Dead by Daylight’s Dungeons & Dragons DLC Lets You Play Vecna to Kill Your Friends
Dead by Daylight: Dungeons & Dragons pits the Archlich Vecnna against a Bard, helping to prove once and for all that Bards are OP.
I didn’t make the rules here. I’m just telling you, no matter what genre or medium they happen to be in, Bards are OP. Case in point, the new Dead by Daylight: Dungeons & Dragons crossover patch for the asymmetric slasher survivor game introduces one of D&D’s iconic characters, Vecna, the Archlich, and as a new survivor introduces a Bard.
Yeah, technically, she has a name, Aestri Yazar. But she sort of embodies the concept of a Bard. They could have picked a Fighter. A Barbarian. Even a Wizard. But no, the one to survive Vecna’s TPK of the rest of her party? A Bard.
Anyway, the new patch hits today, so you can suit up as Vecna and unleash unimaginable horror. Or unleash the power of song and stories and friendship, as Aestri Yazar, the Bard.
Dungeons & Dragons and Dead by Daylight – TPK is the Goal!
Let’s just all take a second to listen to Matt Mercer absolutely crushing it as Vecna here. Mercer joins Neil Newbon as one of two actors from Baldur’s Gate 3 who have also gone on to portray Vecna. It’s a grand old time, and I’m happy for both of them. Do you have a favorite Vecna portrayer? I can’t choose, they both highlight different aspects of the archlich. It’s a great example if you’re looking to see how varying your voice can change a character.
But we’re here to talk about Vecna in Dead by Daylight, not how to do better characters in your game. So, let’s take a look at what he can do. First up, here’s the story according to Dead By Daylight:
Our story unfolds in the crumbling Forgotten Ruins, where the arch-villain, Vecna—The Lich, will stop at nothing to achieve his gruesome ambitions. Aestri Yazar, a Bard, has found herself cast into this forsaken land. She must survive at all costs—for who else will tell the tale should she perish?
In this DLC you get the new killer, The Lich, the new survivor, The Bard, as well as some exclusive cosmetics. Vecna, the Whispered One, has four different spells he can unleash:
- Channeling his necromancy, Flight of the Damned conjures 5 flying spectral entities in a cone-shaped form, passing through obstacles and damaging any Survivor it hits.
- Fly elevates Vecna from the ground, making him move quickly in a forced-forward motion. While flying, he can pass through one Pallet or Vault, letting him quickly cover great distances.
- A well-known Dungeons & Dragons Spell, Mage Hand creates a ghastly, phantasmic hand that can tag nearby Pallets. If the Pallet is lowered, the hand will raise it. If it’s already raised, it blocks use of it for a few seconds, putting you that much closer to a fleeing Survivor.
- Dispelling Sphere conjures a moving AOE sphere that is undetectable to Survivors. Should they come in contact with it, their location is revealed, and their precious Magical Items become disabled.
While our Bard is able to weave magic and inspiration to combat Vecna:
- Mirrored Illusion spawns a static copy of the Survivor in front of a Totem, Chest, Generator, or Exit Gate for a limited time before deactivating.
- Bardic Inspiration empowers allies through a stirring performance. While standing still, begin a performance that gives nearby party members a temporary buff to Skill Checks once completed. How much of a boost they receive, however, is determined by the roll of a d20.
- When not in motion for a set amount of time, Still Sight automatically activates, revealing the aura of the Killer as well as all nearby Generators and Chests.
But there’s more than just the two new characters. A new gameplay mechanic accompanies Vecna. Seven chests will appear, scattered across the map. When opening them, you might get a normal item, a Magic Item, or even the legendary Hand or Eye of Vecna. So keep an eye out for more.
