Ask any dungeon master and they’ll tell you: nothing can derail a campaign like the Deck of Many Things. A random card from that deck can give a character insane blessings or take them out of the game altogether in ways no one can predict. But when Wizards of the Coast printed the “Book of Many Things,” containing new rules and lore for the deck, it set the stage for new stories built around that deck of cards.
We’re getting one such story now, with Ellen Boener and Eduardo Mello (and Jim Zub as a story consultant) bringing us a one-shot following an adventure tied around the Deck of Many Things.
Written by Ellen Boener
Illustrated by Eduardo Mello
Colored by Joana Lafuente
Lettered by Amauri OsorioThe Deck of Many Things is the most infamous item in the Dungeons & Dragons canon. Any one of its cards could throw the world into chaos or, in the wrong hands, end it all together. This mega one-shot reveals fresh lore tied to the Book of Many Things Dungeons & Dragons sourcebook and brings the legends of the Deck to life. Our quest follows two ex-romantic rivals who team up to steal the cards, risking everything for the chance to save the lover they lost. Dungeons & Dragons icon Jim Zub joins forces with up-and-coming writer Ellen Boener and artist Eduardo Mello for this new Baldur’s Gate tale.
“The Thief of Many Things” comic is a tale that hinges on the Deck of Many Things and all the shenanigans it can bring, from random effects to multiple organizations chasing after the item. But more importantly, it’s a story of a character running from her past, her mistakes, and her shame in a way that places her on the road to redemption.
Ellen Boener does a good job introducing us to our protagonist, Rudd, via a combination of internal monologue/narration and seeing her in action as a card shark, especially when she encounters an old friend-turned-enemy. The dialogue immediately begins setting up the backstory and history of the characters, making them feel more fleshed out as it goes.
From there, we see them both clash and work together, giving more hints as to their shared story, which becomes more important as the story goes. At the same time, it sets up their quest: get the Deck of Many Things, draw the right cards, and use them to fix past mistakes.
Ellen Boener makes a wise decision of making the story less about finding the deck and more about what happens when they find it. The Deck of Many Things is lauded as a powerful artifact, so getting it kicks off a series of events with the many factions after it. (These factions are, naturally, mentioned in the “Book of Many Things” sourcebook, tying it in to the new established lore for any D&D fans who have read the new book.)
However, even more important than the deck are the characters. The internal monologue serving as narration helps get us inside Rudd’s head, making her a sympathetic character, and as we get more of her backstory throughout the course of the comic, we understand her internal struggles more. While she originally appears as a roguish card shark, we eventually learn that she was a knight who broke her vows for love, and suffered as a result. We even get a “pet the dog” moment from her early on as she gives a stray tressym (winged cat) some milk before accidentally chasing it off.
The former-friend-turned-enemy character she teams up with, Basil, is a bit of a different story. Everything he does makes him seem like a supportive companion, but he’s also the one who keeps pushing Rudd to use the Deck of Many Things. His knowledge of the deck serves to provide exposition to the readers and push the story forward, while providing hints to the reader that he’s not as good a guy as he tries to project.
This makes them a fun pair to follow, especially as we learn their backstories and motivations.
We also get a brief appearance from Asteria and Euryale, two characters introduced and fleshed out in the “Book of Many Things.” While this makes a nice cameo for those who’ve read the book, they also provide some important backstory for the deck itself while acting as a force to push Rudd forward.
Continued belowWhile the story is ostensibly about the Deck of Many Things, thematically it’s more about redemption, forgiveness, and fate, whether it’s the cruelty of a fate pushed upon us or the power to defy it. These are the struggles we see Rudd face moreso than the enemies chasing after her or the chaos of the deck, and that’s what makes it an engaging story.
(With all that said, there are some moments where the dialogue has some grammatical issues, like Rudd saying “’This one’ can speak for myself,” instead of “‘This one’ can speak for herself.” They’re noticeable when they arise, but not enough to detract from the story overall.)
Artistically, Eduardo Mello’s art is effective. He uses strong lines and sharp angles for most of the designs, giving characters exaggerated proportions and either square or jagged faces, but it suits the style. The characters still have distinct silhouettes and excellent designs in terms of their features, clothes, and even body language, making them unique and memorable.
Equally important is how the characters’ designs tell a story. Rudd, for instance, still wears the ragged remnants of a suit of armor over her leather armor pieces, and carries a broken sword, hinting at her past. And while she appears mostly human, there are hints to her design indicating that she’s an aasimar (basically a part-celestial humanoid).
Similarly, Bas wears far cleaner, more regal-looking clothes, befitting his role as both a wizard and noble. Other characters have equally telling designs, displaying both their personalities and stories at a glance.
Mello’s artwork also shines for some of the more impressive “Dungeons & Dragons” creatures, such as the spirits of death summoned by the deck or the massive dragon that runs the fey market. His style lends well to the action scenes, such as the fight in said market or the time-lapse chases, which stand to both illustrate the passage of time and the many dangers they face using the deck. These scenes in particular show off a nice variety backgrounds (including an establishing shot on the first page featuring the Blushing Mermaid Tavern, as seen in “Baldur’s Gate 3”).
The artwork also takes an interesting shift when we go into flashbacks. Not only do the colors change to bright shades of blue and grey, but the linework loses its definition and becomes more of a sketch. We can see un-erased lines from the initial outlines overhanging from the characters and sets, emphasizing the dreamlike quality of the flashbacks.
Joana Lafuente provides the color work, using bright tones to make the images pop. The color work also gets impressive during the fey market scenes, where the lighting effects and shadows get to do a lot of heavy lifting, but whenever a magical effect occurs, the bright magical lights they create seem to glow off the page.
The art and color lean more towards the cartoonish side of the scale than realistic, which work together well. Additionally, the background colors add a lot of impact to the scenes, such as the blue shades of night being replaced by a massive panel of red when a card draw goes wrong. In fact, the background colors often create the color pallet for the scene, with everything else taking on a shade to match as they reflect the surrounding tones.
At a little over 60 pages, “The Thief of Many Things” is a relatively longer comic, which means it has plenty of room to tell a full story. Ellen Boener takes that time to build the characters, story, and action to make it feel complete without compromising pacing or narrative flow, creating an enjoyable one-shot. The artwork and colors help bring the story to life and set the atmosphere, while filling every scene with personality. Overall, it’s a great one-shot for any fan of the “Dungeons & Dragons” game and lore.
Final Verdict: 8.0 – An enjoyable D&D story that works with and builds on the newly-developed lore for the Deck of Many Things, with great characters and solid artwork, served in one self-contained story.
