Here There Be Gerblins Read online

  Text copyright © 2018 by Clint McElroy, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Travis McElroy

  Illustrations copyright © 2018 by Carey Pietsch

  Letterer: Tess Stone

  Flatters: Niki Smith, Megan Brennan

  Fan art gallery copyright © 2018 by (respectively):

  Annie Clementine Johnston-Glick

  Jonah Matteo Baumann

  Cheyanne Bueno

  Chris Kindred

  Liz Parlett

  Michael Mayne

  Sebastián Jimenez

  Mickey Quinn

  Mu X. Jones

  Johanna The Mad

  Adrienne Valdes

  Published by First Second

  First Second is an imprint of Roaring Brook Press, a division

  of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership

  175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010

  All rights reserved

  Our eBooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use.

  Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at

  1-800-221-7945, ext.5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2017946143

  eISBN: 978-1-250-21366-2

  First edition, 2018

  Book design by Andrew Arnold

  Penciled with a 2B pencil-style tool in Photoshop. Inked with a brush-style

  digital nib in Clip Studio Paint and colored digitally in Photoshop.

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  When it comes to The Adventure Zone, and the McElroys as a whole, I’ll admit that I’ve been late to the game.

  My friends have adored them for years. But I’m stubborn, so it wasn’t until November of 2016 that I finally caved to peer pressure and began sampling their unique flavor of artisanal auditory delectation.

  I listened to an episode of My Brother, My Brother and Me, and the McElroys hit my life like a new religion. Within two months I’d listened to more than 250 episodes of MBMBaM. And I would have made it through the entirety of their archive shortly thereafter. . .

  . . . but then I discovered The Adventure Zone.

  If learning about MBMBaM was like a religious conversion, The Adventure Zone was like suddenly falling in love. Plus getting hit by lightning. Plus coffee. Plus hugging Lin-Manuel Miranda while eating an ice-cream sundae.

  Okay. I’m not doing a good job of this. Let me start again.

  For those of you who may not know, I’m a fantasy author. My books have been translated into thirty-five languages and sell mil- lions of copies all over the world. I mention this not to brag, but because it’s the easiest way to prove I know a little bit about stories. I story for a living. I’m pretty good at it.

  So let me say, honestly and sincerely, that The Adventure Zone is some of the finest storytelling I have ever experienced. In any genre. Ever.

  I also know a little bit about role-playing. I’ve played D&D since 1982. Worked my way through every edition. (Except 4th.) These days I play D&D in packed stadiums with Acquisitions Incorpo- rated. I guest star in Critical Role. I’ve visited the D&D offices, and we’re currently working on some secret collaborations together.

  With that in mind, I’d like to say that the McElroys have done something with D&D I have never seen before. They’ve done some- thing I didn’t know it was possible to do. They’ve made something magical, and loving, and kind, and beautiful. The world is better because this story is in it.

  I’ve listened to the entirety of The Adventure Zone more than three times over the last eight months. I’m not just a fan, I’m a missionary. I’m a zealot. I’m not saying I’m working on my Merle cosplay or anything . . . But yeah. Fine. I’ll admit it, I’m working on my cosplay.

  What you hold in your hands is a unique experiment. A brave, even remarkable thing. This comic is an attempt to translate pure audio improvisational storytelling into a visual medium. I’ve done some work in comics, and I can’t think of a harder transition for a story to make.

  And I adore what the McElroys and their brilliant collaborator—co-adaptor and artist Carey Pietsch—have done here. Not just in the reflected light of my affection for The Adventure Zone podcast, but as an entity distinct unto itself. I already know the story, but there are surprises here. I know what’s going to happen, but I love seeing these good, good boys beginning their marvelous adventure all over again.

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