Zubby Newsletter #121: Con and On
The Conan SDCC Panel Crew: Andrew Sumner, Jim Zub, Chris Butera, Dan Panosian, Shawn Curley.I flew home from San Diego on Sunday afternoon, opting for missing the last day of the show and taking a daytime flight over a red eye overnight flight right before I smash headlong into Gen Con Indy.
SDCC was a great time. This is my third year celebrating the ongoing Conan the Barbarian series with Heroic Signatures and Titan, so there was a familiar rhythm to the schedule – where I had to be and what needed to get done, but even that consistency carried lots of excitement because long runs like this are so few and far between in comics nowadays. The readership came out in force and we were ecstatic to see them. The Conan panel was on Thursday this year, which worked really well – We were all well rested, energized, with our voices intact and able to kick off the first full day of the convention by announcing all kinds of projects, showing off artwork, and giving the crowd a bunch of free swag.
Artwork from Conan: Scourge of the Serpent by Ivan Gil and João Canola.Conan: Scourge of the Serpent, our Fall event mini-series, is getting finished up now so we had a slew of pages to show off from our dream team – line artist Ivan Gil and colorist João Canola. I spoke at length about how challenging and satisfying it has been weaving together three different plotlines and time periods into one symbolic narrative full of surprises, especially when Ivan and João elevate every single scene.
Artwork from Conan the Barbarian arc 7 by Rob De La Torre and Fernando Dagnino.After our fully painted 25th issue spectacular, we have a 3-part story coming called The Conquering Crown, showing how Conan of Cimmeria finally becomes King of Aquilonia. It’s a brutal adventure filled to the brim with political machinations, courtly intrigue, and some of the biggest, bloodiest battles ever shown on the comic page. Artist Fernando Dagnino is back for this arc and the work he’s been producing is absolutely breathtaking.
Beyond that, we chatted about the new Conan action figure, Savage Sword of Conan magazine, the return of Kull the Conqueror, and a whole lot more. You can watch the panel discussion in its entirety on the official Conan YouTube channel, just make sure you have headphones on as the audio gets murky in a few spots.
Outside of all things Cimmerian, the camaraderie with old friends and new was really nice. Lots of great meet-ups and conversations on the showfloor and after hours. There was some talk about future projects, but also a lot of reminiscing about years past and being thankful for where things are currently at despite all the challenges. May these adventures never cease.
Gen Con This Week!Two of the biggest conventions in North America are back-to-back, so I’m repacking my bags and heading out the door tomorrow on my way to Indianapolis for Gen Con LVIII!
After missing last year’s show, I am incredibly excited to see gaming friends and fans at Gen Con. Darrin has been working his butt off to make the Tayler Corp. booth (#1349) the perfect signing and sketching spot, and I will be there most of the time during exhibit hall hours.
My booth location at Gen Con 2025.On Saturday afternoon, I’ll be part of the Glass Cannon Network’s official Marvel Multiverse TTRPG liveplay game. Which member of the Fantastic Four will I be playing? Make sure you show up and you’ll see!
Come see me play the Marvel Multiverse TTRPG on Saturday at Gen Con!Stranger Things-D&D Scrapbook in November
Tales From the Table arrives this November.The pre-order page for the Stranger Things-Dungeons & Dragons: Tales from the Table book that Stacy and I worked on together is finally up so we can show off the cover and start talking about this really unique project that will arrive in Target stores in early November. It’s an in-world item – Mike, Will, and Eddie’s Dungeons & Dragons campaign notes, characters, artwork, magic items and more throughout four seasons of the TV show. Putting the text together and art directing the drawings, maps, and other esoteric bits from 1980’s D&D was an absolute nostalgia bomb of the same era when I started playing.
“Stranger Things-Dungeons & Dragons-Tales from the Table follows the kids’ experience throughout Stranger Things by collecting fragments of their shared Dungeons & Dragons game. It interweaves real D&D maps and assets from the 80s, with the Dungeon Master notes of Mike, Will, and Eddie Munson, the player notes of the rest of the crew, and the various notes and scraps the kids leave behind as they deal with their ongoing adventures in Hawkins and beyond.”
Still a Few Seats Left!I’m Dungeon Mastering a double dose of D&D in a Castle this Fall. My November 3-7 table is SOLD OUT, but there are a couple seats left for the November 10-14 campaign, so snap those up if you want a memorable tabletop adventure in a lavish setting, packed with fun and friendship.
After DMing at the castle for my first time last year, I wrote an extensive newsletter all about it you can read up on right HERE.
• Digital forensics expert Hany Farid explains how he helps journalists, courts and governments find structural errors in AI-generated images, offering four practical tips everyday individuals can use when facing the internet’s war on reality.
• The official Conan the Barbarian YouTube channel updated with a really solid overview of kingdoms in the Hyborian Age. Great information and tons of artwork.
• Want to learn how to play the Marvel Multiverse TTRPG? The Glass Cannon crew also put together this handy introductory gameplay video.
• When I have a bit of spare time, I’ve been video gaming with Enter the Gungeon, a delightful sprite-centric bullet-hell shooter themed around guns + D&D-style monsters, and Stacy and I are also playing Sunderfolk, a co-op turn-based strategy game that has well-tuned Gloomhaven-style mechanics without as much finnicky card management.
Jim
