Vecna was once a powerful archmage within the ancient Human empire of Netheril. Said to have enough arcane power to even move mountains by his own rite, Vecna was an avid necromancer, exceeding even the emperor in power at the the time of the early ages of creation. Creating the mystical Floating City of Netheril, the crown jewel of the empire, Vecna began working on an artifact of unprecedented power, known as the Soulmonger crystal, which is said to have the ability to siphon and use the soul of others as raw energy. After learning of the impending disaster which was to befall his beloved city and subsequent empire, Vecna activated his unholy creation, consuming the souls of thousands in the cities beneath Netheril, allowing him to open a rift to The Shadowfell and escape the effects of the cataclysmic continuum crisis. Drifting across the shadowy planes of The Shadowfell for thousands of years, Vecna studied the dark arts intently, uncovering ancient secrets long since forgotten even to the shadowy apparitions of The Shadowfell. In doing this, Vecna founded the order of Shadi, a twisted cult of necromancers and shadow mages which lived within Netheril and devoted themselves to worshipping the Ascended Vecna. Accumulating significant power, Vecna became a target after being ambushed by the Crimson Hand and Shadowlords which maimed the ascended being, removing his eye and hand which were taken as a prize by Lucius the Master. With his stolen power shared amongst the lineage of Shadowlords, Vecna deviously plotted his return and vengeance upon those who had wronged him. In the events of the Fifth Age, Archshadi Neverus enacted an elaborate plan to trick The Sunsations and Shadowlords into a deadly conflict, which culminated in the Battle of The Four Armies. Teleporting the Floating City of Netheril over the pitched battlefield within the expanses of the Dread Marshes, Archshadi Neverus killed Lucius the Master and reclaimed his hand and eye before activating the Soulmonger crystals and consuming thousands of souls in the process. In doing this, Neverus was no more, and in his place became the Ascendant avatar of Vecna...