Resident Evil 4/Chapter 3-1

Castle Entrance
You're now in a large castle that functions as a monastery for Los Illuminados. The drawbridge back to the village is closed permanently. You start in a courtyard at the castle entrance.

First enter the small building on the right to find the Merchant. He’s got lot’s of new stuff for you, including a larger attache case and new weapons. Assemble the Beerstein and Elegant Mask pieces as much as you can and sell them now, even if they're not complete; the missing pieces are all back in the village beyond reach now. The weapons for sale include a new and improved handgun, shotgun and rifle and you may want to get these depending on your cash and how much you’ve invested in your current models. Sell the weapons you're replacing for cash and to make room in your inventory. The larger attache case has a hefty price tag but is almost always worth the investment. \

Two new types of weapons are for sale now. First, the Broken Butterfly, a magnum. It's not a good investment right now because ammo refills won't appear until later and it uses up a lot of space. You'll find one for free later anyway. The other new type is the Mine Thrower, also not a good investment because ammo is hard to find and it uses even more space. If you want, buy them to try them out then reload your game without saving.

Get the Green Herb from the table; there is a typewriter next to it if you want to save. Exit the building and start exploring the courtyard for items. There are four barrels near the stairs and two boxes and another barrel in the northeast corner; the box on the right has a snake inside. Open the treasure chest behind the Merchant's shop to find 5000 PTAS.

Go up the stairs and through the door to the next area.

Battlements (lower)
This is a large and complex area and you face new enemies called zealots. Protecting Ashley is tricky here so it's a good idea to keep track of where you can safely leave her.

Follow the path to find an open area. There is Rifle Ammo sitting on a large box and you can see monks in the distance, so you're probably meant to snipe them but you could also spare them for now defeat them when you meet them up close.

Follow the stairway on the right. At the top there is a short cutscene where a priest sees you and screams "Mátalo! (Kill him!)". Now catapults barrage the area with balls of fire; they may be medieval but they hurt a lot and will probably kill Ashley in one blow. Their timing is regular though and they always hit the same places so they shouldn't be too difficult to avoid once you learn the pattern. The first thing the catapults destroy is a well on the right, examine the wreckage to get a Spinel, but keep moving and watch your timing to avoid being hit.

Follow the path and go down the stairs on the left. You meet the monks you may have spared earlier so defeat them now it you did; you should be safe from the catapults here. Continue to find a room with a canon. There is a clue that you need to raise it up somehow. Get three barrels here.

Go back and continue into the arch. Snipe the red barrel on the high balcony the wall ahead of you to disable that catapult. Go forward to another stairway, but don’t go up yet. Have Ashley wait on the landing, then turn around and watch for monks that start coming up the path behind you. Style points if you can trick the catapults into throwing a fire ball on them, otherwise snipe them from a distance or defeat them normally.

Battlements (upper)
Park Ashley on the stairs for a bit and go nearly to the top. Aim through the embrasure, or gap, on the right and shoot the red barrel next to the monk manning the catapult. The area at the top of the stair should be safe now. Aim to the right at the top of the stair and shoot through the window of a small building to hit a zealot. He is wearing a bullet proof mask so it will just make him mad; wait for him to come for you and defeat him with a short range weapon. Check the gate for another clue on how to proceed.

Step out on the bridge a short distance, turn around again and get a third barrel on the balcony to the north; only the top is visible. Continue across the bridge, staying to the right as much as possible. If you didn't get him earlier, the masked monk will attack; step to the side a bit so you don’t have to worry about the catapult and defeat him.

Pick up Ashley and go into the small building. Get two boxes and open the treasure chest to get a Yellow Herb. Have Ashley wait there. Go to the left side of the building and find the Gold Bangle in a treasure chest.

There is a final catapult on the north wall to the right, it will attack if you try to cross the bridge east so go half way and snipe the monk before he sees you. Or better, shoot him from a window in the gazebo at the end of the bridge. There is no red barrel with this one.

Now that it's safe, operate the crank at the far end of the bridge, this will lift the canon seen earlier to the top. (It may be that you need to have Ashley operate the crank while you deal with the two approaching Cultists.)

Stand behind the canon and fire, it will demolish the gate near the top of the stairs. Go through and find the merchant on the other side. Then go through the door to the next area.

Barracks
Ingrid checks in and you tell her about the castle. She’s about to tell you something important when she’s cut off by interference.

Get 2000 PTAS from the cabinet and Handgun Ammo from the table. Check the gold panel on the wall and take the platinum sword. You're going to find a gold sword in a platinum panel later to swap with it.

When you go upstairs a group of zealots attack. Let them funnel down the stairs to control the rush. Once at the top of stairs more monks will enter at the lower level, so don’t leave Ashley down there waiting. Stand at the top of the stair and let them funnel up; there are several groups.

The leader of the attack, a zealot dressed in red, has a new type of parasite which appears when he's taken enough damage; it doesn’t swing a blade as with the villagers but if it gets too close it will decapitate you.

Check the room at the top of the stairs for goodies; find two boxes next to the bed, 1800 PTAS on the table, and a Red Herb in a cabinet. Now take the Golden Sword from the platinum panel and place the Platinum Sword here. Go back downstairs and put the Golden Sword in the golden panel to complete the swap and the platinum panel will open. Go though to the next area.

Castle Gate
You enter a walkway leading to a gate to the part of the castle to the north. There is a cutscene where Luis catches up to you. He is about to give you an antidote for the parasite when he realizes he must have dropped it. He knows you were both infected and confirms the symptoms. Then he leaves to find the antidote again.

They only way forward is the door to the west but there are zealots inside. Go in and wound the one that's visible, then go back through the door and wait for them all to bunch up at the door. Fall back to the walkway if you need to. If you go through the door and look to the right you'll see a red barrel in the corner, so another approach is lure the enemies near it and blow it up. Leave Ashley outside the door area if you do this since you will have to dodge the monks to make it work.

There is a small building in the corner; get two barrels, 2500 PTAS from a cabinet, and Handgun Ammo from the table. There in an archer shooting from the corridor on the left so watch that you stay out of his line of sight. If you do avoid being seen then snipe him through the window, otherwise park Ashley in a safe spot and defeat him as best you can.

When you go through the next arch, two monks with shields come out. These take twice as much firepower to defeat because you first have to destroy their shields. If you have a spare Hand Grenade then toss it behind them to bypass the shields. The Riot Gun will destroy the shields completely, otherwise try to punch holes in the shields and then shoot through the holes. If you haven't used the red barrel yet then you could also lure them to it and use it now to good effect.

Enter the next building and get a Green Herb and a (plain) barrel, saving the treasure chest for last. Before you open it, make note of the position of the red barrel near the entrance. When the open the treasure chest and get the Castle Gate Key, a group of zealots will come through the door, so quickly turn around and shoot the barrel to put a big dent in their numbers. If you don't pull off the trick with the barrel then you might want to toss a grenade of your own to slow them down. If the remaining zealots get to be too much for you, pick the route with the fewest to get by and rush past them to make a stand at a better spot.

You now have the key so use it to unlock the castle gate and go through.

Audience Hall
You enter a large entrance hall and you can hear creepy laughter coming from somewhere. Go forward a bit to trigger a cutscene where Ramon Salizar appears and introduces himself. He’s in charge of the castle and says that because of the parasite you and Ashley will soon join him, but it’s only Ashley that’s important. He leaves the way he entered.

Go forward a bit and the door ahead closes, there is a relief on it which is missing some pieces. You need to find these pieces and that will be the main objective for this part of the castle.

There are four large ceramic jars next to the steps; break these open to get items as with boxes and barrels. Some contain snakes but again, since no one remembers that when the time comes, we'll let you know which ones. Shoot the sparkling object in the arch over the steps to get the Green Gem, an attachment for the Elegant Mask. (If you didn't get this gem on in the village then you could use it to complete the Elegant Mask you got there, but we'll be getting another Elegant Mask in the castle so that won't really help.)

There is a a typewriter here and it's a good idea to save since it's been a while and it will be a while until the next one. In general save points are farther apart now that we're no longer at the beginning of the game, so save when you can. It may even be worthwhile to backtrack to a previous typewriter after a tough battle.

The door to the west is locked. You'll also find that zealots have repopulated the area south, so backtracking will be somewhat inconvenient. That leaves the door to the east, so go that way.

You enter a long corridor on a ledge overlooking another room. Get two barrels on the left and check the door next to them to learn that the other room is a prison. Get a jar on a cabinet and check the portrait of Saddler on the other side of the corridor to get 5000 PTAS. There are similar portraits elsewhere in the castle so keep an eye out for them. Pick up Handgun Ammo next to the portrait. Continue and get two more barrels at the end of the corridor; one of these will have a Yellow Herb.

Get "Capture Luis Sera" from the wall. Apparently Luis is back on top of Saddler's most wanted list because he took a very important "sample". The way forward is blocked by two fire-breathing horses, but if you examine the portrait to the right you'll find the Prison Key.

The only place to use the Prison Key would be the prison, so start heading back there. On the way, stop at the cabinet where the jar was, equip your rifle, and shoot the object off of the beam above the prison. Continue to the prison door, unlock it, park Ashley safely at the top of the stairs, and get the Shotgun Shells you just knocked down. Pick up the Green Herb from the corner as well. Make note of the bells here since they will be useful in a bit.

As you approach the cell on the far side, you get a close-up view of the prisoner inside. He's chained in and his eyes have been sewn shut. In case you get any bright ideas, he's invulnerable as long as his back is to the wall.

There's a switch inside the cage that shuts off the horses in the hall, but entering the cage causes its occupant to break free. Quickly turn around and exit the cage.

The monster drops 15000 Pesetas, so collect it, go back to the cell and pull the lever, collect Ashley, and exit the room.

With the horses no longer breathing fire it seems that zealots are free to approach from beyond, so look for them coming down the corridor. Style points if you can shoot the lamp to make it spill fire on them, but they shouldn't be hard to defeat if you don't pull this off.

Around the corner are two archers and a zealot with dynamite. Have Ashley wait in a safe spot and pick them off. A fourth zealot will be waiting in a small room past this. Get the Handgun Ammo next to the pillars here.

You just had a tough battle and there is another one coming up, so it's a good idea about now to backtrack to the typewriter and save your game. Continue on to the next area.

Water room
This area has gained a reputation among players for the frustration it causes. In fact outsidexbox lists RE4 as one of their 8 Great Games Nearly Ruined by One Terrible Level because of this area, not that it's really a terrible level but more that it's terribly difficult. Whether it deserves this reputation is debatable given the entire game, even the entire RE franchise, is filled will difficult and sometimes frustrating challenges. Given that in order to get this far you must have survived the battle in the village, Del Lago, El Gigante (maybe twice), the battle in the cabin, maybe the Bella Sisters, Mendez, and the Garrador, you should have what it takes to get through this.

You enter an area with decorative indoor pools which divide it into corridors. There is a ledge at the far end and passages going underneath it. When you come in there are a large number of zealots, some with shields, lined up across the middle of the room and most of them start coming at you. There may be archers on the balcony as well just to keep things interesting.

If you did get archers then you need to get out of their range as soon as possible, so immediately start for the other side of the room. Pick a route with relatively few zealots to deal with, stun them with your TMP or handgun when you get close so you can get by safely, and get to one of the far corners. You could try to make at stand there, but the enemies can still come at you from two directions. There's a door in the far hallway though, so go through into a small room, stand in one of the far corners there, and fire at the zealots as they come in. That door is the only real choke point in the area. You may notice a hole in the ceiling here and a zealot may come in through it, so don't leave Ashley here alone.

If the archers don't appear, and if you use a few continues here the game will make them go away, then you have the entire room to maneuver in. You can run faster than the monks, so stay away from the larger groups and attack the smaller ones as you can. When you do attack, do it quickly then keep moving so enemies can't surround you; this is the classic hit and run. If you do get cornered then shoot to stun and run past enemies as mentioned above to get out of it.

In any case, there will be a second wave after you’ve defeated enough of the first one. If you see a large group bunched up then toss a Hand or Incendiary Grenade to speed things up. If Ashley is captured then make the monk carrying her top priority since it's game over if he escapes with her.

A rifle works well against the shield carriers and a shotgun or TMP against smaller groups. But keep a close eye on your ammo supplies. You will need Rifle Ammo very soon so save at least a box. The same goes for Shotgun Shells, though you can use the TMP as well.

Once the ground forces are gone, if you still have archers to deal with then get to a position just out of range near the steps in one of the side corridors. Timing your movements, step out and snipe the archer on the opposite side; he should be standing on the balcony. Then do the same on the other side.

Once things quiet down a bit you can start collecting items around the area.
 * Three vases on cabinets near the entrance
 * 2000 PTAS from a table on the right
 * Four large pots in the center of the main room
 * Two more large pots in the corridor under the ledge
 * A Green Herb and Shotgun Shells in the back room

You'll notice two bright yellow squares in the corners of the back room; have Ashley wait on one while you stand on the other to raise a crank back in the main room. It will also trigger more zealots to appear so stand in front of Ashley and fend them off, watching out for some that drop down through the hole in the ceiling. Once they stop coming, exit the room and hunt down stragglers, including possible archers on the balcony.

When the area seems clear, have Ashley turn the crank. It probably doesn't matter who does it but if there are still zealots around then you'll want to be able to fight them. The crank lowers stairs which allow you to reach the upper level. An additional group of zealots may appear behind it wielding scythes; take them out with a grenade if you have one.

Take a moment to get the two large pots on the upper level; these have ammo which you're probably going to be using in a moment. Check the two small rooms on either side of the balcony for another pot each.

There is a pool of water between you and the way forward, and since wading and swimming are apparently out of the question, you must create some sort of bridge over it. At some point Ashley will point out two more cranks on ledges and they do just that. Locate the two crests on either side of the balcony, then piggyback Ashley onto one so she can climb up and get to the cranks. As she does though, zealots will enter on the ledge and attempt to carry her off. Try to snipe them before they reach her, and shoot them in the legs if they manage to grab her. A good place to stand for this is at the top of the steps near the water's edge. When Ashley’s done one crank she will use the catwalk to get to the other one and do the same routine.

Meanwhile you've got your own problems since zealots come to attack you as well. You your shotgun or TMP to fend them off. You need to keep alternating between the rifle and shotgun and/or TMP to keep both Ashley and yourself safe until the job is done. Once Ashley's finished she runs to the other crest, so catch her there. The cranks raise two stepping stones in the pool, so use them to reach the far door and exit.

There are several pauses in the action here, and you can use the opportunity to backtrack to the nearest typewriter to save your progress. However, zealots come in if you leave the room and come back, so there is a cost to doing this.

Basilica
This area appears to be a cathedral or church converted by Los Illuminados for their own uses. It is, thankfully, free of zealots so you have a moment to rest. Explore a bit to find items, but stay out of the passage to the north for a moment.

The Merchant is at the north end and there is a typewriter next to him; you can save if you want but there will be an end of chapter save very soon so it's not necessary. Get three pots next to the Merchant, Handgun Ammo on the cabinet to the left, and a Spinel from a cabinet on the right. There are two statues of a woman with two faces hanging upside-down from the ceiling; stand between them and shoot the sparkling object out of the statue's eye to set another Spinel. Now go to the corner on the right and smash the glass cabinet to get to the treasure chest inside; this contains a Hand Grenade. (A treasure is marked on the map here but you can’t reach it yet.) There is a stair on the left side but it’s blocked at the moment.

There is a new feature here, the Shooting Gallery. Look for the door with the pistol motif in the far left corner and go in to start. See Side quests for details. This is purely optional but you can get some cash prizes it you're a good shot.

Start into the north hall to begin a cutscene. Ashley starts to cough up blood and when you express your concern she gets embarrassed and runs away. Spiked fences appear behind her and she is forced to keep running to the end of the hall where metal bands encircle her. The wall flips around and Ashley is gone from view.