Top Tips You Need to Know for Shadow of the Tomb Raider

It’s a whole new adventure for Lara. How will you survive and save the world from a Maya apocalypse? Below are some essential tips from writer, Michael Owen, author of Shadow of the Tomb Raider Official Collector’s Companion Tome.

Tweak the Difficulty Setting

Shadow of the Tomb Raider allows you to choose a different difficulty for Combat, Exploration, and Puzzles. The average of these settings gives you the final setting of Smart and Resourceful, Rite of Passage, or One with the Jungle. If gunfights give you trouble, set Combat one setting below the others—likewise if environment traversal or the challenging puzzles are your weakness. Note that if you plan to play on the highest difficulty, Deadly Obsession, all three must be set to Very Hard.

Make Stealth Combat the First Option

Most encounters in Shadow of the Tomb Raider allow for a stealth approach. Enemies are typically spread out and initially unaware of your presence. Use this to your advantage and pick them off one or two at a time. Crouched movement and scramble maneuvers between environmental concealment allow you to get close to enemies. Use distraction to move individuals out of a group and finish them off with a silent stealth kill or arrow headshot.

Utilize Concealment to Remain Unseen

Concealment bushes and vegetation walls, which are highlighted with Survival Instincts, provide cover for easier stealth takedowns. Scramble between them to remain undetected. An isolated enemy near your concealed location is dragged into cover after a stealth takedown. Use this to your advantage to keep bodies out of sight. Be careful when aiming from a bush; you may be noticed if an enemy is looking your way.

Survive with Survival Instincts

When playing on lower difficulties, take advantage of Lara’s Survival Instinct, which highlights important items and hostiles. A yellow highlight indicates the enemy is out of sight from his comrades, while red means that you will be seen if you attack your target. Survival Instincts can be used to reveal resources and various objects in exploration, as well as important objects in puzzles. Hard and Very Hard disables Survival Instincts in Exploration and Puzzle, and eliminates enemy highlight in combat.

Improve Survival Instincts

There are several skills that add to the benefits of Survival Instincts: Eagle’s Sight highlights nearby collectibles, Crow’s Cunning reveals traps, Owl’s Wisdom details any challenge objects in the area, Owl’s Vision improves the ability (as well as providing the “One with the Jungle” difficulty with resource and enemy highlights), and Eagle Perception improves the range of Survival Instincts.

Toss a Distraction Object to Separate Enemies

Bottles, cans, and jars—typically found near encounters—can be used to separate enemies. Throw the object away from the group, preferably near a concealment bush or vegetation wall, and wait for someone to investigate the noise. Make sure he is isolated and perform a takedown. An arrow can also be used to distract an enemy; loosen the projectile at a nearby wall to get his attention.

Craft Bombs for Additional Combat Options

By combining distraction objects with select resources, they can also be used to create a variety of bombs. The detonation tends to break stealth, so use wisely. A bottle can be turned into an incendiary Molotov cocktail, a can becomes a deadly shrapnel bomb, and a jar is transformed into a smoke bomb. A smoke screen is a great option when multiple enemies are grouped together and you wish to remain unseen.

Counter Melee Attacks with Puma’s Feint

Sometimes stealth combat is unavoidable. Soldiers may already be informed of your presence in an area, predators in the wild are not fooled by your attempts at concealment, and Yaaxil typically charge Lara once within range. Puma’s Feint is an extremely effective skill against the Yaaxil’s melee attack. Evade to the side as a Yaaxil warrior swipes at Lara. With perfect timing, a circular meter appears with a button icon in the middle. Press that button while the moving circle is within the shaded area to dodge kill the foe.

Stay Alert for the Grab Timer

As you climb the precarious environments of Peru, long jumps often result in Lara losing her grip—requiring you to press the Interact button before a short timer runs out. If you fail to press the button in time, you must restart at the previous checkpoint (or campfire when playing on the highest difficulty). Get in the habit of looking for the timer after every jump to avoid the fall. Or, remove this requirement by picking up the Howler’s Speed skill (Never slip when grabbing ledges. More reaction time for traps and grappling enemies.). This becomes more of an issue with higher difficulty settings, as the grab timer’s length lessens as the difficulty increases.

Sell Resources to Merchants

Whenever you reach a village, sell all of your gold ore and jade, as well as extras of natural and man-made resources. You can only carry so much of each resource, so always make room for them whenever possible. Kuwaq Yaku, Paititi, and the Mission of San Juan provide at least one merchant who will take any unwanted items off your hands in exchange for gold coins. This currency can then be used to purchase valuable items from the vendors—such as unique equipment, outfits, and weapons. Two must buys are offered by a Paititi merchant who becomes available during one of the region’s side missions.

Avoid Deadly Traps

Two varieties of traps are found inside the corridors of caves, tombs, and crypts: those set off by a tripwire (a taut rope stretched between two walls) and collapsing floors. Survival Instincts does not highlight these traps until you have purchased the Crow’s Cunning skill. Just after tripping a rope, scramble backwards to prevent taking damage. Better yet, hop over the rope or cut it with your knife to avoid it altogether. You are also given a short time to reach safety once a floor crumbles beneath Lara; quickly scramble or jump to safety. These traps can be avoided by noting the difference in the ground and leaping over it.

Explore a Variety of Tombs and Reap the Rewards

Nine Tombs in all are available as you progress through the regions of Peru. The first two are introduced in the Peruvian Jungle. Each one requires that you solve a puzzle and find the Stele, typically at the far end of the tomb, to learn a new skill. These tombs often hide numerous collectibles too, making the effort even more worthwhile.

Get the Guide!

Lara must battle through deadly jungles, overcome terrifying tombs, and face her darkest hour. Experience Lara’s journey with the Shadow of the Tomb Raider Official Collector’s Companion Tome. This premium hardcover book with an exclusive design that also features the signatures of the entire development team! Featuring a comprehensive walkthrough, custom maps, compelling interviews, and look behind the scenes, this is a must-have book for any fan of the series.

In addition, you will get these amazing Bonus Items included with Shadow of the Tomb Raider Official Collector’s Companion Tome:

• Orange Shadow Band Resource Pack: With the in-game resources included in this pack, totaling four gold and eight jade, you can obtain your choice of either ammunition or healing items, aiding Lara throughout your journey!
• Stunning Fan Art Section: Features pieces from dedicated and talented Tomb Raider fans!
• Custom Sticky Notes: 30 sticky notes, featuring an iconic image from the game, available only in this Collector’s Companion Tome!
• Exclusive Foreword: Written by Gameplay Director, Daniel Drapeau.
• Digital Game Guide: With the free code card inside, unlock the digital version of this guide which includes custom interactive maps. Access your digital guide anytime, anywhere, on any web-enabled device.
• Bonus Comic: Includes Tomb Raider: Inferno #1 by Dark Horse Comics!

Go Beyond Strategy—Immerse yourself in Lara’s world with Shadow of the Tomb Raider Official Collector’s Companion Tome from Prima Games!