diff --git a/pyrit/datasets/seed_datasets/remote/comic_jailbreak_dataset.py b/pyrit/datasets/seed_datasets/remote/comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
index 0d13f5a24c..c4b4d7d822 100644
--- a/pyrit/datasets/seed_datasets/remote/comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
+++ b/pyrit/datasets/seed_datasets/remote/comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
@@ -149,17 +149,21 @@ def __init__(
             source_type: The type of source ('public_url' or 'file').
             templates: List of template names to include. If None, all 5 templates are used.
             max_examples: Maximum number of source goals to render. Each goal produces up to
-                ``len(templates)`` image+text pairs. If None, all goals are rendered. Useful for
+                ``len(templates)`` image+text pairs. Goals with no text for any of the selected
+                templates are skipped and do not count. If None, all goals are rendered. Useful for
                 CI and quick validations where rendering all 300 goals × 5 templates is too slow.
 
         Raises:
-            ValueError: If any template name is invalid.
+            ValueError: If any template name is invalid, or if max_examples is less than 1.
         """
         self.source = source
         self.source_type: Literal["public_url", "file"] = source_type
         self.templates = templates or list(self.TEMPLATE_NAMES)
         self.max_examples = max_examples
 
+        if max_examples is not None and max_examples < 1:
+            raise ValueError(f"max_examples must be at least 1 or None, got {max_examples}")
+
         invalid = set(self.templates) - set(self.TEMPLATE_NAMES)
         if invalid:
             raise ValueError(
@@ -224,6 +228,7 @@ async def _fetch_dataset_async(self, *, cache: bool = True) -> SeedDataset:
                 alias_overrides=self.HARM_CATEGORY_ALIAS_OVERRIDES,
             )
 
+            rendered_templates = 0
             for template_name in self.templates:
                 col_name = template_name.capitalize()
                 text_to_render = example.get(col_name, "").strip()
@@ -248,6 +253,11 @@ async def _fetch_dataset_async(self, *, cache: bool = True) -> SeedDataset:
                     behavior=example.get("Behavior", ""),
                 )
                 seeds.extend(pair)
+                rendered_templates += 1
+
+            # A goal with no text for the selected templates rendered nothing, so it does not count
+            if not rendered_templates:
+                continue
 
             processed_goals += 1
             if self.max_examples is not None and processed_goals >= self.max_examples:
diff --git a/tests/unit/datasets/test_comic_jailbreak_dataset.py b/tests/unit/datasets/test_comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
index ec2a01da0a..28933c2aa1 100644
--- a/tests/unit/datasets/test_comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
+++ b/tests/unit/datasets/test_comic_jailbreak_dataset.py
@@ -224,10 +224,32 @@ async def test_fetch_dataset_respects_max_examples(self):
         goals = {s.metadata["goal"] for s in dataset.seeds if isinstance(s, SeedPrompt)}
         assert goals == {"Goal 0", "Goal 1"}
 
+    async def test_fetch_dataset_max_examples_skips_goals_without_template_text(self):
+        """Goals with no text for the selected templates render nothing and do not count toward max_examples."""
+        mock_data = [_make_example(Goal=f"Goal {i}", Code="") for i in range(3)] + [
+            _make_example(Goal=f"Goal {i}", Code="print('hello')") for i in range(3, 6)
+        ]
+        loader = _ComicJailbreakDataset(templates=["code"], max_examples=2)
+
+        with (
+            patch.object(loader, "_fetch_from_url", return_value=mock_data),
+            patch.object(loader, "_fetch_template_async", new_callable=AsyncMock, return_value="/fake/template.png"),
+            patch.object(loader, "_render_comic_async", new_callable=AsyncMock, return_value="/fake/rendered.png"),
+        ):
+            dataset = await loader.fetch_dataset_async(cache=False)
+
+        goals = {s.metadata["goal"] for s in dataset.seeds if isinstance(s, SeedPrompt)}
+        assert goals == {"Goal 3", "Goal 4"}
+
     def test_init_default_max_examples_is_none(self):
         loader = _ComicJailbreakDataset()
         assert loader.max_examples is None
 
+    @pytest.mark.parametrize("max_examples", [0, -1])
+    def test_init_rejects_max_examples_below_one(self, max_examples):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError, match="max_examples must be at least 1"):
+            _ComicJailbreakDataset(max_examples=max_examples)
+
 
 class TestComicJailbreakTemplates:
     """Tests for the COMIC_JAILBREAK_TEMPLATES constant."""