{{Short description|American writer and graphic novel artist}} {{More citations needed|date=November 2025}} {{Infobox comics creator | image = cmoeller.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Christopher Moeller (left) | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1963|05|1}} | birth_place = Ithaca, New York | death_date = | death_place = | nationality = American | area = Painter, writer | alias = | notable works = ''Iron Empires'' graphic novels <br> ''JLA: A League of One'' <br> ''JLA: Cold Steel'' <br> ''Magic: The Gathering'' <br> ''Dungeons & Dragons'' <br> ''Star Wars'' | awards = }} '''Christopher Moeller''' (born May 1, 1963) is an American writer and painter, specializing in fully painted graphic novels. Moeller's signature creation is the ''Iron Empires'' science-fiction universe, comprising three fully painted graphic novels ''Faith Conquers'', ''Sheva's War'' and ''Void'', a short story in Dark Horse Presents, and a second in the anthology ''Negative Burn''. In 2006, an ''Iron Empires'' role-playing game was published, called ''Burning Empires''.
==Early life and education== Moeller was born in Ithaca, New York and currently lives in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania.<ref name="post">{{cite web |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08262/912955-55.stm |title=Comic books no longer just for kids, artist says |last=Sciullo |first=Maria |date=September 18, 2008 |work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |accessdate=May 13, 2011}}</ref>
He received a BFA in painting from the University of Michigan School of art, and an MFA in illustration from Syracuse University.
==Comics career== His professional debut was in 1991, writing and painting Innovation Comic's ''Rocketman: King of the Rocketmen''. This was followed by a run on the adaptation of Anne Rice's ''Interview with the Vampire'', also from Innovation, for which he provided artwork and a number of cover illustrations.
Moeller moved to Dark Horse Comics in 1994, writing and painting the first of his ''Iron Empires'' graphic novels (at that time called ''Shadow Empires'') ''Faith Conquers'', as well as the short story "The Passage" in ''Dark Horse Presents'' #79-81. He illustrated Andrew Vachss' short story "Treatment", included in Vachss' 2002 graphics-adapted collection ''Hard Looks''. He also did ''James Bond'' covers, a number of ''Star Wars'' covers, and a "pop-up" ''Star Wars'' book called ''Battle of the Bounty-Hunters''.
In 1998, Moeller wrote and painted his second ''Iron Empires'' graphic novel, ''Sheva's War'', for the short-lived science fiction imprint of DC Comics, Helix. He made a run of covers for DC's Batman monthly comic book ''Shadow of the Bat''. In 2000, he wrote and painted the graphic novel ''JLA: A League of One''.<ref name="post"/> He did an extended run of covers for the Vertigo monthly comic book ''Lucifer''. In 2005, he wrote and painted the graphic novel ''JLA Classified: Cold Steel''.
==Gaming career== Moeller has worked in the gaming industry in parallel with his comics work. He has done numerous illustrations for White Wolf Games, including covers for their ''Aberrant'' game books, and miniatures game. He has provided over 250 illustrations for the trading card game ''Magic: The Gathering''. He has done illustrations for the ''World of Warcraft'' trading card game.<ref name="post"/> He did the packaging art for the ''Axis and Allies Miniatures'' game. He also did the artwork for the ''Burning Empires'' game on his own ''Iron Empires'' graphic novels, and he did both artwork and design for the board game, Burning Banners: Rage of the Witch Queen, published by Compass Games.<ref>https://www.compassgames.com/product/burning-banners-rage-of-the-witch-queen/</ref>
==Selected bibliography== * 1991 ''Rocketman: King of the Rocketmen'' graphic novel (128 pages in four comic books, later collected in paperback collection; Innovation Comics) * 1993 "The Passage" short story in the ''Dark Horse Presents ''anthology (24 pages in three chapters, colored version included in the 2004 ''Faith Conquers'' paperback; Dark Horse Comics) * 1994 ''Shadow Empires: Faith Conquers'' graphic novel (later renamed ''Iron Empires: Faith Conquers''; 4-issues miniseries, collected in 2004 in paperback; Dark Horse Comics) * 1996 "Second Passage" short story in the ''Negative Burn'' anthology (co-written by Kevin Moeller; 48 pages in six chapters; Caliber Comics) * 1998 ''Iron Empires: Sheva's War'' graphic novel (150 pages in five comic books; collected in 2004 in paperback by Dark Horse Comics; Helix) * 2001 ''JLA: A League of One'' graphic novel (102 pages, hardcover & paperback; DC Comics) * 2005 ''JLA Classified: Cold Steel'' graphic novel (96 pages in two prestige-format comic books; DC Comics) * 2014 ''Iron Empires: Void'' graphic novel (90 pages, Forged Lord Comics)
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.moellerillustrations.com/ Official website] * [http://www.readaboutcomics.com/2004/04/20/iron-empires-vol-1-faith-conquers Review of ''Faith Conquers''] * [http://www.idratherbe.tv/irb/2008/01/the-art-of-empi.html A short documentary about Christopher Moeller by Sean and Noriko Sakamoto]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Moeller, Christopher}} Category:1963 births Category:American comics artists Category:Fayetteville-Manlius High School alumni Category:American game artists Category:Living people Category:Writers from Ithaca, New York Category:People from Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania Category:Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design alumni Category:Artists from Ithaca, New York Category:Syracuse University alumni