Adventurers beware, for scattered reports have circulated of sightings of the infernal relic, the Hand of Vecna. Gnarled and charred black with long, ragged fingernails, it promises power, but gives only damnation.
The Hand was once nothing more than an ordinary appendage, albeit one that belonged to the nefarious Lich Lord Vecna. It and one other relic, his Eye, were severed from his body when Vecna's lieutenant, Kas the Bloody-Handed, turned on his master and attacked him with the eponymous Sword of Kas. While the Lich's body was destroyed in the encounter, his Hand and Eye survived, becoming relics of powerful magics for the use of any brave, foolish, or mad enough to employ them. The use of the hand is said to come at a personal cost: any potential user must sever their own hand. According to lore, if the Hand is touched to the stump, it will attach itself and the foolish mortal will possess not only a new hand, but all the power that lies within.
While we are on the subject of The Hand of Vecna, it is worth noting that when the Lich succeeded in ascending to godhood, he was still deprived of his Hand and Eye, so it could be speculated that he may want those parts of him back, whether their current owner(s) wish to return them or not.
Any adventurers - paladins especially - would be wise to keep a sharp eye out for the Hand to prevent it from falling into the hands of those who would misuse it for their own ends.
Pictures via
Comma, Blank and
Greyhawkery.
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