E1M6: Vysehrad Castle

Vyšehrad Castle is the sixth mission in HROT Episode 1 — Kiss Me Gustav. It depicts another real-world location in Prague, introduces an interactive vehicle, and presents the game's most iconic enemy for the first time.

# Walkthrough

The emergency exit at the end of **Place of Culture** drops the Player on an elevator rising to the plaza in front of Vyšehrad Castle facing the closed entrance to the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul, where three Hazmat Suits patrol the grounds.

To the left is a manhole cover which you can break open to retrieve some Land Mines, and on the side of the castle, a Submachine Gun with some clips and one Koruna. Immediately behind you is a Medkit, and to the right, a bag of Semi-Skimmed Milk. There is also a ridable motorcycle, which you can use to run over the annoying enemies that are bothering you, and perhaps earn another achievement.

Proceed around to the right side of the church to a side yard where you will find bullets and clips scattered around. Break open the two planks covering a hole in the ground and drop down to a water course. Continue along the course until you reach a large open pool, passing by a Smaskou along the way.

The pool has a ladder up to a landing at left, and two raised sluices ending in waterfalls at the right, and the entrance to the  first secret. A Smaskou and Kejdovec are doing maintenance on the sluices above, and convey to you that this area is not part of the castle tour. The ledge where they stand also contains the second secret, and several Grenades.

At the top of the ladder is a bottle of Red Wine and a Smaskou. Continue around the corner, past the Rusted Key door, and proceed down some stairs to reach the cellars beneath the castle. Another Smaskou will approach you on the left. On the right is a storage alcove with some Grenades.

Continue through the cellar and around the corner to another storage area with steps leading up on the opposite side, as well as the location of the third secret. Here you will encounter two Kejdovecs, a Hazmat Suit, a Smaskou, and an S.U.P., all of whom do not like you wandering on their turf. There are also two exploding barrels and a Loader, but do not fear, it is only a scarecrow meant to keep you on your toes.

Ascend the stairs where you will find one Smaskou in the hall, and another around the corner. At the top of a second set of stairs, two S.U.P.s will see you coming and will come running to nibble your legs. At the top of the second stairs you will see closed double doors on the left, some shells, and an explosive barrel. Around the corner you will see the Common Key, a switch, and a small jar.

Take the key and a wall will open near the barrel to release two Smaskous. Shoot the jar to discover the game's super power-up, the Calvaria of Čáslav. Throw the switch to open the double doors, take the Calvaria, and proceed up the stairs to a glorious arena battle featuring Šemík the Hors, a giant version of the genus Equus based on a Czech legend, who likes to jump around and can take a lot of damage.

Return to the side yard open the Common Key door at the back to gain access to the graveyard, where the entryway has some Grenades and a security monitor. Descend the stairs to the grave yard, where there are stairs at the right, leading to a closed door, and graves against the wall to the left. Two Hazmat Suits patrolling the area think you need to exhibit greater respect for the dead.

At the back of the graveyard in an alcove is a monument to Antonín Dvořák. Behind it is a button which will open the door at the top of the steps and the entry to the Basilica. Before you leave, be sure to loot the first and fourth graves to pick up some Tasty Canned Chicken and one Koruna.

Return to the plaza where a muttering Konfident awaits, and enter the Basilica to take on three Smaskous and two additional Konfidents. Inside there is a Brno Super Shotgun at the center of the nave, some shells, planks covering a bag of Semi-Skimmed Milk, and the entrances to the fourth and fifth secrets.

Ascend the ladder at the front of the nave to find a bag of Semi-Skimmed Milk and a button. Press the button to raise a stone pillar. Jump to the top of the pillar and then to the top of a platform where there is a second button. Press it to open the entrance to the crypt, then jump down inside.

Proceed through the crypt, where you will see a window overlooking the storage area with the Loader, which is blocked by a bollard, the entrance to the third secret. Continue through the crypt, passing the entrance to the sixth secret, and enter a second room on the right, where you will encounter your first Skull Spider, a giant spider.

In the second room is an alcove with a Grenade, and the entrance to a third room that contains the Rusted Key, a doorway on the left leading to stairs that is blocked by a bollard, and more Skull Spiders. Opposite to the entrance to this room is a nook with a pile of skulls. Shoot the skulls to reveal a switch that will open the closed door, causing more Skull Spiders to appear.

Take the Rusted Key and enter the now opened staircase, dispatching the lone Skull Spider that descends to greet you. Ascend the stairs and a panel opens in front of you to reveal the corridor where the Rusted Key door sits. You will also pass by the entrance to the seventh secret.

Open the Rusted Key door, and beyond is a platform facing a large water course, with two Hazmat Suits guarding it, and a Becva in the water. There is also a Medkit to replenish yourself. Jump in the water and keep to the right to find some shells and a valve which opens the water course to a main tank.

Swim around to the left side and drift down when you reach the wall to find an underwater course leading to a main tank. Here you will find another Becva and pass the entrance to the eighth secret.

Continue through the underwater passage to the main tank, where you will find two more Becva to oppose you. This is a large, open area with a train trestle that crosses it, with a long pier on one side and water course opposite that is blocked by two bollards. There is also a painted message along one wall that says **Long Live May 1st** (**Ať žije 1. Máj**).

Swim to the surface an orient yourself. On one bank there is a door with a Smaskou, a Konfident, a manhole concealing a bag of Milk, and an Aluminum Key door, which you can access if you are attempting the Secret of Vyšehrad achievement. On this pier is a valve at the opposite end of the Aluminum Key door, which will spawn two Smaskous on a floating pier to the right, and a Smaskou to the left at the opposite end.

Swim to the pier opposite the Aluminum Key door and prepare yourself for the appearance of three Konfidents. Once dispatched, swim to the floating pier on the right side of the main tank. There is a recessed area where there is the third valve and a bag of Semi-Skimmed Milk. Another Horse, two Skapucí and a Smaskou will appear to inform you that you are under arrest, before you are allowed to leave the area.

Swim through the now open channel, pausing only to swim by the ninth secret. At the end there are open doorways to the left and right. The area to the right has a Medkit ripe for the taking, while across the way are some shells and a Smaskou who is guarding the exit to the level.

**Previous:** E1M5: Palace of Culture

**Next:** E1M7: Underground Stream

# Secrets

### Secret 1

When you drop drop down to the watercourse that ends in a large pool with the twin waterfalls, there is a cracked wall opposite you when you enter the room. Blow it open to reveal a Hussite Hand Cannon.

### Secret 2

In the room with the large pool climb the ladder, and get ready for another of the trickiest jumps in the game. You need to run, jump, and swing around, just as you did to earn the fourth secret in Sewage Treatment Plant. A successful jump will earn you a second Pistol and one Koruna. If you did not previously pick up the extra pistol in Luna, you will earn another  achievement.

### Secret 3

You will see the location of the third secret before you reach the crypt, but to access it you will need to be in the crypt proper. In the crypt there is a window that is blocked by a bollard, which will open when you claim the Rusted Key. When the window is open swing jump to the left to land on top of some stacked boxes. From there, jump across to another stack of boxes opposite to claim one Koruna.

### Secret 4

Inside the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul, there are some shells on the ground at the back of nave on the left. Interact with the wall to the right of the shells and a panel will open to reveal a nook with one Koruna.

### Secret 5

Before opening the entrance to the crypt, on the right wall of the nave at the back, press a stone switch. Ascend the ladder to press the two buttons that open the crypt, then return back to the first button an press it again. The stone pillar that you raised with the first switch will then lower into the floor. Jump down to find some clips, and one Koruna. You can also use the opportunity to progress on the Secret of Vyšehrad achievement.

### Secret 6

In the front left corner of the first part of the crypt, opposite the doorway, is an interactive section of the wall. Press it to open a panel and reveal a Knapsack.

### Secret 7

After flipping the switch in the crypt and defeating the Skull Spiders that arrive to annoy you, ascend the stairs to the area where you will be presented with the Rusted Key door. Turn and look behind you to find an electrical panel. Shooting it opens a panel at the top of the stairs to your right to open a hidden corridor, which contains some Land Mines.

### Secret 8

In the water course past the Rusted Key door, you must swim down in order to enter the main tank. Just after you enter the tunnel look up and see an area where you can swim up. At the surface, turn to the right and score one Koruna.

### Secret 9

The last secret of the level is found next to the pier platform near the third valve. Swim down to find two planks covering an opening. Break it open to score a Medkit.

# Lore

* Vyšehrad (Czech for "upper castle") is a historic fort in Prague, Czech Republic, just over 3 km southeast of Prague Castle, on the east bank of the Vltava River. It was probably built in the 10th century. Inside the fort are the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul and the Vyšehrad Cemetery, the resting place of many prominent Czech people, such as Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana, Karel Čapek or Alphonse Mucha.

* The motorcycle is modelled on the Jawa 353. JAWA is a motorcycle manufacturer founded in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1929 by František Janeček, who bought the motorcycle division of Wanderer. The name JAWA was established by concatenating the first letters of Janeček and Wanderer. In the past, especially in between 1950s and 1970s, JAWA was one of the top motorcycle manufacturers and was exported into over 120 countries, including the USA. The best known model was the Jawa 350 Pérák and in the 1970s the 350 Californian. It appeared in typical black and red coloring from California to New Zealand. After 1990 a significant loss of production occurred. A successor company was formed in 1997 in Týnec and Sázavou, continuing the name as JAWA Moto.

* Horse is based on the legend of Šemík. The legend first appeared in the Wenceslaus Hájek chronicle, later it was adapted by Alois Jirásek in his book Ancient Bohemian Legends. It tells the story of Horymír who confronts the greed of Prince Křesomysl. Křesomysl, obsessed with wealth, encouraged his farmers to search for silver and gold deep in the earth. However, because everybody was now mining and not farming, a famine was looming. Horymír, a squire from the village Neumětely, warned the prince of the impeding hunger that would strike the land if things continued as they were, but Křesomysl would not listen. In addition, the miners did not care for Horymír's warning, and burned his property in retaliation. When Horymír saw the destruction, he got onto his white horse, Šemík, and burned the miners’ homes to the ground in retaliation. For this crime, Horymír was sentenced to be beheaded by the Vyšehrad court. Horymír asked that he be able to ride his horse around the castle one last time before he died, and was granted this last request. Before mounting his horse he whispered something into its ear, then got on and started to ride. Prince Křesomysl thought that because the caste gate was closed that Horymír could not escape, but Horymír rode Šemík up to a high point in the castle, and they lept over the wall without hesitation. Vyšehrad was built over a large cliff looking over the Vltava river, so everyone rushed to look over the wall, expecting to see Horymír and Šemík to be lying dead at the bottom of the cliff. Yet to their astonishment, not only had the two survived, but they were on the other side of the large river, racing home. When they finally arrived to Neumětely, Šemík was very weak. The miraculous jump had gravelly injured him. As he was dying, Šemík asked Horymír to build a tomb for him where he could be buried, and Horymír did.

* Antonín Dvořák (1981-1904) was a Czech composer, who achieved worldwide recognition. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example of his predecessor Bedřich Smetana. Dvořák's style has been described as "the fullest recreation of a national idiom with that of the symphonic tradition, absorbing folk influences and finding effective ways of using them". All of Dvořák's nine operas, except his first, have librettos in Czech and were intended to convey the Czech national spirit. Among his most frequently performed pieces are the New World Symphony, the Cello Concerto, the American Quartet or the opera Rusalka. His smaller works, the seventh Humoresque and the song "Songs My Mother Taught Me" are also well known to general public. He has been described as "arguably the most versatile... composer of his time". He is buried in Vyšehrad Cemetery.

* International Workers' Day, also known as Labor Day in most countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of laborers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on May Day (1 May). Eastern Bloc countries such as the Soviet Union and most countries of central and eastern Europe that were under the rule of Marxist-Leninist governments held official May Day celebrations in every town and city, during which party leaders greeted the crowds. Workers carried banners with political slogans and many companies decorated their company cars. The biggest celebration of 1 May usually occurred in the capital of a particular socialist country and usually included a military display and the presence of the president and the secretary general of the party. During the Cold War, May Day became the occasion for large military parades in Red Square by the Soviet Union and attended by the top leaders of the Kremlin, especially the Politburo, atop Lenin's Mausoleum. It became an enduring symbol of that period.