The Lost City of Varaldun

Level by Mytly

Walkthrough by Mytly

Key:

RJ = Running jump

RJ+G = Running jump with a grab

SJ = Standing jump

SJ+G = Standing jump with a grab

N, S, E, W = the directions on the compass

The secrets often involve short side quests or preliminary setups. Actions that are required only if you’re going for the secrets are marked in purple.

There are some shortcuts experts can take if they can manage some really tricky jumps. These shortcuts are marked in green.

If you need savegames for any reason, you can download a package of 4 savegames here . Their locations are marked in the walkthrough. Further instructions in the package.

Waterfall Area

Lara slides down a waterfall. A flyby shows you some of the surrounding areas. When it ends, get out of the water, shoot a crow, and explore the area for some goodies: shotgun shells in a clump of poppies to the S of the river, and a small medipack in the cave behind the waterfall. Open the door in the S wall. A female ninja greets you beyond – kill her and take her shotgun shells. Climb the steps. Note the keyhole for later. Jump onto the wall on the left of the steps, RJ+G to one of the windowsills in the building opposite, and shoot out the window. Get flares from between some crates, and a small medipack under the moveable crate near one window. Find the moveable crate in the middle of the room, and pull/push it twice. Open the floor trapdoor that was under it and drop down.

Inside the Factory

Go down the corridor. A flyby shows you important spots in the room ahead. There is a stream of molten metal flowing down the factory floor, so don’t even think of going down there. Instead, RJ+G the hanging wooden platform. Note the door behind the spikes, which is for later. Now, RJ+G towards the ledge with the thumpers. (Lara won’t grab anything – but you need to press action to lower her trajectory or else she will hit her head against the upper ledge). She’ll land in front of the first thumper, losing a tiny fraction of health. Time a run past the first thumper, and stop immediately on the next square. Do the same twice more, pull the switch at the end of the ledge, and return past two of the thumpers. RJ+G to the open door to the left.

Kill another ninja, and take her Factory Keys. Use the keys in the keyhole on the far wall to open a trapdoor above (these keys will stay in your inventory and can be used again and again). Bounce on the sloped columns on the opposite side of the room to jump up to a monkeyswing, swing your way to the other side of the room, drop onto another sloping column and jump immediately to the ladder ahead. Shimmy around the corner and up through the open trapdoor.

Trapdoors and Timed Runs

(If you want the first secret, follow the instructions in purple. Otherwise ignore them.) At the corner of the corridor ahead, turn around and use a jumpswitch. You can see a block retracting, leaving a hole in a wall. Continue down the corridor and into the room beyond, which is the upper level of the thumper room. Note the three lowered trapdoors and the hole in the wall. Pull the switch ahead, roll and run to the trapdoors (two of which are now raised). If you’re going for the secret, RJ to the first trapdoor, take a sharp right turn and RJ+G to the hole in the wall. Get Secret # 1: a Secret Disc and a shotgun. The timed trapdoors are already lowered, but the third trapdoor is now raised, so RJ to it, and go back to the timed switch. Pull it again, and run to the trapdoors again. Try to land on the first one such that you have enough room to RJ to the next one, and then SJ+G the ledge ahead.

Note the door on the left – you’ll come through the other side of it later. For now, go right. Get some shotgun ammo from near the window, and notice another door that’s also for later. Look down the hole in the floor with the two rotating traps. Stand in one corner, turn around, look down to see when the higher trap just passes by, then safety drop down and immediately let go, before the lower trap reaches you. This way, you won’t lose any health.

Find the moveable crate and move it to under the switch high on the wall. Get the large medipack that was under the crate. Climb the crate and use the switch to open a door in the corridor with some steam traps opposite. Kill a mechanical beetle. Move the crate to the edge of the chasm, climb it, and RJ+G the opposite side.

Fun with Conveyer Belts

Don’t pull up on the moving grey part of the floor (a conveyer belt) – shimmy right or left and pull up on solid ground. There are a couple of strategies to get to the top of the sloping corridor, depending on your patience and whether or not you’re willing to sacrifice some health. The simplest method is to jump onto the conveyer belt, keep running against it (regular running is not fast enough to counteract the conveyer belt – sprinting is effective, and RJs are the most effective), and dodge the steam emitters as much as you can. The longer but healthier method is to jump diagonally from alcove to alcove when the steam emitters are off, and stay off the conveyer belt until you reach the door.

Sprint through the door, then jump onto the right conveyer belt at the junction. Keep running against it until you can RJ+G the alcove with the chain (Savegame 1). Pull the chain to change the directions of the conveyer belts in the room. Jump down, and run forward to the part that’s now stationary. RJ+G the conveyer belt on the opposite side. Try to grab it a little to the right of the alcove, because Lara will move to the left when she pulls up. Jump into the alcove and pull another chain to change the directions of the conveyer belts again. Climb down and ride the conveyer belt to the end (note that it can take Lara up a slope that would be normally too steep for her to stand on). Turn the valve wheel to flood the lower part of the room. Expert’s Challenge: You can skip both chains if you can manage to RJ+G the opposite conveyer belt directly from near the door.

Jump into the water and swim through the low opening. In the room beyond, pull the timed underwater lever, turn around and climb onto the trapdoor behind you. Turn right and SJ+G the higher block. Get the small medipack. Turn around and RJ+G the opening opposite, taking care to avoid the swinging chain.

Trap Gauntlet

Watch the flyby carefully, as it shows you the route through the upcoming traps. Drop down and walk forward until you hear the rollingball drop behind you (alternatively, turn around and hop backwards so that you can see it drop). Sideflip onto either of the sloping sides and hold down jump so that you bounce over the ball. Stand one square in front of the spikes, turn around, and hop backwards twice when they go down, safety drop to the crumbling platform below, roll immediately and SJ+G the monkeyswing ahead. Swing to the end, drop off, and climb onto the walkway above the monkeyswing.

SAVE! The upcoming jumps on the crumbling platforms are very tough. You can save in mid air if you think you’ve done the jump correctly (in a new slot, obviously!), but otherwise it has to be done in one go. Take a diagonal RJ to the first one, and roll in mid-air. Run with a left curve to land on the one opposite (this has to be a blind jump, since if you stop to line it up, the platform will crumble). RJ with a sharp left curve to the next one. Depending on where you land, RJ or SJ+G to the next one. From there, just jump into the water below (Savegame 2). Expert’s Challenge: It’s possible to skip the monkeyswing and two of the crumbling platforms entirely. When the spikes go down, take a curved running swandive to the crumbling platform on the right. Lara hits the edge and somehow winds up standing straight on it. From there, continue to the remaining two platforms as normal. It may be possible to do this with a regular RJ or RJ+G, but I haven’t managed it. (Credit to DJ Full for discovering this shortcut.)

Through the Glass Ceiling

Pull out on your left. Use the switch to turn on a mechanism that lowers a rope from the block in the ceiling. You can’t reach the rope from here, so swim to the opposite side and RJ+G it from there. Turn to the right until Lara is facing the ladder above the wheels. Swing once, but don’t jump yet. Wait till Lara has her feet around the rope again, then swing once more, and she’ll go higher this time – high enough to grab the ladder. Climb up and out onto a glass floor. Kill a ninja and get her shotgun shells, and kill a mechanical beetle. Turn the cog switch at least 4 or 5 times, and then run to the left. At the edge of the glass floor jump down to the flat part of the conveyer belt and RJ till you get through the lowering door.

Jumps through Fire

A camera shows you a crowbar on a wooden platform high up – that’s your destination, of course. But first, explore this room for some goodies: flares on the right side, uzi clips behind the crates at the far end, and a large medipack in the pool. Also note the cog switch in the corner.

Use the switch next to a crate with a flame emitter on it to turn off that flame. Climb the crate – which turns off the timed flame above the pillar ahead – and RJ+G that pillar. Do the same to the next pillar (taking care to land a little to the right to have enough space for running), then run with a sharp left curve to the next one, RJ+G the next one, RJ+G with another sharp left curve, RJ+G again, roll, and RJ to land on the wooden platform. Needless to say, all flames above these pillars are timed. If Lara catches fire at any point, jump into the pool below.

Get the crowbar, and see a camera shot of spikes lowering before a crowbar door (remember this door from the thumper room?). A wraith shows up, so drop into the pool below, and stay underwater till it explodes. Get the large medipack now if you didn’t do so before. Get out of the pool, and go use the cog switch in the corner 3-4 times, and run for the door. Ride up the conveyer belt and up the slope.

Cross the glass floor, jump onto a coal bin, and SJ+G an alcove opposite. Open the door with the crowbar. You’re back in the thumper room. Go straight ahead to the room with the rotating traps (now blocked), and open the door on the right with the crowbar. Get Secret # 2: the second Secret Disc, a large medipack, and shotgun shells. Return to the thumper room. RJ to the hanging wooden platform and jump to the door where you saw the spikes lowering. Open the crowbar door and enter a new room.

Melting and Freezing Pools

Kill a mechanical beetle. Note the two pools: one frozen and one liquid. Jump into the latter and use the underwater lever. Get out, climb the block that expanded from the wall, and jump straight up to grab the underside of the conveyer belt. Hang on for the ride and drop off on the wooden bridge. Note the two doors and the jumpswitch above the E one and alcove above the W one. You can do the next few tasks in a various different orders, but the following is the most efficient way. Stand on the W side of the wooden bridge facing E. Grab the upper side of the conveyer belt, shimmy roughly one square to the right, pull up and RJ+G straight ahead. Lara will move off to the left, and will therefore be able to grab the jumpswitch. The door below it opens. Go inside, use the Factory Keys in a keyhole next to a window to raise a trapdoor just outside. Now go stand on the E side of the bridge, grab the conveyor belt, shimmy left, pull up, and RJ +G to the alcove opposite. Get a torch and drop down onto the bridge. (Make sure you don’t drop the torch to the floor, or you’ll have to go get another one.)

RJ onto the raised trapdoor, stand on its SW corner, and jump into the alcove with the burning wood. Light the torch, turn around, SJ back onto the trapdoor, and RJ back to the bridge. Light the pile of wood in the middle of the E room. A flyby shows mechanisms starting up, and the frozen pool melting. Leave the torch where you can easily find it again, and jump down into either of pools, as a wraith is behind you. Stay underwater till it dies, and use the underwater lever in the newly unfrozen pool to open the W door. Get back onto the bridge, get your torch and go light the pile of wood in the W room. A similar flyby shows the other pool freezing. You can throw away the torch now.

Jump in the pool to get rid of another wraith. Pull/push the cage to right opposite the alcove with the chain. Climb on it and RJ+G to the alcove, pull the chain to open a door above the conveyer belt. RJ+G to the cage again, and climb onto the wooden bridge from it. Climb onto the conveyer belt, and this time you can simply stay put for the ride. Move the table, and pick up the Fuse. A trapdoor above a ladder opens. Run against the conveyer belt and drop down to the wooden bridge. Go through the E room, up the ladder and out into the vestibule of the factory. Use the Factory Keys to leave. A wolf attacks – kill it.

Waterfall Cavern

Go to the cave behind the waterfall and use the Fuse on its holder next to the door. Go inside, and watch as a flyby takes over. It shows some important spots in an underground cavern with a lake, buildings built into its sides, a large rock pillar in the middle, and a waterfall falling through the hole in the roof. Your destination is the top of the pillar, but you can’t get there directly. For now, climb down or jump into the water below. Get some uzi clips and shotgun shells from the bottom of the lake.

Swim to the S side of the lake, get out of the water, and kill a couple of snakes who are trying to get too friendly. Jump onto the first flat rock in the lake. The next rock is too far to jump to directly – instead, take a RJ to the sloping base of the rock pillar to its right, and hold jump to bounce to the rock. RJ to the flatter portion of the base ahead, and from there, RJ+G the final rock. (This jump is tricky – if you can’t make it normally, then set up a normal RJ, jump once straight up, and then RJ, and you should be able to grab the rock.) Grab the crack on the nearby (manmade) pillar, shimmy to the left, and drop down to grab a jumpswitch. A door opens high up on a wall.

Swim to the E side and wade out of the water. If you want the large medipack in the NE corner, you have to RJ to it and back. Walk up the high spot before the swingpole, RJ to it, and jump off it with a sharp right curve to land in the doorway up ahead.

Bridge of Switches

In this room, there are 8 crowbar switches on a bridge: some of them open the circular door, some have no effect, and one closes it. To find out which ones to use, (as the camera clue shows you) drop into the pool below, get some shotgun shells, note the closed door (for later), and look up at the underside of the bridge. There are 4 white squares there, corresponding to the switches you have to use, and one black square, corresponding to the switch that closes the door, and therefore to be avoided. Note the pattern, and get out of the water and on the bridge again. Use the 4 correct switches (if you need a reminder, hang from the side of the bridge and use look to peep under it). If you do happen to use the switch that closes the door, you can reset it by standing on its other side and using you crowbar again.

Go through the circular doorway, note the corridor on the right, but ignore it for the moment. Jump over the pool on the left using the sloping blocks: RJ+G the first one on the right, pull up, jump to the one on the left, bounce to the flat ledge, RJ to the next sloping block, and bounce to the opposite side. If you fall into the water, climb back out using a raised block below where you started.

Mirror and Rollingballs

In the next room, there are 4 curved ramps with 4 rollingballs poised above them, and 4 switches corresponding to the balls. The reflection in the mirror shows a slightly different version, so study it carefully before pulling any of the switches. The idea is to stop the balls from rolling onto the parts of the ramp marked in black in the mirrored version. As you can see, the one third from the mirror is all black, so don’t use that switch at all. For the other three, use the switch and then immediately use it again to raise it, and stop the balls. The first one has some breathing space, but for the other two, you can’t afford to hesitate at all. When the three switches are used, a trapdoor will open in the middle of the floor. Drop down, collect the Bridge Key, and immediately get out of there as a wraith is hot on your tail. Drop into the water outside to get rid of it. Explore in the water a bit to find some uzi clips, then get out using a raised block below where you dropped in. RJ to the flat ledge, then carefully jump to the far side of the double-sloped ledge, and bounce to the opposite side.

Four-Switch and Raisingblocks Room

Now go down the corridor you saw earlier. When a rollingball starts pursuing you, sprint to the end and left into an open doorway. Before attempting the puzzle, drop into the water and use an underwater switch to open the secret doorway in the room with the 8 crowbar switches. Go back there, and collect your prize: Secret # 3: the third Secret Disc and uzis. Return to the 4-switch and raisingblocks room. If you prefer not to backtrack now, you can get the secret later.

Use all switches except the SE one to raise 3 of the 4 raisingblocks in this tall room. Don’t raise the 4^th one, or you won’t be able to proceed. Climb on the first one, jump diagonally onto the slope to the right of the next raisingblock, and bounce to land on that block. SJ to the flat ledge just above, then RJ+G to the flat ledge across the room. Jump to the highest raisingblock, and climb through the hole in the ceiling.

Back in the Waterfall Cavern

You are in a balcony overlooking the waterfall cavern. Press a button to lower a rope from the cavern ceiling. Get yourself a shotgun from a table. RJ over the railing to grab the rope and swing to the central rock platform. Kill a crow. Pick up the Varaldun Codex (a souvenir for Lara) from the pedestal. From the ledge closest to the opening where you entered this area, you can RJ+G directly into that opening. Alternatively, drop into the water below, and climb out using the ladder. If you didn’t get Secret # 3 earlier, you can use the swingpole to get back up to the room with the 8 crowbar switches again, and get it.

The Bridge

Return outdoors, and kill a crow. Go back to the gate for the factory courtyard. Go to the bridge and use you new key to open it, and run across. Just before the far end of the bridge, use the look key to break out of the camera view, and look over the railing to your left. The top of two walls form a corner just beyond the railing. Carefully swandive/sideflip diagonally over the railing to land on the top of the nearest wall. Run along it to the NW corner, where you’ll find Secret # 4: the fourth Secret Disc, uzis and uzi clips.

Drop off the wall, and pick up a torch from the poppies directly below. Go towards the gate in this courtyard, and a ninja will ambush you. Drop the torch carefully, kill her, open the gate, and kill a wolf. Take the torch outside and light it on the campfire across the river. Return to the bridge, go to the SE courtyard, open the crowbar door, and light the campfire inside. The double doors on the bridge above open.

The Vestibule

Go through these double doors. If you want another secret, take the torch with you, or else throw it away. In the vestibule, you can see two doorways and a closed trapdoor. The latter can be opened using 5 secret discs – since you don’t have that many right now, ignore it. You can choose to go through the right door first or the left door. I recommend the right one first, but it’s up to you. If you go left, take the torch with you, or else leave it in the vestibule. Go through the right doorway, note the spikes and the red keyhole, and open the double doors at the far end.

Greenhouse Courtyard

Go down the stairs. Find a small medipack in a bunch of poppies near the SW corner of the courtyard. Open the double doors, and note the pickups under the table (for later). Use the switch to open a timed door up on the balcony you just came down from. Once inside that door, pick up uzi clips from a table. Shoot one of the windows overlooking the courtyard, climb on the ledge, and RJ to the top of the greenhouse. Kill a crow. Shoot a window in the building to your left and RJ in.

Spikes, Slopes and Swingpoles

Note the rollingball on your right, and then carefully note the layout of the room beyond. SJ+G the ladder on your right, drop to use the jumpswitch, and slide safely to the floor, as the spikes on part of the floor and a block in the corner are deactivated. Climb the block, face the swingpole, and SJ+G to it. Swing with a hard right curve and roll in the air to land on the slope in the far right corner, and bounce off it to grab the ladder. Shimmy around a corner and as far to the right as you can go, and a little up. Jump off the ladder with a twist to land on the slope behind you, slide a little and then jump to the flat spot ahead. Turn around, RJ+G to the swingpole, and jump with a slight left curve to land in the alcove in the far wall (Savegame 3). Expert’s Challenge: You can swing directly from the low block to the flat ledge in the far left corner, by doing a curved SJ to the swingpole. (Credit to manarch2 for discovering this shortcut.)

Push the button to see the rollingball roll out of the passage you came in from. Shoot out the window and safety drop down. The rollingball has smashed through a wall of the greenhouse, so jump past it to get in (if you prefer, you can shoot out the half-broken panes of glass so as to be able to enter more easily). Use the lever to open a door in the red brick building, and go there.

The Warehouse

Note the alcove opposite the entrance – you need to get a crate in there, but the ones on the ground floor are too heavy to move, so head one floor up. Go up the ramp and through the transparent tubes to find a moveable crate. Pull it till the junction of the tubes. SJ+G from the ramp to the alcove in the NE corner, follow the passage to the middle tube, jumping a gap on the way. Pull the crate into the tube as a far as it can go. Turn around and climb the ladder, back-flipping off at the top. Hop down to the top of the central tube, then take a diagonal RJ around the lamp to the right. Climb into the alcove, avoiding the swinging chain. Use the lever to raise a trapdoor on a lower level. Get back onto the central tube, then take a diagonal RJ to the left tube. Be careful of the falling rubble when climbing into the alcove. Use the lever to raise another trapdoor. Use the switch on the left to lower the block in the room with the double doors.

Drop down to the ramp, go inside the central tube, and push the crate once. Go to the NE corner, jump the gap, and push the crate over the trapdoors, and until it reaches the corner. Go to where the crate was, and use the switch to raise a block. RJ+G that block. Pull the crate once. Drop down to the crates on the floor, and RJ+G the trapdoors from there. Get behind the crate and push it onto the block. Go use the switch for the block again to lower it and the crate. Push the crate all the way to the alcove. A door opens high up in the warehouse. Climb up to the top of the central tube, go into the passage opposite, and pick up the First Spike Key from the room beyond. Leave the warehouse. Go into the room with the double doors. Move the table to where the block was, and get the pickups beneath it: Secret # 5: the fifth Secret Disc, a large medipack and revolver ammo.

First Spike Room

Go up the stairs, and into the spike room. Use the key to disable the spikes. Climb onto one of the lower ledges, SJ+G the higher one on the opposite side, then repeat for the next higher ledge, and finally climb onto the highest platform. Pickup the revolver, and see a camera view of a door. Get flares from the windowsill between the two rooms, and then drop down.

Courtyard with Pool

Return to the vestibule, pick up the torch you left there and go through the left doorway. You need another spike key here, so keep going and through the double doors. Go down the stairs and into a courtyard with a pool. There are 3 piles of wood scattered around the pool – light them all and a door will open in the NE corner. (You can throw away the torch now.) Drop into the water, and swim to the end to get Secret # 6: the sixth Secret Disc, shotgun ammo and revolver ammo. Return to the courtyard. Get the small medipack near the entrance to the stairs. Kill a snake in the pool, then jump into it to find an underwater switch under the bridge. Pull it and a timed door opens upstairs. Get out of the water, sprint up the stairs, turning left at the half landing (you came down the other path), and right at the top of the stairs.

The Aquarium

Immediately draw a weapon, and kill the dual-sword-wielding ninja who attacks you. Get the Aquarium Key she drops. Go down the stairs in the corner and use the key to open a door. Go up another flight of stairs and into a room with 9 switches. The camera clue suggests you look at the walls under the glass floor: there are 2 stripes on the wall on the left, 3 on the one ahead, and 1 on the wall to the right. Accordingly, use the second switch on the left (from the group of three on each wall), the third one ahead, and the first one on the right wall. Another door opens in the aquarium.

Go there, use the lever to open a trapdoor directly above the tank. Get a small medipack in the NW corner and go upstairs. There’s a snake in the tank – you can kill it from above, but it’s simpler to just avoid it. Drop into the tank, swim into a passage below, and follow it until you come out below the floor of the room with the 9 switches. Get the Second Spike Key and climb out of the trapdoor above. Leave the aquarium.

Second Spike Room

Use the Second Spike Key in the second spike room. Climb the ledges just as you did in the first spike room. Get the laser sight from the top, and revolver ammo from the windowsill. A door opens in the courtyard with the pool, so return there.

The Church

Go through the door, and pick up some revolver ammo on the other end of the short passage. Note the cracked windows on the upper storey of the building to your left, and the creeper you can climb next to the middle one. Combine your revolver and laser sight, and shoot that window. Climb the creeper until Lara’s hands are at the same height as the upper edge of that window, shimmy left as much as possible while holding action, and Lara will automatically drop and grab the windowsill. Climb inside.

Pick up uzi clips on the window sill to your right. You can cross to the other side via the chandeliers or simply drop down and explore the lower floor first. Get a large medipack from one windowsill on the lower floor and revolver ammo from the other. Use the lever to open the double doors to the pool courtyard outside, but don’t leave yet, as your work is far from done. Climb to the upper level using the ladder behind a pillar. Shoot out the far right window on that side, and jump to the wall on the right and then drop down (or drop down directly, losing a little health). Go to the far end of the courtyard, and get Secret # 7 from a bunch of poppies: the seventh and last Secret Disc, a large medipack and flares. Climb back up the wall using the creepers. Take a diagonal RJ from the higher, rocky part of the wall to the window you came from.

Save your game (in case you run into a possible bug – see the readme). Use the lever on the upper floor, and two mechanical dragons will materialize on the lower floor. Drop down and shoot both. You probably have enough revolver ammo to tackle at least one, and the shotgun should do for the other. The dragons will spit fire, or if you’re too far, send swarms of bats after you. If you catch fire, you can run to the pool outside to extinguish it (provided you opened the doors already). When both dragons are dead, pick up the Mechanical Hearts they both leave behind. You’ll see a camera shot of the door in the side of the bridge, so that’s where you have to go …

The Secret Room

… with one detour. When you reach the vestibule, use 5 of your secret discs to open the trapdoor above. Climb up and backflip off the ladder at the top. Pick up the Varaldun Codex Key from the table (this can be used to open the Varaldun Codex, saving Lara the trouble of breaking it open when she gets home, but otherwise it has no use). Use your remaining 2 secret discs on the pillars to the W. A transporter beam activates between them, so get in to transport to the bonus level. (Savegame 4 – If you don’t have the necessary secret discs, you can use this savegame to see the bonus level.)

Greek Temple (Bonus Level)

This level has no real gameplay. You can explore the garden a bit, and get a small medipack from the pool. Then enter the temple, and get a big medipack from the upper floor. Some of the pots lying around are shatterable – you can shoot a few if you like. Drop into the water on the left side, swim through a tunnel and emerge into another room. Admire it, and then get into the transporter to return to The Lost City of Varaldun.

The Lost City of Varaldun

Leave the secret room and get back to the bridge. Use the Mechanical Hearts in the holders on both sides of the door to open it. Turn around and climb up the ladder to the top of the bridge. Grab the flyer and zoom down towards the train that will take Lara back home. When she lands in the water next to it, the level ends.

Hope you enjoyed it!