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Tomb Raider - The Lost Artifact -- General Hints
1. KNOW THE TRICKS
We want to give you a few specific hints and tricks that might help keep you alive. You sould also consult General Hints for Tomb Raider III for more hints and tips
Finger Position
This hint is for players of the PC-CDROM version of Tomb Raider - The Lost Artifact who prefer to use the keyboard rather than a game controller. If you haven't played any of the previous Tomb Raider games, then you may be comfortable with the default keyboard setup, but seriously consider remapping the crouch and sprint keys, from their default position, to better positions. We suggest using the 'Z' and 'X' keys, so that, your right hand can always stay over the inverted-T arrow keys and your left hand can handle all the modifier keys. You will be making much more use of sprinting and crawling in this game than the previous ones.
Muscle Memory
If you are starting to play The Lost Artifact after having played Tomb Raider 2: Dagger of Xian or Tomb Raider 4: The Last Revelation, and you use the keyboard as your primary input device, then you may suffer a few problems from muscle memory. The Tomb Raider 3 game engine doesn't support the use of the "sidestep keys" (Delete and Page Down keys for sidestepping to the left and right respectively). In order to sidestep, you must hold down the Walk key (usually Shift) and press the left and right arrow keys. This may be somewhat unnatural, but keep this in mind to avoid nasty accidents.
Firepower
Because there are only six levels, Phil Campbell is fairly generous with weapons and their ammo early in the game. The weapons and ammunition are placed in a few out of the way places early in the game, but you can usually see them if you look for them. The trick is to get to them. If you don't get them early, they will appear again later in the game.

Once you have these weapons, keep in mind that there aren't that many levels remaining and there's probably more ammo to be found. Each weapon has its advantages and disadvantages, and were appropriate, you might as well use the firepower once you have it. Our walkthrough generally prefers pistols over more powerful weapons or running down an enemy with a vehicle, but where ever we feel is appropriate, we will suggest a more powerful weapon as an alternative.
2. KNOW THE WEAPONS
We would direct your attention to the Tomb Raider 3 Weapons Guide for the Tomb Raider 3. The weapons are the same.
3. KNOW THY ENEMIES
Some of the enemies that you will find in The Lost Artifact are the same as those in Tomb Raider III, but you will also encounter a few new enemies. If you don't want to spoil the surprise, you should stop reading now, otherwise read on for some general information on the enemies you will encounter in these levels.
Castle Guards
When you arrive for your Highland Fling you will encounter castle guards. These uniformed men guarding Willard's castle are armed with hand guns. Their shots don't inflict too much damage unless you stand there like a brick. They're easy enough to take out with pistols if you just charge at them while firing, jumping over them, reverse rolling, and repeating. The most effective method for dealing with these guards is to simply try to find a safe place to shoot at them from.
Mutant Dogs
Also in Highland Fling, you will encounter some mutant dogs. These large German Shepherds must have been exposed to a little of the same stuff that turned Willard into a giant spider. These aggressive creatures have glowing red eyes, but are easy enough to take out. They can be downed with a blast or two of the shotgun, but the best method to deal with them is to simply find a little high ground to jump up to and then pick them off at your leisure.
Ravens
In the wide open areas of the Highland Fling you will encounter these large ravens. They're not hard to kill, but they can be a problem if you don't know where they are and they sneak up on you. As soon as you hear their calls, scan the sky for them. Don't allow them to get directly above you, because Lara can't target them when their directly overhead.
Highland Warriors
You will only encounter the Highland warriors in Willard's Lair if you find and open the third secret. These sword-toting kilt-wearing giants are fast and aggressive, but tend to only patrol a certain area and do not wander far from the area the are guarding. The best way to deal with these guys is to retreat to higher or lower ground and shoot at them from a safe location. You will be able to outrun them if you sprint or take running jumps. For some reason, when you are far enough away, they do not approach you to attack, but rather continue to attempt to duck your bullets while wandering around aimlessly in the distance. Use this fact to your advantage. First run away, and then shoot at them to drive them away. Then, go hunt them down, but stay just within your gun's range. You can generally take them down before they decide to come after you.
SL Inc. Guards
In Shakespeare Cliff you will encounter employees of SL Inc. which are armed with a laser-sighted MP5 rifle. These heavily armed guards have been instructed to shoot on sight. Unless you can snipe one of these fellows from a safe distance, you will likely take some damage in an encounter with them. Any weapon will work if you charge at them with guns blazing, run past or jump over them, reverse roll and repeat to take them down.
SL Inc. Workers
Also in Shakespeare Cliff you will encounter other employees of SL Inc. These burly fellows are dressed in cover-all uniforms and wielding large wrenches. The workers are not well-armed and not very fast. Also instructed to bash first and ask questions later, don't assume that just because they're not armed with guns that they'll simply let you waltz past them. Open fire on them with any light weapon as soon as you spot them or they are within your guns range. They'll fall before you are within the swing of their wrench.
Rats
The tunnels and buildings at Shakespeare Cliff also act as the home for your typical vermin. Of course rats are not much of a threat, but they can certainly injure your pride if you allow them to sneak up behind you and nibble away at your feet. Pistols are always sufficient, and if you can shoot at them from a distance, so much the better.
Pterodactyls
Deep within caves beneath Shakespeare Cliff, you will encounter yet another thought-to-be extinct creature. These large slow-flying dinosaurs are not so much of a danger unto themselves, but if you are perched precariously on a ledge with hot lava below, having one of these big flying oafs bump you off the ledge is a thought that should give you pause. Pistols are generally sufficient to take a pterodactyl down. Keep a sharp ear, because most often they will soar up from behind you.
SL Inc. Scuba Divers
In Sleeping with the Fishes you will encounter another group of SL Inc. employees. These frogmen are armed with rapid-firing harpoon guns. They are difficult to take out both in the water as well as from dry land. We have no real hints for how to deal with the divers. Try finding safe land to shoot at divers from, barring that there's simply shooting at them with harpoons.
Mutant Barracudas
These large toothy mutant fish that you will encounter near the end of Sleeping with the Fishes look a lot scarier than they really are. Don't get us wrong. If they manage to get a bite of you, the damage will be significant, but they are slow swimming and not very smart. Either lure them to shallow water where you can shoot at them from the safety of dry land, or keep your distance and harpoon them repeatedly.
White Tigers
Early in It's a Madhouse! you will encounter these white Bengal tigers. These tigers are fairly fast and quite tough to kill. The easiest method to deal with these beasts is to find some safe high ground to stand on and then pick them off with pistols. If necessary, a couple of shotgun blasts will make short work of these tigers.
Monkeys
Also in It's a Madhouse!, you will encounter monkeys. You generally don't have to kill monkeys, as they won't attack you unless provoked. The one exception is when a monkey attempts to make off with an item that you need. Sometimes the monkey will simply carry the item away and hide it somewhere. You can spare the monkey's life if it happens to deposit the item somewhere where you can get at it, but other times it will put it in a place that is out of reach or never put it down. If this is the case, then you are left with no recourse but to elimate it. Monkeys fall quite readily under pistol fire.
Vultures
As you explore It's a Madhouse!, you will encounter a few vultures. These large carnivorous birds generally eat carrion, but either all the radiation from the artifact has driven these creatures mad or the lack of food has driven them to hunt, but here in this zoo, these big birds will not hesitate to attack. They're very slow and will easily succumb to pistol fire. Just don't let them get too close to you.
Lizard Mutants
Also in It's a Madhouse!, you may eventually meet up with these mutant lizard-like creatures. They hop around like kangaroos and spray poisonous green spit. It's best to get to a safe location and shoot at these creatures with pistols. Close encouters with these creatures almost always guarantee that you'll take some damage, if not from their claws or bite, then from their poison breath.
Reanimated Corpse
In Reunion you will encounter some of these undead crimes against nature. These animated corpses have a huge wound in the chest, and are armed with fiery torches which they use as clubs. Don't worry about wasting ammunition. At this point in the game arm yourself with the Desert Eagles, which can put down one of these things with one shot.
Sophia Leigh
The big Reunion is a reunion with Sophia Leigh. Apparently you didn't finish her off in your last encounter, and now she's found a new power source for her staff. After each recharge, Sophia's first blast is her most powerful. Whatever you do, don't get hit by this first blast. After the initial blast, Sophia will let off ten more smaller blasts before she has to recharge. Sophia can only be killed when she is standing beside the Hand of Rathmore but she can only be injured when she is standing beside the artifact and only while recharging. Knowing this, any weapon will work to take her down, but a single rocket is the most expedient.