I start this level with a map of the lost city that looks like hieroglyphics. I can’t see it helping much but I suppose its better than nothing.

I start in the streets outside and have to find my way in first.

Diving in the water shows me a likely looking stone plaque. This was in the intro video so its a dead giveaway that I use my key from before to get in.

I carry on swimming through tunnels. When I see these bubbles I attempt to breathe them Sonic the Hedgehog style but it doesn’t work and I end up reloading.

This time I just keep swimming. I’m swept along and over a waterfall. The climb back up here is a bit of a pain and its easy to keep falling back down as I have to make running jumps at every ledge.

I get up there in the end, fight my way through a few spiders and get my first view of the lost city + the amulet I’m looking for. There is no way to get to it from here so I’m forced to turn round and go the other way.

This leads me through a series of rooms, in what looks a  bit like a stone tomb. All the rooms have automatic lights which come on when I enter. The lost city used to be quite advanced by the looks of it.

After the tomb I emerge into an area full of small stone houses. My main enemies so far down here have been the lizards which I’ve taken out with my sword each time. I run into tougher opposition though in the shape of these fireballs which I’ll be seeing a lot of. They move faster than me and shoot flame darts which hurt a lot. I can take them out with a single water arrow and as long as I’m fast they aren’t a big problem, at least until I run out of water arrows.

As I travel through I find the usual clues to prod me in the right direction. I’m just about out of water arrows at this point so I try to find this tower.

In truth, I’m just wandering around aimlessly exploring but I do chance upon some more water crystals.

This area leads me to a palace of sorts and its inhabited by more fire mages. This guy is not in the easiest place for sneaking up on him, especially given that the light comes on in the room every time I go through it. I end up just hacking him with the sword.

In the room he was guarding is a machine with a big slot for a key or lever. I’ll have to come back here later.

I turn round and go back the way I came to the central area and discover a new location by hopping over rooftops.

One of the requirements of this mission is to find medallions from a missing expedition. The first is located here guarded by a fire mage.

I sneak past a couple more mages into another tomb. After blackjacking yet another mage I come to a cavernous gap. I have to shoot my rope arrows into the convieniently located beams so I can jump across to the other side.

This place is protected with traps. Stepping through this door swings a bit metal plate at me but I can avoid it by ducking.

At the far end is a lever which I carry back all the way to the palace.

I slot this in the machine…

… and it lowers the drawbridge upstairs.

I find the second and final talisman through here along with more notes.

I’m getting near the fire amulet now but its right at the top of a tower and the stairs are bust. I end up climbing through a window and teetering on a ledge. I have to follow this around the building and shoot a rope arrow onto a beam to climb upstairs.

The fire amulet is in here and unguarded so I grab it. I’ve still got a requirement for a certain amount of loot to be collected (2000 including 500 gems). I’ve got enough loot but not gems at this point.

Thankfully the search isn’t too long. The trick is to realise that a room I saw earlier has removable gemstones all along the walls. I’ve now got my loot and just have to figure out how to get out of here. It’s a long trek right back to the waterfall and a load of new fireballs are in the way. How I swim back up the river which swept me over the waterfall I don’t know but this completes the mission.

Next level is more caverns to explore to find the water amulet. This last level wasn’t too bad but wasn’t one of my favourites. Sneaking was barely required and I prefer the levels when they are a bit more concentrated and less sprawling. I didn’t have any real trouble finishing it but I’d prefer not to have what sounds like another similar level coming up. I’d like to see a little more thieving and a lot less wandering round caves killing lizards and the like. In this sort of level Thief is reduced at times to being a sub-par FPS by not playing to it’s strengths.