GEOTHERMAL VALLEY - CATACOMB OF SACRED WATERS CHALLENGE TOMB
Updated: 12/26/22(†)
NOTE: The collectibles found in this area are included in the totals for the Geothermal Valley First Visit and are shown on the annotated level map.
CHALLENGE TOMB ENTRANCE: After fighting off the Trinity forces invading the Remnant Village, your next goal is to head for the The Acropolis Tower. When you reach the Aqueduct Ruins Base Camp, as described in the main walkthrough, move down between the broken bridge sections. Then walk up the fallen tree trunk and jump into the tunnel to the northeast. (screenshots)
Follow the tunnel. Where it widens, there are some mushrooms and a box of supplies. Continue up the stone stairs. At the top is a small cavern with stalagmites and stalactites. Follow the flowing water downstream. Swim across a shallow pool and walk through the waterfall ahead. Then slide down the steep slope to splash down in the pool below. Climb out of the water on the right (north) side. Then climb through the narrow gap in the rocks into the cave beyond. Use an arrow to make a rope line so you can cross the next pool. (screenshots)
BURIAL CHAMBER: Descend the next flight of stairs into a large room lined with bones. Between the two large columns with skulls arranged around their bases is a relic (6/13), a Silver Basket from the Time of Adaptation set. Climb onto the ledge to the left of the relic and follow it up and around to the Aquifer Cavern Base Camp. (screenshots)
CATACOMB OF SACRED WATERS CHALLENGE TOMB: Head down the steps from the campfire to the aqueduct. There's a document (15/33) hidden behind the overturned boat to the right of the stairs. It is Thieves Among Us from the Catacomb of Sacred Waters series (Greek). (screenshots)
Do not try to swim across the rushing water. The current is too swift, and Lara will be swept over the edge onto the rocks below. To reach the building on the other side, start by approaching the rope-wrapped post on the left, which is attached to a water wheel. Shoot a rope arrow into the rope coil on the prow of the little boat. As the water wheel turns the post, it draws the boat toward you. When it moves alongside the ledge where Lara is standing, jump onto it. The rope line doesn't hold for long, so quickly move next to the rope coil at the front of the boat and shoot the second rope-wrapped post near the little island in the middle of the aqueduct. As the post rotates, it draws the boat closer to the island. After a few moments, the rope line snaps and the boat starts to drift downstream. As it passes the lower end of the island, jump off the boat onto the land. (If you don't jump in time, and the boat drifts past the island, you can either try to shoot the second coil again so it pulls the boat back, or just reload the checkpoint and try again.) In the raised enclosure on the island, you'll find another document (16/33), Rite of Passage from the Catacomb of Sacred Waters series (Greek), as well as 2 piles of Byzantine coins (10 coins total). (screenshots)
Return to the bottom of the steps and stand near the third rope-wrapped post. Shoot an arrow into the rope coil on the prow of a second boat, which is concealed behind the waterfall a short distance upstream. Once the line is anchored, the rotating post draws the boat out from under the falls and toward you. Quickly move to the edge of the island, where it juts out over the water. As the boat passes, jump onto it move close to the rope coil and shoot an arrow into the fourth rope-wrapped post on the far side of the aqueduct. Now use your axe to crank the winch, drawing the boat toward the fourth post. As the boat moves alongside the ledge just downstream from the post, jump and grab onto the ledge above. Then pull up. (screenshots)
NOTE: If the boat drifts toward the edge of the falls with Lara standing on it, she'll go over the edge and die. But if the boat drifts on empty, it will end up in the lower corner of the pool. If you like, you can then try to retrieve it using a rope arrow anchored to the third post, jump onto the boat, anchor it to the fourth post, and then crank the line. I found it easier to just reload the checkpoint and try the sequence again.
Climb the stairs into the building. In the first room there's a container of cloth and an Archivist Map (5/9), which reveals the locations of any undiscovered documents and relics in this area. In the far corner, beyond the map table, there's a box of supplies. Move down the stairs to find the codex. Read it to unlock the Anatomical Knowledge skill, which allows you to see and target a prey animal's heart in Survival Instinct view. You'll also receive XP and 10,000 Expedition Credits if it's the first time you've raided this tomb. Before moving on, open the box lying on the floor to find a relic (7/13), a Goblet from the Icons of Kitezh set (circled in the screenshot above), and gather some cloth and mushrooms. (screenshots)
To get out of here, climb onto the ledge behind the box that held the relic. Then use your axe to smash through the crumbling wall into the passageway beyond. You can now turn left and return up the zip line and through the BURIAL CHAMBER to the Aquifer Cavern Base Camp. From there you can fast travel back to the Aqueduct Ruins Base Camp (or any other camp). Or, turn right, climb through the opening in the rocks, and return through the cavern the way you came. Where you slid down the waterfall coming in, there's a climbable wall and ledges leading back to the upper tunnel. (screenshots)
NOTE: If you missed any collectibles here and need to return later in the game, you can fast travel back to the Aquifer Cavern Base Camp. The boat puzzle doesn't work a second time, but you can get back into the codex room from here. Start by dropping down into the BURIAL CHAMBER room with all the skulls. Then go up the stairs to the east to the cave with the pool and zip line. On the other side of the pool, on the right, is the doorway to the codex room that you made by breaking down the wall with your axe. (screenshot)
[Return to the Geothermal Valley Walkthrough]
†UPDATE HISTORY: 1/9/16 - First draft of walkthrough posted online.
6/5/16 - A few minor changes made while revising the main Geothermal Valley walkthrough.
7/15/17 - Noted the box of supplies in the room with the Archivist Map.
12/26/22 - Fixed a type in the last paragraph referencing the Aquifer Cavern Base Camp.
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