EXPERT CHALLENGE: River Ganges - A Tricky pickup

Tomb Raider 3 - River Ganges detail

IMPORTANT: This is a tricky sequence. To be sure you don't get stranded, save your game beforehand and do not overwrite that save until you're safely back at the quad bike.

The path to the ammo is marked with red arrows in the diagram above. Two possible routes back are indicated by the blue arrows. The numbers in parentheses refer to the numbers in the diagram. The sequence is also shown in this short video walkthrough.

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First move over to the left side of the big tree along the riverbank.

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Jump onto the tree root that juts out above the water (number 1 in the diagram).

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From there, take a running jump across the river to the green stone ledge (1 to 2).

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Move along this ledge to the slightly higher point (3). It is important to start from the highest point on this ledge in order to make the next jump. If you try and jump from the lower part of the ledge, Lara won't be able to reach the other side.

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Turn right, walk to the edge, and carefully position Lara so she's facing the middle of the big tree on the opposite bank.

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Hop back and then take a running jump across the water...

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...to grab the sloping base of the tree on the other bank (3 to 4).

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Traverse to the right and pull up (4 to 5).

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Hop over to the ledge where the ammo is sitting (6). Pick up Uzi clips and harpoons.

Now for the return trip. You may want to save before attempting the following. Just be sure you don't overwrite your previous file in case you can't get back and need to reload the earlier save.

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Move to the end of the ledge near the corner and turn right to face across the water toward the tree where you started.

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Position Lara in the middle of the block nearest the wall, squarely facing the middle of the block that forms the nearest tree root.

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Hop back and take a running jump across the water to the root (7 to 8 in the diagram). If you try to grab the root, more often than not, Lara will refuse to grab hold and instead slip into the water. I found it works better to take the running jump without grabbing and continue to hold Forward and Jump while Lara is in the air.

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She should then do a little stutter-step at the edge of the tree root but still nail the landing. (If this description isn't clear, watch the video to see what I mean.) After this, just take a series of standing jumps around the tree to get back where you started.

- OR -

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If you're having trouble with the jump back to the tree root, try the following alternate path, which is also shown in the video. After picking up the ammo, turn around and jump back to the tree root where you pulled up earlier.

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Position Lara at the back corner of the flat, triangular part of the root, so she's facing the right end of the green ledge. You must line her up in this odd way in order to have enough space to take the next running jump. If you face the ledge where you want to land, then try and run and jump, she'll fall into the water before take-off.

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From the position shown in the previous screenshot, use the Forward, Left, and Jump buttons to run forward and around to the left, as indicated by the broken arrow. Lara should then take off right at the edge. While she's in the air, press and hold Action to grab the green ledge (7a to 8a in the diagram). Then pull up.

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From here, it's a simple running jump across the water to the tree (2 to 1 in the diagram). From there, walk to the upper right corner of the flat spot and jump back to the ledge where you started.

[Return to the River Ganges Walkthrough]