Seven Sages is an LGBTQIA inclusive, story driven RPG, set in ancient 3rd century China. Seven Sages was in the research phase of development from January of 2011, until the concept phase began in January of 2015.

Our game is based on a true story that has been partially fictionalized to include a rich overlay of current issues facing the LGBTQIA community. Seven Sages offers a thoughtful and sensitive portrayal of characters that have meaningful stories and experiences of interest to our community and allies.

In a time of great social upheaval the Seven Sages fought for peace. They spoke out against oppression and disharmony. The Sages didn’t believe in solving problems with violence, but when they were left with no other choice each was a master in the art of Wushu.

They became so popular that they were called to travel from town to town, sharing their music, reciting poetry and speaking on the principals of Taoism. Taoism was a way of being more than it was a religion, unlike its counterpart Confucianism that had many rules and restrictions.

The expansion of the Zhao Empire meant constant warring and a bloody death for countless soldiers. The impending threat of attack required an oppressive military rule over Sima Zhao’s kingdom. Eventually Sima’s people began to rebel. Whole towns and clans began to rise up in opposing camps.

Once reasonable men showed quickness to anger, which erupted into battles between muscles and blades. They called out the names of their Gods and Goddesses to champion and protect them. But more and more died each day and people became very afraid.

With curfews in effect at dusk, no one dared to travel very far. To brave those roads at night you needed great luck and skill. However it became clear that something far more sinister than Sima Zhao was at work. At night animals that were once timid became strangely vicious, and could smell a man’s scent from miles away. Many mauled bodies could be found once the light of day returned. But truly it was wild men that were the biggest threat.

A 3D turn-based role-playing game with a mix of stealth action, turn based battle, (Wu Wei) passivity - no kill options, dungeon crawling, engaging puzzles, and story driven missions.

• Find, manage, and take independent control of each of the Seven Sages.
• Collect the 7 Spectral Orbs to return the rightful balance to nature.
• Upgrade your private retreat in the Bamboo Groves with useful tools and comforts.
• Walk your own path of enlightenment and growth through the words you choose when interacting with characters in the game. You are given 3 choices in conversation. Whether you ask a question, make a statement, or choose a response, each of these has positive, negative, or neutral points attached to them that are recorded in your Enlightenment Journal. Depending on your Ignorance - Enlightenment status some interactions, dialogue, and options will either become available or unavailable
• Increase your fame or infamy with the actions you choose. The Infamy–Fame gauge is part of your Enlightenment Journal. Based on actions you choose such as: stealing from inside homes or palaces, killing non-hostile characters, performing skilfully in public appearances, and helping injured animals and people, you score either Infamy or Fame Points. Depending on your Fame – Infamy status some interactions, dialogue, and options will either become available or unavailable.
• Battle individuals or groups of enemies in Final Fantasy XII style turn-based combat.
• Or complete the game using (Wu Wei) Passivity Skills like stealth, bribing, pacifying, levitation and invisibility to score the no kill bonus. There are also passive enchantments and items to help you if you choose this path.
• Storm Procedurally generated dungeons with both fixed and randomized loot.
• Overland travel- visit Chinese natural wonders, new cities, palaces, and dungeons, search ruins and find hidden places of interest.
• More than 40 enemy types, each with unique skills and attacks that require different tactical approaches and evasion skills.
• Play sixteen story driven missions and side quests.

• Collect common and rare materials to create 18 different weapons, armours, and types of jewelry. There are 3 different levels of quality. And they can be fused with 7 different varieties of enchanted gemstones for endless variations in an elegant Smithing and Crafting system.
• Forage the wilds and mine for alchemical ingredients to create precious metals and more than 30 different potions, poisons, elixirs, and acid, flash, gas or smoke vials.
• Brew and distil beer, wine, and spirits to let off steam at night and inspire great works of art, or collect psychedelic plants and trip the cosmos as you meditate on deep Taoist ideas.
• Master the skill of whistling to communicate with animals and possibly summon their help in battle when they are nearby.
• Practice different spells and enchantments by finding scrolls, learning from enemies in battle, purchasing them in shops, or installing enchanted gems into weapons.
• Bribe human enemies when in battle with money, items, weapons, armour, or jewellery and reach an acceptable agreement or they will resume attack when the Bribe Screen is closed.
• Monitor your Chi Gauge in battle and refill it with Chi Elixirs or at Chi Fountains to ensure you have enough magic to complete an Enchanted Weapon Attack or an Incantation. Chi fountains cannot be seen by the naked eye and are only detectable by Ivy (Animal Sidekick)
• Collect crystal orbs and use each one a random number of times to divine where hidden areas, people of interest, or the general vicinity of key items may lie, or smash one to find your way with a Vapour Compass for a short period of time.
• Acquire enchanted and non-enchanted musical instruments and scrolls of music that when played have different magical effects and powers.
• Raise, train, and care for your Animal Sidekick, a black Chow named Ivy. She can sometimes find hidden items, intimidate certain enemies, fight in battle, or even smell gold and silver. Also Ivy is the only being able to sense Chi Fountains, which are not visible to the human eye.
• Be careful to maintain your caravan and oxen and set up camp in the wilds when needed by collecting hay, wood, resin, flint, food, and water. When traveling by caravan your oxen’s health and energy level will dictate the length of a day’s journey.
• When encountering lakes and streams go fishing for food and sometimes find lost items that have been forgotten by time. Hunt with bow and arrow for other animals you need to feed your team. Forage for plants, vegetables, and fruit to stay healthy.
• Practice makes perfect. Before performances learn the song you plan to sing and practice so that when you’re on stage you can match the key with your directional pad or keyboard’s arrows and show off that star quality that everyone loves so much. • Travel to over 30 historical & fictional sites, cities, villages, and natural destinations.

• Earn money and items by matching tiles in a solitaire version of the ancient Chinese game Mah-jong (Memory) or play a no stakes game just for fun. (Adult version may have regular or sexually charged, but artful, images behind the Mah-jong Board)
• Challenge one of the Sages or NPC’s to play the traditional Chinese strategy game Chū (often called GO!, Reversi, or Othello) to earn respect and influence others, or to earn money and items. You can also play a no stakes game just for fun.
• Ask others to play a game of Huoquan or (Rock, paper, Scissors) to solve disagreements or delegate duties fairly amongst the Sages.
• Being a musician requires a good memory! Repeat the notes that a musician plays on their instrument in a gradually more complicated pattern (often called Simon) to win more and more valuable items and larger sums of money.
• Slide the randomized tiles of ancient stone carvings around to complete the picture and unlock doors, and hidden passages. (Adult version may have regular or sexually charged, but artful, images behind the puzzle)
• Activate the text input screen and solve riddles to impress others, proceed past blockades and sharpen your mental abilities.

Sima Zhao

In an age long ago the king of a central realm in China and his giant armies had succeeded at taking over many neighbouring provinces. His name was Sima Zhao. The cost of life to Sima's armies was great. Many died and villages became the sole responsibility of the mothers, children, and elderly who stayed behind.

King Zhao’s taxation for the war effort was painful and poverty began to affect the lives of the villagers. His people pleaded in court for relief but King Zhao wouldn’t yield. Everyone knew what was on his mind. He would sit as the Supreme Emperor of a unified China at any cost.

The Seven Sages

Ruan Ji - was raised solely by his mother. His father died when he was only four. He was considered one of the most gifted poets of his time, a skilled musician and singer, with an odd talent for whistling. He was often accused of being a mad man as many disagreed with his belief that the only way to achieve peace was through self-acceptance and equality with all things. He was a great lover of wine, the tranquillity of nature, and he always had his nose in a book. Ruan was also a talented alchemist. His most famous quote is “Are there any rituals for man like I am?”

Xi Kang - was considered one of the greatest thinkers of his time. He wrote many pieces of music on different instruments for the Sages. He was known for his soaring epics on the Zither. His love of “the black resin of Bharata (India)” and “the green leaf of Bharata” was said to help inspire his genius as a composer. Xi was highly critical of Confucianism and therefore was seen by traditionalists as a scandalous militant. Despite this his sense of humour and connection to the common man made him an easy choice as a gracious host for the Sage’s performances. He believed peace and unity was achievable through the abolishment of ignorance when followed by empathy.

Ruan Xian - invented a guitar like instrument called a Pipa (later named the Ruan after him) and was said to be such a talented musician his understanding was divine in nature. He often felt very isolated as a child due to the affluence of his family and their class and turned to music for companionship. He was considered to be reckless and a thrill seeker and enjoyed nude cliff diving immensely. He never ate meat and maintained very tight control over his use of mind-expanding substances and alcohol, but his enjoyment of “other pleasures” was said to consume him.

Wang Rong - was a master of the Erhu. (2 stringed violin) He was an avid nudist and alchemist. He created many psychedelic and mind altering substances that the Sages used to commune with nature, the spirit world, and each other. He was said to be conservative with money as he was responsible for handling the financial affairs of the Sages. He was anything but conservative in love though, as he believed strongly in polyamory (free love) and saw it as an effective way to connect to the spiritual world, one another, and to heal the soul.

Shan Tao - was a master of horn and winded instruments. He was said to be longwinded in speech as well, and leaned towards being prideful. He had the distinctly useful talent of navigating politics and royalty with ease, which provided the Sages with some protection. His ambition and materialism made him unpopular with the Sages at times. His only escape from a busy mind was his love of alcohol and opium. Though he professed a strong attraction to women, it wasn’t often returned due to his negative attitudes about them. His formidable tactical skills made him invaluable to the Sages in battle.

Xiang Xiu - was a non-conformist in dangerous times, often writing scathing commentaries on the state of the world and its leaders. Xiang used clever (if sometimes too dangerously thin) allegory to disguise the words true meaning when writing. Often seen as kooky and anti-social, Xiang spent a lot of time in quiet contemplation and thoroughly enjoyed psychedelics. Xiang had an uncanny ability to feel the thoughts of animals and people whose minds were in great chaos. Xiang played percussion instruments for the Sages and was known to wield the Liuxing (meteor hammer) with ease due to having astonishing upper-body strength.

Liu Ling - was an unwisely avid lover of wine and beer despite being cursed by terrible hangovers. The only thing he loved more was taking naps. He had a deep appreciation for the beauty in nature. Though he was not gifted with beauty himself people were often drawn to him because of his irreverence and humour. He valued nudism in both the physical and spiritual sense. His honesty sometimes shocked those around him. But he was a truly gifted poet and benevolent man, helping anyone who was in distress. His skills with alchemy and medicine made him useful to the many people in need that the Sages encountered. He spoke on Taoist philosophy and was a comedian when the Sages performed.

Ivy (Playable) - was a noble black Chow with mystical abilities. Ruan and Xi raised her from the time she was a puppy. Their bond with her was so strong they could often read her mind. A guard dog has no time for mating and as such she preferred the company of other females of her species. She was a fierce protector and could intimidate most anyone or anything, and would attack when provoked.

Olin Li (Playable) - was a lover of controversy and beautiful things. Olin had a bad habit of gossiping but she always knew the score before anyone else. She was a talented designer of fashion clothing and made the Sage’s stage costumes. She had an endearing open way about her and as a minor sorceress she was able to weave minor glamour spells.

Anqi Sheng (Non-Playable) - was a deity considered to be the creator of the elixir of life, which granted immortality to anyone who drank it. Anqi Sheng lived on Mount Penglai in a crystal palace forever surrounded by clouds. Able to change their appearances at will, Anqi Sheng was assumed to be male, but very rare depictions show Anqi as both female and male.

The Hare of Mount Penglai (Non-Playable) - was the final line of defense to protect the treasures of Mount Penglai. He had a very dark sense of humour and was said to send men to their death by kicking them off the cliffs of the mountain. Some believe he went mad with only Anqi Sheng to keep him company, as they often went centuries without speaking.

Tashi Tenzin (Playable) - or “Ta-tee” was a dutiful servant girl to the matriarch of her people. She almost never spoke but when she did her wisdom often betrayed her age. Trained in the ancient traditions of her culture she was as exact with her words as she was with a weapon.

The Opal Dragon (Non-Playable) - was said to prefer the love of older human men. Able to change shape at will the Opal Dragon could assume human and animal forms, and even hold the shape of an inanimate object for a short time.

 Weapons Come in 3 Different Classes

• Weapons of the Sage are frequently found, of fair quality, and have a single Gem Enchantment socket.
• Weapons of the Animal Kingdom (E.g. Staff of the Wild Bear) are less commonly found, of high quality, and have multiple Gem Enchantment sockets. Between 2-4
• Weapons of the Immortals are rarely found, of exquisite quality, and come with unique powerful enchantments built in but almost never have Gem Enhancement sockets.

18 Different Weapon Varieties

• Dao - a single-edged sword
• Qiang - a simple spear with short or long handle
• Blow Darts
• Ji - a dagger halberd
• Axe
• Great Axe - a two sided blade with long handle
• Hook Sword - paired swords with hooks at the handle
• Sanchai Ji - a three pronged spear with long handle (Trident)
• Pu Dao - a long-handled sabre
• Staff
• Sling Shot
• Club
• Bow & Arrows
• ¾ Quarter Staff - 3 short staffs connected by chain with grip
• Mace
• Pole Pick - Long handled with a sharp tapered spike at the end
• Guai - right angle handled short staffs used in pairs
• Liuxing - (Meteor hammer) a bludgeoning ball attached to chain, can be single or double ended

7 Different Types of Gem Enchantment

• Installing a single gem will empower a weapon with a spell from that class. (E.g. Fire Enchantment) Its variation and strength are based on your character’s level.
• When installing multiple gems into a weapon be cautious when mixing enchantments of an opposing nature.
• You may achieve a highly powerful weapon or the enchantments may nullify themselves, destroying the gems and leaving the weapon without magic.
• Installing multiple gems of the same type will increase damage caused by that weapon.
• Once a gem is installed you must pay to have it removed by a Gemsmith at a forge and risk damaging the gem, the weapon, or both to retrieve it.

Gems

 Ruby - Fire Enchantments - Harness the power of fire to cast spells like “Fireball” “Wall of Fire” and “Heavenly Fire”

 Sapphire - Water Enchantments - Harness the power of water to cast spells like “Rainmaker” “Flash Flood” and “Torrential Downpour”

 Diamond - Ice Enchantments - Harness the power of ice to cast spells like “Frozen” “Icy Spike” and “Deadly Hail”

 Emerald - Thunder Enchantments - Harness the power of thunder and lightning to cast spells like “Lightening Blast” “Thunderbolt” and “Chain Lightening”

 Jade - Holy Enchantments - Harness the power of the divine to cast spells like “Levitation” “Invisibility” ”Summon Shou-Hsing (Freeze Time)” and “Benevolence”

 Alexandrite - Vampiric & Poison Enchantments - Harness the powers of emission and absorption to cast spells like “Chi Zuo (Life drain)” and “Mao Gu (emit poison)”

 Black Pearl - Dark Enchantments - Harness the power of Diyu (Hell) to cast spells like “Enslave” “Chi Dao (Steal Life)” and “Hellfire”

Armour and Jewellery Come in 3 Different Classes

• Armour and Jewellery of the Sage are frequently found, of fair quality, and have a single Gem Enchantment socket.
• Armour and Jewellery of the Animal Kingdom (E.g. Ring of the Phoenix) are less commonly found, of high quality, and have multiple Gem Enchantment sockets.
• Armour and Jewellery of the Immortals are rarely found, of exquisite quality, and come with unique powerful enchantments built in but almost never have Gem Enchantment sockets.

List of Armour & Jewellery

• Sandals, Clogs & Boots
• Neiyiku (underwear), Pants, & Robes
• Belts, Scarves, Sashes, & Capes
• Gloves, Knuckles, & Cuffs
• Pins
• Rings
• Bracelets
• Necklaces
• Jiu Tao (Bun covers), Circlets, & Crowns

Characters Evolve in 3 Different Ways Throughout the Game.

1. The Enlightenment Journal - The journal has two sections that are represented by two gauges. Each gauge has an activity log of how you choose to respond to significant moments during gameplay.

• The first gauge is your Ignorance - Enlightenment Gauge. It keeps track of negative, positive, and neutral points that are earned and deducted based on the dialogue interactions you have with other characters. To advance in this area requires a thoughtful approach to what values you wish to embody and what you choose to say within the game world. Filling up your enlightenment gauge will cause your character to level up with higher Enlightenment Points required each level.
• The second gauge is your Infamy – Fame Gauge. It keeps track of negative, positive, and neutral points that are earned and deducted based on the actions you take within the game world. To advance in this area don’t steal from or harm non-hostile characters unless you want to be considered a badass. Conversely don’t act with empathy or benevolence unless you wish to be thought of as someone people can come to for help. Achieving complete Fame or Infamy may level up/down your character.

2. Weapons, Armour, and Jewellery - As the game progresses the weapons, armour and jewellery you find or create will increase in effectiveness. To strip yourself of equips would leave you largely defenceless and weak.

• Found and purchased Weapons Armour and Jewellery can only be equipped when you achieve the Experience Level required to use them.
• Created Weapons Armour and Jewellery increase in effectiveness in two ways. First your character’s experience level determines the level of enchantment you are able to manifest (E.g. Fireball @ Lv. 1 – Heavenly Fire @ Lv. 20) but you will randomly create weapons beyond your experience level now and then. Second the number of Gem Enchantments installed for a weapon will affect how powerful it is.

3. Battle & Passivity Experience - There are 4 skill sub-categories for Battle Exp. and 4 for Passivity Exp.

• Fill all the gauges in either of the Battle or the Passivity skillsets and your character will Level up.
• With each Character Exp. Level increase, the amount of points required to fill your battle and passivity gauges will increase.

Battles unfold in a hybrid of real time and turn based battle, using a system called "Active Dimension Battle" A battle begins when the party comes within range of a hostile enemy, if the party attacks an enemy, or if a story event initiates a confrontation.

When a character or enemy begins to perform an action, target lines connect the player to enemies or the reverse, with blue target lines emitting from the player and red lines emitting from the enemy.

The player may issue commands from the next Sage in formation in between turns, otherwise the previous programmed attack will repeat until the enemy dies or the player does. If an item is selected during a turn the action will be repeated until all stock of the selected item is used or a new command is given. Party formation can be strategically ordered from the same menu during battle every second turn and anytime outside of battle.

Battle commands are initiated through a series of menus, and include Physical Attacks, Magic Attacks, Evasive or Passive Actions, and Items. It should be noted that attacks completed by Ivy (Animal Sidekick) are controlled by Artificial Intelligence and are based on her Anger Gauge. During any turn the main character Ruan’s whistling ability can be activated to summon other animal assistance based on which tune is chosen. Summoned animals are controlled by Artificial Intelligence and their attacks are based on their Anger Gauge. (Anger Points increase equally to the strength of attack when the Sages take damage)

The player may switch the order of characters every second turn, unless the active character is targeted by an attack or ability. Characters who are knocked out are automatically substituted by the next Sage in the party formation with a game over / replay battle screen resulting when there is no one left conscious.

There are 4 Action Categories that can be Chosen While in Active Battle

1. Physical Attacks - All corporeal enemies are damaged by physical attacks.

• Weapon strikes come in 3 varieties. Thrust, Slash, and Spin.
• Quan Strikes (Hand & Foot) come in 6 varieties. Punch, Knife Hand, Palm Thrust, Sweep Kick, Side Kick, and Tornado Kick.

2. Magical Attacks - All corporeal and non-corporeal enemies are vulnerable to specific elemental attacks. (E.g. Fire based enemies are most vulnerable to water attacks)

• Critical strikes can be achieved by defining the weakness of a given enemy and choosing opposing elemental attacks.
• Magical attacks use a defined amount of Chi from your Chi Gauge based on the strength of that attack. The Chi Gauge can be refilled with Chi Elixirs or at Chi Fountains.

3. (Wu Wei) Passive Actions - Besides using stealth outside of battle to avoid detection and the Flee Command in battle to escape there are 6 “Passive Actions” that can be chosen to avoid killing humans and animals.

• Levitation - Cast a levitation spell to rise above battle and keep yourself out of harm’s way. Your experience level determines the duration of this spell.
• Invisibility - Cast an invisibility spell to hide from enemies or navigate around them without alerting them to your presence. Invisibility spells will only work when fleeing from battle if you get far enough away from your enemy not to hear your footsteps.
• Summon Shou-Hsing (Freeze Time) - You may cast this spell once per Exp. Level and the Chinese God Shou-Hsing will grant you the power to stop time for a duration based upon that level
• Benevolence - Show mercy to your foes by casting the benevolence spell which creates an invisible shield that protects you from damage and activates dialogue options. Based on the words you choose you may succeed or fail in pacifying your enemy for a limited duration of time, but make sure to get out of sight before the effect wears off.
• Bribe - Some human enemies can be bribed with money, items, weapons, armour, or jewellery. Barter with them to reach an acceptable agreement or they will resume attack when the Bribe screen is closed.
• Knock out - Use your stealth skills to sneak up behind human and animal enemies to knock them out cold but leave them alive to fight another day.

4. Items - The main focus of using items in battle is on the familiar health potions, a variety of poisons, and elixirs.

THIS KICKSTARTER IS TO ACQUIRE $50K IN FUNDING, TO PRODUCE A PLAYABLE DEMO (PROOF-OF-CONCEPT) FOR THE FIRST LEVEL OF THE GAME

 A mere 3% of Kickstarter Campaigns succeed without a playable demo or “Proof of Concept” work. We are the first LGBTQIA project to make a serious attempt at levelling the playing field. Help us bring equality to the gaming industry by contributing today!

Our idea is revolutionary, beautiful, socially conscious, timely and well conceived. We whole-heartedly believe it to be worthy of making it to market.

CHOOSE YOUR AWESOME REWARDS!

A Steam code for the PC release, Exclusive PC beta access, DLC forum 

 Complete Seven Sages PIANO COLLECTIONS Soundtrack.

 Exclusive Physical Character Poster

 Everything above, plus: Exclusive Access to PC Alpha release. Exclusive Uncensored version of the PC release (Upon Age Verification). 

 Everything above, plus an Exclusive Character T-Shirt

Voicemail greeting or other short audio message you choose by one of our voice actors or actresses

Create an NPC of yourself that people will interact with in the Seven Sages world

 High Quality Exclusive Mini-figurines

Help us bring equality to game culture in a profitable, profound, and trailblazing way.