Easter Eggs You Missed In Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Contains spoilers for "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves"
Based on an immensely popular tabletop role-playing game, "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is an action-packed fantasy adventure film that never takes itself too seriously, brought to you by the writers and directors of "Game Night," Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley.
The story follows Edgin Darvis, or "Ed" (Chris Pine), a charming thief who works with the taciturn warrior Holga Kilgore (Michelle Rodriguez), who was banished from her tribe for falling in love with a halfling (Bradley Cooper). They — alongside the insecure half-elf sorcerer Simon Aumar (Justice Smith), the tiefling druid Toric (Sophia Lillis) who can shapeshift into any creature, and the paladin warrior Xenk Yendar (Regé-Jean Page) — must work together to stop the evil Red Wizard Sofia (Daisy Head) from destroying the world, after inadvertently helping her steal a powerful ancient artifact. The cast has tremendous chemistry with one another, breathing life into what might otherwise be mere archetypes.
It's obvious that Goldstein and Daley are fans of the original game, filling their film to the brim with Easter eggs. These include references to canonical characters from the game's lore, the mechanics of the game itself, and even ancillary media based on DnD, such as cartoons and video games. So, if you want to know more, scroll down below, would-be adventurers!
We see characters level up in the story
In the "Dungeons & Dragons" tabletop role-playing game, a Dungeon Master will get players together to create characters with specific stats for things like strength, dexterity, and intelligence. Over time, your character levels up, growing stronger the longer you play.
So in the 2023 fantasy-adventure film "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," we actually see characters "level up" in specific ways. For instance, Justice Smith is a low-level, half-elf sorcerer named Simon Aumar who can't attune with a special, magical helmet. Throughout the film, Simon's adventures lead him to gain more experience, becoming high-level enough to use the magical item by the end.
We see this with other characters as well, such as Holga finding various — increasingly better — weapons throughout the story, which is similar to how players often find new loot and equipment in their campaigns. With this narrative choice and others, it's clear there was an attempt made to have the structure of the game play out on screen.
Xenk Yendar is based on Drizzt the dark elf
One of the most popular game settings for "Dungeons & Dragons" is "Forgotten Realms," which was introduced to the "DnD" canon in 1987. Among the breakout characters from the "Forgotten Realms" campaign setting is the dark elf ranger Drizzt Do'Urden. Drizzt hails from a nominally evil race (the dark elves), but decides to fight for good in spite of that. However, there are fans who think Drizzt is over-exposed, or worse, over-powered and boring.
Meanwhile, the character of Xenk Yendar, charismatically played to perfection by star Regé-Jean Page, seems to be a riff on Drizzt. For instance, both Drizzt and Xenk come from backgrounds considered "evil" (the dark elves and Thays, respectively), both have goofy names, and both are skilled and heroic in ways that border on parody.
As to why the film didn't just use Drizzt himself, there are a few possible explanations. It could be that there have been recent (and long-overdue) discussions of race essentialism in "DnD," where entire races — like the dark elves (aside from Drizzt) — are born evil. There's also a possibility that there's a Drizzt TV series in development already, and they didn't want to overuse the character.
Xenk Yendar is also a classic NPC character
An important tool a Dungeon Master has at their disposal during a campaign, especially if the players are stuck or need some guidance, is creating a non-player character — or "NPC" — that can help out. In fact, the acronym "NPC" was first coined by "DnD" players back in the '70s.
Special NPCs can be especially useful if the Dungeon Master needs the players to be saved from what would otherwise be a potential "TPK" — or "Total Party Kill" — encounter, where without intervention from an NPC all the players' characters would end up dead. Or, less charitably, if a DM is "railroading" a campaign, i.e. forcing the players to act out a meticulously-plotted story, rather than creating a cooperative play experience together.
Essentially, Regé-Jean Page's Paladin Xenk Yendar seems to be an NPC who is plot-relevant for one specific section of the film, and leaves when his role is fulfilled — even if it doesn't make much sense narratively. Why does Yendar leave Ed, Holga, Doric, and Simon alone to stop a world-ending threat, when he's obviously more skilled and capable than them? The argument could be made that — due to Ed's past as a Harper — Xenk felt the quest was in good hands and he was needed elsewhere. However, it's much more fun to imagine Xenk as a powerful NPC, controlled by the Dungeon Master of this story to move the plot along.
Joke about complicated puzzles to solve
In "Dungeons & Dragons," players will use their custom characters to role-play an epic adventure. This can include fighting monsters, discovering ancient relics, and trying to avoid deadly traps. In fact, avoiding deadly traps is a major component of playing a standard "Dungeons & Dragons" campaign.
Dungeon Masters will often have fun devising complicated and convoluted ways to navigate these various traps. This can bring some nice variety to a session, as it actually forces the players to work together as an actual team outside of combat scenarios. The puzzles can also be overly complicated by ambitious — or possibly even vindictive — Dungeon Masters who want to make their players sweat.
Towards the middle of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," Xenk Yendar leads the protagonists into a secret underground dungeon, to find yet another ancient magical relic. Once they reach a stone bridge, Yendar explains that to cross the bridge, the heroes will have to do things like walking on evenly-numbered tiles, then going back and forth to retrace their steps — something that would require charts and tables to complete successfully.
However, all the techniques Yendar mentions are real tricks and examples from real "DnD" modules, which gives the scene a metatextual layer of humor to those who have played with those kinds of Dungeon Masters.
Sorcerer says I'll go last
In a classic "Dungeons & Dragons" game, as the players explore a particular dungeon, city, or forest, they will always have a "party order," defining who is in the front and the back of the line. This is because if an attack encounter occurs, it helps the Dungeon Master visualize who to attack and flank initially — though miniatures and a board help with this as well.
Now, in a regular campaign — especially when all the players are relatively low-level — it's a good idea to keep magic users, whether they're sorcerers or wizards, in the back of the party so that they're safer from enemies. That's because while magic is indeed powerful, the magic users themselves aren't very good in a fight and can't take much damage. This is why their classes are often called "glass cannons."
With this in mind, it's pretty clear that the filmmakers behind "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" are aware of how to play the game itself. For instance, at one point — after the heroes are tasked with going into a secret passage to a dangerous underground ruin — the half-elf sorcerer Simon bluntly states, "I'll go last." That's because he intuitively knows that — as is the logic in the game — he'll need to be protected if the party is attacked.
Elminster Aumar is a real wizard in DnD
The entire cast of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is a delight. Chris Pine is exuberantly charming, Michelle Rodriguez is characteristically tough and brooding, and Sophia Lillis brings the same sincerity she brought to "It." However, one of the highlights of the cast is Justice Smith as Simon Aumar. He also has one of the most profound character arcs as well, going from not believing in himself, to being instrumental in saving the world from the evil Red Wizard Sofina.
The surname "Aumar" should perk die-hard "Dungeons & Dragons" fans' attention. It turns out that Simon is canonically related to Elminster Aumar, a prominent magic user in the "Forgotten Realms" campaign setting for "DnD" (which seems to be the main source of inspiration for writer-directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley). In the film, Elminster is Simon's ancestor, who shows up once Simon puts on the magical helmet and attempts to attune with it. Elminster then taunts Simon, telling him that he isn't worthy of the Aumar name.
In the end, once Simon gains his confidence, he punches Elminster in the face — only it turns out that Elminster was just a vision the helmet was projecting, which manifested into a physical representation of Simon's own insecurity.
Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter name-checked
As mentioned before, it's no secret that "Dungeons & Dragons" had an immense impact on video games from its inception. For instance, CRPGs (or "computer role-playing games") helped create common video game mechanics, such as character stats, explorable open worlds, and even the concept of hit points. In fact, all of the major modern role-playing games have influences from "Dungeons & Dragons," including "Final Fantasy," "Elder Scrolls," and "Dark Souls." However, there were also video games that were officially licensed from "Dungeons & Dragons" itself, and not just influenced by it — specifically within the "Forgotten Realms." This includes the highly acclaimed "Baldur's Gate" and "Neverwinter Nights" series.
In "Forgotten Realms," Baldur's Gate is one of the major cities where DMs can set their campaign, as well as the name of the hugely-popular third-person isometric series of adventure games of the same name. Meanwhile, Neverwinter is another important location in the "Forgotten Realms" setting: it is a large, bustling port city, and the main setting for the critically-acclaimed "Neverwinter Nights" video game series.
So in the film "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," the dialogue confirms that it's set in the city-state of Neverwinter, and name-drops Baldur's Gate more than a few times as well. Those words might sound like basic fantasy gibberish for non-fans, but gamers will definitely get a kick out of seeing those settings being lovingly crafted in a big-budget way.
Monty Python references
There's a popular meme among fans of "Dungeons & Dragons" called "The Curse of the Nat 1," which states that: "Everyone expects DnD to be 'Lord of the Rings,' but it always turns into 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' (via Know Your Meme)." The name comes from the dice rolling mechanic in the "Dungeons & Dragons" tabletop game where players roll a twenty-sided dice (or "d20") to do any action (such as attack, sneak, detect traps, etc.) with a successful roll being determined on a case-by-case basis by the DM. So, if a player is to roll a natural 20 (or "Nat 20"), it's a critical success, and the player automatically succeeds at their task; however, if they roll a "Nat 1," it's an automatic failure, and the results are often hilarious.
Of course, every campaign is run differently, but due to the creative and customizable nature of the game, it makes sense that players will use the opportunity to take advantage and have some fun with that kind of freedom. There are specific references to "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" in "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," such as Simon saying "I got better" to the incredulous Red Witch (Daisy Head), in a way that evokes the way John Cleese's peasant said "I got better" after falsely claiming a witch turned him into a newt.
There is also Forge Fitzwilliam's gaudy balloon that hovers over his city throughout the film, which has a very Terry Gilliam-esque art style to it, as do the closing credits.
'80s cartoon characters appear in the film
"Dungeons & Dragons" first gained prominence in the mid-to-late '70s, and continued to grow in popularity into the '80s. Thus, during the game's heyday — like many other properties at the time — "Dungeons & Dragons" was granted its own Saturday morning cartoon that ran on CBS for three seasons from 1983-1985. The show followed the exploits of young teens (and one nine-year-old kid) who find themselves transported into the dangerous and magical world of "Dungeons & Dragons" by a wizard literally just named "Dungeon Master." The characters included Hank the Ranger, Eric the Cavalier, Diana the Acrobat, Presto the Magician, Sheila the Thief, and Bobby the Barbarian.
The show still has its fans, and there was even a recent 2019 car commercial for the Renault Kwid Outsider in Brazil, with live-action versions of the characters in it.
However, that wasn't the only time these characters have been seen in live-action. Towards the climax of "Honor Among Thieves," the film's heroes — Ed, Holga, Simon, and Doric — find that there are other groups of adventurers stuck inside Forge's dangerous maze full of monsters as well. This includes the live-action versions of the '80s cartoon characters – complete with the same brightly saturated costumes as their animated counterparts. The main core team even finds the '80s team trapped in a cage at one point.
Fresh Cut Grass spell
"Critical Role" is an extremely popular "Dungeons & Dragons" podcast, and there's a subtle Easter egg in the "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" film that alludes to it. See, in "Critical Role," there's a fan-favorite character that the player Sam Riegel plays named "Fresh Cut Grass," or FCG. FGC itself is a short, cute, yellow construct (more specifically an "aeormaton"), with a kindly chipper attitude.
In the film — after escaping the botched heist mentioned in the beginning — the insecure sorcerer Simon is re-introduced barely making ends meet by performing sub-first-level magical spells to an annoyed audience out in the middle of the countryside. This includes lighting his finger on fire like a candlestick (which, admittedly, becomes useful later in the film), and creating a "fresh cut grass" scent from thin air. This "fresh cut grass smell" spell obviously doesn't impress the audience (especially in a world where magic is commonplace anyway) – though it's quickly revealed that he's simply using his shows as a way to magically telekinetically steal the coins from the audience's pockets while they're distracted by his purposely underwhelming magic show.
Meanwhile, the spell's name is a fun little nod to the aforementioned "Critical Role" character, and a great comedic sight gag on its own as well, which Justice Smith performs beautifully.
Rug of Smothering is reference to the 2000 Dungeons & Dragons film
"Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is not the first live-action film based on the beloved game. In 2000 film called "Dungeons & Dragons" starred Jeremy Irons, Thora Birch, and Tom Baker. One of the low-lights of the 2000 film was Marlon Wayans as the cowardly thief Snails, who was ostensibly the comic relief. Wayans can be a great performer and comedian, but he floundered under the film's weak script.
Regardless, there seems to be a very subtle Easter egg in the recent "Dungeons & Dragons" film that references the misbegotten 2000 original. Towards the beginning of the film, Ed and Holga meet up with Forge, who ends up betraying them and trapping them in a Rug of Smothering that acts like magical quicksand. This is similar to what led to Snails' surprisingly brutal death in the 2000 film.
While the Rug of Smothering obviously originates from the original game, "Honor Among Thieves" could've used any other spell to subdue Ed and Holga — including the Time Stop spell Sofia used on them at the beginning of the film. Instead, the film used the aforementioned Rug of Smothering ... even using a similar rug design as in the aforementioned 2000 version. That seems to have been a conscious choice by the filmmakers to pay homage to the earlier film, given that there are a litany of more effective trap spells in the "DnD" game manual the filmmakers could've chosen if they wanted.
Multiple Jurassic Park homages
The Easter eggs in "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" aren't just relegated to the original games, or various ancillary media surrounding it. There are also references to other films as well from different genres. This includes almost shot-for-shot homages to the 1993 Steven Spielberg-directed dinosaur-on-the-loose sci-fi disaster film, "Jurassic Park" (fitting, since Justice Smith starred in the two most recent "Jurassic" sequels).
Two scenes seem to be direct riffs from "Jurassic Park." One occurs during a scene where everyone is running from an angry red dragon, and Sophia Lillis' tiefling druid Doric falls and hangs over a ledge as the dragon attempts to chomp at her legs — which is framed almost exactly like the scene in "Jurassic Park" where Lex (Ariana Richards) dangles from an air-vent as a velociraptor collects itself to jump up and attack her.
Later, an arguably even more overtly referential moment occurs during the climax in Forge's maze. In this scene, there are multiple parties of adventurers stuck in the maze (such as the live-action '80s cartoon characters), which includes an old wizened dwarf. At one point, the dwarf goes to kill a panther-like Displacer Beast ... but unfortunately, the beast casts an illusion of itself with one of its magical back-tendrils, and the real beast pounces on the old dwarf in a shot similar to that classic scene of renowned game hunter Robert Muldoon (Bob Peck) getting outsmarted by two raptors in "Jurassic Park."
Villain Szass Tam is an actual Lich in DnD setting
The main villain of the film "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is Sofia, the evil Red Witch of Thay. During a flashback set before the film, we see Sofia hire Ed, Holga, Simon, and Forge to steal an ancient artifact for her in a secret dungeon — but Sofia ends up betraying the team by trapping Ed and Holga in a Time Stop spell (while Simon gets away). Later, it's revealed that she was in cahoots with Forge the whole time. In the interim, her magical advisory amasses Forge riches and political power, while she forces him to use that political capital to set up an event that will get his town ready to be sacrificed in a dark ritual for her even eviler master.
Turns out that master is none other than Szass Tam (Ian Hanmore). That name should get die-hard fans of "DnD" lore excited, because in the oft-mentioned "Forgotten Realms" setting from the "Dungeons & Dragons" table-top game, Szass is kind of a big deal. In fact, he's one of the most powerful liches and necromancers in the game's universe, commanding a legion of undead at his beck and call. And although his plans are thwarted by our heroes at the end of the film after they collectively defeat his servant Sofia, he is still out there, and could possibly return for a sequel to terrorize the heroes once more.
Going through convoluted player backstory (much to the dismay of other players)
One of the most fun aspects of starting a "Dungeons & Dragons" campaign is the ability for players to create their own fully custom characters from scratch. Players can choose to give their characters elaborate and tragic backstories, humorous and silly histories, or even dark and mysterious lore that are slowly revealed piece-by-piece throughout the game. The possibilities are practically endless. Due to "DnD" being told via pen-and-paper — rather than a video game — it means that players are only limited by their imaginations. Even the writer-directors of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" believe in the "rule of cool," i.e. bending the game's mechanics if it makes the experience more enjoyable in the long run.
However, it's also true that player backstories can be overly convoluted and long-winded. This is parodied multiple times throughout "Honor Among Thieves." One such instance finds Ed and Holga being granted a hearing after two years stuck in a high-security prison tower. Ed gives an entire spiel about his tragic past as a Harper leading to the death of his wife — with the fantasy creature parole officers getting bored and annoyed in the same way other players in a real "DnD" game might.
Ed even does the same thing to Xenk later in the film when the Paladin intones, "long ago" — getting ready for a long lore dump — until Ed angrily cuts Xenk off to get a move on.
Intellect Devourer
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but intelligence, memories, and personality are in the gnarly maw of the Intellect Devourer, one of the classic "DnD" creatures referenced in "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves." These hideous little scamps boast brain-shaped bodies on webbed feet, and look more like a toy dispensed from a pizza place quarter machine than the fearsome living death merchants they are.
The Intellect Devourers show up as true forces to reckon with in "Underdark" campaigns in the "Dungeons and Dragons" tabletop games. However, the goofy brain beasts are played for laughs at the beginning of the Underdark sequence in "Honor Among Thieves." Xenk (Regé Jean-Page) warns the party that the approaching Intellect Devourers feast on those with high intelligence. The gang braces for certain death, but the monsters trot by our heroes without so much as a sniff at the meal on offer.
Mordenkainen
Simon is a wobbly young sorcerer suffering from a seriously limiting bout of imposter syndrome in "Honor Among Thieves." As gratifying as it is to watch him grow more confident and firmer on his feet throughout the movie, there's a name that never stops scaring him: Mordenkainen, of Arcane Seal of Mordenkainen fame. Mordenkainen's unbreakable seal protects the vault our party needs to bust into to nab the Tablet of Reawakening, and this seal means business.
If there's an Arcane Seal named after you in the world of "DnD," you're probably a total baddie — just like Mordenkainen. In tabletop game lore, Mordenkainen is a masterful archmage (super wizard) responsible for creating countless powerful spells. To be the stuff of legend in a legendary game is no small feat, which makes sense considering Gary Gygax created Mordenkainen as a player character in one of the earliest-ever "DnD" campaigns, according to this archived Q&A with Gygax.
We hope some other powerful spells of Mordenkainen's end up in future "Dungeons and Dragons" movies, like Mordenkainan's faithful hound, a spell that conjures a ghost dog to assist the summoner in battle. Can you imagine the film crossover if fellow action archmage John Wick had this power?
The Harpers
In "Honor Among Thieves," The Harpers are a secret society of good guys working spy-style to protect the Realms. Edgin Darvis (Chris Pine) signs up with The Harpers for their do-good brigade in an attempt to lend his Bard's skill to keeping the peace. Edgin even carries around their giant little book of oaths and pledges (seriously, this thing rivals the size of George Costanza's wallet) until he sours on the meager pay of a Good Guy — and steals some unfortunately marked Red Wizard gold.
Ed's theft not only sets him apart from The Harpers, but it ultimately costs him his wife, his home, and almost destroys his relationship with his daughter. Ed's feelings about his actions are complicated and more than a little shameful. Still, Xenk, a far more lawful good guy than Ed, encourages him to take up the mantle (and giant little book) of Harper once more.
Perhaps Xenk is inspired to keep Ed in the Harper game because of the sentiment shared in the Harper chant, recorded in Ed Greenwood's 1993 "The Code of the Harpers": "We are the Harpers. We are the Lord Protectors of the Realms, Fools, all ― but the Gods look down and smile glory upon us. Weep for us, watch for us, and hope in us. We shall not fail thee." Xenk has hope that good-hearted fool Ed might return to the guild — and he's not afraid to harp on it.
Emerald Enclave
If you're someone who loves "Honor Among Thieves" but you aren't super versed in "DnD" lore, Sophia Lillis' druid character Doric might seem the most fantasy-oriented of the entire ragtag gang. Doric's a tiefling druid, gifted with "wild shape" shapeshifting ability, has little horns, dresses like Link from "Legend of Zelda" — and is also a proud member of a society known as the Emerald Enclave.
Viewers who are up on their "DnD" lore, however, know that the Emerald Enclave are the sworn protectors of nature — a druidic babysitters' club that cares for the green children of the Realms. While this society has its own rules and mythology not explored in "Honor Among Thieves," the focus on protecting nature is shared both onscreen and in the tabletop RPG world. In the movie, Doric looks out a window at swathes of land destroyed by necromantic magic, and urges her party to protect the land while there is still something to protect.
Just like in real life, the environmentally-focused Emerald Enclave struggle for their concerns to be taken seriously by selfish spellcasters and crooked politicians alike, as shown both in "Honor Among Thieves" and the tabletop "Dungeons and Dragons" Forgotten Realms campaigns.
The Nine Hells
One of the joys of "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" is that it's entertaining whether you have an encyclopedic knowledge of "DnD" lore or are simply a fan of good times and Chris Pine. The movie is accessible and enjoyable to any type of viewer — but those with eagle ears trained for Easter eggs won't be disappointed.
One such teeny tiny hatchling of an Easter egg is when we hear the "DnD" version of swear words from a shocked soldier after Simon's image spell goes sideways. "The Nine Hells" are the "DnD" world's version of Hell. Like all good hells (and bean dips), The Nine Hells of Baator boast nine layers. Each layer, or plane, has its own ruler and (again, like bean dips) its own flavor. Fire, ice, astral hell, and bogs: There is truly a layer of hell for everyone in The Nine Hells. Tabletop players can take the highway to hell by playing the "Dungeons and Dragons" adventure, "The Road to Avernus."
Themberchaud
Deep-cut "DnD" monster references and "Honor Among Thieves" go together like dragons and their treasure hoards. In the film, Ed and his ragtag band of misfits fight for their lives against a red dragon. While the gang doesn't know much about the dragon's backstory, "DnD" die-hards might recognize the powerfully "pudgy" beast.
The roly-poly red dragon our heroes stab in the head is named Themberchaud. This character is from the "DnD" tabletop role-playing game, where he is known to stalk the Underdark area of Gracklstugh, AKA the "City of Blades." According to "DnD" lore, Themberchaud trades his treasure-protecting services for the life of a pampered dragon — which might not work out so hot for him in his Wizards of the Coast-published adventure, "Out of the Abyss."
In lore, Themberchaud is intelligent, formidable, and a different kind of force to be reckoned with than his simpler (and cuter) presentation in "Honor Among Thieves." This was intentional. "We really leaned into the fact that he's not like any other dragon you've seen before on film," movie co-writer/director John Francis Daley told Polygon. "And what was so cool is that it doesn't feel like we're betraying the source material by having a dragon so uniquely different, because DnD itself is so unique." The movie version of Themberchaud sticks to a bit of the original dragon's lore, however: Xenk comments that Themberchaud somehow must have found a new lair. This is a reference to the RPG establishing Themberchaud as trapped in Gracklstugh.
Revel's End
To some, Revel's End is the blink-and-you'll-miss-it name of the tower prison Edgin (Chris Pine) and Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) escape from using the power of birdman (Aarakocra) Jarnathan. To others, it is the panopticon standing sentry in Icewind Dale, carved from the Windbreak, overlooking the Sea of Ice, heated by magical continual flames.
Revel's End is used to bookend the movie "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves." The film opens with the aforementioned dramatic window-leaping escape and closes with the crooked Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant) attempting to jump to his freedom the same way — only to crack right into a window, bricked up by an Absolution Council that is slowly getting hip to its prisoners' ways.
In the "DnD" tabletop games, Revel's End appears first in the prison-break adventure "Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden." The adventure was developed by Wizards of the Coast to support the world the movie makers were developing. The book came out in 2020 while the movie came out in 2023, according to a featurette from Paramount, which makes Revel's End a sort of infinity loop Easter egg in both properties.
The snowy stronghold is even harder to escape in these sessions, considered challenging to even experienced Dungeon Masters. "Rime of the Frostmaiden" features a dragon, "The Thing"-like snowbound scares, and a sperm whale — which we can only hope Chris Pine and the gang get to ride in another "Dungeons and Dragons" movie.
The Mimic
One man's trash is another man's treasure, but in "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," one man's treasure could also be a chest full of razor-sharp teeth and a snake-like tongue determined to sap the life force of anyone nearby. The "treasure" chests that Holga (Michelle Rodriguez) and the gang encounter in Forge's arena aren't treasure chests at all — they're an old "DnD" villain called Mimics.
The Mimic first shows up in "Dungeons and Dragons" lore in the original Monster Manual, published by Gary Gygax in 1977, and has appeared in Monster Manuals ever since. Like quite a few early "DnD" villains, Mimics use shapeshifting and ooey-gooeyiness to stun, deceive, and attack unsuspecting parties. In tabletop campaigns, Mimics get players who come too close into a sticky situation — literally. Hitting or kicking a Mimic only makes it bond more tightly to a player, which makes us happy Holga didn't try to land a punch on one in the movie.
The Gelatinous Cube
The Gelatinous Cube is a classic "DnD" creature that's part all-consuming monster, part JELL-O Jiggler. Don't mistake its see-through tofu appearance for weakness, however — these monsters engulf unlucky players and deal out relentless acid damage to those who get up close and personal with The Gelatinous Cube.
The inherent (and disgusting) danger of The Gelatinous Cube makes its use in a key "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" escape scene all the more delicious. Our heroes dive into the cube to escape Forge's games, as well as the Displacer Beast that's hot on their tails. Due to Doric's Wild Shape ability, she's able to wiggle out of trouble and yank the rest of the gang to freedom.
The Gelatinous Cube is an old "DnD" creature, invented by "DnD" co-creator Gary Gygax along with many other canonical characters for the legendary Greyhawk campaign, and it's had some brushes with movie stardom before. Notably, The Gelatinous Cube plays a role in a movie saturated with "DnD" imagery: Pixar Animation Studios' "Onward."
The Underdark
Brave Xenk Jendar leads our favorite band of ragtag thieves into The Underdark to find the Helmet of Disjunction. The Underdark sounds spooky from its name alone — even saying the name seems to put a chill in Xenk's voice.
If a subterranean environment sends a shiver up the spine of a business-like and battle-ready semi-eternal paladin, it terrifies the rest of the "Dungeon and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" gang. But hey — a quest wouldn't be a quest without at least one lair our heroes might never escape.
Of course, The Underdark is also a setting for "Dungeons and Dragons" campaigns in the world of the tabletop RPG. It's a massive, layered network of darkened, demon-stuffed caverns and other hidey-holes that feature in many campaigns and also clearly inspired The Upside Down in "Stranger Things." The Underdark's major domains have suitably spooky names like Glimmersea, the Deep Wastes, and the Buried Realms.
Heist Portrait
In an interview with Collider, Chris Pine claimed that "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" was partially inspired by the genre-bending fantasy comedy classic "The Princess Bride" — but we also see clear references to "Ocean's Eleven" and other classic heist films.
"Honor Among Thieves" uses the visual language of crime capers to set up the plan of the great vault heist and then launch us right into the middle of it going awry. The movie draws on the perfect blend of fantasy movie and heist comedy references with a classic "DnD" tabletop reference in the heist portrait the party uses to cover Simon's Hither Thither staff-created portal.
The man portrayed in this portrait is Volothamp "Volo" Geddarm, recognizable to RPG "DnD" players for his in-world guidebooks to the realms of "Dungeons and Dragons." Volo rates the various inns and locations he frequents with a pipe system (1 pipe meaning rough, 5 pipes meaning good stuff) and his opinions can be sought out in many guidebooks, including "Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast." If Danny Ocean ever had to put a team together to infiltrate the Forgotten Realms, we bet he'd call on Volo.
The Owlbear
Who knew a hulking beast that is part bloodthirsty bear and part giant owl could be so cute? Move over, "Cocaine Bear" — there's a new cinematic bear in town, based on a classic "DnD" creature: The Owlbear. Viewers new to the world of "DnD" will see The Owlbear in "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" for what it is — a powerful beast of ultimate cuteness and destruction. Longtime tabletop RPG players might have a bone — or owlbear pellet — to pick, however.
In the movie, Doric (Sophia Lillis) is a Tiefling druid who can transform into The Owlbear as part of her Wild Shape power. In the world of tabletop "Dungeons and Dragons," this transformation wouldn't be possible, because The Owlbear is classified as a "monstrosity" and not a "beast." Classification has a different impact in the games than on the screen. Some tie-in prequel novels at least attempt to lay the groundwork for the "impossible" transformation, which should calm even those with extremely Lawful Evil alignments.