The makers of Dungeon & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves have undoubtedly obtained some degree of artistic license with respect to the use of certain abilities, spells and features. For example, in one scene, a party druid has his doric shapeshift into a collage of different creatures, but wild form abilities only allow a limited number of changes.
That said, there are also many times when the makers of movies stick to the famous and acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons devices that work exactly as described in the role-playing games. Here’s a list of some of the most famous spells to hit the big screen.
Ten self disguise
The film’s main villain, a Thai red wizard named Sophina, makes extensive use of this first-level illusion spell to easily disguise her true allegiance.
Sophina can be seen casting spells over and over again over the course of the film as she moves from scenes where she acts as a representative of Forge Fitzwilliam to scenes where she shows the true red wizard color.
This is a pretty subtle spell all things considered, but it remains an important plot device until the climax of the story. Sofina uses this spell to hide her head tattoo and change the color of her robe from red to gray.
9 invisible
This 2nd level illusion spell is only cast a few times in the movie, but it becomes one of the most important spells a hero uses to defeat his nemesis. Notably, this spell is never actually cast by any character in the movie.
Instead, it can only be accessed by Eddin’s daughter Kira, thanks to a legendary magical item Eddin and Holga gave her. and its powers are fully demonstrated in the film’s final battle.
8 misty step
This fan-favorite 2nd-level summoning spell is one of the most useful spells a character can pick up in the tabletop version of the game. In the film, the red wizard Sophina uses magic to escape the reach of the heroes and launches an all-out assault with animated statues.
Players like Sofina who need the Misty Step ability can easily get it thanks to the Fey Touch feat of all of Tasha’s guides.
That said, check with your DM (Dungeon Master) before picking this up.
7 fireball
Longtime Dungeons & Dragons fans may be disappointed that Fireball isn’t an integral part of the film’s story, but at least it gets a moment of screen time. Upon fleeing Neverwinter after being caught spying on a meeting of the Fiend, Sofina throws a fireball at her, destroying the roof over her head.
This may not be the shocking encounter that ends the commonly seen Fireball casting at the table, but there are far more powerful and impressive summoning spells cast throughout the film anyway.
6 magic weapon
Zenk Yender, the film’s dominant paladin, casts this 2nd-level conversion spell on his sword while battling a squad of Saiyan assassins in the Underdark. Magic weapons are often overlooked spells thanks to his master, who showers players with magical items in the dungeon.
However, in low-magic campaigns, where magic items are more difficult to obtain, this is one of the most important spells a caster prepares. This spell allows martial attacks that negate normal weapon damage resistance while providing a small bonus to weapon damage and accuracy.
Five talk to the dead
In one of the movie’s funniest moments, Simon the party sorceress uses a magic coin to cast this 3rd level necromancy spell to learn information from the Buried Barbarian Clan. In true D&D fashion, the plot uses this spell completely comedic by exploring all possible meanings of the spell.
After a long night of grave-digging, the party finally finds the answers they’re looking for.It takes a lot of laughter to finally get there, but we’re not complaining.
Four black tentacles
This 4th-level evocation spell is actually used in conjunction with the 3rd-level immunity spell Glyph Of Warding to set a deadly trap that the party soon encounters. Additionally, Sofina uses a spell to disable Edgin, the party’s bard, after tricking him into trusting her.
Black Tentacles doesn’t exactly do everything a movie can do, but it’s certainly one of the most memorable spells seen. thanks to their importance to
3 reverse gravity
One of the higher-level spells seen over the course of the film, Reverse Gravity is a 7th-level transform spell that gives an early hint of Party Sorcerer Simon’s true power. This spell can only be cast once and is done by pure chance, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s one of the highest level spells seen in the movies.
Dungeon masters and players who have played high-level games know to appreciate how reverse gravity can completely change the battlefield landscape. Additionally, this spell can also deal a significant amount of area-of-effect fall damage to anyone trapped within it.
2 Meteor shower
Hailed as the most damaging spell in all of Dungeons & Dragons, Meteor Shower is a 9th-level evocation spell that kicks off the final battle of the movie with absolute smashing. Sophina uses this spell to rain fire and brimstone on brave heroes as punishment for thwarting her plans.
Thankfully, Simon has a trick to save everyone from impending doom. Players and DMs might argue that the exact way Simon saves the party doesn’t work at the table, but it sure makes for a sweet story moment.
1 time stop
Last but not least, halfway through the movie, we see several time stops for 9th level transmutation spells. More than any other spell, Time Stop shows audiences why players constantly complain that spellcasters are far more powerful than their martial arts characters.
Nevertheless, even the game-destroying power of this 9th-level spell isn’t enough to defeat the timeless power of a diverse band of heroes. It may be a cliché, but I still keep saying it. Indeed, nothing beats the power of friendship.