D&D: From Hyrule To Discworld– Five Easter Eggs Hidden In The PHB
There are many, many worlds in D&D. Hiding in the Player’s Handbook are easter eggs from familiar worlds like Hyrule and Discworld.
Dungeons & Dragons connects worlds like an app connects user data and marketing companies. And just like an app, which hides its privacy-raiding proclivities under the guise of making you see what you would look like if you were also wearing a hat and/or sunglasses in the picture you’re about to take, D&D hides its connections to other worlds in plain sight. We’re talking about secret D&D easter eggs.
Trinkets are such an interesting part of the game– if an underrated one. Pages 160-161 of the Player’s Handbook provide you with a ton of random objects that all have a story to them.
Much like some of the flavor items in the Backgrounds– the Sage’s ‘letter from a dead colleague posing a question you haven’t been able to answer’ springs to immediate mind– these all are meant to inject story and inspiration into your game.
Every player has the option of starting with them, and canny DM’s might roll on or pick from the table to add an extra touch of mystery to a room or treasure hoard. You’ll find items like a tiny gnome-crafted music box that plays a song you dimly remember from your childhood, or the deed for a parcel of land in a realm unknown to you.
These are all things to inspire adventure… but lurking inside this table are artifacts that have drifted in from across the worlds. Let’s take a look at the easter eggs hidden within the trinkets of D&D.
Hyrule
One of the things you can find (Item 46 Specifically) is a dead sprite inside a clear glass bottle.
Sadly this one won’t save your life when you get flattened by a Goron, but we all know the sound it makes when you open it.
Earth
This next item comes to you from the corner store down the road from your house. Item number 34 is a rectangular metal device with two tiny metal cups on one end that throws sparks when wet.
You can use one to power a round, white, metal disc that will emit a piercing screech when it detects your Aunt Glyn trying to make a pot roast. But you will never be able to find one when you need it.
Discworld
From Ankh-Morpork to Fourecks, item number 45 has traveled the breadth of Discworld. It’s even traveled through time on occasion. Maybe it’s a tiny chest carved to look like it has numerous feet on the bottom. Or maybe those legs will sprout and it’ll follow its possessor, no matter what.
Mr. Body’s House
Lucky or Unlucky, depending on how you look at it–players might find an invitation to a peculiar party. One where a murder has happened. So be sure and Clue your players in when they go.
Just remember that Communism was always a red herring.
D&D’s Past
This one is more of a self-referential ‘D&D easter egg’. But hey, when you’ve been around for 40 years you’re entitled to a few. Players rolling a 49 now own a silver spoon with an M engraved on the handle.
Of course, Murlynd will eventually come looking for his lost spoon.
There are plenty of other items sprinkled throughout the table. And plenty of other easter eggs hidden in the books themselves.
Which are your favorite? Let us know in the comments!
