The new DLC deepens the game’s dark fantasy world with a perilous new region, expanded mechanics, and one of the studio’s most ambitious narratives to date.
Lost Pilgrims Studio, creators of the award-winning dark fantasy RPG Vagrus – The Riven Realms, have released their most substantial expansion yet: At the Heart of Ruin. The new DLC is available on all platforms except Nintendo Switch, where a longer certification process is delaying release.
Alongside the expansion, the team also released the Ruinous Supporter Pack, a purely cosmetic bundle that adds unique new outfits for each of the game’s companion characters.
This marks over a year of development from the independent Budapest-based studio, and according to the team, At the Heart of Ruin is not only the largest DLC to date, but also the most narratively complex since the game’s full launch.
What Is Vagrus – The Riven Realms
Originally released in 2021, Vagrus – The Riven Realms is a narrative-heavy strategy RPG set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world. Players assume the role of a “vagrus”, a caravan leader and merchant-explorer navigating the ruins of a world destroyed by a supernatural calamity.
Gameplay revolves around managing a traveling company across a dangerous continent, engaging in turn-based tactical combat, navigating harsh terrain, and making impactful decisions in text-driven story events. The world is deeply lore-driven, drawing inspiration from classic pen-and-paper RPGs and dark fantasy literature.
What sets Vagrus apart is its balance of storytelling and systems: its branching narratives, character relationships, trade routes, and tactical battles all feed into a singular, challenging experience that rewards planning and narrative investment in equal measure.
What’s New in At the Heart of Ruin
The new expansion introduces a completely new region to the game, the Mountains of Fire, home to the remnants of an ancient Dwarven kingdom. Isolated from Imperial control and riddled with dangers, the region presents some of the most challenging environments and enemies players have encountered so far.
In this expansion, exploration is designed around smaller party compositions, requiring more deliberate risk-taking and resource management as players navigate rugged and hostile terrain.
According to Lost Pilgrims, At the Heart of Ruin offers more new content than any previous DLC, including:
- A new explorable region outside the reach of Imperial rule, set in the treacherous and volcanic Mountains of Fire.
- More new locations and enemy types than any prior expansion, continuing the high-quality hand-drawn art and visual style of the base game.
- Exploration Encounters, a new gameplay feature that adds procedurally generated challenges, loot, and obstacles outside of narrative-driven events.
- Three scavenger factions, each hostile to one another, offering distinct questlines and unique rewards.
- A large cast of NPCs, including both new characters and returning figures from earlier storylines.
- Faction-specific quests, which become available through allegiance to one of two new minor groups introduced in the region.
- A deep, branching narrative, building on the lore of the Riven Realms and offering choices with lasting consequences.
- High replayability, with numerous story paths, variable outcomes, and diverging rewards based on player decisions.
The studio describes it as their most ambitious narrative effort since the original release of the base game.
The Ruinous Supporter Pack
For players looking to support Lost Pilgrims Studio further, the Ruinous Supporter Pack provides a cosmetic-only upgrade. It includes new visual designs for each of the game’s companion characters, styled to reflect the themes and factions of At the Heart of Ruin.
The pack has no gameplay impact and is entirely optional, intended for fans who want to express their appreciation for the studio’s work while adding a visual refresh to their team members.
Continued Support and Free Updates
Lost Pilgrims has confirmed that content updates for At the Heart of Ruin will continue post-release. A major storyline introduced in the expansion will receive a follow-up through free updates, which aim to expand on unresolved narrative elements and further develop the region.
This approach aligns with the studio’s track record of long-term support and content expansion based on player feedback and internal storytelling goals.
At the Heart of Ruin is a substantial expansion that reflects everything fans have come to expect from Vagrus – The Riven Realms: difficult choices, punishing environments, and deeply interconnected systems.
For veterans, the DLC adds meaningful new layers to explore; for newcomers, it highlights why Vagrus has become a cult favorite in the indie RPG scene.
It’s also a signal that Lost Pilgrims Studio remains committed to their vision of a dark, complex, and enduring fantasy world, one that still has many stories left to tell.
Release date and platforms
DLC At the Heart of Ruin is available on PC via Steam, GOG, Xbox, and PlayStation, with a Nintendo Switch pending for approval.
