop on tour takes us to a demonstration on swordplay from our two favorite fighters: Priam Agrivar and Ishi Barasume.

The two have an entertaining battle before Ishi ultimately outsmarts Agrivar and gets the upper hand.  Ishi then takes a moment to give the reader a quick Forgotten Realms geography lesson.

After Vartan gives a brief weapons demonstration using a mace, he cedes the floor to Foxilion.  He speaks briefly about rogues while struggling to set up a slide projector.  Foxilion then gives a hilarious presentation on the races of the Forgotten Realms.

Foxilion points out that “the smaller the race, the more intelligent” before going on to talking about the monsters. He flips through hobgoblins, orcs, gnolls, giants, beholders, dragons, ogre magi, and dopplegangers before getting to one he doesn’t know.  Unfortunately, when they turn on the lights it turns out not to be a slide!

The Realms’ Master crew engages in battle with the thing only to find out it has high armor class, is magic resistant, and breaths fire.  Before they can slay the beast, R&D shows up to collect it.  Apparently, the monster is so newly created that the haven’t even established its ecology and family habits!

The concept of worrying about this beast’s family habits sends the Realms’ Master crew into peals of laughter.

Vartan decides to visit R&D next.  Outside of the R&D room he encounters Minder at her wits end.  Apparently, the writers and artists are looking to redesign her again.

When Vartan enters the room, R&D briefly considers giving Vartan a twin sister, amnesia, a Ring of Contrariness, a Girdle of Masculinity/Femininity, or all of the above.  Minder and Vartan flee, locking the door to R&D behind them.

I should note that when they do show the R&D staff, which obviously consists of people who worked at TSR at the time.  The artist seems to be Rags Morales, but unfortunately I am not sure who the other ones are supposed to be.  If anyone knows, please feel free to leave that information in the comments or to email me.

Anyway, having fled R&D Vartan and Minder are summoned “back to the set” by Foxilion.  Vartan then takes a few moments to muse on how this story fits, or rather doesn’t fit, into the continuity.  Is it just a just a passing fancy of Vartan’s mind?  Isn’t it all imaginary anyway? Are we sure that we invented the Realms’ Master crew for our amusement or did they invent us for theirs?

Vartan doesn’t give any answers.  He just turns the page, which shows the last panel from the previous issue, and tells us to “enjoy the story already in progress”.

Thoughts

• This issue is a lot of fun.  It was a great idea for an inventory issue as well, since it is almost completely divorced from the continuity.
• This is the final issue to feature Rags Morales’ art.  I can’t complain though as he gets to draw dozens of characters from different series and insert a ton of cameos from real life TSR staffers.
• When Vartan is fleeing being redesigned, one of the TSR staffers makes a joke that no one would be able to tell if they gave Vartan a Ring of Contrariness.  This joke cracks me up.
• I have to thank James Lowder for identifying Jeff Grubb and himself in the Elminster scene.  He sent me a nice email that talked about it after I put up my recap/review of the TSR Worlds Annual.
• Speaking of which, the fact that this inventory issue features Minder in her new form shows how quickly the TSR/DC deal soured.  If you want more details about what went down between TSR and DC concerning the D&D comic book line, Jeff Grubb talks about it on his blog here and here.

Forgotten Realms Issue 23: Unreal Estate

We rejoin our heroes as they continue their journey back to civilization.  They have left the desert behind and are now travelling through lush grasslands.  Ishi is worried about her crewmates, especially Agrivar who hasn’t spoken more than a dozen words to her since they left the desert. 

Ishi’s musings are cut short by people crying for help.  Looking over the hill, Ishi and Vartan see a merchant being attacked by robbers.

Grateful for the distraction, Ishi and Vartan enthusiastically engage.  Minder and Foxilion follow somewhat more reluctantly.  Omen and Agrivar, neither in good shape, decide to sit this one out.

The battle takes an unexpected turn when the “robbers” unmask and turn out to be elves.  They claim that the humans are invaders who need to be punished.  It doesn’t look like they are willing to listen to reason when they realize who Vartan is and drop to their knees.

Vartan is initially baffled by this reaction, but discovers that word of his time as Labelas’ avatar has spread among the elves.  However, the official story being told by Labelas’ priests is somewhat more flattering than what actually happen.  Vartan is pretty pissed, but before he can set them straight Ishi suggests that they take advantage of his newfound status to figure out what is going on.

The elf leader, Tashira, explains that humans are building farms in the Vale of Lost Voices and Myth Drannor itself.  Myth Drannor is an ancient elven homeland.  Even though it is long abandoned, ancient treaties with the surrounding human kingdoms forbid human settlement.

The merchant claims to have a charter signed by King Azoun IV granting him the right to settle in Myth Drannor.  Foxilion is quickly able to identify it as a forgery though, since the purple ink of the royal seal seems to be made out of mashed boysenberries.

The merchant quickly backpedals and admits he won the charter in a card game with “a little guy” like Foxilion named Sandusk.  This quickly prompts Tashira to insult both humans for their stupidity and halflings as “rat people”.  Still, this is an improvement over attempting to kill them a few minutes ago.

Noticing that Agrivar is already getting into the merchant’s ale, Vartan decides to send Agrivar and Foxilion ahead to find Sandusk.  Ishi is a bit concerned about this, but Vartan figures it is better than letting Agrivar dip into the merchant’s ale supply.  Unfortunately Vartan’s plan backfires when it is revealed that Sandusk is staying at a tavern.

When Agrivar and Foxilion arrive at the tavern, they find Sandusk cleaning out some local farmers. They begin to question him when he asks them if they would like a drink.  Agrivar hesitates, but seeing his reaction Sandusk presents Agrivar with the ultimate temptation for an alcoholic: A Mug of Everfilling Mead.

Sandusk offers to play him for it and Agrivar quickly agrees.  Foxilion knows something is up, but Agrivar wins so he dismisses the halflings concerns.  Agrivar continues to play and wins the first few hands.  Not surprisingly though, once Sandusk has lured Agrivar in the tide turns and he soon cleans Agrivar out.  Agrivar doesn’t take this well.

Just for the record, I love that Agrivar is still carrying around the meat cleaver he took from the Akri.

Foxilion uses this opportunity to reveal to Agrivar what he figured out long ago; Sandusk is a leprechaun who has been polymorphing the cards all night.  Sandusk is about to leave when Foxilion challenges him to a game.  Since he doesn’t have any money, the stakes are set as 100 gold against a day of Agrivar’s service as a personal bodyguard.  Agrivar is horrified, but Foxilion tells him he has to trust him to get out of this mess.

Since Sandusk is still cheating, he quickly manages to get Agrivar’s services for a year and a day.  Foxilion is not worried though because he wasn’t playing to win, he was playing for time.  Specifically, he was waiting for Minder to show up.

So they play one last hand, and this time the leprechaun can’t cheat because he has an angry golem watching over his shoulder.

When the rest of the Realms’ Master crew arrives Sandusk is long gone.  Foxilion presents the crew with his winnings and lets the elves know that the Sandusk has given up the real estate business for the time being.  Minder is surprised that Foxilion would take such terrible risk by betting everything on one hand.  Foxilion then lets Minder in on his secret.

Meanwhile, Ishi and Agrivar finally have a heart to heart. Ishi wants to help Agrivar overcome his drinking problem, but knows that his friends can’t help him unless he is ready to help himself.  She bluntly tells him that the crew is moving on, but unless he is ready to accept their help he may as well stay in the town where he can hit rock bottom in relative safety. 

Agrivar thinks long and hard about how far he has fallen.  Finally, he drops the magic mug on the street and follows his friends.

Thoughts

• This is a much better issue than I remember it being.
• It is interesting that Ishi and Vartan are so close at this point considering that just a few issues ago she was ready to behead him.  It doesn’t seem forced though, considering all they have been through recently.
• The concept of a leprechaun using his polymorph abilities to cheat at cards was a clever one.
• I am glad to see Agrivar back on track.  I am also glad he almost had to hit rock bottom first.
• It was great to see Foxilion get a chance to shine.  He has been out of his depth since the Avatar series began, but this adventure was right in his wheelhouse.

Forgotten Realms Issue 22: Cat Logic

This issue opens with another dream sequence.  This time it is Minder, who is dreaming about being finally called home to the realm of the dwarven gods. At least she thinks she is, until she finds the gates locked before her.  Minder hears battle-drums in the valley below and realizes it is not yet time for her to rest.

This is a nice contrast to Vartan’s dream sequence a couple of issues ago.  Whereas Vartan could have joined his god but couldn’t forgive him, Minder wants nothing more than to join her god but cannot because of her sense of duty.

Meanwhile, back in reality, Los and the Akri are trying to bust down the foundry doors.  Inside the foundry, tempers fray among the Realms’ Master crew.  Omen wants to open the doors and fry the Akri with a Lightning Bolt.  Ishi wants to stay put in the hopes that Agrivar and Foxilion can mount a rescue.  This prompts disbelief from both Vartan and Omen, who believe Agrivar is dead.  Ishi won’t hear it though, as she has faith in her love.

Tempers are running high on the other side of the door as well.  The Forgemaster takes a bit too much pride in the strength of his doors for Los’ taste.  Karse also draws Los’ ire by suggesting they merely starve the Realms’ Master crew out.  Los decides to leave Karse to continue the assault while he takes the Forgemaster and Longerra with him to come up with another plan.  Unseen by all, Foxilion follows behind.

Back in his chambers, Los decides to activate his secret weapon.  The Forgemaster presents him with a wand and explains to him how it works.  Simply press a rune along the base and a beam will activate the nearest statue.  The statue will then seek out the nearest living victim, absorb its life force and take its form.  Los decides to test it on Longerra, to the Forgemaster’d delight.  Unfortunately for the Forgemaster, Los isn’t done playing with his new toy.

Los decides that he has had enough of the unreliable Akri and that his new statue warriors will prove a more than adequate replacement.  Foxilion has seen enough and slinks off.  About then things go to hell as Karse activates all the statues and they begin absorbing the Akri.

Foxilion is nabbed by Karse, who brings him to Agrivar.  She lied to Los about Agrivar’s death and bound his wounds while he was unconscious.  Agrivar is understandably suspicious of Karse’s motives, but she proposes an alliance.  There conversation is cut short though, when one of the living statues notices them.  This proves to be merely a temporary setback though, as “Agrivar the Barbarian” takes it out.

At this point the living statues have reached the foundry.  The Realms’ Master crew is doing a decent job fending them off, when suddenly the Minder erupts from one of the statue molds to help out.  Of course, Minder has undergone a few changes.

With Minder back on the team, the other living statues are quickly dispatched.  Los is stunned when the Realms’ Master crew emerges from the foundry victorious.  He is even more surprised when Agrivar shows up alive with a meat cleaver.  Not that Agrivar does anything with it since before anyone can blink Karse tears out Los’ throat.

Karse then tells the Realms’ Master crew to leave immediately or become prey.  Ishi makes a bizarre comment wondering if the crew is any less savage than the Akri before heading out the door.

Thoughts

• This issue had three pencilers: Linda Spofford, Rags Morales, and Chaz Troug. Dave Simmons inked all three.  Linda and Rags’ art styles blended together rather well, but I felt the shift to Chaz’s style halfway through was obvious and abrupt.
• I am going to go on the record as saying I am not a fan of Minder’s new Barbie doll look.
• I wonder if the Realms’ Master crew asked for directions from the Akri on the way out or if they went back to wandering aimlessly in the desert?  I suppose Omen could have teleported them away, but next issue they are shown wandering in grasslands.  I guess Omen’s magic is still unreliable enough that they might not have wanted to risk it.
• Karse did tell the crew to grab provisions on their way out, but considering that the Akri are cannibals I wonder what type of food they picked up?
• Ishi’s comments about the Realms’ Master crew being as savage as the Akri struck me as odd considering that the Akri are cannibal cat people.

Forgotten Realms Issue 21: Cannibal Girls (Won’t Yah Come Out Tonight?)

The issue begins with Ishi being crushed by scrap metal.

Just kidding.  Of course Ishi uses her mad acrobatic skills to escape.  She then climbs into some conveniently human sized ventilation shafts  and begins exploring the complex.  When she locates the kitchen, she discovers that Foxilion has been invited to dinner, just not as a guest.

Back in the prison, Agrivar is wallowing in self pity while Vartan futilely attempts to escape.  Vartan calls to the cell next door to enlist Foxilion and Omen’s assistance.  Unfortunately, since Foxilion is not there and Omen is unconscious, things look grim for our heroes.

At least Ishi is still on the loose.  Not surprisingly, she decides to interrupt the dinner preparations.  Ishi quickly dispatches the kitchen staff, but then Los and his entourage show up.

Ishi then uses Foxilion to beat them down and make good her escape.  Seriously, she just swings him around like a sack of potatoes.

This is really has not been Foxilion’s week, has it?

Back in the convenient ventilation shafts, Ishi manages to wake up Foxilion and explain the situation to him.  The pair spy on Los speaking with the Forgemaster about their current escaped prisoner problem.  The Forgemaster suggests using “the statues” to track them down, but Los seems reluctant.

At this point Ishi decides it would be best to split up.  She asks Foxilion to start a diversion so she can free their crewmates.  Personally, I would send the thief to break into the prison cells, but considering how ineffectual the rest of the Realms’ Master crew has been to this point I suppose I understand why she feels the need to do everything herself at this point.

This proves to be a good decision on her part, since she easily overcomes the guard and picks the lock to Vartan and Agrivar’s cell.  Omen’s cell proves a bit more difficult to open as the lock mechanism is broken.  While they try to figure out what to do, Omen wakes up an decides he has finally read enough of the new Player’s Handbook to try a simple Knock spell.

Well, I guess you can’t argue with success.  The noise attracts some more guards, but now that Omen is back in action a simple Lightning Bolt takes them out.

The crew’s escape path takes them back through the kitchen, which turns out to be a bad move since Agrivar fortifies himself with a jug of rotgut.  Ishi and Vartan are both concerned, but there really isn’t enough time to deal with it now.

Just as the crew prepares to enter the air vent, Los and his entourage interrupt again!  Agrivar grabs a meat cleaver to hold Los and his cronies off while the crew escapes.  Unfortunately, alcohol is not quite the performance enhancing drug Agrivar believes it to be and Los has no problem fending off his attacks.

Once the crew makes the vent Ishi screams for Agrivar to follow them, but things go from bad to worse.

Los sends his followers into the vent after the crew. This proves to be a mistake as Omen takes them out with another Lightning Bolt spell.  Los then turns his attention to the one crew member still in the room, but Karse informs him the paladin has died from his wounds.  Out of options, Los decides to head to the foundry in hopes of catching the Realms’ Master crew there.

Los’ plan to cut the Realms’ Master crew off works.  The crew barricade themselves in the foundry and Omen muses how it can’t get any worse.  Of course he doesn’t notice that the one of the special statues the Forgemaster was working on seems to be coming to life behind them!

Thoughts

• I am always glad to see Rags Morales on art.
• This is the issue where Captain Omen finally gets his mojo back.  Not a moment too soon either, as Ishi was getting pretty tired of doing everything herself.
• It certainly took the Akri long enough to start searching the air vents.  After all, it is not as if Ishi was very subtle about using them!