Tomb Raider Anniversary

LEVEL 13: THE GREAT PYRAMID

Kills: 21 (18)* Supplies: 22 Artifacts: 1 Relics: 1 Rubbing Rewards: 0(**)

NOTE: If you didn't notice them in the previous level, don't forget to pick up the MINI SMGs near the Kid's body before entering the pyramid. You may also be able to obtain the fourth artifact in Natla's Mines as well. See the footnote at the end of the Mines walkthrough for details.

From CHECKPOINT 1, outside the pyramid, enter and follow the long hallway illuminated by glowing Atlantean glyphs. It turns several times as it descends, and you'll find some SMG ammo on the way down. A bit farther on, you enter a dark, steamy room with fleshy sacs hanging on the walls.

MUTANT HATCHERY:

There's a closed door on the left just inside the room. You'll be returning this way shortly. For now, go forward between the sacs toward the other end of the room. Don't worry; the pods are not dangerous yet, and the filigree floor above the lava pool is solid enough to walk on. Beyond the incubation area but before the exit, pick up 2 sets of SMG clips on the floor to the right. Take them and approach the exit.

In the next cinematic sequence, Lara takes in the scope of this room, which extends for many stories above the gigantic lava pool just below where she's standing. She catches a glimpse of Natla in an alcove near the top of the shaft. The Atlantean queen is holding the Scion. She disappears from view, there's a bright flash of energy and the entire pyramid starts to rumble and shake. We then see a long view of the island above. The rocky peak, which at first resembled a volcanic mountain, blows apart revealing the top of a huge, golden pyramid. The scene shifts back to Lara. Seeing no way across the lava pool, she turns back toward the hatchery. As she re-enters the room, one of the pods bursts open.

CHECKPOINT 2 registers immediately after the cut scene. As the flying mutant begins to hurl fireballs, 2 cat mutants hatch from sacs farther along the wall. The shotgun is a good choice for either type of mutant at close range, but if you already have lots of ammo for the SMGs, you may want to use those. When fighting multiple enemies like this, it can help to concentrate your fire on one target at a time. Try to kill the nearest cat mutant first, then run forward into the room, kill the second and then deal with the flyer last. The cats are super-fast and if they reach Lara while she's still fighting the winged mutant especially if the flyer manages to grab onto her and pin her arms she'll be in real trouble.

Alternately, run forward into the room and jump up onto the base of one of the vertical ceiling supports. If you head for the support on the right and draw guns as you run, Lara can begin firing at the flying mutant, which hatches just in front of you, then do a powerful forward flip right up onto the support. The cats can't reach Lara up here, so focus on the flyer. Try and take it down before it can grab her. If that does happen, tap the Left and Right keys in rapid succession (or waggle the control stick back and forth). Once you've killed the flyer, switch back to regular pistols to conserve ammo and then deal with the cat mutants. (Thanks to Greg for this great tip.)

When all three mutants are dead (or if Lara dies and the game reloads at CHECKPOINT 2), the door at the end of the room where you first came into the hatchery closes, and the door next to it opens. Go through that door and climb the ladder to the area above.

HATCHERY - UPPER LEVEL:

When you emerge above the hatchery, 2 more winged mutants break out of their pods. If you start shooting through the openings in the floor as soon as the mutants hatch, you should be able to pick them off before they get too close. Keep moving back and forth to avoid their fireballs, but watch out for the openings in the floor as you maneuver. It's a long way down and Lara won't survive the fall.

When you've killed both of them, pick up the large medipack on the walkway to the right, plus SMG clips and another large medipack on the walkway between the two holes. Exit through the doorway at the far end of the room on the right. Follow the corridor to CHECKPOINT 3 on another ledge overlooking the huge lava pool.

TALL ROOM ABOVE LAVA POOL - STARTING THE ASCENT:

On the floor just inside the doorway on the left you'll find more goodies SMG and shotgun ammo, as well as another large medipack.

NOTE: Are all these medipacks starting to make you a little nervous? That's good. Hang onto them. If you haven't already been doing so, now is a good time to start using the trick of saving manually and reloading at checkpoints to restore Lara to full health. (More info appears on the Anniversary Controls page.) Then you should have plenty of health packs for the upcoming boss battles.

Use regular pistols to shoot the button on the wall to the right. Notice how the glyphs arranged in a circle around the button light up each time one of your shots connects. When all of the glyphs are lit, a ring extends from the wall above the button and the sac below on the right bursts, hatching another flying mutant. If you step back into the doorway, you can use regular pistols to shoot it down. Just move to the opposite side of the hall and use the door frame for cover whenever it begins to throw fireballs. When it falls, step back out onto the ledge.

Now observe the button and lighted glyphs again. As time passes, the glyphs around the button go dark one after the other. When all the glyphs are dark again, the ring retracts into the wall.

To reach the ledge on the opposite side of the room, you need to wall run from one corner to the other before that ring retracts. Note that there is a distinct ticking sound every time one of the lighted glyphs goes out, so if you're able to hear it, you can count along in order to gauge your progress. To make the run as short as possible, begin on the right side of the ledge, near the wall, facing the big support column in the corner. Shoot the button again until all of the glyphs are illuminated and the ring extends. Then holster your pistols as you take a running jump straight ahead to grab the horizontal crevice in the corner column. Quickly climb around to the left until the ring is above and behind Lara. (Tap Interact to go faster.) Jump off the column, grapple the ring, wall run to the left and jump to grab the lower crevice on the next corner column. Now Lara is safe and you can take your time. Jump up to grab the crevice above. Climb around to the left and jump back to grab the wide ledge behind you. Pull up to CHECKPOINT 4.

TALL ROOM ABOVE LAVA POOL - FIRST RETRACTING LEDGE:

This next sequence is similar to the previous one, only a little more difficult. When you shoot the button to extend the grappling ring, another winged mutant hatches and you have to shoot it down. To further complicate things, not only is the ring on a timer, so is the ledge Lara is standing on. It begins to retract into the wall as the glyphs go dark. If you don't hurry or reset it by shooting the button again until all the glyphs are lit up the ledge will retract all the way, dumping Lara into the lava pool below.

Here's the sequence: Using regular or 50-caliber pistols if possible, shoot the button until all the glyphs are lit. Deal with the flying mutant. Be careful not to jump around on the ledge too much or Lara will fall off. Instead position Lara with her back to the wall and move from side to side to avoid the fireballs as you shoot at the creature. When it falls, immediately shoot the button again until all the glyphs are lit and the ledge re-extends.

Move to the right edge of the ledge near the wall. Get Lara in position to make a running jump toward the corner pillar. Then shoot the button again until all the glyphs are lit, giving you the longest possible time until the ring retracts. Now take that running jump to grab the lower crevice on the corner column. Jump up to the higher one and quickly climb around to the left. (Tap Interact to go faster.) Jump back off the column, grapple the ring and run to the left. At the end of the swing, jump and grab the lower crack in the next column. Now you can relax and take your time. Jump up to grab the crevice above, climb around to the left, jump up once more and then jump back to grab the wide ledge behind you. Pull up to CHECKPOINT 5.

TALL ROOM ABOVE LAVA POOL - SECOND RETRACTING LEDGE:

The button for this ledge is high on the wall to the right if Lara is facing out across the room. Use regular pistols to shoot it until all the glyphs light up. This causes 2 winged mutants to hatch out of the sacs on the same wall. Immediately switch to more powerful weapons to destroy them. I had good results using SMGs to target the mutant that comes out of the higher pod first. Hold down the fire button to maintain a lock on it. This also helps prevent you from targeting the button by mistake. When the first flyer falls out of the air, aim for the second and repeat the process. All the while, move back and forth along the ledge to avoid the fireballs, but don't get too close to either edge since the explosions can easily knock Lara off into space. If you work fast, you should have enough time to kill both mutants before the ledge retracts.

NOTE: In the Wii version, there is only one flying mutant here, not two.

Switch back to pistols and shoot the button again to re-extend the ledge. This button also extends two grappling rings one just above the button and one on the next wall to the left as well as several horizontal poles. All of these retract when the timer runs down.

I don't know whether the designers intended for us to use the poles or if they're just a distraction, but the obvious path seems to be from the retracting ledge to the slope on the corner column, then to the horizontal pole nearest the corner, then to the pole nearer the ledge, then back to the corner to the handhold above the slope. Then, after climbing around the column to the left, jump back, grab the third horizontal pole, swing around, jump and grapple the ring. Wall run and jump onto the broken column in the next corner, slide, jump, grapple the second ring, wall run again, jump and grab onto the third corner column. Yeah. Right.

Several PlayStation users have told me that this is "easy", but the words I'd choose to describe it can't be used on a family-friendly web site. If you can do it that way, more power to you. But if not, try this instead:

First, you may want to set the Combat Mode to Advance Hold. Then Lara will holster her guns automatically when you stop firing, and you won't have to press an extra key to do that as you get ready to run.

After dealing with the two flying mutants, switch back to pistols and shoot the button below on the left wall (i.e., the one you shot earlier, not the one you just used to extend the grappling rings and poles and hatch the mutants). This will cause the rings and poles to retract. It will also re-extend the ledge and lock it in place, giving you as much time as you need to set up the next jump..

Position Lara on the retracting ledge so she's facing the button and grappling ring on the right wall. Notice how the outer corner of the ledge is blunted, so it has two points and a flat edge. When you make the next jump, try to take off just to the right of the left corner. Before jumping, shoot the button until all the glyphs glow to max out the timer. Then take that running jump, aiming a little to the left of the vertical yellow design on the wall ahead. Jump just at the edge and hold down the Jump key to keep Lara in the air longer.

As she nears the wall, release the Forward and Jump keys and press Grapple to snag the ring above. This may take a couple of tries, but once you succeed, you'll have much more time remaining than you would if you'd used the poles.

Retract the cable so Lara's feet are on the raised stone border just below the ring of glyphs. You'll probably need to reel the cable in six times to reach this height. Do it as quickly as you can. With the cable this short, you should be able to wall run to the left just once and jump to land on the broken column in the left corner. Slide just briefly, jump and quickly grapple the second ring. At this point, you shouldn't need to adjust the length of the cable. Wall run to the left and if you have enough height on the first swing, jump. Otherwise, run back to the right just once, then to the left again, and then jump to the left and grab the lower handhold on the corner column. From here on, you can take your time.

Jump up to grab the crevice above, which runs around the column. Climb around to the left and jump back to grab the wide ledge behind you. Pull up to CHECKPOINT 6.

Nintendo Wii players catch another break here. The crew at Buzz Monkey took pity on the poor souls facing this challenge and added a nice, flat ledge in the corner between the two grappling rings. So, once you've reached the first grappling ring, swing over to the corner ledge and take a breath. Then, when you're ready to move on, shoot the button again to re-extend the rings. Take a running jump off the corner ledge, grapple the second ring and swing across to the next corner. Then climb up to the checkpoint as described above.

NOTE: At this point I'd like to offer my sincere gratitude to Mark R., a long-time contributor to this site, who first suggested jumping directly from the retracting ledge toward the ring, and to XcomCaveRat, whose video of the technique is available on YouTube. Thanks also to Nightdiver for the suggestion to shoot the other button in order to keep the ledge extended. You guys are lifesavers both Lara's and mine!

If you're struggling with this section, even using the "easier" method, you're welcome to download my PC savegame file for CHECKPOINT 6. Macintosh and Wii save files are also available here. (Instructions are included with the downloads as well as here.) There are also a few other alternate techniques in a footnote at the end of the walkthrough.

TALL ROOM ABOVE LAVA POOL - THIRD RETRACTING LEDGE:

This sequence is challenging but nowhere near as hard as the last one. As you did last time, use regular pistols to shoot the button on the wall to the right. Another pair of winged mutants burst out of their sacs. (Again, in the Wii game, only one flyer hatches here.) Immediately switch to more powerful weapons to destroy them. Try not to target the buttons instead of the mutants. Move back and forth along the ledge to avoid the mutant's fireballs, but try not to jump or roll, or Lara is likely to go off the edge.

As soon as you've dealt with the mutants, switch back to pistols and shoot the button again until all the glyphs are lit up. This resets the ledge and extends two horizontal poles, one on each side of the button. All of these retract when the timer runs down.

NOTE: You could also shoot the button on the wall directly opposite the ledge. This retracts the poles but extends the ledge and locks it in place, giving you time to get oriented before making the next jump.

Now move into position to start your run. Begin on the right side of the ledge, near the wall, facing the broken support column in the corner. Shoot the button again until all of the glyphs are lit. Take a running jump toward the broken column. Make sure you jump just at the edge of the ledge and hold down the Jump button to keep Lara in the air as long as possible. Then she should land near the middle of the slope.

Slide just a little and immediately jump to grab the first horizontal pole. If you've done the jump correctly, Lara should grab the pole near the middle, rather than at the outer edge. Then she'll be in a good spot to swing around and jump onto the stone slope ahead. If she doesn't travel far enough on that initial running jump, Lara will grab the left end of the pole and be unable to swing and land on the slope.

Swing around the first pole just once and jump to land on the slope. Slide only very briefly before jumping forward to grab the second pole. Swing around once at the most and jump to grab a handhold on the next corner column. Now you can take your time as you climb to the handhold above and then around to the left. Finally, jump back to grab the big ledge behind you. Pull up to CHECKPOINT 7.

TALL ROOM ABOVE LAVA POOL - FOURTH RETRACTING LEDGE:

One more time! Use pistols to shoot the button on the wall to the right. Change to more powerful weapons if you like and shoot 2 more winged mutants. (Again, just one mutant appears in the Wii game.) Change back to pistols and shoot the button again to re-extend the ledge. This also extends a pair of grappling rings, one on the wall to the right and one on the wall opposite the ledge.

To reach the first ring, you can either take a running jump to the broken pillar in the corner, slide, jump and grapple the ring, as you did on the THIRD RETRACTING LEDGE. Or, take a running jump directly at the ring, as you did on the SECOND RETRACTING LEDGE. If you slide and jump to grapple the ring, just continue wall running to the left and jump to the broken pillar in the next corner. If you jump straight toward the wall and grapple the ring that way, you should not have to adjust the cable length. Wall run to the left, right, then left again, and jump onto the broken column.

Once you land on the slope beyond the first ring, slide for just a moment, jump and grapple the second ring. Wall run to the left and jump to grab one of the handholds on the third corner column. If Lara grabs the lower handhold, jump to the higher one. Then climb around to the left and jump back to grab the wide ledge behind you. Pull up to CHECKPOINT 8.

ARTIFACT:

Pick up the large medipack and 50-caliber clips on the ledge. Before entering the passage to the right, take a running jump from this ledge to grab the horizontal crevice on the corner column ahead (i.e., to the left of the doorway when facing it). Climb around the column to the left and keep climbing until Lara is hanging from the straight ledge beyond the column. Pull up into the little cave and take the first and only ARTIFACT (40/44) in this level.

Trying to drop and hang from this ledge, or to grab the crevice again, can be a bit buggy. To be safe, take a running jump from the left side of the cave opening to the ledge near the doorway. As you jump past the fleshy sac, another flying mutant hatches. Run into the hallway and turn around. The mutant will follow, but you should be able to shoot it before it reaches Lara. The shotgun works especially well here, and you'll be able to replenish your ammo in a moment.

TRAP-FILLED HALLWAY:

Follow the hallway around the corner. If you have room in your inventory, pick up 2 boxes of shotgun shells from the floor just before the first set of traps. Then head up the ramp toward the triple metal jaws. Draw pistols and shoot the button on the ceiling beyond the trap. This deactivates the jaws for a few moments so you can run through. Using the button is not strictly necessary, though. Just stand close to the trap, watch the timing and run through as the third set of doors starts to open.

Next comes a set of 3 energy guns and a large medipack followed by another triple metal jaw trap. Duck and creep forward beneath the energy bolts to grab the medipack. Staying in crouching position, inch forward until Lara is between the third energy gun and the jaws. Wait for the third set of jaws to retract then stand and run through.

There's another button on the ceiling about halfway between the second and third set of traps. Shoot it to temporarily deactivate the third metal jaw trap beyond. You'll still have to time your run past the 3 double sets of energy guns just before the jaw trap, since they're too low to duck beneath. Or, if you don't want to bother with the button, wait until the second set of metal jaws starts to open and then run forward. The third set should just be opening as you reach them. Lara may take a little damage from the energy guns, but these aren't lethal unless her health is very low. Continue to CHECKPOINT 9.

THE FLESH CREATURE:

Continue along the hallway past CHECKPOINT 10 to an opening above a large room. Before sliding down the ramp, look across the room to the top of the ramp on the other side. Now make a few moves from left to right. See how the fleshy humanoid creature at the top of the other ramp mirrors Lara's movements. Lara's doppelganger will not harm her as long as she doesn't harm it. But if you do fire on the flesh creature, she will retaliate with energy bolts. Each bolt only does a little damage, but it will knock Lara off her feet. You'll need to find another way to defeat her.

Reload your weapon(s) of choice, slide down the slope and get ready to take on 3 cat mutants that hatch from pods on the walls. As you fight, try to avoid targeting the flesh creature, and stay out of tight spaces where the cats can corner Lara and pin her down.

When just the doppelganger is left, you can explore this room freely. Pick up 2 sets of SMG clips behind two of the corner columns. Now notice where the exit is: high in one corner at the end of an elevated walkway. There is a similar walkway on the other side of the room leading to a switch.

To get up there, go to the center of the room and grab one edge of the rotating wheel mechanism. The doppelganger lends a hand so turning the wheel is easy. Turn it counterclockwise as far as it will go (about a third of a turn). This extends a small ledge below each of the ladders on the room's end walls. They retract into the wall after about 10 seconds. So run to the ledge below the ladder at the end of the walkway that leads to the exit. (It's the one near the red, tentacled thing on the wall where one of the pods used to be.)

As you run toward the ledge, jump forward to grab it, pull up and climb onto the ladder before the ledge retracts. Climb to the top of the ladder and jump to grab the narrow horizontal opening on the right. This is a vent, which will emit scalding steam a few seconds after Lara grabs it. So immediately jump back to land on the walkway behind you. If you wait too long, the steam will burn Lara, and she'll fall to the floor. Then you'll have to turn the wheel, climb up and try again.

As you do this, the flesh creature does the exact same things on the other side of the room. When Lara lands on the circular trapdoor at the end of this walkway, the flesh creature lands on the pressure pad at the end of the other walkway. This pad closes the exit door.

Pick up the large medipack and continue forward along the walkway. A flying mutant bursts out of the sac on the wall ahead. Kill it. Again, the shotgun works well on the fragile flyers at close range. Get the 50-caliber ammo and pull the switch on the wall next to the exit door. This opens the circular trapdoor at the end of this walkway, revealing a lava pit below. The trapdoor stays open for about 30 seconds, giving you just enough time to lay a trap for your doppelganger.

If you're not in a hurry, you can wait for the trapdoor to close and then pull the switch to open it again. That'll give you the full 30 seconds to maneuver. Run off the walkway to land on the ground near the wheel mechanism. Grab the wheel and, with the flesh creature's help, turn it to extend the small ledges. This time, run toward the ladder leading up to the walkway with the pressure pad. (This one has no red, tentacled pod remnants near it, like the other one does.) Take a running jump to grab the small ledge, pull up, climb the ladder and jump to grab the handhold on the right. Then immediately jump back to avoid the steam vent and land on the pressure pad.

Meanwhile, the flesh creature is climbing the other ladder and jumping onto the ledge with the trapdoor. If you've gone quickly enough, the trapdoor will still be open and she'll fall into the lava. Problem solved.

The exit door is still closed, though, so you'll need to take care of that. First, pick up the large medipack on this walkway. Step forward and kill another winged mutant, which hatches from the pod on the left. Grab the shotgun ammo and pull the switch at the end of the walkway to re-open the exit door. Don't step on the pressure pad again, or the door will close. Instead drop down off the walkway and turn the wheel mechanism again to re-extend the small ledges. It's a little harder now without the flesh creature's help, but Lara can do it. Run to the ledge below the ladder that leads to the exit, pull up, climb the ladder and jump to grab the steam vent. Jump back to land on the trapdoor and cross the walkway to the exit.

LAVA POOL & LEVEL EXIT:

Follow the hallway to CHECKPOINT 11 and continue from there to a room with a lava pool and pounding block traps on two sides. Beyond each set of traps there is a switch. One opens the exit door on the other side of the lava pool; the other extends a bridge to that door. Unlike their counterparts in the original game, these are not timed, and it doesn't matter which one you use first.

The entire sequence, from entering this room to leaving with the RELIC, is shown in this gameplay video.

To get past the trap on the right, which has no ledge below it, approach the blocks, wait until they are just about to extend and take a running jump onto the first one. Do not jump exactly at the edge or Lara will overshoot the first moving block and fall into the lava. Instead take off a few steps short of the edge to land squarely on the first block. Jump from there to the middle block and then jump over the third block to land on the ledge beyond.

Pick up the large medipack and use the switch to open the exit. CHECKPOINT 12 registers here, and a flying mutant rises up out of the lava pit. Draw that shotgun and put it out of your misery. Then make your way back across the pounding blocks the same way you did before.

Go around to the other side of the room and approach the second block trap. This one is much easier. Just wait for the first block to retract and run into the space between it and the next one. As long as Lara is standing on the gray stones and not the bands with the glowing glyphs, she'll be safe. Repeat this for the remaining blocks. Reload the shotgun if necessary and then pull the switch. This extends the bridge to the exit, triggers CHECKPOINT 13 and brings another winged mutant up from the pit. Shoot it down.

RELIC:

Before returning past the blocks, take a look across the pit. Beneath the end of the bridge nearest the entrance, there's a large hole in the wall with a medipack sitting in plain sight. There's more than just health in that cave.

Return past the blocks to the entrance. If you like, you can run back down the hallway to re-use CHECKPOINT 11 before attempting this next bit. Cross the bridge you just extended, but don't go all the way into the room ahead. That will end the level. Instead look for a button on the ceiling just beyond the bridge. Shoot it to collapse a section of ceiling so it crashes down, leaving an opening in the floor just beyond the bridge. Drop through that opening onto the ramp below, slide, jump and grapple the ring on the underside of the bridge. Grapple-swing across the lava to the opening with the large medipack. Get the health and follow the tunnel to a ladder, at the top of which you'll find the final RELIC in the game (8/8), the Torc Of Embitterment.

You can't go back the way you came. So climb into the opening on the left and drop down onto the walkway near the bridge. Cross the bridge again and take a running jump over the hole in the floor to reach the end of the level.