BUG NOTES: Some PC users have experienced a game crash between the previous level and this one. I've offered some possible solutions here. Also, this level includes a potential bug in which one of Lara's arms won't work. Try using the binoculars or lighting a flare and, if that doesn't help, try reloading an earlier save or downloading and using one of the saves mentioned in the solution for the other bug.
LEVEL 12: DESERT RAILROAD
Updated: 5/5/19(†)
Kills: 14 Items: 14 plus Crowbar and Grenade Gun Secrets: 3*
NOTE: One of the regular pick-ups will be the SHOTGUN if you didn't find it in an earlier level.
Cutscene: The locomotive speeds through the desert on its way to Alexandria. Lara is inside.
You begin in a boxcar just behind the engine. There are 2 levers, but one is missing a handle. (screenshot) Use the working lever to open the rear door. Stand in the doorway and take a diagonal standing jump across the gap to the next car. (screenshot) Stand near the door, press Action to open it, then go inside.
When you enter the COMPARTMENT CAR, the camera bugs out (at least in the PC version). Do your best to navigate around the corner to the right. Pressing Action opens each of the compartment doors. (screenshot) There are no seats in the compartments, but the first two have breakable crates. Shoot them to get a small medipack and shotgun shells. There's nothing useful behind the third door, but as you approach it, a blade-wielding assassin comes around the corner. (screenshot) Deal with him as you did the others in the Karnak levels.
Continue to the end of the car. Open the door and jump across the coupling onto the FLATCAR WITH TARP COVERING. Cross over this car toward the next.
Cutscene: Two more assassins jump from moving trucks onto the train.
NOTE: If you're using the all-weapons cheat, you can take advantage of a nice little trick here. Just before triggering the cutscene, launch a flash grenade. The grenade will detonate during the cutscene, blinding the bad guys so that when they attempt to jump onto the train, they instead fall and die. Of course, if you're cheating you could also just use the crossbow to shoot past the assassins' blades or explosives to kill them outright.
If you haven't cheated and only have basic weapons, take out the 2 assassins as you usually do, shooting until they start twirling their blades, then holstering your weapons, then shooting again when the blades retract. (screenshot) Just be careful not to accidentally jump off the moving train as you evade them. When they're dead, jump across the gap onto the EMPTY FLATCAR. Cross over it and take a standing jump to grab the ladder on either side of the door to the next car. (screenshot)
TWO YELLOW BOXCARS: Climb on top of the car. Run past the hatch, roll, and shoot another assassin as he opens the hatch and climbs out. The shotgun works well at close range. (screenshot) Yet another assassin comes through the hatch of the next boxcar in the line, so watch your back. It takes him a while to reach you, so you can probably kill him with pistols. (screenshot)
Now drop down through the hatch into the first boxcar. Pick up the small medipack and shotgun shells. There's more shotgun ammo inside the small wooden crate. Crouch to shoot it. (screenshot) Then move around to the other side of the car to flush out another black-robed bad guy. (screenshot) Deal with him like you did the others. Make sure you get the health pack mentioned above before going after the bad guy; otherwise he'll run to pick it up and you'll never see it again.
Stand in the doorway and jump forward to grab the ladder. Climb on top of the second yellow boxcar. (screenshot) There's no need to drop down through the hatch yet, but if you do, you may notice an odd-looking wooden panel in one corner. Lara runs against it and says "No" if you press Action. This is a concealed door that requires a tool to open. (screenshot)
Jump from the top of the second yellow boxcar onto the TARP-COVERED FLATCAR WITH TALL CARGO. The cargo is too steep to climb, so you'll have to drop and hang from the side of the car and traverse toward the back. Pull up when you reach a spot that's flat enough to stand on. (screenshot)
Cutscene: Von Croy's helicopter passes over the train, presumably dropping off reinforcements.
Move to the end of the TARP-COVERED FLATCAR WITH TALL CARGO and Jump to grab the ladder to the left of the door on the LAST BOXCAR. Climb on top and continue toward the back of the car. An assassin climbs up as you approach. Kill him then investigate where he came from: Drop and grab the back edge of the train. When you do, a door opens. Release the Action key briefly, then press it again to drop and grab the edge of the opening. (Or climb down the ladder on the right side of the door, over to the left, then up into the opening.) Inside is SECRET #1 (41/70), a large medipack, arrows, and revolver ammo. (screenshots)
When you have all the goodies, climb back into the doorway, turn around, and drop and grab the edge once more. Climb to the right then up the ladder to the top of the car. If you look down over the right side of the car, you'll spot another door. Hang off the edge in front of it and it will open. Now you can let go, grab the edge, and pull up into the opening. (Or, if you prefer, climb down the ladder to the right of the door, climb to the left, and then pull up.) Inside this car you'll find 2 boxes of shotgun shells, the SHOTGUN (or more shells) and the CROWBAR. (screenshots)
The door closed behind you, so use the CROWBAR as a handle to operate the lever here, opening another door at the front of the car. A sneaky assassin jumps inside while Lara's back is turned, so approach the alcove near the door with guns ready. (screenshots)
Now jump back over to the TARP-COVERED FLATCAR WITH TALL CARGO. Take two standing jumps to get on top of the tall cargo. (screenshot) Another assassin can be seen hopping around on the YELLOW BOXCARS. Lara probably won't target him from here, but if you shoot in his general direction with pistols, you can still take him out. (screenshot) If not, don't worry. You'll meet him again soon. Slide down to the base of the tarp. The boxcar door opens, revealing another assassin. Shoot him through the open door. (screenshot)
Take a standing jump with Action through the door of the boxcar or jump and grab the ladder to the right of the door, climb onto the roof, and drop down through the hatch. Now that you've got the CROWBAR, you can pry open the wooden panel in the front right corner. (screenshot) Behind the panel is SECRET #2 (42/70), the GRENADE GUN (loaded with 10 normal grenades), plus 2 boxes of flash grenades. Some of these goodies are concealed inside wooden crates. (screenshot)
Climb up through the hatch onto the roof. (Kill the car-hopping baddie if you didn't do it before.) Two more assassins climb up from in between this car and the next one. (screenshot) Take care of them and continue forward to the edge of the second BOXCAR.
Now that you have the GRENADE GUN, you can use the trick mentioned earlier without cheating. Step to the edge of the YELLOW BOXCAR overlooking the FLATCAR. Open your inventory, select the Grenade Gun, then 'Choose Ammo.' Select 'Grenadegun Flash Ammo' and press Action to load it, then Action again to equip the weapon. Save the game just in case your timing is off. Then fire a flash grenade as you jump down onto the flatcar. (In addition to this screenshot I've made a short video showing how to do it.) Or, if you'd rather not use the trick, just jump down onto the flatcar without firing.
Cutscene: Two more assassins arrive by truck.
If you used the flash grenade trick, these 2 enemies will be temporarily blinded. When they attempt to jump from their trucks onto the train, they'll fall by the wayside as Lara speeds on. If you don't use the grenade trick, they will jump onto the flatcar with you and you'll have to fight them in the usual way. (screenshot)
Now jump over to the next FLATCAR WITH THE TARP COVERING. Cross over it toward the COMPARTMENT CAR, where another assassin appears in the doorway. You can kill him from outside if you like (screenshot) or jump over there and get in his face. Go through the COMPARTMENT CAR to the far end. Then take a carefully angled standing jump across the coupling into the next car. (screenshot)
BACK IN THE BOXCAR WHERE YOU STARTED: First use the CROWBAR to pry open the wooden panel directly across from the entrance. The small medipack hidden inside is SECRET #3 (43/70). (screenshots) Now use the CROWBAR to operate the second lever. (screenshot) This separates this car from the rest of the train and opens the door at the front of the car.
USEFUL BUG: If you like, before approaching either of the doors to the outside, step back into the alcove where you found secret #3. The chime should sound again and an extra secret registers. I don't include this one in the total, since it's not supposed to happen.
Finally, approach either door to end the level.
Cutscene: What remains of the train speeds on toward Alexandria with Lara inside.
*NOTE ON SECRETS: There are 70 secrets in the entire game. These are marked "(x/70)" in this walkthrough. To check your progress in-game, press Pause (P on keyboard, Start on PlayStation or Dreamcast controller) then choose Statistics. At the end of this level, you should have 43/70 (44 if you use the bug mentioned above).
†UPDATE HISTORY: 5/18/00 - Previous edit, details not available.
5/5/19 - First major update since this walkthrough was created in 1999. This revision includes many new screenshots as well as various other corrections and clarifications.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Special thanks to the participants in the alt.games.tombraider newsgroup and the old tombraiders.com forum, without whom parts of this walkthrough could not have been written. Thanks also to Chelle and her brother for the flash grenade trick, to the many players who sent me info about getting the extra secret, and to Marie D. and Zomber for other tips for this level.
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