"Stranger Things" isn't the only "Dungeons & Dragons"-related show that has used Vecna in its own way. The first campaign of the popular actual play series "Critical Role" also puts the Undying King at the center of its final, world-ending conflict. Through the aid and actions of his followers, Vecna can achieve a physical form again in the campaign's second half, and he promptly resumes his attempts to ascend to godhood. Much to the horror of the world's other gods and Vox Machina, the central adventuring party of "Critical Role" Campaign 1, he accomplishes his goals.
Vecna's ascension sets the stage for the campaign's climax, which sees Vox Machina go toe-to-toe with the villain in an attempt to weaken his toxic grasp on the world by banishing him forever from the Prime Material Plane. Thankfully, while victory certainly doesn't come easy, Vox Machina defeats Vecna in the second-to-last episode of "Critical Role" Campaign 1.
Amazon Prime Video's "The Legend of Vox Machina" is an animated adaptation of the first "Critical Role" campaign. While Vecna does not appear in the show's first two seasons, he is teased throughout, referred to as "The Whispered One." Thanks to these shows, more viewers are becoming aware of who Vecna is, which likely comes as music to the ears of the iconic "D&D" villain.
