Quest for Shrubbery: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

And now for something completely different… No, not that one! I mean something related to, but completely unlike, what I wrote about in my last column. This is an Arthurian tale, of a sort, but it is NOT Excalibur; it is Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

I would dare say this movie is the most-quoted film at my table. Perhaps the most quoted movie in gaming? When I shared my Excalibur last week in mt social media feed, the first comment I got was: “Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.”

The movie is a classic absurdist piece. Released in 1975, it follows King Arthur and his trusty squire as they recruit an eccentric band of knights and embark on a divine quest to locate the legendary cup. Instead of traditional heroic battles, the group stumbles through strange sketches and bizarre obstacles, facing everything from fiercely insulting French guards to inexplicably dangerous woodland creatures. The movie eschews conventional storytelling for non-stop comedic chaos.

I knew something about the movie before I saw it. I first encountered the Rabbit of Caerbannog, aka the Vorpal Bunny, in Jennell Jaquays'The Dungeoneer collection (published in the original issue 4). I think I used the Vorpal Bunny once before I understood what it actually was.

I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail after I started playing TTRPGs, and a childhood friend who was a Monty Python fan recommended it before I knew who they were. We rented the VHS around 1988, and gaming was never the same.

“Tis but a scratch!”, “Run away!”, “And there was much rejoicing!”, and “Ni!” all became common sayings at the table. Almost every session would have an utterance of one or more of the above, with “farting in your general direction” and “nasty, big, pointy teeth” used as often as possible.

Not only that, but another played a Wild Mage from the AD&D 2nd edition Tome of Magic, Tim, called the Mighty by some, directly based on Tim the Enchanter from the movie. He fully embraced the character's absurdist inspiration; he not only practiced unpredictable wild magic, but he was a monkey hengeyokai, the shapeshifters from Kara-Tur. This was not a one-shot gag; he was a major character and an integral part of the campaign. Which goes to show you, comedic inspiration can become a cool character everyone remembers years after the game.

Looking back at my original contact with the movie tropes of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and since this week was the late Jennell Jaquays' birthday, I’m going to try to write the Shadowdark monster entry for the Rabbit of Caerbannog, aka the Vorpal Bunny.

Here is an image of the original monster block in The Dungeoneer.

Here is my version:

RABBIT OF CAERBANNOG (VORPAL BUNNY)

A small, seemingly harmless white rabbit with a twitching nose and an insatiable taste for blood.

AC 16, HP 14, ATK 1 bite +5 (1d6), MV double near, S -2, D +5, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -0, AL C, LV 3

Nasty, big, pointy teeth. On a critical hit on an attack roll (a natural 20), the rabbit severs the target's head, instantly killing any creature that requires a head to live.

Erratic. The rabbit zips and ricochets unpredictably through the air. Hostile spells targeting the rabbit are hard (DC 15) to cast.

Look at the following meme; I’m sure most of you have seen it.

And I ask you, is that such a bad thing? I know we all want to play a fantasy epic, but ultimately, I think having fun matters more. Why can’t we have both?

The characters, the quotes, the humor—they all became part of our games. We might not shout them across the table as often these days during our weekly Savage Worlds campaign, but they're still absolutely there in the gamer parlance all around us.

I became a lifelong fan of Monty Python—the show, of course, and the movies. I love Holy Grail, and it is still a great watch. I prefer Life of Brian as a movie, but Holy Grail is, well, the holy grail of hilarious gaming movies.

I love the movie so much that I watched the musical theater adaptation, Spamalot, as soon as I could. I can sing along with the score. If you are a fan of the movie, give the musical a try.

My favorite song from Spamalot, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, is originally from Life of Brian, so there is a connection there! On a personal note: The day of my divorce from my first marriage, never a joyous moment, regardless of the reasons, I listened to that song to pick me up. The works of Monty Python have been important in my life for many reasons.

I am sure that I am preaching to the choir about this movie. There is even a TTRPG based on it. Is this the ultimate game movie? You tell me.

And always remember to look on the bright side of life!