Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Thieves hits theaters on March 31, hopefully erasing the extremely low bar set by previous D&D-themed movies. While fans of the seminal role-playing game are still a bit bewildered by Hasbro’s recent flurry of unforced errors, non-gaming audiences seem pleasantly surprised by Sophia Lillis’ owl costume and Michelle Rodriguez’s flaming axe. Now, less than two months away from the premiere, we finally know which officially licensed adventure books will tie into the Chris Pine vehicle – Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden and the forthcoming anthology Keys to the Golden Vaultwhich will be released on February 7.
Among the main Forgotten Realms locations that will be included in the upcoming film is Revel’s End, a maximum-security prison set in the frozen wilderness of Icewind Dale. Revel’s End was introduced in Rime of the Frostmaidenand it turns out that publisher Wizards of the Coast built their imposing edifice with a particular audience in mind.
“I worked with the writers and directors to find a location in the Forgotten Realms that would meet the needs of the film,” said Chris Perkins, game design architect for D&D, in a promotional video released Thursday. Rime of the Frostmaiden was released in 2020, which means Perkins has been whispering in the ears of writers Michael Gilio, John Francis Daley, Chris McKay and Jonathan Goldstein for quite some time now.
Rime of the Frostmaiden borrows from elements of psychological horror, including films like John Carpenter’s 1982 horror classic The thing. I’ve played it quite a bit and it lives up to its reputation as a mechanically challenging experience for players and dungeon masters alike. Revel’s End is an optional mid-level dungeon that players can explore, a panopticon built around a central all-seeing tower. In this book he gets some fancy art from Titus Lunterand a map by Stacey Allan and Will Doyle.
You can also see a version of it breaking through the clouds in the latest trailer for honor among thieves.
Thursday’s video, also accompanied by a press release, details how Revel’s End will play a part in Keys to the Golden Vault. Players will receive a key to the Vault, a benevolent organization determined to secure McGuffins for various reasons and conceal them. This key, when placed in a magic music box, will convey a mission from the party manager. Next, players will use a fictional map to plan their heist.
Keys to the Golden Vault will be filled with such heists, 13 in total. In a nod to 5th Edition’s penchant for numerology, the quest involving Revel’s End is titled “Prisoner 13”. Rime of the Frostmaiden sent players after prisoner 237, a newcomer to this establishment, which makes me think that the eponymous prisoner number 13 has been on the ice for quite a long time.
Keys to the Golden Vault is available in a few formats, including a traditional hardcover book and a virtual Roll20 tabletop supplement. Like last year’s Dragonlance reboot, it will also be sold as a physical/digital combo. Those who purchase the combo pack will have access to the Roll20 supplement two weeks earlier on February 7. Keys to the Golden Vault hits the streets, including Amazon and your friendly local game store, on February 21. The UK and the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Africa will have to wait until March 24.
If you are interested, you can download the corresponding adventure from Keys to the Golden Vault for free now on D&D Beyond, Hasbro’s digital companion to D&D, which it acquired in April.
