Shadow of the Tomb Raider not only tells a breathtaking story, but fully engages you to fully experience Lara’s adventures.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is an action-adventure game where you need to search for and locate ancient artifacts to help save the human race against an organization called Trinity.
There are many things to do in the game and it’s always great to know more, so I created a few Shadow of the Tomb Raider tips to help you enjoy the game even more.
Everything you need to know, whether you are brand new to the series or have played all of the previous Tomb Raider games.
Let the adventures begin!
Tips When Starting A New Game
1. Difficulty Settings
When you start a new game, you will have the option to change the difficulty level of the game.
You can also do it at any point during the game if you chose to do so.
There are three settings you can change to fit your playstyle.
- Combat (the strength of enemies and the amount of ammo you’ll find)
- Exploration (this will impact how you see the world and how easy it is to find items of interest)
- Puzzle difficulty (how many hints you’ll get to solve puzzles throughout the game).
2. Skill Points
Deciding what Skill Points to get first will ultimately rely on how you want to play the game, as none of the skills are essential if you don’t choose them.
The most important thing to note is that there are three categories in the skill tree you can choose from.
- Scavenger (Green) is for specializing in stealth skills, like stealth takedowns and moving quieter to not alert the enemies.
- Seeker (Blue) focuses on skill points for survival purposes, like getting more loot, have a better sense of instinct and to take more advantage of the wild.
- Warrior (Red) is the combat category that enhances your ability to take more damage, be more lethal against enemies and give you more abilities related to using weapons better.
Not all the skills can be unlocked with skill points and is only available when you explore tombs or do side missions.
You will ultimately have enough points to acquire most of the skills throughout the game, so you can either choose to balance them out or specialize in one category.
Where to buy (PC & Xbox)
How To Get XP
3. XP From The Main Storyline
In order to get Skill Points, you will have to gain experience.
So how do you gain experience and what should you look for.
The first and most obvious way is to progress through the storyline where you will earn XP each time you reach a certain checkpoint.
Luckily there are a few other things to do as well so you can get that little extra and get those skills earlier in the game.
4. Exploring for Resources, Collectibles & Secrets
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is an adventure game, so there are always a story to tell and with stories comes secrets, collectibles and interesting things.
You can collect them and earn XP for each item you find. So explore the world thoroughly to get all those relicts, trinkets, odds and ends.
When you find a map, some items will be marked on the map which makes it easier for you to find that lost artifacts.
5. Exploring Crypts and Tombs
Besides searching for unique items, you will sometimes stumble upon a tomb or crypt.
These usually has a puzzle to solve and also give a lot of XP.
Not all tombs and crypts will be accessible when you first find them due to lack of equipment needed to enter them.
So you will have to go back to them at a later stage in order to complete the quest.
If you can get into one immediately, do it. It’s great fun and like I said can give you a good amount of XP.
6. Wearing Certain Outfits
Throughout the game you will find new outfits and clothing to wear.
Some of them will help you get more XP for doing certain things.
Every outfit will have unique enhancements you’ll get from wearing them, so if you need more XP fast, make sure to wear the outfit that will help you to get more experience points.
7. Side Missions
During the main story you will find side missions to do, mostly helping the people that lives in the villages.
By helping them you will gain more experience, go on extra adventures and discover new locations. It’s always nice to see all the parts of the world, especially for adventure games.
You can talk to the locals and some of them will give you something to do or explore, others will just say something random.
You’ll get extra weapons, abilities or outfits by doing side quests.
So don’t forget to do those side missions and help the people.
Where to buy (PC & Xbox)
Survival
8. Traps
In Shadow of the Tomb Raider, survival is more than just steering clear of enemies and wild animals, but to survive the dangers of the tombs and ruins you’ll explore.
There are traps to be found in most caves of tombs you’ll explore.
You’ll find tripwires, collapsible floors, snake pits and more.
An easy way to look for traps is to unlock the “Cunning Skill”, that will highlight traps when you are in focus mode.
9. Swimming
You’ll be exploring ancient tombs, caves and ruins which some of them will be flooded, so you’ll need to dive deep to get past certain points.
Don’t stay too long under water, first look at your surroundings to figure out where to go and look out for air bubbles.
There you can take a breath and go again.
A handy skill to get for this is the “Caimen Skill” which will give you the ability to stay underwater for much longer.
10. Climbing
Similar to swimming, climbing is a very important part of the game in order to get to certain points during the game.
When you jump long distances or the ledge you grab onto breaks, Lara may lose her grip and that’s when you should grab again to prevent her from falling.
There’s also a skill point to help extend the time you have to grab onto a ledge after she slips, make sure to get that early on.
You will do a lot of climbing!
11. Hunting
Lara can craft and upgrade her weapons and outfits.
For that you’ll need to hunt in order to get hide from animals.
It’s easy to kill smaller animals that’s not too dangerous, but when you need to kill fast it’s good to know that an animal’s weak spot is there hearts.
How do you see an animal’s heart in Shadow of the Tomb Raider?
Well, there is another skill that lets you see exactly where the hearts are when you are in focus mode.
12. Boosts
Similar to hunting, you have the ability to gather a lot of herbs that help you craft boosts.
There are boosts for health, instinct, endurance and focus boosts to help you recover when you got hurt or to see all the elements around you more clearly.
Also Read – The 18 Best Survival Games To Play In 2019
Crafting, Outfits and Upgrading
13. Crafting Outfits
Unlike previous Tomb Raider games, you can now craft outfits to gain bonuses when used for certain tasks.
These include getting more XP, looting more resources at a time or abilities to help you do things more efficient like sneaking and taking down enemies faster.
You have the option to use different outfits for your upper and lower body, so it lets you mix and match to fit your preferred playstyle.
14. Merchants
In the villages, you’ll find a small market area with a merchant. Trade with the merchants for general supplies, ammo or weapons. Don’t forget to sell your Gold and Jade. That is why they are there for. You can find gold in various places around the map, in deposits, as coins or just raw gold. That will give you a good amount of money to buy more items later on.
15. Upgrading Weapons
All of your weapons are upgradable and is fairly easy to do, given that you have enough resources.
By default you can only upgrade weapons to Level 3, but there is a skill that lets you upgrade weapons to Level 4.
When you get into more gunfights and need that little bit extra, make sure to get the skill and upgrade your favourite weapons.
A shotgun is very helpful as it can be used to destroy certain barriers at Crypt entrances. It’s also good at close range.
Where to buy (PC & Xbox)
Combat
16. Stealth vs Lethal
Although you will spend a lot of time running through jungle terrain and searching Tombs for artifacts, there are enemies you’ll need to face.
You can play by either using stealth tactics to take out opponents or go all out and gun them down with your assault rifle or shotgun.
There are no one right way to play the game, but try to keep in mind what skills you want to maximize your experience.
For stealthy skills you should unlock skills in the Scavenger (Green) category and if you choose to be load and ruthless, choose skills in the Warrior (Red) category.
17. Booby Traps
Something that is extremely helpful later in the game is to take out multiple enemies at once.
You can booby trap bodies when they are knocked out and kill enemies by an explosion when they investigate.
Not only is it very helpful, but also super fun!
18. Line of Sight
In previous Tomb Raider titles, when an enemy saw you they would automatically know where you are regardless of if they can see you.
Now you can break line of sight, which puts more emphasis on being stealthy and evasive.
So you can hide in bushes or vegetation after you’ve broke their sight in order to take them out another way.
19. Crafting Arrows
The bow and arrow is the ultimate weapon for survival.
It’s lethal, quiet and can be used with different types of arrows.
Besides the normal arrows, you can craft fire and poison arrows to use for a more dramatic effect.
You’ll need oil to craft fire arrows and poison collected from bugs and spiders for poison arrows.
Remember to also unlock the skill in order to use it.
20. Improvised Grenades and Molotov Cocktails
When you are near locations with enemies, there will most likely be empty cans or bottle laying around.
You can use the cans to make small explosive grenades and the bottles to craft a Molotov cocktail.
They are great for surprising a group of enemies.
Also Read – SCUM Game Tips To Help You Survive The Wild Everytime
Crypts & Tombs
21. What Do You Find
What is an adventure game without a bit of treasure hunting?
You will find crypts and tombs all around the map during the game that you can explore.
Crypts usually hold valuable items like special clothing items or weapons whereas tombs give a skill when you complete the puzzle.
Usually those skills are not available to unlock in the skill tree, so to get them you’ll need to beat the tombs.
22. Getting Past Blocked Paths
Not all the tombs and crypts are available when you find them, they will require items to get through the entrance.
If you can’t get it, you will have to go back to clear them once you acquired the tools needed to get through the blockade.
At first, all the treasure icons will be hidden, but if you find a map or backpack while exploring these areas, the icons will be revealed for you to go and collect or dig up.
23. Solving The Puzzles
The puzzles in Shadow of the Tomb Raider is not hard to solve, but sometimes that one step can throw you off.
The important thing is to know the environment and know what you can do.
There is almost never a straight forward path to get to the end so keep your eyes open.
Also look for things you can push or turn to open or close something and search for ropes around a piece of wood, you can shoot it with your arrow and tie it down to something else.
In the end you’ll find that the most difficult part was something small that you probably overlooked, so keep your eyes peeled and solve those puzzles.
They are really fun.
Conclusion
Are you a Tomb Raider fan?
Share your favourite experience in the comments below!
Now you have a list of Shadow of the Tomb Raider tips you can use in order to have the best adventure ever.
The game can be played in a number of ways even if you have to reach the same point.
Ultimately, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is an awesome adventure game where you will experience a range of interesting things.
The story is breathtaking and immersive as always, it’s a beautiful world with interesting locations and just a blast to play.
If you like adventure games with a rich story, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is a must play.
Where to buy (PC & Xbox)
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