Being sneaky is part and parcel of the Assassin’s Creed experience and Shay has a number of useful ways to exploit the environment and some fancy abilities at his disposal to allow this to occur. Whilst combat is fun and all, sometimes the stealthy route is necessary either to prevent alerting guards or to complete an objective, so you had best learn at least a few basics!

Stealth abilities include:

Whistling

Whistling can be used to draw enemies’ attention to your current location – perfect for setting a trap from a hiding spot and then using the whistle to lure bad guys to said hiding spot for a silent takedown.

Eagle Vision

Eagle vision allows Shay to mark targets and identify persons of interest. Once tagged, these enemies will remain tagged and be visible through walls when returning to regular vision mode. This is extremely useful for keeping an eye on patrols whilst sneaking into areas or attempting to assassinate a specific target.

Hiding

Shay can hide in a number of locations including within haystacks, on benches with other NPCs, in market stalls, sheds and other types of hiding areas. From these hiding places, Shay is invisible and able to use assassination techniques if enemies get too close.

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Blend with crowds (left) to hide from guards. Use whistling from hiding areas to kill guards stealthily (right).

Blending

Shay can hide in a crowd of two or more people, allowing players to slowly move up on targets in a crowded or bustling area. When successfully blended, a small diamond icon will appear above Shay’s head. Shay can assassinate enemies whilst blended in a crowd but will usually be discovered immediately afterwards.

Stalking Zones

Stalking zones include shrubs and bushes that provide a great deal of ground cover. Within a stalking zone, Shay is essentially invisible. These particular locations are excellent bases of attack for using projectiles such as the pistol and air rifle without being spotted and for luring enemies into whistle-based takedowns.

Cover

Shay can walk up and hide behind walls, crates or other corner pieces in the environment to take cover. From this position, players are able to perform a corner assassination when enemies come into range.

Stealth Swim

Whilst swimming, Shay is able to hold his breath and dive under water for a short period of time to break line of sight of guards nearby.

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Use stalking zones to move around out of sight (left) and use stealth swim to get by guards undetected (right).