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Vault Comics is launching a year-long event in 2023 that will dramatically expand its Barbaric universe. In addition to two new arcs of the series, the publisher will also release a spin-off series called Queen of Swords, an oversized one-shot, and new trade paperbacks in what it's calling The Year of the Axe.
Barbaric is co-created by writer Michael Moreci and artist Nathan Gooden, and it debuted in November 2021. The story follows bloodthirsty barbarian Owen, who's been cursed by a witch that forces him to amend for his past. His sentient-talking but often drunk axe is his moral compass, and together they wander a mythical realm filled with all kinds of enemies. From supernatural cultists to hungry giants, Owen and his axe battle creature after creature in an attempt to do some good and break the curse.
"The next volumes of Barbaric are really going to concretize Nate's and my greatest ambitions for this story," Moreci says. "We want it to be big and expansive and remain as wild and ferocious as it's been since the very start. I mean, in Hell to Pay we're literally going to follow Owen to hell, which is going to be as batshit crazy as you'd think.
"Meanwhile, we've got Soren cursed with Axe, who's as bloodthirsty as ever, and Steel dealing with vampire addiction. Then, in Queen of Swords, we're going to blow up what people know about the Barbaric world and people think they know about it - it's not just some side story. This story has serious ties to the Barbaric core. Also, it features a trio of sexy ladies, and no one draws that better than Corin Howell."
In January, Vault will release Barbaric: Hell to Pay #1, in which Owen goes to Hell, and one of his companions, Soren, tries to find a way to get him out. On release day, Vault will also publish the first two volumes of Barbaric as trade paperbacks collecting the full story so far.
The Year of the Axe will continue with the launch of Queen of Swords #1: A Barbaric Story in May, which expands the universe following the events of Hell to Pay. The series will follow two characters who form an uneasy alliance in their pursuit of a magical relic that will kill the evil orc named Gladius.
September will mark the launch of The Wrong Kind of Righteous, an oversized Barbaric one-shot written by Nicholas Eames and Moreci that dives into Owen's past. And then in winter 2023, Vault will release Barbaric: Born in Blood #1, in which Owen tries to find a monster who can explain his curse.
You can see the full Year of the Axe timeline here. In addition to new writing by Eames in the Barbaric universe, artist Corinne Howell will join Nathan Gooden on illustrations.
"Mike and I are continuing to grow the world and the team," says artist Nathan Gooden. "The first two books of Barbaric have set up the chess board, and now is when we actually start to play the game out."
"Basically, strap in and get ready for Barbaric to take a huge step forward in '23," Moreci adds. "Bigger heroes, bigger threats, and bigger veins for Axe to draw sweet, sweet blood from!"
The Barbaric universe will expand in January 2023 with the release of Barbaric: Hell to Pay #1 and paperback printings of the first two Barbaric volumes.
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