Adventurers do not explore tombs just for the experience, although they may have a lot of wishes related to adventuring when they are engaged in their task. Almost everyone would be in it for what they can get out of it. After all, the rewards are worth any decent day job.
Major Relics can be found in various forms. There are several themes of special relics and if a sim has managed to collect all relics of one collection, it increases their value and worth tremendously.
Minor Relics are not worth that much, although if a sim collects enough pieces of a broken sarcophagus or dive well, he can reconstruct a whole one. Mainly, though, the minor relics just look pretty instead of being worth a great deal.
This is a minor relic. Each country has their own specific sets of relics, which we will look at in future reports.
Money Bags are full of simoleons. Whether simoleons have been the accepted currency of these civilisations as well as the ancient coins or if previous adventurers have just dropped them behind, there are quite a few of these. The amount in each bag can vary. There is no purpose in hanging onto them. They may as well be cashed in as soon as possible.
Ancient Coins can only be spent in the three countries and only through the special merchant. If anything, these are one of the most valuable commodities that adventuring sims can pick up as they are necessary in order to buy adventure rewards from the special merchant.
Gems & Metals either in their base form or cut or smelted can be found in the different tombs. Holding onto them is often a good idea as later on, a patron might want some of that metal or one of those gems that our sim has already discovered.
All forms of treasure can be found in treasure chests, in plain sight or they might require that bit of extra effort to discover. Our adventurers need to have some expectations when they go exploring.
All tombs are unique and have their own personal characteristics. However, they do have a certain features in common that adventurers need to be aware of. If an adventurer is prepared, they can avoid certain nasty surprises or become aware of something that might not be in plain sight.
Holes in the Wall (or Floor) - No, there are not ATMs (cashpoint machines) in the middle of a tomb. However, these holes always have some purpose or other and you will find a lot of these during your adventures. Sometimes they are immediately visible, at other times you might have to clear away rubble or big rocks or even use another one to reveal one. One big hint here is that you should show your respects to the dead by mourning at a tombstone or obelisk. These holes tend to suddenly materialise when you have done that. If it activates a switch, a stream of glowing dots flows in the direction of where the effect will be noticed.
You can get money out of these "holes in the wall" (or floor) or you can find gems or anything through to large relics. They can serve as switches or triggers that reveal or open things such as hidden doors. They can also deactivate or reactivate traps.
Movable Torches - It is hard to distinguish them from a normal torch. These work as switches and tend to activate, deactivate or reactivate something. Again, a stream of dots will flow in the direction of where the effect is.
Rubble Piles - There will be a lot of these in the tombs. To clear them requires a bit of effort with a pickaxe. On a plus, this will increase your sim's athletic skill. On a minus, it will cause their hygiene to drop. Clearing these piles can reveal switches, some reward or other or even a treasure chest.
Massive Boulders - Unless you have been on a certain adventure in China, you will not be able to move these. It requires the magic axe of Pangu to break them. Once you have this axe, you will also have no difficulty in getting through rubble piles either. There will be more about this axe later in the report on China. However, if you haven't got the axe, you cannot get past them. However, if you do get the axe, you can come back later and deal with them.
Floor Switches - Again, these are not always immediately visible but always serve as a form of trigger. They can unlock doors, reveal hidden doors, staircases or various other things. Again, a dotted stream may indicate where the effect will take place.
Floor Switches come in two forms. Firstly, there is the basic one which can be stood on and that is what we see here. It has two footmarks to show this. Once it is activated, it stays activated.
The second one requires a heavy object to be placed on it as if an adventurer steps off it, it invariable deactivates itself. Adventuring in pairs might work here but it usually requires moving heavy statues around to position over the switch.
Movable Statues - Not every statue is movable. Usually, you can tell if one can be moved. Also, if a statue can be inspected, it invariably means that it can be moved. They can be pulled or pushed either short or long distances. They are quite distinctive so it does not require much effort in finding one. Pushing or pulling these statues around can be the most exhausting of the tasks found in a tomb.
Locked Doors - Many of the doors you will come across will be visible. However, many of them will be locked. Sometimes they can be unlocked with a switch, which can be a wall/floor switch or floor plate, but in many cases they require keystones.
Keystones come in various shapes. Basically, each country has its own shape of keystone. Circular for China, crescent-shaped for Egypt and heart-shaped for France. Keystones are found scattered around the tombs. Once they are put in place, they cannot be reused. Skeleton keystones can be bought from the special merchant that will open any of these doors. There are also certain special keystones that can only be found following specific adventure threads. In this illustration, we see a lock that requires a heart-shaped keystone, which is conveniently on the front of the plinth in front of Melody.
Secret Doors - What would a tomb be without these? There are sometimes giveaways that an area contains a secret door. Sometimes, a wish will pop up for the adventurer to find a secret door. Also, if a wall can be inspected, that definitely means that there is a secret door there. After a bit of inspection, it will appear. Also, secret doors can be revealed from switches found in holes or from floor plates. They can open automatically or they may require a bit of pushing. If it requires pushing, that means the Athletic skill again goes up and the hygiene bar goes down. Occasionally, doors will shut behind a sim.
Sarcophaguses - Or should that be sarcophagi? These upright tombs can be inspected and can contain switches, relics, jewels or worse. Although predominantly found in Egypt, mummies can be found everywhere. They can be fought but sometimes flight is better than fight. We will be looking in detail at mummies in our Egypt report.
Sacrophagus fragments are a type of minor relic. If a sim collects enough of them, they can build their own at home. Some sims even like to sleep in them, which is useful if there is a shortage of floor space.
Dive Wells - These circular pools can soak your sim, unless they have slipped into their swimsuit. Soaking is not always a bad thing but mostly it is. Exploring these wells can reveal switches, certain minor relics and gems or find a tunnel leading to another dive well. If you find a tunnel, take it.
Dive well fragments are also a type of minor relic and with enough parts, sims can build their own one at home, which in this case Montana Miller has done.
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