Tomb Raider2 Gold

LEVEL 1: THE COLD WAR

• Kills: 40*
• Items: 62, plus harpoon gun, M16 assault rifle, automatic pistols, Uzis, 2 keys
• Secrets: 3
• Starting inventory: small and large med-packs, 2 flares, loaded shotgun and pistols (unlimited ammo).

*The number of kills is approximate. The exact count will depend on your actions and those of your allies.

ICY POOL: The level begins with a drop into cold water. There's a great white shark in the pool so either head for dry land or find a useful weapon. To get to shore, swim forward and climb out on the small snowy ledge at the left of the cave opening. The shark comes in from the right, so move quickly. Now shoot it from the safety of the ledge. Or, from the starting position, turn around and swim down and forward. You'll find 2 bundles of harpoons on the bottom, more harpoons off to the right, and the HARPOON GUN on a sunken box in the corner beyond. Now you can swim back toward the cave and take on the shark.

Once the shark is belly-up, swim to the back corner of the pool opposite the area with the boxes where you found the harpoon gun. You'll see two barrels on the bottom. Behind them and to the right there's an underwater tunnel in the ice containing SECRET #1, the gold coins. There are also 2 more bunches of harpoons on the bottom of the pool between two of the ice hills.

Climb out onto the small square ledge near the cave. Pick up the flares if you didn't get them earlier. Kill the leopard prancing around inside the cave before hopping over.

LEOPARD CAVE: Just inside the cave is a slope with 2 boxes of shotgun shells. When you take the one on the left, a big snowball rolls down from inside the cave. Side flip to the right to avoid it and pick up the second box. Push or pull the movable crate to find a small med-pack underneath.

As you enter the cave from which the snowball came, a leopard will charge. (NOTE: If you go in through the opening on the right, you'll see him coming and be able to hop back while shooting.) There are more shotgun shells at the rear. Go back toward the crate until you come to an opening on the right. There's another leopard in the cave beyond. Kill it and continue forward down the slope. Turn left to face the flares on the ground. When you pick them up, immediately side flip to the left to avoid the rolling snowballs. Continue forward toward where the snowballs came from. As long as you don't stray to the right, the remaining snowballs will pass by harmlessly.

Turn around and enter the cave to the left of where the last snowballs landed. A leopard lurks on the left. Pick up some shotgun shells there and another box of shells in the cave where you shot the previous leopard.

Go up the slope toward where the snowballs originated. The gap ahead isn't deep; you can jump it or stay to the left to walk around it. Run up past the shallow alcove on the left to avoid more snowballs coming in from ahead and from the right. Ahead on the left you'll find more shotgun shells. Come back down the slope and turn left into the opening opposite the alcove where the snowballs landed. Go to the back of this cave and climb the ice ladder to the top.

MINE COMPOUND FIRST AREA: When you approach the large med-pack on the ground, a door at the top of the room opens and a goon in a white suit enters. Take him out and proceed to the top of the room to fight it out with another mercenary, who comes in as you approach. Don't forget to search the bodies for 2 sets of M16 clips. Go through the door and take a standing jump over the snowbank. There's a movable crate on the right. Pull it once, go around or over it to the other side and push it once. Behind it is another movable crate. Pull this one once to reveal a low, narrow cave containing a small med-pack and shotgun shells.

ZIP LINE: Climb onto the first crate and up the ice ladder next to it. Grab the small med-pack on the rock next to the zip line handle. Follow the zip line out to the edge of the cliff for a nice view and a pack of flares. If you hang around for a little while, a pesky eagle will fly in.

Use the Action key to grab and hold the zip line. Ride it all the way to the end to land in a shallow trench on the other side of the deep chasm. Kill 2 more eagles (plus another if you didn't meet the one at the top of the hill). Walk toward the building. A leopard patrols the raised path to the right. If you stay down in the trench, you can kill it safely.

FAR SIDE OF CHASM: Climb onto the icy ledge near the window. Turn around and look to the right. There's a flat ledge in the ice wall that you can jump to. Below and behind that is another trench. This is also snowball hazard. Jump down and turn left but walk forward slowly. As soon as you hear the snowball start to roll, hop back, and it will sail overhead. Continue down the trench. In the pit beyond the zip line you'll find the M16 ASSAULT RIFLE.

Return over the ice wall to the trench on the other side. At the end farthest from the building is a flat spot you can jump up onto to get some shotgun shells. From there, jump into the depression ahead. Climb onto the ice block ahead on the left. (You can also get here by walking up the path alongside the building.) Below is the deep chasm you passed over earlier. Turn around, drop and hang from the ledge and climb the ice ladder to the bottom.

BOTTOM OF THE CHASM: Follow the long tunnel, killing a leopard along the way, to SECRET #2, the gold bars, plus 3 boxes of shotgun shells. Backtrack down the long passageway and climb back up the ice ladder you just came down. (NOTE: You can also drop down through the opening with the wood sides, but you'll end up back in the LEOPARD CAVE area, on the slope near the first ice ladder. You'll need to climb back up to the zip line and ride it down again.)

BUILDING COMPLEX/GUARD ROOM KEY: Follow the snowy path next to the buildings to the upper end. Hop down and enter the room ahead. Another guy in white comes in from the right. Kill him and take his M16 clips. At the far end of this series of rooms, behind some overturned barrels, you'll find the GUARD ROOM KEY. Take it and return to the lower room. Pull the switch in the barred alcove to open the door on the other side of the bars.

GUARD ROOM: Return to the icy path where you dropped into this area. Climb out on the right, not straight ahead or you'll fall into the chasm. Go down the path to the first ice window. Shoot it out, enter and unlock the GUARD ROOM door. Kill the yellow-jacketed mercenary who emerges. (NOTE: If you're low on health, and don't want to confront the mercenary at close range, wait to pull the switch until after you unlock the guard room door. Then go back to the switch to open the inner door and let him out.) Pick up automatic pistol clips and shotgun shells from the floor of the GUARD ROOM.

Exit through the door where the mercenary entered and follow the path to the small med-pack. Return back through the GUARD ROOM and continue straight ahead to a movable box. Push it out of the way and go into the dark, snowy area on the right. Take a standing jump up the slope, then a running jump across the deep pit to grab the opposite edge. Pull up and continue forward. Climb onto the step, turn right, and jump over the ice hill to land in a depression where you'll find the AUTOMATIC PISTOLS. The exit door opens when you pick up the guns.

Take the automatic pistol clips in the doorway and go through this room to the snowy area between the buildings. Ahead and to the right, through an opening in the rocks, is the door to the GUARD ROOM. Go through the guard room, out the door opposite the barrels, and along the snowy path (toward where you got the small med-pack).

SECOND CHASM WITH TWO RAMPS: Along the left side of this path is a snow ledge that dips down in the middle. Step up onto this ledge for a panoramic view and a little sniper action. There are mercenaries down below on both left and right. Go for the one on the left first. It may take a little while, since he runs in and out of the cave. Get a lock on him with the pistols or M16 and hold the button. When he falls, walk up the snow ledge toward the right. From the top, you should be able to kill the guy in white down below. (NOTE: You may also be able to target a third mercenary on the roof of the building above the white-suited guy.)

Now return to the lowest part of the snow ledge. Look down and you'll see a short ramp between the cliff side and the longer ramp leading from the cave on the left. Safety drop down onto it. Shoot the eagle that comes in from above before going into the cave. There's a leopard in the cave, so go carefully. When it's dead, pick up M16 clips from the mercenary and a small med-pack lying on the ground. Pull the switch to open a door in the back of the cave on the other side of the chasm. You'll also find the SnoCat parked in a room off to the left.

If you want to, you can climb down the ice ladder on the left side of the ramp (the previous screenshot also shows the location of the ladder). At the bottom are shotgun shells and flares, along with another leopard. (You can kill it from above or at ground level.) Now either climb back up to the snowmobile and jump it across the gap (press Action for turbo speed), or climb up the ice ladder on the other side of the chasm (in which case, you'll need to be ready for another mercenary at the top, if you haven’t already killed him).

(NOTE: If you slide off the snow ledge onto the ramp with the white-suited mercenary first, all is not lost. Take a carefully angled running jump to grab the ice ladder on the left side of the building. From there, hop back, take a running jump and press the right direction key in the air to turn toward the ladder, then press Action to grab it. Now, either climb up to confront the goon on the roof, or climb down into the chasm, get the goodies and climb up the ice ladder on the other side to pull the switch and get the SnoCat. If you go up to the roof, follow the passage down to the OPEN AREA WITH THREE WOODEN BLOCKS, described below. Backtrack later to get the items down below if you want to.)

Assuming you jumped the SnoCat across to the other ramp, run over the white-suited mercenary if you didn't kill him from above. Dismount and pick up his M16 clips. (NOTE: If you like, walk to the end of the ramp and try to shoot the mercenary on the roof from below. You'll get another chance later if you don't want to bother.) Go through the open gate.

OPEN AREA WITH THREE WOODEN BLOCKS: Climb onto the first block and await the arrival of a goon on a snowmobile. Take him out from up on the block, since he can easily follow Lara through the door and run her over. One block has M16 clips on top, there are automatic pistol clips on a snow ledge next to the door on the right, and more M16 clips and a large med-pack on one of the other blocks.

Take your snowmobile of choice and exit through the door on the left. Follow the path to the top, killing the mercenary there, if you didn't do it earlier. Take his automatic pistol clips.

SNOWMOBILE AREA WITH ICE WINDOWS: Ahead is a ramp with three ice windows. Drive the snowmobile up the ramp (mind the gap or you'll crash into the pit), bust through the windows to the area on the other side. You can ride through the single ice window opposite to take on another armed snowmobiler. (In this case be sure you've got one of the snowmobiles with guns and not the speedy SnoCat.) Or, dismount and climb into the wooden opening without windows on the left. Soon the snowmobiler will ride in and you can kill him from here.

(NOTE: If you choose to fight on the snowmobile, be sure not to drive through the ice windows in the second open area. The drop-off is a killer if you aren't prepared for it.)

BUILDING AND FROZEN POOL: Climb through the wooden opening on the left side of the first open area. Beyond is a building and a frozen pool. Find the switch in the dark corner on the left. Pull it to cause an avalanche that breaks the ice on the surface of the pool. This also alerts the mercenary inside the building, who comes out to investigate. Kill him and take his small med-pack and M16 clips.

Go into the building and pull the switch to open the wall of ice back in the snowmobile area. (Note the closed door near the switch. This will open later.) At this point, you can go back to the SNOWMOBILE AREA (described below at the **) or continue to the ICE CAVERN and deal with the snowmobile area again when you return.

ICE CAVERN: Wade into the pool. At the deep end, swim down and follow the underwater passageway. The door opens as you approach and closes behind you. Surface in a pool. (Note the items on the shelf above the water. You can't reach them yet, but you will.)

At the far side of the cavern, there's a large med-pack up on a tall block of ice. There are several ways of getting to it. I'll describe two. (A) Follow the path from the right side of the opening between the pool and the cavern. This leads along the cave wall. Turn right, then right again to find a block of ice you can climb on. A fragile bridge made of ice tiles leads from this block, in a Z-shaped path, all the way to the med-pack. At each corner is a solid block where you can pause if you need to. (You have to jump to land on the first block.) Don't worry if you fall through, just try plan B. (B) Find the angled wall next to the block with the med-pack. Stand Lara with her back to the slope and her chest against the med-pack block. Back flip onto the slope and then quickly jump and grab to catch the edge of the block. Pull up.

Once you break any of the ice tiles or explore along the side path, your first new ally appears on the block above the med-pack. These ice men, described as "restless spirits" by the level designers, will help Lara fight her enemies and generally try to lead her in the right direction, so don't harm them. If you do, they will attack.

When you pick up the med-pack, a pair of snowballs falls from the ceiling, breaking through the ice floor. For whatever reason (wind chill...magic?) this also causes the pool where you entered to freeze over so you can reach those goodies. So make your way back to that area. If you didn't break the ice tiles already, you can take that route. (It's a lot more exciting now with the hundred-foot drop!) Or, take a running jump to the snow ledge on the right (Lara's right when she's facing out into the cavern). Stop to admire the spectacular view, then go left or right at the mound of clear ice and follow the path counterclockwise along the wall of the cavern. This will lead you back to the frozen pool, where you can now get the Uzi clips and grenades from the ledge.

Slide down the ramp of bluish ice to the floor of the cavern. There are 3 more ice men here to assist. Pay attention and they'll lead you to the points of interest in the area. SECRET #3, the gold skull, is behind some panes of ice near the middle of the cavern. Shoot the ice to get at it. When you pick up the skull, 3 mercenaries enter from the tunnel to the left of the ramp. The ice men will help you fight them.

Once the mercenaries are history, search the bodies for shotgun shells, 2 sets of Uzi clips and a small med-pack. Go through the ice window where the mercenaries entered into a long, U-shaped tunnel. A leopard will charge, but you should have plenty of time to bring it down before it gets to Lara. Continue along the tunnel to the top. Turn right and climb the ice ladder to the top. You emerge back at the BUILDING AND FROZEN POOL. The door opens automatically. Go through the building, cross the pool and climb out through the wooden opening.

(**) BACK AT THE SNOWMOBILE AREA: Continue straight on to the area with the ramp, which was previously concealed behind the ice windows. Two bad guys--one in yellow ahead on the right, one in white just inside the entrance on the left--make things difficult for you. Kill them, and take their stuff: M16 and automatic pistol clips. Pick up the flares on the block near the wooden gate. There's another white-suited guy beyond the gate. Open it using the switch up on the ledge to the left of the opening where you entered (left when Lara's back is to the gate). Kill the goon, and pick up another small med-pack.

INTO THE PIT: Now climb onto the stone wall to the left of the gate. Get Lara's health up to 100% and save your game; you're about to take a long drop. Position Lara on top of the wall so the gate is behind her on the right and the jagged wall of snow is in front of her. Now choose Plan A or Plan B again: (A) Aim a little to the left of the joint in the textures of the snow wall and take a running jump. Immediately press Roll, to turn in the air and land so Lara is facing uphill as she slides down the back of the slope. Press Action to grab the lowest edge. Traverse all the way to the left corner and drop. Or, (B) starting in the same spot on the wall, angle the running jump a little bit to the right. Instead of rolling, press Jump and Right as you land to spring off the slope, land on the sloping ice wall to the right, and slide down backwards. Grab the edge, traverse as far as you can to the left and drop. (NOTE: Special thanks to Ralph Black and Stiletto for plans A and B, respectively.)

Once you've made it to the floor of the chasm alive, pick up Uzi clips, a large med-pack and the UZIS. Climb the ice ladder beyond where you picked up the Uzis and you'll magically emerge on the other side of the ice window in the SNOWMOBILE AREA. (NOTE: If you haven't already done the ICE CAVERN, proceed there now: Go to the left into the next open area. Then climb through the wooden opening on the right. Pick up the walk-through above.)

UP THE RAMP: Head to the left, then left again to return to the ramp. If you like, you can pick up a snowmobile on the way, but it's possible to continue on foot. Go up the ramp, turn right, and continue past the guy in white who you recently killed. As you head up the hill, give the snowmobile some gas to jump the pit. You'll land on the other side near a wooden block. (NOTE: If you're on foot, you can climb up the wall on the right to jump to the top of the steep slope. Then drop down or jump across the pit.)

The next area, a slope down to the right, is also a snowball trap. Stay in the middle of the slope and the rolling snow will miss you. Go through the doorway into a series of connected rooms. As you go up the hill, a mercenary in white comes to meet you. Kill him, take his automatic pistol clips and the large med-pack on the ground. When you pick up the med-pack, another mercenary comes in from the snowball trap area, so stay alert. Dispatch him and take some grenades and the SHAFT B KEY off the body.

Continue to the top of this series of rooms. Use the key to open the wooden door next to the lock. (You'll open the metal door nearby shortly.) Enter carefully; there's a leopard just inside. I recommend hopping back into the room to fight, rather than running out onto the walkway. If you accidentally fall, it's not a long drop, but it puts you way back at the GUARD ROOM area.

SHAFT B/EXIT: Cross the walkway to the room beyond. Admire the view, then pull the switch to open the metal door back near the shaft B lock. Return there and take on yet another angry merc. He's carrying a pair of grenades.

There's a box of shotgun shells on a table in the next room, but you'll probably need to take out the 2 more mercenaries in the room beyond before getting them. One of these guys has a small med-pack, the other shotgun shells.

When you enter the next open area, an eagle flies in from above. Farther along, is a covered structure with a switch. This opens a nearby trapdoor. There is a sniper on top of the high structure beyond the switch area, a second sniper appears when you throw the switch. You can take them out together, or kill one, throw the switch and kill the second. Or, if you're not interested in getting all the kills, just pull the switch and run to the trapdoor.

Drop through the open trapdoor into an icy pool below. Swim through the wooden opening toward the ledge with the ice man to end the level.