While DC fans may think they know Harley Quinn, a new Dungeons & Dragons-esque character sheet offers new insight on the Gotham vigilante. The fantasy series Dark Knights of Steel is selling so well, its fourth issue is receiving a second printing. Featuring Harley Quinn decked out in her finest jester apparel, the reprint's cover is revealing her official stats, showing how she stacks up to her fellow DC hero compatriots.
Tom Taylor and Yasmine Putri’s Dark Knights of Steel shows readers an alternate DC Universe filled with magic and war. Familiar heroes and villains are reinvented as knights, kings, mages and anything else fans of sword and sorcery can think of. The series has been a love letter to all things fantasy, with recent reprint covers referencing one of the most beloved fantasy franchises of all time.
Posting on his Twitter, series’ writer Tom Taylor revealed the exciting news that Dark Knights of Steel #4 sold out and was going back for a second printing. The cover is a modified version of the fourth issue’s variant cover by artist Joshua Middleton and portrays Harley in her jester outfit playing a lute while singing a song. Unlike the series' previous covers, which were mostly similar to actual Dungeons & Dragons character sheets, the new cover adds a comedic twist pretty much illustrating how poor Harley's musical skills are. Out of a possible 20 points, she scores a 1 and a 3 for Singing and Lute Playing respectively. Conversely, her Volume is at an eardrum-shattering 19, resulting in a 17 for Irritation. She may not be getting any respect as a minstrel anytime soon, but hidden among her more humorous attributes is a commendable 16 for intelligence.
The previous covers boasted some respectable stats for the Trinity. Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman had 20s for Strength, Stamina and Intelligence, respectively. Among all the three’s numbers, Superman has the lowest Intelligence at 17, merely one point above Harley’s. Fans familiar with Harley know her main universe counterpart was once a psychiatrist so a high IQ is to be expected. But Harley’s gifts go a little bit deeper than just book-smarts. The 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons defines Intelligence as measuring “mental acuity, accuracy of recall, and the ability to reason.” Harley in Dark Knights of Steel has shown a good awareness of the world around her, and has offered solid observations during serious conversations about the state of the state of the El Kingdom.
While Harley Quinn’s levels show that her greatest skill is making herself heard, that's actually likely to be a positive, given she's offered the royal princes Batman and Superman insightful advice so far. While Harley Quinn isn’t exactly fit to serve as a bard, her Dungeons and Dragons-style stats confirm she'll be a valuable asset as kingdoms go to war.
Source: Tom Taylor