Eye of Vecna

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Greyhawk Item
Eye of Vecna
The Hand and Eye of Vecna, as depicted on the cover of Vecna Lives! (1990).
General information
Type:Artifact
Rules
Body slot:Eye socket
Publishing
First published:Eldritch Wizardry (1976).
This article is about the artifact. For the monster, see Eye of Vecna (monster).

The Eye of Vecna is a powerful artifact. It is one of the only physical remains (the left eye) of the former arch-lich who became a deity—Vecna.

Description

When viewed outside a host, the Eye of Vecna appears as a small red pebble or shriveled grape.[citation needed]

Powers

The Eye is "used" by placing it into one's own empty eye socket—most would-be users must pluck out their own eye. The Eye magically grafts itself into place and takes on the appearance of a shriveled eye, and glows with a foul crimson light. The user can see out of the Eye normally, and it grants an array of magical powers, such as the ability to see perfectly well in the dark or to see magical auras. Additional abilities become evident if the user also possesses the Hand of Vecna.

The abilities of the Eye have varied with different editions of Dungeons & Dragons. In AD&D second edition, the Eye gave its host the ability to see through all illusions, lay curses on others, dominate the will of those the user made eye contact with, and three other random divination abilities. In Dungeons & Dragons third and 3.5 editions, the Eye granted the user the ability to see through illusions, see in any darkness, dominate the will of others, kill subjects with a gaze and disintegrate their remains, and unhallow areas. In the fourth edition, the Eye grants a number of powers based on how pleased it is with the host. It defaults to granting the host a trio of vision-based Warlock powers (Eyebite as an At Will, Mire the Mind as an Encounter and Eye of the Warlock as a Daily), as well as Darkvision and a bonus to Arcane, Insight and Perception skill checks. When satisfied with the host, it increases the skill bonus and grants the power to unleash a beam of necrotic energy from the eye, while a pleased eye grants an even greater skill bonus and the power to see into the souls of those around the host via an aura of clear sight. If displeased, however, the eye induces frightening visions and when truly angered it tries to take control of the host, as well as blasting allies on occasion.

History

Once the left eye of the arch-lich, Vecna, the Eye, and its sister artifact, the Hand of Vecna, were all that remained of the lich-king after his battle with his renegade lieutenant, Kas the Bloody-Handed.

Wherever the Eye appeared after that, woe followed. It was instrumental in the extermination of the house of Hyeric, once the ruling dynasty in Nyrond.

In the fifth century CY, both the Hand and the Eye fell into possession of a Shield Lands warlord known as Halmadar the Cruel, who terrorized the region from 420-455 CY. Halmadar was defeated only after being drugged and interred alive in a tomb in the Kron Hills.

In 581 CY, Halmadar escaped with the help of Vecna himself, who had by this time become a god, and sought to become even more powerful with the aid of the artifacts, which he reclaimed after destroying Halmadar. Vecna's plans were thwarted by adventurers, and the artifacts once more became separated from his body, vanishing into the Flanaess.

The Hand resurfaced in 596 CY, but the Eye's whereabouts remain unknown.[citation needed]

In other media

In the CRPG Planescape: Torment, the Eye makes an appearance in a curiosity shop in the city of Sigil. That game expands on the Eye's history, tracing its journeys through a variety of planes. Torment claimed that the Eye was behind the sundering of the Conclave of Tyssis-on-the-Sea, which led to a three-cycle war that poisoned the seas of Malhatai, leaving that entire planet barren of life. Later it turned up on the ashen Plane of Ghalentir, where it possessed the gentle father of a potentially messianic figure, strangling the babe in his crib.

In the television series The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, the Eye of Vecna is one of the items Billy tosses out of Grim's trunk in the episode "The Crawling Niceness."

Disclaimer:Any lore presented through the following links does not necessarily adhere to established officially published content, and the views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the editors of this wiki.

———. "The Yaheetes and Tyrus: The Wars Against the Hand and the Eye in the Sheldomar." at Canonfire!.

References

Citations
Bibliography
  • Cook, David. Book of Artifacts. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1993.
———. Dungeon Master's Guide. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1989.
———. Vecna Lives!. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1990.
———. Dungeon Master's Guide Core Rulebook II v.3.5. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2000.
———. A Wretched Soul. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2004.

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic Type Description Product Page/Card/Image
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