Experiences, Boosted
So.
You may have noticed that big “THE END” up there.
Experience Boost is finished. I started work on the comic in early 2013. I’d spent over a year since graduating college looking for work, and was slowly going stir crazy doing/accomplishing nothing in my (now) wife and I’s little studio apartment. So I decided to make something. And I decided to make a comic. A comic about one of my favorite types of games.
I don’t know if you can tell from those early strips, but I was not much of an artist at the time. (I think I’m slightly better now.)
It’s been over six years and over 750 comics, and I want to thank all of you that have read and supported my little MMO webcomic. Even after WoW Insider died and eventually Blizzard Watch stopped doing Sunday Comics round ups (By the way, big thanks to both of those sites for sharing my comic with their much, much bigger audiences). I’ve always worked to make Experience Boost the kind of comic and story that I would enjoy, and I’m happy and humbled that so many of you have enjoyed it as well.
The biggest thanks goes to my kickass wife, Jordan, who has been supportive of me basically not having a job while I drew funny pictures really badly until I was doing it kind of okay. If you’re reading this, (and you should be, it’s my big goodbye to my comic post, jeez) I want you to know how much I appreciate you being there for me throughout this entire six-year endeavor. Coming over to read my comics whenever I’m not sure about my writing or art. Putting up with me drawing until midnight or later. Sewing me a plush Cubert. You’re amazing and I love you more than I can ever really say.
I plan to start another comic in the not so distant future, if you want to stay up to date on that, you can follow me on Twitter, Tumblr (however long that’s gonna be around), or keep an eye on the Experience Boost Facebook page. Or if you prefer, you can sign up for a mailing list here (I promise I will only use this to notify you about the next comic I do, and only once).
(If your body and soul demand more Experience Boost, know that I will be continuing to do monthly bonus strips over on the Experience Boost Patreon, at least until I start up my next comic project.)
Thanks again to all of you that have supported Experience Boost and myself. It means the world to me.
-Robin Brooks
🙁
🙂
I never talked, but I was always here, in the background. I found this comic through sheer luck and it’s been one of those things I kept coming back to each update with expecting glee. It’s been one rollercoaster of a ride and The End was more than worth sticking around, looming in the shadows. Thanks for an awesome ride. =)
Thanks for the kind words.
And I just want to point out how exactly perfect it is that on your first comment, about never commenting before and lurking in the shadows, you randomly got the Garrix avatar, a rogue who never spoke in the comic.
Aw, poor Murd isn’t there. Love Theron’s smirk though.
Such a wonderful comic, thanks for all the great work and I look forward to your future projects. <3
Thanks. (I almost regret not giving Theron a face sooner.)
Did we ever find out Theron’s IRL name? My theory (or one I may have stolen and forgotten the origin of) is he’s called Ron and his in-game name is The Ron.
Thank you. Loved it. Made the net a better place.
keep up the good work!
Thanks!
That’s the plan.
I will always have a tab open for you
It’s been an amazing ride. Thank you.
Thanks for staying on the ride with me.
I’m still salty we don’t know Theron’s job.
Hey Robin! This was a cool comic! I would have liked to see how life is on the Legion side (seeing as I am normally a Horde player and all) but I think they get trolled by Castor mostly.
Theron clearly said no one was ever winning the pool.
(I’m also Horde main, and boy, rough expansion to be that, story-wise.)
So what is the deal with Lys and Theron anyway?
Gonna miss checking XPBoost for updates as i have loved reading/following the story. I can’t wait for what you do next and want you to know we appreciate you Robin. THANK YOU for giving us this series!
Thank you for reading and for the appreciation. I will consume to fuel myself.
Still wanting to see Theron in real life and find out his job.
Theron will take it to his grave. And then from his grave back to his body where he will rez. And so on.
It has been an honour and a privilege to read your webcomic.
/bow
/thanks
/bow
It was a wild ride from start to finish. Thank you for everything, Robin!
Thanks for the support, Thokk.
Thank you for the great comic. I’m going to miss checking in every M/W/F for a new entry, though I look forward to following your next comic, whatever that ends up being.
Thanks. I’m gonna miss getting up on MWF and reading comments.
It’s been fun watching you grow as an artist and a storyteller. Thanks for all your hard work, it’s been much appreciated.
Never forget your first time riding giant majestic owls.
Thank you.
I cringe at the first couple years’ art, but there are parts of the comic even as far back as year one that I look back on with a little bit of “Yeah, that was pretty good.”
Years from now I’ll probably cringe even at some of the final art here, but I’ll always be proud and glad that I made it.
Now I need to find another morning pick me up, at least until you get started on the next one!
Great comic, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I wish you all the luck in the world with whatever comes next!
Thanks for reading, I’m glad you enjoyed the comic.
As for a new morning pick me up, Olivia Jaimes’ run on Nancy is a delight. (Jaimes’ comics start here, I can’t really recommend what came before.)
Hope you post your next comic update on here for those who don’t care for twitter/tumbler. I know thus far my experience with twitter has the account suspended asap for ‘suspicious activity’. Apparently not having a single post and existing for all of 5 sec’s is a big nono.
Certainly doable. I just wasn’t sure how many people are going to be checking the site now that the comic is done.
Oh I have a lot of webcomic’s that have completed that I still have over 40 webcomics bookmarked and returned to often to check up on thing’s or enjoy the story again. Least until the page poof’s…
I still check Away From Reality and it finished 4 years ago.
Hi it’s 2021 and I just consumed the whole run of this comic in like 4 days. I love your work, Robin. This was a majestically written finale.
I knew this was coming, and it still feels like it arrived too quickly. I love this comic, the moment I started reading right up until the very end. I hope to see more for the future, and I’d love to see more comics from you.
Best of wishes.
Haha, I was concerned it took too long. I announced at the start of the storyline that this was the last chapter, and that was over a year ago.
Thanks for following my possibly too long comic.
Today is my last final of undergrad and Sunday is graduation. Suffice it to say that I was not emotionally prepared for this today. I’ve been reading this webcomic since halfway through highschool and the fact that it’s ending today is just too weird. I can’t wait for the next one. I hope it’s in the same universe! (Although I can’t decide if I mean in game or out…)
Just according to plan.
Thanks for reading, and congrats on the graduation!
Thank you for all the comics!
Well it was an amazing ride indeed. You came a long way from your first comic and it was awesome seeing your skills improve over the years. I also appreciate how on time your comics were, despite a couple delays. (that you always made sure me knew beforehand) Looking forward to your next comic!
Thanks for all the laughs and crys Robin. It’s been a great ride! I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next project! 🙂
Thanks! I will be eagerly making it. (After a little break 😀 )
This was good and it was even better that it had an end. Everything ends; art has ends we can choose and make meaningful.
I look forward to whatever you bring us next!
Thank you so much for this comic and all the effort you’ve made. I feel honored to have read every update, and I hope you will continue happily to wherever you wish to venture!
I had to check and it was almost four years ago that a friend first sent me a link to this place. Somehow it feels like time has flown.
I instantly fell in love with the comic because the early strips in particular eerily reminded me of my own early experiences in WoW with that same friend. As I read on, I continued to be amazed by how well you managed to combine telling jokes with a nuanced and often quite realistic portrayal of what it’s like to make friends in an MMORPG. I haven’t logged into WoW in years, but I still play other games in the genre.
Anyway, I’m really sad to see Experience Boost come to an end, but I’m sure that from an artistic point of view it must feel really satisfying to be able to wrap up a big project like this. Well done and thank you for all your hard work. ❤️
So happy to have been reading this, looking forward to your next story.
And that marks the end of an era. I may have only started reading a year or two ago but Experience Boost instantly became an all time favorite webcomic for me.
I can’t wait to see what else you have in store for the future.
Sad to see it end, but what an ending. Here’s to the new thing! Hype!
thanks for all the fun Robin, looking forward to what you do next 🙂
It’s odd how it just kinda sucks when a comic suddenly stops updating, but it’s always sad when one has a real end. Maybe it’s because it’s so clear that it’s never coming back?
I’ll be keeping the bookmark for future rereading. And, you know, just in case.
Thanks for all the adventure, laughter and all the other stuff, included in the middle!
Gah, I’ve not seen a Webcomic end in…in years. It’s a unique feeling, and one nobody is ever really happy with.
It feels like the end of Season 1, but the show was never going to have a Season 2. This isn’t a proper ending, but it IS a great arc ending.
Soooooooo, sad. This webcomic is seriously a lot of fun.
Good job. Almost glad that we share the same birthday.
Was a great comic thanks for sharing it with us all.
It’s been an amazing ride. Thank you for sharing it with us, and good fortunes on your next endeavor!
Gosh, I’m going to miss this comic. What a long, strange trip it’s been! Feels like not that long ago that I first saw it linked on Blizzard Watch…
I’ll keep an eye on Twitter for your next project, for sure. Thanks for Keran and Vedrana and especially Zhusen, and for the best dang depiction of the highs, lows, and lols of the MMO experience that I’ve ever read.
It was a wonderful run. Your art has changed so much from your first comic, and your storytelling has also changed. I am really going to miss this comic. As an old time EQ player and a WoW player, I’ve seen many of the personalities you’ve put here, including Orhan unfortunately. I will say, Castor was one of my love to hate, but was still a decent person under it all. Thank you so much for your time and effort. Looking forward to the next one.
At the end, let me say: well done.
I’ve been reading since the very first time it was linked on WoW Insider, since about the first week or three. I’ve enjoyed your continuing improvement on the art, and your steady hand with the story pacing. Take how ever much time you need for a break, and I’m really looking forward to your next project!
Super sad to see it end but glad it ended on a high note.
Wouldn’t mind seeing an epilogue of what happened to everyone in and out of game….mainly orhan to see if he got like arrested for something that was super illegal!
I enjoyed the comic, and enjoyed my brief time in the comic as a supporter. I love reading it, and sad to see it go. I wish it didn’t have to, but I know you’ll do well in your future endeavors.
Thanks for the laughs and the fun, and I’m looking forward to whatever comes next. /salute
What a dark tale. The hero protaganist sticking it to all these lefty betas was banned and now feminism and sin run rampant online. /s
No lies, this is part of what I’ll miss about Experience Boost… Taarax’s shitty comments!
*GET ON HIS LEVEL*
<3 Taarax 😉
Thanks a lot for all the fun over the years Robin!
First comment. I saw your comic when it appeared on WoW Insider. I’ve been reading it since then. Thank you for all the fun over the years.
Thanks, Robin.
… Thobin.
Has been a blast following this, happy to continue to support your future endeavours. Don’t keep me waiting too long got new content though 😉
I’ll miss checking for new updates. Been a great story and one I’ve linked to more than one is our guild chat. 😀
Amazing ride. I first discovered the strip back when I still played WoW. Though the game lost its magic for me, your comic never did and has constantly kept me entertained with every update. I eagerly await your next strip 🙂
I watched your comic for while- i hope you will make this into book. It’ll be something i would love to own for years to come. 🙂
Nothing ever truly ends and some things remain with you forever.
Thank you Robin for all the wonderful years of comics. Experience Boost has been one of my favorite webcomics to indulge in, such that it’s always been in my top five bar of webcomics to read in my favorites list. It’s sad to see it come to an end, but also really gratifying, and I can’t wait to see what else you’ll end up working on in the future.
Dang it, I still clicked my bookmark for the comic this morning out of habit. Can’t wait to see what’s next, Robin.
You and me both.
Thanks for the memories. Good job on giving it a proper end, and not letting it dribble off into “Oh that hasn’t updated for a while…” limbo. You’ve done grand work here, and we are all grateful.
I don’t want it to end, but thanks for a really great strip 🙂
(Now to release a printed collection, maybe…?)
Aaw, no irl reveal, haha. Oh well, I’m looking forward for your next comic for sure!
Should have published this sooner, but just wanted to say thanks for the ride. Brought back a lot of good memories. Eager to see your next project.
thank you so much robin. just brilliant
Had good fun marathon reading through this comic.
This was amazing, I loved every bit of it.
How is everyone doing? I hope you’re all doing well in this challenging year.
I just found this comic not a day ago. This has been an absolute joy to read. I absolutely adore Zhusen. She’s the kind of person I wish I was <3 #TransIsBeautiful
*hugs*
I binge read it all in one sitting. I laughed, I cried, it was wonderful. Thank you for making this and sharing it. It was wonderful.
~♡
I just found this comic after seeing some of your recent comics on Twitter. Binged the whole thing and loved every bit of it. Can’t wait to enjoy more of your work <3
Also, it makes me really happy that my comment got a Zhusen pic with it. Zhusen is the best!
This seems shorter than i expected, but it is still a REALLY good comic though, is there a good place(other than twitter) to read the rest of Robins content?
All my current comics are going up as free/public posts on my Patreon, so that’s probably the easiest way to read them without crawling down my twitter feed.
Binge-read this over the course of maybe the past two weeks or so. Was a hell of a ride, and thank you for it.
Also, I love Zhusen! Foreshadowing?
Just binged this in like.. 6 days.. Vert good read, thanks for that!
This was great! Really takes me back to simpler times and the games I spent far too much time in.
Hi! I just wanted to tell, that there are still people from time to time who read and enjoy your comic! 🙂 Because it’s great and it was loads of fun to read! (In about 3 days…)
Thank you for this splendid work, Robin. I employed a Theron strategy and binged this lovely webcomic in one night.
Finally decided to read the comic beginning to end on Sunday and now on Friday I’m done. This has made me want to get back into mmo’s and WoW specifically. Funny how current me wants to get back to something that in retrospect helped me find myself. Especially since I only found your work a few months before I started HRT. I hope your comics continue to reach people for another decade and maybe even longer than that.
Hey all, just stopping in to say that while I don’t respond to every comment that I get on Experience Boost these days, I do still see and appreciate them all. Thank you for all the kind words on it, it still means a lot to me.
Alright, while I’m commenting anyway, I just want to let you know that this comic is actually amazing. I’ve followed your tumblr for a little while now, but I finally got around to reading and I’m glad I did! Thanks for making it!
Just finished yet another binge re-read of this comic, thought this time I should leave a comment to show my appreciation. Thank you, it’s a really good comic, and I love it! Have you considered putting together a digital volume for sale or something similar? Even if only a very simple one?
Just stumbled upon this after wanting to know if you did any more comics than the Bofa joke one… and then I stayed up until 5am binge reading the entire comic in one night. I loved every moment of it, I adore how the characters changed and grew, and the ending arc was a nice culmination of everything laid out in the past.
From this Amateur Writer Trans Girl, thank you for such a wonderful story 😀
Another member of the “stumbled across this comic and proceeded to binge read the entire thing in a day” club here, and we absolutely adored it! The characters grew on us almost instantly and were amazing in how their arcs played out, the humor earned plenty of genuine laugh out loud moments, and the whole thing was paced so well we didn’t even realize we were on the final arc until we hit the last page. Thank you for sharing this wonderful piece of art with us <3
Been following your tumblr for a while, but only just found out today that this comic existed. Now I have read through the whole thing, and have to say: Thank you for making such an amazing story!
I plan on recommending it to anyone who’ll listen
got recommended by Demilypyro; got sucked in and procrastinated on an essay assignment.
wonderful writing and pacing – nothing felt cringeworthy or shoehorned in, it all flowed easily together without a bit feeling crammed. everyone was consistent in their character, their development felt RIGHT, and seeing everyone come together at the end didn’t feel corny or cheesy, but epic and well-paced and just very good.
and the ending was flawless – epic, well-paced, and as much as I’d love to see more of EB, i think you ended it at the perfect spot, and left room for the characters to grow and do more if they ever got seen again.
11/10, would risk an assignment’s submission to read again, fuck Ohran, praise to the true xmurderbanex
also Zhusan best girl
It kinda seems like this page has become a bit of a guest book at this point so I guess I’ll sign here too, since I just finished *checks time* NINE AND A HALF HOURS OF BINGING THIS COMIC? Well done, I’ll be sure to let my friend that recommended it that she was absolutely right that I’d enjoy it!
Just finished my 3rd reread of your comic, and just after a certain RoQ clone celebrated its 20th anniversary. Funny coincidence that. Can’t think of a more perfect pairing for the occasion than this comic and leveling through Classic. Thank you, Robin, for this wonderful work of art. It’s a lot like these games we love in a way. It’s a little digital home we can always come back to.
https://youtu.be/q707LpwDKiI
Yo, I just binged this entire comic in one day (seems like the only way to read a new webcomic, tbh) and I just want to say that I loved this! This was just good plain fun to read, and I was chuckling the entire time. Genuinely funny stuff.
I really liked Zhansen’s coming-out arc, and the bit with Theron felt so grounded! It was interesting how his reaction was so low-key, but it was ultimately still kind of curt, and the conflict stemmed from *that*, instead of like, a huge, dramatic moment. And then they just… talked it out. You know, like how friends would. It just felt like such a human interaction between these two characters, and it was so satisfying to read!
Also, going back a bit, when Keran first met Orhan in the RP club, I think it was so cool how the story could have turned into a big, long miscommunication arc, but when Vedrana came and cleared things up, Keran was INSTANTLY like “Yea, fuck this guy, I’m out.” I mean, that’s a) hilarious, and b) a super cool character beat from Keran, and a great way to show how long these two have known each other, that they wouldn’t just immediately turn on each other at the first sign of trouble.
Anyways yeah, great comic, 10/10 would read the whole thing in three hours straight again.
hehe, Several Pigeons and I have something in common! and only one day apart!
read through all of it today after seeing some of Robin’s other comics and stuff, and I have to say, I *loved* Experience Boost! if the guild is still up, I plan on joining later today as I’ve been *looking* for an inclusive guild!
I must tragically report that the guild never really came together, it exists in the technical sense that a couple of my characters are still in it, but that’s basically it. I’m actually trying to find a nice inclusive guild myself.
I’m glad you like the comic, though!
Ah darn, well hey, if I find a good one! I’ll come back here and let you know! I did hear rumors of another one that’s *also* on Wyrmrest Accord through reddit, though I haven’t tried joining yet :/
Binged this in 2 days, and had a lot of fun! Final fight was great. Definitely going to be checking out your patreon to see more of your stuff 🙂 Thanks for the great read!
Like Sylvermage above me, I binged this in the better half of a night- this was a wonderful read. Thanks for sharing the story you’ve written! o7
Great comic. Finally got around to reading it and read it over the past couple weeks.
I just finished reading through this for the first time. A very fun read, thanks for making this! Hope all is going well in your current endeavors!
Thank you for making this. My coworker showed me this yesterday and I had a blast binging it.
Had the itch to reread this and have now finished a two day binge. Still as wonderful a ride as it was the first time. While I dabbled in my share of MMOs, I never got into WoW myself, but this comic captures so much of the fun that is getting a group of friends together to do wild things, sometimes with a plan and sometimes without any at all. I love the whole thing so much, and I’m certain that as long as the site stays up I’ll probably be back again in a year or so for another read of it all. Thank you so much for a wonderful story, and for so deftly capturing the magic that is online gaming, the lows and the highs!