The Eye and Hand of Vecna are two of the most iconic artifacts in the game of Dungeons and Dragons. Vecna was a powerful Lich from the Greyhawk campaign of Gary Gygax. Vecna evolved from Lich into a near god. Ultimately he was betrayed by his own lieutenant Kas the Bloody Handed. Kas himself has an artifact named after him which is the Sword of Kas. Kas was the personal bodyguard of Vecna. Vecna procured a powerful weapon for his lieutenant. It was a piece of grey metal which was forged into a powerful sword called the Sword of Kas. Ultimately this sword urged Kas to betray Vecna and rule in his place. Ultimately Kas destroyed the Lich but in the process Vecna brought the doom of his former bodyguard as well.
It is said that the Sword of Kas still has a portion of the consciousness of Vecna. So in a sense he still lives. After the battle with Kas only two parts of Vecna still exist: the hand and the eye.
Ultimately Kas the Bloodyhanded became a vampire. Vecna, himself, rose again as a demigod. And then later rose to a lesser god. An entire cult exists worshiping this lesser god.
Vecna first arrived with the publication of the third supplement to Dungeons and Dragons. In Eldritch Wizardry Vecna is first mentioned. Vecna was an anagram for Vance. The Dungeons and Dragons fire and forget system of magic (used in the earlier editions of the game) were based upon the work of the fantasy author Jack Vance.
The Eye of Vecna
It is said that this disembodied eye glows in the same manner as a feral creature. It appears as an agate until it is placed into the eye socket of a living character. Once pressed into the eye socket it will instantly (and permanently) graft itself into the skull of the character in question. It can never be removed or harmed without killing the character possessing it. The alignment of the character will become neutral evil and cannot be changed. The person with the eye will gain infravision and ultravision (early editions). The Dungeon Master will determine other powers of the eye randomly.
In later editions the person will gain truesight from placement of the eye in their eye socket. Unlike the earlier editions the eye looks like a bloodshot organ torn from an eye socket. The item must be attuned by gouging out one’s own eye and then placing it into the eye socket. The eye will then appear as a golden slit like a cat’s eye.
In the early editions the Dungeon Master was tasked with determining the exact powers of the eye randomly. In 5th Edition these powers are set as follows:
- Truesight
- X-ray vision
- The Eye has 8 charges
- The following powers can be used at the expenditure of these charges: clairvoyance (2 charges), crown of madness (1 charge), disintegrate (4 charges), dominate monster (5 charges), eyebite (4 charges)
- The eye regains 1D4+4 charges daily until replenished
- Each time a spell power is used there is a 5% chance that vecna will rip the soul from the person using it and take over that person’s body forever.
The Hand of Vecna
The Hand of Vecna appears as a mummified extremity. It is a black and shriveled hand. Possibly from a burned body. If the hand is pressed to the stump of an arm it will instantly graft itself to that arm becoming a powerful arm. In 1st edition it became an arm with 18/00 strength. The alignment of the person doing so becomes neutral evil. The minor powers of the hand could be used in these early editions without fear. But should the major powers be used great evil is awakened in the hand. To use the powers of the hand one must extend the fingers individually or in combinations.
In 5th Edition the Hand of Vecna is still a formidable artifact. The powers are set as follows:
- Strength becomes 20 unless it is already higher than this
- Melee spell damage and Melee weapon damage deal an extra 2D8 cold damage
- The hand has 8 charges
- The following powers can be used at the expense of charges: finger of death (5 charges), sleep (1 charge), slow (2 charges), teleport (3 charges)
- The hand regenerates 1D4+4 charges daily until replenished
- Each time a spell power is used the hand will cast a suggestion spell upon the user demanding that the person commit an evil act (up to the DM unless the player suggests one sufficiently evil)
Use of the Hand of Vecna and the Eye of Vecna together
The Hand and Eye of Vecna are not always found together. But as powerful evil relics it is entirely possible (and likely) that the objects are aware of the location of each other. It is also possible (likely in fact) that the objects will desire to be reunited. For together they may have greater powers.
In First Edition artifacts used together often had additional powers. Strangely, however, the possibility of this was not specifically mentioned in regards to the Hand and Eye of Vecna. It seems a natural that these two items would feed off of each other in this manner. Yet the Dungeon Master’s Guide was silent on that point. Later editions rectified this.
In Fifth Edition the use of both the hand and the eye confers additional powers and benefits as well as other side effects and curses. These additional effects include:
- Immunity to disease and poison
- Use of the x-ray vision no longer causes exhaustion
- User experiences premonitions and can no longer be surprised
- User regenerates 1D10 hit points per round (as long as they begin the round with one hit point or more)
- The user can use a special melee attack to turn an opponent’s skeleton to jelly (DC 18 constitution save allowed or drop to zero hit points)
- Can use an action to cast a wish (once every 30 days)
Destruction of the Hand and/or Eye of Vecna
Early editions did not specify the method of destruction. But later editions did. In Fifth Edition the hand and eye must be attached to the same person. If that person is destroyed with the Sword of Kas then both the hand and eye will burst into flame and turn to ash. They will be destroyed forever.
All other attempts will appear to work but instead the items will reappear in one of Vecna’s many hidden vaults.
Additional lore about Vecna and his evil artifacts
Over the years additional publications about this arch villain increased the lore of the Lich and his artifacts. It is said that Orcus, himself, taught Vecna the rituals for becoming a Lich. Over time as Vecna ruled his kingdom he became more ruthless and unpredictable. His subjects feared to say his name. They had many titles for him including:
- The Whispered One
- Master of the Spider Throne
- The Undying King
- Lord of the Rotted Tower
Kas may have wanted possession of the Spider Throne for himself. Ultimately he was seduced by the power of his own sword and used it to slay the Lich and destroy his tower.
Use of these artifacts in game play
Regardless of which edition of Dungeons and Dragons that you play one thing is certain: finding either or both of these items will drastically change the campaign. The smart characters will, of course, discard these evil items and their potential powers. But those who do not will forever wish that they did. For they will change the alignment and then ultimately destroy these characters. Granted….they provide unimaginable powers….but they also extract a terrible price.
Artifacts are not intended for casual use in the game of Dungeons and Dragons. Use of these relics and artifacts almost always come with a steep price. Curses and side effects are common. And they often far outweigh the benefits of using these items. Ultimately they are a test of the willpower of the characters who find them. Can they resist the urge to use such terrible devices? Can they survive their own insatiable quest for power? Most often the answer will be no……….
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