Back in March 2024, the LEGO® Group announced the Ideas Dungeons and Dragons set. At the same time, an image leaked online of the Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures series. I published the image alongside the Ideas announcement, but could not confirm its authenticity at the time. As it turns out, the image was 100% true. And it’s a good thing too, because I’ve been REALLY looking forward to this series ever since.

I should begin by saying the Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures did not let me down. I can’t remember the last time I was so excited by an entire Minifigure collection. And I have never even played Dungeons and Dragons. But I love fantasy worlds like Krynn and Middle Earth. I grew up reading books like Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance, and the Death Gate Cycle. I am also starting a new MOC fantasy project, and these characters will fit in swimmingly. The LEGO® Group included alternate male and female heads and a variety of skin tones to make the characters even more adaptable.

Given how much I enjoy this series, it was hard to rank the characters from worst to best in terms of my favourites. They are all great characters, and I like them even more in person than in the marketing photos. I also had a blast photographing them, so I’ve included some of my photos below. But, without further ado, let’s get on with the ranking.

12. Szass Tam

Having never played Dungeons and Dragons, I am unfamiliar with this character. I like the trans-red skull, and the cape will be useful. However, I am not as big a fan of the printed exposed skeleton on the chest. It limits how I can repurpose the parts for custom characters. I still like the Minifigure though, it is detailed and I may find a use for it yet.

11. Mind Flayer

I have no understanding of what a Mind Flayer is, again due to my lack of D&D experience. It is the most alien looking of the series to me, and thus the hardest to adapt to my upcoming fantasy builds as it is. With that said, I think the Mind Flayer looks cool, and its little brain pet is kind of cute. Additionally, the robes lend themselves well to a sorcerer if I was to repurpose them. I’d have to get quite imaginative to use this character as it is, but I like the parts it comes with.

10. Tiefling Sorcerer

This one rises a bit above the previous two entries because I love the baby dragon figurine. I hope that it starts showing up in sets as well. This character is worth buying in multiples just for the dragon. Otherwise, I like the Tiefling Sorcerer and the fact that it comes with male and female heads. However, compared to other characters in the series, I do find the Minifigure a little uninteresting.

09. Aarakocra Ranger

I’ve never seen Minifigure wings like this before, and I like them. The torso print is also highly reusable in a fantasy-style MOC display. Additionally, you acquire a cute puppy. I am not sure how I could use the minifig as it is in my future displays, but it is an interesting character even straight out of the blind box. The use of “beast legs” is another plus. I like getting more of those.

08. Dragonborn Paladin

This Minifigure is worth buying in multiples for the armour and shield. If you are into army building, this is a faction worthy of any fantasy build. Dragon Knights were a thing back in the 1990s, but I always thought their emblem looked a little derpy. The Dragonborn Paladin’s shield is much more classy looking. Even if you don’t like the dragon head, you can easily replace it with regular Minifigure heads for your army. It’s a shame this armour and shield will cost you $6 CAD a pop, making for an expensive army.

07. The Lady of Pain

The Lady of Pain is another character I don’t know anything about since I’ve never played Dungeons and Dragons. However, I love her head piece. It slips on over a blank Minifigure head, which made me think of it like a mask. It looks like a Central American headdress or shaman’s costume element.

06. Elf Bard

The Elf Bard comes with a new scarf element that I have not seen before. Additionally, his lute has some nice printing on it that makes it unique. With this character, a small part of me wishes the minifig was the standard yellow colour. The ears are attached to hair in typical fashion, meaning this character is not as easily adaptable to a scene built around regular yellow Minifigures. It does include both male and female heads though. With that said, the bard fits in well with Rivendell and Lord of the Rings sets.

05. Strahd von Zarovich

My top 5 launches with Strahd. Who doesn’t like a good vampire Minifigure? This one is exceptionally detailed and comes with three accessories. I like the new black variant of the rat.

04. Gith Warlock

I am on the fence about number three and four on my list. I am not really sure which one I like better. The Gith Warlock comes with the yellow elf ears that I wish the Bard had as well. It also includes a new style of knife that I have not seen before. Finally, the eyeball staff is awesome. LEGO® did a fantastic job detailing this character, and they included male and female heads.

03. Tasha the Witch Queen

I ended up choosing Tasha over the Gith Warlock for third position because I like her hairpiece and hat. This element came before in the Disney Hocus Pocus set. Here, we get a recolour, and it doesn’t cost quite so much to get it. I also love her costume print. I can reuse it in my fantasy builds easily and it looks great. She comes with a spell book and cauldron as well.

02. Dwarf Barbarian

I love the torso detailing on the Dwarf Barbarian. The neck ruff adds wonderful detail, and the axe is awesome as well. Additionally, I am a huge fan of the short, moveable legs… that is my one lament with my number one pick, but more on that to come. The parts included with this character look great and are 100% reusable in custom fantasy characters. I love this Minifigure.

01. Halfling Druid

I hate Minifigures with stumpy, unmoving legs. Is it odd then that the Halfling Druid is my favourite character in the series? Perhaps. But the hood, cape, and torso printing are amazing on this minifig. I can easily replace the legs with a pair from my own collection. The Halfling Druid looks like a northern shaman, and I have been wanting a character like that for my builds for some time.

A note about blind boxes…

Blind boxes were a major step in the wrong direction for Minifigure collectors. However, the Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures come with the larger “QR codes” (they are actually data matrix codes) that we started seeing with Minifigures Series 25. So there is no need to open the boxes in store. I used the Brick Search app* and it worked like a charm. However, there were a number of partially opened boxes that people had peeked into at the store. If anyone out there does not know about the Brick Search app, please spread the word. It is so easy for small parts to fall out of the boxes once someone opens them.

*After publication of this article, Brick Search moved to a an expensive subscription model, so I no longer support the app. Click here for more info and an alternative app.

Closing thoughts…

I skipped a lot of Minifigures 26. I bought all of series 25, but I didn’t enjoy all of the characters all that much. Then there was the so-so Marvel series before that. The Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures really speak to me because I grew up playing with LEGO® Castles and reading fantasy books. There are a couple of characters in this series that I am not familiar with since they are Dungeons and Dragons specific and I never played the game. However, each character comes with something great that I can repurpose into a Castles/Fantasy build. I think the Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures are a win for the LEGO® Group after a streak of less interesting series. What do you think of the Dungeons and Dragons Minifigures? Let me know in the comments or reach out on social media.

Until next time,

-Tom

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