The Mighty Nein Origins

Critical Role: The Mighty Nein Origins is an ongoing graphic novel series published by Dark Horse Comics. Each issue focuses on the backstory of a member of the Mighty Nein before their adventures as a party.

Publication and creative teams
Five The Mighty Nein Origins titles have been published through Dark Horse Comics, and a further two have been announced. The first title, Home, was a full-color comic issue released as part of Free Comic Book Day, and the subsequent titles, the main releases of the series, are hardcover graphic novels. All were released in both print and digital form.

While the first three books were originally slated for a mid-late 2021 release, the COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread supply and labor shortages across the publishing industry, which delayed releases across the series.

Though Fjord Stone was originally announced as the fifth issue, with a release date after that of Nott the Brave, it was instead released fourth following a postponement in the release of Nott the Brave.

Each installment in the graphic novel series was developed with direction from Matthew Mercer and the cast member who played the focal character: Laura Bailey (Jester), Liam O'Brien (Caleb), Ashley Johnson (Yasha), Travis Willingham (Fjord), Sam Riegel (Nott), and Taliesin Jaffe (Mollymauk).

Collected editions
On January 24, 2023, it was announced that Jester Lavorre, Caleb Widogast, Yasha Nydoorin, and Nott the Brave will be released in a oversized collected edition, The Mighty Nein Origins Library Edition Volume 1, on September 13, 2023. It features an extended sketchbook, included at the back of all releases, and cover art by Robynn Frauhn.

Home
In Critical Role, explore a small but important corner from the adventures of the Mighty Nein, as Luc Brenatto and Marion Lavorre wrestle with their fear of losing the ones they love.

Jester Lavorre
Jester Lavorre had an unconventional upbringing, even for one born in cosmopolitan Nicodranas. Daughter of the famed Ruby of the Sea, she had many opportunities for mischief as a small child, of which she took full advantage! Dive into the mystery of Jester's early years, her first meeting with the Traveler, and the fateful events that set her on a path to eventually join the Mighty Nein.

Caleb Widogast
In The Mighty Nein Origins: Caleb Widogast, Bren Aldric Ermendrud is chosen to attend the exclusive Soltryce Academy, preparing for an important future in service to the Empire. But nobody––least of all Bren himself––can foresee the cruelty he will endure, and the ways in which it will break and remake him. Witness the events that transform Bren into the Mighty Nein's Caleb Widogast, and how they inform the path he'll take in the future.

Yasha Nydoorin
For Yasha, there has always been a storm on the horizon. Maybe it formed with her adoption by the Dolorav people in the harsh lands of Xhorhas. Or perhaps when she fell for her first love, Zuala. Or still later, when grief and madness drove her from her village and out into—somewhere else. Maybe, on the other hand, Yasha IS the storm.

Fjord Stone
Growing up in an orphanage on the Menagerie Coast, Fjord Stone has never been comfortable with the assumptions people draw from his half-orc heritage. His sweet, sensitive nature will do him no favors in Port Damali. Luckily, a chance meeting lands Fjord with a job, a mentor, and more adventure than he could ever dream of on the path that will eventually lead him to the rest of the Mighty Nein!

Nott the Brave
Veth Brenatto doesn't have an exciting life, but she likes it that way. Unlike her childhood, it's safe. Predictable. And her husband and son love her as fiercely as she loves them. But Veth's cozy existence is turned on its head when she and her family are captured by raiders. In order to save them, Veth will commit an atrocity that will sever her from all that she loves—maybe forever—and lead her to become Nott the Brave of the Mighty Nein.

Mollymauk Tealeaf
What strange events created Mollymauk Tealeaf? Entertainer, fighter, and performer, "Molly" has a knack for hiding his true self behind the shifting color and shape of a personality he seems to wear like his singular coat. But as with every member of the Mighty Nein, his past will eventually catch up with him...and it's a strange one indeed.