Qin: Tomb of the Middle Kingdom

Game Details: Adventure, 1995

Walkthrough Updated: 10/30/2015

Suggested Listening: Give Up Now (Ash 25)

Qin is a first person adventure game set in China. As part of a research team looking for a secret elixir of life within a buried city in China, you are caught up in an earthquake that leaves you sealed and alone within the city. You must explore its secrets and then decide what you will do with the elixir.

Entrance

After the opening sequence, turn around and approach the door. Click on the Mercury symbol to the left of the door, then go through. Turn around and click on the Fire symbol, then turn around again and go to the other end of the hallway and through another door. Turn around and click on the Water symbol. Now turn around and approach the large boulder. Click on the far right symbol, then the empty space in the middle - the boulder will create a new opening for you to head through.

Courtyard

Walk forward, left, forward, right, forward (over the bridge), left and forward twice into the dojo. Enter the Acupuncture room on the right and go forward to find 5 rods. Pick one up and turn to the left, inserting it into the body corresponding with the colors shown on the organs to the left. Turn right and grab each of the other rods, inserting them all into the correct parts of the body. When done correctly the eyes will open.

Leave this room and turn right twice, forward, right and into the next room. Turn left and go forward to find a Feng shui room, where you must arrange tiles around a house. The top row should contain trees, mountains and rocks. The second row should contain a road, the house and a waterfall. The bottom row should contain fields, a river and a bridge. When done correctly you will automatically zoom back out. Leave this room and continue straight ahead into the Astronomy room, then go forward and click on the writing. Back out and enter the final room, which is the Map room. Click on the top-right of the compass to spin it until you automatically zoom back out.

Go back out to the central room and take the gold plate from the top of the discs. Leave the dojo and head northeast to find a large spoon-shaped statue. Place the gold plate in the receptacle to the south side of the spoon. Now head east and then south over the bridge and pick up an arrow from the pile near the warrior statues. Go back over the bridge and put the arrow in the large bow, then fire it - this will release water into the stream. Cross the bridge and remove the block in the water wheel so that it starts turning. Turn left and go forward to see a small boat enter the water. Take the bamboo from the boat, then go back, left and forward, and use the bamboo to create a bridge for the water to pass. Walk forward, forward, right, forward and right, then use the lamp to turn it. Continue right, forward, left, forward twice, right and forward to reach a gate. Head through the gate and approach the furnace.

Pick up some coal from the left and put it into the furnace. Pick up some iron from the left (in front of the coal) and add that to the furnace. Grab the fire from the right and add that as well, then pick up the spoon that is created from the molten iron. Go back outside to the spoon-shaped statue and put your spoon on top of the gold plate. Now head around the statue and through the open doors.

Palace

Start by going forward twice, right, forward, right, forward twice, right, forward twice, right and forward into a small room. Turn left and head forward twice to go upstairs. Take the cinnabar from the table and put it into the incense burner (to get mercury). Next go back twice, left, forward twice, left, forward 3 times, left and forward into another small room. There are 6 bars on the table and a frame behind them. Pick up the 6th bar and use it on the left side of the frame. Next pick up the 5th bar and use it on the top side of the frame. Finally pick up the 2nd bar and use it on the right side of the frame.

Pick up the golden tree (Precious offering) and head back, left, forward, right, forward, right and forward twice. Put the golden tree on the left mirror. Return back twice, right, forward twice, left, forward, left and forward. Now pick up the stone rooster (Animal sacrifice) and head back, left, forward, right, forward, right and forward twice. Put the stone rooster on the right mirror. Turn left and go forward to see some bells that make up an instrument. If you label the bells on the top row A and B, and on the next row C, D and E, play the following tune (which could be seen written on the staircase): EDCDBABDE. You will discover a staircase leading down.

Caverns

Go forward 4 times, turn left and go forward to look at the well - take the sacred fungus from the top. Now go right, forward and right to find an unlabelled sinkhole (there are two others with labels that you should avoid), and go forward through it. Continue forward and translate the message on the west wall (use the interpreter in your interface). Head through the doors to find a room with a jade sacrophagus. Turn right and go forward to find a compass, then zoom in on it. Click on the top right twice, the top left 4 times, and the top right twice more. When done correctly you will automatically zoom back out (and receive jade). Now go left, forward 3 times, right, back and left. Push the lotus lever, then go forward 4 times to find a large underground lake.

Next move forward 3 times, left twice, forward, left and forward again to find a set of folding squares. Click these squares to fold them to show the correct picture:

top left
bottom left
one down from top right
one up from bottom left
one right from bottom left
one down from top left
one left from top right
top right

Garden

Go forward twice to approach the well, then turn right. Continue forward 4 times, left and forward 4 more times to reach the end of the dock. Wait here until the koi jumps on to the dock and then disappears - this will give you the mother of pearl. Go back and turn right twice, then go forward 6 times, around the well, and forward until you are in the dark shade of a tree. Turn right and go forward, then solve a tangram puzzle (fit the shapes into the box without overlapping). Turn right twice, go forward and pick up the ginseng root.

From here, go back, right, forward 8 times, left twice and forward twice into the Music room. Label the holes A-D on the left and E-G on the right, and reproduce the music by playing GBABACDE. Continue forward until you find a telescope. Adjust the controls so the right slider is 80% of the way to the top, then adjust hthe bottom slider until you find the constellation; move the constellation to the middle of the display.

Mountains

Turn right and pick up the gold from the ground, then turn left twice, go forward twice and turn right. Put the gold into one of the small boats here. Next go left and forward and pick up the cinnabar, then go back and left, and put the cinnabar in the other boat. Now turn left and go forward 3 times. From here, continue left, forward 3 times, left, back, right and forward into a portal (you can use this to travel between the different realms). Go through the portal twice more to reach your next destination (the courtyard again).

Endings

Head back, right, forward twice and left. Pick up the gold from the boat, then continue back twie, right and forward twice. Put the gold into the furnace, and add coal and fire, then pick up the golden spoon, and walk forward into it to be transported to the throne room. Now there are a total of 4 different endings.

Ending 1: Selfishness

Head forward, left, forward twice, left and forward through the portal without obtaining the elixir.

Ending 2: Immortality

Go forward, back, left twice and forward to find the elixir room. There are 5 panels on the wall here, and from left to right they should contain the mother of pearl, jade, sacred fungus, mercury and ginseng root - if you have followed the walkthrough carefully you should have all 5 of these, and have the complete elixir. Turn left twice, then continue forward, left, forward 3 times, left and forward through the portal.