Recurring characters in the Tomb Raider game series

A list of recurring characters that appear through the successful game series, Tomb Raider.

Jacqueline Natla
Natla was one of the members of the triumvirate ruling the lost continent of Atlantis. However, she was later condemned for her misuse of power and was imprisoned in a capsule by the other two rulers, Qualopec and Tihocan. After escaping from her prison in 1945 during a nuclear test in Los Alamos, New Mexico, she took on the name Jacqueline and founded her own company called Natla Technologies using her scientific expertise and cunning. In 1996 she hired adventurer Lara Croft to search for Qualopec's piece of the Atlantean Scion in his Tomb located in Peru. Shortly after finding the artifact, Lara was attacked by another adventurer Larson under orders by Natla. Knowing Natla had betrayed her, Lara went in search for the remaining two pieces in Greece and then Egypt. After obtaining the final piece, Lara was ambushed by Natla and her men. Stealing the now assembled artifact, Natla ordered Lara to be killed and left Egypt in her boat heading to Atlantis.

It is inside the Great Pyramid of Atlantis that Natla's grand scheme is revealed: to use the Scion's powers to breed a new race of mutant creatures. Realizing this, Lara made her best effort to destroy the Scion. Refusing to let her work be destroyed, Natla charged for Lara sending them both falling into a deep abyss. While Lara managed to grab a ledge, Natla continued to plummet into the lava pit below. As Lara tries to escape the pyramid Natla confronts her a final time, revealing her true appearance. After a fearsome battle, Lara defeated Natla and escaped the pyramid, leaving Natla inside when it exploded.

Jacqueline Natla returns in Tomb Raider: Anniversary, a game inspired by the original Tomb Raider game, developed Crystal Dynamics. Here she is voiced by Grey DeLisle. . In Anniversary, her role remains the same. However, Natla is visually depicted as taller and as having a much skinnier body frame as well as sharp and almost alien-like facial features, and also unusually long hair, pale skin and long fingers with long, sharp nails. In this game she also describes herself as immortal and sought to bring about the 'Seventh Age' though what this was remained ambiguous.

In Tomb Raider: Legend, several crates containing the "Natla Industries" logo can be seen throughout the final level. It is unknown if this was meant to imply Amanda Evert, the apparent owner of the crates, has some connection to Natla or if it was merely an easter egg.

She returns in Tomb Raider: Underworld as a prisoner of Amanda Evert's, as she is kept on her boat in a status capsule. During the game she tells Lara about Helheim and Avalon being one and the same and that she needs Thor's gauntlets, belt and hammer to reach it, as well as her help. Lara later smashes the capsule open, letting Natla escape and they get to Avalon, where she reveals that she was playing Lara to reach some ancient device called the Midgard's serpent to take over the world and bring the end of all living. Lara manages to destroy the device and hurls Thor's hammer at her which kills her as the mechanism collapses.

Larson Conway
Larson was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S., in 1967. In 1995, he is working with Pierre Dupont in an attempt to acquire the Philosopher's Stone in Rome. He meets with Lara during an opera performance to exchange the Mercury Stone for money. As Lara prepares to hand over a suitcase full of cash, Pierre shows up with a pistol aimed at Lara's head - planning on taking the money and keeping the stone. As Larson and Pierre prepare to leave, Lara kicks the stone out of Larson's hand and jumps off the balcony onto the stage. Escaping the opera house, Lara rides off on a scooter with Larson and Pierre trailing behind. Sliding beneath a half-closed gate, Larson and Pierre continue after her only to crash their car. Larson and Pierre continue to stalk Lara throughout Rome as she collects three more stones to open a gateway that will lead her to the Philosopher's Stone. After finding the final stone, Lara is confronted by Larson and the two fight outside the stone gateway. Wounding Larson, Lara notices three gargoyles animating from the stone building. Despite her warnings, Larson refuses to believe her until it is too late, and is tossed across the garden. He is portrayed as being something of a halfwit, which Pierre attributes to the fact that Larson was "kicked in the head by a horse" at some point in his life.

In 1996, Larson meets with Lara in India on behalf of Jacqueline Natla, CEO of Natla Technologies. While Lara was hired to retrieve a portion of the Scion artifact in Peru, Larson was hired to ambush her and take the artifact. Lara defeats him and is told that Natla has sent Pierre on the trail for the second piece. Larson shows up again later in Egypt just before Lara can obtain the final piece, and she kills him in cold blood.

Larson returns in Crystal Dynamic's re-imagining of the original game, Tomb Raider: Anniversary where he was voiced by Dave Wittenberg. Larson has a more muscular body compared to the original, now wears a dark blue shirt in place of his red one with the vest, a belt with a buckle shaped of the state of Texas and a slightly different haircut. He is also now equipped with a shotgun.

In the opening cutscene in which Lara is hired by Natla to find the Atlantean Scion, she acknowledges Larson that they have met before. His character in this game is a nicer one, albeit still an enemy. He remains willing to kill however should he succeed in killing Lara during interactive cutscences he expresses his disdain, stating ''"It didn't have to be this way," "What a waste..." and "Damn..."''.

Further evidence of his reluctance to kill Lara is seen in Peru, where he and Lara engage in a battle. Larson attempts to either knock Lara down or stun her, and only attempts to use his firearm when frustrated. After finding the last piece of the Scion in Egypt, Natla's group ambushes Lara, and as she escapes Natla's thugs, Larson prevents "The Kid," from shooting her, and takes aim himself. However, at the last second, he purposefully aimed to the right, away from Lara, and fired. Furthermore, as she breaks free from their grasp, Kold and The Kid attempt to, respectively, stab or shoot down Lara, while Larson only attempts to knock her down with his firearm.

In Natla's Mines, Larson reveals himself, blocking Lara from continuing any further, confident that Lara won't go as far as to kill him for just doing his job, and because it's just not who she is. However, Lara's obsession with the Scion pushes her into proving his assumption wrong, as she fires at Larson, who, between each of Lara's shots, attempts to raise his own weapon to defend himself. Finally, he suffers one shot too many, and falls down. Before quickly dying, he reaches out his hand towards Lara.

The unlockable in-game commentary states that the pair had a certain chemistry between them and Lara was deeply disturbed by her actions afterwards.

Pierre Dupont
Pierre Dupont was born in Nantes, France, in 1951. In 1995, he is working with Larson in an attempt to acquire the Philosopher's Stone in Rome. He meets with Lara Croft during an opera performance to exchange the Mercury Stone for money. As Lara prepares to hand over a suitcase full of cash, Pierre holds Lara at gunpoint - planning on taking the money and keeping the stone. However, as Larson and Pierre prepare to leave, Lara kicks the stone out of Pierre's hand and jumps off the balcony onto the stage, escaping the opera house. A chase ensues, and is ended when Pierre and Larson crash their car into a half closed gate. Larson and Pierre continue to stalk Lara throughout Rome as she collects three more stones to open a gateway that will lead her to the Philosopher's Stone. Inside the Coliseum, Lara slips off a ledge with Pierre standing right above her. She agrees not to lay a finger on him if he helps her up, but catches him off guard with a "boo" causing Pierre to slip off the ledge.

In late 1996, Pierre is hired by Jacqueline Natla to find the second part of the Scion artifact in Greece. However, he is followed into St Francis' Folly by Lara, and attempts to kill her on a number of occasions. After Lara arrives at the Tomb of Tihocan, she encounters Pierre and the two engage in a gunfight for the piece of the Scion. The fight ends with Lara killing Pierre in cold blood.

In Anniversary, Pierre taunts her at a few triggered stages, until Lara reaches the Tomb of Tihocan. There, Pierre reveals to have obtained the piece of the Scion before Lara, and holds her at gunpoint before Lara manages to fight back, causing him to flee. However, as soon as he steps out, the two centaur statues outside the tomb turn to life and attack Pierre, who, in a moment of cowardice, throws the piece of the Scion to Lara, in hope that their attention will then be driven to her instead. Unfortunately for him, they decided to kill him before turning to Lara - and thus, in this version, Lara does not kill Pierre Dupont. Also, in the original games, Pierre has long hair; in Anniversary, he is bald.

Winston Smith
Lara's butler who is often seen at Croft Manor. He rarely plays any role in the game's plot, usually only seen in Lara's Mansion, in the 2nd and 3rd games he follows Lara around the mansion, carrying a tray with what seems to be blue mugs on it and often farts and groans.

In Tomb Raider Chronicles, he sits around a table with various other friends of Lara as they recall Lara's past adventures. He tells the stoy of how Lara finds the Philospher's Stone in Rome, while being stalked by Larson Conway and Pierre Dupont. He also tells how Lara stole the "Iris" atrefact from Von Croy's company building.

In Tomb Raider Legend he stands beside the fire place in Croft Manor and offers advice to Lara in cutscenes. He also appears in the manor level of Tomb Raider Anniversery. He is voiced by Alan Shearman.

He appears during the Prologue level and the Croft Manor level of Tomb Raider: Underworld. When Lara finds that one of Thor's Gauntlets may be in her grandfathers grave, Winston reveals a secret passage in the "Tech Room" that leads to the Croft family Crypt. He, Lara, Zip and Alister investigate the crypt and find that below Lara's grandfather's coffin is a secret passage, which Lara then goes into to find the Gauntlet. Meanwhile Winston and Zip are attacked by a Lara Doppelganger sent by Natla and Amanda Evert to retrieve the "Wraith Stone" and Croft Manor is then set on fire. Winston and Zip then try to escape through the main door, when Lara appears. Winston stops Zip from shooting her after he mistakes her for the Doppelganger. Lara then tells the two to get out of the Mansion. Winston waits with Zip for the authorities when Lara emerges with Alister's dead body, who had been shot by the Doppelganger. Lara anounces to the two she is leaving for Mexico to find Thor's belt and kill Natla. Winston is not seen again for the rest of the game.

Sophia Leigh
Sophia Leigh is a bussinesswoman who owns a comestics company in London. It is revealed in Tomb Raider III that Leigh has been experimenting people to test her products, many of these she thought to be dead, so they were dumped in the sewers. Leigh started using an artefact she had come across, called the "Eye of Isis", which, unknown to her, was one of four meteor artefacts Lara Croft is looking for during the events in Tomb Raider III.

Sophia Leigh first appears in this game when Lara travels to London to find the Eye of Isis. Leigh sends a number of assains, in her employment, to kill Lara. However, they are unsuccessful and Lara climbs through a vent to Leigh's office where she is sitting with the artefact. Leigh mockingly offers Lara a job, telling her that with her lifestyle she would be the perfect face for her products. Lara then tells Leigh the people she experimented on were still alive and that they helped her find Leigh. Lara demands she hand over the artefact, which she refuses to do. Leigh takes the artefact and runs out to balcony and across to the other building, she then uses the artefact to shoot green shards at Lara who works her way up Leigh's building and across to the one she is on. Lara then uses machinary to electrocute Leigh and she collapses, seemingly dead, letting Lara take the Eye of Isis.

Sophia Leigh re-appears in "Tomb Raider III: The Lost Artefact", where it seems she survived. She is able to steal a fifth meteor artefact, named the "Hand of Rathmore" from Lara. She confronts Lara in the catacombs in Paris, where she uses the Hand of Rathmore the same way she used the Eye of Isis, as she fires green energy at Lara. However, this time she is not protected from Lara's bullets and is eventually shot dead by Lara in the final battle of the game.

Werner Von Croy
Werner Von Croy is a fictional character from the Tomb Raider game series. He was a world renowned archaeologist and explorer, and also the mentor of the young Lara Croft. He was born in Vienna, Austria in 1940.

When Lara was sixteen years old, Von Croy took her on a journey to Angkor Wat in Cambodia for her very first adventure in a training level at the start of the game in Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation. The purpose of this exercise was to instruct Lara in exploration techniques and also to instill a respect for the past in her; for the gamer, this acts an introductory and training level. Ironically, Von Croy's downfall comes as a result of his greed, as when he reaches the sanctuary of the Iris in Angkor Wat, he completely disrespects the temple carvings which warn vengeance on those who remove the Iris. These events are covered in the first two levels, Angkor Wat and Race For The Iris. At the conclusion of Race For The Iris, Von Croy is left entombed in the sanctuary while Lara escapes.

Fifteen years later, and Von Croy encounters Lara again; this time contesting his attempts to claim the Amulet of Horus from the Tomb of Set in the Valley of the Kings. During the events of the game, Von Croy is possessed by the god Set, as a vessel through which Set can complete his objectives.

Von Croy witnesses Lara's apparent death at the Temple of Horus underneath the Great Pyramid. He offers her assistance, but the tomb collapses on top of Lara and Von Croy, mirroring the start of the game, only just makes it to safety. Thus ends Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation.

In Tomb Raider Chronicles, a story was told of Lara's past in which she recovers the Iris from Von Croy in his high-tech American business headquarters called Von Croy Industries (VCI). This also is also the first appearance of Zip, Lara's technological partner. At the end of this game a cutscene plays with Von Croy and a digging team finding Lara's backpack in the ruins, picking up from the end of Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation.

Between the events of The Last Revelation and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, Von Croy finds Lara again in Egypt. However, Lara seems unable to forgive Werner's actions in Egypt; this suggest a lack of continuity between the two games, as Werner did not in fact leave her to her death in Egypt as she states. Lara visits Von Croy's apartment in Paris at his request. However, he is murdered by the Monstrum, a serial killer, and The Angel Of Darkness begins.

Zip
Zip is described in Tomb Raider: Legend as Lara's right-hand man and also describes him as knowing about "all things geeky".

He first appears in Tomb Raider: Chronicles as it is shown that he helps Lara when she breaks into Von Croy's building. He communicates with her via a headset. He advises her on what to do and how to navigate through the building.

He re-appears in Tomb Raider: Legend and plays a simaliar role as his original appearance, as he communicates through Lara via a headset once again. At one point he and Alister are attacked by Amanda as she breaks into Lara's mansion. He and Alister helps Lara from a tech van when she find King Arthur's tomb.

He is next appears in Tomb Raider: Underworld. He communicates to Lara via a laptop at the start of the first and second levels. When Lara returns from Thailand, she Zip, Alister and Winston find a a secret passage in the "Tech Room" that leads to Croft family Crypt, where Lara discovers a secret passage at her grandfather's coffin. While Lara is investigating this Zip along Winston are attacked by a creature that looks very simaliar to Lara. They are able to escape this Doppelganger and try to escape Croft Manor, which is caught on fire, through the main doors. The real Lara then appears, this causes Zip to shoot at her, mistaking her for the Doppelganger. Winston stops him, telling him Lara and the Doppelganger are two different people. Zip then escapes the mansion with Winston and waits with him, until Lara brings Alister's dead body from the mansion. Lara annouces that she is going to Mexico to find Thor's belt, then Thor's Hammer and then kill Natla who created the Doppelganger who it is revealed killed Alister. Zip later gives Lara the co-ordinates to the ruins where she finds Thor's Hammer.

Alister Fletcher
Alister Fletcher is one of Lara's closest allies in Tomb Raider: Legend and returned in Tomb Raider: Underworld. He is Lara's research assistant and is described on the Tomb Raider: Legend website as providing another "mind filled with arcane historical information". He is also described as "tense and prickly" and as "taking himself too seriously".

In Tomb Raider: Legend, he, along with Zip, communicate with Lara via her headset, he returns from France after having his dissertation rejected at the beginning of the game while Lara is in Bolivia. He sometimes gives advice concerning ancient civalisations. He and Zip are Attacked by Amanda Evert when she breaks into Lara's home, looking for the Ghalali Key. He gives Lara advice when she enters King Arthur's tomb from a tech van.

In Tomb Raider: Underworld he still works with Lara, communicating to her through her Laptop on her yacht in the first two levels. However, he is shot by Lara's Doppelganger while trying to escape the burning mansion, and later dies whilst Lara is trying to save him.

Amanda Evert
Amanda Evert first appeared in the game Tomb Raider: Legend. In the game it is said she is fascinated by myths and legends and was Lara Croft's friend in university.

A flashback in Tomb Raider: Legend shows how she, Lara and their friends from university entered a tomb, however the pair find their friends dead and get split up. They are then stalked by an Unknown Entity; eventually the two meet up where Amanda is trying to remove a stone from the wall, hoping it will unlock a door as the Entity comes into the room. Amanda just manages to pull the stone from the wall as the Entity attacks Lara, it makes the Entity vanish but makes the room collapse partly and water enters the tomb. Lara tries to save Amanda but she is trapped and she appears to die as rocks fall around her. During the present day events of the game, Amanda is paired with James Rutland as they attempted to find the pieces of the legendary excailbur. However Lara also begins finding the pieces of the swords and Amanda breaks into her mansion while she is in Ghana, Africa in an attempt to find the Ghalia Key, which she thinks Lara has. Amanda and Lara finally meet again in Kazaksthan where both of them are looking for a sword piece. Lara tries to reconcile with Amanda but Amanda igonres Lara setting her men on her. The two meet again in a room in the Kazaksthan labortry where it is said the supernatrual was being investigated. Amanda then reveals she is in control of the Unknown Entity and sets it on Lara. Lara avoids it and takes the next piece of the sword from the labortory. Amanda is next seen in the final level, set in Bolivia, where Lara has already reforged excalibur. Amanda and Rutland set their men on Lara who defeats them with excalbur. Rutland is accidently killed in the battle. Amanda then merges with the Entity to fight Lara in the final battle, however, Lara defeats her and the Entity. In the final scene of the game, Lara uses excaibur and the Stone Dais to open up the portal in where she seemingly talks to her mother, however, it is then shown it is her mother talking before she dissapers. Amanda wakes up and tells Lara to remove the sword from the dais. Lara's mother thinks Amanda is talking to her and removes the sword from her side of the portal, explaining her dissapearance. Lara then points her gun at Amanda and demands she explain what had just happned. Amanda reveals that Lara's mother is in Avalon, saying it is not a myth and gets angry at Lara for closing the portal. Lara knocks Amanda out and leaves.

Amanda returns in Tomb Raider: Underworld where it is revealed she has Jacqueline Natla imprisoned in a status capsule. She is first seen in the first level where her ship is in the Sea, as she sends mercenaries underwater to find Thor's Gauntlet. Her Mercenaries take it from Lara who has already found it and they give it to Amanda back on her ship. On the ship Amanda interrogates Natla about the Gauntlet, who says only Lara can use it now as she wore it first. Amanda leaves and has Natla in her status transported via helicopter to Amanda's other ship as the ship begins to sink, as Lara and the mercernaries cause an explosion. Amanda also leaves on this helicopter, however, Lara shoots at her from the sinking boat, so Amanda throws the Gauntlet into the sea, causing Lara to jump in after it. Amanda then sends a Doppelganger of Lara to her mansion to find the Wraith stone she used in Tomb Raider: Legend to control the now dead Unknown Entity. The Doppelganger, who it seems was created by Natla, retrieves the stone and returns it to Amanda. Lara then attacks Amanda's new ship, and finds Natla inside of it. Amanda and the Dopppelganger walk in on her threatning to kill Natla with Thor's Hammer. Amanda pulls out the Wraith Stone ready to fight Lara, but the Doppelganger suddenly picks Amanda up and throws her down a hole in the room, seemingly killing her. However, Amanda follows Lara and the released Natla to Helhiem under the Artic Ocean. She is next seen when the Doppelganger pins Lara down in a room in the ruins at the bottom of the Artic. Amanda stops the Doppelganger by using the Wraith Stone to trown it over a ledge, killing it. Amanda reveals she is till bitter at Lara but agrees to hold back the attacking Thralls so Lara can stop Natla using the Serpent to destroy life on earth. While Lara is proceeding to shut down the Serpent Amanda runs into the huge cave where it is located. Natla trows a fireball at her, cauing her to fall unconsious. After Lara shuts down the Serpent and kills Natla, she sees Amanda and wakes her up. The two then discover another Stone Dais from Tomb Raider: Legend, which they use to teleport them to the Stone Dais in Nepal. Amanda then leaves Lara who looks at the remains of the Dais before leaving.