Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is the latest film adaptation of the TTRPG and, as such, must include one of the most important aspects of the game. Set in the Forgotten Realms, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves sees an unlikely party of misfit adventurers, led by Chris Pine's bard, Edgin, undergo an epic quest to stop the Red Wizards from taking over the world with an army of the undead. Along the way, they encounter numerous allies, enemies, and obstacles. This is where Honor Among Thieves can adapt one of the funniest parts of any game of Dungeons and Dragons.
The TTRPG, Dungeons and Dragons, uses a 20-sided die for character actions. If a player rolls a natural one, then they critically fail at their action. This results in them not only failing at what they were attempting to do but also usually has a hilarious negative effect on the player's character. The inverse of this is a critical hit when the player rolls a natural 20. While Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves does seem to be focusing on streamlining some of the titular TTRPG's lore, there is a lot of comedy to mine out of adapting the whims of the dice.
What Critical Hits & Fails Could Look Like In Honor Among Thieves
There are several ways that critical hits and fails could manifest in Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. The trailer hints at one of these when Simon the Sorcerer (Justice Smith) accidentally destroys a bridge that the party has to cross, much to Xenk the Paladin's (Regé-Jean Page) dismay. Honor Among Thieves could also use character deaths to show critical fails, with them then suddenly resurrecting shortly afterward as suspiciously familiar characters, in a time-honored Dungeons and Dragons tradition.
Critical hits and fails have long been a part of media adapting Dungeons and Dragons. The Legend of Vox Machina, based on the Critical Role online series of campaigns, has a running gag where the party is completely unable to open doors, due to their voice actors having rolled natural ones in the game. Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves could use a similar joke, with the party doing something amazing, representing a critical hit, immediately followed by one character failing miserably at doing an everyday task.
Why Dungeons & Dragons Dice Rolls Have To Be Included
With dice rolls being such an important game mechanic in Dungeons and Dragons, it would be completely amiss for Honor Among Thieves to not include teases or references toward them in some manner. Much like in an actual game of Dungeons and Dragons, they could be an excellent source of both comedy and tension in Honor Among Thieves. Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves also references classic mistakes that many players make in the TTRPG, such as splitting the party, so it would be noticeable if the film were to exclude references to Dungeons and Dragons dice rolls.
