All ideas appearing in this work are marginally cliché. Any resemblance to other Projects, current or dead, is purely coincidental.
This is the story of one woman, the intricate details of her undeserved rise to fame, and her slow descent from grace. Praefectus Evelia Quintana, the highest ranked General of Gaspania who has dedicated her very life to the Queen and all of her ambitions finds herself deeply troubled when she returns, after a long absence, only to discover that the throne is empty and it has remained so for the last five years that she has been away. When no one can answer her over the whereabouts of the Queen or how the country has been held together so long without a ruling monarch after just winning a war against its people, Evelia takes it upon herself to investigate the matter. However, she is not prepared for the things about to be revealed to her that will effect the very fate of the entire country; all the while she is haunted by her past and the dark history of the royal family of Gaspania.
These are the main characters the player will have access to controlling throughout the game, though the supporting cast is quite extensive including 90% of the models included with the RTP and others that are edits thereof.
Name: Evelia Quintana
Age: 35
Height: 5'8" (173 cm)
Weight: 136 lbs (62 kg)
Zodiac: Capricorn
Birthplace: Arcias
Weapon: Sword & Shield
Class: Praefectus
Personality: Evelia is disciplined, responsible, and serious, but she can be reserved, condescending, and finds it hard to open up to others.
Biography: As the leading general of the most powerful army in the entire world and personal guard to the royal family, Evelia has clawed her way up from a life of poverty to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the most notable names of Gaspania, in a position that is normally reserved for nobles.
Name: Noemi Pascal
Age: 18
Height: 5"2" (157 cm)
Weight: 118 lbs (54 kg)
Zodiac: Virgo
Birthplace: Lampont
Weapon: Staff
Class: Aedilis
Personality: Noemi is modest, compassionate, and reliable, but she can be gullible, oblivious, and a worrier.
Biography: An orphaned young lady who has lived her entire life in one of Gaspania's poorest villages, studying medicine and tending to the other orphaned children there. Her life changed completely one day when the Praefectus suddenly appeared in Lampont, and after some time together took the young girl away from the life she had been living.
Name: Genevieve Cavanaugh
Age: 21
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
Weight: 124 lbs (56 kg)
Zodiac: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Foubrecque
Weapon: Claymore
Class: Princeps
Personality: Genevieve is honest, straightforward, and has a strong sense of justice, but she can be tactless, irresponsible, and rambunctious.
Biography: Born into a noble family known for their military prowess, Genevieve has a talent with a claymore that many of common nobility envy. She has idolized the legendary Lady Evelia ever since she was a very young girl and has made an attempt to follow in her footsteps by joining the Royal Army.
Name: Marion Dietrich
Age: 24
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
Weight: 130 lbs (59 kg)
Zodiac: Pisces
Birthplace: Edulach
Weapon: Dagger
Class: Veles
Personality: Marion is attentive, composed, and intelligent, but she can be pessimistic, sullen, and untrusting of others.
Biography: Originally a foreigner to Gaspania, Marion has been taken in under the wing of the sovereign country, never straying far from the capital city for fear of the Gaspanian commoner and what they think of her kind. She is the last of a dragon-like race that can take human form known as the Nichthein, because of this her life is protected under royal decree.
Set in the most powerful country of the known world, Gaspania, it is the year 392 A.P. (Ateleiotos Pali - "Unending Strife" - so named by the Order of Euphium), and they have entered into a time of peace despite the monsters that roam the countryside and a civil war that ended just five years prior. Gaspania has ruled for hundreds of years knowing nothing but good fortune. What started as a small kingdom in the northwestern region of the continent has taken over the entire landmass, from the frigid north to the arid south all that is on the western continent belongs to Gaspania. The eastern continent, home to other prominant but much weaker kingdoms, dare not even look to the west in fear of offending the massive kingdom, though it's people have been known to emigrate from there, pooling at the south of the Gaspania as unwanted refugees - a people without a country.
The Order of Euphium
A sect that has been watching over Gaspania since it's inception. Situated at the center of the continent, it has remained aloof from the passage of time and the happenings of the growing country around it for hundreds of years. It's members are comprised of a people not native to the country and view the people of Gaspania as nothing more than "mongrels" not even fit to rule over themselves. As such, they dictate many things behind the scenes, unknown to much of the populace.
The Thaumaturgy Campaign (370 A.P. - 374 A.P.)
Leocadia does not make the details known of her prior relationship to the King, but she does reveal the existence of a world beyond their own: one that needs to be made whole with the world they know by the breaking of a seal known as the "Arcana Veil". The endeavor to do such becomes known as the Working of Miracles Campaign or "The Thaumatugy Campaign". Once the fabric in reality is torn two things happen simultaneously: the use of magic becomes possible within all living beings on the western continent and magical beasts along with other sentient beings that had been living quietly in the parallel world either retaliate violently or go into hiding.
Three years pass before anyone sees an official make a public statement on the matter of the campaign. The Royal Army has done away with as many of the menacing beasts as it could, but some prove to be too resilient to be done away with entirely. The King has all but disappeared from public view, something the people of Gaspania are not too unfamiliar with, as being ruled over a monarchy without a face had become something they were used to. The Queen is left to her own devices so over the next three years she takes it upon herself to send aide across the country to clean up the mess that has been made, little by little a very clear vision begins forming in her mind of a better future for Gaspania.
The Sunset War (380 A.P. - 387 A.P.)
When the Queen publicly anounces her plan for a "better Gaspania", having gathered every prominent official throughout the country, it is met with complete outrage and revulsion. A country where much weaker women would have more rights than men who were far stronger would become second class citizens was unacceptable the officials clearly explain, but when the Queen refuses to listen to their rebuttal the result is a civil war that lasts seven years and shakes Gaspania to its very core. Because it has the potential to change the very function of the country itself, bringing everything Gaspania knows to an end, it becomes known as the "Sunset War" that started with the simple words, "I vow to never see another woman suffer again".
A deep, romantic, classical RPG storyline: you are playing as Evelia and learning how you have and how you continue to influence the lives of those around you in a true fantasy-medieval setting. 100% original music by various artists, no reconstituted game or retail music. Crisp, clean menus: organize your skills and items, and learn more about them through more than just the help texts, descriptions will be attached to each and every selection, including the ability to view states and their descriptions. An intuitive battle system featuring OriginalWij's Rear-view Interactive Battle System, not only will you have to worry about hitting your mark on the Judgement Ring for characters with varying Ring Speed based on their individual personalities, but understanding enemies' strengths and weaknesses will play a large role in both your run-of-the-mill battles and major bosses. Monitor your party's health not only through HP and MP bars, but through changing facial expressions that also include being afflicted with certain states. Enemies that wander on-screen: tilt the battle in your favor or against you, surprise and be surprised by them, meet them head on, or avoid them completely. A unique equipment system: equip more than what the default system allows and learn to rely on a myriad of accessories and equipment that will mean victory or demise against more complicated enemies. Sidequests that teach you more about the world of Gaspania, your party members, and even the story behind minor characters while rewarding extra items, skills, and equipment. A choose-your-destination world map, so you won't have to spend time walking between place to place once you've unlocked new areas. Explore detailed maps of elegant cities and natural dungeons: swamp, forest, desert, beach and much more all in an effort to reveal the mysteries of The Seventh Castle.
(Warning: Outdated. Keeping temporarily as samples for Menu/Font/World Map/Materials Style)Currently, this is a compilation of Screenshots from a technical demo, so they will be small, a little uniform, and a bit sparse. They are here to show the general mapping style I will be using in official maps, comments and critiques are welcome even though these are just samples. (The World Map, Menu Scene, and Battle Scene designs will carry over to the official release.)
I have always felt RTP characters do not get enough credit as resources you can use in a serious story, so I started this project around this time last year, to show that they can be used enjoyably in more than just first time trial projects and parodies. The story that I have written out for these characters is wholly based on impressions of the character designs and things I felt went unaddressed in most other people's projects such as the use of strong female archetypes and a solid storyline where the black and white nature of good and evil fades into shades of gray. Even though it has been some time since I began thinking up this project, taking my time with it has helped me to find scripts, fixes, and other resources I would have otherwise missed out on. Now I feel I am ready to share my project but that it still needs quite a bit more work before it is finished. I have made a few technical demos but only just recently started work on eventing, mapping and filling in the database for the official game. Though I am happy to say, the story and scripting are 100% complete and the graphics 75%, but I am still trying to decide between regular or parallax mapping.
Cozziekuns, IceDragon, Jet, Modern Algebra, OriginalWij, and Rajawali for helping me out with requests and fixes that went towards the unveiling of this Project. (Official Credits for everyone will be found at the end of the Game.)
Please do not ask in the thread, leave me a PM and I will get back to you. I am interested in people who are familiar with VX and will have constructive criticism on the direction of the project, use of resources, mapping, battle system, and errors that might pop up.
If you like this Project and would like to support it, please put this in your Signature. Any support is very much appreciated. ^^
[url="http://forums.rpgmakerweb.com/index.php?/topic/360-the-seventh-castle/"][img]http://i978.photobucket.com/albums/ae262/SevenKalmia/The%20Seventh%20Castle/TSCUserbarNEW.png[/img][/url]
*In a number of packages: With or Without the RTP, and With or Without the BGM folder.
**Actually, the Project is still Under Heavy Construction! ><;
This game is suitable for ages 13 and older.
Contains: violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, and infrequent use of strong language.
Edited by Archeia_Nessiah, 29 April 2012 - 07:21 AM.
