Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Fight to the Death!

"Final Sacrifice" continues in Doctor Who #14 as the good Doctor searches for answers while his friends are forced to fight to the death! Only two more Tenth Doctor issues to go after this! Brought to you by Tony Lee, Matthew Dow Smith, and Charlie Kirchoff. See below for a preview. SPOILER ALERT!


Thursday, August 12, 2010

D&D&Digital

If I had a gold piece for every time I've been asked if our D&D comics will be available in digital format, I could afford to buy a suit of plate armor. So, for the record sheet, the new comics will be available on iPhone, iPad, and PSP about 4-5 weeks after each comic book is released. I'm also told we're working toward getting them on other platforms as well. Can't wait to see them on the iPad!

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

D&D Ground Zero

Art by Andrea Di Vito | Colors by Laura Villari


It all begins here!

How many times have you heard that one? Wow, that many? Well, you're hearing it again because it truly fits for Dungeons & Dragons #0. (Retailer incentive cover depicted above.)

This issue heralds the launch of our D&D line of comics, to be continued in the ongoing Dungeons & Dragons series in November and Dark Sun miniseries in January.

Extended creator interviews about both series can be found here (D&D) and here (Dark Sun).

You've heard the hype, and now's your chance to pick up this introductory issue for a buck and see if it lives up to the billing.

Let me know your thoughts by commenting here, on the IDW forums, or by email, letters@idwpublishing.com. Be sure to mark your message with "OK to print" if you'd like to see it in our letter column, Notes from the Underdark.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

From the Pages of Dungeons & Dragons #0—D&D Q&A

Q&A with D&D writer John Rogers and
artist Andrea Di Vito
 


John Rogers
Tell us a bit more about our initial cast of characters. Who are they and what do they want?
Fell’s Five is a ragtag group of troubleshooters and adventurers led by accidental hero Adric Fell. Adric’s a veteran of the last war (there’s always a “last war” in fantasy fiction), and has found that his only marketable job skill is pulling off the vaguely impossible while other people try to kill him. He’d claim he was just trying to run a little mercenary company, but there is some fundamental anger at the injustice of a dark world. Fell’s Five always get paid, but they usually throw a little rough justice into the mix along the way.
Everyone else’s back stories actually evolve into stories for the comic, so I don’t want to go into too much detail. Khal Khalundurrin, the dwarven paladin of Moradin, is on the road not just for justice, but for love. Varis, the elven ranger, has some very unusual attitudes that make it difficult for him to live in the forest with other elves. Tisha Swornheart, our tiefling warlock, has made a very bad bargain for a very good reason—she’s going to find her missing sister, no matter what. And Bree Three-Hands seems to be a typical halfling rogue, but she’s got a second agenda that goes much, much deeper than picking locks for a party of adventurers.

Can you give us a rundown of what we can expect in the series?
Fun. I think one of the main problems with fantasy comics stems from them being very serious, almost reverential, when it comes to their source material. But D&D is a game you play to have fun with your friends. Expect this title to have lots of door-kicking, monster-slaying, and quips while running from Giant Things with Teeth.

Will readers familiar with the roleplaying game see a lot of it reflected in the comics?
Absolutely. There’s a reason that, when approached with the job, I took the “core” universe book. I wanted to take the most archetypical characters I could design and make them fun. You’ll see full stats for all the characters and their villains, and although I don’t want to be locked into slavish detail, most players will recognize the spells that are being slung and the feats being used.

Did you ever play D&D yourself? If so, what was your favorite character?
I played for years, kind of had a hiatus when I was working in New York, and then dove right back in when I moved to Geek Central, Los Angeles. I’m not going to play “tell me about your character,” but Khal Khalundurrin was a fine dwarven ranger, and I decided to use the name.

What is it about D&D appeals to you and why do you think it has remained in pop culture for so long?
End of day, we relate to the world in stories. You know, there was a great letter Scott Joplin wrote back in the first half of the 20th century, about how records would destroy music. (Yeah, I know, stay with me). His argument was that at the time, there were thousands, maybe millions of amateur musicians, because live playing was the only way to hear music. Every street had some sort of amateur band that would play at night. He thought records would destroy that.
I think D&D is the storytelling equivalent of those amateur musicians. People want to tell stories, and they’re not necessarily getting all they need from television and movies. I think a lot of people who want to interact with each other in a creative way, through storytelling, find D&D and make it their art of choice.

Much of the popularity of D&D extends from players creating their own characters and building upon them. How does that aspect play into creating these comics and how do you offset the lack of interactivity?
D&D really came into its own as the Tolkien-reading crowd embraced it. By which I mean reading fiction and then injecting your favorite elements of that fiction into the D&D game is a long-standing tradition. Besides enjoying the story and characters, I hope D&D players will be lifting these comics wholesale as one-offs and scenarios for their own campaigns. For the D&D crowd, I hope it’ll be “come for the game, stay for the banter and sword fighting.”

The idea of the comics certainly appeals to many D&D fans, but what about those not familiar with the games? What aspects of the comic will draw their interest?
Great art and fun dialogue... you can’t go wrong with that. Look, Joss Whedon did something amazing with Firefly—he got science-fiction fans to care by using tropes from old westerns. I think if you can tell a fun story about rough-edged characters doing interesting things, the setting’s irrelevant. For them, it’s “come for the banter and sword fighting, stay for the game.”

Andrea Di Vito
Tell us a bit more about our initial cast of characters. How did you go about designing their look?
I tried to have their look reflect their persona a little. Most of all I tried to give visual hints about what kind of people they are. Most important of all I tried to give them a “real” adventurer’s look, all their clothes and armor are used, dented, scratched. These guys are in a very dangerous line of work and I thought they must not care too much about their looks, all that matters is to get the job done, either for money or glory!

Did you ever play D&D yourself? If so, do you have a favorite character?
I have been playing D&D on and off for the last 25 years, and I still do! I don’t have a favorite character, but I really enjoy weaving stories with my friends. If I had to choose though, nothing beats a Dwarf!

What is it about D&D appeals to you and why do you think it has remained in pop culture for so long?
The reasons are many, I think. Mainly, it’s the social side of the game that hooks people. You give someone the chance to be a hero, or somebody entirely different from who they are, and they get the chance to express themselves without bounds. It’s almost intoxicating at first, all of a sudden you are allowed to do anything with your imagination. And the best part is that you get to do it playing along with your friends. Also D&D is very fundamental, you just need dice and paper to play, all the rest is up to you and the Dungeon Master!

The idea of the comics certainly appeals to many D&D fans, but what about those not familiar with the games? What aspects of the comic will draw their interest?
Fantasy genre has seen increased attention during these last years, and I believe many people are thirsty for a good fantasy comic. And if you say fantasy it does not get much better than the D&D world. It’s all about adventure, humour, suspense, and struggle. It is about what makes life (fantasy or not) interesting!

From the Pages of Dungeons & Dragons #0—Dark Sun Q&A

Q&A with DARK SUN writer Alex Irvine and artist Peter Bergting

Alex Irvine
Tell us a bit more about the initial cast of characters. Who are they and what do they want?
Our two main characters are a mul gladiator named Grudvik and a dune trader named Aki, who comes into our story trying to catch Grudvik, who’s technically a runaway slave. Grudvik’s trying to figure out who had him arrested, re-enslaved, and separated from the woman he loves…who happens to be a noble in House Ianto of Tyr. Her name is Rubi, and she’s got a thing for gladiators and a history that surprises everyone. Aki’s always on the make, and he thinks that a medallion Rubi gave Grudvik will make them all rich. Of course they’re going to have to head down into the ruins below the city of Tyr first…

Can you give us a quick rundown of what we can expect in the series?
The series will feature (among other things): Grudvik wishing he had killed Aki; Aki continually inventing reasons for Grudvik not to kill him; a fight on top of an airborne cloud ray elder; an expedition to the deepest darkest corners of the Under-Tyr; the revelation of Veiled Alliance activity within Tyr; a bunch of monsters; and some unrequited love thrown in for good measure.

Will readers familiar with the roleplaying game see a lot of it reflected in the comics?
They sure will. Peter Bergting has done a great job of evoking the feel of the game, and I’ve tried to weave the story around all of the stuff that makes Athas such a compelling setting. It’s harsh, unforgiving, lethal territory, populated by unforgiving and lethal people, and some outstanding monsters. But one of the things I always loved about RPGs was the banter among the players, so I tried to preserve some of that in the interactions. Especially between Aki and Grudvik.

Did you ever play D&D yourself? If so, what was your favorite character?
I did. My dad showed me the very first edition, those little parchment-covered books in the box, when I was about seven years old. We put together a little dungeon, and we were off and running from there. Some of the best memories of my childhood involve playing D&D with my dad and all his hippie friends.
My favorite character was a fighter named Xela (yeah, I know, but I was a little kid) who later (when AD&D came out) became a bard. I played him off and on for years, and even ported him over into other games. There were versions of him in Gamma World, Traveller, even Bushido, I think.


What is it about D&D appeals to you and why do you think it has remained in pop culture for so long?
Who doesn’t love roleplaying? We all do it, whether it’s over a tabletop with hex paper and gem dice, or at the bar on Friday night. D&D puts that together with a fantasy setting that distills a lot of what’s great about our favorite quests and epic stories. We live in a culture that doesn’t give us chances to be heroic. So we have D&D and we have superheroes. I always loved the game because I loved making dungeons and creating little cities and counties. For me it was a way to tell stories… so I guess it’s no surprise that I ended up writing stories in D&D settings. To this day I don’t feel right if I don’t know where my pad of graph paper is.

Much of the popularity of D&D extends from players creating their own characters and building upon them. How does that aspect play into creating these comics and how do you offset the lack of interactivity?
That’s a big part of roleplaying’s appeal, sure. But D&D also provides a great set of stories built into the worlds and campaign settings. When I was a kid, I loved the modules because they were kickass world-building that I got to plug my characters into. Even today, I think of the Tomb of Horrors fondly. The great D&D worlds—Greyhawk, Athas, et al.—were more of the same, you know. (I was yelling about the Nyr Dyv to a friend not too long ago because he didn’t know it was modelled on Lake Superior.) Those places become some of our favorite places to tell stories. Athas is like that for sure, and these comics—like a Dark Sun campaign—are stories told in Athas, right?

The idea of the comics certainly appeals to many D&D fans, but what about those not familiar with the games? What aspects of the comic will draw their interest?
Even if you’ve never played D&D, this story will give you violence, sex, conspiracy, and adventure. How can you resist that? You don’t have to know the difference between a dune reaper and an id fiend to get a kick out of an adventure into the haunted ruins below an ancient city.

Peter Bergting
Tell us a bit more about our initial cast of characters. How did you go about designing their look?
There was a bit of back and forth with the characters, and it took a few weeks before they had found their respective races (mul and human) and professions, they even switched back and forth a couple of times. The only thing consistent was the mohawk on Grudvik. The look was challenging, I had a specific image in mind, but there was precious little reference material to go about in the beginning so I didn’t really know if I could take it in the direction I wanted. The one thing to keep in mind was that there was no metal in Dark Sun so I had to work around that. As soon as the reference material started to show up, the design process got easier and I was able to realize what I had wanted to do in the beginning. Grudvik was approved pretty much on the spot, and Aki just a little later after I had added a bit of armor to him. I like to keep a reference to a living person so I have something to come back to when I start to sway, and I envisioned Aki as Shane MacGowan, but heroic and with better teeth. I don’t like clean-cut heroes, but Grudvik is close. I love the way Alex writes him, which gives him a bit of a tragic slant that I can play with so he’s not just another Conan derivative.

Did you ever play D&D yourself? If so, tell us about your favorite character.
I did, back in my teens and then later in my 30s. We played classic AD&D, and I usually ended up being a chaotic neutral kind of character. I always spent too much time doodling and drawing while playing, which was a sure-fire way of getting killed. I remember one time when the party was out walking and we ran into a bunch of zombies. I uttered the line “come on, it’s just a bunch of zombies,” and then I died. I also played a halfling that annoyed the other characters so much they killed him just to shut me up. When I ended up trying the game again in my mid 30s, I had the unfortunate luck of ending up with a DM that was too picky with the rules and just sucked all the fun out of the game.

What is it about D&D appeals to you and why do you think it has remained in pop culture for so long?
I applied for freelance work with TSR, who were running the show back in the day, but I got turned down. Eventually I was lucky enough to end up with a small gig for Wizards of the Coast later on and did one of my career-turning pieces for Dragon Magazine. Paizo took over a few years later, and I ended up doing art for 40-plus consecutive issues of both Dragon Magazine and Dungeon Magazine. So, I got to look at many aspects of the game. Remaining in the popular culture for all these years I think is a testament to the incredible attention to detail of the creative teams. D&D has always been a high quality brand. Being the de facto largest game out there coupled with actually being great is the way to keep it consistently entertaining and not only appeal to lifelong fans, but draw in new fans over and over again. I think time will tell if pen and paper will survive the digital revolution. Who knows? Maybe in a year we will have all our rulebooks on our iPads. But I digress, why D&D appeals to me is because I always found the worlds so open, this gigantic sandbox that was yours to play with. I tried many games growing up, I’d say pretty much all of them, but D&D is the one that has remained “up there” over all the years. Having worked with the franchise helps, I guess, but still D&D is and will always be D&D.

The idea of the comics certainly appeals to many D&D fans, but what about those not familiar with the games? What aspects of the comic will draw their interest?
I hope they will be sucked in by the art, which is what people will see when flipping through the book, and then get hooked on Alex’s awesome story and characters. Dark Sun is such a cool (hot) world that people not familiar with the game will find a refreshing take on the fantasy genre.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

#6 Spells End for Sixth

The final issue of Doctor Who Classics Series III arrives in stores today. This sixth issue features four complete short stories by Alan McKenzie and John Ridgway, which originally ran in Doctor Who Magazine #104-107. "Kane's Story", "Abel's Story", "The Warrior's Story", and "Frobisher's Story" appear in color for the first time, courtesy of Charlie Kirchoff. That's 32 pages with no ads! Robert Hack supplied the cover. See below for a preview.

Monday, August 2, 2010

Dungeons & Dragons #0 to Premiere at GenCon!



As announced last week, Dungeons & Dragons #0 will officially debut at GenCon Indy this week, with each attendee receiving their very own copy of the exclusive comic for FREE!

Then next Wednesday, the regular edition will reach stores, available for the low introductory price of $1!

The offices at Wizards of the Coast have been abuzz since receiving advance copies of the comic. And if it can get them excited, I think it will do the same for fans.

In the meantime, keep an eye on this spot for extended interviews with the creative teams, which will be excerpted in #0.