When echoes of the multiverse's cataclysmic end reach the ears of some of D&D's most powerful archmages, what will they do to prevent catastrophe? Vecna: Eve of Ruin, releasing May 21, pits the almighty Vecna against your party and the forces of good as they scramble to foil his dastardly plans. But time is running out.
Let's learn more about who's weighing in on the good guys' team and will aid the party on their adventure across the multiverse: the Wizards Three!
- A Legendary Team-Up for a Legendary Threat
- Tasha, the Demonologist
- Mordenkainen, the Interplanar Archmage
- Alustriel Silverhand, the High Lady
Warning! This article contains spoilers for Curse of Strahd, Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus, and The Wild Beyond the Witchlight. If you don't want to spoil any surprises for these adventures, I suggest avoiding content hidden behind the "Spoiler" buttons.
Get Your Adventure Started with Vecna: Nest of the Eldritch Eye
Vecna: Nest of the Eldritch Eye is a prequel adventure to Vecna: Eve of Ruin for 3rd-level characters. This one-shot sets up Eve of Ruin by introducing your party to Neverwinter and the Whispered One's cultists.
To get this introductory adventure, preorder a digital copy of Vecna: Eve of Ruin. Nest of the Eldritch Eye is now available for those that have preordered, and can be purchased separately after Eve of Ruin drops on May 21!
A Legendary Team-Up for a Legendary Threat
You know those Marvel Team-Up comics where a hero would encounter a threat of such immense power that they had to team up with other heroes to take down the big baddie? That's essentially what's happening in Vecna: Eve of Ruin.
Vecna, the lich-god, has been preparing a ritual to unravel the multiverse. He's almost ready to unleash his stored power and use it to destroy everything, then reknit the fragments to his liking.
Along with your party of adventurers, three archmages have banded together to thwart Vecna's plans. Each of these powerful spellcasters has a storied past woven through the annals of D&D, which we'll cover below:
Tasha, the Demonologist
With an unusual upbringing and sketchy past, Tasha is the wild card of the Wizards Three.
She's gained fame across the multiverse for several spells she's concocted, like Tasha's Hideous Laughter, Tasha's Mind Whip, Tasha's Caustic Brew, and Tasha's Otherworldly Guise.
She is also the infamous author of the Demonomicon of Iggwilv, which is considered the most thorough and blasphemous tome of demon-related information in the multiverse.
Tasha's History in D&D
Born on Oerth, Tasha was adopted and raised by the hag Baba Yaga, who tutored her into becoming one of the most potent magic-users the realm has ever seen. Tasha, or Natasha as she was known back then, was raised alongside other hags who were daughters of Baba Yaga and jealous of Tasha's power and her position within Baba Yaga's coven.
Eventually, Tasha left Baba Yaga's hut and began to seek glory across Oerth. During her travels, she joined the Company of Seven, a famous Oeridian adventuring group. She also studied under the archmage, Zagig Yragerne.
During her exploits, she has worked with—and run afoul of—the wizard Mordenkainen on numerous occasions. Their encounters ranged from alliances against common threats to clashes over conflicting interests—and sometimes the occasional chess match.
Tasha famously consorted with various demons during her adventuring career. It has even been said that she and the demon lord Graz'zt had formed alliances to exchange power and knowledge. She's definitely flirted with evil, especially in her days as Iggwilv the Witch Queen. But isn't "evil" just a matter of perspective?
What Has Tasha Been Up To?
Speaking of perspective, Tasha has since learned that gaining absolute power at the expense of antagonizing demon lords is a dangerous game and has retreated to the Feywild to avoid the many deadly enemies she's made along her path to power.
Tasha was last seen in The Wild Beyond the Witchlight as Zybilna, the archfey ruler of Prismeer. It's worth noting that the Tasha you'll encounter in Vecna: Eve of Ruin isn't this version of Tasha. Instead, a Tasha from before her Witch Queen days has traveled into the present so Zybilna can keep her attention focused on her otherworldly domain.
Mordenkainen, the Interplanar Archmage
The second of the Wizards Three is Mordenkainen, another mighty Oeridian mage, and quintessential stern, mysterious, and dangerous wizard.
He's authored many spells that have come to see frequent use throughout the multiverse, such as Mordenkainen's Magnificent Mansion, Mordenkainen's Private Sanctum, Mordenkainen's Sword, and Mordenkainen's Faithful Hound.
One reason these spells are so well-known is Mordenkainen's tendency to traverse the planes in his Tower of Urm, a personal fortress with multiverse-traveling capabilities.
Mordenkainen takes a firmly neutral stance in the conflicts that wage across the planes. He believes in the universal balance between good and evil. But, as it happens, evil tries to usurp the balance more than good, so he often throws in with good-aligned forces.
Mordenkainen’s History in D&D
Mordenkainen was one of the first characters created in D&D. His inception can be traced back to 1973 when Gary Gygax began playing as the stern wizard in some of the first adventures that took place in the Greyhawk setting.
Since then, Mordenkainen has become one of the D&D multiverse's most powerful forces.
He founded the Circle of Eight, a group of powerful spellcasters who worked with Mordenkainen to maintain the cosmic scales of balance. Its members included Bigby, Mordenkainen's apprentice, as well as other well-known wizards like Leomund (from Leomund's Tiny Hut) and Otto (the one with the irresistible dance).
This cabal of wizards faced a version of Vecna before in the second edition adventure Vecna Lives, but they were unceremoniously defeated. Notably, Mordenkainen wasn't involved in this conflict and later resurrected his comrades before departing to explore the multiverse.
What Has Mordenkainen Been Up To?
During these interplanar explorations, Mordenkainen found himself in the Domain of Dread known as Barovia. Here, he encountered the vampire Strahd von Zarovich, who tyrannically ruled over the people of Barovia. Seeking to free the land's citizens, Mordenkainen confronted Strahd but was thwarted and driven mad by the realization that he could not overcome Strahd's power.
Mordenkainen was eventually freed from his madness by a group of adventurers in Curse of Strahd. Now recovered, he has retreated to his Tower of Urm and traverses the multiverse, researching magical theory and the forces that drive the conflict between good and evil.
Mordenkainen was most recently seen in Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells, in the adventure Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus. Here, he studies the effects of the Nine Hells on the various schools of magic.
Alustriel Silverhand, the Shining Lady
The daughter of Mystra, the god of magic, Alustriel has been a force for good across the Forgotten Realms for centuries. Due to her divine parentage, she is bestowed with immortality and incredible power with arcane magic, which she uses to protect the Weave—Toril's primary incarnation of magic.
Alustriel's History in D&D
Alustriel and her six sisters were born to the human noble Dornal Silverhand and the half-elven sorceress Elué Shundar. It was later revealed that Elué Shundar was Mystra in disguise, which explains why Alustriel and her sisters were all born with incredible talents.
Even as her keen knack for the arcane arts developed into a potent power, Alustriel always tried to inspire peace and well-being in her adventures.
She led a successful adventuring career, after which she became Silverymoon's High Mage, where she dedicated herself to the city's protection, fostering a culture of inclusivity and cooperation among its diverse inhabitants.
For centuries, she ruled over Silverymoon, the capital of the Silver Marches, and was the driving force behind its establishment as a haven of peace and prosperity.
Since leaving her responsibilities as the High Mage of Silverymoon, she has continued work as a force for good across the multiverse.
What Has Alustriel Been Up To?
Alustriel has not appeared in any fifth edition adventures, but it stands to reason that she has been traveling across Toril and the multiverse, aiding the forces of good in their plight against evil.
Can Your Party and the Wizards Three Thwart Vecna?
In this corner, standing at 6 feet nothing and weighing a desiccated 100 lbs., is Vecna, the lich-god. And in this corner, the best archmages the multiverse has to offer and your party of adventurers!
Vecna: Eve of Ruin brings your party toe-to-toe with one of D&D's greatest villains. Even assisted by the Wizards Three, will they be enough to save the multiverse before it's too late? There's only one way to find out! Preorder your digital and physical copy of Vecna: Eve of Ruin today! Or, pick up the book early by visiting select stores participating in the Local Game Store Early Access Program!
Upon release, this book will be integrated into D&D Beyond Maps, so Master-tier subscribers can effortlessly prep and run their adventures with the help of this VTT. Maps syncs to your D&D Beyond account, so you can add maps and tokens with a few clicks and then invite your players to run your session!
This article was updated on May 2, 2024. It previously stated that digital + physical bundle preorders receive early access to the adventure on D&D Beyond. Only preorders for digital + physical bundles made before April 30 are eligible for early access.
Mike Bernier (@arcane_eye) is the founder of Arcane Eye, a site focused on providing useful tips and tricks to all those involved in the world of D&D. Outside of writing for Arcane Eye, Mike spends most of his time playing games, hiking with his partner, and tending the veritable jungle of houseplants that have invaded his house.
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Posted Apr 30, 2024Can we assume Mordenkainen is at least a 9th level wizard? If so, he has access to Dawn which does 4d10+20 every turn against Strahd while also canceling his regeneration and preventing him from shapechanging. Mordenkainen should have pwned him...
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Posted Apr 30, 2024I should point out he didn't show up expecting to fight a vampire, and doesn't have Dawn in his spellbook as far as we know.
But even if he did, he has to beat Strahd not the other way around. Strahd could just use a lair action to move through the floors of the castle to regenerate while the spell runs out of duration.
Not to mention, Dawn does 42 average damage to Strahd in the round it is cast. Dawn can be moved up to 60 feet each turn. Strahd can outrun that using his movement and two legendary actions. Or in that same round Mordenkainen does a mere 42 damage to him, he can do 110 damage to Mordenkainin with his unarmed strikes alone. In that module we have the stats for Mordenkainen, and he has 99 hit points. It would take Mordenkainen three rounds to kill Strahd using Dawn and cone of cold cast using both his 9th and 8th level spell slots, during which Strahd does on average over 3 times Mordenkainen's hp in damage.
But yes, Strahd would get absolutely destroyed, you're right.
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Posted Apr 30, 2024I assume Mordenkainen is at least a 13th wizard, as he has a two 7th level spells named after him. In that case, he has access to Sunbeam and Crown of Stars. For an average of 47 (6d8 + 4d12) radiant damage each turn. Not to mention he could take a leaf out of Tasha's spell book and have Tasha's Otherworldly Guise (choosing Upper Planes) to negate most of Strahd's claw and bite attack damage.
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Posted Apr 30, 2024We literally know what spells he had prepared that day, none of these are on there.
But even if they were, and Strahd couldn't do anything against Mordenkainen, Strahd can just retreat and swarm Mordenkainen with minions, because Strahd can phase through his castle walls. Strahd doesn't need to kill Mordenkainen, Mordenkainen needs to kill him, which gives Strahd the major advantage of being able to force Mordenkainen to come to him as well as being able to just wait until Mordenkainen's spells run out. I mean ffs, Dawn and Sunbeam only last a minute. Crown of stars lasts for longer, but can be avoided simply by not being within sight whenever Mordenkainen gets a turn (cause you can't hold a bonus action to attack Strahd when he pops up).
Or Alternatively: Use a legendary action at the end of each of Mordenkainen's turns to pop out of the ground, take a turn to wail on him, then phase back through the floor. Rinse repeat until Mordenkainen is dead.
Any way Mordenkainen could conceivably kill Strahd works only in a white room, not in Castle Ravenloft where Strahd has some very powerful legendary actions and minions at his disposal. The issue with Strahd isn't that he's easy to beat, it's that running him like this against players is more annoying than it is challenging or fun. But against an NPC? Yeah no, you get a single action and if you cannot kill Strahd in a single action you are ****ed.
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Posted May 1, 2024I’ll never tell but that demon screwing oldbag is dead.
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Posted May 1, 2024Did you know: Mordenkainen's true power does not come from magic, but from that AWESOME BEARD.
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Posted May 1, 2024I always just assumed that he was level 20, since he's one of the original lore characters and all. I mean, this guy has his own interdimensional mansion for crying out loud.
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Posted May 2, 2024In Curse of Strahd he's level 18. Level 18 being the highest an NPC typically reaches, and is the same wizard level as a lich.
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Posted May 2, 2024I would love to see some love for Tenser and Heward one day as well. Maybe some more Kwalish, too, but that's optional.
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Posted May 6, 2024Do we, though? Where do we know that from?
As far as I know, we know that he's treated as a CR 12 "aerchmage" while insane and mindblanked.
I'd be interested to learn the lore of the actual battle, and what he had memorized the day of the conflict with Strahd. Would love to read that!
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Posted May 6, 2024We in fact do!
We know his spellbook was lost during the battle, so he could not change his prepared spells, and we are told how his spell list differs from the typical archmage. So we know these are the spells he had prepared that day.
Dawn, Crown of Stars and Sunbeam make no appearance on that list.
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Posted May 6, 2024Entirely wrong. All it would have required is "The Shadow of the Dragon Queen is like the Quests fom the Infinite Staircase book". A la, where the adventure happened long ago, but it re-made/updated for 5e, so people can play it with the modern ruleset if they want to experience it. It doesn't have to be "This is taking place right now guys!" But then, that would have made far too much sense...
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Posted May 6, 2024Except this is a multiversal level threat, so actually, yes, it makes perfect sense, and your "rebuttal" is absolutely nonsensical.
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Posted May 6, 2024"Because we pick and choose what to keep from the previous editions without any thought to sense or logic, of which we are basically incapable. Instead we choose based on how 'cool' we feel certain characters are, and despite our talks of diversity, using a nasty Dark Elf when we could use another white person (the closest we like to come to that is a tanned white one, despite our constant preaching that would make it seem otherwise, we'll tan one up a bit to act like she's fitting into "diversity!" Jedi Mind Trick!) is well within our actual preferences, because we have a public and a private persona, and they are not at all in line with each other, which is why our actions and our words often differ so much. It's also why despte constantly preaching about diversity, we don't show you Zakhara, or Maztica, or Kara-Tur anymore. We'd much rather not show you anything based on any culture not found near the Sword Coast. Becuase having other cultures represented in our fantasy world? Well, you see we've actually managed to convince you people that showcasing other cultures so you could learn about them in a fun and interesting way would (Somehow!) be racist, and we'd hate to do anything that might prove that to be utterly ridiculous. Isn't that awesome? Now the only diversity we have to show is Chult, becuase we have to do some culture other than European Culture, so we bite the bullet, show a tiny bit of that, then go right back to the Sword Coast. It's rather brilliant how we can tokenize that way." - 5e Authors, Supposedly.
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Posted May 6, 2024Interesting take and thanks for taking the time to comment.
Whilst I agree we could have played this as a kind of "Here beginneth a tale of daring deeds and courages from the days of yore..." I consider - rightly or wrongly - that most 5e books are pitched as "current events" in their respective campaign worlds (and that, to some degree, this was a world reset). And, politely, I don't think having such an opinion warrants being labelled nonsensical.
If anyone had asked to carry on playing in this campaign, I'd have assumed they'd have wanted to continue their adventuring in and around Kalaman in 351 AC(-ish) and I'd have probably have continued with the fall of Kalaman to the Blue Dragon Army and had more encounters with Dalamar and maybe even the Heroes of the Lance rather than, say, jump several decades to a completely different "now" where Dalamar was an archmage or something.
Sláinte
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Posted May 7, 2024You know those are some of the spells he'd previously prepared.
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Posted May 7, 2024No, we know those are the exact spells he had prepared during the battle.
This is because in order to change your prepared spells as a wizard, you need your spell book. Therefore, whatever spells he had currently prepared after losing his spellbook where the ones he had prepared the day he lost it. He lost his spellbook during the battle. Therefore these were the spells he had prepared during the battle.
The only way they couldn't have been the spells he had prepared was if he lost the spellbook at least a day after the battle, and we are very explicitly told it was during the battle.
"After a battle between the two in Castle Ravenloft, Strahd drove [Mordenkainen] to the mountains and sent the wizard hurling over Tser Falls. The wizard, his staff and spellbook lost, survived the fall and retreated".
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Posted Jul 10, 2024I miss seeing content for the other continents of Toril. Dalamar is white, though. He's not a Dark Elf in the drow sense, that's just what outcast elves are called on Krynn. He's a Silvanesti (sun elf equivalent) with light skin.
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Posted Nov 27, 2024"Alustriel has not appeared in any fifth edition adventures, but it stands to reason that she has been traveling across Toril and the multiverse, aiding the forces of good in their plight against evil."
no she appears is Waterdeep Dragon Heist
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Posted Nov 27, 2024never mind that's Laeral Silverhand