User:Ir'revrykal/Canon/Minsc & Boo's Journal of Villainy

An article on the

Key

 * No conflict with established lore
 * Iffy but not a direct conflict
 * Conflicts with established lore

Introduction
Minsc & Boo's Journal of Villainy (MBJoV) is an accessory published by Wizards of the Coast on the digital distribution platform DMsGuild (also known as DrivethruRPG). It is written by James Ohlen, who heads up WotC's video game development studio. He was also lead designer on the Baldur's Gate series of video games, and MBJoV is intended in part as a follow-up to the story of those games. The product description says the release is meant to support the Extra Life charity. Other Extra Life products by Wizards of the Coast are typically published using WotC's own DMsGuild account, just like MBJoV. Most of these products are considered canon to the Forgotten Realms, unless they are specifically stated not to be canon or are otherwise not relevant to the Forgotten Realms.
 * Link to product page

One difference between MBJoV and other Extra Life accessories lies in the branding. Other products use the official "D&D" dragon logo, while MBJoV uses the generic "DMsGuild" logo used by other unofficial sources published on DMsGuild. Another notable difference lies in the product's copyright notice:

"This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such material is used with permission under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild. All other original material in this work is © 2021 by James Ohlen (Arcanum Worlds) and published under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild."

Other Extra Life accessories simply mention that the work and material within are copyright Wizards of the Coast. This difference in the copyright notice indicates that MBJoV is, in part, copyright James Ohlen. It is possible that MBJoV was not intended to be published by WotC originally, and that the DMsGuild branding and aberrant copyright notice are artifacts from that.

It's important to note that MBJoV is a re-working of an earlier, unofficial accessory written by the same author titled Heroes of Baldur's Gate (HoBG). A lot of the same sections from HoBG reappear in MBJoV, and a lot of the art (which is professional-grade) is re-used. The major difference between the two sources from an in-universe perspective is that HoBG is set in the 1360s DR while MBJoV is set in the 1490s DR.

Preface

 * p. 4


 * This section implies, in an in-universe manner, that MBJoV is a re-working of HoBG that has been edited by Volo.

Introduction: Heroic Stories

 * pp. 5–6


 * This is an OOU section.

Athkatla

 * p. 8


 * The population number given here agrees with the 4E FRCG.
 * The population percentages given (90% human, 8% halfling, 2% other) are not identical with the ones given in Lands of Intrigue (90% human, 10% other), but this is not an unreasonable change.
 * The list of religions mostly agrees with the 3E FRCS, with the notable omissions of Bane and Chauntea, and the addition of Helm, Lathander, and Milil.
 * "Oligarchy, led by the Council of Six". This conflicts with the 4E FRCG and the 5E SCAG which both state that Athkatla is ruled by the Council of Five. The Council of Six was the old governing council referenced in older sources. This is not a simple mistake, however, but rather new lore. The 4E FRCG states "In theory, a highly successful independent house could claim a spot on the council and make it a Council of Six as it once was." MBJoV follows up on this by mentioning that House Havarian has ascended to the Council of Five to make it Six. The other councilors mentioned agrees with the list given in the 4E FRCG.
 * The commerce overview largely agrees with the 3E FRCS.
 * The remainder of this page is unproblematic. The description of Athkatlan and Amnian society agrees with other sources. The description of Amnian fashion is paraphrased from Lands of Intrigue. There is a neat reference to the practice of "straking", first mentioned in Volo's Guide to Baldur's Gate II.


 * p. 9


 * The list of societal ranks is taken from Lands of Intrigue.
 * All the dates and events referenced in the History section are sourced from Lands of Intrigue.


 * p. 11


 * The "Golden Rule" is paraphrased from Lands of Intrigue. The remainder of the Laws section largely agrees with other sources. The detail on King Dhanar's ban on arcane magic echoes Volo's Guide to Baldur's Gate II. Interestingly, Volo's Guide does not date King Dhanar's decree, so the author has cross-referenced his name with the Timeline section of Lands of Intrigue. Neat!
 * The section on the Cowled Wizards is uncontroversial. Their secret chambers under "Jane Lane" is new lore.
 * The 1298 DR date for the Shadow Thieves' exile from Waterdeep agrees with The Grand History of the Realms.


 * p. 12


 * The section on the Shadow Thieves is unproblematic. The Shadow Council is mentioned in print in at least one other sourcebook, City of Splendors: Waterdeep.


 * p. 13


 * A bunch of tables. Nothing controversial here. Athkatla apparently has a neogi merchant. Neat!

Baldur's Gate

 * p. 14