The Dungeons & Dragons movie gave life to an undead villain with secret backstories and dark powers

Behind every great party of adventurers, there’s a villain out to get them killed – and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is not different. The titular thieves are pitted against the machinations of a cunning red sorcerer from Thai who plans to… well, this will be a spoiler.

but we can tell you shadow and boneDaisy Head plays the role of necromancer Sophiena, an undead sorceress, with uncanny grace — and courtesy of Ten Speed ​​Press, we can present an excerpt The Art and Making of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among ThievesSofina, the Red Wizards, concept art of their sinister Emperor Szasz Tam, and full of behind-the-scenes insights from the actors and creatives.

[Ed note: This excerpt contains spoilers for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.]

sofina

A mysterious person, Sofina hides her true identity as a Scarlet Witch. Actor Daisy Head says, “The Red Wizards are the ruling class of Thai, and their leader, their ruler, is Sajas Tam.” “They are ultimately feared as some of the most powerful and nefarious wizards of Faerûn.”

Szas Tam is a powerful necromancer. When he captured Thay, he turned its citizens into an undead army loyal to him and his fellow necromancers. These undead cannot be killed by conventional methods, which makes this menace in Thai especially scary. “It’s a difficult concept to play someone who is essentially undead because it was interesting to try to understand what and how they feel,” explains Head. “There’s more dimension if it’s rooted in something real and something emotional. So, I didn’t necessarily want him to be bad just for the sake of being bad. So, I developed my own very dark… backstory.” When she was a child, and essentially, she felt she had nothing left to lose, which is why she decided to sacrifice her soul and become one of the undead of Szas Tam. She seems to have a lot of emotion of anger, as you will see in the film. I think her past emotions have left a kind of ghost on her soul which is no longer a soul.

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While Forge uses Sofina to aid him in his role as Lord of Neverwinter, he has his own nefarious reasons for teaming up with her. “The Forge is essentially a pawn in the master plan,” suggests Head. “Sofina basically does as Szas Tam says, and as much as she hates Forge, she sees it as her best opportunity to accomplish Szas Tam’s goals.”

sofina is Magician, a class of individuals who can perform magic after a period of intense study. In Dungeons & Dragons, wizards are able to choose mystical tradition – Studying a special school of magic. Sofina is part of the School of Necromancy. Necromancy focuses on spells that control life and death, even allowing users of this magic school to animate the dead.

Sofina hires Edgin and his band to break into an impregnable stronghold in order to retrieve an item from its vault. Sofina is the primary reason for Edgin and Holga’s capture and imprisonment, as she and Forge double-cross the group. Following this incident, Sofina works with Forge as his top advisor.

Due to the Red Wizards’ fear throughout the country outside of Thay, Sofina hides her true identity by wearing a cowl. It covers the mystical sigil permanently marked on the Red Wizards’ shaved heads that visually identifies their allegiance to Szas Tam. Head confirmed, “The costume department has done an absolute miracle.” “The details and just the use of the fabric and the way they sewed it, and the cowl, and the wire being [in the robe’s collar] To be able to shape and mold it, it’s amazing.”

Magic isn’t the only weapon Sofina has. She also wields a red sorcerer’s blade, which brings swift death to anyone who bites it. “What we needed with Sofina was something a little more vicious,” Dunne explains. “That’s also something she hides under her cloak. So, you’ll never see it on her person, as worn on a belt, or sheathed. So, it’s always held. It Always hidden under his sleeve, so you’ll only see it when you need it.

zas tam

The chief necromancer Szas Tam lurks in the shadows, commanding an army of the undead to carry out his bidding. He used to be one of the eight Zulkirs who co-ruled Thai, but a century ago, he sought more power for himself and gained control using dark magic. Now Szas Tam is not satisfied with ruling only Thai – he wants to rule over all of Phaerun. “Zas Tam is trying to expand his power and his empire,” says actor Ian Hanmore. “He uses people like this, you know? He uses the dead, and he uses the living as lackeys. He can manifest himself in different forms. He’s always trying to increase his power.” Strives for.

Sofina is instrumental in helping Szas Tam achieve his plan to overthrow the city of Neverwinter. Head commented, “He’s basically on full power trip and wants to expand the Thai kingdom and rule as much of Phaerun as he can.” “And Sofina is a very loyal and willing ally and servant to achieve the goals of his supremacy.” But she’s not the only Red Wizard helping in Szasas Tam’s quest for dominion. Other undead necromancers aid in Thai’s evil plans. Smith explains, “The Red Wizards of Thai are a corrupt group of magicians who seek to promote chaos and misery.” “They’re trying to create an army of basically undead slaves to cultivate ultimate power. Our group has to stop that from happening – at first reluctantly – because throughout the movie, our group has been trying to help others.” Is motivated by selfishness to see the importance of

here is the full cover The Art and Making of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among ThievesWhat Ten Speed ​​Press describes as a “gorgeous tome” that showcases the story, worldbuilding, and creativity behind the film, highlighting fan-favorite characters, monsters, and settings, as well as Exploring key scenes from, this book is packed with production photos, concept art, storyboards, interviews and more.

The book hits store shelves on April 4.