Our Brilliant Ruin is a breathtaking tabletop roleplaying game set in a crumbling world of opulence and existential dread. Developed by Studio Hermitage, this standalone RPG blends aristocratic society with existential horror. Our Brilliant Ruin is also part of a larger franchise, currently consisting of comic and audio drama (More on those later).
What’s Inside?
The Our Brilliant Ruin core rulebook has everything needed to throw players into the decaying grandeur of The Dramark. In almost 300 pages, the book covers lore, worldbuilding, mechanics, and an introductory adventure. Here’s a short overview of the chapters:
- The Society of a Dying World (Pages 16–67): This chapter provides lore on The Dramark’s societal structure, including the five major aristocratic houses, guilds, and the hierarchy of the world. It gives a strong first impression of the society clinging to tradition and decadence during its final days.
- Folkways of the Dramark (Pages 68–94): This section spotlights the daily life of The Dramark’s inhabitants. It covers everything from transportation and currency to customs. It also looks at the ways different classes cope with the apocalypse.
- Characters (Pages 94–111): This chapter gives players everything they need to create their characters.
- Game Systems (Pages 112–133): This chapter outlines the core gameplay mechanics, including dice rolling, Brills and Glooms, and resource management.
- Estates and Community Property (Pages 134–143): This chapter covers property ownership, detailing the attributes, ratings, and features of estates. This chapter will be especially useful for aristocratic players.
- Friends, Foes, and Fiends (Pages 144–187): The bestiary section has all the spooky monsters. Each entry includes lore, motivations, mechanics, and tips for GMs to incorporate these threats into their campaigns.
- Notable Personalities, Conflicts, and Locations (Pages 188–249): This one is for the GMs. This chapter features key NPCs, potential conflicts, and notable locations. It also offers tools for creating NPCs and integrating them seamlessly into the story.
- Vanishing History (Pages 250–261): This chapter recounts the history of The Dramark, providing context for the setting’s current state. It’s a treasure trove for players and GMs seeking deeper lore.
- Fortunes Turn at Crowscroft Manor (Pages 262–279): The book concludes with a detailed introductory adventure. This story helps players establish their characters’ places in the world while introducing the game’s central themes of power, decay, and survival.
Storytelling & Worldbuilding
Our Brilliant Ruin is set in The Dramark and forces players into a society teetering on the edge of collapse. The Ruin—a corruptive cosmic force is decaying the world and creating horrifying creatures. Players will live within a social hierarchy consisting of the decadent Aristocrats, the Truefolk, and the Unbonded. These factions give both players and GMs the tools they need to make characters and NPC fit right in the world.
Collaborative worldbuilding is emphasized in Our Brilliant Ruin, making the storytelling work smoothly. Players craft their estates, define relationships, and shape the social and geographical landscape of The Dramark. With the right group, this core book provides everything needed to get started in The Dramark, but players and GMs will be able to make this world entirely their own over time. Every campaign is unique and personal, and this world is full of potential. The game explores themes that are touched upon in more mainstream RPGs, but aren’t the focus. Things like societal apathy, class struggles, and existential dread aren’t just the backdrop, they are the things that define every character.
Rules & Mechanics
Our Brilliant Ruin utilizes a narrative-driven system based on six-sided dice. Players build dice pools by pairing one of nine Personality attributes with one of nine Skills, allowing for creativity in problem-solving. Success is determined by rolling Brills (6s), while Glooms (1s) introduces the risk of catastrophic failure. This simple system emphasizes the “why” and “how” of character actions, encouraging players to think deeply about their choices. If a player can roll three brills with less than four glooms, they will enjoy a trump, which affects Passion points.
The addition of Passion points and Portfolios enhances gameplay. Passion points allow players to boost their rolls, tying success to their character’s emotions and motivations. Portfolios, representing assets like Mentors or Tools, provide automatic successes or additional advantages, introducing a strategic layer of resource management. These mechanics foster immersive storytelling while giving a rigid structure for players and GMs.
The GM Experience
For Game Masters, Our Brilliant Ruin offers tons of tools to balance narrative freedom with structured gameplay. The game isn’t crunchy, but it certainly isn’t a rule-lite experience. It’s fairly easy to run thanks to the solid premise and clear rules. The book emphasizes collaborative storytelling, which takes some of the burden off of the GM.
Clear guidelines for encounters, difficulties, and managing social and physical challenges make the game approachable without sacrificing depth. When it comes to lore and mechanics, Our Brilliant Ruin gives GM all they need for political or action-filled campaigns.
For GMs who want a taste of the setting with a hand guiding the way, there is a short scenario at the back of the book. It gives ideas of where the story can go, NPCs, settings, and enemies. It’s a nice introduction that will give both players and the GM what they need to survive future sessions.
The Player Experience
Players in Our Brilliant Ruin are given the tools to craft deeply personal and dynamic characters that can live within the rules of the world. The blend of Personality and Skill attributes allows for a wide range of approaches to challenges, ensuring that every character feels distinct. The Passion system ties mechanics to emotional stakes, making successes and failures feel meaningful and character-driven. It’s an excellent blend of freedom and structure, so roleplaying feels natural but doesn’t force players just to make stuff up that might not suit the game’s rules.
Collaborative worldbuilding and estate creation give players a sense of ownership over the setting. Every player will feel invested here, which makes Our Brilliant Ruin a joy to play for newcomers and seasoned RPG veterans.
Artwork & Presentation
The visual presentation of Our Brilliant Ruin is spectacular. Diverse artwork fills the pages and captures the elegance and decay of The Dramark. Some pages have neat, vintage photos of aristocrats, others have sprawling estates, and then some have some truly grotesque creatures born of The Ruin.
The layout is clean and intuitive, with excellent organization that makes navigating the nearly 300 pages a breeze. This is a game that’s a feast for the eyes but is also practical.
Is It Worth It?
Our Brilliant Ruin is a triumph of storytelling, design, and artistic vision. Its evocative setting, innovative mechanics, and breathtaking artwork make it a standout addition to any RPG collection. Whether you’re drawn to its themes of existential horror, its exploration of class struggles, or its invitation to indulge in the decadence of a crumbling world, this game offers an experience that lingers long after the dice have been rolled. For those seeking a game that combines narrative richness with accessible mechanics, Our Brilliant Ruin is an absolute must-have.
Our Brilliant Ruin is a multimedia story by Studio Hermitage. It currently includes the tabletop RPG, an audio drama, and a comic. Stay tuned for our reviews of the rest of Our Brilliant Ruin.