ZombiU Hardcore -- Retrieve De Rimedi Secreti

CLEAR OUT THE MAIN ROOM

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Scan the room to the left for loot.  There is a hidden path upstairs in this room, but you'll get yanked through by a zombie if you take that path. It's more worthwhile to clear out the larger room with a flare and a cocktail.

Equip your flare and enter the room, standing behind the large piece of furniture with a hole in it. Notice the two zombies coming down the stairs -- one is a spitter, hence standing behind the item of furniture -- you can see through the hole. When the spitter stops -- he won't come all the way down -- chuck your flare towards the zombie standing near the piano. When all zombies are in range, shoot your cocktail at them and run for the hidden passage.

HIDDEN PASSAGE: There is one alcove -- the one nearest the stairs but furthest from where you entered -- with no vase in it -- standing in it will transfer you into a secret path that's closed to you for now, but you can grab the crossbow and hide.

Stand in safety in the hidden passage while all the zombies burn to death. The spitter takes longer to burn, so pick up the hunting crossbow and equip it, waiting long enough for the spitter to die, then go back out, scan for loot, and head up the stairs.

Optional: Go murder the zombie that would yank you through the crawlspace if you came up the secret way, clearing the secret way for later use. I use my crossbow to avoid wasting ammo.

Two zombies -- one a spitter -- lay prone at the top of the stairs between the two sets of stairs. Approach the first from a good distance but close enough to target his head with either the crossbow or the pistol with the silencer, otherwise you'll wake the spitter. Once he's dead -- don't loot him yet, you'll wake the spitter -- equip your bat and swiftly approach and shove the spitter before he can get to his feet. ZR smash him.

Approaching the door at the far end of the second floor balcony, an armored zombie comes at you from the door -- whack him three times with the bat to relieve him of his helmet, then use your upgraded pistol to kill him with two shots. No one will hear the shots -- no zombies are that close. Make sure to do battle in the big room.

HALLWAY BATTLES

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Armored zombie dead, enter the hall and use your crossbow to take out the zombie down the hall. Three zombies are triggered behind you as you approach the cross-over point, so killing this zombie is critical to not having two fronts in that battle. You can also get his attention, shove him over as he crosses over, and ZR smash him with little chance of triggering the three zombies -- you have to stand all the way against the wall up to the cross-over board to trigger them. Actually crossing over triggers them 100 percent of the time.

When you're ready, cross over and trigger the three zombies. Wait for the first to get about where the suitcase (with no loot) is and then throw a flare at the very end of the corridor. Throw a cocktail as soon as you can ensure you'll hit both non-armored zombies -- sometimes the one armored is the second zombie and sometimes he's the third. The key is to burn the fleshies so that you are not distracted (read: murdered) by them when you kill the armored as he crosses over.

After the three zombies are dead, approach the cross-over point at the end of the hall. Look at and get the spitter's attention in the big room, then duck back so you don't get hit. The spitter will come to you -- shove him as he's crossing over and ZR smash him. Enter the room and ZR smash the zombie laying by the head of the table.

ROOM WITH GIANT TABLE & ROOM ON FIRE

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Run to the end of the room, cross over, and pass -- do not touch -- the code-locked door in the hallway. There is nothing in there, at least in Survival mode, and touching the code keypad triggers 5 zombies from behind you, including an armored -- not worth it.

Get the attention of the armored standing past the hall in the room with the burning pile of furniture, then run back, cross over into the room with the table, then shove the armored down as he crosses over, whack him three times to knock of the helmet, and ZR smash him on the ground.

Return to the room with the burning furniture and find where the zombie is on the scaffolding to your left as you enter the room -- his location varies but is most often on the top. Shoot him with the hunting crossbow or any gun to at least wake him up, then kill him as he falls with a friendly shove and a ZR smash.

CAUTION: Do not climb the ladder until you kill this zombie. If he's on a level other than the top, he will reach through as you climb and you will die a spectacularly ugly death. Retrieve the crossbow bolts and then cross over to the other side of the room.

SECOND ROOM ON FIRE

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Use the crossbow or silencer-equipped pistol to take out the fleshie near the door, then run up the stairs and kill the armored up there. Equip a flare and a cocktail to follow it up, then, from the safety of the second floor, chuck a flare at the entrance to the corridor with a ton of zombies in it. Don't throw it into the corridor, throw it at the entrance. When all zombies are at the flare, chuck the cocktail. Only one, the armored, will survive. Kill him or just forget him and go around him.

Enter the crawlspace near the flaming bookcase on the lower level, get your weapon upgrade and ammo, then head to the end of the corridor you cleared with the cocktail and pick up the book. Use the newly opened secret passage to open up a passage in the room with the huge table, killing that zombie with a shove and a ZR smash -- he's prone as you first walk in, so shove him to keep him prone and ZR smash him. You also get your intermediate-level backpack and open up a ladder to the first floor that essentially solidifies your access to the "spine" of this level, making future incursions much easier.

Using the newly dropped ladder, use the secret alcove to access the first room, exit the level, and take the book to the Doc.