Description

Rack and Ruin is a game where players create a party of characters represented by 25mm-35mm fantasy miniatures. 2-4 players then pit their parties against each other in an attempt to win the battle, loot the table and build the greatest legacy.

There are three main aspects to playing Rack and Ruin. The first is party creation. A party consists of four characters and any followers a player chooses to add. Each character is created based on one of the hero miniatures the player chose to use. Heroes are built much like characters in a role-playing game, with attributes, skills, traits and gear. Among the most often used traits are the follower traits. Depending on how many trait choices a hero is given a follower can be an assistant or a powerful beast.

A game begins by players rolling for which of the eight scenarios they will be playing. Depending on the scenario each player is given a number of terrain points with which they can customize the table. A game has at least five rounds, at the end of round 5, and each turn after, one of the players will roll to see if the game ends. At the beginning of each round players roll for initiative. The player that wins initiative takes his or her turn. During a player's turn each member of his or her party may take one action. Examples of actions include Sprint, Charge, Cast a Spell, and Searching Terrain. Searching, combat and some hero traits give a party victory points, the party with the most victory points wins the game.

Finally, once a game has come to an end players roll to determine the treasure they have picked up, if any of their miniatures take permanent injuries, and collect experience for their heroes. Once all that is settled players take turns having a miniature in their party take an out of game action. Examples of out of game action include selling unwanted items, creating items, ritual spells and completing quests found during game play. Completing quests, winning games, hoarding treasure and a few other actions adds to a party's legacy.
Legacy is the ultimate determining factor in winning a campaign.