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A Study In Fear is a Fieldwork mission that becomes available very late inIndiana Jones And The Great Circle.If you’ve been hoping to explore a ruin filled with deadly traps, this is the mission for you. It also introduces a temporary companion, Annika Lund, who you’ll have to work together with in place of Gina if you want to survive.
This Fieldwork does have a few enemies, but it’s mostly about puzzle-solving; considering that it opens up right before the game’s climax, it could make a great low-combat quest to warm up with, or a treat for the postgame once the credits have rolled.
How To Start A Study In Fear
Once youcomplete the Hidden Pyramidin Sukhothai, your next objective is to speak to Sunan to find the location of the final Great Circle site. However, Gina will mention thatPailin is also looking for help. Talk to her atany point before you go to Wat Mahathatto find the Stoneto start the mission.
Remember, Pailin’s house isdirectly across the bridgefrom the Village dock and Fast Travel post, on the second floor.
Pailin will ask you toinvestigate a digsite to the souththat Voss' men are using explosives to quickly excavate. Once you’re ready,take the boat southpast Aran’s treehouse,keeping to the western edge of the map until you come to a dock with aradio but no Fast Travel sign.
Head straight into the ruins andtake a picture of the Exploded Openingin the ground at the rear. There are no enemies here, so there’s no need to be quiet or slow. Jump down into the hole andfollow the hallway into the Khmer Vault.At the back of the room,turn the handle to the right of the demon carvingto enter the hidden area below the ruins.
At the bottom of the chute,squeeze through the hole in the wallto the left of the spiked wall to trigger a cutscene, where you’ll meet Annika.
How To Open The First Door With Annika
Annika is looking for the legendary tomb of a demon that’s said to be buried in these ruins. After the cutscene, start byturning around and using the Lighter to burn the bundle of straw on the wall.This will reveal another handle;turn itto start the hydraulic system that powers the door mechanism.
Annika willshow you a key that she foundat this point; take it from her andplace it in the pedestal to the left of the door.
How Do The Khmer Vault Keys Work?
You’ll see several of these pedestals throughout the ruins, so it’s a good idea to learn how they work right away. Once a pedestal has power from the hydraulic system in its room,the concentric wheels on the top will start rotating rhythmically.All the wheels turn at once,unless a key is inserted.
When a key is placed in the pedestal, itlocks the wheels with symbols that match the key.Any other wheels will continue turning. By stopping and starting wheels with the correct timing, you need toget all the symbols on the pedestal into a single line, then remove the key. Doing so will unlock the pedestal.
The first key that you get from Annika, theCircle Key, only stops one wheel; the other two that you find in the ruinsstop two wheels at once.
The first pedestal only requires that youinsert the Circle Key until the Diamond and Cross wheels align with the Circle wheel. Remove the key at that point to open the door.
How To Reach The Demon’s Tomb
Follow the corridor on the other side of the doorto the right and through a narrow passageto a gear chamber. Once there, goforward along the groundand climb the wall at the far end. The gears ahead won’t let you pass, soturn aroundand use your higher position tojump across the ledges on the left.
Wait for the large gear to give you an opening, thenrun through and jump to the platform across the gap.Turn the valve on your left when you land, thenjump across the horizontal gearover Annika’s head to find an Ancient Relic.
Turning the valve stopped the gears that were blocking your way, soreturn to the wall you climbedand follow Annika through. In the next room,pick up the Cross and Circle Keyfrom the skeleton on the floor to the left. Use the whip toopen the water pipe at the back of the room, powering the pedestal.
Use theCircle Keyto align the Circle and Cross wheels, then take it out and replace it with theCircle and Cross Keyto stop both at once; with only the Diamond wheel moving, it will eventually fall into line with the other two. At that point,remove the keyto open the door next to Annika.
Let Annika go through the hole first; in our playthrough, leading the way caused both Annika and Indy to get stuck, forcing us to load a checkpoint.
The next room is a trap, butit’s only there to scare you; the mechanism is broken, so after a few seconds the walls will stop closing and Annika will open the door, letting youcrawl through and escape.You aren’t in any real danger.
Once you’re through,continue down the corridorto the Demon’s Tomb.
How To Escape The Demon’s Tomb
Approach the sarcophagus andattempt to open it; it turns out that the statues to either side are holding the lid shut. They can be rotated byturning the handles on either side of the circular platform where the sarcophagus stands; you’ll be able to see them if you climb down into the pool of water.
When both valves are turned,return to the sarcophagus and open it.This will activate the trap in the room;wait for a spike to fall from the ceilingon the other side of the sarcophagus, thenpick it upand use it tosmash the brick wallto the right. This will cause the room to start rapidly filling with water;equip the Breathing Deviceright away.
Once the water is high enough that you can swim to the ceiling, go to theupper left section of the room. You’ll find a beam that you can move, causing a wall to break; the current will carry you and Annika away. Indy will automatically grab a rock in a grotto with air, letting yourefill the breathing device;once it’s full,dive back downand follow the current.
Squeeze through the narrow passage at the end of the tunnel, thengrab Annika’s hand to your rightwhen you emerge to get pulled to safety.
How To Find The Idol Of Yaksha
Follow the overgrown path to the end, thenclimb the wall to your left.Walk across the moss-covered stones to the other side of the room;check the chamber to the leftfor an Ancient Relic, thenuse the whipto swing across the two gaps to the door above where you came out of the water.
From the door,jump across to the left platformto get a photo of the water wheel for some Adventure Points, and to find two durians to replenish any Stamina you spent while swimming.
Use the whip tohelp Annika climb the wall in front of the door, then team up with her toturn the handles togetherand open it.
How To Solve The Burial Chamber Puzzle
Beyond the door is the Burial Chamber, where the true demon’s sarcophagus is hidden. You need toactivate all three pedestalsto remove the statues at the center of the room. Start byapproaching the demon headat the rear of the room andusing the whipto open the water pipe to the right of it.
Optionally, go to the left side of the room; you’ll see the exit door, butignore it for nowand use the whip toclimb the wall to the right of it.Swing across the room to reach the opposite platform andcollect the Ancient Relic there.
To get the third and final key,go to the right side of the roomand use the whip to climb the right-hand wall. Move to the right andswing to the ledge across the gap. From the top,swing to the rock with the bird droppingsand climb around to the other side; you’ll be able to drop to a ledge with a bird’s nest, where theCross and Diamond Keyis waiting.
Use the three keys toactivate the pedestals in the middle of the room, starting with the one on the right and working clockwise. Each pedestal not only removes a blocking statue, but alsolets water flow to the next pedestal, powering it.
None of the keys will stop theLine wheelon the pedestals, so use the keys to stop and start theCross, Diamond, and Circle wheelsinstead.
Once all three pedestals are unlocked,place the keys in their appropriate slots on the central altar, according to the symbols drawn on it:
When all three keys are placed, pull the lever that is revealed; the demon’s head statue will reveal the sarcophagus, and Annika will claim her first archaeological find. Talk to her, then after the cutscenejoin her at the exit door on the leftand turn the handle.
How To Leave The Khmer Secret Vault
When you land in the water,equip the Breathing Deviceand use it to swim through the tunnelahead and to the left.The chamber on the other side looks like a dead-end at first;keep swimming underwater to the far endto find a smaller room that you can climb out of using the whip.
The hallway has a side door that leads back to the Burial Chamber, but you don’t need to go there unless youstill need to get the Ancient Relic(see above). Instead, justfollow the stairs upwardand take a left. When you reach the closed door,pick up the Idol of Yaksha and journal pagefrom the ground andturn the handleto open the way back to the entrance.
There are now guards in the entry chamber; you caneither fight them and go back out through the main entrance, or use the whip to swing along the ledgesand reach the crawlspace near the ceiling. The latter option will reward you with supplies, including a rifle, which can be useful for getting through the digsite (which is also guarded now).
Make your way back to the dock anduse the radio to call Gina(she left when the guards returned). Return to Pailin’s house and give her the Idol of Yaksha to complete the mission.
