Cheshire's hint-based guide to La-Mulana

La-Mulana can be a bit harsh on the puzzle-side, to say the least. On the other hand, solving the puzzles and getting further in the game by oneself is immensely rewarding, something which is lost when one reads a full walkthrough - especially in an open-world setting where you'll be spoiled about entirely different parts by attempting to get help on a specific point.

So, here's the guide I'd have liked to have during my first playthrough, a guide that just gives hints to proceed further and that sheds a bit of light on every puzzle, every riddle in the game you might get stuck in, without giving plain answers unless you're really looking for them.

Read this first!

OK, so, you're willing to face the challenges of La-Mulana? You're a hardcore metroidvania fan, you've completed Super Metroid without any external help and you think you have a chance to complete La-Mulana the same way? You're wrong.

La-Mulana's fights, though not easy in any way, remain fair. Many La-Mulana's puzzles are not. To proceed further at some points in the game, you'll have to perform actions based at best on obscure hints gathered completely elsewhere in the ruins and that you're convinced you couldn't have found even when you know the solution... Even if you enjoy puzzles, this can be a bit demotivating. When that happens, here comes this guide!

How should I use this guide?

First, read the non-spoily hints section. It contains vital hints to start your adventure in the ruins of La-Mulana and avoid stupid mistakes.

Then, if you feel frustrated by some general aspects of the game (prioritization of zones, boss fights, money shortage...) or if you have an issue not related to a specific location, go take a look at the General Gameplay hints section. It contains not-too-spoily hints that will help you make the game less frustrating aside from the puzzle parts.

If you are stuck in a specific area of the game, or if you just notice something odd somewhere and want to know if it's related to what you should do now or if it's something for much later in the game, there's the last (and largest) section of this Guide with hints relevant for each area.

Beware, if the areas are very roughly ordered in the order you'll likely find them, La-Mulana is often non-linear, so don't be surprised if that makes you believe you "missed" an area or on the contrary that you've ventured in a late-game area too early, it's probably not the case. Likewise, there are many times you'll revisit an area later in the game; all relevant hints for a given area are still in the same chapter for convenience, but don't expect every hint in an "early" area to be relevant early.

Finally, if you have trouble with an item and the Manual can't help you - you'd like to know what it's used for, or you'd like to know when or where to find it, there are Item Hints sections at the end. There's also a section there dedicated to the very last (and difficult) puzzle of the game, the Mantras.

This guide isn't very convenient to use with all the spoiler tags...

Many hints have different "levels" of depths to avoid revealing too much if you need just a little kick in the right direction. The spoiler tags are imbricated, meaning the text will appear progressively when you put your mouse on it.

It's not very user-friendly, but that's precisely the idea. When there's a guide giving a detailed walkthrough, it's hard to avoid reading things not relevant to what you've been looking for, not to mention resist the temptation to just look at what to do next. This guide is not meant to be read and followed regularly along your adventure, but to get you unstuck when you can't find what to do or how to do it. When it's the case, just look at the section for the area you're in, a hint about what causes you trouble will probably be there.

The less you use this guide, the better!


As a final word, it's not impossible that there are some inaccuracies left in that guide (for example as you can sometimes fulfill a condition for a puzzle without noticing, I may have overlooked that condition). Or bad grammar. Or a missing spoiler tag. Or typos... In that case, thank you for reporting it in the comments, I'll try to fix it ASAP!

Non-spoily hints (do not miss them!)

Ready to start adventuring in La-Mulana?

You've started a new game and find yourself in the Village of Departure?

Beeeep! Don't do that. Read the manual first (you'll find it on the right side of your Steam library). Yeah, I know, it's in badly translated english, but it's very understandable and it has many hints (in the text and in the pictures) that will be helpful all along the game. Including one to solve a puzzle in the first area of the game (Gate of Guidance) that's nearly impossible to find by oneself.

That's how La-Mulana is. Harsh, unforgiving, one could say even trolling.

OK, you've read the manual - many things won't make sense at first, but you'll be grateful to remember them later on. You may now start the game!

First thing you should do is meet Elder Xelpud in one of the tents. He'll give you his xelpud mailer software to receive his emails later on. They usually contain good (though not vital) advices. Now, the thing is, you have to install the software. For that, go to the inventory screen, then Soft tab, and select it. This is true for any piece of software you'll find: if it's not installed, it won't work. Oh, and your laptop memory is limited, so sometimes you'll have to temporarily uninstall a software (don't worry, you may reinstall it later without problem).

Now, start adventuring and try to locate the ruins' entrance (see Area-specific hints if you really can't find it). Your first objective, before even trying to solve any puzzle, should be to gather 60 gold pieces, to purchase both the Hand Scanner and the Glyph Reader in the village. They are mandatory to read all the stone tablets and other things like skeletons, which contain vital hints all along the game. Oh, and when you see a large stone tablet (the ones where you save your game, like on the starting screen in the Village), always scan it at least once. You'll thank me later for this.

Have I mentioned hints? A good advice on that topic: do copy each hint you read in the game. Yes, with pen and paper (or your notepad). And cross them once you've understood what they refer to. Nothing worse than being stuck on a puzzle and remembering seeing a hint about it somewhere but cannot remember where... You may find later a tool to save hints in-game, but it has its downsides, so you should still rely on your own copies.

You've found a treasure chest? Congratulations! There's probably something good in it... if you can open it. To open a chest, you first have to unlock it; how to do that is often a puzzle (which may not always be solved on the same screen as the chest). Once it's unlocked, it'll be slightly opened, at this point, just strike it with your whip to get what's inside.

About adventuring, now. You have quite a bit of health and will most of the time be able to sustain many hits from enemies or traps before dying. However, there are very few ways to regain health (there are no "health potions" in La-Mulana for instance). One is the hot spring located near the village. It's useful, but may be quite a ride from inside the depths of the ruins, so, even if individual enemies don't do a lot of damage, try to avoid being damaged as most as possible as coming back to the village can be very time-consuming.

Many puzzles and paths require weights. There's nothing more annoying than to be stuck somewhere because you don't have enought weights to proceed further and having to get all the way back to the village to buy some. Always restock on weights in the village's shop and try to keep a minimum of 20 weights in your inventory. Oh, and by the way, the small thing where you put weights on are called dais (you'll see that word often in this guide).

You'll quickly discover that the ruins are impressively huge and you may find yourself a bit lost regarding what you should do first, so you should know that the first area of the game, Gate of Guidance, is, as its name unobviously implies, some sort of tutorial level. You'll get a good grasp on the kind of puzzles and traps La-Mulana offers here, and entering other areas (Temple of the Sun, Spring in the Sky, Mausoleum of Giants...) is not required to complete it (you'll have to figure yourself what "completing it" means, but that'll be pretty obvious when you have done it). Of course, you may still want to take a peek elsewhere, and there are places and secrets in Gate of Guidance that will remain unsolved even after you finish it until much later in the game. Oh, and as the manual states it, there's an extremely useful item in Gate of Guidance that you must not miss: the Holy Grail. I won't spoil what it's used for, just that you use it by going on the Pause screen with the F1 key and then press the action button. Be sure to get it before starting to tackle other areas.

You may find maps at some point in the game. If you wonder how to access the area map, it's in the Pause screen (F1). If that doesn't work, it means you're missing another item to be able to read them.

When you pass by a large stone tablet, be sure to manually save your game by pressing the downward key. If you just pass through, you'll see a blue "quick save" displayed, but there's no way to load that quick save. It just means that when you die, you'll restart here. If you quit the game, you'll restart at your last manually saved game, not at your last quick save.

One last very important advice. At some point in the game, you'll find a stone tablet in the Mausoleum of Giants that says the following:
Thou are forbidden from again laying eyes on this marker.
Those who heed not this warning will suffer the pain of death.
DO NOT READ IT AGAIN. Doing so will permanently put the game in Hard Mode (more enemies and more health for enemies, especially bosses), the only way to reverse it is to load an older save.

General gameplay hints (part 1)

In addition to being stuck in specific puzzles, La-Mulana can also be a bit frustrating in its platformer gameplay, when you have to grind for money or relentlessly try to kill a boss to proceed further for example.

This section contains advices regarding these aspects of La-Mulana, for players that are more interested in the puzzle aspect of the game and want to limit the repetitive tasks or those involving random blind attempts.

The advices are hidden by progressive spoilers to avoid revealing unnecessary information if that's not relevant for you where you are. Proceed further in the spoiler if you have indeed met the conditions.

This boss is hard! This is my 30th attempt, I have whipped it 20 times and it's not sufficient! Is there a way to make boss fights easier?

If you're facing the boss of Gate of Guidance, come on, he's not that hard!
If you're talking about a later boss, you may want to use a better weapon than your whip. It's hidden in a moonlit area, so if you haven't discovered it yet, do not read further (and continue exploring, the boss can wait).

You need to go into the Temple of Moonlight to find it. In the upper part of it to be precise; if you're stuck in the lower part, find how to go to the upper part first.

In the mostly empty room on the left of the blue pyramid, go on the small platform with a ladder on the top-left. Don't climb the ladder, destroy the wall on your left instead. I'll leave the rest to you.
The weapon you'll find here is slower, but 2,5 as powerful as your starting whip, so it'll be of great help in boss fights.

I'm having a hard time with the boss in the Temple of the Sun and I can't find the area mentioned in the previous hint...

Of course since beating the boss in the Temple of the Sun is one of the prerequisites to get there... Well, there's a way to get in the area mentioned above earlier, but it's really, really spoily, so read further at your own risk.
Read the hint about a big secret in the Pyramid in the Temple of the Sun part. From this entrance to the Temple of Moonlight, exit the pyramid, and in the room with five chests, do a tricky jump to land on the top-left platform on the screen below and destroy the wall on your left. The axe is there.

Even with the last hints, the bosses are still too hard...

Oh, come on, give it a chance!
OK, if you really can't do it, there's a way to further improve the strength of your weapon. For this, you need to have activated the fairies; if you haven't, find how to do that first.

Once you have the fairies, you have to gather two pieces of software that, once loaded together, will slightly improve the damage done by your non-whip primary weapons.
One is hidden somewhere on the Surface (you don't need a fairy for this one, and it's not deathv.exe).
Read how to find mekuri.exe in the Item Hints (software) section.
The other, randc.exe, is sold in a secret shop in Spring in the Sky. If you can't find a shop there, there's something you need to do in the area first. Once the shop has appeared, you need to bring a key fairy there. Yes, it means you'll probably have to try many times until the fairy light gives you a key fairy - if that's not the case, while you're there, why not try to beat the boss from Spring in the Sky? ;)

I'm always short of money, any advice? I'm sure the item I see on sale is mandatory to proceed further, but I'm far from being rich enough to afford it!

As a general hint, break every pot at least once. Many pots contain around 10 coins when struck for the first time (and only the first time though).
There are also wooden chests (often hidden in breakable walls or the like) that contain a good amount of coin. Avoid striking them if you can't reach them, though, or their content will be lost.

If that's not sufficient, there's a "money trick" that requires you to have discovered both fairies and the large stone tablet in a completely unlit area (only read below if that's the case).

The money trick allows you to get hundreds of coins each time. Whenever you get an item fairy (the green one) in a fairy point, warp to the Chamber of Extinction's tablet, then move up and left. There are 4 blocks on the top-right side of the screen that, when broken, give you each 5-10 coins. Once destroyed, proceed immediately to the right and back on this screen, strike again, rince and repeat until the fairy disappears.

The ruins are so large, I have found 6 or 7 different interconnected areas, I'm not sure where I can or should go...

Below is a broad, very high-level, description of the order in which you should do things.

As mentioned in the "Read this first" section, you can finish Gate of Guidance without setting foot in any other area.

When you've completed Gate of Guidance, you should focus on the three areas that are connected to it: Temple of the Sun, Spring in the Sky and Mausoleum of Giants. You can reach the point where only beating the boss remains in all three at the same time. You may want to briefly explore areas connected to those three to reach that point, though. Beating those boss is then mandatory to proceed further.

When you have beaten them, you need to get a bronze mirror to proceed further and open many new wide areas. It will be quite some time before you reach a new boss.

The next boss you should fight is probably the one in Inferno Cavern. You may also be able to reach the one in the Twin Labyrinths, though I'm not 100% sure beating the one in Inferno Cavern is not a prerequisite. Defeating the boss in Inferno Cavern unlocks three new paths, of which two are not obvious at all: an entrance in the Chamber of Extinction below the boss room, but also a door somewhere in the surface and a surprising event when you take the path from Spring in the Sky to the Temple of the Sun.

At this point, you should now be able to access every area in the game except the very last (which replaces an existing one when all the bosses are beaten and some additional measures are taken).

I've discovered a new large tablet, but I'm unable to use the Holy Grail with it afterwards, why is that?

Have you scanned the tablet? Just passing in front of it or even saving your game here is not enough... If you did, read further.

You cannot warp in the "backside" version of the world with the Holy Grail. There's an item that allows you to do it, though. You need to have access to the backside world of the Mausoleum of Giants and be able to double jump to get it. I strongly advise you to get it as soon as you fill these two conditions as it obviously saves a lot of time traveling...

It's the software mirai.exe which you can find in a chest in Graveyard of Giants, in a place where you have a dais inside ice. You have to load it on the computer for it to work.

I've found some sort of cavern with a mural saying "philosopher sigil" nearby and a statue inside where I can't seem to be able to do anything. What do I do there?

Nothing until the very late game. Remember where you found it, though.

General gameplay hints (part 2)

How do I activate the fairies?

You can activate them only after you've discovered a very long corridor and a burning cavern. Read further if you did.

The Fairy Queen in the Endless Corridor will help you when you find Isis' Pendant. There are some vague hints regarding its location given by the Queen herself and on a tablet in Spring in the Sky.

Read the hints under "I found somebody that looks very helpful, but she requires me to get an item first. I have no idea where it is!" in part 1 of the Endless Corridor chapter of this guide.

How do I find the boss of an area?

Fighting a boss requires two things: an Ankh and an Ankh Jewel. Use the Ankh Jewel in front of the Ankh to start the fight (save first!).
Making the Ankh appear in one of the room and finding an Ankh Jewel are usually the main puzzles in each area.
Note that nothing prevents you to use an Ankh Jewel found in a given area with an Ankh from another area (though there's no real reason to do so).

I see an interesting item on sale in a shop, but it says "SOLD OUT", why?

Either you already have that item (some items may be found/bought in different locations) or it's ammo for a subweapon you haven't found yet.

I've seen several weird objects in the ruins that look like a circle with a moon, a sun and a star. What are they used for?

They are used in conjunction with a specific item you'll find late in the game. Read below if you want to know which one.
It's used with the Lamp of Time.
Stand in front of one for a short time to recharge your Lamp of Time.

Are there any "missable items" (items that can be lost forever if not taken at the right time)?

Yes, but very few, hard to miss, late in the game and non-essential to completing the game, so you shouldn't really worry about it.

They might only be lost at the very end of the game, when one area is replaced by another. One is a sacred orb, the other a not very useful piece of software, both located in the area that is replaced. In the unlikely case where you did not get them by the time the area is shifted, you may want to revert to a previous save, or just go with it.

There are however a few items (again, quite late in the game) whose puzzles you may fail to solve and that are hard to get after, so you may want to avoid saving if you fail to solve them.

The first of those items is located in a hidden room behind a sub-boss in Inferno Cavern. There a large pillars that moves up to the top that may get the middle chest stuck. Honestly, it's rather hard to miss it.

The second item is in a puzzle involving a large balance scale very late in the game. If you fail to solve the puzzle, revert to a previous save.

These two puzzles can be reset in a very well hidden shop (look for "hidden shop at the gate of time" if you really need it).

Another item (a sacred orb) can mainly be accessed during a boss fight in the Dimensional Corridor (late game area). If you beat the boss without getting it, it's much harder to get afterwards, though still possible.

How do I wake the Philosophers up?

This won't happen before late in the game.
You'll need a specific item for that. It has a very obvious name...
You'll need the Philopher's Ocarina.

My laptop is out of memory! How do I get more?

There's a computer upgrade that will come at some point.
You will receive an email from Xelpud to tell you about it.
Beat 4 guardians to make it available in a shop in the Village.

Even with the Glyph Reader, there are some stone tablets that are still unreadable...

Being able to decode them is not only useful to get additional hints, it's also mandatory at some point in the game.
There should be emails from Xelpud to help you with that.
Heard about the Rosetta stone (in the real world)? Well, try to do the same...
You'll need to read 3 specific stone tablets that have inscriptions in both "old La-mulanese" and "new La-mulanese". Read below for their locations.
One is in the Tower of Ruin.
It's in the room to the left of where the lighting subboss was.
One is in the Shrine of the Mother.
It's in the room to the left of where you find the Death Seal.
One is in the Chamber of Birth.
It's in the first room when you enter the area from the Graveyard of the Giants.

Surface

If you're really stuck here, you're in for a lot of trouble later...

Where is the entrance of the ruins?

It's very close to the village. If you spot a place that looks like ruins, yep, it's there.
Use a weight on the dais on the cliff to the right of the village to proceed.

How do I beat the blue monster on the left?

You can't early in the game. Return later.
There's a hint nearby to tell you which item you need to have to beat it.
You'll have to have found the Serpent Staff in order to be able to damage it.

I went to the waterfall on the right, but can't climb back because of the birds!

You don't need to get there early on, though it might be a good idea to look there later in the game.
Birds can be annoying indeed; try to kill them before using ladders.

There's an odd round rock with some kind of japanese symbol on it on the cliff, should I do something with it?

Not yet. It's a good idea to note the location of those rocks when you see them for later.
Also it's not japanese, but La-Mulanese. Learning to decipher it or at least recognize it can be useful.

Gate of Guidance

As mentionned in the "Read First" section, this area can be completed without setting foot in the rest of the ruins. Have a first understanding here at what La-Mulana will throw at you and try to explore and solve puzzles by yourself before looking at the hints here!

There's an odd round rock with some kind of japanese symbol on it on the cliff, should I do something with it?

Not yet. It's a good idea to note the location of those rocks when you see them for later.
Also it's not japanese, but La-Mulanese. Learning to decypher it or at least reckognize it can be useful.

There's an eye electrocuting me when I strike some places!

Do not strike those places. You need to do something different to solve the puzzle.

I got crushed by a piece of statue when I put a weight on a dais!

Welcome to La-Mulana! Only the first of the many traps of the ruins. Next time... Don't do it next time (or avoid the falling rock).

I see a block that looks like an elevator, but it doesn't move and I can't land on it...

There's a puzzle in the area to make it work. Look at the stone tablets for hints.
There are two interconnected giant faces. Find the other.
Strike several times the stone block in the giant face's mouth on the screen on the right. Notice the different sound and graphical animation when you strike something that has an effect.

I found a place with a dais that looks inaccessible behind spikes. How do I get to it?

A general hint for many puzzles in La-Mulana is to open the map (if you have found it) in the Pause screen and look at the room's name. It can help.
There are also hints on stone tablets or skeletons that will help you.
Just jump in the spikes.
This time the game is nice to you (that won't happen often...), though: unlike other games that can theoretically be completed without damage, there are some times where you will need to get hurt to advance.

I can see two wooden chests behind some walls, but no matter how hard I look, there doesn't seem to be any way to get there...

You'll find a way soon. In the meantime, don't try to open them or you'll lose the content.
When you will reach them, pay attention to the path you used. It might be a hint to understanding how the ruins are working...

There's a closed chest on the screen where the elevator started, how do I open it?

That's a very important chest. To open it, you'll have to push the block on the left on the small plate. The question is how...
The answer is in the manual.
You'll have to access this screen through an unusual path to be able to push the block in the right direction. Now, how can you appear on this screen from the left?
There's a secret path near the sitting skeleton in the room completely to the right of where you are. Yes, it leads back to the first screen... The geography of the ruins can be very misleading (but don't think it's just random nonsense).

After activating the elevator, I found a place with a chest and a dais nearby, but all it seems to do is trigger a trap, I can't find a way to open the chest.

Yeah, it will be a very long time before you open that chest. But time will come, don't worry.

What do I do with the stone blocks with pictures engraved on it near the entrance of Mausoleum of Giants? I get stuck by lighting when I strike them.

There's a skeleton nearby that tells a legend. What you have to do next should be quite obvious.
Note that you have to destroy each tablet (by striking several times), not just strike them once.
After that, a new path will open, just follow it until you get the Ankh Jewel. Do not climb back through the elevator, take the other way.

I have an Ankh Jewel, what should I do with it?

It's used to summon the boss of the level at the right place. Read further if you haven't found it.
The place is below the screen with the blocks puzzle.
You need three blocks to solve this puzzle. If you only have two, you need to beat some tough enemies nearby to make the third appear.
In the screen below, just activate the Ankh Jewel in front of the shining Ankh (save first!). No Ankh? Read below.
To make the Ankh appear, you need to access the seemingly inaccessible high place on the screen with the falling statue trap.
To reach this place, you have to start at the top of the elevator.
Jump from the elevator up to the small "gazing head" looking right and... walk on the invisible passage. You may want to stop by the ladder in the middle. Oh, and there might be some traps on the way...

Any advices on how to beat the boss?

Just try to avoid being hit and strike the heads (about 16 whip strikes). You don't have to beat it right now if you want to come back later (but that's probably the easiest boss, so if you're really stuck here, you'll suffer later...)
You may want to use shurikens, also. They cost money and do less damage than the whip, but allow you to strike from a safe distance.

OK, I think I've completed the level. What may I have missed here before I proceed to the other areas?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area during your first visit:

• A Sacred Orb (in the chest right at the beginning)
  
• The map of the level (you can't miss this one also)
  
• The shuriken sub-weapon (in the courage room)
  
• The Holy Grail (in the pit with the elevator; do not go further without it!)
  
• An Ankh Jewel, though you probably already used it to face the boss (room with the entrance to the Temple of the Sun)
  
• The software guild.exe (very dispensable software that you can buy in a hidden shop; it makes a sound when it's loaded on the computer and there's a hidden shop on the screen where you are)
  
• 3 wooden chests (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss any)

There are also other items that can be found by returning here much later in the game. Beware, spoilers ahead.

• The Crucifix (you need 3 seals and a subweapon from the Inferno Cavern to get it)
  
• yagostr.exe (you'll easily get it after completing Gate of Illusion)

Mausoleum of the Giants

Ah, now you've finished Gate of Guidance (you did, didn't you?), the serious stuff begins! Do not hesitate also visit the other areas neighboring Gate of Guidance (Temple of the Sun and Spring in the Sky) and even to wander a bit in some further areas. The time where you can complete a single area while ignoring the others is over...
And if you're helplessly stuck, here come the hints!

I found a stone tablet "forbidding me from reading it again". I read it again and many new monsters have appeared, but it does not seem to have unlocked a puzzle. What now?

Reload an earlier save. Seriously. You just put the game in hard mode, something you definitely don't want in your first playthrough. Don't worry, you're not missing anything except additional frustration against superhealthy bosses.

There's a chest linked to some kind of wires that I can't open...

Look carefully how the wires are connected and if there's anything you can do to change things.
Press the small "elevated" floor to change the direction of the arrow. Now, where does the wire connect at the top?
Put a weight on the dais on the screen upward (the one with the dais under some spikes).

I've read a lot of stuff on the tablets about the life of some Giants. That's just useless lore, right?

Oh no, it isn't. If I were you, I'd take note of all these tablets. Many of them contain vital clues, sometimes for much later in the game.

It says somewhere on a tablet that "strength lies at the foot of Futo". What do I do with that?

It's a clue for a non-essential (though useful) item. Now you just have to find Fudo don't you?
You should do something at the foot of the statue of Futo.
Just put a dais at the right statue foot. If it's the wrong statue, you'll be punished... There are some hints to find the right one, otherwise you can just do some trial-and-error.

I found a place with two suspended platforms and a sun, a moon and stars. What should I do with it?

It's a Nebra Sky Disk. You can turn by jumping on the platform. The "selected" engraving will be on the top. It's the main key governing the puzzles giving you access to the area's boss.
Note that you'll find some smaller versions of the Nebra Sky Disc scattered in the ruins. They are used for a specific item that you can find late in the game, so you can ignore them for now.
Each position of the Nebra Sky Disk will trigger a specific event somewhere on the level. Read the stone tablets for hints, or just wander in the level to find out. Read further if you're really stuck.
You should start with Stars on the top, which will collapse the statue of Bado somewhere (be careful not to be crushed) and give you access to the Ankh Jewel.
Then turn it to Sun. Another statue (of Ledo) will have a hole appear for you to put a weight.
Finally turn it to Moon to have the statue of Ji to start praying and get access to the Ankh in the hand of Sakit's statue and start the boss fight.

Any advices on how to beat the boss?

You don't have to beat it right now. Continue some adventuring, maybe you'll get more strength later. In fact, you can wait until you reach the boss in each of the tree areas: Mausoleum of Giants, Temple of the Sun and Spring in the Sky. Once you get there, though, you have no choice, you'll have to beat them to continue.
You have to hit the head (a bit more than 20 times with your whip); to reach it, jump on the chain he occasionnally throws.
Other than that, just avoid his attacks as best as you can...
You may also use shurikens, but only after he loses his mask at half health. Or the Pistol, even though the ammo is very expensive.
In last resort, take a look at the General Hints section for help finding a better weapon.[/spoiler]

OK, I think I've completed the area. What may I have missed here before I proceed to the other areas?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area, all accessible during your first visit:

• A Sacred Orb (Fudo's riddle)
  
• The map of the level (wired chest riddle)
  
• The rolling shuriken sub-weapon (beat the Jumbo Ghost subboss)
  
• Hermes' Boots (in a shop)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

Spring in the Sky

Ah, now you've finished Gate of Guidance (you did, didn't you?), the serious stuff begins! Do not hesitate also visit the other areas neighboring Gate of Guidance (Temple of the Sun and Mausoleum of Giants) and even to wander a bit in some further areas. The time where you can complete a single area while ignoring the others is over...
And if you're helplessly stuck, here come the hints!

What do I do with the petrified guy in the cavern?

Nothing for now, until much later in the game. Remember that he's here, though.

There doesn't seem to be much I can do here... I've explored a few screens, but I'm always blocked by water which damages me when I enter it.

Eh, you're healthy enough to survive short dives in the water, aren't you?

I can't cross waterfalls, they always carry me to the bottom to my death...

You need an item to be able to cross them safely and proceed in this level. Read below to know which one.
The item in question is a Helmet. Read below to know where to get it.
You can buy it in a shop. Read below to know where that shop is.
The shop is located in an area beyond the Mausoleum of Giants.
It's in a shop in the Twin Labyrinths that you can reach by going to the bottom-right of the Mausoleum of Giants.

I KNOW there's a subweapon on that screen, I recognize the engraved stone that angers the lightning eye, but how do I make it appear?

The answer is somewhere on the same screen.
There's a place you have to walk on.
Stand under the dancing fish on the right until the dais appears.

What do I do with the small fish in the fishtank with seaweed?

Do what do you usually do with creatures in La-Mulana...
Hit it. Repeatedly.
In addition to the obvious effect, it opens a shop somewhere else on the level.

Isn't there a way to avoid losing health in the water?

Yes there is. Somewhere in that precise area.
Climb all the way to the top of the waterfall. Yeah, you'll probably fall a lot, but think about the treasure!

I met a monster shooting lasers, but it looks invincible. What should I do?

You have to beat it, and it's not invincible. Remember, a monster glows red when you damage it.
Hit the eye, about 10 times with the whip.

I think I've explored most of the area, found a way to survive in water and waterfalls and beat a subboss, but I don't see what I can do next. How do I open the chest and dais that look stuck?

You should have a seal by now. Find where (in that area) you can use it.
Just pass in front of the round rock with the same symbol (if it's not the same symbol, it won't work).
It's located near the very high waterfall.
You have found it but it looks like nothing changed? There must be a mechanism stuck somewhere.
Hit the mechanism inside the water pool just outside the room where you were.

I have the Ankh Jewel, but where is the Ankh?

You have to open the floodgates first.
If you have already, it's in the room near the waterfall where you opened the floodgates.
If the Ankh is not there, you have to activate a previously stuck dais.
It's the dais on the same screen as the fishtank.

I found a room with some kind of huge metal weight hold by a chain. Is there anything I can do with it yet?

Yes, but it's not relevant to the current area. Feel free to ignore it for now and come back later when you have found a clue about what you should do.
You have to fill the room with water first.
The chain is stuck. Start by unstucking it.
Hit it repeatedly. Looks like it's still stuck...
Unstuck the pulley by hitting it on the screen above.
See the Temple of the Sun part to know what to do next.

Any help regarding the boss? No matter how many times I try, I can't beat it...

You don't have to beat it right now. Continue some adventuring, maybe you'll get more strength later. In fact, you can wait until you reach the boss in each of the tree areas: Mausoleum of Giants, Temple of the Sun and Spring in the Sky. Once you get there, though, you have no choice, you'll have to beat them to continue.
OK, back to the fight. The boss has three attacks (one will only trigger when it's under half health); don't bother trying to hit it when it jumps on you (you'll get hit), just dodge and hit when it fires the blue projectiles. Avoid being damaged as much as possible, even if that means missing a strike. You need a bit more than 20 whip strikes to kill it.
You may want to use caltrops to sweeten it a bit. Shurikens aren't that useful here.
In last resort, take a look at the General Hints section for help finding a better weapon.

OK, I think I've completed the area. What may I have missed here before I proceed to the other areas?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area during your first visit:

• The map of the level (room right of the two small waterfalls)
  
• The caltrops sub-weapon (room immediately to the right of the beginning)
  
• The Scalesphere (top of the high waterfall)
  
• The Glove (in a chest after opening the floodgates)
  
• The Origin seal (after beating the subboss)
  
• An Ankh Jewel, though you probably already used it to face the boss (room with the fishtank)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

There is also an item that can be gained after you get the fairies.

• The randc.exe software in the hidden shop (you need a key fairy to unlock it; you may also buy here guild.exe and the Shell horn if you haven't found them already)

And finally another item that you can get after finding the second seal.

• A Sacred Orb (all the way to the top of the entrance of the area)

Temple of the Sun (part 1)

Ah, now you've finished Gate of Guidance (you did, didn't you?), the serious stuff begins! Do not hesitate also visit the other areas neighboring Gate of Guidance (Spring in the Sky and Mausoleum of Giants) and even to wander a bit in some further areas. The time where you can complete a single area while ignoring the others is over...
And if you're helplessly stuck, here come the hints!

Note: due to Steam's character limit, I split this section in two, but that doesn't mean that hints in part 2 may not be relevant early on.

I found the Holy Grail Tablet, but now when I warp there I can't climb back to the entrance of the level and move to the left because of the slippery slope.

What's the problem? Just came back the way you came here initially through Gate of Guidance!
OK, there's a way to climb slippery slopes. You need an item for that.
You can buy it in a shop in another area.
It's the Hermes' Boots sold by a shop located in the Mausoleum of Giants.

I went in the small area under the Holy Grail Tablet and the stairs disappeared. What do I do now?

There's a way to exit (without using the Holy Grail).
Push the statue.

Just after the starting screen, I've seen an opening on the left, but it's too high to reach and I can't reach it by falling. Can I get there now? (and how?)

Yes, you can. There's a hint on how to reach it on your way back to the top. If you aren't able to get back to the top (without using the Holy Grail), read the next hint, not the next part of this spoiler.
During your way back to the top, there's a place you can hit to activate a hint on how to reach the opening.
Still can't reach it even with the light? Learn how jump work: you may either jump from the right distance from the edge, or jump vertically so you can control you movement mid-air. Take care of the bat below...
You've reached it? Congratulations! Doesn't a specific picture in the manual feels very accurate? ;)

I fell at the bottom after going left at the starting screen, now it looks like I'm stuck. Do I have to use the Holy Grail?

You may, but you'll risk missing something. There's a way out.
The key to the exit is hidden in a rock.
Hit the rock on the left of the ladder near the skeleton.

A rolling cart appeared! What should I do with it?

You can push it. Up to you to find out where...
You have to push it all the way to the bottom of the area.
The blue platform will go down with both you and the cart on it.
Once it's on the bottom, don't jump yourself (or teleport out with the Holy Grail) until you have the Ankh Jewel!

I found a sub-boss with the head of a lion, but I can't hit it!

There are two ways to kill it: the easy way and the hard way. The manual has a hint regarding the easy way.
The easy way: just throw shurikens (or rolling shurikens) until it dies. You'll need more than 10.
The hard way: You will be kicked when it moves in your direction. Strike him when it moves the other way (or from below if you have an appropriate weapon).

There's a cavern with someone sleeping in it... Can I do something now?

Not now. You'll need to come back with an item you can find only after you've finished Spring in the Sky.

There's a tablet in a dead-end saying "Aim and shoot". What should I aim for?

Aim for the statue on the other side of the opening. You need the Shurikens to do so (I guess the Pistol might also work, never tried...).
Hitting it once is not enough, you have to destroy it.

There's a blue platform that looks odd somewhere...

It will move with something heavy on it.
It will go down when you stand on it with the cart.

I put a weight on a dais and now I'm trapped between two walls!

Too bad, you fell for yet another trap in La-Mulana... Teleport out with the Holy Grail. You have the Holy Grail, right?

I can't find the Ankh Jewel anywhere in that area!

It's located in the room at the extreme bottom-right of the area (the one with a long slope). Up to you to find what to do here.
There's a stone tablet somewhere in the area that has a vital clue about something that you should do there. Look carefully at what's in this room.
No, it's not about the seal over the opening (you won't be able to break this one until much later anyway).
The clue is "Meditate under Wedjet. Do nothing more than pray."
Stand under the Wedjet Eye (without breaking it first; otherwise, teleport out and come back) until the dais appears.

What does the engraving "Those that fly shall be cast down" mean?

It's a hint to get a non-essential item.
It's relevant to the room where you read it.
Kill the bats to reveal a chest with a Sacred Orb.

I'm trapped in the Pyramid!

There's a way out of this one (even two, in fact).
Get all the way to the top. There's a pressure plate here that will open an exit.

So, what's the secret of this Pyramid?

There's indeed a big secret to that Pyramid. This is rather spoiler-heavy, so try to find out by yourself before reading further. No hurry, you can wait until the late game to find it (and it might be less spoily by then).
There's (once again) a stone tablet giving you a hint about what to do in there.
The tablet says "Jump into the Sun".
Strike the big Sun on the top of the Pyramid. Be careful not to be crushed...
Jump where the Sun was to discover a whole new world. Beware, the hints you'll find in this guide for this new area will not make sense as this is not the "normal" entrance.

Temple of the Sun (part 2)

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Hints in both part may be relevant during your first visit(s) here.

There's a treasure near the entrance of the Chamber of Extinction that I can't open...

This is a very important treasure that you can reach rather early, but to open it you need a seal and to do something in two other areas. Having found a subweapon in a cavern area helps (though it's not required).
The first thing you need to do is hinted in a stone tablet nearby.
No, not the one saying "there's no light up ahead".
Now, where can you find water to fill this place?
Go to the Spring in the Sky area and find what to do here.
If you can't find what to do, look at the hint named "I found a room with some kind of huge metal weight hold by a chain. Is there anything I can do with it yet?"
OK, now the place is filled with water, you can use the seal. If you don't have it, it's in Spring in the Sky. You just need to access the chest now...
To access the chest, enter the Chamber of Extinction through the lower entrance.
Don't worry, you don't need to go further than the first screen.
After finding the stone tablet, jump on the block and jump again to strike a suspended block until you hear the sound telling you you solved a puzzle. You can come back to the Temple of the Sun now.
Jump on the platform and destroy all the pots to reveal a dais to open the chest.

After finding a specific treasure that should have opened new path, I've found one of those paths, but it seems closed by a big rock. How can I get through?

You have to beat the boss of the area for the path to open.

Can I do something about the Sphinx statue that shoots blue bolts? It looks strange when I hit it.

Nicely observed, but you can't do anything about it for now. Something may well happen later on, though.

Any help regarding the boss? This one is hard...

Yeah, it is. It needs nearly 30 whip strikes to die.
Remember, you can't fall from the minecart, and it's vulnerable when it opens its mouth.
Shurikens are very useful here (though they won't likely be sufficient, unless you really have a lot of them).
In last resort, take a look at the General Hints section for help finding a better weapon.

OK, I think I've completed the area. What may I have missed here before I proceed to the other areas?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area during your first visit:

• The map of the level (room of the Holy Grail tablet)
  
• The Knife weapon ("aim and shoot" puzzle)
  
• A Sacred Orb (puzzle in the Pyramid)
  
• The text-saving software bunemon.exe (in a shop hidden behind a pot)
  
• The heatproof case (in another shop hidden behind a pot)
  
• An Ankh Jewel, though you probably already used it to face the boss (room with the Wedjet Eye)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

There are also other items here that you can find here, but revealing that they're here is kind of spoiler heavy, so I won't mention them in this section except one.

You may also find the Bronze Mirror here. Though it's a bit complex to get, it's essential to advance further in the game.

I came back to this area later and there are now some weird colored lights dancing around in a room... What is that?

Look at the engraving at the top for a reminder of the general theme of the place. If you're thinking "no, the devs wouldn't have dared", you're wrong.
They're spermatozoids. Really.
Look in your inventory if there isn't an item you might want to use...
If it doesn't work at first, remember that this kind of things do not always work at the first attempt, you have to try several times to succeed.
Use the Woman Statue several times to get the Maternity Statue. Yeah, that was weird ;)

Inferno Cavern (part 1)

By now, you should have beaten the bosses in Gate of Guidance, Temple of the Sun, Spring in the Sky and Mausoleum of Giants, right? Congratulations! But do not think that means that you're even close to half of the game...
The path you have to follow in the game starts to get even more confusing; Inferno Cavern is probably where you want to head next, but it will be a long way before you face its boss.

Note: Due to Steam's character limit, the hints for this area are split in two. Hints in part 2 likely won't be relevant for your first exploration of this cavern.

Hell, how do I even access this area?

You can access it through the Temple of the Sun
You have to go left after the entrance there from the Gate of Guidance and find your way through the small path (see Temple of the Sun hints for clues how to get there).

In a room with skeletons and platforms not so far from the entrance, there's a chest that I can't open...

Read the stone tablet.
It says "When the snakes are enraged, it shall open." Now where do you see snakes?
Hit the snake statues until the shoot.

I've opened a path on the side of a big pit, but no matter how I jump, I'm always hurt and can't get inside...

This path only leads to an optional item. You may want to skip it early on.
There's a hint on the tablet at the top how to get there.
"Stick to the walls. Once the flames die down, kick off the walls and proceed." You obviously need an item to "stick to the walls"...
You need the Grappling Claw, which is located in another area. Read below to know which.
It's located in the Temple of Moonlight.

I've found a sub-boss but I'm unable to beat it...

It's not mandatory to kill it to beat the game, but it keeps a useful item.
It's only vulnerable when it flies to pick up a boulder.
Shuriken work well, though you'll need lots of them.

I found a room with a chest and two dais. I put a dais on each, but now it seems the chest is now inaccessible (or I'm stuck myself).

The chest contains a useful, but not essential powerup.
If the chest is stuck and you want what's inside, you have to load a previous save. The puzzle won't reset if you exit the room (even with the Holy Grail). In last resort, there's a way to reset the puzzle, but it's really obscure and not until very late in the game anyway, by that time what's inside won't be very relevant.
If you're stuck yourself, teleport with the Holy Grail.

I've entered a room with a block-pushing puzzle. I hate those kind of puzzles! Is it mandatory to do it?

Well, I'm not 100% sure that the reward is mandatory to finish the game, but even if it's not, another area will be hell without it.
It's not that complicated, you just have to figure out a few tricks.
First, notice that some blocks are stuck and will only appear when another block is pushed at the right place. Note which places unlock blocks.
Notice also how some blocks (including those that were stuck) can only reach some specific places.
Notice that there's one more block than places to put them.
Notice that the top-left place apparently cannot be reached (you can't push a block there from the edge of the platform).
You need to pile up two blocks to make room for you to push a block to that place on the left.
OK, if you're really stuck, here's the solution :
http://lamulana-remake.wikia.com/wiki/Block_Puzzle#Inferno_Cavern

I see a chest and a dais, but the dais appears to be in lava...

Just jump and put you weight quickly! You'll definitely want what's inside.

I fell into lava... The damage is one thing, but I can't get out!

Nothing you can do here except try and try again until you manage to exit. Or use the Holy Grail (hope you found the tablet in that area...).

Where are the Ankh Jewel and the Ankh in this area?

There's a stone tablet with a hint about that: "There is more to this land than meets the eye.
It is a pivotal location.
Tread a different path, and then return to this land again."
Both are likely a long way from your first visit and one of them is not even in this area. Don't worry, you'll end up finding it later on. Read below if you really want to know where they are.
The jewel is in the Tower of Ruin area; the Ankh can be accessed only by entering Inferno Cavern through another entrance.

I think I've explored all of this area, but I don't know what to do next...

Go explore other areas!
There is at least the Chamber of Extinction (for which you might have found an useful item in the Inferno Cavern) and several entrances to the Twin Labyrinths that you can explore now. But sooner or later you'll need an item from another area that unlocks new paths to continue.
If you haven't already found it, this item is located in the Temple of the Sun, near the Chamber of Extinction.
With it, you can enter the backside version of the Temple of the Sun and the Mausoleum of Giants. Lots of new directions from there...

What can I find in this area on my first visit?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area. You should be able to get them al during your first visit.

• The map of the level (angered snakes riddle)
  
• The Flare Gun sub-weapon (block puzzle)
  
• The Ice cape (bottom-left of the level)
  
• The software upgrade for TexTrax bunplus.exe software (in a shop hidden behind a rock)
  
• The software capstar.exe (in a hidden rock; a skeleton has a hint about it)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

There's also a useful, but not essential item that requires 2 seals and Grapple Claws to reach. Read below if you have that.

• The Chain whip (behind the sub-boss in the Pit of fire passage)

Inferno Cavern (part 2)

Finally back to the Inferno Cavern through an unexpected path? Your efforts there are nearly coming to an end!

I finally found another way into the area and opened a path to connect it to the rest of the cavern. Now what?

If you've paid attention when you just came back into the cavern, there was a hint for a short time.
A dais was floating on lava in the background before being carried away. Now where is it?
It's at the bottom of the deep lava pit, just over the room with the new entrance.

Any advice for the boss?

Honestly, that's not one of the hardest boss. It will go down after 40 whip strikes. A few hints below.
You can hit the tentacles to avoid taking damage, but the real weak point is the (open) eye. Avoid falling on the eye as you'll lose health very quickly. Obviously avoid the big laser also (shouldn't be too hard).
You can score a sizeable number of hits right at the beginning by standind on the middle platform. Later, those platforms will often be destroyed by the laser, though.
Some subweapons can be very useful to shoot the eye when it's not out (caltrops, spears, rolling shurikens).
In last resort, take a look at the General Hints section for help finding a better weapon.

I obliterated the boss, but it just opened a path to what seems to be a dead-end in another area... What should I do now?

Killing this boss in fact opens two more paths in very different locations. No, there's no way to guess where unless to happen to find them by exploring randomly... Read below if you want to know where they are.
One is at the Surface. The other is in the Spring in the Sky. Read below to know the exact locations.
A door opened at the bottom of the big waterfall on the Surface; you might see somebody you know at the bottom of the Spring in the Sky, where it connects with Temple of the Sun...

Chamber of Extinction (part 1)

The Chamber of Extinction... An obviously fitting name, though not just for the reason you think. Anyway, for now, you'll have to find your way in that dark place.
Just to be on the safe side, you should complete at the very least Mausoleum of Giants, Spring in the Sky and Temple of the Sun before really starting to explore in there.

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in the first part should be useful for your first visits in the area; the ones in the other parts won't make sense until you come back here much, much later.

It's dark in there... Is there a way to have some light?

Yes there is, though not permanently.
An item found in Inferno Cavern will greatly help you here. Try using it in front of that stone tablet telling you to right at the entrance of the area.
OK, there's also a way to permanently light this area, but it's not possible until late in the game (where it won't be that relevant anyway). There are hints about it in part 2.

Which entrance should I use, the top one or the bottom one?

Why don't you try both?
OK, at first, you should try to focus on the bottom one.

I see a closed chest near the bottom of the screen. How do I open it?

You have to be also on the bottom/left part of the room to open it.
There's a dais hidden behind the spikes.
Don't worry, you can walk through the spikes as long as you don't jump on them.

I see a closed chest near the top-left of the screen. How do I open it?

It's not an essential item, so it's not a big deal if you don't open it.
You have to be also on the top part of the room to open it.
There's an elevated floor at the top right of the screen.
Don't worry, you can walk through the spikes as long as you don't jump on them.

I found a closed chest on a pillar on the right of a screen. How do I open it?

You have to do stuff on other screens for that.
You'll need to have already two seals to open it. Yeah, you'll have to find a way to the bottom part of the room below to open it. Read below if you're stuck finding out how.
You can access it through a confusing secret path that starts on the room with the entrance to the Shrine of Mother.
Break the wall on the left of the water pool and enter the secret path here.
If you fell in the bottom corridor, you're not on the right way. Try to figure out how the secret path goes behind the big rocks.
You have to remain near the "top" of the blocks and jump to avoid falling.
The map of the secret path is there: http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/lamulana-remake/images/5/5d/Coe_maze.png/revision/latest?cb=20120919220052

I found a rather difficult subboss... Any advice?

Nope, apart from the classical "beat it to death while trying to limit damage".
There's one thing to make the fight a bit less annoying: try to find the Holy Grail Tablet first so you don't have to come all the way back from the Temple of the Sun.

I used a ladder and found myself in a room I've already been before, but that shouldn't be connected...

You should start to be accustomed to the strange topography of the ruins, shouldn't you? Doesn't it at least start to make sense? Not that understanding it is really useful in that area, that said...
Remember the manual and how you found the Holy Grail...

There's a big, odd mural with some squares on it over some spikes. Is it important?

Yes, but only for the very late game. You may ignore it until you've killed all the bosses.

I think I've explored the whole area and opened all the chests I could see, but couldn't find any Ankh or Ankh Jewel, any direction?

You can't find them yet (and there's a long time ahead before you can). Go explore other areas now, some previously closed paths may open with what you found in there. Read below if you want to check everything you can find during your first visit here.

• The map of the level (in a chest described above)
  
• A Sacred orb (in a chest described above)
  
• The Life seal (in a chest described above)
  
• The Chakram subweapon (after killing the subboss)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

Chamber of Extinction (part 2)

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in this part won't make sense until you come back in the area later in the game. Several times, so if you're back and a hint still doesn't make sense, it means you're not there yet.

I found another entrance to a non-connected part of the area, but I still can't seem to do anything...

You're talking about the entrance after killing the boss of Inferno Cavern, right? If you're clueless about what you should do next, see the last hint of the section of Inferno Cavern. There are a few things you can do in that section of the Chamber of Extinction, though.
There's a hidden shop somewhere (only selling ammo for subweapons, so no big deal if you miss it) and a cavern with someone giving you a hint for later in this area. You may not be able to reach it now depending on your equipment, though, so feel free to ignore it for now.

How can I permanently light up this area?

You'll have to have access to the backside version of this area for that, something which won't happen until late in the game. If you're there, read below. Beware, it's rather complicated.
First, as there are several entries in the Chamber of Birth, you have to come (in the Chamber of Birth, NOT the Chamber of Extinction!) through the one where you can see the Holy Grail Tablet. Or directly through the Holy Grail Tablet.
There are two hints on stone tablets about what you should do:
The wall at which the god who sustains the world points.
There lies a bright light within the darkness.
A bright light that will obliterate the darkness.
and
The god who sustains the world shall disperse the darkness.
Look where the shell in the left hand points.
Use your scanner to find the "god who sustains the world" if you don't know which it is. To be honest, the "shell" is very hard to reckognize, but that shouldn't be a problem once you've identified the right place.
It's on the room where you fall between elephant statues on the room below. Get back on the right side of that room by climbing the ladder from the room below.
Destroy the top part of the pillar on the top-right (pointed by the god on the mural) and break the seal.
Now get back to the Chamber of Extinction.
Go to the Holy Grail Tablet of the Chamber of Extinction. Notice something that changed?
Destroy the renewed seal that appeared (you have to go again in the secret path).
Go to the room above and send a flare on the cross from the elevator.

I found a teleporter in another area that brought me in a previously unreachable place in the Chamber of Extinction. I put a weight on the dais there; what did it do?

It unlocked something in the Chamber of Extinction. You might want to get back in the main part of the area to find out what.
Something happens in the second room after entering the area from the Temple of the Sun. Make sure you've lighted up the area first...
It made a block appear with some kind of odd black figure on it... You should know what to do now.
Use the Pochette Key in front of the block. It made the Ankh appear... somewhere.

How do I find the boss of the area?

You already have found the Ankh Jewel, right?
The one that is in the backside version of this area?
OK, to make the Ankh appear, you'll have to find a teleporter in the Chamber of Birth that will bring you back in this area.
Read the hint above for the rest. If you can't find where the Ankh is afterwards, read below.
It's in the big mural at the end of the path in the Chamber of Extinction you can reach from the Inferno Cavern after beating that area's boss.

I made the boss appear but... the fight did not even start! And I lost my Ankh Jewel!

Don't worry, your Ankh Jewel is in the room to the left.
You have to start your Plane Model to begin the fight.
Even in ancient times, you needed a key to start the engine of your vehicle. Thievery was bad at this time, you know.
Use your Pochette Key as soon as the fight starts in order lift up!

Any advice for the boss?

That one can be tough until you find a good strategy. Its attacks are very powerful; do your best to avoid being hit at any time even if it means missing a hit on the boss.
Ranged subweapons will be especially useful here to keep your distance: chakrams from the front (especially if you can hit it twice with them), flares from the bottom, earth spear from the top, bombs from the front with the right angle and of course the good ol' Pistol is always very effective. You'll probably need a mix of all unless you really have a good stock of subweapons.
Oh, and don't rejoice too fast once you've beaten it... it might try a last stand.
Hit it with anything when it jumps towards you at the end. Don't try to dodge, it's useless.

Chamber of Extinction (part 3)

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in this third part won't make sense until you found yet another way through a third disconnected part of the area.

I found yet another way (is it the 4th? or the 5th?) to come in this area... How many are there in total?

Well, there are 8 ways in total to get into this area from another one (counting the places you'll normally reach by going first into the Chamber of Extinction, like the Shrine of the Mother)... Anyway, I assume you're now in a rather green, grim-looking place, right? (if not, don't read further).

Is the big statue on the left important? It looks odd...

You can ignore it.

There's a cross near the top of the entrance. Is it important?

Best thing to do is this game: go and try to figure it yourself.
OK, that was a trap.
Yes, just a trap, nothing else to find here...

I found not one but two subboss to fight together! Help!

They shouldn't be too hard. Just hit them on the head enough times.

I see a ladder towards another area but it's too high!

Come on, there isn't much you can do in here anyway...
Now the giant statue is important.
There's a hint about a "large stone statue" somewhere in the Chamber of Extinction.
The hint is:
"The large stone statue is Spriggan.
Hostility awakens it.
Further attacks will still its unrest."
Strike it enough and it'll become hostile.
Strike it enough and it'll stop.
Use that to climb on it to reach the ladder further.

Disappearing blocks... I hate that! Isn't there another way?

No. Just time your jumps well...

I've reached the gate but... it's closed!

As usual, you need to beat a boss for it to open.
No, it's not the one from Inferno Cavern since you've already found the gate corresponding to that one.
It's the gate for the only area that don't need it to connect the front and the back.
It's the oddly placed gate of the Twin Labyrinths, you thus have to beat the boss of that place if it's closed.
If you're still stuck further, take a look at the guide for part 2 of the Tower of Ruin

Endless Corridor (part 1)

Obvious name for an infinite corridor, eh? A place that you should visit as soon as possible, but where you won't be able to do much until you've made quite some progress in other areas. You'll know when the time has come for a serious visit here...

Note: This section was split in two due to Steam's character restriction. The second half is only relevant for when you'll be able to proceed further than a few rooms here.

I found somebody that looks very helpful, but she requires me to get an item first. I have no idea where it is!

The Fairy Queen asked you to find Isis' Pendant right? There are ways to narrow your search for the item.
First, to which mythology does Isis belong to? There's an area fully dedicated to this mythology!
The item is in the Temple of the Sun.
Pay attention to the name of the rooms there. One has a very obvious hint in it... If you can't find this room, see below.
There's a hint about in on a stone tablet in Spring in the Sky.
It says:
"The Goddess Isis is at the Temple of the Sun.
She gave birth to Horus, and is a figure of motherhood.
Because of this fact, she waits silently, perched higher than any other god."
OK, now you know you have to look near the top of the Temple of the Sun!
Get to the "Anterior Chamber of Isis" by entering the small passage on the left after entering the Temple of the Sun through the Gate of Guidance (see the hints for the Temple of the Sun if you can't find how to get there).
Yes, it's the room where you fought the boss. Now, that's not the Chamber of Isis, but the Anterior Chamber of Isis. Isis should be close by...
Destroy the floor of this room to reveal the Chamber of Isis. Note that you can't do it the first time you enter this room; after killing the subboss, exit and come back to the room.

There's a chest near the cavern but no mechanism to open it. Can I open it now?

Yes. Wander a bit in the corridor and you might find out how.
Exit the corridor through the left exit, which will loop you back to the right of the level. Now come back to the room with the chest.

I think I found how to get further in this area, but I need some kind of key, where can I find it?

You indeed need a key to proceed; you'll naturally come across it by progressing in other areas. Focus on other areas and come back when you have a key with a very obvious name. Further hints for this area below might be a bit spoily otherwise.
The item in question is called the Key to Eternity.
It is located in the Gate of Illusion.

Endless Corridor (part 2)

Back in the Endless Corridor with what you need to beat it and ready for some tricky puzzle? Let's go!

I found how to get to a different floor in the Endless Corridor, but I don't know what to do here. There are just many doors that I can't enter.

Notice the symbols over the doors? No, that's not japanese, but La-Mulanese.
The symbols are numbers. Now how can you learn which symbol corresponds to which number? There are different ways to tackle this puzzle; here's the most "logical" one (though maybe not the most straightforward).
There's a stone tablet in the Corridor that might help you:
"Men are *born* of the Mother, and live their *lives*.
They reproduce and *reproduce*, helping in the Mother's *ascension*.
Go forth along the path that man is destined to walk."
There's somebody in the ruins that can help you make sense out of that.
A person that was sleeping. Did you wake her already?
Mulbruk in the Temple of the Sun will give you a helpful clue. Here it is if you missed it:
"You've been living in the ruins for quite some time now.
Are you able to read the La-Mulana script without the help of a device?
The numbers are easiest.
Each number has its own meaning.
0 is nothing, 1 is beginning, 4 is death and...
hmmm... 5 is rebirth, 6 is war, 7 is deceit...
8 is eternity, and 9 is ascension....
I can't remember 2 and 3."
Seems like you have the numbers corresponding to "reproduce" and "ascension here". You just have to find which ones are "birth" and "live" between 2 and 3...
You may just try your luck, but you might also remember that you have some seals bearing the same name... Yes, the seals are ranked in order!
You may also learn numbers in La-Mulanese in many different places.
For example, there are several stone tablets that have numbers on it, and even background decorations in many places.
Maybe your Glyph Reader did its work a bit too well...
Find a stone tablet with numbers on it and read it with and without the Glyph Reader. This should help you figure out which symbol is which number.
It seems La-Mulanese is in fact English written in a different alphabet... ;)
Having a hard time finding a good tablet? Do you remember reading one about a 1st child, a 2nd child, etc. up until a 9th child and even a child "0"? (note that there are many other tablets that can help you, but this one has the full set).
It's in the Mausoleum of Giants.
Near the elevator over the Nebra Sky Disk.
Now, back to the Endless Corridor. Notice something happening when you get in front of a door?
If you do a mistake, teleport with the Holy Grail and come back.
You have to pass in front of each door in the right order (birth, life, reproduction, ascension)
Pass in front of the door bearing the number 2, 3, 5 then 9 in this order. Other doors are irrelevant. If you're really stuck with which number corresponds to which symbol, you have it here: http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/lamulana-remake/images/3/31/Mulana_numbers.png/revision/latest?cb=20120918071127

I see a stone hiding an item, but I don't know how to unlock it. I solved the puzzle of the rooms in that floor, but it did not break the stone.

It's an essential item for the game, so try to persevere.
You've been conditioned to think that way. Think differently!
What did you do the first time you saw this kind of stone? Why did you stop doing it later on?
Do you see an eye that might shoot electricity around?
No? Then strike the stone with your weapon while the cat's away!

I see what looks like the entrance to another area, but it looks inaccessible. How do I access it?

Cleverly observed, but you can't get there until quite some time. Remember well where it is, though, and to come back when you'll be informed that a new path was opened.

It seems I have to race through a floor to reach the exit, but I nowhere near fast enough...

It's possible to reach the exit in time, but you have to find some tricks to go faster on the way. And look at what this stone tablet says, you are foolish!
Or you can just find one trick to make this whole puzzle a lot easier.
Jump into a secret path in the top-right corner just after putting a weight on a dais. I hope you officially hate La-Mulana now! Oh, by the way, there's a very important chest on that level, be sure not to miss it in the rush of this solution.

I got an odd statue in a chest, what is it used for?

Well, haven't you found an area whose name sounds very similar to that statue?
This statue unlocks the gates in the Twin Labyrinths (which allows you to complete most of this area now)

I got to a floor with sawblades; after getting all the way through, there's a teleporter sending me back!

The teleporter activates only if you go to a specific place. Can you avoid it?
Use the moving platform and don't fall on the ground.

Got through this passage, but is there a way to avoid being pushed on spikes now?

Learn the pattern and don't rush. Or just have a lot of health...

On the next floor I found two ennemies that look like subbosses that look invincible...

There's an indication on how to beat them on the first stone tablet, though admitedly it's not very obvious how:
"The one-eyed and hundred-eyed shall appear.
Return with the one-eyed and the hundred-eyed shall lose its strength.
Beyond that lies everything."
You have to go all the way to the second subboss and put a weight on the dais there.
Then come back to the first room of the floor to put another weight there.
You should now be able to kill the first subboss (the one with a big eye).
You can only strike it when its eye is wide open. Let it follow you then turn back quickly to strike. It'll turn red when you hit it right.
Then go kill the other subboss.

No Ankh and Ankh Jewel in there?

Nope. They are somewhere else; you've probably guessed where by now.
In the backside version of this area.
The backside area is the Dimensional Corridor, one of the latest areas in the game. Fun fact if you haven't discovered it by yourself, the Dimensional Corridor was in fact the frontside and the Endless Corridor the backside, but have been inverted by Tiamat's powers. That's why Tiamat is the only boss to be hiding in the backside world, whereas every other boss is in the front.

Twin Labyrinths (Part 1)

Aaah, the Twin Labyrinths... A rather well-named and unusually large area where you're bound to get lost. Although you can get there rather early, you'll likely wander in and out of this area for a while before starting to make sense of it, so do not hesitate to explore other areas and come back here later on when you're tired of getting lost. Who knows, you may find other entrances...
Just to be on the safe side, you should complete at the very least Mausoleum of Giants, Spring in the Sky and Temple of the Sun before really starting to explore in there.

Note: The hints for this area are split in two due to Steam's character limit. All the hints in the second part and even several in this part are most likely not relevant for your first explorations in this area; once you'll have done what you need to make this place more manageable (sorry, can't be clearer without spoiling), hints in both parts will start to make sense.

How MANY entrances are there to this Labyrinth? And I can't even seem to find how to get from one entrance to the other through the Labyrinth...

There are 4 entrances that you can find early on (roughly after beating the first four bosses). You probably already found 3 of them and it's not a big deal if you haven't found the 4th one yet. Read further if you're not sure you've got them all.
One in the Mausoleum of Giants (you've probably already been there to purchase the Helmet).
One at the bottom of the Temple of the Sun, after killing the boss (the boss room is connected afterwards)
One in the Inferno Cavern (not too far from its entrance)
One in the Temple of Moonlight (but you have to do quite a bit of things there before reaching it).
Later on you'll find it's connected to two more areas (Shrine of the Mother and Dimensional Corridor), which makes it 6.

There are some black gates that look like entrances, but I can't get through. Are those just part of the landscape?

No, they aren't, but you can't get through early on. They'll turn white when you can.
You need a specific item for that.
The item you require is mentioned at on a stone tablet about the legend of the Twins and is not located in the Twin Labyrinths. Read below if you want to learn what it is.
You need the Twin Statue to activate the gates in here; you'll naturally come across it later during you exploration. If you have activated the gates but still can't find a way to get through the ones still closed, read below.
They will unlock when you'll have dispersed the poison (see next hint).

When I enter it through one entrance, there's a counter and I die when the time is up...

Yes, there's something you need to do in that timeframe, but it's unlikely you can do it during your first visit as it requires to do something first.
You need to activate the gates (they'll turn white; see above for mild spoilers about that). Read further if you're still stuck once they are activated.
Once you get in the room with the counter, quickly get through the gate, go on the other side, put a weight on the dais, get back trough the gate and put another weight on the dais that appeared. If you can't do it fast enough...
...there are some traps on the platforms that you can use to go faster.

I've wandered a lot in the Twin Labyrinths and even tried to map it, but I have no clue what I should do in there...

The labyrinth will make much more sense once you'll have lifted the poisonous air with the counter. See hint above for more information; in a nutshell, go explore somewhere else and come back to this area later. Most of the other hints regarding the Twin Labyrinths won't make sense until then.

I found the Holy Grail Tablet, but I can't warp there afterwards!

I assume you haven't forgotten to scan it, eh? But even if you did, you won't be able to warp in here unless you have a specific piece of software (see General Hints section for more information about that).

I've found a stone tablet about a Big Brother shop that I don't understand...

I assume it's the following:
"The Big Brother's shop is for more exclusive clientele.
The Little Brother's shop is for regulars."
There's a hidden Big Brother shop in the Twin Labyrinths that sells a vital item for the late game. It's up to you to find it.
It near the Little Brother shop (the one that sold the Helmet), but you can't access it at first. Find how to be part of that "exclusive clientele".
Make enough purchases at the Little Brother's shop and he will grant you access to his brother's shop when you leave.

I found a room with an lone inactive elevator, is there a way to activate it?

Yes, though probably not on your first visit.
A stone tablet says about that:
"At the foot of the foot-less Neptune.
Step boldly forth,
and the flying pedestal will be awakened."
Jump from the screen above and land on the platform.

Where is the map of the level?

You wouldn't expect a map of a labyrinth to be as easily found as in the other areas, would you?
If you still haven't done what you need to navigate freely in the Labyrinth, you can't get it yet.
It's in a chest hidden in a destructable rock.
It's in a place that looks like a dead end.
It's not far from the second Holy Grail Tablet (the one in the room with the two elevators)
Go left, then down starting at this Holy Grain Tablet.

I found a hint on a stone tablet in another area that seems to refers to a statue in this Labyrinth, but no matter what I do with this statue, I can't find what's hidden.

The hint in question is "Atop the navel of Neptune" right? And you are standing in front of the statue of Poseidon, another name of Neptune, right? Well, you had a good intuition, but it's likely not this statue... There's another similar statue elsewhere for which the clue is relevant, but know that it's a clue for a really late game thing. If you've mostly completed the Twin Labyrinths and still need to know, read below.
It's a clue relevant to the statue of Neptune in the room where there are some shining skulls above.
It's a clue on how to reach those skulls.
You have to jump on an invisible platform located at the navel of this statue of Neptune. I hope you know what to do once you're up there... (if not, there are hints about it in another area of this guide)

Twin Labyrinths (Part 2)

Note: If you're still struggling with non-Euclidian rooms connections and poisonous timers, all those hints will not make sense and may even be a bit spoily, so come back here when you'll have started to make sense out of this confusing Labyrinth ;)

I've done what was needed to be able to properly start exploring the area, but it's still very confusing. Any general hint on how to find its way in there?

Think about the name of the area, and what you discovered about the other areas in the game.
Isn't it odd that your Holy Grail doesn't work on the Holy Grail Tablet you found?
Look at the map (if you've found it...) and at the various rooms. Especially around the bottom-middle.
The "frontside" version of the area is the left half; the "backside" version is close to a mirrored version of the left half on the right side. The gates allow to go from the front to the back and vice-versa.

I've found a second Holy Grail Tablet, but I can't seem to be able exit the room afterwards...

You can always use the Holy Grail to escape, but you'll have to find a way to make this elevator work if you want to warp back there later...
To activate the elevator, use a weight on a dais in a mostly empty room.
This dais is three rooms on the left from the one with this Holy Grail Tablet.

I've found a lone dais in an otherwise empty room, what does it do?

It activates an elevator somewhere else. Don't worry if you don't know which one, just know that it will save you some trouble.

I found a room with the kind of stone that usually contains an item, how do I unlock the item?

You can't get it unless you manage to reach the lower part of the room. It's not a vital item in any case.
In order to reach it, you have first to beat a sub-boss with blue shadows, then go up.
Don't forget to use the gate to reach another room with an item hidden...

I've got a hard time against a subboss, any advice?

Not really; by now you should be accustomed to some occasionnal tougher fights!
There is a potential trick if you're fighting the flying bird subboss, but it requires a rather late game item; if you do have this item, I guess you already thought of using it just by seeing at the subboss' attacks...
I'm of course talking about the Lamp of Time.

I've stumbled on what is said to be an "unsolvable puzzle". Is there a way to solve it? Can I skip it?

The reward for the puzzle is a useful item that is essential at certain points in the game, so you have to solve it sooner or later.
It's impossible as long as you can't reach the left of the topmost block. You need a specific item for that.
You need the Bomb subweapon. If you have them and are still stuck, read below.
Once you've destroyed the wall above the topmost block, you need to find a way to get to the left of the small platform under it to further push the block.
There's a trap if you walk left of where the block was that allow you to jump back at the right place.
Once each block is at its place, you may reach the shop and buy the Lamp of Time.

What do I do in the room with shining skulls at the top?

It's a path to a very late game area. You don't need to do anything here to complete the Twin Labyrinths. If by the time you've finished every other area you've encounterd in the game you still haven't figured out what to do, read below.
You have to use a specific item here to unlock the path.
The item you have to use is the Crystal Skull.

Where do I find the Ankh Jewel in this area?

There's a hint on a stone tablet to find it (as always), but frankly, even with it, it's very difficult to find.
The hint is: "Reveal the light to the grieving twins. Reveal the light to a world destroyed. The hero confers light upon the twins as they hold up the world"
If you really don't see what that could mean, don't be too hesitant to read further...
You have to do something with the Twin Statues (not the item in your inventory, but actual statues of the Twins). You've read what the Twin look like, right?
The statues in question are one room on the right of the entrance from the Inferno Cavern and in its mirrored room.
Now you have to "confer light" to them...
You have some Flares, right?
Shoot one just in front of the head of each statue. Their eyes should turn red when you hit the right spot.
Now you just have to find out where the Ankh Jewel appeared.
It's on a statue that looks a bit like the ones of the Twins, but with some kind of yellow pillar in their body. Remember seeing one like it?
If it's not there, it must be on the mirrored version of the statue...
It's two rooms right and one room down from the second Holy Grail Tablet (the one in the room with two elevators).

Where do I find the Ankh in this level?

Unlike the Ankh Jewel, the stone tablet hint for this one makes it not so hard to find out.
The hint is given by a priest in a cavern:
"The Demon Altar is where the witches gather to summon the demon.
The Demon Altar is a place for prayer.
Two witches, black and white, call forth Baphomet."
Did you see a black witch anywhere? (some say it looks more blue than black, but let's say a noticeable witch anyway) If so, don't kill her yet, at least until you find the white witch.
The black witch is in the room with 4 different witches and appears when those 4 witches are slained.
It's two rooms on the left of the subboss with blue shadows.
I'm sure you know now where to find the white witch...
Remember the logic of the whole area?
The white witch is in the mirror room and also appears when you kill the 4 witches. Kill her to make the Ankh appear.

Any hint for the boss?

It has a lot of health, so I hope you've found some better weapons than your starting whip...
The first stage should be quite easy; just hit the head and learn the pattern (it's always the same) to dodge its attacks.
The second stage is more tricky. Dispatch the witches when they appear, dodge the attacks and try to hit the head (about 40 times for this stage alone if you're using the starting whip).
Oh, friendly advice, don't repeat my mistake and contemplate your victory when you think you've won...
There's an item that can help you block some of its attacks.
The Silver Shield (found in the Graveyard of Giants).

So, I think I'm finished here at last! Which items should I have found here, just to make sure I did not forget any?

Here's everything you can find in that area:

• The Helmet (you must have bought it a long time ago)
  
• The map of the level (see above for hints on its location)
  
• The Katana (unlocked shortly after beating one of the subboss)
  
• The Ring (unlocked shortly after beating one of the subboss)
  
• The Dragon Bone (in a hidden shop)
  
• The Lamp of Time (in a hidden shop after the unsolvable puzzle)
  
• A Sacred orb (hidden in the room on the left of the Ankh)
  
• An Ankh Jewel, though you probably already used it to face the boss (see above)
  
• 2 wodden chests (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss any)

Shrine of the Mother

Hey, given the name, isn't that some kind of endgame area? Should I really venture in there? Well, don't be afraid, explore a bit and find out by yourself! If you really want an answer (not as spoily as it might seem), no, it's not the final area of the game, so go ahead.

Understood. Still, I've come into the area, but it looks like a dead-end...

There are several entrances to this area, but only one entrance there from which you can really start to tackle this area. If you're stuck to one or two rooms, you'll have to wait until you find another way in.

I've explored about everything in here, but I haven't found the map. How come?

The map is in a remote, disconnected part of the area which you can only access through a dedicated entrance.
The entrance to that part is in the Twin Labyrinths.
To find it, go two rooms on the right from the topmost Holy Grail Tablet in the Twin Labyrinths, then up.

Is the chest in the room with 4 seals important?

It does not contain an essential item, but you may want to grab it before killing all the bosses at it will be unreachable afterwards.
Just destroy each seal to get it. You obviously need all 4 seals.

I found and opened a chest, but it has a weird purple circle around it and when I try to get what inside I lose health. How do I get it?

The chest is cursed. You have to equip an item that protects you against curses. You'll need to do several things first in this area to get that item.
You'll need to get what's in the chest behind the falling pillar first. Though the content of this chest is not the item you need. See next hint for clues on how to reach it, or read below if you have already.
You need the Mulana Talisman, which you get from Xelpud when you bring him the Diary.

There's an inaccessible dais in a narrow corridor behind a range of spikes. How do I access it?

You can't yet. Don't worry, you'll use it later on.

I found a chest behind a statue, but how do I open it?

It does not contain an essential item if you want to skip it.
Shoot it with subweapons.

There's a lone creature that turns into flies when I get close. What should I do with it?

Nothing yet. Don't worry, you won't miss its purpose later in the game.

There's a large pillar falling down in a room that prevents me from reaching a chest. How do I get it?

It's a very important chest to get, but there are several prerequisites to reach it.
First, you need to have "unlocked" the whole area (see next hint).
Second, you need to have found a Talisman.
Did you already show the Talisman to Xelpud?
OK, then go ask Xelpud for help.
If he doesn't look helpful, you need to have touched the falling pillar first.
When Xelpud agrees to help, come back here and see what happens...
Talking with Xelpud about it afterwards might not be a bad idea...

I think I've explored the whole area, but I haven't found anything useful in there, did I miss something?

You need to "unlock" the area, which will make it much easier to travel into.
There are several prerequisites for doing that.
First, you need to have the map of the area.
You also need the software that allows you to read detailed maps (yagostr.exe).
Notice something odd on the map?
There's an odd statue displayed here. Maybe scanning it will help discovering what to do with it (you need an item).
When you got this item (possibly long ago), you were given a hint about the fact that it should be used in the Shrine of the Mother.
This item is in a shop in the Twin Labyrinths.
If you can't find it, look at the hints regarding Big Brother's shop in the Twin Labyrinths area.
You need to use the Dragon Bone on the headless statue.
It removes all the skull barriers in that area.

I've seen pictures of the bosses on the walls; scanning them reveals they are "wedges". Is it important?

Yes and no. They are not useful as such, but are indirect part of a global puzzle in the very late game, where you'll do something that will change their apparence.

No Ankh Jewel or Ankh in there?

No, for obvious reasons you probably guessed by now...

So, when can I consider I've found everything in this area?

You should have found the following items:

• The map of the level (see above)
  
• A Sacred Orb (in the chest with 4 seals)
  
• The Diary (behind the falling pillar)
  
• The bounce.exe software (in the chest hidden behind the statue)
  
• The Crystal Skull (in the cursed chest)

There's also an item in a non-connected room of the area that you can only access through another area (so it might as well count as in another area...)

• The Death seal

Temple of Moonlight (part 1)

Surprised? You wouldn't expect the ruins of La-Mulana to be so small to contain only around ten areas, would you? The good news is, you've got a whole new range of places to explore. The bad news is, it's much more confusing than the areas you've been until now... At least in the Temple of Moonlight you can do most of the things you need to do here shortly after reaching it - though you may also have to go occasionnally in a few other areas in the process. Still, don't hesitate to explore elsewhere if you're stuck before reading the hints...

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Hints in both part may be relevant during your first visit(s) here.

How do I even get into this place?

You need two things to reach it: having an item and having beaten a boss.
You need the Bronze Mirror and to have beaten the boss in the Temple of the Sun.
Enter the now open gate located just above the room where you fought the boss in the Temple of the Sun.

When I go to the left after the entrance, there's a room blocked by many blocks. How do I go through?

You can't now; it's a shortcut to another area that you can clear by entering the room from the other side.

How do I reach the upper parts of this area?

There's a hint about it on a stone tablet in the Temple of the Sun. You know it's about this area because it talks about a Moon place.
The hint is:
"I was told to choose three women.
They are waiting at the promised location.
I couldn't do it.
They yet still wait within the Moon-Gazing Pit.
To the one who reads this now,
please, pierce her heart in my stead. She who never lets her smile fade."
Find the room named Moon-Gazing Pit in the Temple of Moonlight.
Shoot the topmost head (the one smiling) with a shuriken to unlock an elevator to the upper part.

I see some kind of giant inverted blue pyramid, but I can't find a way inside despite exploring every room around it.

You can enter it through a path coming from another area. You can't enter it from the rest of the Temple of Moonlight. You don't have to find your way in until late in the game.
If you really need to know, you've already been to the area leading to this second entrance, so you may try to find it now if you want, though, again, you won't find anything useful to do there until late in the game.
Read the hint about a secret in the Pyramid in the Temple of the Sun area.

I can see there's a crackled floor in a specific screen, but how do I break it?

You can't break it by jumping, you'll need something to fall from another screen.
You'll need the 3rd seal to do it.
Break the seal on the right of the room with the crackled floor and proceed towards the top.
You'll need to break (by striking it from the nearby elevator) the block that is stuck inside the rock.
Put a weight on the dais that appeared at the very top of the "tower". The tip of the inverted blue pyramid will fall and break the floor below.

I found a subboss but it seems invincible...

Monsters glow red when you damage them. If it doesn't (or glows in another color), it's not damaged. Find a way to damage it.
You'll have to exit the fight (conveniently there's a ladder there; you can also use the Holy Grail) and find an item to help you.
Someone will give you this item when you talk about it.
No, it's not Xelpud. Or anyone in the village for instance. Haven't you met someone else that could help you in the ruins?
Look for Mulbruk in the Temple of the Sun. You'll wake her by breaking the seal near its place.
If she doesn't give you the Book of the Dead, try talking to her again until she does. If she still doesn't, make sure you've already tried to fight and damage the subboss.
The subboss shouldn't be too hard to fight now. If you still have trouble with him...
Hit its head. You may also use rolling shurikens to fall on its head (though it likely won't be sufficient, unless you have a lot of them).

How do I open the chest in the room with 5 chests?

Well, that's the main puzzle of this area. Look for clues on stone tablets even outside this area.
Collect all hints for "those seeking Eden" (that's a place you want to look for, don't you?)
There are 4 such hints. Read below to know in which areas they are.
The 4 stone tablets with a hint about Eden are located in the Inferno Cavern, in the Chamber of Extinction, in the Graveyard of Giants (NOT the Mausoleum of Giants!) and in the Temple of Moonlight. Read below for the full list of these hints.
1/ "Those seeking Eden.
Open the four boxes.
Seek the four pedestals.
Find the source of a phenomenal trap,
in a place bathed in moonlight.
(the first three lines are always identical so I'll skip them in the next hints)
2/ "Within the hands of the four who reside in a place bathed in moonlight."
3/ "Beneath the dancing man's feet, in a place bathed in moonlight."
4/ ""Stand before a face of the highest rank,
in a place bathed in moonlight."
You have to find each of those locations in the Temple of Moonlight. Look carefully at the decoration behind, some may be a bit difficult to properly see.
Once you've found each of the place mentioned, scan it with your scanner. A white light and a sound should tell you if you're right. Read below for the precise location of each place.
The first is on the room below the entrance of the Temple of Moonlight, right above the dais triggering the falling spikes trap.
The second one is in the room above the entrance of the Temple of Moonlight, between the four hands.
The third one is two rooms to the right of the last one. You'll need to climb there from the bottom (the Birth seal is required) to reach it if you haven't already done it. There, look carefully at the pillar, there's a drawing of Mickael Jackson here (if you don't believe me, look at what it looks like after scanning it).
The last one is the most painful to get. You'll have to explore the whole upper part of the area (bring many dais with you) and get to the topmost area, in the room on the left of the entrance to Eden. There you'll see a chest (grab it while you're here if you can), but what you need is to go on the topmost platform and scan the face. You'll likely fall a lot in the boneyard below, you'll have to come back all the way up through the rooms on the right to try again (which is long and costly in dais), so do not hesitate to use some subweapons on the skeletons to help you.
Once you have scanned the right places, dais will appear on the screen with 5 chests.
You'll have to press the dais in the right order. There's a hint about it somewhere in the Temple of Moonlight. Remember to which chest corresponds which dais the first time you try.
The hint is:
"Those seeking Eden.
Open the five boxes.
Mind thy manners, and open them starting with the one closest."
You have to open each wooden chest in order starting with the one furthest from the chest (I don't know if it's a trick or a mistake in the translation...).

Temple of Moonlight (part 2)

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Hints in both part may be relevant during your first visit(s) here.

I entered a room and walked on a platform that fell under my feet. I then put a weight on some dais, which made some blocks fall, but it seems I still can't access the ladder over it.

Too bad, you won't be able to go up this way now. Don't worry, it's nothing critical, just a not-that-useful shortcut towards another area. If you're really pissed about it, load a former save (but again, that's probably not worth it).

I've found the Holy Grail Tablet, but I'm stuck there now. Isn't that a bit useless?

You can fall through a trapped floor on the left of the tablet.

I found the Holy Grail Tablet, but I can't warp there afterwards!

I assume you haven't forgotten to scan it, eh? But even if you did, you won't be able to warp in here unless you have a specific piece of software (see General Hints section for more information about that).

I fell in some kind of Boneyard and now I'm stuck...

You can exit the Boneyard by falling on the bottom; move a bit in the bone pile until you fall below.

Where is the map of the level?

It's in the upper part of the area.
You can reach it just outside the Boneyard.
After exiting the Boneyard to the right, put a weight on the dais to open the chest. And run from the spikes!

Why isn't there any shop in this area?

Well, there is one, but it's well hidden.
Don't bother looking for it until you have the Bombs (you may be able to find it, but not enter it anyway).
It's behind a breakable wall at the bottom of the room immediately on the right of the room with the big moon in an inverted pyamid.
Inside that room, you'll have to destroy the two platforms on the right to make the block fall at the right place.

I went into a room where I'm struck by lightning whenever I strike my weapon. What should I do?

Hm... Don't do that?

I found a closed chest inside the blue pyramid where I can't strike my weapon... How do I open this chest?

You can't until you get an item you'll find late in the game.
It has something to do with the engraving depicting a woman on the top-right. Read below to learn which item you need (very spoily!)
You need to use the Maternity statue in front of the engraving.
Still confused? There's a hint about what you should do in the Shrine of the Mother.
"Sleep within the woman."
After you've used the Maternity Statue, go up and fall in front of the area depicting the woman's reproductive apparel. Pause the game and wait until Lemeza falls asleep.

When should I consider this area "complete" and what should I have found in it?

The main thing you have to do in there is to find the secret of Eden.
Do you have the Fruit of Eden? (If not, look at the hints above) Once you have it, you can continue your travel (there's an obvious place to go).
Bring it to the Tree of Eden (the entrance is located above the topmost room in the Temple of Moonlight) and be ready for a surprise. Below is the list of item you should have found in the Temple of Moonlight at this point before leaving.

• The Fruit of Eden
  
• The map of the level (room right of the Boneyard)
  
• The Grapple Claw (room above the Boneyard)
  
• The Serpent Staff (after beating a subboss)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

OK, there's in fact a few more items in there but they are well hidden. Read below if you want to know.

• The Axe (in a secret room; read a hint about help to beat bosses in the General Hints section to find out exactly where)

OK, that may not be exactly all, but that's all you can find for now, before much later in the game.

Eden

So you've found Eden! Nice place eh? I'm sure you're eager to explore this area as soon as possible, so try to solve the puzzle guarding its entrance as soon as possible!

How do I reach Eden?

So many people would like to know that! But in La-Mulana, you can get there from the Temple of Moonlight, though you can't explore much there until you solve a puzzle.

How do I unlock the way in Eden?

You need a specific item. Once you have it, what you'll have to do to progress further will be pretty clear.
You need the Fruit of Eden. Read below if you have no idea where to find it.
It's in the Temple of Moonlight.
It's in the room with the 5 chests. Read the hints about that in the chapter of this guide for that area.

Hm, why aren't there more hints for that area?

Probably because this area is so straightforward that nobody would need any hint to complete it.
OK, in La-Mulana that doesn't sound right. Just solve the entrance puzzle first and you'll understand.

Graveyard of the Giants (part 1)

Surprised? You wouldn't expect the ruins of La-Mulana to be so small to contain only around ten areas, would you? The good news is, you've got a whole new range of places to explore. The bad news is, it's much more confusing than the areas you've been until now... This area is a hub for several others areas, though it's difficult to navigate in (not just because of the ice), and there's a lot to do here, so don't hesitate to come back regularly to see if you can open a new path.

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in this part should be useful around the time you'll discover the area; hints in the other part might be more relevant for when you come back there later.

I'm in a room with two dais and put a weight on one, this made an ice block fall and now I can't reach the other one! Am I stuck?

No, you're not. You can still access any area you'd have been able if you had pressed the other dais. Read below to learn what the other dais does.
The other dais makes the other ice block fall. If you had pressed it first, it would be easier to reach the lower-right platform, but harder to reach the stone tablet on the right. If you want to know how to reach the lower-right platform now, read below.
You'll need a specific item for that. Note that if you're on the WiiWare version, that won't work and you'll need to wait much later to find an alternative path.
On the non-WiiWare version, you'll need the Feather to reach the platform from the ladder on the screen below. I hope you're happy now to be standing on that lone platform aren't you? ;)
On the WiiWare version, you can reach the right path through another way, but you'll need Bombs (break the floor under a trapped wooden chest at the bottom of this area)

I'm in a room with two dais and put a weight on one, this made an ice block fall and now I can't reach a stone tablet on the other side! Can I reach it?

Yes, you can.
You'll need an item for that.
You'll be able to reach it when you have the Feather.

On the left of the room with the two dais and the falling ice, it seems I have to push a block to the other side of a hole, how do I do it?

Have you noticed there's a conveniently placed ice block with just the right size above?
Destroy the bone on the right of the block to make it fall.

OK, I have found how to unlock the stairs in that room, but I still can't use them, the path is blocked...

Unless you've already been in the area it leads to, you can't access it yet.

I went to the room to the right of the entrance and found a chest, but how to reach it?

Once you've put a weight on the dais in the same room, you'll have to find your way to the room above to create a path.

I found the Holy Grail Tablet, but I can't warp there afterwards!

I assume you haven't forgotten to scan it, eh? But even if you did, you won't be able to warp in here unless you have a specific piece of software (see General Hints section for more information about that).

I see a chest and a seal, but they're too high to reach...

It's technically not an essential item, but it's very useful so you'll want it anyway...
I'll assume that you were able to reach the left side of the screen. You'll need an item to reach them.
You should be able to find this item roughly at your current stage in the game (though in a different area).
You'll need the Feather.

What's with the eye of the Giant at the bottom of the area?

Strike it to break it.
It will activate an elevator in the central section of the area.

There's a room with three blocks that I have to push under a sitting statue, but it seems impossible!

You've found a way to reach the topmost block right?
Right. Now, there's a trick to this puzzle. Can you find it?
Try to stand for a bit on the orange place where you should bring a block.
Yes, that's a fake. You don't have to bring any block in there (not that you could if you wanted to anyway). Now, how can you solve this puzzle?
What are you trying to achieve here? Isn't there an obvious way to do it?
You want to reach the dais behind the blue barrier...
...and this blue barrier can conveniently be blocked by pushing a block over it.
Just pile up two blocks (you may want to start with the topmost one) and push the third block over the blue barrier.

In the room to the left of the one with three blocks, I can see a chest and a dais both stuck in ice... What should I do there?

The chest does not contain an essential item, but very useful nonetheless once you understand its purpose.
You can't access it if you can't double jump (you'll have to find an item to be able to do that).
You'll need the Feather. Read below if you have it.
Jump inside the ice block by double jumping from the left.

I found a shopkeeper, but he sounds fishy... Can I trust him?

No. Don't trust anything he says.
If he says that an item is a fake, it's probably safe to buy it. And vice-versa.
Don't buy the Silver Shield here as it'll break. Any other item is perfectly OK.

I found a closed wooden chest, but when I try to open it, it's not what I expect... How do I get what's inside the chest?

You can't. It's just a trap.

Near the foot of a Giant statue, there's some kind of white mist preventing me from seeing what is there. Is there anything to do here?

Try to go in the mist. Doesn't something happen?
You're in lava (hence your health decreasing and the vapor it creates.
But wait, can't you do something with lava in an ice-filled world?
Try to cool the lava (or heat something else with the lava).
Make the ice over the lava fall in it by striking it. You'll create a Hot Spring that replenishes your life like the one on the Surface.

I'm in a room where I see the usual rock containing an item on the left side, but I can't reach it. There's a door, but the dais seems to be on the wrong side...

Well, try to find another way in! Can you see another way into the left side of the room?
Yes, you have to fall from the top. Find where the entrance could be.
Find the room above on your map. There, you'll have to use a weapon that can hit the ground (you surely have one) to destroy it around the bottom-right part of the room.

I see on the map that there are some rooms to the right of the area, how do I access them?

You can't yet. You'll find an entrance leading in those rooms later on.

What can I find in there when I first discover this area?

Here's the list of the items you should have got by the time you leave the area:

• The map of the level (room right of the entrance)
  
• The Silver Shield (where you have to destroy the floor)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

If you are able to double jump, you'll be able to get a few other items:

• The Gauntlet (chest with the seal)
  
• The mirai.exe software (chest in ice)

There are other items in the area, but you can't access them from where you are.

Graveyard of the Giants (part 2)

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in this part should be useful for when you find an entrance to a different part of this area.

I'm in a room with a dais encased in ice and another floating in the air... How do I access them?

The things over the ice blocks are flamethrowers. Now how do you activate them?
The small platforms do not fall to the bottom.
Start by letting the leftmost one get as low as possible.
Then let the rightmost one get as low as possible. You may put a dais there then on the other one.

In the room below the one with dais encased in ice, there is a block with some weird writings on it, is it important?

Congrats if you saw that by yourself. It a key to get an item that has no impact on the game; if you're a completionist, read below.
You'll need a specific piece of software to scan it.
You need torude.exe.
Destroy the ice with bombs, then scan it with torude.exe.

There are two dais behind blue barriers, how do I get those barriers off?

First you have to solve the puzzle in another room.
The one with the dais encased in ice (see hint above).
Then one of the dais will be available.
Put a weight on the dais that became unstuck on the screen above.
Then come back to put a dais in that room. A stair should appear.

Any advice to beat the subboss?

It's a bit hard to hit, but it doesn't have that much health. It will appear only on the edge of the screen, so try to stay around the middle and rush towards it to hit it, even if you take a bit of damage in the process or due to its flying discs.

Tower of Ruin (part 1)

Welcome to the "second tier" of backside areas. There are two such "backside areas" that you may want to explore after the Graveyard of the Giants and the Temple of Moonlight, though you don't have to finish or even get into the Temple of Moonlight to start the Tower of Ruin (I won't spoil which one is the other area). You may complete them in any order; right know there's a lot you can do in the Tower of Ruin without entering another area.

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in this part should be useful for your first visit in the area.

How do I reach this area?

You can reach it through the Graveyard of the Giants.
The entrance is in the lower part of the area, in the room with the dais in ice.

Which area is it the backside version of?

If you haven't guessed it already, it's the backside of the Inferno Cavern.

How do I get the chest in the first room?

It's not an essential item.
You have to put a weight on the dais at the bottom of the room. Be careful not to be crushed!

I'm in front of some kind of metal tower and there's a block preventing from using the stairs...

You should go up for now.
You'll need an item you find in this area to move the block.
You'll need the Earth Spear.
Isn't there a detail that looks odd in this room?
Strike the red gargoyle head with the Earth Spear to make it move.

There's what look like a very annoying subboss that I can easily skip by going to another room. Should I?

You may skip it for now, but of course you'll need sooner or later to beat it... Below is some help if you're in the latter case.
If you exit and reenter the room you'll have to start over, so avoid at all cost falling in the room below.
It doesn't have a lot of health, but you may only strike it when it's not surrounded by electricity. Just avoid it as long as it's charged.
Avoid throwing shurikens to the left as you might get struck by lighting if they hit the wall.
Starting the fight by entering from the top-right should make it much easier as you can hit it from the beginning.

Where is the map of the area?

You can't get it right now. It's in a chest locked until you enter this area through the Gate of Illusion.

Where is the Holy Grail Tablet in this area?

You can find it in the upper part after defeating the subboss.

In the room to the right of the subboss, it looks like there's an area with a skeleton and a suspended dais inside, how do I get in?

As you may have already discovered, you can't get in from the bottom. So...
Yes, there's a secret path to get in there.
Jump on the bottom moving crushing platform and jump inside through the wall (roughly at the height where the skeleton stands).
Put a weight on the dais while standing on the crushing platform...
...and get down to receive a new treasure.

The room to the left of the subboss looks suspiciously empty, though there is an Eye of Retribution there and a big block with a rune in the middle... What should I do in there?

You probably can't solve the puzzle of this room yet. Make sure you read the stone tablet, though.
You'll need a late-game item to solve the puzzle of this room.
There's a hint to solve the puzzle of the room in this area. Did you notice the fast-flying things that hurt you sometimes in that room? They are part of the puzzle.
The hint is the following:
"Too quick for the eyes.
That which continues to move, even after time has been stopped.
Defeat the unseen enemy,
and the elixir of life shall be bestown upon thee."
You have to use the Lamp of Time in this room.
Destroy a few of the still-moving creatures there to make a dais appear. Use it quickly before the area closes! Can't see what it does? Read below.
Do you remember seeing a block with the same rune somewhere in the area?
It removed the block near the top-right entrance of the area to make a statue appear.

I found a chest in a room with a weird round artifact with a sun, a moon and a star. How do I open it?

You can't right now. It's in a chest locked until you enter this area through the Gate of Illusion.

I've heard a sound telling me there's a hidden shop in a room, but I'm unable to find it...

You can't make it appear from that room. Read below to know how you make it appear.
You have to put a weight on the dais behind the one-way door. Read the next hint if you can't find how.

I see a dais behind a one-way door. How can I reach it?

Well, there aren't too many possibilities are there?
No, it's not from the side with the giant crushing platform.
Yes, it's from the top.
Destroy the floor with a weapon able to strike the floor on the top of the dais.
It makes a hidden shop appear nearby.

Is there an Ankh Jewel or an Ankh in there?

No Ankh, but indeed an Ankh Jewel since you couldn't find one in the frontside version of the area! Read below to find where.
Remember the room to the right of the subboss? There's a part that looks a bit fishy...
Yes, the right part...
Strike the wall in the bottom-right part to open a new path, and read the next hint if you're stuck in this new room.

I'm in a room with an attractive chest surrounded by six japanese characters. What do I do in there?

This is the main puzzle of the area, so it's a bit complex. You may try to brute-force it or find the right solution on your own. Oh, and by the way, it's not japanese, it's La-Mulanese.
There's a seemingly innocent hint around that is vital for that puzzle.
The hint is:
"Follow the name that means unnamed."
Now, where did you see a stone tablet about a nameless one?
It's in the Graveyard of the Giants.
It's in the small alcove that you can reach from the room by getting up from the room at the very bottom of the Graveyard of the Giants.
The hint is:
"Mu is the nameless one.
The one who rises into the sky."
Now what can you make of that?
You have to write "MU" in La-Mulanese.
Read the tablet in the Graveyard of the Giants without the Glyph Reader to see which symbols spell "MU".
Back in the Tower of Ruin, break the right runes in order.
Start with the center-left, then the top-right.

I solved the rune puzzle, is there anything else I should do in there?

Here's everything you can find during you first trip in this area:

• A Sacred orb (first room after entering the area)
  
• The Earth Spear subweapon (after solving the puzzle in the room next to the subboss)
  
• The torude.exe software (in the hidden shop)
  
• An Ankh Jewel (room with the MU puzzle)

You may not be able to get the map until you find another way in.
Now, there's a way somewhere in that area that will lead you to the frontside version. You should find this way.
It's at the bottom of the "metal tower". Read a hint above if you can't find how to move the pillar blocking the ladder.

Tower of Ruin (part 2)

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in this part should not be useful until you come back here later (possibly much, much later) through other entrances.

I can see some fairies dancing over the room with the Holy Grail Tablet. How do I reach the upper part of this room?

You can't until later in the game. You'll get there through another entrance.

I'm back into this area through the Gate of Illusion, but it looks like a dead-end...

It's not. Try to find a way.
After putting a weight on the dais, you have to break your way in.
Break the bottom of the pillar in the middle. It should make a dais appear.

I found the entrance to the area through the Gate of Illusion, can I get the map now?

There's a secret path in this room of the Tower of Ruin that will lead you to the map.
Strike the top-right part of the wall.

I found an entrance to the top part of the area. There's a big block with a rune there. Is it important?

Very, but there isn't anything you can do about it right now.
Try to find a block bearing the same symbols somewhere in this area.
Read the hint in part 1 about the room to the left of the subboss.

I can see a strange statue near a new entrance to the area. What should I do with it?

It's part of a puzzle for the final fight.
A philosopher might have something to tell you about it.
It's part of the elixir of life puzzle. Read the next hint for more information about it.

In the room to the left of the entrance to the top part of the area, it looks like there's a stone tablet and a dais but they are unreachable. How do I get up there?

You can't right now. You'll get there through the top room and you'll find a way up there to create a ladder.

I found some enemies I've never seen before that look like dancing women as well as some flying fairies. Is there anything to do with them?

Yes, though it's a puzzle for the very last stage of the game.
You'll need to have explored (preferably finished) the Dimensional Corridor to solve it. You'll need also a Vessel, a Djed Pillar and the mantra.exe software. Got all of that and still can't find what to do?
The Philosopher at the Dimensional Corridor will give you a broad description of what you should do.
Here's what he said if you forgot:
"The Mother's power can be obtained from the secret elixir of life.
The elixir is in the hands of the pure and mischievous spirit.
You must visit her.
Recite to her the incantation of life, [Birth].
To those that trick you, recite the incantation of eternal rest, [Death]."
You'll have to chant the mantra of Birth to the right spirit and the mantra of Death to the other ones. There are some hints in this area and other areas regarding which one is which.
There are three useful hints, one in the Tower of Goddess and two in the Tower of Ruin.
The hints are:
1/ "{Rusalii}, who likes to play pranks.
{Yakshi}, who seduces men.
{Dakini}, who dances seductively.
There is only one with a pure heart."
2/ "Identify the seductress.
Identify those who are truly pure."
3/ "A kind and mischievous spirit.
A lonely and mischievous spirit.
She means no harm with her mischief.
No damage done by unintentional mischief."
The right spirit is the one that plays pranks and that won't hurt you.
It's the one in the room of the Holy Grail Tablet.
Once you've chanted the mantras, use the Vessel on the Statue.

I think I found how to solve the puzzle of the elixir of life. I got a colored Medicine of Life; how do I make sure it's the right one?

If you can get past the first stage of the final fight, it's the right one. Otherwise it means you understood the Philosopher's instructions wrong. Read below if you got a wrong elixir.
Go visit the Philosopher in the Dimensional Corridor to throw away your Medicine of Life and try to solve the puzzle again. Read below to know which color should the right Medicine of Life be.
The correct Medicine of Life should be yellow. Read the hint above to know how to get it.

I've reach the top of a large pyramid! But isn't there a way to create a shortcut to the rest of the Tower of Ruin?

Yes there is. Look around.
Break the Death seal (4th seal) in the room to the right.
You may also have to have spoken with a Philosopher.

I found another subboss near a giant pyramid. How do I beat it?

At this point in the game you shouldn't have too much trouble beating it. Just strike the head repeatedly until it dies.

Gate of Illusion (part 1)

Ah, you've reached the (in)famous Gate of Illusion! Know that this area is nearly impossible to finish without spoiler due to several "puzzles" in there for which you have at best (if at all) very obscure hints. I don't know if it's trolling from the developers or if something was lost in translation, but, really, this area is unfair (and I still wonder how was anybody able to complete it in the first place). So, try you luck, but don't be too ashamed to look for hints below, especially in the earlier parts of the area.
Just a general hint though: you can finish most puzzles in there without going to other areas (there are just two stages where it's mandatory to leave to do something in another area). Oh, and I hope you're not short on dais...

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in the first part should be useful until you see (not necessarly reach yet) the Holy Grail Tablet of the area.

How do I get to this place?

You have to solve the Eden puzzle in the Temple of Moonlight.
Enter Eden at the top the Temple of Moonlight once the Fruit of Eden. Isn't that place nice?

While on a ladder, I'd like to go to the opening on the left or on the right, but it seems I can't leave the ladder unless I'm at its top or bottom...

Indeed; you'll have to get there through another way.

So, I've found the place and explored it a bit, but I can't find anything to do in here. Do I lack an item or something?

No, you don't.
You have to solve the first "fool" puzzle to continue.

Where is the map of the area?

It's in the room with the five chests. See hint below for more information.

I occasionnally see the ghost of a woman holding a candle. Is it important?

You can't do anything with it, but you'll understand later why it is here.

I found a stone tablet between two one-way doors talking about fools. How can I be a true wise man?

This is a very confusing riddle indeed. Look what it says about the one who went left and about the one who went right. What do you think?
Maybe you should neither go right nor left.
Isn't there a detail subtly differing from the others in that room?
The blue light is not glowing like the others.
Scan it with your scanner.
You will now drop down when you walk just on the floor below, allowing you to reach the floor above (!).

There's a room with 4 wooden chests and an ordinary chest, all closed. What should I do with them?

Until you can reach every place in that room, nothing.
You have to go at least once in front of each of the 4 wooden chests.
You should be able to go to the floor where the 5th chest is now.
If not, go to the last room on the left and climb the top stair. There's a dais here that will create a ladder to go to the floor of the chest.
Hm, no light inside the chest? Strange...
Well, you're in the Gate of Illusion afterall. The content of that chest must be somewhere else...
Get down two ladders and put a weight on the dais.
Go left and strike the fake wall to find the map of the area.

There's an upside-down entrance to a cavern somewhere... I assume it's important?

No, it's not.
Really, you can't enter it or do anything with it, so just ignore it. Trust me.
Well, OK, it might be relevant for something in the very late game, but you'll be reading a full spoiler when you'll be trying to solve that riddle (I know it already), so it doesn't matter now.

I've solved the riddle of the wise man, but I'm still stuck...

After you fall in front of the stone tablet, climb the ladder and go to the left. There's an invisible teleporter behind the pot.
Once you've teleported, come back to the right in the very same teleporter you came from.
Now you should stand in front of 4 pots. There's a somewhat obscure hint on what to do now on a tablet in the second room of this area.
"Simply wandering will not lessen the illusion.
Courage will grant thy wish--the courage to jump into the illusion.
The courage to search on bended knee for a single fallen item."
You have to break the first pot and go down where it stood (press the "down" key). Yeah, I know, the hint with the bended knee wasn't very helpful, to be honest I'm not even fully sure it was related to this puzzle, but that's the closest thing to a hint there is...
In the room below go right into yet another teleporter.
As soon as you get out of the teleporter, go right (through the wall).

I have to find a "hidden treasure" but I have no idea where it is...

Remember what the ghost said when it gave you this assignment.
"It seems like the fairies made some sort of giant face swallow the treasures.
And what better way to make one spit things up than pepper!"
Can you remember a place where you saw a giant face?
It's not in this area.
It's in the Gate of Guidance. Can you find which face it is?
It's the first face when you enter this area from the Surface.
Use the Pepper in front of this face to get the Treasure. Yes, you'll have to come back all the way through the Temple of Moonlight then the maze in the Gate of Illusion to bring it back... But think about what you'll get in exchange!

What do I do with the item I got in exchange for the Treasure?

You'll need it in the very same room where you got it.
The Anchor allows you to go down in the flowing water.
Stuck? Come on, you've not made it this far to end up in a dead-end!
Climb the right ladder and cross the false wall to reach the dais.
You should be able to reach the cavern on the right.

Yay, I got a dirty doll, now what?

This item is used to unlock a path a bit further. For now, continue exploring around.
You're still not in a dead end there.
There's a teleporter right under the cavern.
Again, it looks like a dead end, but there's a way to remove the blue barrier.
Using the dais would be too easy in that place...
The real dais is not far away.
Use a weight on the skeleton.

What should I do with the six dais?

Come on, unlike the rest of this area, this one is rather easy to figure out!
Put a weight on the first dais then on each other before the first dais reaches the bottom.
You should have heard a Shell Horn sound if you did it right.

OK, I solved the six dais puzzle, but what did it do?

Well, surely it unlocked something somewhere, explore a bit!
It created a ladder in the room to the left of the one with 5 chests.
You found it and climbed it, but you're still stuck? You should at least have an idea what to do to move up right?
You have to push the block to be able to climb on the ladder that does not extend to the bottom.
To reach the block, break the wall to its right.

Gate of Illusion (part 2)

Note: this area is split in three due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in the second part should be useful once you've seen (maybe not reached yet) the Holy Grail Tablet of the area until you're finished with this first visit.

Yay, I went up an elevator and the Holy Grail Tablet is in sight! But I can't reach it...

There's nothing you can do in the room to the left to remove the blue barrier - yet another trick to deceive you!
You have to do something in the room further to the left.
Go to the top of this room (jump between the spikes).
Well, there isn't much to do up there, is there?
Push the lone block near the two piled up.
Jump on this block and push the top block to go through.
The dais there will unlock a path to the Holy Grail Tablet. Yay!

I saw a block with a fairy on it. Is there anything I can do with it?

It's part of a (difficult to solve) puzzle to get a non-essential, but rather useful item. Of course, as you'd guess, you'll need to have unlocked to fairies to get it.
Looks like there's no Eye of Retribution around...
Yes, you have to break it.
It's only possible to do it from the right side.
You have to strike fast before the elevator leaves the screen...
Still wondering what it did? The answer is below.
It made a chest appear somewhere not too far.
The chest appeared in a secret room that you can reach from the one at the very left (the one with the Eye of Retribution).
Strike the ground with a weapon able to hit the bottom near the floor between the two spikes.
The hint on the stone tablet in the room below should be obvious.
You have to bring a Key Fairy there to open the chest.

I'm blocked by a block with some kind of man on it. A tablet tells me that I have to "be a little man" to proceed...

Someone should have given you an item to prove that.
You need the Mini Doll.
If you don't have it, you can find it in the cavern close to the place where you brought the Treasure back to the ghost.
OK, confusingly, the doll alone is not sufficient to prove you're a little man. You have to "use" it somewhere to prove that you are little.
Isn't there a place in these ruins where you'll appear little?
In the Mausoleum of Giants, of course...
Use the doll in front of any Giant statue to "prove that you're little". The previously blocked path in the Gate of Illusion should now be open.

I've found a subboss, but it seems unbeatable!

First thing, you'll need an item to be able to damage it. If you've beaten the subboss in the Temple of Moonlight, you have it, otherwise, you should beat this one first.
If the subboss glows green, it means it's regenerating.
You have to do something else in the area to stop its regeneration. Look carefully around (not necessarily in the same room) to understand where its regeneration comes from; you may remember hints about it also.
There's a stone tablet in the Gate of Guidance about it; you probably read it a long time ago, but you might want to check it again (don't worry there's a path nearby from Gate of Illusion to Gate of Guidance - the frontside version of this area if you did not guess already - and the tablet is not very far from the gate).
"Chi You, the demon who attained the power of eternity by absorbing the life force of innocent maidens.
Woe unto those that fall into the Sacrificial Abyss."
It's regenerating through the falling of maiden ghosts in the spiky pit above him. You'll have to find a way to stop that.

How do I close the Sacrificial Abyss?

You have to go through yet another little maze around here.
Start by climbing the ladder in the room to the right of the Holy Grail Tablet.
There's a hidden teleporter towards the left.
Go to the bottom-right of your new location. Not a teleporter this time I promise!
You should have got the correct seal (3rd one) long ago by now. Place a dais on the weight and the Abyss will close.

The Abyss is closed, but I'm still having trouble with the subboss...

You have to find the pattern to beat him.
Or just randomly beat him but jumping on him and throwing a lot of subweapons.
If you want to use the smart way, notice what happens when you hit its shield a few times.
Hit it when it's "stunned" after you hit its shield a few times.
Hope you were not to hasty with the chest after beating it ;)

Is there anything else to do in there after getting the item in the subboss' room?

You'll come back in this area later through another entrance (lucky you!), but for now, after you've found the nearby gate to the frontside version of this area, you'd probably better go make good use of your newfound Key of Eternity. You know where it's used, right?
It will unlock the Endless Corridor. Now, if you want to make sure you did not forget anything in this area before leaving, here's everything you may have found there by now:

• The map of the level (room with 5 chests)
  
• The Pepper (cavern with the fraud ghost)
  
• The Anchor (cavern with the fraud ghost)
  
• The move.exe software (bought in a shop)
  
• The Fairy Clothes (secret fairy room)
  
• The Key of Eternity (after beating the subboss)
  
• 2 wodden chests (one containing coins and the other some Bomb ammo, so that's not a big deal if you miss any)

Gate of Illusion (part 3)

Note: this area is split in three due to Steam's character limit. Most of the hints in the third part should be useful when you come back to this area through another entrance.

Back to the area through a new entrance! It feels so good! By the way, is it possible to connect both parts of the area to be able to come here through the Holy Grail Tablet?

Don't worry, what you'll have to do now is less confusing that during the first part. Well, just a little bit less confusing... Anyway, yes, there's a way to connect both parts.
You'll have to do something in a big room where you're likely to fall and have to come back all the way through the new entrance, so it's up to you...
In the bottomless room with spikes at the top, break the kind of arm near the top to make a ladder appear on the screen below.
By the way, have you noticed that you can make the spikes in the room below disappear?
Just jump on the rightmost spikes to make them all disappear.

I've explored the new rooms, but there isn't anything to do in here, is it?

Look carefully at your map (you do have the map of the area, right?). There's a room nearby you've not been yet.
There's a room to the right of the bottomless room.
Break the wall at the top-right of the bottomless room to reach it.

I've found a chest that I assume contains the "secret of life", but it's beyond blue barriers. How do I remove them?

There are instructions in another room. Note that you'll need an item sooner or later to open it. Read below to know which one.
You'll need the Lamp of Time. If you don't have it, find it before trying to tackle this puzzle.
Go to the room below and read the three stone tablets.
You have to solve three puzzles corresponding to each of the tablets.

How do I solve the "bird" puzzle?

It's much simpler than it looks.
The full hint is:
"The grieving bird cast a spell without the Mother's knowledge.
So the mistakes would not be repeated, and the cycle of sadness would end.
The large bird cast a spell.
Should the bird die, the spell shall break, and the pillar of light shall disappear.
I leave this behind and pass it down, in the same state of mind as the bird with the face."
You have to "make the bird die". Isn't there some kind of bird around?
You have to kill the subboss that appeared in the bottomless room. Read below if you have trouble.
The most important thing is to avoid falling; you'd have to start over the fight from the beginning.
Secondary weapons will be of great help here to hit it without getting too close.
Try also to stand on the second platform from the right: from there, if you're hurt, you'll fall on the rightmost platform and not on the room below.

How do I solve the "lizard" puzzle?

A bit tricky, but reasonably logic if you read the hint carefully.
The full hint is:
"The wandering lizard cast off the light.
Unable to bear it, he cast it off.
The light he cast off was the light of his spirit.
Lamenting his ugly appearance, he cast it off.
When the light returns to the lizard, the pillar of light will disappear.
I leave this behind and pass it down, because I understand how the lizard felt."
Do you remember seeing somewhere a place with a "cast off light"?
There's a "faint light shining through the cracks in the wall" in a room you've visited.
Go to the room to the right of the Holy Grail Tablet.
Have you noticed an enemy that wasn't there earlier?
The lizard, of course. Now what can you do here to follow the hint? (no, you don't have to beat the poor lizard to its death)
First you have to make the light appear again.
Strike the cracked wall with you weapon.
Now you have to "return the light to the lizard".
Wait until the lizard pass in front of the light.

How do I solve the "child" puzzle?

This one is really tricky and the hint is quite obscure...
The full hint is:
"The shining pillars are the child's feelings, the glowing feelings of the dancing child.
The reason that the feelings shine lies in a very strange treasure.
A wonderful treasure that is weak yet unbending.
If this treasure disappears, if everything disappears all at once, the child will be saddened and its spirit will cloud over.
I leave this behind and pass it down, to preserve the child's spirit."
First you have to find where the dancing child is.
There's a statue of a dancing child in the room to the right (the one with your newfound entrance to the Gate of Illusion).
You have to make "the treasure disappear", to make "everyting disappear at once". What's the closest thing to a treasure in this room?
You have break all the pots in the room.
But doing it carelessly won't work... The important words are "at once".
You do have a charged Lamp of Time, don't you?
You have to break all the pots in the room at the same time, which can only be achieved while the Lamp of Time is active.
Unless you have an item that allows you to break pots quickly, you may want to "soften" the pots before using the Lamp of Time to have time to break them all in time.

I've solved the three puzzles and got the "secret of life". Is there anything else to do here?

Yes, one little (but vital) thing.
There's one thing you'll want to do with the Cog of Soul.
Use it in front of the tablet with the same symbol as the Cog of Soul to activate... something (in a totally different area). Read below if you can't find what you've done and want to be spoiled.
You've activated the "mudmen generators" in the Chamber of Birth.

Tower of the Goddess (part 1)

Cheers for making it this far, the end of the game is slowing getting in sight! Well, you're not at the end yet by a long shot, but let's say you're arriving in the late part of the game; depending on what you've done elsewhere you might be between half and 3/4th of the game.
You should have beaten at least 5 boss by now; when you want to start this area is up to you, but I'd advise to complete at least Gate of Illusion before coming here.

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. Most of the relevant hints should be in the first part; the second part is dedicated to solving a hard puzzle you'll only be able to find later on.

How do I get to this place?

The area will be accessible once you've killed the 5th boss.
The boss from Inferno Cavern.
There's now a door on the Surface, near the bottom of the waterfall.
Well, OK, there's another way in that you can reach before that, but it's mainly for show/for an achievement. You'll have to go through the Gate of Time for that.

Which area is it the backside version of?

Spring in the Sky, though unlike the others areas, the gate does not lead there but on the Surface.

Where is the map of the area?

You can get it rather early on.
It's in the top-right room from the entrance (the one with a fallen tower on the right)
You have to break the wall on the top-left corner.
If you missed it, the chest appeared at the bottom-right corner.

I see what seems to be an unreachable cavern on the top-right corner of a room, how do I get there?

You can't from there. Just ignore it.

I placed a weight on a dais in the room with the unreachable cavern; the earth shook a bit, but what did it do exactly?

It changed something in another area.
Something happened in Spring in the Sky, but it's very subtle. Don't worry, you'll discover it anyway while solving another puzzle in the Tower of the Goddess.

OK, I've explored a few rooms, but I can't find anywhere to go now...

You have to climb the central tower.
The beams on the sides of the tower are ladders.

I found some rooms with big empty tubes, but it seems there's nothing to do there currently. What should I do?

There's a way to fill the tubes with water to allow you to explore the rooms upwards.
There's a big hint on how to do that on a stone tablet somewhere in this area (it sounds a bit out-of-place).
The hint is the following:
"The lake created by Migela and Futo.
Ribu carries the water to the tower.
The place where the finger points and
Anunnaki refuses to gaze upon."

You have to go to two different places in other areas, can you guess where?
As the hint suggests, the first is in the Mausoleum of the Giants, the other in Spring in the Sky.
The one in the Mausoleum of the Giants is a bit hard to find. First, can you find where Ribu is?
It's the Giant statue with the pointed finger in the room to the right of the one where you fought the boss.
Can you see what it points?
Breaking the pot doesn't help, can you think of something else (unexpected) to do?
You have to "enter" the pot by standing on it and pressing down, Mario-style. Yeah, I know, it's again one of those things that make you hate La-Mulana. And love it at the same time...
Anyway, if you can't find what to do next, you'll have to break the bottom hatch. If you still can't do it, you probably forgot to put a weight on a dais somewhere in the Tower of the Goddess (near the stone tablet with the hint above).

Once that's done, you can teleport out. Can you find the second place you have to go now? (it's much less far-fetched than the first)
Can you find a room about this Anunnaki?
It's the one at the very bottom of the area (the one where you lifted the cork to flood the Temple of the Sun). The name of the room is on your map.
Can you find the place where "Anunnaki refuses to gaze upon"?
Yes, that's a mural depicting Anunnaki in this room.
You have to go through a secret wall at the top-right of the room.
Again, break the hatch and leave. The tubes are now filled with water that you can swim in.

There's a closed chest under the tubes, how can I open it?

You'll have to fill the tubes first (see hint above).
You have first to put a weight on a dais at the very top of the tower with the water tubes.
Then put a weight on the dais that appeared on the right side in the room above the one with the chest.

I see an unreachable cavern in the tower with the tubes. How can I reach it?

It's a shop with a useful, but not essential item, if you want to skip it.
You have to make the ladder appear in the room below.
The ladder will appear when you put a weight on the dais under the crusher.
You'll need a specific item to be able to reach the dais in time.
You'll need to use the Lamp of Time.

I found a very high tower, how do I climb to the top?

You have the Feather right?
It might be a bit easier if you haven't already filled the tubes with water in another part of the area. If you did, you'll have to kill the two subboss that appeared (they aren't very tough).
You might get a bit of help from the flying platforms the subboss were on, but it's not mandatory.
In order to climb the highest floors, you have to jump up to the wall, which will allow you to switch direction for the double jump. You may also use the Grapple Claw.

There are several paths to other areas that appear blocked by statues... How do I unblock them?

You'll need an item found in this area.
You'll need the Plane Model (no idea why a plane model would make some statues disappear but well...). Read below for guidance on how to get it.
You'll need the Eye of Truth, to beat the two flying subbosses and to reach the top of the right tower.
Step on the platforms in each of the room to the left and to the right of the Holy Grail Tablet until they can't get further down.
A chest has appeared near the top of the right tower.

What should I find in this area before leaving?

Here's the list of things that you can get in this area during your first visit (aside from your trip to bring water to the tower):

• The map of the level (top-right room after entering)
  
• The Eye of Truth (after filling the tubes)
  
• The Plane Model (after reaching the top of the right tower)
  
• The miracle.exe software (in a shop)
  
• 2 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss any)

There are also two "hidden" non-essential items that can be found there; read below if you want to know.

• The Flail Whip (scale puzzle, after you've freed the Philosophers)
  
• The Spaulder (hidden in the room with the entrance to the Graveyard of the Giants)

Tower of the Goddess (part 2)

Note: this area is split in two due to Steam's character limit. This part is about solving a puzzle involving scales you'll find once the Philosophers are awakened.

I spoke with the Philosopher here telling me that its path was opened. Which path is it?

On the second floor of the large tower (the right one), there'll be an opening in the wall to the left.

I'm in a room with a giant scale. How do I solve the puzzle here?

This puzzle will give you a non-essential, but very powerful item, so you may want to skip it. It's a bit long and complicated to solve, but the reward is really worth it.
You only have one shot at this puzzle, so if you fail, reload a previous save. If you don't, there's a way to reset the puzzle, but it's a bit complicated so you should try to avoid it. Read the part about "permanently lost items" in the "General gameplay hints part 2" section if you need. Beware, the puzzle starts as soon as you read the tablet in there.
OK, ready to try to solve that puzzle? Let's go! You first have to find vital clues about gemstones scattered across the ruins.
There are 6 stone tablets with hints in other areas. It's possible to get the solution without getting each hint, though it will be more difficult.

There's one in the Chamber of Extinction, one in the Twin Labyrinths, one in the Graveyard of the Giants, one in the Tower of Ruin, one in the Chamber of Birth and one in the Temple of Moonlight. Of course, the stone tablet in the room with the scale is also vital. Below are the precise locations.

Chamber of Extinction: Room to the right of the entrance of the Shrine of the Mother
Twin Labyrinths: Room of the topmost Holy Grail Tablet
Graveyard of the Giants: Gate to the Mausoleum of the Giants
Tower of Ruin: Gate to the Inferno Cavern
Chamber of Birth: Room to the bottom-right of the endless pit
Temple of Moonlight: Entrance to Eden

Below is the full list of hints:
Chamber of Extinction: "The joyful heart is pearly white, the eloquent heart is black,
the sincere heart is purple, the blissful heart is ____,
pure heart is white, the passionate heart is red,
and the affectionate heart is ____.
Every heart has a color."
Twin Labyrinths: "Black onyx means "eloquence".
Purple amethyst indicates "sincerity".
The meanings are infused into the gemstones."
Graveyard of the Giants: "The red ruby means "passion."
The ____ sapphire signifies "affection."
The meanings are infused into the Gemstones."
Tower of Ruin: "The white diamond represents "purity."
The meaning is infused into the gemstone."
Chamber of Birth: "The white opal represents "joy".
The meaning is infused into the gemstone."
Temple of Moonlight: "The joyful heart is 20, the eloquent heart is 44,
the sincere heart is 50, the blissful heart is 63,
the pure heart is 70, the passionate heart is 81,
and the affectionate heart is 99.
Every heart has a weight."

OK, I have all the hints. Now how do I make sense out of them?

Of course, you have to balance each side of the scale.
You have to find the equivalence between heart, gemstone, color and weight.
You have to search the color of a sapphire if you don't know it already. You'll also have to guess one of the gemstones that is not mentioned.

Below are all the equivalencies:
Joyful - Opal - White - 20
Eloquent - Onyx - Black - 44
Sincere - Amethyst - Purple - 50
Blissful - Emerald - Green - 63
Pure - Diamond - Pearly white - 70
Passionate - Ruby - Red - 81
Affectionate - Sapphire - Blue - 99

If you look at the units (4, 0, 3, 1 and 9), you should see that it's not possible to have the same number on the left and on the right. Hmm, maybe you should read again the stone tablet near the scale?
"Those who seek power, prove thine knowledge.
If thy spirit is balanced and just, the power shall be granted."
How can the fact that one's spirit is "balanced and just" be relevant? Note: I believe something was lost in translation; instead of "spirit" it should be "heart"...
Yes, your own heart as a weight. And it seems it has to be "balanced" for the reward to be granted...
Assume that your heart is balanced and see if you're worthy of the reward.
Naturally, a balanced heart has a weight equal to the average of each emotion.
Which is equal to 61. Now, can you balance everything out? Below is the full answer if you can't find it.
In order of arrival: left, left, right, right, right, left, left, then put Lemeza on the right scale.

Chamber of Birth (part 1)

Remember Gate of Illusion? Well, this area comes close second in terms of crazy-hard puzzles with (at best) obscure hints about it... On the bright side, this is likely to be one of the last areas you'll need to complete before reaching the endgame. Stay on track!

You'll have to complete about every other area (except the Dimensional Corridor) to be able to fully complete this area. Still, you can solve several puzzles before and it might even be a bit easier to explore early, so don't hesitate to wander here for a bit if you want a change of mind from other areas.

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in the first part should be useful from the moment you can see (not necessarly reach) the Holy Grail Tablet until you beat the subboss of the area.

How do I reach this place?

You'll reach it once you've completed the Tower of Goddess.
The area is split in two disconnected areas (similar to the Chamber of Extinction); you'll be able able to reach one directly from the Tower of Goddess. Read further for how to reach the other.
The entrance to the other part is in the Graveyard of Giants, though in a part you can't reach from where you were initially in that area.

Which area is it the backside version of?

Seriously?

I found an entrance here but it looks like a dead-end right in the first room...

You should know better by now.
The wall on the bottom right is a false wall.

Yay, there's a Holy Grail Tablet in sight! But how do I reach it?

It would be too good to be true! You can't from the bottom of the room. You have to find a way to the top, which will require quite a bit of exploration first.

Where is the map?

It's in the room to the bottom-right of the entrance from the Tower of the Goddess, but you probably can't open it the first time you see it. You'll need an item found in that area for that.
You'll need the Woman Statue.
If you have it, isn't there a place in this room that stands out?
Use the Woman Statue in front of the woman engraving behind the pot.

I've explored as much as I could, but I'm utterly lost, I can't find anything to do...

Pay attention to some interesting features in the background.
Maybe you could try using a similar item in front?
You know, one of those boring items you thought you'd use only once in the whole game...
There's a pedestal in front of a snake statue at the top-right of a room.
Okay, using the Serpent Staff in front did not look like it unlocked a very interesting thing, but maybe it'll be useful afterall - try exploring further, even in some place you thought you'd already visited.
Go to the right of the endless pit, there's a teleporter there that will bring you where the block was. If you still can't find what to do in there, read further.
There's a useful hint on what to do here on a stone tablet in the Chamber of Birth (the challenge is to understand that it relates to this place). The tablet is deep in a disconnected part of the Chamber of Birth if you're wondering...
The hint is:
"Vishnu beheaded Asura with a weapon like a ring of light."
You see the head on the block to the right? Yes, that's Asura.
Throw a chakram (you found them long ago, right?) in the small opening, hitting the block on its way back.

I was hurt when jumping (or I did not jump correctly) in the bottomless pit and now I'm falling endlessly. What can I do?

Teleport out with the Holy Grail.

OK, now I'm stuck on a ladder, there are elephant statues on the way...

Remember what you did with the Serpent Staff?
There's another feature on the wall where you'll want to use an item. Of course, you need to have that item...
You need to use the Crystal Skull in front of the black skull to remove the elephant statues. Now you should be able to reach the Holy Grail Tablet!

Now I've found the Holy Grail Tablet and gained access to the room on the right. Still stuck here...

You know the drill. Look at the background.
You have the Cog of Soul, don't you?
The statue started to move. It must have hidden something...
Use again the Cog of Soul (try not to get crushed by the statue) to open the path below.
There's a teleporter if you go down then left.

I finally reached a dais after a long maze, but all it seems to do is move a block in an unreachable part of the same room. I'm stuck agaaaaain!

Well, to be honest, you have to take a path so obscure that I don't really see how you can find it without a spoiler... Anyway, remember the room where you had to hit a statue with a chakram? There's another way from there.
Instead of going in the path at the bottom left, jump in the wall just above. It's a fake wall that will lead you to a teleporter.

I've reached a place with some kind of giant black hole with a human shape. What should I do in there?

You'll fight a subboss here, but there are two things you need to do first.
Have you activated the mudmen in the area? Read below for a hint about it.
You have the Cog of Soul but haven't activated the mudmen? You must have forgotten to do something in the Gate of Illusion...
Go back to where the stray fairy was and use the Cog of Soul here. Now that the mudmen are activated, read below if you're still stuck.
You have to do something in the rooms below (go to the left part of the moving block)
You have to do something in the rightmost room. There's a hint on the stone tablet, assuming you're now able to fully decypher old glyphs.
The hint is:
"Dance in this place.
Let's praise life."
You have to perform the Dance of Life here.
Don't know the Dance of Life?
You can learn it on a tablet in the Twin Labyrinths. Read below to know the answer.
Strike left three times, then right three times, then jump.
Now you can go back to the other room to fight the subboss.

Any advice for the subboss?

Its weak point is the red light in its chest.
Try to hit him when it jumps, it will fall and you'll be able to easily strike him.
Caltrops should also be useful here if you are able to drop them on the lowest platform (not the ground).

Chamber of Birth (part 2)

Note: due to Steam's character limit, the guide for this area is split in three. Most of the hints in the first part should be useful after you've beaten the subboss of the area.

I've beaten the subboss, now what?

You've done nearly all you have to do in this section of the area. Now you have to go in another, disconnected section of the area through a different entrance. Read below if you can't find the other entrance.
It's in the Graveyard of Giants, though not in the "main" area you've already been in.
You have to go to the Graveyard of Giants through the Tower of the Goddess.

Is there anything to do in the bottomless pit?

Well, the small opening near the bottom right sure is suspicious...
Hm, and what about the small altars to the left and the right of the pit?
Scan them with you scanner.
Which items do you have that can represent "birth" and "death" respectively? Beware, you might not have the correct items (and it will be the case if it's your first trip in the Chamber of Birth) and you'll be "retributed" if you're wrong. Read below to know the answer.
On the "birth" side you have to put the Maternity Statue (this is different from the Woman Statue!).
On the "death" side you have to put the Dragon Bone (don't ask me why...).
Well, there's still something to do. Look carefully around...
There's a big infinity symbol in the middle of the pit.
Use the Key of Eternity in front of the symbol to make a chest appear.
Still can't reach the chest? There must be a way to remove that block...
Striking it doesn't help. At least from here...
Try to strike it from the other way.
Yes, from the bottom-left of the room to the right.
Still can't open the chest now? It's cursed. You need an item to open cursed chests. Read below to know which one.
You need the Mulana Talisman.

Found the other entrance! There's a closed gate here, how do I open it?

Like the other gates, you have to have beaten the boss of the area first.

I noticed an elevated floor in a room in a place I can't reach. Is it useful?

It unlocks a non-essential, mildly useful item.
No, there's no way for you to reach it. No teleporter or the like, I promise. Read below if you can't find the solution.
Have you activated the mudmen? If not, you have to it in another area.
You can do it by returning to the Gate of Illusion through a different entrance and solve a new puzzle here.
Once it's done, wait until a mudman step on the floor.

There's a statue with a laser that kills me when I get near it...

It's part of an essential puzzle, so just ignoring it won't work...
You'll need an item to survive.
It's not the Silver Shield.
The item you need is located in the Dimensional Corridor, so if you haven't been there yet, wait until later and come back here.
You'll need the Angel Shield.
Bounce the laser then go behind the statue to get the item.

There's an oddly tilted statue in a room...

Yeah, it's odd. What would one expect to do with such a statue?
Make it fall, of course! Who thought "put it straight again"? ... OK, since you're an archelogist exploring untouched ruins at the origin of the whole humanity, it'd make sense, but then, now you've made it this far, you've already completely spoiled the place, so who cares about one more statue...
Oh yeah, back to the statue. No need to strike it endlessly, it's too heavy. You'll need an item to make it fall.
Try to use your own weight.
Use the Grapple Claw to make it fall.

I've entered a secret room that stinks trap from a mile around...

Well, why don't you put a weight on the dais? It doesn't look like there's much else to do here anyway...
Of course it was an obvious trap!
OK, there's a way to escape it.
One skeleton was so close from getting out...
Put a weight on the rightmost skeleton to open an exit. Don't forget to come back afterwards!

There's a room with a big wall in the middle that seems disconnected from the rest of the area. How do I reach it?

There's a teleporter to reach it.
It's located in the room to the right of this one.
In the room to the right, go on the second platform from the top around the middle of the room. The teleporter is near the elephant.

I've reach the room with the big wall in the middle, is there anything to do here?

Of course, you'd not make through all this trouble for nothing! You don't need anything specific to do what you need to do here.
Strike the topmost block.
There's a teleporter hidden where the block was. Read below if you still can't find what to do afterwards.
You'll have to go to the middle of the room, to a teleporter bringing you to a similar room in the Chamber of Extinction.
Put a weight on the dais and go to the right through another teleporter there. Look at the hints in part 2 of the Chamber of Extinction if you want to know what you did.

Is there an Ankh Jewel in this area? I haven't found one in the frontside version...

Yes, there is.
You'll found it in a most unlikely location.
You can buy it in a shop. The question is, where is that shop...
Isn't there anything that looks like an entrance to a shop in this area?
The "black shapes" where mudmen come from (once you've activated the mechanism). There's one that doesn't generate mudmen...
From the entrance from the Tower of the Goddess, go right, down then right.

I think I've fully explored the Chamber of Birth. What should I have found in there before leaving?

You've explored both parts of the Chamber of Birth, right?
Here's what you can find in the left part (the one with the entrance from the Tower of the Goddess):

• The map of the level (in a chest described above)
  
• The Pochette Key (after killing the subboss)
  
• An Ankh Jewel (bought in a shop)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss it)

And here's what you can find in the other part (the one with the entrance from the Graveyard of Giants):

• The Woman Statue (in a secret room)
  
• The Perfume (room with the elevated floor)
  
• 2 wodden chests (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you miss any)

There are also two items you'll likely find later when you come back here as you'll need specific, late-game items to get them:

• The Vessel (behind the laser statue in the top part)
  
• The Dimensional Key (in the bottomless pit in the bottom; see hint above)

Dimensional Corridor

This area is probably more straightforward and less confusing than what you'd expect (especially if you've finished the Chamber of Birth recently). Still, there are some puzzles in here that might hurt your head.
You may explore a little bit once you've found the entrance, but I'd advise keeping it for when you're finished with every other area (i.e. you've beaten the 7 other bosses).

How do I get in this area?

The entrance is in the Twin Labyrinths.
It's in the mostly empty room at the top-right with the Neptune statue and the shining skulls. You'll need a specific item to "dispel the magic" protecting it.
You'll need to use the Crystal Skull on the floating skulls to enter.
To reach it, you have to get on an invisible platform about at the height of the navel of Neptune.[/spoiler]

My Holy Grail Tablet doesn't work in here?

No, it doesn't. It's different from the other backside areas: you can't use it while you're in the Dimensional Corridor, but you can teleport in once you've found the Holy Grail Tablet.
If you need to exit, there's a one-way gate nearby to the Endless Corridor.

Which area is it the backside version of?

Well, the one with an obvious name and whose you haven't found the other side yet...
For a bit of lore, interestingly, this was the frontside version while the Endless Corridor was the backside version, but the two were swapped by magic hence the reason why the boss is there (it's always in the frontside) and there's a stone tablet telling that the Endless Corridor is connected to the Twin Labyrinths while it's in fact the Dimensional Corridor.

I'm having trouble with a subboss, any help?

There are many subbosses in here, so I won't detail each of them. Most of them are very easy; a few might be bit trickier, but nothing you can't handle. Learn their patterns and do not hesitate to use subweapons.

I've killed what looked like a subboss but it respawned when I came back!

Every subboss in here will respawn. There's a way to stop that.
You'll need an item for that.
You'll need the Dimensional Key to prevent the respawning. There's a hint on a stone tablet in the Dimensional Corridor regarding its location.
The hint is:
"Obtain the Dimensional key.
The place that eternally connects to the place where life is born with no end.
Thrust infinity there."
It's in the bottomless pit in the Chamber of Birth. Read the corresponding hint in that section of the guide to get it.

There's a room with the classical "item hidden in a rock", but how do I get it? Using a weight on the dais did not look like it did anything...

You'll have to come back to this room after you've beaten a nearby subboss. A new dais will appear.
If you forgot to come back here afterward, the dais will not appear. You'll have to find the corresponding item elsewhere.
Read the Item Hints section about the Angel Shield if needed.

I went to fight a subboss but the path closed behind me! Do I really have to beat all the subboss in a row?

No, a path back to the gate to the Endless Corridor will open regularly once you've beaten a few in a row.

What's with the big room with red lights?

As you might have guesses, the number of red lights has its importance.
It's the number of subbosses you've beaten in this area.
Of course, you'll need all eleven of them to light up for... something to happen.

It seems there's on my map a room on the top of where I fought a subboss but can't reach it...

It contains a non-essential item that you may ignore without losing much (especially considering how troublesome it is to reach).
It contains a Sacred Orb.
You can only reach the room while fighting the subboss below (it's possible after but very difficult as it involves being knocked out on a specific place by enemies).
You have to climb the ladder on the top-right, which you can reach by swimming in the geyser the subboss occasionally casts. Jump a bit before the geyser actually appears.
You may want to use the Lamp of Time to freeze the geyser.
Once in the room on the top, you'll have to reach the seal then the chest without falling (or you'll have to start again). Good luck - and when you'll get it, throw everything you've got at the subboss before heading back to the Holy Grail Tablet and save you game!

I think I've beaten every subboss, but I seem to miss one... Where is it?

This one is much harder to find than the others.
There are hints on how to find it on stone tablets in other areas. Do you remember reading some about the subbosses from the Dimensional Corridor? (their names are on you map)
One is in the Shrine of Mother and another in the Tower of Ruin. There's also a vital one in the Inferno Cavern, though you probably read it a long time ago, which is a bit harder to relate to this place.
The hints are:
"Ugallu's body, Urmahlullu's voice, Umu Dabrutu's wings, and Ushum's tail.
Together they form Mushussu."
"The angry snake, Mushussu, child of Tiamat, is the strongest demon.
It stands protected, among these four pillars, the giant lion Ugallu, the poisonous snake Ushum, the rabid dog Urmahlullu, and the storm demon Umu Dabrutu.
Awaken the deceased souls in this order: voice, tail, body, and wings."
"Turn left and swing your weapon.
Turn right and swing your weapon.
The souls of the children long-departed shall be awakened."
You have to do something in the right rooms in the right order. Something will happen in the room each time if you're right (if you do a mistake you'll have to start again from the beginning).
Perform the "dance" of the 3rd hint in the right place in each of the room of the subboss mentioned.
First in front of the statue in Urmahlullu's room (2nd room from the top in the leftmost column).
Second in the middle of Ushum's room (3nd room from the top in the rightmost column).
Third in front of the statue in Ugallu's room (room under the one with the red lights).
Finally in front of the spiral in Umu Dabrutu's room (room to the right of the one with the red lights).
The final subboss (and the Ankh Jewel) will be in the room below.

Finally reached the boss of the area! Any advice?

It has quite a bit of health and will go through 3 different stages depending on its health, so prepare for a long fight.
The head is the weak point, though it's protected by its hairs on the sides. Staying under it is a good spot if you have weapons and/or subweapons able to strike upward.

So, what should I have found in here before leaving for good?

Actually not so many things, the main goal here is to beat the guardian (probably your last).

• The map of the level (can't miss it, in first room after you enter)
  
• The Angel Shield (top-leftmost room)
  
• An Ankh Jewel, though you probably already used it to face the boss (room with the 11th subboss)
  
• The Magatama Jewel (in a cursed chest after beating the boss)
  
• 1 wodden chest (only containing coins, so that's not a big deal if you missed it)

There's also a completely optional (no gameplay effect) software that you can find in here.
The beolamu.exe software is hidden in Mushnahhu's room (you'll need torude.exe).

True Shrine of the Mother

Finally, the last area in the game! (unless you want to venture in the optional areas, of course). Actually, it's not that difficult compared to some other locations (Gate of Illusion?), though making the final boss appear might be a bit complex. Don't give up, the end is near!

Where is that area?

It'll appear when you'll have defeated each of the 8 guardians (bosses) in the other areas and will replace the Shrine of the Mother area.

How do I reach the place?

Same entrances you used to get into the Shrine of the Mother.

The Holy Grail Tablet I had scanned is no longer available?

If you're talking about the Holy Grail Tablet of the Shrine of the Mother, no, it has permanently disappeared when the True Shrine of the Mother appeared. You'll have to find the Holy Grail Tablet in this new area.

I entered the area, but it looks like I'm stuck right at the beginning!

There were 4 entrances to the Shrine of the Mother. Only 1 will allow you to explore the True Shrine of the Mother.
The entrances to the two disconnected rooms will still lead you to disconnected rooms from which you can't explore.
If you enter from the Chamber of Extinction, you'll also be stuck.
Yes, to get in you have to go all the way through the Endless Corridor again.
Still stuck? The smaller red veins are not just decorations, you can climb them.

I met again the subboss from the Shrine of the Mother... Except this time, it attacks!

He's not very hard, but it might be difficult as you've gone a long way and you may not be at full health. He's vulnerable anywhere, so just strike it; having your shield up might also help here.
If you're really in trouble, there's a way to skip this fight before it starts (and come back when you've reached the Holy Grail Tablet just behind).
Use the Lamp of Time when you arrive in the room.

I've followed a path in the area, but it seems I've reached a dead-end in the room above the Holy Grail Tablet...

There's a yellow vein you can strike there to be able to go further.

And now there's some kind of statue blocking the way...

For that you'll need help from somebody.
Do you remember someone offering to help you "when the time comes"? If now is not the time, it'll be never!
No, it's not Xelpud or someone in the Village, neither a Philosopher or Mulbruk. Can't think of someone else friendly around here? And there's even a hint on the statue itself...
Remember the Fairy Queen?
You'll have to go see her in the Endless Corridor once you've seen this statue and come back to the True Shrine of Mother for her to open the way.

Finally reached the room where it seems the final fight will take place, but nothing special happens...

You have to do quite a few things before the fight can start.
First, have you put a weight on the dais that was stuck behind a wall in the Shrine of the Mother? It's now accessible (room at the bottom-left of the entrance from the top in the area) and will create the Mother's "Ankh".
You'll need all four seals - but you already got them right?
You'll also need an item that will work as an Ankh Jewel. Look in your inventory for something glowing red...
You'll need to use the Key Sword. By the way, it has become a much more powerful weapon now (though the Flail Whip remains a little bit better if you have it).
And finally, remember what one Philosoper said?
"Drive 8 wedges into the Mother's body.

Take the Djed Pillar and Magatama Jewel in hand and recite the mantra.
The mantra has been inscribed upon the markers.
Drive the wedges from the heels."
That's the longest and hardest part... but I advise against directly reading the solution, it's a very nice and clever puzzle. Read the next chapter of this guide about Mantras, which is fully dedicated to this puzzle.

Ah, the fight starts! But it seems the battle is over before it really began?

You've just attacked a physical manifestation of the Mother. You have to properly attack her soul now. For that, you need two things.
First, you have to have visited every Holy Grail Tablet. That's probably the case, but who knows... You'l notice the Holy Grail is slightly changed.
Then, you have to have the Medicine of the Mind.
If you don't know where to find it, the Philosopher Fobos in the Dimensional Corridor will tell you (and open the path for you). You'll also need a Vessel to put the Medicine in. Once you have it, read below.
If you're still kicked out of the fight, it means you have the wrong Medicine. Try the puzzle again.

Any help for the final fight?

The first form should be very easy. Just hit the head with your shield on until it changes into the second form.
The second form has a very low health. Just stay away from it and strike from afar (chakrams and pistol for example).
The third form can be a bit annoying; try not to lose too much health here, you'll need it. Using the axe to strike the head usually works OK.
The fourth form also has a low health. Hit the tentacles to make them retract and hit the eye as much as you can before it leaves the screen. Or shoot it with the pistol.
The fifth form is (at last!) the final form and as you'd expect is much stronger than the others. It'll progressively use the attacks from every guardian you've encountered. During the earlier phases, you can easily hit it by standing behind it while it breathes fire. When it starts to float high above, things start to get more difficult; the Axe can be useful, as well as Flare (though you'll need a *lot* of them to do significant damage). Throw everything you have and can, it's the final fight!

Yay, I beat it! But... the game is not over?

No, you have to escape the ruins in time - and your Holy Grail is now broken. It's La-Mulana, what would you expect?
You can't leave by the way you came in. Can you think of another way?
There was a hint about it in the Dimensional Corridor. Hope you thought of copying it since it might be too late to come back there now...
The hint is:
"When the Mother's power disappears, all will be destroyed.
There is only one path to survival.
That which has received the holy blessing."
You have to find someone. Someone who might even have asked you to be saved once you've put the Mother into eternal sleep...
Go find Mulbruk, quick!
You're now out! Congratulations!

Mantras (part 1)

The "final" puzzle of the game, understanding and finding mantras, while probably being the most complex of the game, has enough hints so it can be solved with wits and perseverance (I haven't said that the hints were obvious...) and it nicely puts together several things you should have understood during your adventures there. While it may seem daunting at first, you'll feel immensely rewarded when you finally will find the solution. So, here are some hints to help you along the way if you're really stuck, but try to resist the urge to look at them too quickly as soon as you feel you don't know what to do...

How do I "drive 8 wedges in the Mother's body"?

It's one of the most difficult puzzle of the game (not surprising since it's about the last). There are hints scattered about it in the ruins (the ones talking about wedges and mantras).
If you remember the words of Philosopher Giltoriyo well, you'll need a Djed Pillar and a Magatama Jewel. Read below if you have that.

First, here are the hints; see if you can make sense out of them.
"There was a race that recorded their knowledge on the walls.
This knowledge will operate in a mechanical box, as a virtual wise-man.
It shall awaken should a wise-man read the mural."

"The Magatama jewel is the key to the enchanted mantra."

"Wisdom is buried within the wall.
Hold high the emblem of proof, before the palace guarded by Hell's gatekeeper.
Glowing letters will shine through the darkness.
The wisdom is, in fact, the virtual wise-man, the keeper of the mantra."

It seems you have to use the Magatama Jewel at the right place. Can you find where?
"Before the palace guarded by Hell's gatekeeper"
That's the room where you fought the two subbosses in the path into the Chamber of Extinction after the gate in the Chamber of Birth.
Use it in front of the matching symbol on the "palace" in this room. Now, what did that do?
"Glowing letters will shine through the darkness."
The darkness refers to the Chamber of Extinction. Maybe pay a visit here.
The big mural over some spikes in that area now glows green. Do you have something that works like a "virtual wise man"?
Scan the mural with torude.exe to get another software, mantra.exe. Read below for hints on how to use it.
Mantra.exe allows you to record mantras that you can then chant using the Djed Pillar. The question now is, where are those mantras and where should you chant them...

So, how can I find the mantras?

You should have stumbled at some point upon a room full of hints regarding each of the mantra's location.
It's in the Temple of the Sun, in the room that you can reach from behind the former Sphinx statue now destroyed. Read below for a reminder of the full list of hints and try to figure out what to do by yourself before reading further (it might take a bit of travel and of trial and error, but there's no penalty for doing anything wrong).

The first mantra is in the corridor.
The entrance to the never-ending corridor.

The second mantra is at the foot of the twins.
At the tip of the feet that connect the two.

The third mantra is on the path leading outside.
At the side of Hell's gatekeeper.

Recite the mantra correctly.
Let us seal Tiamat, Baphomet, Palenque, Viy, Bahamut, Ellmac, Sakit, and Amphisbaena.

The fourth mantra is inside the Giant.
She who stands in the land of inferno.

The fifth mantra is below the goddess.
At the foot of the goddess staring at the collapsed tower.

The seventh mantra is by the spike.
Atop the five mysterious floors.

The last mantra is the sign of courage.

OK, here are some hints on how to make sense out of it.
First, as the 4th hint suggests, you have to do things in order - Tiamat, Baphomet, Palenque, Viy, Bahamut, Ellmac, Sakit then Amphisbaena (you might notice it's probably the reverse of the order you've fought those guardians).
And as you might have guessed by reading the other hints, there's one mantra per area (backside and frontside count as one).
So, let's look for mantras in order, starting with the one "at the entrance of the never-ending corridor". That's an easy one.
Read the tablet that appeared at the entrance of the Endless Corridor (from the Mausoleum of the Giants). You'll learn the first mantra.
Now, the trick is, you can't continue until you've actually chanted the mantra at the right place.

How do I know where to chant a mantra?

There's a not-so-obvious hint about where you should chant the mantra; you may also try to "bruteforce" the solution by randomly trying in each room until you find the right one (especially for the first ones in order to start understanding the logic), though it might be a bit long... By the way, you'll know when you do it at the right place.

The place is loosely hinted about by the following hint:
"The guardian protects something else.
There will be a wedge there.
Eight wedges will give form to the soul."

It seems the guardians were keeping some kind of "wedge"; seems that's what you're looking for if you remember the words of Philosopher Giltoryo.
Did you notice that each guardian was in the frontside version of their area? Well, except Tiamat in the Dimensional Corridor, but then, this area should have been the frontside if you've been very careful to La-Mulana's lore. Anyway, that's something important.
Maybe the guardian was keeping the wedge in the backside by staying at the same place in the frontside?
The difficulty is to understand which room in the backside corresponds to the boss room in the frontside.
There's a feature that appears in many places in the ruins; you've probably seen it without paying too much attention. But now, it looks different, as if screaming so you notice it!
The Crosses are now glowing.
They look a lot like Compass Roses also... That might be another hint to tell you that you'll need them to find directions.
Also, did you notice there was one (and exactly one) such Cross in each area, one in the backside and one in the frontside?
Maybe the locations of the cross in the backside and the frontside mean the two place are somehow linked...
The crosses in the backside and in the frontside are there to tell that the corresponding rooms are in the "same" place.
Now, tying everything together, you have to find where in the backside is the room corresponding to the boss room.
Look where the boss room is compared to the Cross in the frontside, and find the room at the same distance and in the same direction from the Cross in the backside.
You fall "outside" the map? You should have a good grasp on the topology of the ruins now - what's the logic of ladders and paths seemingly leading you to a non-connected room?
The answer is even in the manual.
Each area can be rearranged in a 5x5 square by "folding" the map and putting the rooms inside the square; look at the manual if it's not clear.
Now you should be able to find the location of the wedge in the Endless Corridor (as well as the others later on). Remember, you have to get each mantra after you've chanted the previous mantra at the right place. And don't worry too much now about the seemingly missing hint for the 6th mantra, you'll see when you get there.

Mantras (part 2)

I think I've understood the whole logic of mantras and wedges. Still, I'm having trouble finding mantras even with the hint; can I have some help with that?

First, some general hints.
OK, there's one mantra that is very hard to find (the 4th one). If you're stuck there, go directly below in the "specific hints" section for help.
As you've probably understood, each mantra is linked with a guardian, so there will be exactly one mantra per area (backside and frontside counting as one). Don't bother looking into area you've already found a mantra in.
You even know the order of the mantras through the hint on the order of the bosses you have to seal, so you know in which area you have to look into.
The mantra is not necessarly on the frontside version of the area.
The mantra will always be on a different-looking stone tablet. You can't miss it once you see it.
Once you find a mantra tablet, scan it with your Hand Scanner to memorize it. You'll have to be able to decode old la-mulanese though (read the hints under "Even with the Glyph Reader, there are some stone tablets that are still unreadable..." in the part 2 of the General Hints if you need help).
If all else fails, just explore every room in the area you think the mantras' in until you find it...


Now some specific hints for each mantra:

The first mantra is in the corridor.
The entrance to the never-ending corridor.
The location of the first one should be very obvious.

The second mantra is at the foot of the twins.
At the tip of the feet that connect the two.
The second one is clearly in the Twin Labyrinths; the "feet" metaphorically refers to the map of the area.

The third mantra is on the path leading outside.
At the side of Hell's gatekeeper.
You may remember a reference to "Hell's Gatekeeper" when looking for mantra.exe. Anyway, the first part of the hint ("a path leading outside") should also narrow your search a lot, even if you haven't guessed which area we're talking about.

The fourth mantra is inside the Giant.
She who stands in the land of inferno.
This one is really tricky. It's obviously in the Inferno Cavern, but you won't find it by randomly exploring. You probably found the "She" "Giant" that "stands", but you can't do anything with her yet. In fact, the mantra will be visible when you've done something else in that area.
You'll have to find another "she" that "stands" (though not so much giant) and beat her.
Destroy the kind of mermaid statue in the short path in the Inferno Cavern that leads to the Pyramid in the Tower of Ruin. The dais will remove the statue you've been thinking about.

The fifth mantra is below the goddess.
At the foot of the goddess staring at the collapsed tower.
This one should also be rather obvious if you've been paying attention to the landscape in the Tower of the Goddess, though the mantra tablet itself can easily be overlooked if you're not careful.

The seventh mantra is by the spike.
Atop the five mysterious floors.
This one is not obvious. Luckily, we can guess through the other hints that it's either in the Mausoleum of Giants or the Graveyard of Giants.
The "five mysterious floors" refer to small platforms. Do you remember a room in one of those two areas with spikes and five platforms?
It's in the Graveyard of Giants, near the entrance from the Tower of the Goddess.

The last mantra is the sign of courage.
You can guess this one is either in the Gate of Guidance or in the Gate of Illusion.
Do you remember a puzzle about "courage"?
A long, long time ago?
In fact, it might even be the first puzzle you've solved in the ruins...

My head hurts. Can I just know where the mantras and wedges are so I move to something else?

I feel it'd be spoiling this wonderful puzzle to give the answers straight away, but if you really need it, it's on this[lamulana-remake.wikia.com] page.

Gate of Time (optional location)

There are two optional locations in La-Mulana. The Gate of Time is an area you can explore during the course of your game to get a few benefits. Don't worry if you can't find it, you really don't miss much.

What is this area exactly?

It's some kind of recreation of some of the areas from the original 8-bits La-Mulana that you can visit in the remake.

How do I reach this area?

The entrance is in the Chamber of Extinction.
The entrance is in the room to the right of the Holy Grail Tablet. You'll need to do something to open the path though.
Bring a Key Fairy there to open the way.

Why would I want to get there?

There might be two reasons why: to get a piece of software and to reach a hidden fairy allowing to reset a few puzzles if you screwed them. Below is the location of the software; the hidden shop is described in a hint below.
The piece of software that is hidden is (obviously!) lamulana.exe.
In order to reach it, you first have to find your way to the Village to meet Xelpud. Try to find it based on what he said.
The software is hidden in the screen to the right of the Village.
Climb the ladder and strike left.

Where is the hidden fairy and what does she do?

She can reset two puzzles that you can permanently screw in the game: the one behind the subboss in the Inferno Cavern and the Scale puzzle in the Tower of the Goddess. This can only be done after you've beaten the boss of the Dimensional Corridor though. Read below for her location in the Gate of Time.
It about at the same place as a hidden shop in the game.
It in the Gate of Guidance.
After you enter Gate of Guidance from the Mausoleum of the Giants, go to the right in the seemingly blocked path.

Hell Temple (optional location)

(coming soon!)

Item hints (weapons)

For each item, you'll learn here:
1/ Whether it's an essential item at some point in the game, or just an optional item;
2/ Roughly at which point in the game you can reach it, so you don't waste too much time looking for an item you can't get until much later;
3/ Where to find it and how to get it if;
4/ How it is used and for what purpose.

This chapter is contains informations about primary weapons.
Note that you can find the complete list of items in the manual.


Whip
1/ Essential.
2/ & 3/ You have it right at the beginning.
4/ Strikes rather fast to the top and in the front.

Chain Whip
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it at some point after you've finished the first four areas.
3/ It's in the Inferno Cavern. Read the hints under "I've opened a path on the side of a big pit, but no matter how I jump, I'm always hurt and can't get inside..." and possibly the two after in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does twice as much damage as your starting whip.

Flail Whip
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it rather late in the game, once you've found what to do with the Philosophers.
3/ It's in the Tower of the Goddess. The part 2 of the corresponding chapter in this guide is dedicated to solving the corresponding puzzle.
4/ It does four times as much damage as your starting whip (and twice as much as the Chain whip).

Knife
1/ Not 100% sure, but I believe getting either this one or the katana is essential.
2/ You can find it in one of the first areas of the game after Gate of Guidance.
3/ It's in the Temple of the Sun. Read the hints under "There's a tablet in a dead-end saying "Aim and shoot". What should I aim for?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does 1.5 times the damage of your starting whip and strikes fast, but on a very short range. It has also a different strike angle (bottom and front), which can be very useful to strike at places your whip can't.

Key Sword
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it around the mid-game, though you don't need to hurry to get it as it will be nearly useless until much later.
3/ It's in the Endless Corridor, in the second floor. Read the hints under "I see a stone hiding an item, but I don't know how to unlock it." in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does as much damage as your starting whip, but only strikes in front, a bit further, though. At the very end of the game it'll become a better weapon, doing 3 times as much damage as your starting whip.

Axe
1/ Optional (but very useful)
2/ You may normally find it around the early-to-mid-game, though there's a way to find it much earlier through some kind of secret path.
3/ It's in the Temple of Moonlight. Read the first hint in "General Gameplay hints (part 1)" for a guide to find it.
4/ It does 2.5 times as much damage as your starting whip, but is a bit slower. It has also strikes a bit higher than the whio, which can be very useful to strike at places your whip can't.

Katana
1/ Not 100% sure, but I believe getting either this one or the knife is essential
2/ You can find it around the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Twin Labyrinths and is accessible once you've done the things to make it less confusing. Read the hints under "I found a room with the kind of stone that usually contains an item, how do I unlock the item?" in that area's chapter of this guide to unlock the stone once you've found it.
4/ It does 2.5 times the damage of your starting whip, but is rather slow and has a weird strike angle (bottom and front). It can be very useful to strike at places your whip can't.

Item hints (subweapons)

For each item, you'll learn here:
1/ Whether it's an essential item at some point in the game, or just an optional item;
2/ Roughly at which point in the game you can reach it, so you don't waste too much time looking for an item you can't get until much later;
3/ Where to find it and how to get it;
4/ How it is used and for what purpose.

This chapter is contains informations about subweapons (including some non-weapon item that are included in the subweapons part of your inventory).
Note that you can find the complete list of items in the manual.


Shuriken
1/ Not 100% sure, but probably essential. Very useful at the very least.
2/ You can find it as soon as you're in the ruins.
3/ It's in the Gate of Guidance. Read the hints under "I found a place with a dais that looks inaccessible behind spikes. How do I get to it?" in that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does half as much damage as your starting whip, but you can throw them fast and from afar.

Rolling Shuriken
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in one of the first areas of the game after Gate of Guidance.
3/ It's in the Mausoleum of the Giants. Find your way to the bottom-left room from the entrance from Gate of Guidance and beat the subboss to get it.
4/ It does half as much damage as your starting whip, but you can throw them to the ground and they'll roll.

Earth Spear
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it around the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Tower of Ruin. Read the hints under "In the room to the right of the subboss, it looks like there's an area with a skeleton and a suspended dais inside, how do I get in?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does as much damage as your starting whip and strikes down, even through the floor.

Flare Gun
1/ Not 100% sure it's technically essential, but extremely useful at the very least.
2/ You can find it at some point after you've finished the first four areas.
3/ It's in the Inferno Cavern. Read the hints under "I've entered a room with a block-pushing puzzle. I hate those kind of puzzles! Is it mandatory to do it?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It does half as much damage as your starting whip and strikes up, but more importantly you can use it to light some places (in the Chamber of Extinction among others).

Bomb
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it in the mid-to-late game.
3/ It's in the Graveyard of the Giants, though not in the "main" part you can reach from the Mausoleum of the Giants. Read the hints in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide for help if needed.
4/ It does quite some damage (four times the strength of your whip) and can destroy some walls that are only vulnerable to it. Be careful, you can also be damaged by it.
You can either throw it with the subweapon button or make it roll on the floor by holding "down" while pressing the subweapon button.

Chakram
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it at some point after you've finished the first four areas.
3/ It's in the Chamber of Extinction. Beat the miniboss to get it.
4/ It does quite a lot of damage (three times as much as your starting whip) and will return to you unless it hit a wall. If you catch it again you won't lose ammo.

Caltrops
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in one of the first areas of the game after Gate of Guidance.
3/ It's in Spring in the Sky. Read the hints under "I KNOW there's a subweapon on that screen, I reckognize the engraved stone that angers the lightning eye, but how do I make it appear?" in that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Each time you use it, you throw 4 caltrops on the ground, each of them doing as much damage as a whip strike when an enemy steps on one. It will damage you as well, though only by 1 point, which can be exploited through a kind of cheesy tactic during boss fights: voluntarly step on one and take advantage of the invincibility period to avoid high-damage attacks.

Pistol
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it right at the beginning.
3/ Buy it (with 6 bullets) for 100 gold in a shop in the village.
4/ Each bullet will cross any obstacle and deal very high damage (6 times as much as an ordinary whip strike) to any enemy in the way. Ammo is very expensive (400 gold for 6 bullets in shops) so keep it for very difficult boss fights. The first number in front of the pistol refers to the number of full ammo boxes (6 bullets) you have, the second number to the number of bullets currently in the pistol.
Note: there's a hidden shop in the Temple of Moonlight that will sell 18 bullets for 400 gold, but you can't reach it until you have Bombs.

Life Jewel
1/ Essential.
2/ You'll find some at various stages of your exploration.
3/ Read the area-specific hints to find the Ankh Jewels.
4/ Use one when you've made the Ankh of a boss appear in front of it to start the fight against the boss. You don't have to use the Ankh Jewel found in an area for the boss of the same area (though there's no place in the game where that would be necessary).

Buckler
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it right at the beginning.
3/ Buy it for 10 gold in a shop in the village.
4/ Use it to keep it out and block small projectiles. It will break after blocking a certain number. You may unequip then reequip it to "reset" how many hits it can take.

Silver Shield
1/ Optional (I think...)
2/ You can find it around the mid-game, once you start getting access to the backside worlds.
3/ It's in the Graveyard of the Giants (in the part you can reach from the Mausoleum of the Giants). Read the hints under "I'm in a room where I see the usual rock containing an item on the left side, but I can't reach it. There's a door, but the dais seems to be on the wrong side..." in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Works like the Buckler, but it won't break, it will "unequip" itself instead (just raise it again). If it breaks, you've been tricked into buying a fake.

Angel Shield
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it very late in the game, in one of the last areas.
3/ It's in the Dimensional Corridor. Read the hints under "There's a room with the classical "item hidden in a rock", but how do I get it? Using a weight on the dais did not look like it did anything..." in that area's chapter of this guide.
If you missed it, you can purchase one for 400 gold in the "fake" shop in the Graveyard of the Giants.
4/ Works like the Buckler and the Silvershield, but it won't break nor "unequip" itself. It can also block stronger attacks.

Item hints (usable items, part 1)

For each item, you'll learn here:
1/ Whether it's an essential item at some point in the game, or just an optional item. All usable items are essential so I won't bother with this section here.
2/ Roughly at which point in the game you can reach it, so you don't waste too much time looking for an item you can't get until much later;
3/ Where to find it and how to get it;
4/ How it is used and for what purpose.

This chapter is contains informations about usable items (those that you can equipe and use with the item button). Don't worry if you can't find any for a long time after the Hand Scanner, that's normal.
Note that you can find the complete list of items in the manual.

Hand Scanner
2/ You can find it right at the beginning.
3/ Purchase it in the village.
4/ Use it to get information from stone tablets, skeletons and points of interest all over the ruins and to mark Holy Grail Tablets for future use with the Holy Grail.

Djed Pillar
2/ You'll find it in the very late game, possibly after beating every boss (save the very last one of course).
3/ You'll get it after beating a subboss near the Pyramid in the Tower of Ruin.
4/ Use it to chant the mantra selected with mantra.exe

Mini Doll
2/ You can find it around the mid-game. You probably won't miss it when you'll be able to reach it.
3/ You'll get it in a cavern somewhere during your trip inside the Gate of Illusion.
4/ Use it at the right place to prove that you're small and remove an obstacle in the Gate of Illusion (this "right place" might not be in the Gate of Illusion though).
You'll have to use it in front of any Giant Statue in the Mausoleum of the Giants.

Matagama Jewel
2/ You'll find it in the very late game. You won't miss it.
3/ You'll get it after beating the boss of the Dimensional Corridor.
4/ Use it to chant the mantra selected with mantra.exe

Cog of the Soul
2/ You'll find it in the mid to late game, after you've found the exits of the Tower of the Goddess.
3/ Read part 3 of the chapter Gate of Illusion for instruction on how to get it.
4/ It's primarly used to release the mudmen in the Chamber of Birth by using it where the stray fairy was.

Lamp of Time
2/ You'll find it in the mid to late game, after you've found the exits of the Tower of the Goddess.
3/ It's in the Twin Labyrinths. Read the hints under "I've stumbled on what is said to be an "unsolvable puzzle". Is there a way to solve it? Can I skip it?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Use it to stop time for about 10 seconds. There's a way to recharge it by the way.
Stand in front of a Nebra Sky Disk (the small artifacts with a sun, a moon and a star) for a few seconds.

Pochette Key
2/ You'll find it in the late game. You won't miss it when you'll be able to get it.
3/ Beat the subboss in the Chamber of Birth to get it.
4/ It's used to start the boss fight in the Chamber of Extinction. Read the hints under "How do I find the boss of the area?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.

Dragon Bone
2/ You might find it reasonably early, though it won't be useful before you've finished the Endless Corridor.
3/ Buy it in the Big Brother's shop in the Twin Labyrinths. You'll need to purchase several things at the Little Brother's shop to be able to access it.
4/ It's primarly used to make the bone pillars disappear in the Shrine of the Mother. If you're there and can't find how to do it, Read the hints under "I think I've explored the whole area, but I haven't found anything useful in there, did I miss something?" in that area's chapter of this guide.

Crystal Skull
2/ You'll find it shortly after you've found the Diary.
3/ It's in a cursed chest in the Shrine of the Mother. Read the hints under "I found and opened a chest, but it has a weird purple circle around it and when I try to get what inside I lose health. How do I get it?" in that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It's primarly used to unlock the entrance to the Dimensional Corridor. Read the hints under "How do I get in this area?" in that area's chapter of this guide.

Vessel
2/ You'll find it in the very late game, possibly after beating every boss (save the very last one of course).
3/ It's behind a laser-firing statue in the Chamber of Birth. Read the hints under "There's a statue with a laser that kills me when I get near it..." in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ It's used to get the Medicine of the Mind at the Medicine Statue in the Tower of Ruin once you've correctly solved a puzzle nearby.

Pepper
2/ You can find it around the mid-game. You probably won't miss it.
3/ You'll get it in a cavern somewhere during your trip inside the Gate of Illusion.
4/ Use it at the right place to get the Treasure for the ghost that gave you the Pepper.
You'll have to use it in front of the first Giant Face in the Gate of Guidance.

Woman Statue
2/ You can find it in the mid to late game.
3/ It's in a secret room in the Chamber of Birth (the part you can reach from the Graveyard of the Giants). Read the hints under "There's an oddly tilted statue in a room..." in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Use it in the Chamber of Birth to unlock a chest with the map of the area. It's also used to get the Maternity Statue.
To get it, go back inside the Pyramid in the Temple of the Sun and use it several times in the spermatozoid-filled room (sic).

Item hints (usable items, part 2)

Maternity Statue
2/ You can find it in the mid to late game.
3/ Go inside the Pyramid in the Temple of the Sun with the Woman Statue and use it several times in the spermatozoid-filled room (sic).
4/ Use it in front of a similar figure inside the Pyramid in the Temple of Moonlight. It'll allow you to get the Philosopher's Ocarina.

Key of Eternity
2/ You can find it around the mid-game. You won't miss it when you'll be able to get it.
3/ Beat the subboss in the Gate of Illusion.
4/ It's primarly used to unlock each floor in the Endless Corridor (use it in front of the keyhole).

Serpent Staff
2/ You can find it around the early to mid-game.
3/ Beat the subboss in the Temple of the Moonlight.
4/ It's primarly used to be able to damage the monster to the left of the village on the Surface.

Talisman
2/ You can find it after you've beaten the boss in the Inferno Cavern.
3/ It'll appear where the sphinx was in the Temple of the Sun.
4/ Talk about it with Xelpud (equip it before entering his tent) in order to get the Diary later.

Diary & Mulana Talisma
2/ You can find them some time after you've completed the Endless Corridor.
3/ The Diary is in a chest behind a falling pillar in the Shrine of the Mother. Read the hints under "There's a large pillar falling down in a room that prevents me from reaching a chest. How do I get it?" in that area's chapter of this guide. You'll get the Mulana Talisman shortly after.
4/ Talk about the Diary with Xelpud (equip it before entering his tent) in order to get some interesting lore and the Mulana Talisman.

Item hints (other items, part 1)

For each item, you'll learn here:
1/ Whether it's an essential item at some point in the game, or just an optional item. All usable items are essential so I won't bother with this section here.
2/ Roughly at which point in the game you can reach it, so you don't waste too much time looking for an item you can't get until much later;
3/ Where to find it and how to get it;
4/ How it is used and for what purpose.

This chapter is contains informations about non-usable items (those that you don't need to equip and that automatically have an effect).
Note that you can find the complete list of items in the manual.

Waterproof case
1/ Optional (I think).
2/ You can find it very early.
3/ Buy it in the Village.
4/ Allows to open the menu when under water.

Heatproof case
1/ Optional (I think).
2/ You can find it early in the game
3/ Buy it in the shop hidden behind a pot in a room below the pyramid in the Temple of the Sun.
4/ Allows to open the menu when under lava.

Shell Horn
1/ Optional (I think).
2/ You can find it very early.
3/ Get it in a chest in the cliffs to the right of the village.
4/ Makes a sound when you solve a puzzle.

Glove
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it early.
3/ Get it in the chest in the Sacred Lake in Spring in the Sky once you've released the water here.
4/ You push blocks faster.

Holy Grail
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it very early.
3/ It's in Gate of Guidance. Read the hints under "There's a closed chest on the screen where the elevator started, how do I open it?" in that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to teleport between Holy Grail Tablet you've already scanned. Use the item button on the Pause Screen (F1) to do that.

Isis Pendant
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it early.
3/ Read the hints under "I found somebody that looks very helpful, but she requires me to get an item first. I have no idea where it is!" in that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Bring it back to the Fairy Queen to make the fairy appear.

Crucifix
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find around the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Gate of Guidance, in the room to the right of the Holy Grail Tablet.
Use a Flare to light up the 3 torchs in the corridor above.
4/ Destroy on contact to the blue/red ghost enemies.

Helmet
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find early in the game.
3/ It's in the Twin Labyrinths. Buy it in the shop in the first room after entering it from the Mausoleum of the Giants.
4/ Allows to cross waterfalls without being washed down.

Grapple Claw
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the early to mid-game.
3/ It's in the Temple of the Moonlight. Get it in the room above the Boneyard (to the left of the entrance to Eden).
4/ Allows you to "stick" to the walls by pressing up and the direction of the wall you're close to.

Bronze Mirror
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the early game.
3/ It's in the Temple of the Sun. Read the hints under "There's a treasure near the entrance of the Chamber of Extinction that I can't open..." in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Reveals the gates between frontside and backside areas. Each gate will be closed until you beat a specific boss related to that gate.

Eye of Truth
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid- to late game.
3/ It's in the Tower of the Goddess. Read the hints under "There's a closed chest under the tubes, how can I open it?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Reveals a few hidden things in the Tower of the Goddess (for example the invisible rats, but also some platforms and dais).

Ring
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Twin Labyrinths. Once you've found how to reveal the Katana, cross the gate in the same room and reveal the Ring. You just have to find your way to the upper part to get it.
4/ You'll throw subweapons faster and they'll do more damage (+1 damage).

Scalesphere
1/ Essential (I think...).
2/ You can find in the early game.
3/ It's in Spring in the Sky. Climb all the way to the top of the waterfall to get it.
4/ Prevents damage from water.

Gauntlet
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Graveyard of the Giants. Read the hints under "I see a chest and a seal, but they're too high to reach..." in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ You'll strike your weapon faster.

Treasure
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ Read the hints under "I have to find a "hidden treasure" but I have no idea where it is..." in part 1 of the Gate of Illusion chapter of this guide.
4/ Bring it back to the ghost who gave you the Pepper to get the Anchor.

Anchor
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ Bring the Treasure back to the ghost who gave you the Peper to get it.
4/ Allows you to go into water flowing upward (for example just close to the cavern of the ghost who gave you the Anchor...)

Plane Model
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid- to late game.
3/ It's in the Tower of the Goddess. Read the hints under "There are several paths to other areas that appear blocked by statues... How do I unblock them?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Removes the "fake" statues in the Tower of the Goddess, opening several new paths.

Philosopher's Ocarina
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Temple of the Moonlight. Read the hints under "I found a closed chest inside the blue pyramid where I can't strike my weapon... How do I open this chest?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ With it the Philosophers are now awaken. Go talk to them if you remember where they are!

Item hints (other items, part 2)

Feather
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the early to mid-game.
3/ It's on the Surface, kept by the giant blue creature to the left of the Village. You'll need to have the Serpent Staff in order to be able to beat it.
4/ You can double jump.

Book of the Dead
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the early to mid-game.
3/ It's given by Mulbruk in the Temple of the Sun once you've met the subboss of the Temple of Moonlight.
4/ Without it you can't damage some subbosses (notably the one in the Temple of Moonlight). You're now also immune to the "death gaze" of the small Anubis monsters.

Fairy Clothes
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ You can find it in the Gate of Illusion after you notice the fairy block in the room of the Holy Grail Tablet. Read the hints under "I saw a block with a fairy on it. Is there anything I can do with it?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Halves most damage you receive.

Scriptures
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid- to late game.
3/ You can find it in the hidden shop in the Temple of Moonlight. Read the hints under "Why isn't there any shop in this area?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ You are immune to bats and you receive twice as much soul orbs from dead enemies.

Hermes' Boots
1/ Essential (I think...).
2/ You can find in the early game.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the Mausoleum of the Giants.
4/ Allows to climb the "moving slopes" in the Temple of the Sun.

Fruit of Eden
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ It's in the Temple of the Moonlight. Read the hints under "How do I open the chest in the room with 5 chests?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to enter Eden.

Twin Statue
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ It's somewhere in the third floor in the Endless Corridor. If you have trouble reaching it in time, read the hints under "It seems I have to race through a floor to reach the exit, but I nowhere near fast enough..." in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to enter Eden.

Bracelet
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid-game.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the Twin Labyrinths. It's in the shop on a high platform in the room above the Holy Grail Tablet.
4/ Allows you to break pots in one hit.

Perfume
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the late game.
3/ It's in the Chamber of Birth, in the part you can reach from the Graveyard of the Giants. Read the hints under "I noticed an elevated floor in a room in a place I can't reach. Is it useful?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to kill skeletons in one hit.

Spaulder
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find in the mid- to late game.
3/ It's in the Tower of the Goddess. Bring a Key Fairy to the room to the left of the Holy Grail Statue to reveal the chest.
4/ Your weapon will now leave a "trail" that inflicts damage.

Dimensional Key
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find in the late game.
3/ It's in the Chamber of Birth, in the part you can reach from the Tower of the Goddess. Read the hints under "Is there anything to do in the bottomless pit?" in part 2 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Prevents the subbosses in the Dimensional Corridor to respawn.

Ice Cape
1/ Essential (I think...).
2/ You can find in the early to mid-game.
3/ It's in the Inferno Cavern, completely at the bottom-right.
4/ Significantly lowers damage from lava.

Item hints (software & seals, part 1)

For seals and each piece of software, you'll learn here:
1/ Whether it's an essential item at some point in the game, or just an optional item;
2/ Roughly at which point in the game you can reach it, so you don't waste too much time looking for an item you can't get until much later;
3/ Where to find it and how to get it.
4/ What is its purpose.

Note that you can find the complete item list in the manual. The first part of this chapter is dedicated to seals and "traditional" software you'll find. The second part is dedicated to the seemingly useless "game" software you'll find in the ruins.

What are seals used for?

Every seal is essential to complete the game. You'll need all previous seals to be able to get the next one.
The seals are items allowing you to "break" the small round rock with an engraving on it. Each seal allows you to break the rock with the same engraving.

Seals

Origin Seal (first seal)
You'll get it rather early in the game. You likely won't miss it once you're able to reach it.
It's kept by the sub-boss in Spring in the Sky.

Life Seal (second seal)
You'll likely get it after completing Spring in the Sky (though it might be possible to get it earlier).
It's on the Surface in a chest you can see when you exit Spring in the Sky through the waterfall where you killed the boss. Use the first seal to open it.

Birth Seal (third seal)
You'll get it in the early to mid-game, in a dark place.
It's in the Holy Grail Tablet room of the Chamber of Extinction. It's a bit tricky to reach it, though (you need to go through other rooms).
Read the hints under "I found a closed chest on a pillar on the right of a screen. How do I open it?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.

Death Seal (fourth seal)
You won't get the last one until very late in the game.
It's in a remote location of the Shrine of the Mother that you can only access after you speak with one of the philosophers.
After speaking with Philosopher Giltoriyo in Spring in the Sky, go to the second floor of the Endless Corridor and climb up the new path that has been opened.
If you still can't reach it in this room, you have to unlock something in the Shrine of the Mother first. Read the hints under "I think I've explored the whole area, but I haven't found anything useful in there, did I miss something?" in that area's chapter of this guide.

Fifth Seal
Despite what the inventory screen looks like, there's no fifth seal.

Software

reader.exe
1/ Maybe optional in theory, but essential in pratice.
2/ Available right at the beginning.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the village.
4/ Allows you to translate engravings in La-mulanese when you read them with the Hand Scanner. It might not be sufficient to read some glyphs. Oh, and it might be useful at some point to actually deactivate this software...

xmailer.exe
1/ Not relevant.
2/ I'm not sure it's possible to miss this one.
3/ Given by Xelpud when you meet him.
4/ Allows you to receive Xelpud's emails.

yagomap.exe
1/ Essential.
2/ Available right at the beginning.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the village.
4/ Allows you to read the map of the area you're in through the Pause screen (F1). You have to have found the corresponding map first.

yagostr.exe
1/ Essential.
2/ You'll find it around the mid-game. You probably won't miss it when you'll be able to get it.
3/ Get it in a chest when you exit the Gate of Illusion into the Gate of Guidance.
4/ Adds details on your map (fairy points, Holy Grail Tablet, secret rooms...).

bunemon.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You'll find it rather early on.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the Temple of the Sun. You'll have to get the Knife before being able to reach that shop.
4/ Allows you to save text you read or hear (there will be an additional tab in your laptop screen). As its memory is limited, I still advise to use a good ol' pen and paper to mark every hint you find.

bunplus.com
1/ Optional.
2/ You'll find it in the early to mid-game.
3/ Under the room with the Holy Grail Tablet, there's a skeleton saying he hid a piece of software somewhere.
Break the wall just above the skeleton.
4/ You can save more messages with bunemon.exe.

torude.exe
1/ Essential.
2/ You can find it in the mid-game.
3/ You can buy it in a hidden shop in the Tower of Ruin.
The hidden shop is in the room at the bottom-left of the Holy Grail Tablet.
Read the hints under "I've heard a sound telling me there's a hidden shop in a room, but I'm unable to find it..." in part 1 of the Tower of Ruin chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to scan some murals at some specific places in order to "download" mantra.exe, emusic.exe and beolamu.exe (there will be an additional tab in your laptop screen).

guild.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You'll find it in the early game.
3/ Buy it in a hidden shop in the Gate of Guidance. Put a weight on the dais at the entrance to the Mausoleum of the Giants, then go to the right.
4/ You'll hear a sound when there's a hidden shop in the room you're in.

mantra.exe
1/ Essential.
2/ You'll find it in the very late game.
3/ Read the first hint in part 1 of the chapter Mantras of this guide.
4/ Allows you to select a mantra you've learned (there will be an additional tab in your laptop screen).

emusic.exe
1/ Optional (and no gameplay effect).
2/ You'll find it in the late game.
3/ Read the hints under "In the room below the one with dais encased in ice, there is a block with some weird writings on it, is it important?" in part 2 of the Graveyard of the Giants chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to select a music among 25 from the soundtrack (there will be an additional tab in your laptop screen).

beolamu.exe
1/ Optional (and no gameplay effect).
2/ You'll find it in the late game.
3/ In the Dimensional Corridor, break a wall to the left in the room where you fought Mushnahhu after beating it and scan it with torude.exe
4/ Extends the soundtrack of emusic.exe.

Item hints (software & seals, part 2)

A lot of software seems useless... What is it used for?

Many pieces of software have a hidden effect in-game when correctly combined. A correct combination is revealed by the software slighting shining and emitting a sound when you load them.

The manual gives hints about the existing combinations (p. 24). Try to figure them out by yourself!

Note that the one allowing you to read hidden developers' message is some kind of easter egg and is completely optional (it's mainly short messages from each developer with no impact whatsoever on the gameplay).


deathv.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it very early.
3/ In the Surface, break the wall behind the statue at the entrance of the ruins (before you climb down the stairs)
4/ When loaded with miracle.exe: Reduces the Fairy spawning delay.
When loaded with move.exe: Extend invincibility duration after being hit.

randc.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it early in the game.
3/ Buy it in the secret shop in Spring in the Sky.
To make this shop appear, you have first to beat the fish in the small fishtank in the area.
Then bring a key fairy to the shop that appeared at the bottom of the big waterfall.
4/ When loaded with move.exe: You revive at 32 health when killed (only once until you reload the game).
When loaded with mekuri.exe: Increase the damage done by non-whip primary weapons by 2 (for reference a basic whip strike does 2 damage).

capstar.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in the early to mid-game.
3/ Buy it in the shop in Inferno Cavern (the one hidden behind a rock in the room left of the Holy Grail Tablet).
4/ When loaded with miracle.exe: Guarantees an Item Fairy at fairy spawn points.

move.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in the mid-game.
3/ Buy it in the shop in Gate of Illusion (two rooms to the left of the Holy Grail Tablet).
4/ When loaded with randc.exe: You revive at 32 health when killed (only once until you reload the game).
When loaded with lamulana.exe: Increase the damage done by whips by 2 (for reference a basic whip strike does 2 damage).

mekuri.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it very early.
3/ Climb the highest ladder in the waterfall on the Surface and strike left around the top. There will be a tent in the hidden wall. To reach it without double jump, stay on the right of the small platform above, jump vertically (to be able to control your position mid-air) and move to the right, then to the left after you've reached the peak of your jump.
4/ When loaded with miracle.exe: Guarantees a Key Fairy at fairy spawn points.
When loaded with randc.exe: Increase the damage done by non-whip primary weapons by 2 (for reference a basic whip strike does 2 damage).

bounce.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in the mid-game.
3/ Break the chest hidden behind a statue in the Shrine of the Mother.
You'll need to use subweapons.
4/ When loaded with miracle.exe: Guarantees an Attack Fairy at fairy spawn points.

miracle.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in the mid- to late game.
3/ Buy it in a shop in the Tower of the Goddess.
You have to put a weight on the dais that is under the crusher in the left tower to reach that shop.
Use the Lamp of Time to get there in time.
4/ When loaded with bounce.exe: Guarantees an Attack Fairy at fairy spawn points.
When loaded with capstar.exe: Guarantees an Item Fairy at fairy spawn points.
When loaded with mekuri.exe: Guarantees a Key Fairy at fairy spawn points
When loaded with deathv.exe: Reduces the Fairy spawning delay.
When loaded with mirai.exe: Allows you to enter developer rooms.

mirai.exe
1/ Optional (but extremely useful).
2/ You can find it in the mid-game.
3/ You can find it in the Graveyard of the Giants.
Read the hints under "In the room to the left of the one with three blocks, I can see a chest and a dais both stuck in ice... What should I do there?" in part 1 of that area's chapter of this guide.
4/ Allows you to use the Holy Grail to warp to backside areas.
When loaded with miracle.exe: Allows you to enter developer rooms.

lamulana.exe
1/ Optional.
2/ You can find it in the mid-game.
3/ You can find it in the Gate of Time.
Reach the top of the Gate of Time, talk with Elder Xelpud, then break the wall to the left of the ladder in the room to the right.
4/ When loaded with move.exe: Increase the damage done by whips by 2 (for reference a basic whip strike does 2 damage).

[Fuzen]

I believe your "mixed feelings" are more about your own lack of restraint and less something to do with the guide at all, and I'm pretty sure even you recognize this, so I don't know why you posted that part lol. If it was to seek advice, look inward and reflect on why you had this irresistible compulsion to look at the guide. What causes it? Where did it come from? Once you have identified these points, it'll be easier to resolve whatever the issue is. I kinda relate to this with some other games, and for me the cause was a lack of free time, and so I wanted to get the most out of every session. But by doing this, I deprived myself of the real experience and satisfaction of those games. Now, I force myself to take a few days to think about a solution before looking up an answer.

Also, congrats on beating the OG without a guide? I have yet to try it, I keep hearing it's even more insane than the Remake, and older games often are like that so I'm inclined to believe that =P.

[Luca]

Hey. I used your guide and I think I found 3 small mistakes.
1) In the chamber of birth you wrote: "There's a pedestal in front of a snake statue at the top-right of a room." It's left, not right.
2) Similarly, in "Instead of going in the path at the bottom left, jump in the wall just above. It's a fake wall that will lead you to a teleporter." it's right, not left.
3) You wrote "Matagama", but it's Magatama.

Anyway, while I am grateful for this guide, I have some mixed feelings about all this. I've beaten the original freeware version (with a guide, obviously) and even then I couldn't beat the remake without one. And once you start using a guide, I think it's hard to get in the mindset of trying to only use it when necessary. So I just ended up following everything, which was so frustrating that I decided to quit prematurely. It's not your fault, but it kind of ruined the game for me.

[ToxorAxiom]

Must-own guide for a must-own game. Thanks for the work!

[chucklnuts]

is there even a hints to find the axe in game?

[Inferno]

Thanks for making this thing, it's really helpful when you don't want to just be handed solutions.

I just wanted to point out something in the Dimensional Corridor section "I think I've beaten every subboss, but I seem to miss one... Where is it?"

You mentioned that the three clues you need are on stone tablets, but the clue in the Tower of Ruin is actually on a mural. I spent ages digging around the Tower before I realized that. It might be a good idea to put "stone tablets or murals" in those areas or something.

Still a great guide, though!

[Ganbatte Castle]

yeah absolutely agreed. I'm 30~ hrs in now and check in when I've spent around 30 mins hitting every single wall w/ no discernible progress. way better a feeling to get a lil' "push" than just be given the answer (not that I didn't have to just read all the hints for a few of the puzzles, ofc). cheers!

[Fuzen]

Aw man, shame you never completed it! Forget the guide, you have to finish the game! Everyone who has completed La-Mulana thanks to your guide would want you to finish the second game, and we all know you can do it! You're a legend among La-Mulana fans, don't give up! =D

[Cheshire_1]

Thank you for the kind words! Yes it really was quite a bit of work, but this game deserved it. I'm really happy so many players found it useful.

As for La Mulana 2, I didn't manage to complete it (gave up around 80% of the game I think)... I'll probably try it again from scratch one day with spoilers, maybe if I do I'll write a guide at the same time... but don't hold your breath ;)

[Fuzen]

Thank you SO much for this guide. It must have taken an insane amount of work to research, write, and put together, but you've helped so many people that it was definitely worth the effort! The sole fact that you're *still* getting comments of gratitude after almost 6 years is a testament to the value of this guide!

I myself wouldn't have even played the game had this not existed since I didn't want to resort to traditional guides where you'd just get the answer. Shame there's no Hell Temple section, but alas, it's whatever!

The real shame I'd say is how you never made a guide for La-Mulana 2! I know of Viceroy's guide, but from the comments I hear the guide is way more spoily than a "hint-based" guide should be so I'm afraid to use that one. Either way, thank you, thank you, thank you! Have a good one :D!

[Ganbatte Castle]

Thanks so, so much for this guide's structure. It's perfect for this style of game! I was so confused by the blocks outside of the giant's area; I knew *what* to do, but not the exact way to do it. The second hint saved lots of frustration, ehehehehhehe