Free Preview: Greg Pak’s New D&D Comic The Fallbacks Throws Low-Level Heroes Into Big Trouble
Greg Pak is bringing a new Dungeons & Dragons comic to Dark Horse this fall. The series, Dungeons & Dragons: The Fallbacks, adapts the adventuring party from Jaleigh Johnson’s novel and launches on Oct. 15 — you can see the publisher’s page for the comic here. Pak says the comic captures the chaotic, anything-can-happen spirit of actual D&D games, and the first five preview pages show the group arriving in Loudwater and immediately getting into trouble. 
Overview
Greg Pak, known for comics like Planet Hulk and Batman/Superman, returned to tabletop play in 2019 and used that experience as inspiration. The Fallbacks is an original Dark Horse comic series that follows the same adventuring party from Jaleigh Johnson’s 2024 novel The Fallbacks: Bound for Ruin. The series keeps the party at a low level, so their spells and abilities are meant to match what lower-level characters can reasonably do.
Creators and art
Pak writes the comic, while Wilton Santos and Edvan Alves handle interior art. Additionally, Dan Panosian and Uzuri contributed cover art for different variants. Pak says he was tapped for this book after his work on Dark Horse’s Stranger Things comics, which also lean on D&D themes. 
Direct quotes from Greg Pak
“In one of my own games, there was this whole scenario where these low-level characters got into some situation and it was obvious that we were totally outmatched. There were these people who were lording over these people they’d enslaved. My character was this chaotic good half-orc fighter, and I started the fight against these ridiculously overpowered characters just because I was mad, my character was mad, and I didn’t feel like playing it smart,” Pak says.
“I’m not a fan of narratives that paint entire peoples as one thing or another, and that kind of thing is rife in fantasy worlds where all dwarves are greedy and all orcs are evil,” Pak says.
“We’re trying to keep all of their feats and spells and abilities within the range of what characters of this level actually should be able to do, so they’re not suddenly busting out resurrection spells,” Pak says.
Characters and stakes
The Fallbacks are an underdog party led by the rogue Tessalynde Haldendria. The roster also includes Baldric Goodhand, a pragmatic cleric who bargains with divinities for spells rather than worshipping a deity, and a semi-domesticated otyugh called Uggie. The group contrasts with a rival, more traditional adventuring party that includes a devout cleric and a wizard who believes kobolds act as agents of evil dragons.
Moreover, Pak describes the comic as an exploration of who gets to be called a hero. “This book is looking at what people in authority and power would call a hero, versus what the people who are being pushed around would call a hero, and also looking at what individuals who are caught in the middle of this who suddenly find themselves in a position of responsibility would call a hero.”
Preview pages
Dark Horse shared the first five pages of issue #1 as an exclusive preview. The opening pages introduce the Fallbacks in Loudwater, and they quickly clash with the city guard after refusing to help stop some kobolds who are stealing food. The preview gives a clear sense of tone: low-level characters, risky choices, and a focus on moral complexity rather than simple monster-hunting. 
Below are the rest of the preview pages included with the exclusive share. They continue the scene in Loudwater and show the party interacting with guards, the rival adventuring group, and the locals. 
