Who Is Vecna in DnD?

The unsettling figure of Vecna is one that inspires fear, and he’s an integral character in Dungeons & Dragons lore, as well as being the name of an equally terrifying creature in Netflix’s Stranger Things. So, who is Vecna in DnD?

Vecna is a being known by many names in DnD. The Lord of the Rotted Tower, The Master of the Spider Throne, The Undying King, The Whispered One, Lords of the Hand and the Eye, The Arch-Lick, Maimed God, and someone probably calls him Dave. The point is he’s a fearsome and incredibly evil being, but what does any of this even mean?

Who Is Vecna in DnD?

Vecna began existence in DnD as a human with an intensely cruel mother, one who would regularly sacrifice animals in front of him. This is meant to serve as proof of the evil in his blood, and it clearly had an impact because, oh boy, was this dude evil. Vecna’s initial focus was purely on becoming an incredibly powerful wizard, but at some point, he developed an obsessive fear of death and tried to find ways to avoid it.

As with so much of Vecna’s history, there are some rumors about what happened next, but the most convincing of all of these is that the Orcus, the demon prince of undeath, taught Vecna how to become a lich. Never one to half-ass things, Vecna not only became a lich but became one of the most fearful ones in existence and created an enormous evil domain to rule over, filled with plenty of evil minions underneath him.

However, Vecna failed to see the potential flaws of surrounding oneself with backstabbing, selfish beings and eventually fell duing a fight against one of his lieutenants. The only things that remained of Vecna were one hand and one eye, with both becoming powerful artifacts and whispering evil to all who were near.

That was not the end of Vecna in DnD, though. Vecna’s soul remained and helped fuel a cult in his name to become more powerful, slowly corrupting people through his hand and eye. He even eventually became a demigod. He attempted to gain more power again and again, but he’s never managed to return to his former glory. Vecna’s known as the God of Evil Secrets now, and there’s no doubt he’ll continue trying to overthrow everyone he can in DnD.

If you’re looking to branch out and play games other than DnD, here’s a list of some alternatives.