Levelbase Advent Calendar 2006: Nikolaus von Myra

 

Level by Lumina Artis Coloris

 

Walkthrough by Akci

 

Story:

 

There are not many sources regarding the historic Nikolaus from Myra. Myra is a small town located in Turkey (ca. 100 km southwest from Antalya) and was the 4th Century home of a bishop.  According to different traditions, Nikolaus was born in Patara, a town in Lyka - Asia Minor between 270 and 286 A.D. At age 19, he was ordained as a priest by his uncle, also a bishop from Myra. After that he was abbot of the monastery Sion near Myra. Coming from a rich family, he was in a position to help the poor and deserving. There are a couple of ancient buildings and ruins in Myra. It is said that one is the tomb of Nikolaus.

 

Lara came across a document during an investigation, pointing out the fact that the ancient Nikolaus of Myra was a pilgrim to Mount Ararat in Turkey, where he could also be buried. Because Nikolaus of Myra isn't only a legend, but also was rich, Lara decides to trace the tracks to the old unaffected sultanate in the mountains of the border region of Turkey, Iran and Iraq. Thanks to her relationships she managed to get in touch with the descendents and owners of the land with the old sultanate palace. She got the permission to investigate.  Until now her investigation was too controlled by the sultan's guards. A short time after dusk she decides to sneak off from her guestroom to seek undisturbed after some indices.

 

Walkthrough:

 

Take the small medpack from the vase, the flares from the box, the Letter too, and read it. Open the door and go outside, remember, you are in a Christmas level, the inhabitants don't harm you, so don't harm them. At the second pool go in the corridor at the right, and open the door with the lever, where you can pick up a Key. Go further in, and find the lock which you can open with it, there are shells nearby in a box.

 

He must be Ahmed, whom the unknown friend mentions, because once you set him free - how did he get locked in? - he opens the grate leading upstairs, and another one in the balcony. Here you find the Switch Room Key under the box. There is some ammo in the fountain, and a lever in the corner, which opens one of two doors leading to the room you can see through the nearby window. Go ahead and pull it down now, although you won't open the second door until later. Go back down to the corridor, and open the door with the key, you can't use the lever inside, but when you lure Ahmed to step into the room a fly-by shows the big door opening outside, where the guards stand.

 

Go in there, and push away the front vases on both sides, the levers behind raise a block in the corner of the room. Shoot the boxes next to the guards to raise another one. Climb the first one and pull the lever to open the curtain above the other. Get up the first floor, the lever at the left opens the door at the right, go down the stairs, and open the blue doors, behind one a curtain blocks the way, the other leads to a room, where open the doors to the garden. Ahmed shows up again, follow him to see what he is doing. He lights up a torch, opens a door, then comes back to the garden and opens the grate to the square.

 

In the garden next to the palm tree find the Crowbar, on the upper level of the room where Ahmed lighted up the torch you can jump up to grab the monkey bars, and swing over to the dark corner, for the 1st secret, which is the 1st Golden Star. Here the monkey swinging was a bit strange for me, only diagonally Lara was able to swing over to the horizontal ceiling. Once you get it, go to the door Ahmed opened, and shoot the boxes to take the small medpack, and the lower Sleeping Room Key. You can go over the big room on the rope, for the 2nd Golden Star, into the 2nd secret. Be aware that with this new exe, tightrope is somewhat harder than it used to be, or was it just me? Go back to the blue door, and open the curtain with the key, inside you find a large medpack, the lever behind the vase opens the door to the balcony, where the Ammunition Camp is yours.

 

The Camp is located behind the grates (E) opened by Ahmed, next to the pool outside. When you put it into the receptacle, not only the grate opens but a door too, on the roof of the palace. Go in, open the door, and you can find ridiculous amount of flares, in the inner room SW shoot the boxes to find the Revolver + ammo, and in the crawling space behind boxes in the E alcove find the Crossbow + arrows in the 3rd secret. In front of the crawling space, under the not shootable boxes is the Shotgun, unfortunately, I couldn't pick it up with legal gameplay. On the right side, with continuous run/jump Lara can go into the lighter box, and about the middle, if ducking, she can take it. If you find a more satisfying solution, please let me know.

 

Go back to the palace, where the monkey swing is, and on the roof (all the way to the back side) find the Coffeeshop Key. The coffeeshop is in the end of the corridor, at the starting place, here you can find the Lasersight in a pile of books. Take it, then go out, turn left before the pool, now you can shoot the lock, and the ball too above the burning cauldron. The grate opens under it, the lever inside puts out the fire, climb up, push away the cauldron, to reveal the Library Door Key. Go into the labyrinth, here I encountered with an unfriendly ninja. It seems he appears on the roofs, where he can't get down from, only if falls down by accident. Where and when that takes place - if ever - is random, so you may encounter with him elsewhere, or not at all.

 

For the optimal route in the labyrinth, start along the right side wall.  After a few short turns you reach a lever, which opens a grate nearby. Follow that route until another lever, after using it, continously turn right to reach the opened grate. On the way note the closed grate, that will be a secret. Behind the tree, the lever opens the timed grate, so run all the way along the pool, at the end turn right, and into the corner at the right. Go in, and find the Vezier Room Key, the meantime you can hear a grate opening, that would be the 4th secret, go back there and take the 3rd Golden Star.

 

The Vezier's place is between the two pools in the square, go in, push away the cauldron and open the trapdoor in the ceiling (facing E, standing on the rug's edge). Upstairs, the lever opens the door to the familiar balcony, among the books in the NW room you can find a Key. Use it downstairs, to lower a block, push the four cauldrons into the corners of that room, to open the other door in the balcony, where you can pick up the Sheherazades Rooms.

 

In the small room ahead, there are three levers, one closes the curtain, the other two open the timed grate nearby (go outside and forward, and loop around to the right), but no need to rush. Behind it, the lever opens the second grate, leading to the 5th secret; the 4th Golden Star and a small medpack are there.

 

Go back the way you came, then past the fountain N, down the stairs NW, outside to the courtyard, straight ahead beyond the pool through the opened gate, past the tree garden into the next building, down the hall and up the stairs, left at the landing and finally underneath the blue curtain where you can put your acquisition into the receptacle. On the bed you can find the Library Main Entrance, and another Key in the bath. The entrance to the library is on the corridor at the starting place (you may find a Ninja waiting there for the place to open). On the upper floor open another door with the key, behind the candle in front of you pick up the ancient Scroll. Go further in, push away the globe, and put the scroll to its place, to open a door in the corner. Don't go in just yet, go back to the previous room, where an opening also revealed, with the lever you lower a block under the 1st Nikolaus Statue Piece. Go into the dark inner library, at the right climb up and take it. Climb higher up, and monkey swing over the slope, let go and jump toward the lever. Pull it and a fly-by with wonderful atmosphere shows the lowering block, where you go next. But first, monkey swing for the 5th Golden Star, this should be the 6th secret, but for me it didn't count as a secret, because of a bug.

 

Exit the library, return outside to the courtyard, enter the central building where you shot the ball above the burning cauldron, and drop down into the opened corridor.  Turn left at the opening and open the grate with the key, follow the passage till you reach the lever, which opens the way to the desert. Go back for the motorcycle, and ride through the desert. In a pit, find the 2nd Nikolaus Statue Piece, then go to the oasis (you can go there on foot if you wish). A bug allows you to ride the motorcycle into the water, but you'd rather swim. On the other side of the tunnel, in the small pool, you can swim into the 7th secret, through a small opening to the left, to find some ammo. In the room put the pieces on the statues, and watch the fly-by when stepping into the next room. If you don't have the five stars, the adventure ends by sliding down behind the statue at the left, if you have them all, put them into the receptacles, and you will be rewarded by getting into the treasure chamber.

 

Akci