The Black Axe will rise.

Archaia Entertainment and Skelton Crew Studio are excited to announce an exclusive license agreement for the studio to create a line of prop replicas based on the Eisner Award-winning Mouse Guard, written and drawn by David Petersen.

“David is such a huge talent and I’ve been a fan of Mouse Guard for years,” said Israel Skelton, owner of Skelton Crew Studio. “Taking the reins to build a mouse-sized armory? Honestly, it’s hard to get much cooler.”

The studio plans to release pewter collectibles of swords, shields, and other armament from the Mouse Guard universe. Its first release, the Black Axe, is slated for Christmas 2012.

“I’m thrilled about getting these into the hands of my fans,” said Petersen. “Israel has done amazing work bringing the Locke & Key keys to the real world, and I love working with him on the intricacies of all of the mouse weapons and arms so that he can work his magic with them. He’s a true craftsman who cares about the details as much as my fans do.”

“Fans of Mouse Guard really love the setting of David’s world and its depth and fantasy realism, and we believe this is a great opportunity to offer them something that makes that world come alive,” said Archaia CCO Mark Smylie. “Israel and his Skelton Crew Studio do extraordinary work, so we are very excited they are going to create these wonderful Mouse Guard artifacts.”

Mouse Guard is a comic book series, essentially, about mice with swords. An elite group of warriors are charged with protecting their fellow mice from the elements, predators, and other dangers that threaten their existence. Thus far, the series has been collected into two hardcover collections (Mouse Guard Vol. 1: Fall 1152 and Mouse Guard Vol. 2: Winter 1152); an oversized edition (Mouse Guard Vol. 1: Fall 1152 Black and White Edition); an anthology collection (Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard Vol. 1); and a roleplaying game, both in hardcover (for pen and paper) and a deluxe box set. This holiday season, Archaia will release the Mouse Guard Vol. 2: Winter 1152 Black and White Edition and in 2013, Mouse Guard Vol. 3: The Black Axe and Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard Vol. 2.

Skelton Crew Studio, a sculpting house out of Maine, is already the exclusive home of replicas based on IDW’s popular Locke & Key series by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez. In July, it announced another exclusive license agreement to create replicas from the Eisner and Harvey Award-winning CHEW by John Layman and Rob Guillory, published by Image.

“I can’t believe my good fortune in 2012 and I’m really excited about the future for all three properties,” Skelton said.

The latest release from Skelton Crew Studio is a Legacy Edition Echo Key from Locke & Key, coming later this month.

The Mouse Guard Black Axe replica will be available in December 2012 through www.skeltoncrewstudio.com. Other replicas will roll out in 2013 and beyond.

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