While Vecna is, indeed, a formidable foe for Eleven and the Stranger Things gang, he isn’t actually as invincible as he projects himself to be. Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) is finally revealed as the master puppeteer in every Hawkins attack since Stranger Things season 1. Considerably more skilled and refined at using his psychokinetic powers than Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven, Stranger Things season 4 finale ominously sets up Vecna’s impending return for Stranger Things season 5.
After taking his fourth curse victim, Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink), and opening a gaping gate between the Upside Down and Hawkins, Vecna is just biding his time before he and his army of monsters invades Hawkins and the rest of the world. Vecna is portrayed as a powerful creature capable of controlling the likes of the Mind Flayer and multitudes of Demogorgon simultaneously, however, this doesn’t mean that he’s undefeatable. In fact, the extent he uses his abilities may be his downfall, as it's been shown more than once that his control over others can be broken, rendering his powers void in the right circumstances.
How Stranger Things Revealed The Limits Of Vecna's Powers
Stranger Things has well-established that Vecna is psychically connected to the Upside Down via the Hive Mind (a unified consciousness of various alien entities) which serves as Vecna’s greatest strength by allowing him to be everywhere at all times. However, this is also Vecna’s greatest weakness as it makes him susceptible to multiple attacks at the same time, thereby weakening him on different fronts - a prime example being in Stranger Things season 4 when Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer) shot him repeatedly and Jim Hopper (David Harbour) killed the Demogorgon in Russia.
While Stranger Things season 4 provides the most obvious examples of Vecna’s powers’ shortcomings, earlier seasons also have notable moments to support this. In Stranger Things season 2, Dustin Henderson’s (Gaten Matarazzo) demodog – Dart – recognizes him as a former caretaker and refuses the Hive Mind’s kill command. Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) also managed to sweat out the Mind Flayer slug used to turn him into Vecna’s spy in Hawkins. In Stranger Things season 3, Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery) is also able to fight off the Mind Flayer’s control long enough for one final act to redeem himself, proving that this control can be broken even in later stages.
Vecna's Weaknesses Mean It Will Never Be Too Late To Save Hawkins
Although Eleven and the Stranger Things gang should remain wary of Vecna, the loopholes to his foreboding mind-control powers strongly suggest Hawkins will always have a fighting chance against the Dungeons and Dragons-themed forces of the Upside Down. As long as the team works together against its common enemy through outmaneuvering and simultaneous attack plans, Vecna won’t be able to counter it fast enough with his Hive Mind. The fact that Vecna is shown as being self-important should contribute to his blindness regarding the limitations of his power, potentially spelling his demise.
Indeed, this plot already appears to have been put in place. Vecna bragging about his plot of destruction to Nancy via a psychic link in Stranger Things season 4 highlights how his complete belief in his abilities leads to him inadvertently helping the show's heroes, as the entire interaction exuded his arrogance and susceptibility to underestimate his adversaries. Despite Vecna’s transfigured appearance greatly suggesting his detachment from humanity, his motivations show him to be human to the core, providing the biggest Stranger Things series villain one massive weak point for the protagonists to use against him.