ElfQuest #11

Issue eleven of WaRP Graphics' beloved fantasy series drops readers right into the tension of "Lair of the Bird Spirits," and Wendy Pini's cover art makes the stakes unmistakably clear. A dark, mysterious chamber frames a dramatic confrontation — a striking dark-haired elf woman raises her hand in warning or power at the center, while a white-haired elf with a dagger stands his ground on stone steps, a smaller green-skinned troll-like figure crouches below, and another elf lunges in from the left beneath the sweep of a great leathery wing. Pini's richly layered linework and warm earth tones give this 1981 issue an atmosphere that's equal parts fairy-tale and genuine peril.