The story of
Heroes of Ruin follows a mercenary who is attempting to find a cure for the ruler of the city of Nexus, a sphinx named Ataraxis, who is dying from a curse. The hero can either create an alliance with others or adventure separately. There are many strange and dangerous creatures in the land, including the evil force behind the curse, which the hero eventually confronts. • The Gunslinger is a former criminal who fights primarily using firearms and makeshift explosives. He takes on the mission to save Lord Ataraxis hoping to find a way to repay a huge monetary debt. • The Alchitect is a female
elf from the city of Requiem who fights using magic spells and
polearms. She has taken up the quest to save Lord Ataraxis to prove her worth and become one of the most powerful and feared spell-casters in the world. • The
Savage, a warrior who was exiled from his tribe, uses hand-to-hand combat. He takes on the mission to save Lord Ataraxis in order to gain power and glory. Fifty years after a major conflict known as the War of Ruin, the sphinx Ataraxis, ruler of Nexus, is dying from a curse. The Hero is traveling by ship to the city of Nexus to find a way to help Ataraxis, however, the ship is destroyed by a giant sea creature, the Leviathan. The survivors of the shipwreck drift to an island, among those are the Hero, the elf Fironel, and the two Princes of Nexus, Solon and Adrian. After arriving to Nexus using a found ship, Solon tasks the Hero with finding Eckhardt, one of Nexus' top sorcerers. After being rescued alongside his daughter Katrina, Eckhardt reveals that he was kidnapped by pirates who forced him to create monsters, including the Leviathan itself; afterwards, the Hero kills the Leviathan at Eckhardt's request. Then, the Hero is sent to the ruins of the elven Kingdom of Salvera by Eckhardt and Marcus, King of Nexus, to find the ghost of the deceased elf King Keltas, hoping to find a way to end Ataraxis' curse. Upon arriving at the ruins of Salvera, the Hero finds out that Fironel has used magic to trap the souls of Keltas and his council in the bodies of savage beasts, in an attempt to ensure that Salvera's secret information will not be leaked to the outside world. She then flees and the Hero kills the beasts, releasing Keltas and the council members. Upon his release, Keltas gives the Hero a book from Ataraxis, which reveals that the War of Ruin was finished after a display of power from three beasts called "Ruinlords"; the three Ruinlords, including Ataraxis, used to be ordinary people who had a strong desire to end the War of Ruin, and thus used the power of a magic Crystal in order to end the war, transforming themselves into the Ruinlord beasts in the process. Eckhardt and Marcus decide to keep secret the newly acquired information, fearing that if it is known by the general population, it would create civil unrest. King Marcus sends the Hero to Ataraxis' former secret workshop, located in the northern region of Frost Reaches to search for the magic Crystal mentioned in the book. When the Hero is about to get the Crystal, Fironel reappears, states that she has a reason to prevent the use of the Crystal, takes it and flees. She then leaves a message with King Marcus demanding that the Hero must bring Ataraxis' book to Predator's Peak. Once both meet, the Hero and Fironel engage in a "winner takes all" showdown that is won by the Hero. Fironel hands over the Crystal, but warns the Hero that its misuse could be highly dangerous. Upon his return to Nexus, the Hero is met by Katrina who tells him that during his absence, chaos ensued in Nexus' magic labs, the "Soul Void", prompting Eckhardt, King Marcus and the Princes to go there and try to control the situation. At Katrina's request, the Hero goes to the Soul Void where he meets another Nexus sorcerer named Rigel. ==Development==