Sun Tzu's Art of War — The Lost Chapter

Sun Tzu's Art of War — The Lost Chapter is a tactile adventure where the story unfolds through artifacts, research notes, police files, and a memoir. Step into 1930s Shanghai, piece the clues together, and solve the mystery behind a lost piece of history: a hidden chapter of The Art of War.

Present-day Shanghai. In a 1930s garden villa that houses the Belgian Consulate, an old desk is sent down to the archives room. While shifting it into place and repairing a loose panel, the archivist triggers a hidden mechanism and uncovers a long-forgotten Evidence Dispatch Bag. Intrigued, he spends the night examining its contents. 

Before dawn, sleep overtakes him. His head resting on one forearm. The main dossier folder lies half-open, unconsciously pushed a little toward the visitor’s chair on the other side of the desk.

A visitor enters and finds the archivist asleep. The folder is slightly open and within easy reach. Unable to resist curiosity, the visitor gently draws the dossier closer. The pages begin to turn.

That visitor is you.

Invitation to travel

You step into a secret investigation that begins in 1930s Shanghai—where a quiet circle of scholars is accused of plotting rebellion—and unfolds into a hunt for something impossible: a “fourteenth” chapter hidden beyond the thirteen that history remembers.

In 1939, Shanghai police intercept cryptic correspondence from a group of collectors and historians meeting on Foochow Road, and the case file is sent to the Belgian Consulate for approval. A young secretary named Agathe is ordered to summarize the evidence overnight—only to realize the main suspect is her former professor, and that the wrong conclusion could destroy him.

Sun Tzu said all warfare is deception. This investigation is built the same way.

Our secret ingredients

Self-contained  

Immersion is at the heart of everything we design. That is why our hint and solution system stays inside the world of the game.  Through Agathe’s Memoir, you follow her steps through 1930s Shanghai as she records what she sees and understands. Read slowly, return to the clues, and come back when you need more help or the solution at the end of the chapter.  It does not feel like using a hint system. It feels like continuing the story.

Based on real events

How do you solve the case

• By opening documents that seem ordinary at first
• Noticing strange links between separate objects
• Handling artifacts that ask to be explored
• Spotting messages hidden in plain sight
• Piecing fragments together
• Making deductions
• Breaking codes

Play alone or with a group. Follow the trail your way.

The Story

Reward tiers

Notes

• Please note that the images shown here are from the prototype version of the game, and the final production copy may differ slightly in appearance.
• All physical items listed in each pledge will be included. However, some ephemera items may be replaced with different paper pieces of similar purpose.
• Certain details, including colors, size, shape, and materials, may also change during production to improve the overall experience and to better serve the narrative.

How to Play the Mystery Adventure

Do not expect to sit down and finish this in one sitting. Clear your table. Make coffee. This is going to take a while.

There is no traditional rulebook. You investigate the case exactly the way Agathe did. Read the memoir. Cross-reference the documents. Decode the physical evidence box.

Each chapter draws you deeper into the archive, until the number "14" stops being a coincidence and becomes a message designed to survive time, censorship, and war.

Luzhanqi - Military Chess

Play, Pack and Pass it

You do not need to alter or destroy anything while playing. This is an investigation, after all, and you do not want to destroy the evidence.

Once you are done, simply pack the bag back up and pass it on, or keep it in your collection.

Last 48 hours

Shipping

Shipping, VAT, and taxes, where applicable, will be charged after the campaign ends.

After the campaign, you will receive a survey through the Pledge Manager to confirm your shipping details. Once those details are collected, we will calculate your exact shipping cost and request the corresponding amount.

Estimated shipping costs for the Adventurer tier, excluding VAT and taxes:

• USA (contiguous): US$ 35
• UK: US$ 35
• EU ZONE 1: US$ 35
• EU ZONE 2: US$ 45
• CANADA: US$ 45
• AUSTRALIA: US$ 35

Shipping rates for some regions are still to be confirmed and will depend on the number of backers in those areas.

These figures are estimates only and may change.

EU Zone 1: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain

EU Zone 2: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden

Exact rates for all supported countries will be provided in the Pledge Manager.

Timeline

• 15 May 2026 — Kickstarter ends
• End of May 2026 — Funds received from Kickstarter
• June to July 2026 — Design development
• August 2026 — Final design and pre-production
• September to November 2026 — Manufacturing
• December 2026 — Games ship to fulfillment centers

We are allocating up to two months for games to reach their respective fulfillment centers.

Koolangsu, your storyteller

One of my favorite things is designing tabletop adventures and treasure hunts based on true events, often around the theme of East meets West.

I love creating experiences where players go out into the real world, wandering city streets, browsing the internet, digging through old newspapers and books, and handling objects, following real traces of the past to solve clues in the present.

About Tangible Narrative

It's all in the name. We create adventures you can touch. Games with a strong narrative, brought to life through physical objects and stories rooted in true events.

The moment the evidence is in your hands, the meaning of Tangible Narrative becomes clear.