Well, you probably know the deal by know. At least I hope you do. A team of adventurers realizes that when their last “heist” went to heck, the wrong person got the wrong item. And that they are getting back together to stop her from carrying out her evil plan.

At least that’s what the trailers and ads tell you.

The main plot line actually concerns Edgin (Chris Pine) breaking out of jail so he can go get his daughter back and rebuild his family. If it happens that he and the gang discover the evil scheme along the way and decide to stop it, well, why not?

Having actually paid to see it in a theater, I noted that the movie satisfies no matter what your level of D&D knowledge might be.

For those players and fans fully versed in all aspects of the lore, there are plenty of name-drops, references, and “Easter eggs” to find and cheer. And monsters and spells to identify and go “That is SO COOL to see it FOR REAL!” And the wisest of fans will not bother to criticize any of the things that seem out of place, because only the most tedious of Rules Lawyers will play any pre-made scenario or other officially published guide exactly as written. The game – in all its forms – is intended to be a “construction kit” for making your own stories. If what you create doesn’t exactly match the picture on the box, so what?

For the “intermediate” fans – like me – who have a reasonable familiarity with the monsters and rules and spells, and have played it on occasion, the whole story feels just like a bunch of players sitting around a table going through a campaign.

“As you turn into an alleyway, you realize that when the guards make you kneel, they are NOT taking you to the jail, and instead are going to kill you right here and claim something like ‘shot while attempting to escape’. What do you do?”

“Are there any loose objects around that I can use as a weapon?”

“No, the alley is pretty clean.”

“How is it paved?”

“Bricks. And….. some of them seem kind of loose.”

“I distract my guard by talking to him about his weapon, and while I’m talking, I pry one of the bricks out.”

“OK, and you?”

“How are our hands tied?”

“Ropes.”

“OK, I look around for anything that looks sharp enough or is rough enough that I can rub the ropes against and cut through them.”

There’s also a carefully crafted puzzle-trap where the first character to take a chance at it rolls a “Critical Fail”, setting off the trap, forcing the Game Master to pull something out of their butt that the characters can use in order for the campaign to proceed, only to have the characters use that item later in a totally wild and crazy way to solve another challenge.

If you’ve ever played any role-playing game of any sort, you know this is the kind of thing that happens ALL THE TIME.

And for those who think “Armor Class” is where you learn how to turn sheets of metal into something you can wear, the movie really is a fun, lighthearted, charming, and delightful way to spend some time.

So much fantasy today (and I’m including superhero movies in this, too) is Grand High Fantasy where the fate of the world is at stake, and the environment is “grimdark” and depressing (or the attempts at humor are forced and not really funny). The stories can be exciting, but who wants to live in a place like Westeros when Winter is coming? Or in Middle Earth, where everyone seems to live in their isolated (and segregated) communities as the wizards march armies back and forth across the land, leaving a pall of depression behind?

Here, our team doesn’t even know the villain’s scheme until late in the story! They just know she’s up to No Good, and pretty much only commit to stopping her when she goes after them for getting in her way!

Take a good look at the world as presented here. Unlike a lot of other fantasy realms, this one looks like a place you’d actually enjoy living in! Every outdoor scene is sunny and bright, the homes are well maintained (with flower gardens!), the fields are filled with growing crops, the streets in the city are clean and bustling with people of all kinds….the moviemakers use all the colors in their box of crayons, not just teal and orange…

Something else worth noting: In the world of Harry Potter, wizards battle by zapping each other with bolts of energy from their hands or wands. In the Star Wars Universe, when Emperor Palpatine and the other Sith Lords aren’t swinging light sabers, they’re shooting blasts of energy at their enemies. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, if the heroes aren’t punching things, it’s more energy blasts. Here, in the final battle, there are a few energy blasts – but there’s also a statue of a dragon that comes to life, two giant disembodied hands that grapple with each other, a giant ball that forms around two of the heroes and rolls them out of the way, AND the use of the usual weapons, objects, and the “terrain” in the setting. Creativity! Imagination! And all part of D&D!!

It’s also really nice to see the male and female leads NOT get involved romantically (even in a “suitable for children” movie) and instead just stay best friends. Oh, and Edgin’s daughter takes an active role in things; she’s no passive “Quest Object”.

I’ve been reading quite a few comments from people hoping for a sequel. I, too, would like to see one – but it needn’t be a direct sequel with all the same characters. There’s too much of that already. D&D is a set of tools for creating stories of all kinds. Don’t keep creating the same thing over and over again.