Warning: SPOILERS for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves aheadBoth classic and new Dungeons and Dragons spells and abilities were featured in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. While the new DnD movie did change the rules for certain spells, these changes ultimately made the film much more fun, compelling, and accessible. For instance, while the druid Doric having unlimited uses of Wild Shape is consistent with D&D 5e rules, druids can only Wild Shape into beasts — not an Owlbear, which is a fey creature or monstrosity. That said, it’s hard to argue with how fun it is to see a rampaging Owlbear in a live-action movie, and in D&D, home-brew ideas are typically worked into the rules whenever it serves the story.
Notably, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves cast member Simon Aumar also casts every spell with hand gestures, which isn’t always a required spell component in-game. However, the gestures are actually a creative decision by Simon actor Justice Smith, who based them on American Sign Language. In addition to adding a layer of inclusivity for people with hearing loss, Justice Smith’s personal touch with Simon’s magic us is actually consistent with DnD sorcerers being natural spellcasters. Indeed, magic is a crucial element in Honor Among Thieves — here are all the Dungeons and Dragons spells used in the movie.
38 Invisibility
![Every Dungeons & Dragons Spell & Ability Used In Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/dungeons-and-dragons-edgin-chris-pine-lute.jpg)
Technically the first of the Dungeons and Dragons spells to appear in Honor Among Thieves is the level 2 illusion spell, Invisibility. In a flashback to Edgin’s past during the prologue, Holga and Edgin steal jewelry to eke out a living. When Edgin puts a stolen amulet on his daughter Kira, she holds the pendant, disappears, and reappears in the same spot. After Edgin and Holga reunite with Kira at Castle Never, Kira mentions using the amulet to sneak around the castle. Later, Kira uses it to snap a Binding Bracer on a distracted Sofina. The Amulet of Invisibility is actually a fairly common item in the Forgotten Realms, the primary setting of Honor Among Thieves and DnD.
37 Cone of Cold
![Simon (Justice Smith) scrutinizing an amulet in Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/simon-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
During the Honor Among Thieves prologue’s flashback montage, Edgin, Forge, Holga, Kira, and Simon flee the scene of a crime. To aid their escape, Simon casts Cone of Cold on their pursuers, who are all on horseback. The spell completely stops the horsemen from going after the party. This is consistent with Cone of Cold being a 5th-level evocation spell that deals considerable damage to multiple targets in a 60-foot cone.
36 Chain Lightning
![Dungeons and Dragons Lightning Bolt](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/dungeons-and-dragons-lightning-bolt.jpg)
As Edgin recalls more about his past to the Absolution Council in the prologue of Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Sofina uses Chain Lightning to incapacitate several guards during the party’s raid on a Harper vault. Chain Lightning is a 6th-level evocation spell that does exactly what Sofina did in Honor Among Thieves. Though the moment appeared like the use of Lightning Bolt in the trailer, the movie itself revealed that the bolt jumped from person-to-person, confirming that Sofina used Chain Lightning.
35 Time Stop
![Dungeons and Dragons Slow Spell](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/dungeons-and-dragons-slow-spell.jpg)
After revealing her true intent to steal a magical horn from the Harpers, Sofina casts Time Stop to avoid arrows, flee, and leave Edgin and Holga to the authorities. Sofina used Time Stop again in the climax of Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, but was nullified by Simon. How the spell stops everything in a spherical area — except the caster — is consistent with D&D 5e rules. Even the way Sofina does nothing to interrupt the Time Stop during its duration conforms to the limits 5e imposed on the formerly overpowered 9th-level transmutation spell. For those unitiated with the tabletop role-playing game, how Simon nullifies Sofina’s Time Stop is called a counter-spell in DnD.
34 Disguise Self
![Red Wizard Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/red-wizard-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
The Red Wizard Sofina quickly changes her appearance in Honor Among Thieves through a 1st-level illusion spell called Disguise Self. This is how Sofina appears in mundane robes when she is actually always wearing the signature crimson attire of the Red Wizards of Thay. One of the most used Dungeons and Dragons spells in the movie, Sofina puts on and sheds the illusion several times throughout Honor Among Thieves, most notably when she is revealed to be a Red Wizard in the prologue and in the climax.
33 Frost Touch
![Dungeons Dragons Movie Neverwinter Castle Never](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Dungeons-Dragons-Movie-Neverwinter-Castle-Never.jpg)
Among the weakest of the Dungeons and Dragons spells to show up in Honor Among Thieves, Frost Touch is a cantrip (or level 0) spell. This evocation was used by Sofina to lower the temperature of a blistering hot cup of tea for Forge — when the party first reunites at Castle Never. As the spell requires a successful melee touch attack, Sofina dipped her icy finger into Forge’s drink, which did little to make it more palatable.
32 Transmute Rock
![Chris Pine as Edgin in Dungeons and Dragons Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/chris-pine-as-edgin-in-dungeons-and-dragons-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
When Edgin and Holga move towards Forge in Castle Never, they are stopped in their tracks as the floor sinks beneath their feet after Sofia casts Transmute Rock. Sofina used this 5th-level transmutation spell to capture Edgin and Holga. While sometimes mistaken for Quicksand, which was used as a trap in 2000’s Dungeons and Dragons, Quicksand is actually used to create mud from dirt — not solid rock like that beneath Edgin and Holga were standing on before they sank. Unlike Quicksand, the Transmute Rock Dungeons and Dragons spell can be used to either turn rock into mud or vice versa, both of which are useful for restraining opponents.
31 Blur
![Justice-Smith-Running-In-Honor-Among-Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/justice-smith-running-in-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
The first of the many Dungeons and Dragons spells cast by Simon Aumar, Blur, like Invisibility, is a 2nd-level illusion spell. Blur is a common defensive spell for sorcerers and wizards who want to avoid projectiles or melee damage. Cleverly, in Honor Among Thieves, Simon instead uses Blur as a magic trick to distract an entire room of people he planned on grifting. While Blur isn’t exactly Simon’s first magical feat in the movie, making a tiny flame appear on his fingertip and summoning the smell of fresh-cut grass have no real DnD spell equivalents, even in older editions.
30 Magnetism
![Simon-In-Honor-Among-Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/simon-in-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
While Simon performs silly tricks for his audience, he is actually using the 1st-level transmutation spell Magnetism to steal everyone’s jewelry. This is consistent with the spell’s in-game description, which allows for the manipulation of up to 500lbs of metal from a 30-foot range of the caster. That said, doing this requires a spell mechanic called concentration, which simply means that Simon shouldn’t have been able to keep up the spell while performing stage tricks at the same time.
29 Reverse Gravity
![Dungeons and Dragons Honor Among Thieves image](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/dungeons-and-dragons-honor-among-thieves-image.jpg)
The first real clue that Simon is actually a competent sorcerer, Reverse Gravity is a 7th-level transmutation spell, which is also one of the first Dungeons and Dragons spells that Simon unleashes. On the other hand, Simon actually uses Reverse Gravity by mistake while attempting to get away from his irate audience, as he later mentions that he meant to cast Shield. Nonetheless, having access to level 7 spells is no easy feat – spells in DnD 5e officially only go up to level 9.
28 Jump and Feather Fall
![Holga The Barbarian Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/holga-the-barbarian-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
While these are two separate spells, Simon uses them back-to-back to escape the audience and land safely on the roof and onto Holga’s lap. Both Jump and Feather Fall are also 1st-level transmutation spells. The speed at which Simon chooses and casts spells during these first scenes is also a clue at his real potential, which was only revealed in the last parts of Honor Among Thieves.
27 Project Image
![Red-Wizard-Honor-Among-Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/red-wizard-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
This 7th-level illusion spell was used by the lich and ruler of Thay, Szass Tam, in order to contact his close apprentice Sofina at Castle Never. However, in DnD 5e, Project Image has a range of only 500 miles, and there are more than a thousand miles between Thay and Neverwinter. On the other hand, this could suggest that Szass Tam was at least 500 miles from the city, close enough to make contact with Sofina — but with enough distance from any powerful magic users in the Sword Coast who may sense the presence of a lich.
26 Wild Shape
![Dungeons Dragons Owlbear](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/dungeons-dragons-owlbear.jpg)
Wild Shape, the signature ability of the druid, allows the player to morph into one of a variety of animals, as repeatedly shown by Doric in Honor Among Thieves. The reason Wild Shape is the most controversial of the Dungeons and Dragons spells used in the movie is because of how Doric turns into an Owlbear, which even high-level druids in DnD 5e cannot do. At various points in Honor Among Thieves Doric turns into a fly, rat, hawk, cat, ostrich, deer, worm, and snake. Her transformations not only line up with 5e rules, but also served as a dynamic way to showcase one of the most useful class abilities in the game — especially in the scenes where Doric escapes Castle Never.
25 Witch Bolt
![Daisy Head in Dungeons & Dragons Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/daisy-head-in-dungeons-dragons-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
A 1st-level evocation, Witch Bolt was cast by Sofina when she sensed that a buzzing fly was actually Doric in Wild Shape. Indeed, Witch Bolt is described specifically as a blue beam of crackling energy, which is what shot out of Sofina’s hand in Honor Among Thieves. Additionally, the way a high-level magic user like Sofina was able to detect the presence of a hidden druid in Wild Shape is consistent with DnD gameplay mechanics.
24 Fire Bolt
![Owlbear Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/owlbear-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
While trying to capture Doric in her various Wild Shape forms, Sofina also casts Fire Bolt on the druid. This basic spell is a cantrip or level 0 spell, and is one of the earliest Dungeons and Dragons spells to exist. Sofina using low-level spells to expose a hidden and unfamiliar enemy shows a typical tactic of DnD players exhausting cantrips and 1st-level spells before resorting to the big guns.
23 Mordenkainen’s Private Sanctum
![honor-among-thieves-doric-sophia-lillis](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/honor-among-thieves-doric-sophia-lillis.jpg)
When Doric returns to the party to relay information from her reconnaissance mission, she mentions that Forge’s vault is protected by the arcane seal of Mordenkainen, which refers to a 4th-level abjuration spell called Mordenkainen’s Private Sanctum. The spell functions much like how it does in Honor Among Thieves – as a magical barrier that protects a given area from any physical or magical intrusion. While most Dungeons and Dragons spells have pretty straightforward and generic names, some retain their initial assigned name, typically based on the spell’s creator, which in this case is the legendary archmage Mordenkainen.
22 Green-Flame Blade
![Dralas holding a green sword in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/dungeons-and-dragons-green-flame-blade.jpg)
Introduced in the fifth edition of D&D, Green-Flame Blade is a variation of the classic Flame Blade spell used by druids. Cast by arcane spellcasters, it summons a sword enchanted with powerful green fire. The spell first showed up in Honor Among Thieves when a Thayan knight arrives at Neverwinter Castle at Sofina’s behest, when Sofina tells the knight to dispose of the men behind them. Later, Green-Flame Blade is again used by another Thayan knight against Xenk during their fight in the Underdark.
21 Speak With Dead
![dungeons and dragons honor among thieves post-credits](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/dungeons-and-dragons-honor-among-thieves-post-credits.jpg)
A 3rd-level necromancy spell typically accessible only to bards and clerics, the sorcerer Simon uses a magical token to cast Speak With Dead. This is consistent with how magic users can attune with enchanted objects to sometimes cast Dungeons and Dragons spells outside of what’s normally accessible to their class. The party uses Speak With Dead to get information from Holga’s ancestors at an ancient graveyard, which leads them to find out that the Helm of Disjunction is in the possession of the paladin Xenk Yendar.
20 Acid Breath
![Rakor-Flying-Overheard-Honor-Among-Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/rakor-flying-overheard-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
As the dead recall the events involving the whereabouts of the Helm of Disjunction, one flashback shows the dragon Rakor overwhelming the barbarians with an area-of-effect attack. Rakor spits large amounts of liquid acid on the battlefield, an adult black dragon spell ability known as Acid Breath. Though the scene is brief, Honor Among Thieves did capture the terror of a black dragon attack.
19 Calm Animals
![Regé-Jean Page as Xenk the Paladin Honor Among Thieves](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/xenk-the-paladin-honor-among-thieves.jpg)
When the party finds Xenk Yendar, the paladin attempts to calm a giant fish to rescue a Tabaxi child from its maw. The spell that Xenk uses to do this is called Calm Animals, a level 1 enchantment. Though typically available only to druids and rangers, paladins may use Calm Animals in one of their spell slots, depending on their prior Oath and the nature of their class specialization, so it makes sense that Xenk can cast it. Honor Among Thieves also cleverly used Calm Animals to paint a more ridiculously heroic picture of the paladin.