FORGOTTEN CATACOMBS

Level by Martin Ward

Walkthrough by Phil Lambeth

Lara drops down into a tight corridor. Crawl through the left side of the opening ahead and a door opens as you emerge in front of it. Run into the next room (as the door closes behind you) and look around for a large medi-pack and a couple of stashes of shotgun ammo. Shoot the smaller orange jug near the east wall for some crossbow arrows, then hop onto the NW ledge and push the face tile for a screen shot showing a door opening around the pillar to your right.

Go inside and push the face tile just inside and to your right. A screen shot shows a door opening at the foot of the stairs. Go down the stairs and pick up a CROWBAR, then shoot the orange jug on the ledge to your left for some crossbow arrows. Enter the new doorway and the camera angle changes to show a long water-filled corridor. Step into the water and wade forward carefully. You'll trigger a spike trap to your left, and another one further on to your right, as you approach them. Once triggered they pose no threat. When you reach deeper water swim to the other side and pull up, noting the closed underwater door. Run forward and throw the floor lever, and a screen shot will show that underwater door opening.

Jump back into the water and swim through the opening. Surface in the next room and pull out to your right. Face the west wall near the NW corner and take a running jump and grab across the water to the lower portion of the ledge there. Pull up, turn to your left and go inside the small crawl space for a large medi-pack. Crawl back out, turn around and step down to the water's edge. Take a running jump to the opening in the NW corner and run down the stairs. A burst of action music tells you that something bad is about to happen, and sure enough, a spike ball is released as you run by. Veer to your right as soon as you're able to do so, but be careful not to run off onto the flame tiles below. When the spike ball comes to rest, turn to face the south wall, one step back and angled ever so slightly to your left. It looks impossible, but a running jump from here, with a midair curve to the right, will bring you past the spikes and flame tiles with no harm done to you.

Go through the archway into the south room and throw the floor lever in the far left corner. Return through the archway to go to your right past the spikes. You come to an area with more flame tiles down below, and a ladder to your right with a closed door at the top. Hop down east to a flat area between the two pillars, and turn to face the rope squarely. Take a running jump and grab the rope, then slide to the bottom, swing forward and jump off to land on a ledge with a pillar to your right. Go over and pick up the PHAROS PILLAR. As you do so, a cut scene shows the door opening above the ladder. You can take banana jumps around the pillars to your left and right for the SHOTGUN and shotgun ammo (north ledge) and three stashes of shotgun ammo (south ledge). Jump back to the ledge with the pedestal, and use the rope to get safely back to the other side.

Turn to the left and approach the ladder. You can either take a slightly angled direct jump and grab to it, or jump into the hole and climb up from the bottom. Either way, climb up the ladder, shift left near the top and pull up into the corridor. Run forward and take the right turn, and you'll see the pool area ahead. Look for a different texture in the wall to your left, and jump up there to grab the crawl space. Pull up and crawl forward into SECRET #1. Lower Lara into the small room on the other side and pick up three stashes of shotgun ammo, two large medi-packs and one small medi-pack. Crawl back to the outer passage, jump into the water and swim through the SE opening. Surface in the next room and pull out onto the ledge at the right of the open underwater door. Locate the hole in the dark NE corner and use the ladder there to climb down into the room below. Reverse roll at the bottom and note the closed door. Run into the next room and explore the area between the two fountains for a large medi-pack and some shotgun ammo.

Before entering the east passage, go to the NE corner of this room beyond the stone columns and locate a pile of rubble. Stand with your nose in the middle of the east wall, back flip onto the rubble and jump off to catch the edge of the opening. Pull up into SECRET #2 and pick up the LASER SIGHT, another SHOTGUN and two stashes of shotgun ammo. (You can actually run through the west end of the yellow-green coffin. Strange.) Drop down into the room below and enter that east passage to the left of the fountain. You'll alert a wraith in the next room, so reverse roll and run back to that bird statue near the south wall between the two fountains. The wraith will soon blow itself up above the statue's head. Return to the east room and jump/grab the central pole. Slide down into a torch-lit room and pick up another CROWBAR near the NW corner. Then go to the pedestal against the north wall and take the PHAROS KNOT. The instant you do so, a horde of beetles pours down from the ceiling above, so back flip, turn around and jump up to grab the pole. Climb up and back flip to the upper room.

Return to the fountain room, where you'll be met by another wraith. Take refuge near the bird statue and allow the wraith to blow itself up. Go to the west opening near the ladder, and note the receptacle on the wall to its right. Insert the Pharos Knot to open the door next to the ladder. Run down the stairs past the slow and confused mummy. Quickly insert the Pharos Pillar in the receptacle to your right, and when the door opens go inside and use the ladder to escape from the mummy. Pull up into an upper passage and be careful of the spike trap immediately to your left. The flare bug will probably have shown up by now, so light a flare and toss it down the passage to illuminate the spike trap. Take a running jump over it and continue to the end of the passage. Turn right and climb a series of blocks. Push the face tile near the end to open the door at the top.

Go through the doorway, and the door shuts abruptly behind you. Step out onto a ledge for a panoramic flyby of the large room before you, ending at a closed door at the south end. Turn right and take a running jump and grab west to the ledge. Pull up, turn left and take a running jump south to the next ledge. Follow this ledge to a face tile against the west wall and push it. (This must do something, although there's no evidence at this point of what that might be.) Retrace your steps to the beginning ledge in the NE corner and make your way from there south with a series of running jumps (and grabs where necessary) to the ledges along the east wall. When you reach the last large section, turn right and jump across to the ledge against the west wall. Go into the opening, turn right and pick up the small medi-pack. Go back outside, turn right and take a running jump and grab to the ledge at the SW corner. Pull up and enter the room to your right. Locate the floor lever in the corner beyond the small pyramid and throw it. A screen shot shows the south door at the top of the stairs opening, revealing another closed door and a pole device. At the same time a wraith is summoned, so reverse roll, run outside and off the ledge to land on the stairs below. Keep running forward and hop to the east ledge to enter the room ahead. You can see the bird statue dead ahead so run to it without even slowing down, as your entrance into the dark room has triggered a pair of spike balls.

After the wraith has blown itself up, explore this room for shotgun ammo in the SW alcove and on the north ledge. Leave this room and turn left when you reach the ledge outside. Throw the floor lever in the corner to open a door in the nearby underwater hole to the left of the stairs. Jump into the water and swim down into the hole. Follow the passage into a sun-lit room, swim up through the hole in the roof and pull up into an upper room for SECRET #3. Check out the south wall for loads of goodies, including the CROSSBOW, some flares, two stashes of shotgun ammo and some crossbow arrows. When you've collected everything, jump back into the water and swim through the opening in the west wall. Swim up, surface and pull up on the west side.

Enter a new room that is quite dark. It's surrounded by a ledge, and as you walk around you'll see that a skeleton is awakened on a central ledge. You can deal with it quite easily from where you are, with an explosive arrow from your crossbow. There's a closed door in the north wall, and the two jugs just beyond it can be shot but are empty. There are stairs leading up at the NE corner. However, they appear to lead nowhere, so safety drop from here to some stairs leading down and follow them in a generally counterclockwise direction until you reach the floor and locate a pedestal bearing the HATHOR EFFIGY. When you pick it up, various tiles along your route become deadly flame tiles, not to mention assorted spikes that promise to make your trip back an adventure indeed.

As if you didn't have enough troubles, a skeleton comes up to pester you, so either blow it away or blast it over the edge with your shotgun. To your relief, you find a safe stretch of stairway at the NE corner. Go up and take short cuts where they present themselves, by pulling up onto higher stretches of stairs. You'll meet three more friendly skeletons along the way, so deal with them in your desired fashion. When you reach the ledge that encircles the room you'll find that the north door is now open. Go inside and climb the stairs, dealing with yet another skeleton you'll encounter, and push the face tile to your left when you reach the top. The nearby door opens to return you to a familiar area.

Now it's time to find that Ornate Handle so you can move along. Take a running jump forward to the stairs and turn right. Run to the top and look inside the opening. You can go inside now and rouse the skeleton if you like, or wait until later. Go to the right edge of the top stair and face west. Take a standing jump and grab to the ledge and pull up. Turn right and make your way back across the ledges via running jumps, and grabs where necessary, until you reach the small ledge in the NW corner. Face the west wall, jump up and grab the edge of the crawl space. Pull up into the opening and crawl to your right. Turn around and lower Lara down the other side, then reverse roll and run off the edge of the shaft and grab the pole. Slide down to the underground chamber. Step forward north toward the face tile and turn left. Go around the corner and locate the floor lever in the passage. Throw it and return to the face tile, dodging the beetles that have mysteriously appeared. Push the face tile and slide down the east slope into a pool of water to escape the beetles.

Mind the underwater spikes and swim over to the NE corner. Pull out of the water and step forward to the edge of a pit. Take a standing jump forward and grab the edge of a crack in the far wall. Shimmy to the left and around the corner, and drop down into a passage. Turn left and follow the passage to a flight of stairs. Run up the stairs past the mummy and do your best to evade the dart traps along the way. Push the face tile at the top of the stairs, quickly reverse roll and turn left to dart through the open door ahead of the pursuing mummy (unless, of course, you prefer to blow it away with an explosive arrow). Turn left and follow the stairway until you reach a dead end. Turn left and climb up the ladder to a higher passage. Follow it until you reach a second ladder. That takes you to a third ladder, but before climbing it use the crawl space in the floor to your right to access a small room where you'll find the ORNATE HANDLE on a pedestal.

Return to the ladder via the crawl space and the door ahead will open automatically as you pull up, releasing another skeleton for you to deal with. Run down the short hallway and turn right to return to the main pool room. Follow the ledge to the left and jump across to the stairs. Go to the north opening and deal with the skeleton now if you didn't do so earlier. Combine the Hathor Effigy and Ornate Handle to form the PORTAL GUARDIAN, and insert it in the pole device next to the door. It might be a good idea to save your game as you go through the open doorway and up the stairs. When you climb onto the block, it'll change into a slope and you'll start sliding down toward a spike trap. Jump over the spikes and keep moving forward when you land, or you'll be squashed by a spike ball. Continue along the stairs to a pedestal with the HORSEMAN'S GEM, as Lara's theme music plays. As you pick it up you can hear the sound of a door opening.

Turn and go back along the NE passage. Turn to your right and continue around to your right into a new passage. Go through the open doorway and run toward the ladder ahead. The door closes behind you as the level ends.