Hub 1: Guardian of Ice

Guardian of Ice is the first and largest map of Hexen's first hub, Hub 1: Seven Portals. Its theme is ice.

In these frozen caverns, relentless ice is the sentinel that will crush any who attempt to slip by and unlock its secrets.

Walkthrough
This one has a lot of long drops and crushers, so watch it. Wendigos are also introduced; they die quickly but do a lot of damage!. The player will pass through this map many times throughout the course of the hub.

First Visit
You’ll start in a darkened room. Ahead of you is a hallway with a couple Ettins. There are two sealed doors on the sides of the hall with the message “This path is barred”. There is also a window in the back of the darkened room, displaying an Amulet of Warding. Don’t worry about any of this for now. Continue into the northern area that opened up. The Fighter will see his second weapon ahead in harder difficulties. As you enter, the whole floor will descend, forming a staircase. There will be numerous Ettins, with more teleporting in around you. You may want to use Fléchettes to help in clearing the crowd, or hang back and use a ranged weapon. Either way, once its cleared, you can pick up Fléchettes, Crystal Vials, and an Amulet of Warding. At the far north-end, there is a bronze bullhead switch. Pulling it activates the four pillars - they quickly raise and lower, then stay open. Three of these pillars are crusher traps. One will have an illuminated sword pointing to it - that is the correct exit to Seven Portals.

Second visit:

You appeared in the south part of the level in a room with a couple of corridors before you. Get through the corridors to a small room with a bull-head switch (it's in the axe with the center of the room you appeared in) and pull it. This will turn the corridors into stairs. Also, in the room you appeared in, two flights of stairs, one on each side, will have appeared, both leading to another bull-head switch. Pull them both. Then take the corridors again, this time go through the one on your left. there, on your left again there will be an open-air area where you can jump from ledge to ledge to get a mystic urn and a torch (possibly killing some Wendigos on your way...). If you fall, nevermind, just kill the monsters at the bottom and take the lift that will take you to the middle of the stairs you would be getting to anyway. If you didn’t fall, just jump back where you came from and take the corridor going north. Beware that the first room you will enter has an ice trap that will shoot at you. However, this corridor will take you to the room with the amulet at the back of the dark room you appeared in when coming first to this level. The little window between these rooms will have got bigger by now, so you can easily pass to the part of the level you were in at the beginning. If you go again right ahead into the big room with the stairs going down, you will notice some new sword-shaped lights have appeared on the floor, each pointing to a wall (east and west). Open the eastern wall (should be on your right) and enter the small room. Kill the monsters and go to the east end of it. There will be a wall there with the fire mask missing. Put it there (just standard "Open"), kill the Afrits that will appear and collect the fire key on the central pillar that just lowered. Then go back to the big room and through the other (western) door. This one will lead into a big room with some Wendigos and a with moving floor. Beware of that, you can get crushed or stuck in a place you can't jump out of (in that case, use the no clipping cheat code "casper"). On the east of the room there is a small niche with a bull-head switch. When you pull it, some more floor movement will occur, revealing some pitfalls. Carefully go ahead into the next big icy room, still more to the west. There, on a small pedestal, is the Steel key. Take it, beware of the floor movement again and head back. When you exit the room, three doors will open behind you, letting some monsters loose and giving you access to some mana and Crystal Vials. When you're through with that, head back to the Seven Portals.

Third visit

That is, if you want to get to the secret level. I suppose you took the first portal to this level and thus appeared in the small dark room. If not, go there. Then proceed right ahead into the small room (the one that leads to the bigger room with the four pillars). On your right and left, the originally barred doors should be opened now (you opened them with the two switches back in Seven Portals). I recommend to go to the room on the right first, as there are Affrits there that could sneak up on you otherwise. Once you've killed them, go to the room on your right and pull the bull-head switch there. That opens the small cavity on the other side of the pit that started to spew fireballs now. Run up the stairs and jump across it. In the small room, you will find another switch, pull it. Through the small opening in the room you’re in, you can now see that a portal appeared in the corridor that goes around that cavity (in the north side of the room). Go through that portal, to a completely new part of the Guardian of Fire.

Fourth visit

So, having completed the Guardian of Fire, you can go now through the other door that opened here (that is the western one in the room after the dark one where you appeared). This one leads into a corridor where a trap will spring as soon as you walk in, so go carefully. Beyond the trap a twist will take you to a room with a pillar in the middle. On the other side of the pillar is a bull-head switch. Pull it and dispose of the Centaurs this will have released. Beware also that poison darts will start shooting at the switch, so get out quickly. Once you leave you will notice that a portal has open in the trap corridor. It will take you to the Guardian of Steel.