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I think to the civlization question, the frontier/boundary would be where conditions for trade break down. Either because the natural conditions are too harsh or chaotic, or perhaps the rule of law is not firmly established, and thus the threat of banditry or fraud prevents highly specialized trade.
On trickery, there definitely is something godlike about the ability to effect change from the shadows, without people knowing it was you, or without people realizing what you were doing. Today, we call it magic, or "hacking", to which we also attach godlike powers and status. Some good food for thought.
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I reckon this leads to civilisation, but the context of the question interprets frontier as an unfinished or even chaotic edge state or place where a people experience rapid growth or progress. But this is a thoughtful answer to a slightly different question.
Not what I expected, but I like this answer. I was a kid when my uncle introduced this film to me on VHS. I'll try to revisit it now that you bring it up.
Strange, because it seems to be a defining character trait based on this translation. The gods are tricksters too, constantly revealing themselves in various forms, especially Athena. They are also dramatic, jealous, and often vengeful, which is the impetus of the poem's action. I think, in the poem's time, these characteristics would have been seen as godlike, though not necessarily virtuous, since there is still a distinction made between right and wrong conduct as it pertains to man and his actions, e.g., Menelaos and Helen praise Odysseus' restraint in the sack of Troy, and Penelope models filial piety in her weaving/unweaving her shawl, and hosts are inexhaustible in their hospitality toward other Greeks. I imagine virtue to them would have been defined more along the lines of what best helps to preserve Greek cultural supremacy.