‘Queen Of Swords’ #1 Is Everything I Love About TTRPG In Comic Form

Welcome to the table,

I love witches. I love barbarians. I love talking weapons and demons and dark humor and mystical tattoos and strange magic and because of that, I love Vault Comics‘ Queen of Swords.

If you are a fan of sword and sorcery tales — or high fantasy tabletop role-playing games — you are going to really enjoy this comic. That’s it, that’s the tweet. It’s just good. Everything feels intentional, but does not get stiff or weird and the whole thing comes together in this fun and energetic blood-and-blades romp through cool-looking settings I could spend hours learning more about.

Spinning out of the pages of the fan-favorite comic, Barbaric, comes this all-new fantasy adventure, filled with ghost pirates, tavern brawls, strange magics, and (in typical Barbaric fashion) a weapon that does not know when to shut up.

The cast of characters in this book is nothing short of delightful. Deadheart is a good-natured barbarian who wants to smash and bash her way through life. Ga’Bar is an evil entity trapped in Deadheart’s blade that has become her reluctant sidekick. Ka is an assassin who trusts no one and Serra is a witch who was on the fast track to great power before she walked away from it all during a demon-filled orgy.

This story is bonkers in the best possible way and the characters feel like characters my players would play during our weekly games.

Michael Moreci‘s writing is witty and fun, Corin Howell‘s art has so much energy and life to it, Kike Díaz‘s colors dazzle, and Jim Campbell letters with a clean economy that rounds out this talented Queen of Swords team.

You can see the groundwork being laid for so many story threads and none of the characters feel like they are being placed on the back burner; each gets amazingly fun dialog and story beats so they can shine. Even the supporting characters feel purposeful and fun, sending the mind wandering down paths that want to explore their lands and cultures in the same way one may spend days reading a monster manual or fiend folio.

Queen of Swords is the type of book that I can honestly say feels like a TTRPG campaign setting translated on the page. Sword-and-sorcery enthusiasts and RPG fans will savor every page turn, with each issue leaving them eagerly awaiting the next adventure, just like the anticipation between game sessions.

Until next time, this book is so solid on every level. It’s just fun and chaotic and really feels like the kind of comic I could get lost in for 100 issues or more.

Now let’s convince Vault that I need to design the Barbaric TTRPG.