In The Broken Hourglass, players control an ordinary citizen of Mal Nassrin, fading star of the Tolmiran Empire. The city is under siege by some unexplained and unidentified magical force--no one may enter or leave, and the city's water supply has been reduced to a trickle. Caught in a devastating explosion which obliterates a large area of the city, you begin the game as a recuperating refugee caught up among an eager group of vigilantes and makeshift militiamen hoping to put the city to rights before complete chaos takes hold.