It is an iconic image for Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. You know the picture I am talking about. It has the huge demon idol with two thieves trying to pry out a diamond which the idol uses for an eye. The image is known to just about everyone who plays any edition of Dungeons and Dragons but especially to those of us who have been playing the game for decades.
I began playing with 1st Edition in 1979. Since that time I have played various editions including older and newer ones.
There is a lot going on in this picture on the cover. A huge red demon with horns, diamonds for eyes and many teeth holds a fiery bowl with two other braziers nearby illuminating it. Laid before the idol are the bodies of lizard men who have been recently slain by the adventurers who are standing in front of the idol.
The adventurers are mostly looking away from the idol. They are doing various tasks that one might expect adventurers to be doing after slaying enemies in a dungeon.
Two of the adventurers are poring over a map. Did they make this map of the dungeon? Is this a map that they used to find this place? Are they planning a further expedition? Are they looking for some hidden area or secret place which is not indicated on the map but must be present due to spaces not yet found? Who are these two? Are they leaders of the group? One wears plate mail. Is he a fighter or a cleric? The other wears chain mail under a tunic. Is he a fighter?
One guy nearby is sharpening his sword. He wears chain mail and has a very long looking weapon. Clearly he expects more danger soon. Perhaps he is just cleaning the blood off of his sword.
An old man wearing a robe and carrying a staff seems to be looking off into nowhere. Is he meditating? Is he a wizard or an illusionist? Is the staff magical? Is his robe? Has he used all of his spells? Is he in deep meditation trying to regain them?
Two thieves are trying to pry out the gem eyes of the statue. Thieves do what thieves do. Will they damage the eye trying to pry it like that? Is the idol trapped in some way? What if these guys fall? How much damage would they take? Suppose that the idol is trapped and it makes the bowl that the idol holds spill flaming oil forward? That might kill several members of this group who are looking away from it! What might be hidden in the idol in other places? There are the bowl of fire and two braziers nearby. Something could be hidden in these. The mouth of the idol might hold hidden treasures or perhaps even a secret tunnel.
The back cover continues the story. One man stands guard. Are there more lizard men nearby? Are there other creatures just as dangerous that might be? He carries a sword and a shield and wears a helm. Is he a fighter then?
Two men carry a treasure chest. What is in the chest? Have they opened it yet? Are these men fighters or thieves? One appears to wear chain mail. The other has a cloak.
One man drags a lizard man body. Is he dragging it into the temple or away from it? Why is he dragging it in the first place? Is he a thief? He wears a yellow tunic. Is he just a retainer or hireling?
One man is rolling a barrel. Is the barrel treasure? Is he a thief or a retainer?
What is this place anyway? Is it a temple to this demon represented by the idol? What demon would that be anyway? Do these lizard men worship the demon or does someone else who controls these lizard men? Is this place a part of some much bigger dungeon or is this a stand alone temple?
The picture represents many things that are part of Dungeons and Dragons play. Players fight monsters, slay them and then steal their treasures. They explore dungeons and look for hidden treasures and other secrets.
This iconic image was created by D A Trampier and was published on the cover of the PHB in 1978,
