Tomb Raider (1996 Game)/Walkthrough

This is a collaborative walkthrough for Tomb Raider. Please add any missing information to any section and/or correct any errors that you find.

Caves
Follow the paw prints in the snow straight ahead. Shortly you'll reach an area with slits in the walls. This is a dart trap. Keep running and Lara should get past the darts with little or no damage.

As you round the corner, the camera view shifts up and to the left to show where you need to go next, but before climbing up there do a little exploring: Continue straight ahead into a rectangular cave with an angled block in the far left corner. Note the opening in the wall above this block. The ledge is a little too high to grab, so use the block to give Lara a boost. Grab onto the back of it, pull up and slide down the face. Press Jump and Action as you slide to grab the ledge (as shown in the set of screenshots below). Or, stand Lara in front of the block with her back to the angled surface, then backflip onto the block and hold Jump and Action to bounce off the slope and grab the ledge. Pull up into the small cave, where you'll find SECRET #1, a small medi pack.

On the ledge to the right of the big carved exit doors is the switch that opens them. The doors are timed to close after a short time. Climb up, throw the switch, then flip to the left (Jump + Left together) onto the low wall below. Sidestep to the left edge of the wall, then flip left again onto the platform with the door. Run through before it closes.

Continue forward and around the corner. Take the steps at a run to avoid the dart trap. Draw pistols near the top, because a wolf waits in the room above. It's lurking in the alcove on the left as you enter. When you've taken care of it, step on the break-away tiles at the center of the room to fall through to the room below.

LEVEL EXIT: You're now in a long room above a wide hallway. Below, at one end of this hallway you can see the wooden gate you couldn't get through at the beginning of the level. The long hallway is lined with dart traps and the exit doors are closed. So, don't drop down yet. (NOTE: If you do drop down, you can climb back up using the rocks to the left of the exit doors.)

Go to the far end of the room and turn left. Take a running jump across the gap to the opposite side. Turn left and head toward the large medi pack on the ground. Another wolf comes out of the room ahead. Kill it, pick up the health pack and continue forward into the alcove from which the wolf emerged. Use the switch there to open the exit doors. Leave the switch room, turn right and go through the first opening overlooking the exit. Hop down, slide to the ground and go through the big doors to end the level.

''Copyright © 1998-2015 - Stellalune ([mailto:stellalune@tombraiders.net stellalune@tombraiders.net]). Special thanks are given to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup, without whom some parts of this walkthrough couldn't have been written. Thanks also to Ingrid G. for the timed door tip, to Ian T. for various suggestions, including the locations of the save crystals in the Saturn and PlayStation games, and to damon for reminding me that the Sega Saturn game also has save crystals. All TR1 screenshots were made using Glidos and Fraps. Feel free to copy or print this walkthrough for personal use. By all means, share it with friends, but please include this credit line so people can send me their feedback. No part of this walkthrough may be reproduced on another site without permission.''

City of Vilcabamba
Ready pistols because a pack of 4 wolves waits in the cave beyond the entrance. Two come from the hallway to the left, one from ahead on the left and the fourth from the passage ahead on the right. Keep moving, jump while shooting and roll to face any wolves that try and sneak up behind Lara. Lara targets enemies automatically, so all you have to do is fire, but remember to release the fire button briefly when you want her to change targets.

Ahead is a network of small rooms and caves surrounding a central area with a pool. You can go whichever way you like to start, and you'll cover the whole area eventually. For simplicity's sake, we'll go more or less counterclockwise around the perimeter of the area. Keep those pistols drawn as you explore, since Lara may spot some of the creatures—bats in particular—before you do.

Starting with the level entrance at Lara's back, go forward and into the tunnel along the right wall. Kill the lone wolf in the next open area. Continue forward and then follow the narrow hallway to the left. Three bats drop from the ceiling as you approach. Continue forward. At the next corner, another wolf jumps out. Kill it and, search the greenery to find a small medi pack. Turn the corner to the left and continue forward, encountering 5 more bats as you go.

The passage widens and there's a hallway leading off to the left. Pass that for now and continue forward. You'll also pass a locked door a little farther along on the right. You'll need a key for that, so keep going. When you reach the end of the long passageway, go up two low steps, turn left, go down two low steps, then turn left again. (Going straight here would take you back to the level entrance.) Two more bats drop down from the ceiling. Shoot them and continue to a large open area with a pool of water.

Approach the doorway on the right side of the pool. There's a bear lurking inside this small barn or stable. Enter with pistols drawn. As soon as Lara gets a lock on the bear, backflip out of the room shooting. Alternatively, keep your pistols holstered, run through the doorway, immediately pull up onto the platform above and shoot the bear from there. If you get tired of waiting for it to approach, you can dangle Lara from the edge momentarily to get the bear's attention (i.e., safety drop without letting go). Then, before the bear can bite Lara, pull up and start shooting. Pick up the small medi pack in the corner of the hayloft. Then drop down and return to the pool.

UNDERWATER PASSAGEWAYS: (The following sequence is illustrated in a series of screenshots below.) Stand at the edge of the water facing the stable with the two doorways and the wooden trough. Jump into the water and swim forward and down along the tunnel. At the bottom, where it comes to a T, swim to the right. Follow the tunnel as it slopes upward. At the top is a flooded room with numerous square pillars. Swim between the pillars on the right and head for the back right corner. Find the lever on the wall below the carved stone faces. Pull it to open a trapdoor above. (To pull the lever, swim close, turn Lara to face it and press Action.) Swim up to the open trapdoor and climb out of the water. This room contains SECRET #1, a small medi pack. The switch in the corner opens the nearby door, which leads back to the room with the pool, but don't go that way.

''Walkthrough text and diagrams copyright © 1998-2015 - Stellalune ([mailto:stellalune@tombraiders.net stellalune@tombraiders.net]). Special thanks are given to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup, without whom some parts of this walkthrough couldn't have been written. All TR1 screenshots were made using Glidos and Fraps. Feel free to copy or print this walkthrough for personal use. By all means, share it with friends, but please include this credit line so people can send me their feedback. No part of this walkthrough may be reproduced on another site without permission.''

Lost Valley
NOTE: One of the pick-ups in this level is the SHOTGUN. If you want to, you can get it before exploring the rest of the level, rather than near the end, as I suggest. However, you won't have many shotgun shells to start. For instructions, see this page.

Follow the tunnel to an open area with rough stone pillars and a stream. Hop into the water and allow Lara to be carried over the falls into the pool below. Climb out of the water on the small ledge to the right of the falls (when facing it). From here you can see, and kill, 2 wolves on the other side of the pool and they can't reach Lara. Alternatively, from the level entrance, turn right and make your way down the stepped rocks to the pool, shooting the wolves before you reach the bottom.

PASSAGE FROM CAVE WITH POOL TO VALLEY: Go through the cave opening opposite the waterfall, where you'll encounter another wolf. When it's dead, continue through the twisty passage until you come to a wall with flat, stepped blocks and an opening high above. You'll climb up in a minute, but if you want all the kills, first follow the tunnel to the right, where you'll encounter 3 more wolves. Once you've drawn them out you can kill them from the top of the slope at the cave mouth. Now return to the raised opening and climb the flat blocks to reach it.

At the top, continue forward. Pick up a large medi pack left behind by some hapless traveler. Continue forward and climb down into a green valley. Proceed with pistols drawn. If you go slowly, you'll hear, then see the first velociraptor approach from the greenery ahead. Backflip while shooting and it should fall before it reaches Lara. Or, if you really want to play it safe, run back to the rocks, climb up and shoot it from safety.

VALLEY FLOOR: Now continue with caution into the valley. You'll encounter another raptor as the valley widens. Kill it then take a careful look around. See the rather large, three-toed footprints? Notice the broken wooden bridge spanning the valley? Feel the ground begin to shake? Nope, it's not an earthquake. That's a Tyrannosaurus Rex. If you want to go head-to-head, give yourself plenty of room to maneuver, don't let him get Lara in a corner, keep moving and keep shooting. And watch out for the head; he can grab Lara in that big mouth, killing her with one bite.

If you want to play it safe, run into a cave along the right-hand (east) wall of the valley. Don't pick the first alcove; it's too shallow, and the T. Rex can easily reach Lara. Instead, choose the ground-level opening just below the right side of the broken bridge (shown in this series of screenshots below). Follow this passageway, which is roughly U-shaped. About halfway in you'll encounter another raptor. Kill it and keep going to a second opening higher in the valley wall. Then just wait and blast the T. Rex as he stomps by.

There's also another opening in the right (east) valley wall a little bit farther along than the first. Lara can take cover in here, though she won't have quite as good a vantage point for dealing with the T. Rex. (This opening is also shown in the third screenshot in the same series.)

BACK TO THE START: Now, return to the far (south) end of the valley where you entered. Climb back up the white rocks, past the skeleton (where you found the medi pack earlier). Climb down the other side and continue back to the pool. Climb the rocks at the left until you're back at the landing near the stream where you began the level.

JUMPING UPSTREAM: Follow the left wall past the passageway where you first entered the level. Pass the fat stone pillar, turn right and approach the stream. Now you're going to head upstream, hopping from bank to bank. Be careful not to fall in the water. The current will wash Lara over the falls into the lake below. As long as she lands in the water she won't take any damage, but you'll have to climb back up and start all over again.

First take a running jump from the starting point to the far side. Walk a few steps upstream and then turn and take another running jump back to the other side. Walk up the slope to the top where it juts out above the stream. Take a standing jump to the ledge across the water. (For this jump, be sure to start on the left side of the ledge or press Action to lower Lara's arc as she jumps; otherwise, she'll hit the ceiling and fall into the water.) Turn left and take another standing jump to the ledge just upstream. Turn left again to face across the stream. Position Lara at the middle or right side of this ledge, walk to the edge, and then take a standing jump to grab the opposite side. Pull up and follow the twisting passageway around to a wooden bridge. (Console players can use the save crystal here.)

MACHINE MISSING COGS: Cross the bridge and replace the three cogs you found in their proper spots in this machine. (You'll notice wooden shafts sticking out where the missing cogs belong.) Throw the switch on the left to start the machine. A little ways downstream, a gate moves, diverting the stream off to one side, thus shutting off the waterfall.



Before heading down the stream bed, let's go secret hunting. Walk to the edge of the floor near the bridge, turn around so the bridge is on Lara's right and drop back, grabbing the edge of the floor. Traverse left and drop down onto a flattish rock. (Or, jump into the water and swim to that ledge. Both paths are shown in the screenshot to the right.) Enter the cave ahead to find SECRET #4, a large medi pack.



Jump into the water and swim downstream to the gold gate. Turn left and climb out of the water on a landing on the right bank (shown in this screenshot to the right). Here you'll find the remains of another explorer, along with his SHOTGUN, which may be of use to you.



Jump back into the water and swim away from the main stream and the gold gate to the end of the passageway (shown in another screenshot to the right). Make sure you've got full lungs, then dive under and follow the underwater tunnel through various twists and turns. There are no side passages, so just keep following the tunnel and eventually you'll surface in a small room. This is SECRET #5, which includes a small medi pack and 2 boxes of shotgun shells. No need to swim all the way back. Instead safety drop from the doorway into the dry stream bed. Go to the end (away from the gold gate holding back the water) and jump over the sloping rocks to fall safely into the pool below.

LEVEL EXIT: Climb out of the lake on a ledge that was previously hidden behind the waterfall. Follow the passageway to the end of the level.

''Walkthrough text and diagrams copyright © 1998-2015 - Stellalune ([mailto:stellalune@tombraiders.net stellalune@tombraiders.net]). Special thanks are given to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup, without whom some parts of this walkthrough couldn't have been written. All TR1 screenshots were made using Glidos and Fraps. Feel free to copy or print this walkthrough for personal use. By all means, share it with friends, but please include this credit line so people can send me their feedback. No part of this walkthrough may be reproduced on another site without permission.''

Tomb of Qualopec
Follow the passage to a large room with ornate wall decorations. There are three other doorways leading out of this room: The one to the left has a series of three gates blocking it. You'll need to find switches to raise each of them. The one to the left is closed for now.

Cross the room and start up the sloped passageway straight ahead. After you've taken about 5 steps up the ramp, the gate at the top closes and a boulder drops from the ceiling and rolls down the ramp. Quickly roll and run down the ramp. At the bottom, run to either side to avoid being flattened. The boulder will roll across the room and into the passageway through which you entered. If you approach the gate at the top of the sloping passageway, you can see into the room beyond, but you can't get inside yet.

Return to the room at the bottom of the ramp. Find the switch on the wall to the left of the passageway where the boulder went. Pull it to open the nearby door, then immediately roll and draw weapons (I like the shotgun here) to dispatch the 2 velociraptors that charge out.

FOUR-WAY INTERSECTION: Follow the hallway the raptors came from to a 4-way intersection. (There's a save crystal here in the console versions.) Note the pictures over the doors: To the right a face, ahead a sun, to the left a bird. Each door leads to one of the switches that raise the gates in the passage leading out of the big room near the start. You can explore these side areas in any order. Here I'll start with the right door (face).

DOOR WITH FACE PICTURE ABOVE: Follow the hallway until you see an area on the left wall that looks different from the rest. Push this movable block twice and you'll see another movable block to the left. Push the second block once to open up the passage beyond. Run across the break-away tiles without pausing. When you reach the other side you'll see the deadly spikes those tiles had been concealing. Pull the switch to raise one of the three gates. Turn around and walk to the edge of the spike pit. Take a standing jump over it and return to the 4-way intersection.

DOOR WITH BIRD PICTURE ABOVE: Now, go straight ahead through the door with the bird picture. Follow this hallway to a room with a switch. Don't pull it yet. (If you already did, pull it again to return it to the up position.) There's also a closed door to the right of the switch. The switch to open it is elsewhere. Leave it for now; you'll return here later. Drop down into the next room, which contains a pair of tall, movable blocks with bird motifs on them and a spiked area on the floor in one corner.



Go through the doorway to the left (south) and climb the stairs to emerge on top of one of the tall blocks. (To distinguish between the two, I'll call this block #1. It's the one near the spikes, shown in the upper screenshot to the right.) Once on top of block #1, turn right, walk to the edge, then jump and grab the opening ahead. Climb up into the passageway above and follow it until you reach an opening in the floor. Drop down twice. Then climb down to the left (west) until Lara is standing on top of block #2. (The right/east passage leads back to the entrance with the switch you didn't pull earlier.) As you climb down, you can hear the sound of a door opening elsewhere. (This is the door near the switch you didn't pull.) Once on top of block #2, walk to the right edge then jump and grab the opening ahead. Pull up and proceed until you come to a switch. Use it to move block #1 out into the room (as shown in the second screenshot to the right). Then return to the room with the blocks and drop down to the floor.



Climb up into the doorway where you first entered this room (above the low ramp). Now, throw that switch you didn't use earlier to move block #2 (as shown in the third screenshot). To the right of the switch is the door you heard opening when you were in the passageway above. Go through it and climb over the ledge ahead to the raised alcove near block #2 (which moved when you pulled the second switch). Take a running jump onto that block. From there take another running jump to block #1. Now you can take a final running jump over the spikes to the doorway. (This sequence is shown in the fourth screenshot.) Inside you'll find the switch to open the second gate in the set of three. Use it. Then jump from the doorway over the spikes to the clear floor beyond.

Climb back up into the room with the switch above the low ramp. Another velociraptor will attack from the hallway beyond. Kill it, dropping back into the block room for safety if necessary. Then follow the hallway back to the 4-way intersection.

DOOR WITH SUN PICTURE ABOVE: Go through the remaining door—the one on the left with the sun picture over it. Proceed to an alcove with a break-away floor and a switch on the wall. The switch is useless so don't even bother trying to pull it. Instead step into the alcove and quickly hop back. The floor will fall in. There are 3 wolves in the room below below. So turn around, drop and hang from the edge of the opening. Let go and as you drop, draw your weapons, so Lara lands ready to fight.

When all the wolves are dead, climb onto the ledge at the top of the ramps. Find the movable block set into the middle of the wall. Pull it once. Then go around to either side and push it to reveal a passageway behind. Go up the stairs. Partway up there's a hole with a small medi pack in it. Continue climbing until you reach another switch. Use it to raise the third gate. Pick up another small medi pack in the corner. Then drop down through the opening across from the switch. Head south to the 4-way intersection.

THROUGH THE THREE GATES: Continue straight ahead to the main room (with the ramp/boulder trap). Cross the room and follow the hallway, passing under the 3 gates you raised. (Console gamers will find another save crystal here.) Around the corner is a dart trap. Take a series of running jumps (or dive and roll—Walk + Jump + Forward) to safely pass through the darts.

Before continuing up the stairs, take a detour for a couple of secrets. (The path is shown in the series of screenshots below.) Stop on the second step. Face left and step down just to the right of the dart pipe. Pull up into the alcove above. The door behind the statue opens automatically. This is SECRET #1. The floor is made of those break-away tiles and there are spikes below. But there's a solid platform in the far left corner. Run across to it and pick up some shotgun shells. (If you didn't get the SHOTGUN in the previous level, you'll get it here instead.)

Drop back and hang from the edge of the ledge. Traverse until Lara is right next to the wall, then drop and she should land safely between the spikes. Pick up the magnum clips, which count as SECRET #2. Then walk through the spikes to the area below the doorway. Sidestep into a clear spot, walk Lara right up against the wall and then pull up into the alcove (Action + Forward). Drop down on the other side, avoiding the darts.

QUALOPEC'S TOMB: Continue up the stairs to the tomb proper. In the center, on a pedestal, is a piece of the artifact you've been looking for. The mummy on the left will not harm Lara, but it does count as an extra kill if you shoot it until it falls.

Take the PIECE OF THE SCION and the ceiling begins to collapse. Head toward the gate on the east side of the room, which will open as you approach, and run down the ramp. Keep running across the big room and into the opposite hallway. Sidestep past the boulder and go up the passageway toward the lake. (PS1 users will find a save crystal in the passageway.)

BACK AT THE LAKE: Larson (Jacqueline Natla's blond minion from the opening movie) is waiting on the other side of the lake, and he doesn't seem very happy to see Lara. If you aren't bent on getting all the pick-ups, you can snipe at him from the relative safety of the doorway. If you want everything, start by taking a swim.



Down and to the right is an underwater tunnel. (It's shown in the screenshot to the right and, no, it wasn't there when you played the previous level.) Inside is a small room where you can surface to breathe and pick up SECRET #3, a large medi pack and magnum clips.

The final pickup of the level is only for the truly obsessed. Swim back to the lake and surface on the left near where Larson is. Run past him (using a medi pack on the way if necessary) and jump up and over the rocks as if you were going to return to the valley. Larson won't follow. Keep going to the steep wall, climb up and find a large medi pack near where the skeleton and medipack were in the Lost Valley level. You can't go any farther since the tunnel is now collapsed. So return to the cave opening, from which you can shoot at Larson until a cut scene ensues. (He apparently counts as a kill, even through it's really more of a K.O.)

''Walkthrough text and diagrams copyright © 1998-2015 - Stellalune ([mailto:stellalune@tombraiders.net stellalune@tombraiders.net]). Special thanks are given to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup, without whom some parts of this walkthrough couldn't have been written. Thanks also to the Tomb Raiders Traveler's Guide and Steven Moore for the location of the last item and Ian T. & Carmen Y. for the locations of the save crystals in the PlayStation and Saturn games. All TR1 screenshots were made using Glidos and Fraps. Feel free to copy or print this walkthrough for personal use. By all means, share it with friends, but please include this credit line so people can send me their feedback. No part of this walkthrough may be reproduced on another site without permission.''

St. Francis' Folly
''Copyright © 1998-2015 - Stellalune ([mailto:stellalune@tombraiders.net stellalune@tombraiders.net]). Special thanks are given to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup, without whom some parts of this walkthrough couldn't have been written. Special thanks to Helena for finding the alternate weapon pick-up points and Black Tiger for additional Pierre Dupont strategy. Diagrams made with the aid of GraphTablet freeware. All TR1 screenshots were made using Glidos and Fraps. Feel free to copy or print this walkthrough for personal use. By all means, share it with friends, but please include this credit line so people can send me their feedback. No part of this walkthrough may be reproduced on another site without permission.''