Empty Stars will be the first comic released from Soldier Bear Studios! It is a 46 page completely self contained one-shot. The plan is to crowdfund it in March of 2026. The book is already underway, and should be completely finished long before that!

Set in the final days of a galaxy on the brink of destruction, Empty Stars; The Void King and the Hollow Queen is the story of four chosen warriors who must infiltrate the space lair of an evil wizard. Their mission; to rescue their Queen before their planet, and the last remaining life in the galaxy, is destroyed.

If you’re thinking “that sounds like some cheesy movie from the 80’s,” you’re not far off! Empty Stars is a love letter of sorts to the classic games and movies that made me fall in love with storytelling! This includes video games like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, movies like Star Wars and Conan the Barbarian, and of course Dungeons and Dragons.

However, Empty Stars isn’t just some retro trope filled nostalgia bomb. It is an incredible story with great characters, intense action, and horrifying villains that will no doubt have you on the edge of your seat from the first page. I truthfully don’t think there is another book like it in the indie comic scene.

I’m excited to announce that the lead artist for Empty Stars is indie powerhouse, and one of my personal favorite comic artists, Kristian Rossi! Kristian has a long indie pedigree that includes hits like King Cryptid, Blood Realm, and Trespasser. I was pretty nervous to reach out to him, but he read the script and said he definitely wanted to be a part of it. He is doing the linework and colors, and I couldn’t be happier with the work he has already turned in. Speaking of which…

Here are the rough layouts for the first 5 pages!

Please keep in mind that these are only layouts. It’s all subject to change, and some of them already have. I just always love seeing this behind the scenes type stuff, so I figured I’d share it with all of you. I am only sharing them via this newsletter for now, so please keep them under your hat for a bit.

Next time, I will share more specifics about the story, characters, and villains of Empty Stars! I’m working on a website for it, so hopefully that will be finished soon. There is also one other aspect of this project that I am really excited about, and I’ll share more about that in the next newsletter as well!