TR ADVENT CALENDAR 2021 - THE HUNT FOR ESMERALDA

Level by AgentXP

Walkthrough by Phil Lambeth

The builder has provided her own video walk, which I followed in prepating this walkthrough.

The builder has also provided the following background information for the adventure that is about to unfold: Several Tomb Raider level builders have gathered in a Celtic farmhouse for Christmas. Lara is on her way to meet them, and she hears of a local legend, a harp player who used to play the most beautiful melodies; however, her final resting place is unknown. Lara is intrigued and would like to find out more. However, in the meantime she needs to help out her friends by doing a few tasks around the farm and nearby village. Among other things, she needs to help find Esmeralda, the lost chicken, who somehow escapes from her coop and vanishes…

Lara trots along an old country road toward a barn where DJ Full awaits and puts her immediately to work feeding the chickens, adding that since turkey will be the main course for Christmas dinner, Esmeralda (a chicken who overhears the conversation) has a reprieve for at least one more year. Also, a note appears in Lara's iPhone, which you can either bring up in your inventory or press the TAB key for a shortcut. Finally, there's a Farm Map in your inventory to serve as your guide through the sprawling estate.

Look to your right and note the chicken coop beyond the vehicle, but for now turn left and approach the farmhouse. The gate is closed, so hop over the hedge and open the front door. Step inside the foyer and open the door on your right to the den, where Reggie is warming himself beside the fireplace. He talks with Lara about the mysterious harp player and then asks her to indulge his addiction to chocolate. A note is added to the iPhone and MONEY appears in your inventory.

Head N past the Christmas tree to find flares on the table by the window and continue W into the dining room where a clock chimes the hour. Look left into the kitchen, then go around the dining room table and open the door window on the left to let in some cold air. You'll come back here later, but first continue W past the kitchen into the library and strike up a conversation with Titak (where we learn that it's pronounced tee-tack and not tie-tack). TITAK'S ROOM KEY is added to your inventory, as well as a new page to your iPhone, so go back and enter the kitchen where tombraiderxii is making dinner preparations. I won't continue to mention these added pages, as any significant information will be provided in this text.

It seems that everyone Lara runs into wants something, so check the new page in your iPhone and go W into the pantry-laundry room to find cakes (small medipack) on the washer. Pull into the opposite alcove and crawl under the hanging hams for a miniature Santa Claus that registers as SECRET #1. There are 20 secrets in all, and finding them all provides access to a secret door near the end of the level. Turn around, crawl to the edge and flip out of the alcove.

Open the door to the foyer next to the fridge and go left up the stairs to the second floor. Look around to note seven closed doors, one of which requires a key. There's also a ladder leading to a closed trap door. Starting with the SE corner door, enter the master bedroom and find flares in the window. The other door leads to an austere and empty bathroom with no tub or shower. Exit to the hallway. The guest room directly across the hall is devoid of pickups, but you might want to open the door and take a look inside.

Open the next door in the W wall to a more spacious bedroom. Pull up into the window for SECRET #2 and exit. The next door in the hall alcove leads to the bathroom, where you'll find a large medipack on top of the towel shelves. The doors in the NW and SW corners lead to bedrooms with no pickups but still worth a quick look. Now it's time to use Titak's Room Key to open the door to her spacious room and enter under a fixed camera. Hit the look key to restore camera control and loop right around the table to open the closet door. Open the chest inside for a scrap of PAPER, then move that table outside the bedroom into the hallway.

Vault up onto the table and move it S underneath the ladder. You can now pull down the ceiling trap door by standing at the S edge of the table, facing N and jumping straight up with grab. Climb the ladder to the attic and hop over the low crate for a cut scene of a thieving crow outside. Vault onto the nearby crate for flares and step E into the nook to open a small chest for a PENCIL and see the stolen key on the window sill beyond the closed window (don't bother trying to shoot it). On your way back to the ladder, note the closed door W that will open if you manage to collect all 20 secrets.

Climb down to the hallway and combine the Pencil with the Paper to form TITAK'S LETTER TO SANTA. We know from the earlier conversation what Titak wants for Christmas (an ebike), but her many TR fans would much rather that Santa bring her renewed inspiration to complete and release the long-awaited  continuation of Mists of Avalon. Anyway, go downstairs, turn right into the kitchen and loop around into the dining room and around the table past that door window you opened earlier.

Turn left once outdoors and hop W onto that stone wall. Continue W along the right side of the wall until you can see something small and red on the ground to your right. Hop down for SECRET #3 and go back the way you came to the back yard of the farm house. Go to the N stone wall and look beyond it to see two people standing beside a snowman. Approach to learn that they're Lore[Raider] and Dinne[raider], and after a brief conversation Lara realizes that the snowman they've been building is incompletely adorned. Pick up the SHOVEL at your feet after noting the cut scene of a nearby carrot patch.

There's more pressing business to be taken care of first, however. Run E along the stone wall, hop down right between the farm house and the smaller building and note the closed door and keyhole on the latter. Go to the W wall of the farm house just to the left of the chimney shaft and climb the ivy-covered wall to the window sill where the crow dropped the SHED KEY. The cut scene removes all doubt as to where it's to be placed.

But first, get back onto the ivy-covered wall and shift left toward the corner. Climb up to a flat spot (you may need to release and quickly grab before you can pull up) on the roof, jump up right two times to reach the apex of the roof and run W to the next chimney. Pull up for SECRET #4, run back to the first chimney, slide down right to the flat spot, get back onto the ivy-covered wall and climb back down to the ground. Run NE to the shed and use the Shed Key to gain entry. It's rather cluttered inside, but you can shoot an empty crate if you like and then pick up the CROWBAR to be used to open the chicken coop.

Exit the hut and run S along the stone wall until you reach that bridge down to your left. Jump into the water and into a niche under the stone wall for SECRET #5. Swim away from the farm house a short distance until you reach an underwater ledge on your right that you can use to pull out. Run S, turn right past the opened gates and proceed to the nearby barn. Stand on the snow drift at the open area where you see the icicles hanging down and jump up just left of the icicles to grab the roof. Pull up and run straight forward for SECRET #6.

Safety drop back down, reverse roll and see the carrot patch. Go there and all will be taken care of without your having to hunt for the right place to dig. The CARROT FOR SNOWMAN appears in your inventory, so go all the way back N and NW to where you left Lore and Dinne. Approach the snowman to affix the carrot nose and in appreciation Lore gives you the VILLAGE KEY. Head S between the farm house and an old windmill toward the tower you can see in the distance, turn right at a bleating ram, cross the bridge and come to a closed gate. Oops, wrong gate. Turn left, hop over the wall, run past another bleating ram and come to the next gate. Open it with your key and enter the village.

Run across the bridge and you see something red on the giant cross ahead, thinking it may be another secret, but it's only a bird. Loop around left in front of the cross and place Titak's Letter to Santa in the drop box. The door to the Post Office opens, so go inside and grab some flares in the far corner and cakes on the counter top. Stand in front of the cash register, pay the lady your Money and get a bar of CADBURY'S DAILY MILK CHOCOLATE. Apparently the poor lady didn't see you taking the other items and therefore didn't charge you for them. Since she's obviously inattentive, take advantage of the situation and scoot behind her for SECRET #7.

Exit the Post Office, loop around right to the bridge you crossed, go toward the village gate and jump E over the creek into a narrow alley. Follow around to SECRET #8 and return. Run S past the giant cross and meet up with Lore and Dinne who have gotten there ahead of you. After a brief conversation go past them, pull onto the telephone booth for some cakes and enter the chapel via the E doorway. 

Someone at the organ is playing "Good Christian Men, Rejoice." Turn right and push the button in the S wall to open the side door for a shortcut outdoors. Go N to the narthex and up the winding staircase to the balcony, where SECRET #9 is sneakily hidden in the SE corner (you may need to stoop to pick it up). Exit to the staircase and save your game in front of the W wall switch for a generously timed run. A trap door opens far above you in the tower, and you need to make your way up there as quickly as possible by going around clockwise and pulling up where appropriate and jumping to grab higher ledges. You'll likely reach the upper ledge with the two bells in plenty of time, so wait for the timed trap door to come back up, stand on it and pull the rope to start the ringing of festive bells.

Pull up through the opening to the tower roof and find SECRET #10 behind the W cross. Drop and grab and hop your way down to the chapel floor and met up again with Lore, who notifies you of an OLD MAP that has appeared in your inventory. At the same time a cut scene shows a gate opening beyond the telephone booth you climbed onto earlier. Exit the chapel W past Dinne and run forward past the telephone booth to the opened gate.

You come to a frozen river bank, so before venturing further loop around right into the NE corner, note the water hole presently blocked by a trap door and jump up E to grab a sloped surface. Shimmy right, pull up onto the stone wall and go to your right, hopping over the gap for SECRET #11. Safety drop to the river bank and hop down to the frozen surface. Follow S toward a wall and hop up left onto a stable surface on the stone ledge. Take a running jump SW onto the higher block (or grab and pull up), pull up left and hop up NE. Stand jump E to the crest of the ice ledge, but leave enough room so that you don't slide down the other side into the village. Turn right and make your way to that scraggly bush that hides SECRET #12.

Get back to the higher block you jumped to a bit earlier. If you happen to miss and slide down into the village, not to worry, just take the long way around again and jump SW to that block. Hop SW to the triangular ledge, turn right and take a curved running jump W to a block across the river. Turn and take a running jump SE to a ledge against the wall. Hop with grab into the W alcove and push the ornate button to trigger a flyby that reveals a door opening beneath the frozen surface.

Safety drop to the ground and make your way back N along the frozen river to the entrance gate. The trap door blocking the water hole has opened, allowing you to jump into the water and swim S underneath the frozen surface. Continue past a narrow opening at the end, turn left past the opened door and surface at an underground cavern. Pull out E, light a flare and go through the opening to an abandoned coal mine that's shown on the church map.

Turn left, pick up some extra flares near the wall to your right and go down to a crossing. Continue straight into the N opening and crawl into a small cave for SECRET #13. Exit, turn left and go up the slight ramp E and then S to a dig area. The mine cart you see is out of service due to a missing section of the track. Push the mine cart W one time to release the surrounding structure and cause it to rise, while a similar structure ahead lowers. Hop onto the second structure, step forward and jump straight up from the edge to grab an opening in the ceiling. Pull up into an upper section and find the CELTIC KEY on the S slab. A outdoor cut scene shows where it's to be used, and a trap door lowers above a nearby ladder.

The ladder is NW, so go there and climb to the top, release and quickly grab and pull into the crawl space. Crawl until you can stand at an opening in front of a village hut. Simply step forward and slide without jumping to land inside a fenced enclosure for SECRET #14. Side flip out and head N toward the chapel. Around the right side of the chapel to find SECRET #15 within a small graveyard. Return to the front corner of the chapel and find the path going off to your left (E) into a wooded area. Follow to a clearing, and as you approach the snow-covered tree ahead look to your right for SECRET #16 just beyond the circle of trees.

Continue N along the path and turn right in front of the stone wall after noting the grate at ground level. Go to the closed gate and push the large button to open it. Proceed past the opening in the fence ahead and climb up onto the rocks to your right. Make your way E along the flat sections, and when you reach the dead tree take a running jump slightly NE for SECRET #17. Slide to the ground and run N past the garden until you reach the open gate on your left that leads to the barn you saw at the beginning of the level.

Run past the barn, climb over the wall to your right at the closed gate and enter the farm house. Turn right into the den and approach Reggie, who has now taken a seat near the fireplace. After a brief conversation, Lara trades Reggie's chocolate for the KEY TO THE MILL. Exit the farm house and proceed W to the windmill up on the hill that you noted earlier. Go up the steps to the front door and open it with your key. As Lara enters she looks right and recalls DJ Full's admonition for her to feed the chickens, so pick up that small bag which contains GRAIN FOR CHICKENS.

Climb down the nearby ladder as you're informed that something is jamming the mill mechanism. This obviously requires remedial work, so stand near the central pole facing E and press the action key to make things happen in rather dramatic fashion. Hop up S over the floor hole and push the bin next to the ladder one time E into a wooden structure to the ones you encountered in the mine. Go around to the other side of the ladder and climb up to face the entrance. Loop around left and turn the wheel to raise the structure with the bin. Move the bin two times W and two times N, get up on it and climb the higher ladder to the loft.

Loop around right and pull the rope to release the heavy bag filled with flour, which causes considerable damage down below. Climb down both ladders and pick up the EMPTY SACK at your feet. Drop down through the floor hole you hopped over earlier and pull down the ceiling trap door in the NW corner. Flour from the ruptured bag cascades down from above and Lara fills the sack she's carrying. Pull up through the floor hole, climb the nearby ladder and exit the mill. Loop around right to the E wall, locate the piled snow next to the bush and use it to reach the roof (stand as far left as possible and use only the action and up arrow keys). Run forward and grab SECRET #18.

Safety drop to the ground and make your way back E toward the farm house and barn. Turn right at the barn and use the crowbar to open the gate to the chicken coop. Enter and explore the environs for three EGGS. Note the S grate you saw earlier from the other side, exit the chicken coop and run N past the burning trash and stone wall to the farm house. Turn left into the kitchen and hand the eggs to tombraiderxii, and in return he'll give you a cup of COFFEE to take to DJ Full, who is still standing where you first saw him in front of the barn.

The coffee transfer was required before the chickens could be fed, so proceed S to the chicken coop. DJ Full has beaten you there, and he announces his discovery that Esmeralda has disappeared before going to stand in front of that grate. Exit the chicken coop, turn right and find that DJ Full has opened the barn door. Go on in to find that Floris the cat has gotten himself trapped down below in the storage area, so you'll need to divert briefly before going off in search of Esmeralda.

Turn left and pull down the wall switch to open the N barn doors. Go back S and find the ladder to your left. Climb up to the loft and pull out your pistols for the first time to shoot those small stacked crates for flares. Search behind the barrels near the W wall for cakes. Go to the S wall, turn around and jump up to grab the beam. Pull up for a large medipack, hop down and go back N to the crate that's directly opposite the hanging bag. Get on the crate and stand jump to grab the beam supporting the bag. The bag drops to the floor, shattering the trap door and thus releasing Floris, and all the while you're hanging helplessly from the beam. When the cut scenes end and camera control is restored, swing around and jump off to land on a crate below, losing a small bit of health.

From the crate, take a running jump NW onto a flat spot on the haystack. Hop up higher, go to the raised slab and face N. Jump up to grab the beam and pull up. Jump to grab the next beam N, pull up and shoot the small chest for SECRET #19. Run off NW onto the haystack and slide to the floor. Drop down through the opening created by the fallen bag and find an APPLE FOR HORSE. Get back out by facing W and jumping up to grab the grate. Just for fun, try getting out by facing the S trap door and see what happens. 

As you pull up you see that the barn doors on all four sides are now open. Go S and open the crowbar fence to your right. Step inside the stall and offer the Apple to the hungry horse (stand facing his left flank). Not only does he accept the apple, he makes an offer you can't refuse to mount him. An onscreen message warns of potential collision problems, so save your game here before venturing outdoors. Exit the stall, turn left, then right to exit the barn while a spritely rendition of Jingle Bells spurs you onward.

Turn left once outside, ride a short distance and go right past the opened E gates. You can resume the playing of Jingle Bells if you like by dismounting (jump key and left arrow), then remounting with the Apple still in your inventory. Continue E along the path and ride up the slope that was inaccessible while you were on foot. The weather takes a turn for the worse in this new area, but ride on S by following the path until you reach a mountain pass blocked by snow. Since you can go no further, turn around and ride back N until you reach a section of the path that's covered with snow.

Dismount here and go up the E hill toward the bleating ram. Just behind the ram near the tree is SECRET #20. When you pick up this final Santa ornament, you're rewarded with a cut scene showing the secret door in the farmhouse attic opening. Slide down and continue N on foot toward the waterfall. In her video walk, the builder explains that if you use the horse for the forthcoming side trip back to the farmhouse, you'll encounter something called a softlock when you try to climb that steep hill a second time on your way back here. For this reason, when you turn left at the waterfall and run W to the farmhouse, you'll see that a block has risen next to the bottom of the slope to allow your easy return. Out of curiosity, I saved in a different slot and tried it myself. The horse had no difficulty going down the slope and coming back up, even when I got off and back on the horse in between. Go figure.

Enter the farmhouse through the front door, go upstairs and mount the table to climb back up to the attic. Turn around and hop SW toward the entrance to the secret room. Go inside to be treated to Christmas wishes from the builder along with a nice instrumental rendition of We Wish You a Merry Christmas. On the wall are screen shots from the builder's forthcoming projects. That's all, so exit the farmhouse and return E to the waterfall area by getting onto the raised block at the base of the slope and taking a running jump SE onto the path.

To the right of the waterfall you can see a Stonehenge-like assortment of upright stone monoliths. Next to the one on the far right is a raised slab. When you stand on it your Celtic Key is put to use and an underwater block lowers in the small cave behind the waterfall. Go there, wade through the passage and emerge at an opening that overlooks an underground area. It's a long way down, so hang from the edge, shimmy left and drop to a triangular ledge. Get on the adjacent block, take three consecutive NW hops to incrementally lower blocks and safety drop to the cave floor.

Run S and pull down the switch on the block. A cut scene shows a strip of tile designs that match those on the floor behind you. Your task is to step on the right ones in the proper order to open the W iris door. The tiles in question are the three that form the center strip running N to S. Before starting, save your game in case you mess up. Stand on those three tiles in this order: middle, N, S, middle, N (the other tiles don't affect the puzzle, so it doesn't matter if you happen to step on them). The iris door then spins open, allowing you to enter a new cavern.

Follow the only available path down to a open area where a flyby takes over. The mythical harp spoken of by Reggie is visible beneath the frozen surface of the pond. Also, the mystery of Esmeralda's disappearance is solved, but she's stuck behind a grate in the S wall. First things first. Go to the S wall and pull up onto the ledge. Face slightly NE and take a running jump to grab the jutting higher ledge. Pull up and face the next jutting ledge, also NE. Jump to grab it, curving left in midair. Hang from the E edge and shimmy right around two corners to pull up onto the next ledge.

Take a tricky curved jump without grab to the next ledge, walk forward and stand jump SE to a ledge with some greenery, walk forward again and stand jump to the last ledge. Face W, stand up to grab the ceiling and monkey swing to that Celtic medallion hanging from the ceiling. Release at the chain and immediately jump back up to grab the ceiling as your weight breaks the chain and causes the medallion to drop to the pond and break through the ice. Money swing to the W wall and release, suffering a bit of health loss as you drop to the ledge.

Hop down into the drained pond and approach the harp. Lara will play a nice little melody as the camera pans through the area and a door opens not far from Esmeralda in the S wall. Go there and enter to find the grave of the enigmatic harpist. Gather Esmeralda in your arms and exit this area N and up the ramped tunnel back to the cavern with the floor tile puzzle.

Look W up the hill to see an alcove with a wall switch, where a block has lowered during your absence. Drop a protesting Esmeralda on the nearby short block, save your game and pull down the timed switch to raise a generously timed block near the E waterfall. Hop onto that short block a bit E of the wall switch, grab Esmeralda again and take running jumps E and SE to the progressively higher blocks, then hop to a grass-covered ledge before hopping further onto the timed raised block, from which you can take a running jump to the top of the waterfall. 

Tell Esmeralda to hold her breath as you wade through the passage while dragging her underwater. Cross the pond, turn right and run W toward the farmhouse. Slide down the steep slope and approach the open gates for a conversation with DJ Full and a lovely concluding flyby accompanied by an equally lovely vocal rendering of Silent Night (the builder herself providing a spritely soprano and a sultry alto).