20 Useless Bits of D&D Trivia
Sometimes you want to show off how much of a nerd you actually are. For those (very rare) circumstances, I’ve put together 20 very useless bits of trivia to throw around your D&D table.
Without further ado….
20 Useless Bits of D&D Trivia
How do Gith reproduce?
They reproduce by laying eggs, with females laying up to 6 eggs in a clutch. The have hatcheries containing hundreds or thousands of nests of their kind.
What creature had the blink abilities of a Blink Dog, but used it to land on top of enemies?
The Blink Wooly Mammoth has the same blinking abilities of a Blink Dog. It attempts to land on top of its enemies, crushing them and knocking them unconscious.
For more information, check out Not Necessarily the Monstrous Compendium, Dragon #156 (April 1990)
Who was the only god to break into Sigil?
Just as Vecna gained the power of a god, by absorbing the power of the demigod Iuz, he was able to disguise his true power and punch a hole into Sigil without having to use a portal.
How many classes were in 3rd edition?
There are 58 base classes. This does not include Paragon classes, NPC classes, Prestige classes, Variant classes, Generic classes, Monster classes, Transition classes, or Epic Progression.
What edition was Demogorgon’s pronouns she/her?
Basic Dungeons & Dragons in the BECMI Immortal Rules Box Set (1986)
How do you tell the difference between a Giant Eagle’s nest and an Aarakocra’s nest?
An aarakocra’s nest is covered in banners and pennants. These are made by the women who lie on their back and use their four ‘hands’ to weave the pennants.
Learn more about the Aarakocra.
What creatures abhorred magic, and relied on psionics and science to fight their enemies?
In the 1st edition, Aboleths despised all magic and formed a caste system where the scientists were near the top. They specifically targeted spellcasters to kill them and wipe magic from the world. This was detailed in Ecology of the Aboleth, written by Brandon Crist in Dragon #131 (March 1988).
How are dragonborn created?
In 3rd edition, dragonborn can be any creature who is noble, brave, not evil-aligned, and a devout follower of Bahamut. To become a dragonborn, the individual must build themselves an egg, where they undergo a metamorphosis, and hatch as a dragonborn.
Learn more about the Dragonborn.
Who is the goddess that the Kuo-Toa created and worship?
The kuo-toa created Blibdoolpoolp by believing in her so much that she was created from their psionic energy. Blipdoolpoolp is described as: female human body with a crayfish head and claws and an articulated shell over her shoulders.
What was the Purple Worm originally a variant of?
The purple worm was originally a rare flightless variant of a dragon in Chainmail (1971), the precursor to the original Dungeons & Dragons White Box Set released in 1974. That said, basilisk and cockatrice were also considered dragon variants in Chainmail.
Learn more about the Purple Worm.
How do you transform a dragon into a Dracolich?
It requires a dragon to consume a special elixir made by combining seven ingredients in an inert vessel. The ingredients required, and must be combined in this exact order, are two pinches of pure arsenic, one pinch of belladonna, one pint of phase-spider venom no more than 30 days old, one quart of virgin long-lived demi-human blood, or if that's not available, a gallon of treant sap no more than 7 days old, a quart of vampire or a person infected with vampirism blood, also no more than 7 days old, one potion of evil dragon control, and last but not least, one potion of invulnerability. While adding the ingredients, you'll need to stir this concoction with a +2 dragon slayer sword under the light of the full moon.
Learn more about the Dracolich.
How does a Gelatinous Cube reproduce?
A gelatinous cube develops buds on its surface which then are deposited in a dungeon as small, rubbery cubes. They are typically left behind in dark corners or on piles of trash and left to defend themselves, unless the gelatinous cube circles by and accidentally swallows it back up.
Learn more about the Gelatinous Cube.
What is the Displacer Beast inspired by?
The Displacer Beast was inspired by the Coeurl, which is a feline-like creature from the 1939 science fiction story Black Destroyer by A. E. van Vogt, later added as a part in the novel The Voyage of the Space Beagle (1950).
Learn more about the Displacer Beast.
How many Bigby’s hand spells were there originally?
While in the latest edition of Dungeons & Dragons only has a single hand spell from Bigby, there were 17 originally. They are:
Bigby's Clenched Fist, Bigby's Crushing Hand, Bigby's Forceful Hand, Bigby's Grasping Hand, Bigby's Interposing Hand, Bigby's Disrupting Hand, Bigby's Helpful Hand, Bigby's Striking Fist, Bigby's Tripping Hand, Bigby's Warding Hand, Bigby's Battering Gauntlet, Bigby's Dextrous Digits, Bigby's Feeling Fingers, Bigby's Pugnacious Pugilist, Bigby's Silencing Hand, Bigby's Slapping Hand, and Bigby's Strangling Grip
How many monsters are in the 2nd edition of Dungeons & Dragons?
There are over 4,230 monsters in the 2nd edition. Only three of them are kobolds.
Which original monster only appeared in 4th edition as an April Fool’s joke?
The flumph only appeared in 4th edition in Dungeon Delve - Fool’s Grove (2009) and were described as “pathetic creatures, [that] strike out with the sharp blades projecting from their undersides.”
Did that chest just talk?
Some mimics are smart enough to learn a language and converse with adventurers and their prey.
What creature is a cousin to a cockatrice?
The pyrolisk, introduced in Monster Manual II (1983), sets creatures on fire with just a glance. It looks like a regular cockatrice, but for a single red feather in its tail feathers.
Learn more about the Cockatrice.
What is a male medusa?
The Maedar, introduced in The Ecology of the Maedar written by Ed Greenwood in Dragon #106 (Feb 1986), are the opposite of medusa. They are all males and have the ability to turn stone back into flesh, as well as pass through stone freely.
Learn more about the Maedar and Medusa.
What edition did the artificer first appear?
The Artificer first appeared in 2nd edition as a subclass for the wizard class in Player’s Option - Spells & Magic (1996). In it, the wizard is focused on storing and channeling magic through objects to be used later on. In edition, they get a laboratory that they have to pay a monthly fee in rent equal to 50 gp times their level. If you forgo the laboratory, you lose all the artificer abilities, like breaking apart magic items or quickly building new magic items.
Learn more about the Artificer.
Random Knowledge
Do you have random bits of knowledge about Dungeons & Dragons? Please share it down in the comments!
Like what we are doing here?
Support us on Patreon!
You’ll get early access to deep dives, the Homebrew Hoard
featuring 500+ monsters, ad-free articles, and more!
Follow us on Reddit to keep up to date on everything we talk about!
