Mouse Guard is an American bi-monthly comic book series written and illustrated by David Petersen and published by Archaia Studios Press.

In June 2013, Mouse Guard: The Black Axe (ISBN 1-936393-06-9), a prequel which deals with Celenawe's earlier life, was published.

[2] They are not simply soldiers that fight off intruders; rather, they are guides for the common mice looking to journey without confrontation from one hidden mouse village to another.

includes pin-up by Guy Davis A mouse peddling grain took the path from Rootwallow to Barkstone alone, but never arrived at his destination.

She is quickly met by the peg-legged Conrad, who relates that the grain merchant from issue #1 is a traitor who would meet his mysterious master, who always remained in the shadows at Calogero.

includes pin-up by Rick Cortes and anjindesign.com Saxon, Kenzie and Lieam, having abandoned the grain cart, have opted to take a lesser known path to the city of Barkstone in hopes to keep as low a profile as possible.

[5] Arriving at the mouse city of Barkstone, Saxon, Kenzie and Lieam are forced to create a diversion to avoid watchful eyes.

includes pin-up by Mark Smylie Hiding within the ranks of the mysterious militia known only as 'the Axe', Lieam is unaware that his Guard companions, Kenzie and Saxon, have been left for dead outside Barkstone's gates.

[6] The hermit Celanawe proclaims himself to be none other than the Black Axe, famed champion of the Mouse Guard who has been long presumed dead.

His fate intertwined with two of the Guard's finest, he offered to aide them in their pursuit, in hopes to hold them to their word of retrieving his missing axe.

Celenawe continues to impress the Guard mice, not only setting the pace for their tracking but detouring them to higher ground and near a stockpile of weapons Kenzie made years before.

Sadie makes her way to Lockhaven successfully, beating both the Axe army and the Guard's mice tracking them to the gates.

includes pin-up by Jeremy Bastian Midnight's army reaches Lockhaven as the Guardsmice inside try to stave off the invasion.

After Gwendolyn banishes Midnight beyond the scent boundaries of the Mouse Territories to certain death, Lockhaven begins to settle down for the winter and Celenawe returns to the Guard.

includes pin-up by Geof Darrow Saxon, Kenzie, Sadie, Leiam, and Celanawe are out during a bitter winter that has befallen the Mouse Territories.

They embark as ambassadors for Gwendolyn in an attempt to unite the Mouse Territories and aid Lockhaven throughout the winter, for the home of the Guard Mice is short on supplies.

Above ground Celanawe and Leiam push on home in the hopes of returning with the supplies in time to save both Rand and Lockhaven itself.

includes pin-up by Nate Pride Bats taking claim of the abandoned weasel kingdom of Darkheather halted Saxon, Kenzie, and Sadies's progress through the underground nightmare.

Meanwhile, the remaining bottle of medicine from Sprucetuck is also in danger as the one-eyed owl has found Celanawe and Lieam's ice shelter.

With the food and medicine shortage still unresolved, hares and riders depart from Lockhaven, on a desperate search and rescue mission for Celanawe and Lieam, still unaccounted for.

A flashback reveals that Celanawe named Lieam as his successor prior to his death, and he later leaves Lockhaven with the Black Axe.

Petersen has gone on to say that when he releases a story that takes place chronologically after Winter 1152, many years will have passed for the mice, but that it will thematically follow Lieam with the Black Axe.

In August 2009 Petersen said in an interview with Comic Book Resources that after Black Axe he would start working on the fourth title in the series that would take place during the mouse war with the weasels in winter 1149.

[9] Recently however the comic's progress has slowed down due to Petersen's personal family matters regarding his mother being afflicted with Parkinson's disease.

This release was 40 pages, black and white, with a mix of pencil sketches, inked convention drawings, and new character profiles.

This was a 24-page release in full color, utilizing a hand selected pick of commissioned sketches drawn at conventions for fans.

The main differences are the interior art, which is black-and-white as opposed to full-color in the Archaia edition, and the "$3.00" price printed on the cover's top-right corner.

[16] It is a realization of a two-player light strategy game played on a wooden grid board with eight mouse pawns, and a deck of three types of cards.

[17] Licensed pewter replicas of Lieam's sword, Rand's shield, and The Black Axe have been released by Skelton Crew Studio.

[26][27] Later in April, Disney (which had acquired Fox that March) halted the project two weeks before production was set to begin, after which it was placed in turnaround.