RIVER OF THE SACRED
BEETLE
By Theresa Jenne
(Walkthrough written by the level author - thanks to Treeble
for the link to the web archives for the much-missed Tombraiders.com).
As the
story is told, the River of the Sacred Beetle is guarded by skeletons. Past
intruders who have met their end and now guard the river. Your quest, should
you choose to accept it, is to find the Sacred Beetle.
Top of the
waterfall:
Face up
river and look to the left. Notice that you can see through the leaves on the
wall? Take a simple jump over the sloped ground and enter the area with darts.
Push the lever to open a underwater door in the nearby
stream. Swim through the underwater tunnel and pick up the Hathor
Effigy.
Return to
the top of the waterfall where you first started. Walk backwards over the water
fall, slide down and grab the edge of the waterfall. Let go and immediately
press the Action key to grab the small crawlspace just below the waterfall.
Enter the crawlspace and pick up some flares. Press the switch on the wall to
open a nearby door while avoiding the mummy. Crawl out the side of the cave,
drop down and enter the newly opened door. Pick up a large medi-pack
and another goodie for Secret #1. Drop into the water and pick up blue shotgun
shells just under the ledge to Secret #1. Swim to the island.
Island at
bottom of the waterfall:
Find the
ledge to climb onto the island and pick up the shotgun and red shotgun shells.
Lure the skeleton to the center of the island and use the shotgun to blast him
towards the lake until he falls in. Swim to the bottom of the lake near the
center waterfall. Swim through the underwater tunnel and climb out. Carefully
walk up the slope and look overhead for a spiked ball. Carefully run through
the uphill corner to trigger the spike ball without getting hurt. Pick up the
red shotgun shells and go up the hill. Do a jump grab
and climb out through the grass to trigger a skeleton (if you have not already
done so).
Top of the
waterfall:
Lead the
skeleton on a merry chase up river away from the waterfall.
Up river:
A white
ghost and another skeleton join in the chase after you. Jump in the water and
swim up river until you find the brass underwater statue of a bird. Hang around
the statue until the white ghost blows itself up. For the skeletons, just jump
across the water at the upstream end and shoot them as they jump over the
water. Jump over the sloped ramps in the dark corner, enter a crawl space and
pick up the Pharos Knot. Place the Pharos Knot in the receptacle by the tan
door. Enter and pick up Ornate Handle and a small medi-pack.
Top of the
waterfall:
Return back
to the waterfall and find some red shotgun shells near a tree on the left side
of the waterfall. Jump across the river and look down at the lake on the right
side of the waterfall. Notice the slanted ledge between the two waterfalls.
Drop over the edge backwards, slide down and shimmy to the left. Shimmy until
you can go no further, then drop to the ledge below. Pick up crossbow ammo in
the skull cave. Take a long running jump to the sloped ledge near the wall,
slide down and grab the edge. Shimmy to the left underneath the waterfall and
around the corner until you can go no further. Climb up on the slanted ledge
and do a back flip to land on the ledge behind you. Jump over the square with
the skulls. Save your game. Climb up to over look the tree tops.
The
Treetops:
Take a long
running jump straight ahead near the wall to the lower tree branches. Blast the
skeleton over the edge and pick up some crossbow ammo. Take a long running jump
with grab back to the cave ledge. Turn and face the trees. Take a diagonal long
running jump with grab to the upper tree branch. (NOTE,
you will fall through the leaves on the upper branches - a bit of laziness when
I created the level.) Secret #2! Carefully jump from branch to branch and shoot
the skeleton when it jumps. Pick up the crossbow. Return to the branch near the
cave. Take a standing jump with grab to the high ledge above the cave. Drop in
the hole and pick up crossbow ammo. Use the swan dive (Walk + up arrow + Jump)
to dive into the lake.
Swim over
near the fence and look for a small underwater tunnel to the left of the fence
(between the island and the fence). Swim through the underwater tunnel. Climb
out and stay along the right wall of the cave to avoid the spike balls. Combine
the Ornate Handle and the Hathor Effigy to make the
Portal Guardian. Place the Portal Guardian on the black and red stand to open
the door.
Cave above
whirlpool:
(Note you
can slide down the waterfall and do a standing jump with grab to get some
shotgun shells, but if you do this, you will miss the Sacred Beetle!!!!! ) Carefully safety drop down
into the cave above the whirlpool. Do a standing jump with grab to monkey bars
above the whirlpool and swing across to the ledge on the other side of the
whirlpool. Pick up the Sacred Beetle (which will appear in your inventory as
the Mechanical Scarab.) Look at the note in blood left by a previous visitor to
survive - Ralph Kennedy. Drop into the whirlpool and get sucked away. The
Sacred Beetle has no use in this game, it is the
artifact that Lara came to get.
Cave with
fires:
From the
cave to the whirlpool, swim across the room and enter the underwater cave in
the corner on the opposite side. (There are some bones above the cave
entrance.) Continue swimming until you can swim up and get some air. Climb out
and pick up red shotgun shells and then jump across the hole where you entered and
drop into another underwater chamber. Swim up to air and climb out. Turn around
and do a standing jump with grab to a higher ledge and a jump grab to a higher
ledge. (Pick up the shotgun. in case, you don't have it.) Drop down to the
ground.
Kill the
two skeletons. You may want to try out that crossbow or just lure them to the
pool and blast them into the water. Enter the temple. Shoot the vases to find more red shotgun ammo, then pick up the Music Scroll at the
top of the stairs. Kill two more skeletons. Climb up to the tallest part of the
hedge and take a long running jump with grab to the rope. Slide to the bottom
of the rope and line up a swing to the top of the temple. Hit the Jump key at
the highest part of the swing. Land, pick up the red and blue shotgun shells, then climb up on the wall to find the smaller pool on the
side of the temple. Take a long running jump to land in the pool and lure the
white ghost to the brass statue of the bird. Drop into the large pool with the
fountain and find the underwater tunnel. Swim through the tunnel and climb out.
Drop into the water on the other side, take a right in the underwater tunnel
and swim back to the cave with fires.
Cave with
fires:
Swim across
the lake and climb out by the door. Place the Music Scroll on the gray tablet
by the door. Enter the newly opened door and push the lever to turn off the
fires. Drop into the water and swim back toward the cave to the whirlpool and
climb out on the left side. Quickly walk across the platform and take a long
running jump with grab to the second fire platform, climb up and immediately
start running, take a long running jump with grab to the third platform. Climb
up and start running to take a final long running jump with grab to the high
platform to the high ledge at the edge of the lake. If you don't make it, push
the lever to turn off the torches and try again.
Swim to the
waterfall and find the underwater tunnel to the right of the waterfall. Swim
down the tunnel and climb out. Push your way past the mummy and press the
switch to open a door at one end of the monkey bars. Find the ledge near the
fence and climb out of the water. (Save your game often while near the
waterfall, for it is a very long trip to make it back!) Take a diagonal long
running jump to the ledge on the other side of the lake. Next take a standing
jump with grab to the ledge below the monkey bars. Swing across the lake on the
vines and drop down on the other side. Kill the skeleton and pick up the red shotgun
shells near the waterfall. Jump grab to the next set of vines and swing across
the lake to the cave with a door. Not much you can do now, so jump to the lower
monkey bars and swing across the lake again, take a left on the monkey bars and
go away from the waterfall. Drop down on the ledge. Enter the cave, kill the
skeleton and pick up blue shotgun shells, a small medi-pack
and the Pharos Pillar. Swing across the monkey bars back to the cave with the
door. Place the Pharos Pillar in the receptacle by the door.
Enter the
dark cave and notice the darts whizzing by. Crawl avoiding
the back wall. Press teh Draw weapons (space
bar) twice to draw your guns and shoot the vase while in the crouching
position. Pick up the Hathor Effigy, a small medi-pack and shotgun shells. Crawl to the back wall and
trigger the skeleton. Lure the skeleton out by the water and blast it into the
water. Swing across the lower set of monkey bars to the waterfall. Drop down on
the ledge. Take a long running jump with grab to the vines on the left side of
the water falls. Climb up and sideways and drop down on the ledge.
Trees above
the waterfall:
Kill the
skeleton. Cross the land bridge towards the corner with the blue shotgun
shells. Kill the skeleton. Facing the blue shotgun shells in the trees, stand
near the tree on the right with your back to the lake. Step backwards and slide
down the ramp. Shimmy to the left and look for a small crawlspace in the wall.
Drop to the crawlspace and enter for Secret #3. Pick up a large medi-pack, and red and blue shotgun shells. Drop into the
water, swim to the ledge by the fence and make your way across the monkey bars
back to the vines by the waterfall. Climb up.
Return to
the trees with the blue shotgun shells and pick them up. Find the Ornate Handle
in the trees above the cave with the door. Make your way across the land bridge
above the fence and take a long running jump to the two trees by the wall. Pick
up a small medi-pack and red shotgun shells. Kill
another skeleton. Pick up red shotgun shells in the trees on the right side of
the waterfall. Cross the skinny land bridge back to the black and red stand
near the waterfall. Kill one more skeleton. Combine the Hathor
Effigy and the Ornate Handle to create the Portal Guardian. Place the Portal
Guardian on the black and red stand to lower the rope. Take a long running jump
with grab to the rope, slide down to the bottom of the rope and line up a swing
to the top of the waterfall. At the highest point of the swing, press the Jump
key to fly over the waterfall and land in the water above it.
Pyramid:
Climb out
of the water and avoid the spike ball on the right side of the river. Make your
way to the front of the pyramid on the right corner. Use simple diagonal jumps
to jump up the corner of the pyramid to the top. Pick up the Pharos Knot which
lights fires on the pyramid. Slide down the pyramid avoiding the fires. Kill
the skeleton. Swim down the channel on the right side of the pyramid. Enter the
underwater tunnel beneath the pyramid and swim keeping the wall on your left
side to avoid the many spikes. (You may want to save a game and try the spikes, they do strange things to Lara.) Swim and find the
air hole. Climb out, place the Pharos Knot in the
receptacle to open the door. Slide down the ramp to end the level.