Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Ending Explained
Contains spoilers for "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves"
With the resurgence of "Dungeons & Dragons," it's only fitting that Paramount set out with directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein to bring it to the big screen with "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves." The adventure takes place in the legendary Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the tabletop game while following Edgin (Chris Pine) and Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) — two thieves who embark on an adventure to right a past wrong.
The pair's last heist ended up putting a powerful artifact in the hands of a Red Wizard named Sofina (Daisy Head), and now they look to take it back. Unfortunately, their former ally Forge (Hugh Grant) is now working with Sofina and has turned Edgin's daughter Kira (Chloe Coleman) against them. Now, Edgin and Holga must form a new team to retrieve the artifact and stop Forge and Sofina's plans.
"Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is far from the first time that "Dungeons & Dragons" has been adapted for film. However, this iteration is a refreshing new start thanks to the cast's incredible chemistry and the hilarious moments they share on their adventure. Like any great "Dungeons & Dragons" quest, these unlikely heroes face many dangers and shocking surprises. The film's finale has the most shocking moments of all, though, as the group comes face to face with Forge and Sofina to fight for the people of Neverwinter. So, let's delve into the ending of "Honor Among Thieves" and the biggest moments of its action-packed climax.
Forge and Sofina's plans
Although Forge and Sofina have apparently been working together for quite some time, they aren't quite on the same page. Sofina would rather kill Forge than continue to work with him and Forge only has his mind set on maintaining his wealth and power. These separate motivations see them part ways in the film's finale. Forge plans on abandoning Neverwinter and stealing the riches of those he's invited to the games he's hosting. While everyone is distracted by the games, Forge will head onto a ship that's been loaded with all the gold and artifacts he's collected. He plans to sail towards a new horizon while Sofina turns everyone into mindless servants.
Sofina, on the other hand, isn't leaving the stadium at all. Instead, she's going to fulfill her destiny as a Red Wizard to become all-powerful and rule over the lands. With the help of the magical horn she enlisted Edgin and his group to steal years prior, Sofina is set to turn the people of Neverwinter into her undead army by unleashing a powerful mist that will kill and reanimate anyone caught in its path. Forge has set her up for success by bringing everyone into a packed arena to be put under her spell. At first, it seems like their plan is going to come together flawlessly, but they don't count on Edgin and his team spoiling their fun.
Simon's confidence
A key part of Edgin's original plan is having the group's sorcerer Simon (Justice Smith) attune to a magical helmet that will nullify the spell protecting Forge's vault. However, Simon's lack of confidence keeps him from being able to use the helmet properly. Every time Simon puts the helmet on, he's transported to another world where he meets his ancestor. Unfortunately, this family reunion isn't pleasant as Simon's ancestor reprimands him for his lack of skills as a sorcerer before ejecting him from the helmet. He tries to attune with the helmet multiple times but gets frustrated and tells Edgin that he can't do it.
Although the group is forced to go with another plan, Edgin never gives up on Simon. In a crucial moment, Edgin tells Simon that he's better than he gives himself credit for. Any time that the group has desperately needed Simon and his skills he has always managed to deliver. Simon's ability to come in clutch is what makes him a great sorcerer, and this pep talk turns out to be exactly what Simon needs.
When Simon gets in front of the vault door, he tries to attune with the helmet one last time. With this newfound confidence, Simon fights past his ancestor's doubts and even punches him in the face to earn his respect and show his spirit. This allows Simon to finally attune to the helmet, open the door, and even become better at magic.
Bizarre planning
Edgin might be the group's self-proclaimed planner, but he isn't exactly the best at his role. As revealed in a conversation with Doric (Sophia Lillis), Edgin is known to make plans that fail and while his determination is admirable, everything around him can fall apart quickly. Just look at what happens when he's crafting a scheme to take down Forge and Sofina. When he learns that Simon can't attune with the helmet, the group nearly parts ways until Edgin crafts a new plan involving the Hither and Thither Staff along with Doric's shapeshifting abilities to get into the vault.
However, as the group heads into the big heist sequence, Edgin is constantly changing and altering the plan to cover up obstacles and failures. His Plan A becomes a Plan C and his Plan B becomes a Plan D. Ultimately, he ends up combining both to form one super heist plan that somehow works, although not without some unexpected chaos.
Maybe Edgin deserves more credit and has a better grip on the situation than it seems — or maybe he's just winging it and rolling 20s. Either way, Edgin's planning is often bizarre and frequently puts the mission in jeopardy — especially in the final mission.
Breaking in
When the time comes for the group to take their shot at stopping Forge and Sofina, things end up being much more chaotic than expected. The group is forced to pivot towards a new plan after Simon can't attune with the helmet, but this approach shows surprising promise. The group uses the Hither and Thither Staff to set up a portal in a painting stashed on a wagon delivering valuable items to Forge as a way to gain access to the vault. Unfortunately, the painting falls over when the guards put it in the vault, which means the only thing the group can see is the concrete floor. With that plan suddenly not going to work, Edgin decides to jump back to the original idea of having Simon attune with the helmet.
However, Doric realizes that she might be able to create a hole small enough for her to transform into a worm to slither through. Edgin decides that both plans will run concurrently and this seeming chaos results in some shocking success. Doric is able to chip a hole big enough that she can get through as a worm and is even able to cover up the portal before the guards can see it. Even better, Simon is able to attune the helmet and break the magic seal keeping the vault door protected.
These plans don't exactly come together without the group facing some problems, but it's still pretty remarkable how they all find a way to play to their strengths to get nearly everyone into the vault.
The games
Although both of Edgin's plans work and everyone — except for him — makes it into the vault, they encounter an unexpected problem. The door that Simon opens leads him and Holga to an empty room while Doric is quickly knocked out after she sees Forge's men loading the valuables on an escape boat. While this is all happening, Edgin is giving a tearful apology to Kira, promising to be a better father to her. Unfortunately, Kira is actually Sofina in disguise and Edgin is suddenly tied up by tentacles, as are Holga and Simon.
A very chipper Forge walks into the room and says that they've been planning for Edgin's group to arrive and will now kill them all. Desperate to evade death, Edgin suggests that Sofina and Forge put him and his group into the games that Forge is hosting so that they have a chance to earn their lives.
Forge isn't willing to approve his request, but Sofina is. This is likely because she knows that even if they survive the games, they'll simply become zombies for the army of undead she is raising when she spreads the deadly mist throughout the arena. Edgin might've temporarily escaped death here, but he's far from safe.
A risky escape
Edgin might've helped the group escape a quick death at the hands of Sofina, but no one is happy about where they are now. By the time everyone wakes up, they're being transported up to the games and aren't in the best position. Both Doric and Simon are unable to use their magical abilities as they are cuffed with a relic that negates their magic. Beyond that, their first task in the tournament has death written all over it.
The first round of the games has contestants traverse a maze before being slaughtered by a vicious displacer beast — a panther-like creature with tentacles sprouting out of its back. The maze itself has plenty of obstacles that could kill players — including walls that fall to expose their position, mimics that trick warriors looking for weapons, and a gelatinous cube that digests organisms that fall into it.
However, the gelatinous cube actually comes in handy for Doric as she uses it to find a way for the group to escape the tournament. Before the displacer beast can attack them, she tells everyone to jump into the cube, which she uses to remove her magic-restraining cuffs and transform into a snake. This allows her to escape the cube's pull and pull everyone out so they can head to Forge's boat.
Doric's quick thinking might mean that Edgin has a new rival for being the group's planner, as she triumphantly helps get the party to safety.
Giving to the poor
Before embarking on the quest to retrieve the helmet, Edgin promises Xenk (Regé-Jean Page) that he will give the riches stolen by Forge to the poorest citizens of Neverwinter. Given that the group is full of thieves, it initially feels unlikely that Edgin will keep his promise — yet, he does end up doing so in a very unexpected way.
After Edgin and the group rescue Kira from Forge and steal his boat, they see that Sofina has begun to cast the red mist that will turn everyone into mindless zombies. Knowing what will happen if they don't do something, the group decides to head back and end Sofina's reign of terror — but not without dishing out some payback to Forge first.
As Forge is trying to find a way out of Neverwinter, he sees his boat crash back into the harbor and rushes towards it. However, the boat can't be driven again and he sees his riches disappearing. Using the Hither and Thither Staff, Simon makes a portal on the floor of the ship that is taking valuables and spitting them out through a hot-air balloon flying across the city.
The scene is even more memorable because the gold and riches are spilling through an image of Forge's mouth on the hot-air balloon, which is a great way to stick it to Forge. Beyond that, the gold raining down on the city serves as an important plot point because it causes the arena to evacuate as the crowd goes after the riches, allowing the group to spoil Sofina's plan.
Invisible assistance
With her plan thwarted by Edgin's group, Sofina is furious and ready to take the party on herself, leading to an epic, all-out brawl in the middle of town. Doric transforms into an owlbear for some destructive combat with Sofina which results in Doric getting knocked out. Holga and Edgin hold their own for quite a while but are eventually sent spinning through the town inside a bubble Sofina traps them in. Simon stands the best chance against Sofina and the two get into a very fun battle with magical hands — but Sofina still comes out on top.
Sofina seems far too powerful for the group to defeat, even when they try to face her all at once. Once Sofina has them all in her grasp, she attempts to use a time-stop spell to make it easier for her to kill them. At first, it seems to work and every one is frozen in place. However, when Edgin starts moving and it's revealed that Simon was able to stop the spell.
It's a great moment for Simon that's made better when an invisible Kira places the magic-negation cuff on Sofina to restrain her powers. Doric then wastes no time turning back into an owlbear and hilariously throws Sofina around like a rag doll until she's crushed by some falling debris.
Stabbed in the heart
With Sofina finally dead and Neverwinter saved, it seems like the group's journey has ended. However, their cheers of victory are interrupted when they see that Holga has been stabbed by one of Sofina's daggers. Since the dagger is imbued with Red Wizard magic, Simon's powers won't be able to save Holga — she's going to die. It's a brutal loss for the group that's made even more tragic through Kira's reaction and Holga's final moments with the group.
Although she knows she's doomed, Holga is proud that she was slain in battle and fulfilled the mission of her people by protecting the helmet while stopping a Red Wizard. Plus, she feels like her family is right by her side and is happy she did enough to protect them. Edgin and Kira help Holga pass on by singing one of Edgin's old melodies until the infection caused by the Red Wizard's magic consumes her.
It's a devastating end for Holga since she's become a mother figure for the group and Kira. Thankfully, her death isn't in vain and is actually short-lived.
Resurrected
The group has a heavy heart after Holga's death, but Edgin decides to make a game-changing choice when he sees how devastated Kira is. While Edgin has been desperately wanting to use the Tablet of Reawakening to resurrect his wife, who was also slain by the Red Wizards, he has a change of heart when he sees how much Holga means to Kira. Since Kira's mother died when she was just a baby, she never really got to know her and Holga has been a mother to her as she grew up. Beyond that, talking to Sofina when she was disguised as Kira made Edgin realize that his quest to save his wife was more for himself than for Kira.
After Edgin asks Kira how she feels about Holga, he decides to use the tablet to bring Holga back. It's an immensely fulfilling moment in Edgin's character arc because it's a big step in his journey to become a better father and a better person. Sure, it's a crushing blow for Edgin since it ensures that he will never see his wife again, but in his heart he knows that it's what's best for Kira.
Shortly after using the tablet, Holga reawakens and is in disbelief that Edgin used it on her. Once again, the group is whole.
The end of the journey
With Sofina defeated and their group reunited the four adventurers take refuge at the Wood Elf enclave and talk about their time together. After Sofina is killed, the old lord of Neverwinter is resurrected and declares the four thieves are heroes. With them no longer on the run, Edgin and Holga discuss what they might do next, and Simon takes a shot at asking Doric out again. She begrudgingly accepts his offer and he's not shy about showing his excitement.
Forge attempts to escape through the woods but is stopped by Xenk and taken to prison. There, we see him attempt to plead his case for parole — just as Edgin and Holga did at the beginning of the movie. However, he is far less successful. His hilarious attempt to delve into his backstory as a child earns him an instant rejection by the council. He even tries to ride Chancellor Jarnathan (Clayton Grover) out the window like Edgin and Holga did, but the council has grown wise to that idea and sealed off the exit. By the end of the film, it doesn't seem like Edgin and the group need to worry about Forge any time soon and can continue on in peace — for now, at least.
Will there be a sequel to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves?
Now for the biggest question of them all — is "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" going to have a sequel? At the moment, there has been no word of a follow-up film confirmed to be in development and the movie's mid-credit scene doesn't give any answers. It's mostly just a last laugh to send moviegoers out on, but the signs of a sequel happening are very good. The reactions and reviews for "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" have been incredibly positive so far and the movie has the potential to be a solid hit at the box office.
If "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is a big success, don't be surprised to hear that Edgin and his crew are returning for another adventure. We do know that Sofina had a superior Red Wizard she was talking to that'll likely carry out bigger plans so that could easily make for a great follow-up adventure.
However, "Dungeons & Dragons" has the potential to be a bigger franchise and touch on stories outside of the one presented in "Honor Among Thieves." With how expansive "Dungeons & Dragons" is, thanks to its different campaigns and settings, this franchise could easily have plenty of spinoffs that touch on different characters, stories, and genres. If "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" becomes a huge success, we could be seeing a lot more "Dungeons & Dragons" content for years to come.