SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” currently playing in theaters.
“Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” rolls into theaters this weekend with Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith and Sophia Lillis starring in the big-screen adaptation of the role-playing game.
With obstacles to overcome, challenges to navigate, and monstrous forces to tackle, the gang embarks on a fantasy-filled adventure with twists, turns, surprises and plenty of easter eggs.
Writers and directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley (“Game Night”) make sure to sprinkle in plenty of treats for longtime fans, with some in plain sight and others in the background.
Sharp-eyed audiences and fans of the game should look for everything from monsters to spells that nod to the larger lore. Here are a few that we spotted.
The Original Cartoon Series
Paramount Pictures
Possibly the greatest easter egg is the blink-and-you-miss-it tribute to the 1980s “Dungeons & Dragons” animated series.
As Holga, Edgin, Simon and Doric are elevated onto the floor of the High Sun games, the third team is dressed as the original characters of the 1980s cartoon. The actors are the same who voiced Eric the Cavalier, Hank the Ranger, Presto the Magician, Bobby the Barbarian and Diana the Acrobat.
Themberchaud
Paramount Pictures
Players of the Dungeons & Dragons will appreciate Themberchaud.
A legend unto itself, the gang comes across the rotund red dragon when they’re in the Underdark, another treat for gamers.
In the same Underdark region, the group reaches a stone bridge. In order to cross it, they have to walk on evenly-numbered tiles. Such a challenge is another example that pulls from the game.
The Gelatinous Cube and Displacer Beast
Paramount Pictures
In the game arena, the group is chased by a Displacer Beast. A panther-like monster with six legs, the Displacer Beast projects a magical illusion that makes it appear a few inches away from where it actually is.
As the group tries to outrun it, they come across the Gelatinous Cube. Seen as a foe, anyone that stumbles into the Cube is caught within it and slowly dissolved unless the player is freed. Deciding to jump into the cube, Doric the Druid uses her powers to transform into a snake and help free her fellow adventurers.
Rug of Smothering
Chris Pine plays Edgin and Michelle Rodriguez plays Holga in
“Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.”
Aidan Monaghan
Hugh Grant’s Forge shows his true colors when he ends up betraying his friends. In one scene, he traps Helga and Ed in a smothering rug.
The Rug of Smothering was mentioned in the 2000 film by Courtney Solomon, and is also another monster in the game, capable of suffocating its victims.
Volothamp Geddarm
Michelle Rodriguez plays Holga, Justice Smith plays Simon, Chris Pine plays Edgin and Sophia Lillis plays Doric in “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.”
Aidan Monaghan
Volothamp Geddarm, or simply “Volo,” of the Forgotten Realms has a delightful easter egg in the film. His portrait is used as a portal to travel into Forge’s vault.
Players of the game will instantly recognize Volo’s face. He is known as a legendary traveler and storyteller whose guidebooks were published by Tym Waterdeep Limited.
His latest work, “Volo’s Guide to Monsters,” is in the 5th edition of the game.
Doric uses the back of the portrait to turn into a worm and gain access to the vault.
Maps
Within the map featured in the film’s opening as Edgin narrates, fans can spot familiar regions such as Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter and Waterdeep.
Mimic
Mimic
Paramount
Rodriguez’s Holga stumbles across the menacing Mimic as she’s running through the maze in the High Sun games.
The monstrous Mimics have a tendency to morph into inanimate objects. In the film, Helga encounters one that has turned into a treasure chest. When she opens it, she’s greeted by the beast whose tongue jumps at her.