The dragons get confounded not just by a trap, but by words they can't understand or pronounce...
Nerd By Northwest #368 – “Mirror Marxists”
(Click on the image to see the full-size version)
This trap is a callback to Nerd By Northwest strip #354, where our heroes were tricked into triggering a Mirror of Opposition that summoned alternate mirror copies hell-bent on killing the originals. In fact the wood elf druid Naya still has her mirror self at large somewhere, likely plotting her revenge after getting magically banished to the Waterdeep Zoo wearing nothing but a collar and a little pink tutu (that you can see here in strip #357).
But after dealing with that trap, our heroes, like any adventurers worth their salt, covered and packed up that mirror in a large Bag of Holding... just waiting for the opportunity to turn that proverbial lemon into lemonade! And if you ask me, I think THIS is why 5th edition D&D didn't include the Mirror of Opposition in the official list of magic items. This mirror has so much potential for creating trouble in the wrong hands (or right hands, from the players' perspective) that it can easily upset game balance (but it's so much fun... 😁)
Now when it came to creating twisted mirror copies of evil white dragons, one has to be a little more inventive. How do you twist dumb, greedy dragons so they're different but still kinda evil? Now this is just my opinion, but to me Marxist and Communist philosophy just fits that so well. They're still dragons that crave everybody's treasure... just for a somewhat different reason. I had briefly considered putting some Communist or Maoist-themed headwear or something on the mirror dragons, but ultimately I opted for subtlety and just making their eyes and their dialogue lettering shades of red. This story arc is already over-the-top enough as it is! 😉
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