Vaporum Walkthrough
Level 9: Fumium Experiment
Crier
When you arrive here, a crier will jump out of the alcove. There is not much else you can do around here at the moment, so go around the bend and north.Ammunition
Fill up on some ammunition from this chest. Go west and destroy three welder drones and two cannon drones. Go south to where the cannon drones came from. One more welder drone awaits around the bend.Superior Protector
Beware: a stealth crier is waiting to pounce on you behind the door. The locker here has a Superior Protector, some ammunition, and a note. Step into the teleporter after you are done looting.Reset
This button will reset the puzzle in front of you in case you make a mistake. For the puzzle, you need to step on each pressure plate exactly once, ending at the pressure plate next to the door at the far end to open it and go through. If you don’t want to follow the map, go forward, forward, right, back, right, forward, forward, forward, left, left, right, back, left, left, back, back, left, forward, forward, forward, forward, right, right, right, forward.Unity
Your reward in this chest is a unique shield named Unity. Step into the teleporter to return to 3.Battle
Coming in here will commence a battle against an assault guardian, a roachling, a crier, and two cannon turrets. The door will close, but it will reopen when the mobile targets are killed.180° Spinner
You will be plunged into absolute darkness on these three tiles and your map won’t work. On this tile is a spinner that will turn you around, so be sure to turn again before going forward.Enemies
An assault guardian is hiding behind the crates and he is not afraid to shoot through them. More dangerous, though, is a stealth crier creeping up from behind you.Pits
Before you attempt this puzzle, a stealth crier is hiding in the alcove.
When you flip the switch on the beam here, a safe path will be briefly illuminated across the pits. The path will change every time you flip the switch, so it is not possible to depict all possible paths on the map. However, if you save after the path starts (or finishes) lighting up, it will remain the same and you can reload to have multiple attempts at it. You can also pause time to properly study the path—maybe even mark it on the map—before it all goes dark.
You cannot start walking until the pits stop glowing. If you step on the correct pit, it will close under you. You can wait as long as you like before starting, but once you start you will have only a couple of seconds over each closed pit. There is no way back once you cross the pits (at least for now), and the next door will shut behind you anyway, preventing any retreat.
I have displayed my favorite path to take, and like to play with the switch until this one lights up.More Creatures
Waiting at the far end is a solitary assault guardian, but if you take one more step east into the room, a roachling will emerge out of the vent behind you. Furthermore, if you go deep into the room, an acid roach will come out of the vent there. It is up to you (and the abilities you are using) whether you wish to fight them one by one or not.
Crates Puzzle
You need to manouvre the crates in this room such that, one at a time, the two long corridors are empty so that fired spectral orbs can reach their receptacles at the other end. You also need the ends where the buttons are to be empty to be able to stand in that space. The crates cannot be pulled out of the room, but you can use one of the two entrances to go out and around any crate blocking your way. Clearing the western corridor is very simple, and requires pushing only two crates. The next one takes quite a bit of work.
Exit through the northern passage first.Rusty Key
Fight off an acid roach, then open this chest for a Rusty Key, an Alloy Helm, some ammunition, and a phonodiary. Return to the crate room and take the southern passage out.Ambush
Two stealth will spawn and pounce on you around here.Boss Fight
This initially empty room will be quickly crowded with a dazer thaumaturge, a great roach, and an acid roach. In a second phase, you will have to contend with just two spiderlings. Follow the corridor south, and keep going south even when you reach familiar territory.Keyhole
The Rusty Key will open the locked door.HazMat Suit
Take the HazMat Suit and phonodiary from this locker. Now return to 2 and dump all your equipped items in that chest or somewhere on the floor there. If your inventory is near full, you may want to empty some of that out too. We are going to take a trip through a region where equipment is forbidden.Radiation Zone
Once you’ve stripped down, put the HazMat suit on, then flip the switch here. Doing this in the wrong order will result in instant death. Throughout the radiation zone, you will not have an automap.Fireball Highway
It is possible to go through this corridor without taking any damage, but it might take a little practice or some reloading the first time. Study the pattern of the fireballs: two are shot out in quick succession, then a third, followed by a short pause. Use this pause to move forward. The first two pits are open, but they can be closed by pressing the buttons on the beams next to them (you won’t need to turn). The last pit is closed, but it will open because of the pressure plate next to it, so you need to step off and on the pressure plate before ducking into the corner. Pausing time will help.Pressure Plate
This pressure plate will toggle the pits next to it, so step on, off and on it to proceed.Superior Decoy Beacon
When you first arrive here, a crier in the corridor will get aggravated. Run back to 19, close the pits and wait for it to arrive. When it does, open the pits to drop it down, close them, then return here.
The chest has a Superior Decoy Beacon and a note.Important: Do not get trapped alongside the chest by the crier. You can’t use the Switcher to get out and have no other means of killing the crier. You will have to reload if you get trapped anywhere by enemies in the radiation zone. You can also use the flames spouting at the other end of this corridor to kill the crier, but it might survive just long enough to at least get one hit in before it dies (you have to stand just beyond the flame so as not to get trapped in that passage).
Hidden Button
Under the lamp is a well-camouflaged knob. Use it to open the door around the bend.Secret #21
In this chest you will find Giantslayer. Go back north all the way and then east, avoiding the flame spout.Poison Chamber
Turn the handwheel here to turn off the poison gas in the adjoining chamber, then press the button to open it. Go through the chamber and the passage that leads out of it; at the end you will stumble upon a berserker and a crier. Lead them back into the gas chamber, slam the doors shut to trap them in, and turn on the poison to kill them. They may come together or one at a time. Clear the gas when they are both dead and proceed to the chest.Silver Key
Take the Silver Key and Superior Zapper from this chest. You need to return all the way beyond 19 and go south.Locked Door
Use the Silver Key to unlock this door.Pressure Plate
As before, this pressure plate will toggle the pit covers next to it. Proceed further and attract a crier (from near 27) to follow you, then drop it into the pits.Pressure Plates
The two pressure plates will activate their respective spiked drums. The drum in this corridor will travel to one tile beyond the pressure plate, whereas the next one will travel up to its pressure plate. You need to time your movements to safely go north and east. Go all the way east until you get to the next spiked drum when you are able.Another Pressure Plate
You guessed it: this pressure plate will activate the spiked drum. You can use the alcove for safety when you pull a crier from around the corner to be crushed by the drum, but if the drum is too far away, you will take a hit or two before the creature dies. Wait at the very end of the passage for the drum to arrive there, aggravate the crier, and slowly lead it out (if you are too quick it will attempt to go the other way).Commando Shotgun
In this chest is a Commando Shotgun and a phonodiary. Go back past the drum, west, and south.Fireballs
This pressure plate will cause all three fireball traps to launch seven very quick fireballs each, resulting in instant death. What is more, it will temporarily close both doors. Place an item on it, wait for the chaos to die down, then enter the room. The next pressure plate will open the door next to it, beyond which awats a crier. Rush back (make sure you are out of the fireball room), empty the pressure plate and quickly replace an item on it to trap the crier in and kill it.
If you want, this time you can reclaim your item while standing on this pressure plate as you will never need to return here.End of the Line
Flip the switch here, then open the cabinet. Take the ammunition out and replace it with the HazMat Suit.Lever
Pull this lever to open the door to the elevator machine room. Requip all your gear from 2 as you make your way to it.Levers
Pulling either of these levers will close the entry door and start a battle with a firethrower guardian and a waller thaumaturge. Flipping the other lever will spawn a heavy guardian and a berserker. The berserker will drop a Golden Key. The only way to reopen the entry door, should you wish to, is to walk all the way around to 32.Handwheels
Now that power has been restored, turn the two handwheels flanking this spot to open a wall to the north.Secret #22
You can claim a Doomguard Blaster and some ammunition from this chest.Keyhole
Use the Golden Key to open the locked door. Now that the elevator (B) is active, you can flip the lever there and take it to the next level.
- Stairs down to Level 8.
- Elevator up to Level 10.
Next » Level 10: The Arx Vaporum
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