The Hidden Blade Assassin's Creed in Depth

Firecracker Assassination

I placed William Johnson at the end of the dock by first using Rope Dart and then bumping him into position while carrying a Powder Keg. To move him with Rope Dart just tap . Connor will not kill him unless you are standing close together (or you accidentally drag Johnson over a Trip Mine). My thought was that if the explosion didn't kill him then falling into water would.

It turns out that the explosion does indeed kill the target. I have confirmed this result on dry land. When Double McStab with Cheese experimented with this style of assassination he reported that Johnson was moved but not killed. The difference must be the proximity of Connor to the target. I wanted a clear shot to the first Powder Keg and a good view of the assassination, so I arranged the Powder Kegs and Trip Mines in a semicircle around a high vantage point. The maximum distance between Powder Kegs seems to be about 8 walking paces for Connor.

Full Sync

The requirements for 100% Synchronization are:
1. Reach Johnson Undetected (both before and after the "Are you threatening us?" cutscene)
2. Limit Native American casualties - 0/1
3. Perform a swan dive to escape

If you skip the cutscene or reload from last checkpoint, it places Connor a distance north of the Johnson House, even if you approached from the south. This got me thinking that there must be a viable approach from the north. That's when I discovered this route which essentially goes up the face of a cliff. The first time you come this way you will find a feather on the log at 2:03.

One good thing about this route is that you encounter few guards. I chose to stealth assassinate the first one at 2:30 so that his body would distract the second one (visible on the left at 2:33). If you just try to run past the second guard you will usually get a brief SSI indicator, blowing an otherwise ghost run.

The air assassination from the roof of Johnson House is standard. There are several places to perform a swan dive to escape. I chose one that is easily accessible but often overlooked. It plunges Connor into shallow water just off the beach with two guards.

http://youtu.be/pXo-bzV0nB8
[Front-paged. -stabguy]

The Braddock Expedition
The Braddock Expedition is the third and last memory of sequence three. I will focus at the beginning, when you ride with your allies. Their names from front to back are:

Early Deaths
Killing these targets early depends on them riding their horses. You can move the horses by riding a horse by them (if you get directly behind them you can make them move from as far as about fifteen to twenty feet away). Now since the targets themselves are invincible, it prevents you from pulling off easy deaths. You can shoot at them with range weapons, which are ineffective. They will counter any attempts to tackle them off their horses. However the horses they ride on can be shot. Shooting the horse will cause it to fall, dismounting the rider.

Since water is the only thing that kills characters, even invincible ones (in a sense), that is what I need to use. Here are the results of my attempts to move the targets into water.

For one of them, I moved his horse onto a cliff and shot it. The target fell onto a lower cliff. I was able to slowly move the target off the cliff by attempting to tackle him. Moving the horse at him also seemed to move him, although not as effectively. After that he fell off, but the water wasn't deep enough to drown him. After moving him further with a bunch of tackles, I accidentally discovered that you can move him while swimming (collision mechanics must be different while swimming, which is understandable). For the other targets I simply led them to a lake shore and shot their horse, causing them to fall into the water.

I also included the database entries for the targets as proof of their identities.

http://youtu.be/YwVNTAtjlfE
[Front-paged, sight unseen. This better be good! -stabguy]

Spoiler Warning for those who didn't complete sequence eight.

An Average Day in the life of a Prisoner
Some humor earlier in the sequence. During the time you eavesdrop on a conversation in the cell, there are two objects you can interact with (besides the wall and bed, which are required). You can knock on the cell door, which gets a reaction from a guard. There's also a bucket by the bed (to eat from?).

Avoiding a fight
Rather than directly attack one of the prisoner targets, go to a corner and whistle. This will get their attention. You have the ability to use your fists only when in the area where they were originally standing, so lure one back to that area (make sure none of them are nearby when you knock him out, or you might desynch). When the fight starts, they are out of the ring of people, past an invisible barrier. You have to restart the checkpoint to get farther in the game.

Execution
After escaping the gallows, climb back on stage. The hood Charles Lee put on you is still there, hovering in midair. It won't be there if you restart the checkpoint.

Thomas Hickey
I tried performing a stylish kill on the target, but never had enough time (either he kills all of George Washington's bodyguards, or they kill him). However I got lucky enough for a running civilian to bump into him when he barely started moving. This allowed me to kill him where he pretty much was.

http://youtu.be/R74Fxu07okk
[Front-paged. - stabguy]

Spoiler Warning for those that haven't done the second and third Desmond missions.
Daniel Cross appears in all three missions. Here's the most creative video I could make concerning him.

Stealth Knockout
In the second mission, when Desmond runs into Daniel, a chase starts, followed by a fight. A way to do this stealthfully would be to hide in the tall grass nearby. You can't do this while seen, so hide behind an object, in this case a tree, to block your enemies' line of sight. You may have to leave the room first if you are unsuccessful. Now just wait for the enemies to give up searching for you.

I also managed to record a glitch. There's a chance Daniel might search for you past the boundary of the place (invisible barrier at the end where the thick crowds are). I tried an air assassination and fell through the floor.

Blitz
Starting from the checkpoint after Daniel crashed through a window, you're forced to chase him. The fastest way I managed was to air assassinate him after he swings from the bar and gets in a standing position.
Other possible faster ways:
1. Somehow catch up to him and knock him off, where he will fall to his death. Seeing you're about as fast as him, you would probably have to get lucky.
2. Jump straight to the ground and run to where he will land after swinging from the last bar. I haven't been able to get there fast enough.

The two people you're tailing in Sequence 3.2 are George Washington (in blue) and John Fraser. Historical note: On the final evening of the Braddock expedition, the Indians requested a conference. Braddock sent Washington and Fraser. The Indians suggested a cease fire to allow the French to peacefully withdraw from Fort Duquesne. Washington and Fraser recommended this truce but Braddock pressed ahead with his plan to attack Fort Duquesne the next day. That's what George and John are talking about when you eavesdrop.

Full Sync

The requirements for 100% Synchronization are:
1. Do not kill any guards.
2. Sabotage cannon - 2/2

You also must avoid detection until you steal the map. After that it's okay to enter Open Conflict (as long as you don't take down Washington or Fraser). You just have to become anonymous before talking to Kaniehtí:io again.

http://youtu.be/AT_Vrw0brMg
[Front-paged. -stabguy]

This is the last memory in sequence 2.

Full Synch
The full synch requirements are:
1. Avoid firing line damage.
2. Find and kill the general.
3. Perform stealth assassinations from a corner spot - 3/3

I start from the checkpoint right after you enter the fortress. At the beginning I head left to the ship. You can get all three corner assassinations from here. First corner assassinate the captain patrolling outside the ship (either wait for him to come around the corner or whistle, but I couldn't help getting him as he was tuning away). There's another captain on the ship. Lure him with a whistle if you don't want to wait for him to come around a corner. A guard stands in front of the prisoners on the ship. Use whistle to get him and free the prisoners.

The two other sets of prisoners are guarded by a patrolling captain each. I'll keep things minimal by not killing anyone I don't have to (and drawing unnecessary attention). Head from the ship to the prisoners right in front of you. Wait for the captain to get right in front of them to free them without getting seen.

Now head for the general. He is located to the very right of the area. His map marker shows up when you get close enough. And since he isn't close to any of the prisoners, many players miss killing him. You need to kill him before freeing all the prisoners or you'll lose the chance. I see at least a few ways of successful stealth kills here. Since he was inspecting a haystack I killed him right there, almost getting seen (close call).

Now for the last prisoners. Use the tall grass to hide from the patrolling captain and free the prisoners at whatever convenient time there is. The scene will now start.

After this checkpoint all you have to worry about is getting hit by the firing line. That's the easy part.

A collection of Easter Eggs in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. I could use your help analyzing some of them.

Oh Yeah

The opening scene isn't exactly an Easter Egg. It's just something I noticed the first time I played Brotherhood a couple of years ago. Lucy follows Desmond as they search underground for an alternate entrance to the Villa. Usually Lucy will hang back just behind the camera but if Desmond walks slowly enough, she will remain in frame. That's why she's sort of shuffling rather than taking full strides.

Project Legacy

A well-known Easter Egg, Lucy is playing Project Legacy on her second monitor. Some have said "This is a Templar game. It proves she's a Templar!" I think it's just a cross-reference to the other Assassin's Creed game released with Brotherhood. Nothing more.

Hey whatsa-matta-you

A rather amusing but missable cutscene. (Contains strong language. )

The writing is on the floor

Eagle Vision reveals symbols on the floor during this Lair of Romulus. Both originally appeared on the floor of the Abstergo laboratory at the end of Assassin's Creed 1. The Pyramid of Eden symbolizes the Templar plan to send a Piece of Eden into orbit and control all beneath it. The square of letters reads "Artefacts sent to the skies to control all nations, to make us obey a hidden crusade. Do not help them." Thanks to JoeyFogey for originally bringing this to our attention.

There are also some red arrows to guide your way with Eagle Vision (not shown). I find it easier to follow the well-lit path without Eagle Vision. Torches guide the way to the end of this lair.

[Front-paged. AC3 game mechanics spoilers below the fold. No story spoilers. -stabguy]

I will avoid spoilers.

I got Assassin's Creed III early due to certain connections in the gaming world and more than the usual sum of money.
This means I can tell you all about certain non-story things (not allowed to tell you about story).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mCvh1dbROo
[Front-paged. -stabguy]

Setup
For the setup before this watch the original video. It demonstrated how to disarm Rodrigo of the papal staff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJowUveU9uA&feature=plcp

After disarming Rodrigo keep the heavy weapon and staff where you can use them again. Take down the target's health as usual, and after the scene open the trapdoor to the vault. Now go back and get a guard to fight you (if you start from any checkpoint after opening the door into the building the guards won't appear in that area). Disarm the guard to make him pick up the heavy weapon, and pick up the staff right afterward.

Fighting Rodrigo with a Weapon
Now here is where the fun begins. Get the guard close to the edge of the pit. During the following scene with Rodrigo you can briefly see the guard. When the fight begins get where the guard will see you. Now here's a glitch in the combat system: Heavy weapons can be disarmed when you only have the option to counter with fists. This was originally discovered in this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zT3iqn_-M6U
After Rodrigo gets to one block of health it won't go down lower than that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciNeZtWp3zE
[Front-paged. -stabguy]

Like the title says, a shortcut for silently killing all the guards in the Sistine chapel. Here's the original video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SbI69x0YiA&feature=plcp

Setup
The only weapon you need equipped for this is poison. I start with the brute at the upper left of the room. Blend-walk out of a group to poison the brute without getting detected (stick by the wall to avoid getting seen by the other brutes). Now walk along the wall and poison the other brutes on that side of the room from behind. After that walk straight across to the other side of the room. The brutes there will see you until you blend back into a group. Blend-walk out of that group and repeat the process. The last brute is blocked off by a structure, so I run to poison him. You can expect for him to exclaim from seeing you, but usually he's poisoned when you're still anonymous.

Now for "killing" Rodrigo. Here's a way to "kill" him with one of the brutes' weapons. This will cause a glitch (not shown in video) with the scene after the memory corridor scene. This glitch was shown before in a video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJowUveU9uA&feature=plcp
However it was done with a heavy weapon outside of the Chapel. It was originally thought you couldn't kill him with a weapon in the chapel. This is because you have to jump from the high place and immediately attack. Running at him with the weapon and attacking will result in desynchronizing during the kill animation. So here's what to do: At the place shown in the video do a wall run and grasp the structure. There's a good chance the weapon will get stuck in the structure. Now climb on the ledge at the place shown, which will have Ezio in a standing positon. From there you can pick up the heavy weapon (make sure you're past the corner of the structure or Ezio will grasp the structure when you press the ). Now you can make your way to the high place without having to drop the weapon. You can probably also use this method to bring the papal staff out of the Sistine Chapel.