Vagrus’s At the Heart of Ruin expansion introduces many new enemies – both bestial and humanoid – and this week we’re happy to bring you one particular favorite: the Charred Shambler. These scorching Undead can be found almost anywhere in the confines of old Dvendar Tharr. When the Calamity tore the Mountains of Fire asunder, Dwarves perished by the thousands, a lot of them warriors. Later, the twisted magic that bore down on these lands reanimated their remains so that those would walk the world again and lash out toward the living. Charred Shamblers are thus destined to roam the mountains, taking their rage out on any who chance their domain. To call them predatory would be an understatement.

Disturbing monstrosities prowl northern Tahrar Barak, their sinewy, slimy forms slithering on open ground, preying upon any who come into contact with them. Those who are unlucky enough to have seen them call them the stuff of nightmares, though none know their name – or even if they have one.

The creatures’ many limbs – are they even limbs? – are said to lash out, strangling those they manage to grasp. Yet most threatening of all is its underbelly – much like an open, gangrenous wound, it’s an unseemly sight and its stench is sickening. Blind and seemingly possessing little intelligence, these abominations seem to be drawn to other living beings with the single-minded intent of snuffing them out.

Since our console launch, we have received a lot of love and support from our community, as well as some interesting questions. We have collected the most common ones – along with answers to them – in this post. Hopefully, players looking for something can find it here.

Q: What kind of game is this exactly?

This week’s article introduces not just another scalding locale where perilous heat is a given, but it is also held by one of Varnurud’s most determined scavenger gangs, the Hollow Men. Dubbed “the Bastion” by its current occupants, the ruin itself is ancient and of Dwarven origin. Following the Calamity and subsequent catastrophes on the mountain, half of its stone buildings were consumed by lava, yet at least for the time being, the rest of the scorched stone structures remain accessible. There is no telling today what the purpose of the ancient Dwarven settlement was but it had sturdy buildings and tall towers that commanded a large swathe of the area.

Our aim at Lost Pilgrims is not just to create memorable gaming experiences, but also to introduce you to people who contribute to building our cozy community. Therefore, we have interviewed Ben the Human, who has been streaming Vagrus for a while now and recently arrived at a major milestone by concluding a run with over 250 episodes. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to ask him about his gaming journey and his experience with Vagrus:

We’re delighted to share one of Varnurud’s more inhospitable locales with you this week: Flamescar Cavern. “Delighted to show us something inhospitable?” you might ask. Well yes, because the Cavern itself represents a site of both danger and opportunity. A mere glance at its confines makes clear why so few dare to brave its interwoven passages and caves.

This week we’re bringing you a glimpse of what some might consider slithering death. It is the Salamander, one of At the Heart of Ruin’s many new enemies. Just coming into contact with one would terrify even the most stalwart souls, as the look of malice in their eyes is inescapable, and their speed, cunning, and fiery abilities make them formidable opponents in battle.

This week we’re gracing your web browsers and social media feeds with another teaser of our upcoming DLC. These characters belong to another gang that will attack you outright, for the Raptors are hardly a sane bunch. Most follow a descendent of their mysterious leader, who stumbled upon a rogue Wyvern and believed it to be the remains of a divine creature of the skies. In their quest for meaning and purpose, the followers of this founder – considered by many to be blessed – sought to imitate these creatures and themselves become ascendant and escape their earthbound existence.

New or Updated Features

• You can now double-click to move on the campaign map.
• Revamped key bindings: defaults have been changed to be more intuitive and grouped by topics or UI categories, and new hotkeys have been added.
• The Leadership Perk “Command” has been reworked: it now unlocks all advanced Crew Combat actions passively and when Resourcefulness is spent, it raises Combat Strength and Defense by 15% as well as turns Critical Failure rolls to Failure.
• The effects of multiple “Terrifying” Perks no longer stack. Stacking caused Skills that target multiple positions with characters with the Perk to be close to useless.
• You can now butcher Beasts and Mounts directly at your Outpost instead of having to move them to the comitatus.
• You no longer lose Mounts when Fighters leave you during Events (ie. Outriders do not take their Mounts) for narrative reasons.

After last week’s feedback round-up, the bulk of the team has been focusing on delivering the quality of life (QoL) changes we spoke of roughly two weeks ago, which by now include a great deal of things. Among the most important of these is the ability to move on the campaign map by double-clicking and the extra information players will be able to view on their Companions’ character panes about Skills and summoned creatures.