Tomb Raiders Traveler's Guide: Tomb Raider - The Last Revelation

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	Friends and Foes
	4. KNOW THY ALLIES AND ENEMIES	In this game, Lara will have a few allies and lots of new enemies. One important aspect of identifying your enemies is learning what they sound like. I strongly recommend playing Tomb Raider in a quiet environment with the speakers on your computer or console turned up. The sounds you hear will clue you in to what's coming up. Don't be in a rush to run/jump/fall into a room. Know what you're getting into. If you listen carefully, you can tell if there's an enemy waiting for you in the next room before you get there. In many cases, enemies will be "asleep" as you approach the room or area it is in. In fact some enemies require very specific conditions to set them off. Some enemies can be shot at while they are asleep, while others cannot be. All of this is important because, you can learn how to wake enemies up from a safe location. In this game, the action that triggers the enemies are, in general, closer to the enemies, so you have a lot fewer choices in terms of safe Some enemies don't stay at the same "level" anymore. In the past, enemies would not climb up tall steps or jump down into pits, but that has changed. Some enemies, particularly the human ones, will climb after you, so keep this in mind if you are attempting to make a getaway. One important thing to reiterate is that, although some enemies can climb up or drop down, all the enemies do not cross from dry land into deep water or vice versa. When attempting to get away from an enemy on land, try jumping into a pool of water. The same is true of underwater enemies. Although Lara can be equipped with a harpoon gun, you will find battle underwater to be extremely clumsy. Clear out enemies in water from dry land before entering. Note that in the descriptions below, though a weapon of choice may be given, you may not have that weapon yet unless you are using the weapon cheat or you're playing the second time through. It's okay, it's not like the pistol won't work, but I'm just telling you what works better. Unique enemies are labeled in red instead of blue and listed mostly in order of appearance, except where they can be grouped together for convenience.
		Werner Von Croy	Werner Von Croy is Lara's mentor and guide in the Angkor Wat. Stay near him and follow his directions. Besides merely giving direction, Von Croy will set off traps, open doors, and kill the wild boars with his machete. Although he becomes Lara's competition in The Race for the Iris, he is downright nasty in the "heretical" race. If Lara falls behind and he has the opportunity, he will shut gates and disconnect rope bridges to further impede Lara's progress.
		Wild Boars	There will be the occasional wild boar in Angkor Wat that will attack Lara. They do fairly little damage, but young Lara isn't carrying any weapons. As a result, killing them will be the task for Von Croy. Lead the boars to him and he'll whack them.
		Ahmed	Ahmed¹ is the Egyptian guide that will lead Lara through the Tomb of Seth. Stay close to him, has he carries a torch to provide light in the dark cave. Besides carrying light, he will set off obvious traps and indicate where Lara must go next. His usefulness doesn't end there. If he isn't standing still to indicate that Lara has some task to accomplish, he will kill scorpions and attack the wild dogs with his torch. Keep in mind that he's just the guide. He doesn't have all the answers, nor will he go out of his way. When he stops, you have to figure out what to do from there.
		Red Scorpions	Within the Tomb of Seth Lara will encounter plenty of these big red scorpions. They aren't as dangerous as they look, as they do very little damage and aren't actually poisonous. A few shots with the pistols are enough to eleminate these bugs. For fun Lara can draw them out and let Ahmed kill them.
		Wild Dogs	A few wild dogs have made made the Tomb of Seth their home. These thin dogs are fast, but easy to take down with just the pistols. They mostly occur alone, so they're fairly easy to avoid and kill. Be careful when they are found in a small pack and in tight quarters. Without the ability to dodge their attacks, they can do a fair amount of damage.
		Mummies	Unsurprisingly, mummies can be found in the Burial Chambers. They cannot be killed by regular gun fire, which includes pistols, the shotgun, and Uzis. You can stun them briefly with gunfire, but they stand their ground, and will continue their shambling pursuit after their momentary stun. It is rumored that they can be killed with explosive ammunition, seeing as how Lara won't be carrying any such weapons when she first encounters these mummies, she's going to have to just stay clear of them. Since they stumble around so slowly, it is fairly easy to elude them.
		Jackals	These jackals aren't the cute little canines that you see in nature documentaries on public television. These large black jackals are adorned with jewelery and are the guardians of the tombs. Their bite is fierce, but can be take down fairly readily with some pistol fire. What makes them particularly dangerous is that they almost always occur in pairs. Keep moving and keep firing. Don't waste shotgun ammunition on them. Learn to keep your distance and dodge their attacks.
		Egyptian Mercenaries	Egyptian mercenaries can be found throughout the Valley of the Kings and KV5. These nasty fellows are armed with semi-automatic weapons, but will switch to the use of a large saber for close combat situations. They can be taken out with pistols by charging at them with pistols blazing, then jumping over them or running past them, and then reverse rolling and repeating. Two blasts from the shotgun can make short work of one of these guys if their numbers overwhelm you. If you're behind the wheel of the Jeep, you can save yourself the effort and the ammuntion by simply turning these thugs into road-kill.
		Black Scorpions	You will encounter these large black bugs first in the Temple of Karnak, in the Great Hypostyle Hall and later in the Sacred Lake. These scorpions differ from the red species in that the stings of these arthropods are poisonous. Getting poisoned in The Last Revelation can be quite a treat as well as being quite a show, but you proabbly won't be as entertaining when you're dead. Keep some distance from these scorpions by jumping clear of them. They can be killed quite readily with just pistol fire.
		Crocodiles	You will begin to encounter these large black reptiles when you first arrive at the Sacred Lake. It seems these guys are a little tougher than the ones in the original game, but if you keep your distance, they can be killed quite easily with just pistol fire. As with the previous crocs, they are faster on land than in the water. However, the major difference between these crocs, and any you encountered in previous games is that, if there is any shallow that they can crawl up, they can crawl out of the water and attack you on dry land, so don't think you're safe just because you've gotten out of the water. You will encounter more crocodiles in the Citadel Gate.
		Bats	Also found the Sacred Lake are bats. These little winged rodents fly faster and are harder to kill than those of the original game. Rather than flitter about aimlessly, as in the original game, they will soar right for you when they make their attack. Keep moving and keep your pistols trained on them and they should prove to be much of a problem. You will encounter them again n the City of the Dead.
		Assassins	Starting when Lara returns to the Great Hypostyle Hall Lara will encounter these tough killers. Dressed in red robes and armed with collapsible scythes weapons and also Uzis. When fully expanded, the assassins can wave those scythe-like swords in front of their bodies as a shield against bullets. Lara will be unable to shoot them down with pistols when they are in this defensive stance. Lara can take one down with just pistols by simply shooting at them while running past or jumping over them, then reverse rolling and repeating. Sometimes, when an assassin is in his defensive stance, simply put away your pistols and he will retract his weapon. As soon as the assassin lowers his weapon, open fire until he raises it again. Lara can repeat this procedure until the assassin is dead. Instead of holstering her guns, Lara can also reverse roll twice to cause the assassin to lower his weapons. If Lara encounters more than one assassin at the same time, Lara can still use the shoot while running past trick, but using a more powerful weapon, such as the shotgun or Uzis. Don't put too much distance between Lara and the assassin or he will switch to his Uzis. Assassins will also swing on overhead bars to make their pursuit. Allow them to swing over, and open fire while they're hanging helplessly from the bars.
		Beetles	The beetles that you will first encounter in the Tomb of Semerkhet cannot be killed with gun fire. These swarms are more of a hazard than an enemy, but are listed here for your benefit. You must simply avoid them. Although they will not swarm as closely if you are carrying a torch, the torch tends to be more trouble than it's worth. When you can't avoid them completely, then just move quickly, using jumps to stay away from them.
		Fire Elemental	The fire elemental, which you will encounter in the Tomb of Semerkhet is another creature that can't be shot at. This enemy will cause damage when it flies near you, but it also launches little fireballs that will set you on fire if they hit you. The most important thing to remember is to keep moving. You must find a way to extinguish this little imp. You can do this with either a pool of water or by freeing a water elemental. You will need to deal with a few more of these troublesome creatures in the Lost Library
		Guardian of Semerkhet	As you probably guessed, in the Guardian of Semerkhet level, you will encounter a large well-adorned bull-like creature with glowing eyes and a bad temper. You can't kill it. You can't even slow it down. You just have to keep moving. However, it's not all about running away. There is a teaching in Judo that when you encounter an enemy of greater strength than yourself you must redirect the attacker's might and use it against himself. Well, you're going to need the Guardian's might, but not to kill it, but to help you get out. You will encounter another one of these armored bulls guarding the Street Bazaar.
		Skeletons	Starting in the Coastal Ruins you will encounter skeletons. These skeletal warriors are armed with a sword and shield. They can't be killed when shot at with typical gunfire. In order to kill a skeleton, you have to blow them up with an explosive crossbow bolt or grenade. You can also disable them by targetting their skulls with the laser sight mounted on the crossbow or revolver. With their heads blown off, they will run around aimlessly and not chase you around. You can also blast them off of ledges with the shotgun. Even with a small fall off a ledge or into water will destroy a skeleton.
		Water Elemental	Although you encountered a water elemental back in the Tomb of Semerkhet, in the Catacombs you'll have to actually deal with a few. You can't shoot them, but they evaporate if they crash into small statuettes of falcons. Your job is to lead them to the statues.
		Mechanical Guard	In The Lost Library you will encounter mechanical guards. They can only be killed after repeatedly shooting at the gem embedded in their chest. After sufficient fire, the gem will shatter and the mechanical guard will fall. You can tell that you're hitting the gem when they grunt. When the gems shatter, they will cry out, grab their chest, and fall to their knees. It's all quite dramatic. Don't waste a lot of fancy ammo trying to take one of these guys down. Pistol fire is sufficient. In general, you will simply shoot at them while hopping backwards, take a jump over the them when they get too close, reverse roll, and repeat. In many places it's possible to shoot at them from a safe location. They never travel very far from where you first found them.
		Mechanical Horseman	A special kind of mechanical guard in The Lost Library is the mechanical horseman. The main difference is that this mechanical guard will mount a mechanical horse. You must shoot the gem embedded in its chest repeatedly. After sufficient fire, the horseman will dismount the mechanical steed and then you deal with it as if it were a regular horseman. The trouble will come in getting it off the horse. I could give you lots of suggestions about how to aim or evade, but no matter what you do, it will be a pain. The best way I've found for dealing with the horseman is to lob a grenade into its alcove before it awakens. When you step forward, and the horseman runs forward to mount the horse, the grenade will explode and sufficiently disorient it so that it never gets onto the horse. After that, killing it will be a snap.
		Hammerhead Shark	At the begining of Pharos, Temple of Isis you will encounter a hammerhead shark. This big beast is formidable, and you don't have a harpoon gun in your arsenal. You can either surface, bait it out, and try to shoot at it from dry land, or you can simply try to out-swim it. If you choose to try to kill it, you will have to be patient and repeatedly bait it out. Two well-aimed explosive arrows will blow it to shark-bites.
		Skeletal Warriors	In Pharos, Temple of Isis and Cleopatra's Palace you will encounter these well-adorned skeletons. These skeletons are covered in gold and jewelery, armed with a jeweled sabre and jeweled shield. They may look fancier, but their moves are the same as their bourgeois cousins. Deal with them the same as you would other skeletons. Blast them into pools, off of high ledges, or blow off their heads with a laser aimed round from the crossbow.
		Golden Vraeus	In the Pharos, Temple of Isis you will encounter these golden winged beasts. They have a poisonous lizard-like tail and launch fiery bolts. Pistols are generaly sufficient to deal with these nasty beasts. Keep moving to avoid getting poisoned. You can tell when the creature is about to fire it's bolt, because it charges up. That will give you time to side flip out of the line of fire.
		Cleopatra's Guards	In Cleopatra's Palaces you will encounter two Cleopatra's Guards. Although these fellows aren't unique, they're anything but common. These two large bronze-skinned guardians are armed with tridents which laumch fiery bolts. The bolts don't fly straight, but rather they home in on you. Keep jumping around and empty as many clips of Uzi ammo you have into them. The good news is you only have to deal with one at a time.
		Snipers	Starting in the City of the Dead you will encounter snipers. These soldiers are armed with automatic rifles and grenade launchers. They often take up positions that are hard to reach, so you may want to use the lasersight to target them and take them out before they have a chance to attack. When they start firing grenades at you, you should try to get in close, making the grenades ineffective.
		Automatic Machine Guns	Also in the City of the Dead you will come across automatic machine guns. These guns have been placed in prominent positions, and they automatically track you when you come into range. If you come too close to one of these guns, they will switch over from firing shells to spraying flames². The only way to destroy these guns is to use the lasersight to target a red dot on the back side of the take that is mounted on the back of the guns. Obviously it isn't going to turn and face away from you on its own. You may have to get the guns to follow you and then circle around to the other side to target them. It's not easy, so it will take some practice. Otherwise, you'll just have to take the damage until you can deal with the guns again later.
		Ice Elementals	Also in the City of the Dead you will need to release a pair of ice elementals. They're similar to water and fire elementals, except you their icy properties can be used to your advantage.
		Giant Scarabs	In the Chambers of Tulun you will encounter giant scarab beetles. These flying insects have a bite that inflicts a tremendous amount of damage, but their hard shells make them difficult to kill. Jumping around may not be enough to evade their attacks, so your best bet may be to use a more powerful weapon, such as Uzis or the shotgun.
		Mechanical Minotaur	In the Chambers of Tulun you will find yourself face to face with the mechanical minotaur. This magical armored mechanized creature is impervious to any of your weapons. It's armed with a large war hammer. When he slams the hammer into the ground, a shockwave is created that inflicts damage. Your only recourse is to retreat to higher ground, which can also be difficult, as the shockwaves can knock you off of ladders.
		Locusts	If you are not careful, then your first encounter with locusts will be in the City of the Dead, otherwise you will definitely enocunter them in the Citadel Gate. These flying insects, like the swarms of beetles, aren't really enemies as much as they are hazards. You can't shoot them. You can't really avoid them. The best you can do is keep moving around and wait for them to disperse. They do a fair amount of damage³.
		Dragon	In the Citadel Gate you will encounter the dragon. This giant fire-breathing beast cannot be injured by anything in your arsenal, so don't waste your time or health trying. Your best bet is to sprint past as soon just after it fires a volley fireballs. It will pause to catch its breath, before it breathes again. That will be your opportunity to sprint past. But wait there's more: whenever you hear the dragon's cries, swarms of locusts will emerge and attack. In fact, you don't have to be anywhere near the dragon. Whenever you hear it's cries, expect to be swarmed by locusts.
		Undead Crusader	Near the end of the Citadel you will encounter a few undead crusaders. Your weapons will prove useless against the undead crusaders, which are armed with a large shield and a broadsword. You must continue to out-run them and avoid swipes of their swords. Their fierce swings may actually be to your benefit, so long as you're not within its arc.
		Giant Scorpion	When you explore Menkaure's Pyramid you will encounter giant scorpions. These huge bugs are fast, heavily armored, have pincers and poisonous stingers. Well, if that that give you a good scare, I'm not sure what will. But don't worry, they're not as tough as all that. There's a couple of useful techniques to keep in mind when dealing with these beasts. First of all, whenever possible, find places to hide from which you can shoot at the giant scorpions from safety or a place where you can retreat to where you are safe. The second trick is to charge at them with a powerful weapon, such as Uzis or the shotgun, blazing take a running jump over the scorpion, reverse roll and repeat.
		Egyptian Soldiers	Also in Menkaure's Pyramid, you will encounter a couple of soldiers from the Egyptian army. These guys will not attack you unless you shoot them first. They aren't much of a threat, even though they're armed with a machine gun, either to you or to the giant scorpions that you'll often find trying to snack on one of these guys. Sometimes you'll be able to pick up a few clips or some other item from their bodies whether they happen to die from the sting of a giant scorpion or from a stray bullet from your gun, while other times, in gratitude for saving their lives they'll give you something special, so perhaps it's best to attempt to offer them some help.
		Menkaure's Guardian	Deep Inside Menkaure's Pyramid you will encounter this creature. It looks a lot a like the Egyptian god Horus, with the head of a falcon and the body of a man. It is armed with a staff that fires a rapid succession of fiery bolts. There's not much to say about this guardian. It doesn't move around much. In fact it tends to stand in one place when it starts to launch its fiery bolts. Just draw Uzis and side flip left and right until it falls.
		Mastabas Monkeys	Within the Mastabas you will encounter up to three different little monkeys. They are all slightly different. One is black adorned with golden jewelery. One is ethereal and translucent. It is hard to see in the dark chamber. The last monkey is plain brown. Two will attack you immediately upon release and explode when you kill them, but one will assist you. If you kill the helpful monkey you will be stuck and unable to proceed.
		Khufu's Guardian	Within Khufu's Queens Pyramids you'll find another guardian that looks a lot like Horus or the Menkaure Guardian. There are a few noteworthy differences. This guardian also fires little bolts, but they do a lot less damage than the Menakaure Guardian. The Khufu Guardian also floats around and explodes when you kill it. You may be tempted to run, but the maze will end up being more of a problem than the guardian. Stay put, draw an explosive weapon and take the guardian out. The damage will be nominal.
		Ammit	In the Temple of Horus you will encounter three Ammit creatures. In Egyptian mythology, Ammit is a goddess in the after-life that waits below a scale, where a dead person's soul is weighed against a feather. If the soul is weighed down by sin, Ammit will swollow it up. Instead, the Ammit creatures, with a head of a crocodile and the body of an ape and the hind quarters of a leopard, is just a hard to kill creature that is released if you fail to solve the puzzles. At this late point in the game, there's no reason to conserve your ammunition. Use your explosive or posion crossbow bolts to take the creatures out quickly. Grenades are good only if you can manage to hit the fast moving creatures with them.
		Seth	When you finally replace the armor of Horus within the Temple of Horus, you will attract the attention of Seth. Seth floats in mid air and fires tremendous bolts at you. Seth is impervious to any weapons, so all you can do is run. Seth's fiery bolts are separated by a recharging time, and there is an audible noise just before Seth fires. Use these facts to your advantage as you make your escape.
	Footnotes: Thanks to Richard Morton for sharing with us the name of the Egyptian guide. Thanks to Ben, an AOL user, who pointed out to me that the machine guns become flame throwers when you get two close to them, whereas I had thought that the flame-throwers were a different gun altogether. Here's another place where bugs in game can, sort of, be exploited to you're advantage. Whenever the game switches to the cut-scene, the locusts will not damage Lara. Though there aren't that many cut-scenes, finding one while being chased by locusts will be to your advantage.