"Nothing is true. Everything is permitted."
- The Assassin's Creed

"No strategy is unstoppable. Every ability is permitted. Except 
Pistol"
- Homsarrunner3's Creed

Assassin's Creed 3
Multiplayer FAQ/Strategy Guide

by homsarrunner3

Introduction [ACIN]
"I wanted to ask you something! Which is..uh.. what's your name?"
- Ezio Auditore, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

Hello, and welcome to my Multiplayer guide for Assassin's Creed 
3! In this guide, you will find information on all the different 
abilities in the game, as well as my personal ideas and strategies 
on how to improve your game.

I'm creating this guide because I am an Assassin's Creed 
multiplayer veteran (since Brotherhood) who is very disappointed 
with the multiplayer community as of late. Anybody who has played 
a game of Revelations recently already knows that a vast majority 
of players don't really know how to play the game, and resort to 
using annoying abilities like Hidden Gun and Offensive Smoke Bombs 
to make up for their lack of skill and incredibly small p-

Ahem. Excuse me, I tend to get a bit heated on this subject. This 
would probably be a good time to toss in my… 

DISCLAIMER!!!

This guide is not for everybody. It's my guide, it contains my 
gaming biases. If you can't stomach them, this guide is not for 
you. If you don't want to learn how to play the game properly, this 
guide is not for you. If you think Pistol is a great, balanced 
ability that can and should be used in competitive play, this guide 
is not for you. IF YOU ARE ONE OF THOSE BRAINLESS IDIOTS THAT USE 
SMOKE BOMBS ON OFFENSE…

Actually, keep reading. Perhaps my guide will teach you that using 
these thing actually hinders you, instead of helping you reach your 
full potential.

Oh yeah, by the way, this guide DOES NOT include strategy for the 
Wolfpack co-op multiplayer mode.


TABLE OF CONTENTS:

For your convenience, this guide uses a text-based search system. 
Here's how it works:
1. Find the section you want to go to in this table.
2. Copy the code next to it (including the brackets).
3. Press CTRL-F on your keyboard to open the search submenu.
4. Paste the code into the search bar.
5. Press the ENTER key twice, and with the power of the Animus, 
you're at the section you want!

Introduction---- [ACIN]
Frequently Asked Questions---- [ACFAQ]
Characters---- [ACCH]
General tips---- [ACGT]
Abilities list (including strategies)---- [ACAB]
The Maps---- [ACMA]
Game modes---- [ACGM]
Lessons---- [ACLE]
Bonuses---- [ACBO]
Version History, Contact & Legal---- [ACCL]



FAQ:
"Here we seek to open the minds of men."
- Altaïr's Codex, Assassin's Creed 2

Q) Allow me to ask one simple question: WTF is Assassin's Creed 
3?
A) Assassin's Creed 3 is an action/adventure game, developed 
by Ubisoft and released in October 2012. It is the fifth main 
game in the series. This guide exclusively covers the 
Multiplayer section of the game.

Q) What are the basics of Assassin's Creed Multiplayer?
A) Like many other competitive games, the object of Assassin's 
Creed multiplayer is to kill without being killed. There are 
different game modes, but usually you will try to blend into 
a crowd of NPC lookalikes as you draw closer to your target 
and KILL THEM. But keep a watchful eye out for other players 
who are trying to do the same thing to you!

Q) What's the story?
A) STORY? STORY? You want STORY in a MULTIPLAYER GAME?! Why 
I oughta…

Actually, because Assassin's Creed is the best game series 
in the history of the universe, there actually IS a story to 
the multiplayer modes. 

In previous games (Brotherhood and Revelations), in 
multiplayer you are really "playing" as a member of Abstergo 
Industries (the bad guys), who is being trained through an 
Animus to become powerful to kill the modern-day Assassins 
(the good guys). However…

Now, Abstergo has formed a sister company known as Abstergo 
Entertainment, and has mass-marketed the Animus as a video 
game system. (How meta can you get?) You're still an Abstergo 
employee (Or are you? DUN DUN DUN!!!!), but this means that 
all the non-player civilians walking around the game's maps 
are "real" people who are in their living rooms, experiencing 
the environments that are the employees' battlefields. Think 
about that the next time you kill one, mistaking him for your 
target. You bad, bad person. There's a storyline, which is 
told through text and video files you unlock by leveling up. 
Unlock "hacked" versions of the files that provide you with 
more information by completing Challenges in the game.

Q) What has made you so mad with the community?
A) Because when Brotherhood was released, it seemed perfect. 
People played fairly, and with the help of video guide 
creators, some actually learned how to play well, not running 
around and shooting people with Hidden Guns as they had done 
in the beta and in the early release. But Revelations…

Well, maybe it was because the popularity of the series was 
growing, but Revelations saw a HUGE flood of nooby players 
who refuse to play well or fairly. They don't make me angry 
as much as they make me disappointed. (Though they do make 
me angry a bit.) Ubisoft has made this great, intelligent, 
tactical multiplayer game, and the less-skilled community of 
Revelations ruined it. I'm hoping this guide, in tandem with 
the hard work of video guide creators on Youtube, will help 
educate the next generation of Assassin's Creed MP players. 
And that's that.

Q) Jeez, no need to get all preachy. What's different between 
this and AC:R?
A) Besides new characters and maps and stuff (eloquently 
worded, I know), there have been a few changes. Most notably, 
the kill and stun buttons have been combined, meaning that 
there is no giant B button (or whatever button was your stun 
button) over your pursuer when you come near them. Trying to 
stun every NPC around you is no longer viable, as this will 
kill them instead, losing your contract and disabling your 
abilities to kill/stun for a bit. Many abilities (including 
Smoke Bomb) have had their cooldown times increased, among 
other fixes.



CHARACTERS [ACCH]
"The Blood of a Templar"
- Assassin's Creed 1 achievement

Here is a list of basic information regarding all characters 
in Assassin's Creed 3, pulled from the information banks of 
the Animus. 

All characters play exactly the same, so which one you want 
to play as is largely a manner of personal aesthetic 
preference. However, in my opinion, the number of people who 
play as the Night Stalker is too damn high already, and you 
using him as your "main" doesn't help. Please don't turn him 
into the Prowler from AC:B or the Sentinel from AC:R…

Also, you can customize your favorite characters with new 
apparel, weapons, or animations by spending Abstergo Credits 
(the multiplayer's currency). These have no gameplay 
alterations whatsoever.

ONE LAST NOTE: As I do not have the Redcoat and the 
Sharpshooter, I do not know their in-game bios or the names 
of their favored weapons. If you have this information, I 
would appreciate it if you emailed it to me.


THE BEAR
Real name: Kuruk
Weapon: War Club
A warrior from a faraway land, the Bear left his homeland when his 
elder brother was made chieftain of his tribe. Now in exile, this 
skilled fighter has learned to create deadly weapons of his own 
design to remarkable effectiveness. His great strength and short 
fuse make him a force to be reckoned with.

THE CARPENTER
Real name: John O'Brien
Weapon: Mallet
The living personification of the Irish working man, the Carpenter 
traveled to the New World to start a new life and escape his 
homeland where his liberties were under constant threat. A man of 
few words, he is at heart a kind man, but years of persecution at 
the hands of the British have conditioned him to violently lash 
out when provoked.

THE COMMANDER
Real name: Matthew Davenport
Weapon: Sabre
A fierce and capable military officer, the Commander was one of 
the finest strategists of his time. Though he may appear to be cold 
and calculating, he demonstrates a fierce devotion to the men he 
leads. Focusing only on the war and his duty, he has no idea that 
his own daughter is hidden among his ranks.

THE HESSIAN
Real name: Gerhard von Statten
Weapon: Infantry Musket
Just one of the many thousands of German troops sent to the New 
World to fight for the British, this Hessian stands out in his 
appetite for war. With virtually no personality to speak of, this 
man is an unstoppable killing machine and will carry out his orders 
without ever considering defeat.

THE HUNTSMAN
Real name: William de Saint-Prix
Weapon: Iron Hook
A man of privilege, the Huntsman was born to a rich family in the 
outskirts of Boston, where he received the best education. He was 
particularly adept at science and literature and gained the 
knowledge to design both his own weapons and fighting style. Though 
he was shunned by the revolutionaries for his noble beginnings, 
his intelligence and courage earned him the respect of his 
compatriots.

THE INDEPENDENT
Real name: Alsoomse
Weapon: Hatchet
The Independent gained her exceedingly clever nickname as a child, 
as she was always a very solitary little girl. As she got older, 
she became widely known by her violent temper, but make no mistake; 
she is a strong and determined champion for justice and equality, 
and will fight to the death for what she believes in.

THE LADY MAVERICK
Real name: Gillian McCarthy
Weapon: Poignard
An orphan who grew up on the streets with her little brother, the 
Robber, this strong, driven woman managed to survive the 
unforgiving frontier of the New World. Coupled with her street 
smarts, the Lady Maverick's natural talent for seduction has 
earned her the favors of some of the most influential politicians 
of her day.

THE MOUNTEBANK
Real name: Victor Wolcott
Weapon: Carving Knife
This learned man of science thrives on the acquisition of 
knowledge. The Mountebank is especially fascinated by biology, 
medicine and the inner workings of the human body; so much so it 
is rumored he has devised an elixir potent enough to keep his 
patients alive well beyond the normal capabilities of the human 
body.

THE NIGHT STALKER
Real name: Joe
Weapon: Butcher's Hook
Scared by the light of day, this mentally unhinged man was known 
to stalk the streets of New York by night. Rumor has it that the 
Night Stalker works as a mercenary for a secret organization, 
though coin is his only true motivation. This "Joe" moniker comes 
from the name called out by one of his victims just seconds before 
he died, though no one has dared to inquire any further.

THE PIONEER
Real name: Emily Burke
Weapon: Ringed Musket
The only girl in a family of ten, this tomboy learned the 
meaning of hard work and sacrifice at a very young age. The 
Pioneer had difficulty adjusting to the modesty of her gender 
growing up, but when the war takes the lives of her father 
and brothers, she forsakes her claim and goes in search of 
answers, killing anyone and everyone she deems responsible 
for the loss of her family.

THE PREACHER
Real name: Federico Perez
Weapon: Staff
Driven by unwavering faith, the Preacher's unsettling charisma 
hides his obsessive need to cleanse the New World of sinners. He 
will deal death as quickly as forgiveness and does not hesitate 
when confronted with those he deems heretics.

THE REDCOAT
Real name: Eleanor Mallow
Weapon: Spadroon
The Redcoat was the daughter of the Commander, and enrolled 
in the British military during the American Revolution. 
Considered a brat, she lived a life that was heavily 
regimented in a military fashion by her father. Because her 
devotion to the British was so absolute, she hid her identity 
and carried missions against the Patriots.

THE ROBBER
Real name: Fillian McCarthy
Weapon: Grapple Hook
Like his older sister, the Lady Maverick, the Robber learned 
everything he knows from the streets. While his sister manipulated 
her way up the social ladder, he broke ties with her, not wanting 
to be a burden to someone who had already given so much to him. 
Now a young man and able to take care of himself, his only loyalty 
is to his next meal and his estranged sister.

THE SILENT SHADOW
Real name: Atasá:ta (also known as Krynn or Chogan)
Weapon: Hatchet
Raised in seclusion by his father, away from his own people, the 
Silent Shadow was trained in the art of hunting. He lived a quiet, 
content life until he found his father brutally slain by a British 
raiding party. Now, hungry for revenge, he makes the cities of the 
newcomers his new hunting grounds as he searches for those 
responsible.

THE SHARPSHOOTER
Real name: Clint Eastwood (Just kidding, it's Caleb Garret, 
but there is more than a passing resemblance there!)
Weapon: Long Rifle
As a master of all things related to guns, the Sharpshooter 
joined the Revolutionaries after witnessing his friends be 
burned alive by a group of Redcoats. Using his military-grade 
expertise over rifles and small arms, he guarded the woodland 
roadways and protected his team with deadly efficiency.

THE STRONG MAN
Real name: Nukilik
Weapon: Harpoon
When news of his southern kin’s plight reached his land, this Inuit 
chief traveled countless miles south to aid the Revolutionaries 
and defend his people. Despite his deceptively large size, his 
speed and agility make him a very valuable asset and he is 
especially dangerous at close range.


GENERAL TIPS [ACGT]
"This stuff? Oh, this stuff is nothing special really, this is just 
the stuff that keeps our entire operation from falling apart."
- Shaun Hastings, Assassin's Creed 2

-Slow and steady wins the race! You should remain in low profile 
during 75% of the time you spend in each session. Running around 
like a chicken with your head cut off is exactly what Ubisoft 
DOESN'T want you to do in this game. It ruins the immersion and 
idea that anybody around you could be out to kill you. More 
importantly, running makes you easily spotted by your target, as 
well as by your pursuer. They can lock on to you with one button 
press, meaning you have lost the element of surprise.

-Use lock-on! By holding the Left Trigger on the Xbox controller, 
you can aim a lock-on reticle at any persona (character) you wish. 
Release the button to confirm the lock-on. This keeps a target or 
suspicious person in your sights, so you can keep an eye on them. 
Locking on to your target also prevents you from accidentally 
killing civilians, which is handy if they're in a crowd group. 
Nothing feels worse than spotting your target and approaching 
stealthily, only to have the game screw up and make you lose your 
contract.

-Quality over quantity! Your main way of earning points is by 
killing your targets. However, the WAY you kill your targets is 
very important. You could just run full-speed at the first person 
you see and chase kill them… but your score will be laughably small 
and you'll be completely obvious to any player looking on. Instead, 
try approaching stealthily, to earn your Discreet, Silent, or 
Incognito bonuses. Each one requires you stay in low profile in 
your target's line of site for longer, but provides larger bonuses 
for the kill. By staying close, to your target for a couple of 
seconds (until the white ring around the kill button fills up), 
you earn a large Focus bonus. Kill out of a hiding spot for a Hidden 
bonus, pull them off the edge of a roof for a Grab kill… there are 
so many types of bonuses for you to earn, you really should get 
creative and earn as many as possible, because…

-Variety is the spice of death! Variety, Greater Variety, and 
Extreme Variety are bonuses you earn for earning a certain number 
of bonuses in a single match. (Yo, I heard you like bonuses..) These 
provide a hefty boost to your score, and provide a tangible 
incentive for mixing up your kill types. Variety is activated when 
you reach five different bonuses in a match, Greater Variety 
requires ten, and Extreme Variety requires fifteen.

-This is a hidden line. It is an anti-theft measure. If you found 
this guide on a website besides the ones listed in the Contact & 
Legal section, please send me an email at the address in that same 
section.


Abilities [ACAB]
"Ezio, my friend! How can I be of service?"
-Leonardo da Vinci, Assassin's Creed 2

You get three ability slots, with one reserved for a ranged 
ability. Choose which ones you want, I'll provide information and 
strategy for each below, starting with the newcomer abilities.

GLIMMER
Ability type: Concealment
Affects: Self
Description: When activated, Glimmer causes your character to 
become nothing more than a faint silhouette. The faster you move, 
the weaker the effect is, so this doesn't give you an excuse to 
run at full speed unseen. You will still react to bumping into NPCs, 
and can still be locked-on, killed, stunned, or affected by other 
player's abilities. As the effect's countdown runs dry, bits and 
pieces of your character will become visible, even if you are 
standing completely still. This ability could be used to sneak up 
for a surprise focus or incognito kill, or to provide a quick escape 
from a pursuer during a chase.

POISON DART
Ability type: Ranged, Offensive
Affects: Targets
Description: Works similarly to Poison, except is used from a short 
distance away, instead of up close. Has a shorter range than the 
Hidden Gun, and also takes much more time to aim accurately. Your  
target will hear a Pistol-esque noise when they are being aimed 
at with it, and you will be visible raising your arm while aiming 
the dart. Though better than the Pistol, this ability still seems 
to be more trouble than it is worth.

ANIMUS SHIELD
Ability type: Defensive/Offensive (one of the few abilities that 
is viable both ways)
Affects: Self
Description: Raises a shiny shield around you which temporarily 
protects you from Poison, bombs and ranged abilities, but you can 
still be killed and stunned just fine while it is up. You can walk 
through smoke bombs and deflect bullets and poison darts. It only 
lasts for a couple of seconds, but must be specially crafted for 
you to be able to escape the effects of more than one ability. This 
seems quite useful, but… I'm not sure how useful it will be in 
actuality when lag is taken into account. Nonetheless, I applaud 
Ubisoft for giving us bullet deflection in any form.

MONEY BOMB
Ability type: Offensive
Affects: NPCs
Description: Toss down a wad of shiny coins at the ground and watch 
the civilians clamber for it. Players will stay exactly as they 
are, allowing you to possibly pick out your target or pursuer… but 
the latter probably already knows you're coming, so that would be 
suicide. So let's keep this as a strictly offensive ability, hm? 
This ability is similar to Firecrackers, except for the fact that 
it doesn't affect other players at all. So as Firecrackers would 
blind targets, making them easier to kill once the civilians were 
cowering, Money Bomb will only make you, the pursuer, stand out 
as well. For this same reason, Money Bomb can't be used 
defensively. This seems like a garbage ability, to be perfectly 
honest. Oh yeah, and it can be thrown from a distance, as well. 
I honestly have no way to recommend this ability while Firecrackers 
still exist in the game.

DISRUPTION
Ability type: Ranged
Affects: Targets, Pursuers
Description: When used on a locked target or pursuer, their screen 
will become.. well.. disrupted. This is an oddball ability, and 
doesn't appear to be very great, especially when used offensively. 
If you know who your target is, why would you show off your presence 
by hitting them with this? It just gives them an excuse to run away, 
albeit with hindered vision. When used on a pursuer, you first need 
to know exactly who they are… I don't know, it just seems 
impractical to me.

WIPE
Ability type: Offensive, Revelation
Affects: Players
Description: When you hit somebody with a Wipe, they temporarily 
lose their abilities. They can still kill and stun normally, 
however. When this ability is crafted, it becomes near-godly. Like 
Mute, it reveals the locations of other players in a crowd. When 
you see a Smoke-Bomb happy child blocking all your stealthy kills, 
hit him with a Wipe next time you see him. Chances are, he relies 
so much on his bombs to save his skin, he won't even react fast 
enough to contest your kill. Not very useful on defense, as your 
pursuer can still kill you just fine. Oh yeah, and you can throw 
it. 

And now for the great (and not-so-great) abilities returning from 
Revelations.

KNIVES
Ability type: Ranged
Affects: Targets, Pursuers
Description: On the initial hit, knives cause the target to bend 
over in pain for a couple seconds. After that, they move more slowly 
for a short period of time. If they were standing on an edge, they 
will tumble off, making this helpful for knocking down silly 
players climbing up walls. That's not how you play the game, silly! 
During the initial bending animation, they cannot kill or stun, 
but they can do so while moving slowly. This is probably the best 
ranged ability so far, because it's not completely cheap, it has 
decent range, and it's equally viable for offense and defense. 
However, there is one major change to knives in AC3: They target 
hears a Pistol-esque noise right before you throw them, giving them 
an opportunity to duck behind cover or pop an Animus Shield. I don't 
particularly care for this new facet (besides the fact that it 
doesn't make logical sense at all), but whatever.

DISGUISE
Ability type: Concealment
Affects: Self
Description: A simple and elegant ability, Disguise transforms you 
into a different character for a short period of time. You will 
become a character that has no player playing as them. Let me 
explain. Each game has 10 "species" of NPC. 8 of these species are 
copies of the players in the match. The final 2 have no players 
corresponding to them. Disguise turns you into one of the 2. This 
ability is used a lot in high-level play in previous games, 
ironically. It can be very effective against noobs, and especially 
so in a blend group with one or more NPCs that look like your true 
form. Even if your pursuer does not kill the wrong civilian, you 
will catch them by surprise when you dart out and stun them. It 
can also be used on offense, if your target is expecting you to 
attack them in your true form.

POISON
Ability type: Offensive
Affects: Targets
Description: Walk up to your target in low profile. Bump into them 
"accidentally" while sticking them with a syringe full of 
who-knows-what. Walk away and laugh as they choke on their own spit 
and collapse, earning you a bumper crop of points if you did it 
stealthily. This is a favorite of high-level players, and a 
successful poison kill makes you feel like a true assassin. They 
never know it was you until it was too late. And best of all, they 
have nobody to blame for their death except themselves. They bumped 
right into it. I highly recommend this ability, as it provides good 
practice for getting close to your targets without them noticing 
you. If you can master poisoning targets, you can perform normal 
assassinations with no problem. The only irritating part of poison 
is that somebody can kill your target before the poison runs its' 
course, making all your efforts for nothing but a measly 
"Intercepted" bonus.

As a side note, if you notice that somebody poisoned you, there's 
nothing you can do to survive it. The only proper response is to 
taunt them as much as you can until you fall down dead. You can 
also stun them if you're fast enough after they poison you. You'll 
still die if you stun them, but it'll counteract some of the points 
they gained from the kill, slowing their quest to beat you.

SMOKE BOMB
Ability type: Defensive (I wish)
Affects: Players, NPCs
Description: Oh Smoke Bomb. What a long and painful story yours 
is. Smoke Bomb is the all-time favorite ability through all 
Assassin's Creed multiplayer games. Press a button, get a cloud 
of fog that prevents any movement to players stuck in it. Seems 
great, huh? That's because it is. Smoke bomb has countless uses, 
and is helpful as an "OH SNAP, my pursuer is right there!" button. 
These possibilities increased further in Revelations, with the 
ability to throw them a short distance instead of just dropping 
them at your feet. However, as with all great powers, there are 
many who misuse Smoke Bomb. These bad, bad people, who use Smoke 
Bombs to get free focus or poison kills, or just to counter a 
defensive ability, should be shunned. If you take nothing else away 
from this guide take this: DO NOT USE OFFENSIVE SMOKE BOMBS. (Also 
known as "OSBs".) It's just annoying. If you are currently using 
them for this, stop. Stop now. When you do this, you get more than 
a free kill. You also get the hatred and spite of everybody you 
play with. Trust me, you do not need an offensive smoke bomb to 
get your focus or poison off. It's a crutch, and if you come to 
depend on it, once you're in a situation where you can't use it, 
you will get your just desserts. And you'll deserve it.

Also, in Revelations, there was this patch that was intended to 
fix a bug where the Smoke Bomb would not stop attacking pursuers, 
but ended up making it completely overpowered, being able to 
activate at the drop of a hat, stopping attackers in the middle 
of their kill animations, knocking people off acrobatic perches, 
and a host of other things that ended up being the reason many 
players swore off Revelations, and Assassin's Creed multiplayer 
in general. These have been fixed. It's the best, most balanced 
Smoke Bomb yet, as long as it's not used offensively. Think of it 
as Brotherhood Smoke Bomb, but not glitched and with longer 
cooldown.

MORPH
Ability type: Concealment, Revelation
Affects: NPCs
Description: Morph is a cool ability, and with the removal of 
Charge and Templar Vision, it is much harder to counter. It turns 
a handful of nearby NPCs into copies of you, effectively concealing 
you within a group of dopplegängers. Especially handy in a moving 
crowd group. As your pursuers stumble around, trying to guess which 
one is you, you can pop a smoke bomb and stun them, or if you feel 
lucky, quickly dart out and catch him by surprise, and sock him 
in the jaw. The problem is, of course, that if you're hanging around 
hiding in a crowd, you can't go out hunting for your target, 
effectively halting your flow of delicious points.

PISTOL
Ability type: Offensive, Ranged, loud, obnoxious, piece of poop
Affects: Targets (however, it will cause all Players to harbor 
feelings of resentment toward you, causing Self-loathing.)
Description: While I would like to say simply for this ability, 
DO NOT USE THE PISTOL, I am, as a writer, obligated to at the very 
least explain what the Pistol is, and then I can give you my 
personal opinion as to why YOU SHOULD NOT USE THE PISTOL. But that 
doesn't mean I'll enjoy it. The Pistol has been around since 
Brotherhood, (when it was called the Hidden Gun) along with the 
notion that NOBODY SHOULD USE THE HIDDEN GUN. People realized that 
the Hidden Gun was everything an Assassin should NOT be: It's loud, 
it causes a cloud of smoke to appear near you, it takes time to 
aim, and if you don't aim you'll probably miss, it provides your 
target with a noise so they know it's coming, it makes you obvious 
to your pursuer, and you only get a minimal amount of points for 
killing somebody with it. Ergo, the only conclusion is that you 
should NOT USE THE PISTOL. DO NOT USE THE PISTOL. DO NOT USE THE 
PISTOL.

P.S. DO NOT USE THE PISTOL.

DECOY
Ability type: Misdirection
Affects: Pursuers (indirectly)
Decoy is an oddity in that it doesn't specifically stop your 
pursuer, but it basically tempts them to kill a civilian. It takes 
a nearby NPC, transforms it into a copy of you (if it isn't 
already), and sends it sprinting off in a random direction. If a 
pursuer is nearby, they will often kill or chase after the Decoy, 
giving you a free escape or lure. A good, thinking-man's ability.
It can also be used offensively, if you send it toward your target 
and they kill it, thinking they are stunning you. You might even 
get them to waste a Smoke Bomb or another ability on the Decoy!

BODY GUARD
Ability type: Defensive
Affects: Pursuers
Description: Body Guard is a funny ability from Revelations. It 
starts similar to Decoy, with an NPC taking on your likeness, but 
instead of running, it walks slowly toward one of your pursuers. 
It then punches them square in the jaw, stunning them and making 
them lose you as a target. In Revelations they could stun the Body 
Guard to get rid of it without losing their contract, but in AC3 
they can't do anything to it, besides slowing it down with a Smoke 
Bomb or something of the like. There are two drawbacks to this 
ability: Firstly, the Body Guard can only remove one pursuer 
(though the other pursuer may make themselves obvious by trying 
to kill it…), and the stun that it performs does not give you any 
escape or stun points. Finally, if you activate it when no pursuers 
are nearby, the Body Guard will just… walk away.

TELEPORT
Ability type: Mobility
Affects: Self
Teleport is exactly what it sounds like. After a brief charge-up, 
you will appear about 35 meters away from where you started, unless 
there is a map wall blocking your way. It's an alright ability if 
you can master it, but not one I use often.

TRIPWIRE BOMB
Ability type: Defensive
Affects: Players
Tripwire Bomb plants, basically, a Smoke Bomb mine on the ground. 
After a few seconds to set the charge, the bomb becomes active, 
and the person who dropped it, as well as anybody on that player's 
team in team modes, can see a white area of effect around it. If 
any player steps into this area, the bomb detonates, creating a 
Smoke Bomb explosion. This ability requires a lot of thinking ahead 
to use, which is probably why it's almost never used offensively. 
Note that the mine explodes when ANY player character steps on it, 
not just a target or pursuer. Civilians will not set it off, 
however. Also note that the bomb itself is visible on to other 
players, and that there is a TINY area around the bomb that can 
be stepped on to trigger the bomb, but the detonator will not be 
caught in the explosion. Therefore, skilled players who have 
noticed the presence of a mine will not be caught in it easily. 
They can be thrown, but there's really no reason to. The bomb will 
stick around until a player detonates it or the person who placed 
it dies.

FIRECRACKERS
Ability type: Revelation, Defensive
When you toss down Firecrackers, they make a loud noise. This 
frightens civilians, making them cower on the ground, leaving 
players as the only ones left standing straight and tall. These 
players also become blinded, but can still move, kill, stun, and 
use abilities as normal. They can be thrown to reduce the risk to 
the pursuer using them on a target. When used defensively, they 
remove the lock-on the pursuer may have on the target, and may cause 
the pursuer to panic and kill a civilian. Firecrackers are a nice 
alternative to Smoke Bomb, if you want a bit more of a challenge.


THE MAPS [ACMA]
"Press Y to synchronize"
- In-game prompt, Assassin's Creed

Assassin's Creed Multiplayer is not about map control. It is not 
like Halo, where being in a certain place at a certain time is going 
to give you a huge boost. However, knowing the names of each map 
will be useful to you. Hence, this section.

BOSTON HARBOR

BOSTON NORTH END

NEW YORK BREWERY

FORT WOLCOTT

NORTHWEST PASSAGE

VIRGINIAN PLANTATION

ANIMUS CORE

GAME MODES [ACGM]
"We were only passing the time with a bit of sport, Captain!"
- Louis Mills, Assassin's Creed 3

AC3 has a wide variety of game modes, ranging from free-for-all 
bloodbaths to modes requiring a strong team to win. Here's a list 
of them, along with a couple of general tips.

WANTED
Wanted is what people think of when you say "Assassin's Creed 
Multiplayer". You have a target, and you have a pursuer. Follow 
the compass at the bottom of the screen to determine where your 
target is, but keep your eyes (and ears) peeled for pursuers trying 
to kill you, piss in your Frosted Flakes, and generally ruin your 
day. If you're at the top of the leader board, you may have multiple 
pursuers after you, as the game tries its' hardest to get you 
killed. All maps are fun to play on in this mode, and I suggest 
playing a variety.

DEATHMATCH
Think of Deathmatch as "Wanted Jr." I'm not saying it's any less 
fun or less difficult, it's just… smaller. For example, only a 
small section of the map is available for players to move around 
in, and there are no duplicate NPCs of players, unless they are 
created via Morph or the Blender perk. Finally, you have no compass 
in this mode, and must rely on your target's portrait to find them. 
Also, it is impossible to get into a chase with somebody in 
Deathmatch, because the confined space would make it nearly 
impossible for one to escape. Fort Wolcott, New York Brewery, and 
Boston Harbor are fun Deathmatch maps.

ASSASSINATE
A favorite among high-ranking players for its' fast pace and high 
scoring potential. In Assassinate, you are given a minimalistic 
compass that points you to the nearest player characters. Once you 
see a character you think is a player, lock them and they become 
your target. In short, you can kill anybody who is a player, but 
all players can potentially kill you. The easiest way to win 
Assassinate is to run as close as you can to a player before locking 
them, so they aren't aware of your presence and lock you first. 
This game mode is 10 minutes of blood-soaked, nonstop combat, where 
anyone and everyone is after you. Fort Wolcott, Virginian 
Plantation, and Boston North End are great for this game type.

MANHUNT
A classic team mode, Manhunt consists of two five-minute rounds. 
In the first round, one team of up to four players is the target 
team, and the other is the pursuer team. The targets must hide and 
survive for as long as they can, and get points by hiding and 
stunning pursuers. The targets' point gain from staying in hiding 
spots multiplies when they are hiding in close proximity to their 
own teammates. The pursuers must kill as many targets as they can, 
relying on each other to kill the targets and pull each other back 
to their feet when the targets start throwing punches around. In 
the second round, the roles are reversed. Great on Virginian 
Plantation and Boston Harbor.

DOMINATION
Like Manhunt, we have two teams of up to four players each. However, 
winning in Domination requires good communication to control the 
three Territories on the map. When you come near an 
enemy-controlled Territory, you become killable, and have to 
survive long enough to fill up the capture meter and claim the 
territory for your team. This works the other way around, as the 
enemy is going to want to take your territories, and you have to 
keep a sharp eye out for where they are, and kill them before they 
catch it. Great on Northwest Passage and New York Brewery.

ARTIFACT ASSAULT
Think of this mode as Capture the Flag. Each team has an Artifact 
on their side. You want the enemy's Artifacts more than life 
itself, and they want yours for their own nefarious purposes. You 
have to balance between defending your Artifact with your life, 
and crossing the border into enemy territory to snatch up the other 
Artifact and book it back to your home base to cash it in. Whoever 
steals the most Artifacts in ten minutes wins. Fun on all maps.



LESSONS [ACLE]
"I was told you could.. train me?"
- Ratonhnhaké:ton

"No." *Slams door*
- Achilles Davenport

Welcome to the bread and butter, the meat and potatoes of this 
guide… the lessons I have learned throughout my time playing AC3 
multiplayer, and the lessons I now pass on to you. We will start 
small, in areas seemingly unrelated to the game. But bear with me, 
as I have much knowledge to share with you, and you will undoubtedly 
find it useful.

LESSON 1: The importance of a positive attitude

Assassin's Creed 3 is a great game. But that's all it really is: 
a game. No matter how good you get at the game, never become 
arrogant toward others. In the same way, if you find yourself 
failing, you should not allow yourself to become angered. If you 
remain calm and stick it out, you will find yourself succeeding 
once more. Here are several techniques to alleviate rage:

- Ask yourself what you could have done differently. Then do it 
next time. As you will learn, every strategy has a counter (yes, 
even Offensive Smoke Bomb), and once you learn all of them, you 
will become unstoppable.

- Don't blame lag: That's a move for twelve year old Call of Duty 
players. Yes, you will occasionally get cheaply slide-killed, but 
90% of the time it was something you did wrong that made you fail.

- Make fun of the other players' user names. This has no 
philosophical backing, but it sure as hell works. I'm talking to 
you, XxxHeadshot191293809283xxX.

- Look at the number of points they got. Sure, that irritating chase 
kill may have cost you your kill streak bonus, but at least they 
only got 100 points for it. You could match that by getting an 
honorable death, for crying out loud. Just sit there as you bleed 
out, and nod, knowing that when all is said and done that you're 
the better man.

- If you know that you got poisoned, taunt. Taunt over and over 
until you die. It's important to be able to laugh at yourself.

- Play Wolfpack with friends. That game mode is a constant string 
of bro-fives and NPC death, just what you need to blow off some 
steam. And the XP and Abstergo Credits you earn will carry over 
to make your main multiplayer character stronger. Just don't play 
Wolfpack with randoms. Ever.

- Take a break. Is this one cliché? Maybe. But it's still a good 
idea to occasionally step outside, inhale some fresh air, and take 
a break from watching your brains get splattered all over colonial 
America.

LESSON 2: Lose your illusions

Maybe you're coming into this guide in frustration. You've already 
tried AC3 multiplayer, and while everybody else is jumping around 
on rooftops having fun, you spend most of your time as a cold, 
shivering slab of dead flesh laying in a roadside ditch. You've 
clearly been doing something wrong, and you need to trust me to 
let you have a clean slate. Here are my basic beginner's rules:

- Buy your first ability set and stock it up with good abilities 
ASAP. The default sets are complete trash, and even a 
partially-filled custom ability set is better than the crap they 
give you to start with.

- If I tell you to not use something, listen to me, dang it! I've 
been working my butt off testing these things, and if I say 
something is crap, I'm probably right. If you disagree, send me 
an email at the address below and we'll work something out. Note 
that I will instantly delete all emails regarding the Pistol, and 
its' use in competitive play, or any play for that matter.

LESSON 3: 	The HUD

The HUD (Heads Up Display) consists of all the shiny bits onscreen. 
Some parts may be altered or missing depending on which game mode 
you're playing, but it's all essential for tracking targets.

- The Compass is that circular thing on the bottom center of your 
screen, and it is the single most valuable tool for finding your 
targets. Follow the direction of the blue light, and it will fill 
the compass. When you are in your target's line of sight, it will 
turn white to let you know to keep yourself discreet. Use your 
powers of observation (or abilities) to determine where your 
target is and kill them. This tool is absent in Deathmatch and 
slightly altered in Assassinate.

- The Ability set is to the left of your Compass, and tells you 
what abilities you have equipped, and the buttons for activating 
them. Every time you die, you have the option to change sets, by 
pressing left and right on the D-pad and pressing A.

- In the top right corner is another very important tool: A Portrait 
of your current target. You can't kill your target unless you know 
who they are, right? This is more useful than it was in Revelations 
because the border becomes outlined white when you are in their 
line of sight, and the background of the Portrait becomes dark blue 
when they are standing very close to you. The blue lights below 
the portrait are the number of people chasing this target, yourself 
included. Kill them before somebody else does! The blue meter below 
the portrait is your Detection Meter. This shows how discreet you 
are being, and you get more points for killing your target when 
the meter is more filled. There are four levels: Reckless, 
Discreet, Silent, and Incognito, with each giving a higher point 
output for a kill. However, you may want to purposefully kill a 
target while not discreet to help get your Variety bonuses…

- The pretty face in the upper left is *Your* Portrait. It shows 
you how many points you have, your rank on the game leader board, 
and how many pursuers are after you. Keep the red lights in your 
memory, especially if you have two or three after you. The higher 
you place in the game, the more likely that the game is going to 
send somebody after you. This is another reason I like Assassinate: 
your level of stealth determines who comes after you, not the 
computer.

- Finally, something vital you may have missed: The target 
reticule. This is a faint grey outline in the center of your screen. 
Hold down LT to zoom in with it, and highlight a character to lock 
them. You will keep the lock unless they are out of your line of 
sight for three seconds. This is useful to track targets and keep 
an eye on possible pursuers, because when you are locked, you are 
much less likely to attack the wrong person. This is absolutely 
essential in Assassinate, where you can only acquire targets by 
locking onto them.

LESSON 4: How to move

"Hide in plain sight"
-The Assassin's Creed, Tenet 2

First and foremost: Learn the importance of low profile. Low 
profile actions make you (more or less) seem like a civilian. 
Pretty much the only thing you can do in low profile is walk or 
fast walk, and even fast walking can get you spotted by eagle-eyed 
players. You will, eventually, have to use High Profile. So here's 
how to do it without getting a giant target on your head that says 
KILL ME (seriously). 

The first thing you have to worry about in a match is the spawn 
system screwing you over. This isn't a problem as much as it was 
in Brotherhood and Revelations, but spawning derps do happen in 
AC3, and sprinting right from the start of the match might just 
be too risky. So take it slow, determine how many pursuers you have, 
and how close they may be. If you hear whispers (more on that 
later), for Minerva's sake, DON'T RUN! If you're in the clear and 
your target is far away, go ahead and run toward them in high 
profile. But remember, when you get close, switch back to walking 
before you get into their line of sight.

When you run near your target, they see a giant red arrow over your 
head, and an LT button. By pressing LT, they automatically lock 
you, and know exactly who and where you are. Climbing also counts 
as high profile. Not to mention, performing too many high profile 
actions can decrease your Detection meter and start a Chase. No. 
Bad. Don't do it.

This also applies to your pursuer. When you run in front of them, 
they get the exact same prompt, only it's blue, so they know who 
to kill.

However, you can take advantage of this system. If your target or 
pursuer runs or jumps, lock them when you see the prompt, and you 
can keep tabs on them while they are in your sight.

Finally, STAY OFF THE DAMN ROOFTOPS, unless you absolutely need 
to or are going for your Aerial and Acrobatic kill bonuses. It makes 
you completely obvious to your target and pursuers, not to mention 
that it's going to piss off a lot of good players if all you do 
is get roof kills, then climb back up for another victim to wander 
into your range.

LESSON 5: Target Acquisition

"Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent"
- The Assassin's Creed, Tenet 1

Finding targets is largely a matter of tracking clues. Your 
portrait and compass can only get you so far, you know. Against 
clever targets who are hiding with lookalike NPCs, it can be 
difficult to tell who is the real player. Here are a few ways to 
avoid killing civilians and getting punched in the face for your 
trouble.

- Line of Sight trick: This is useful when there are only a couple 
of characters you have lost your target in. Step near a corner and 
position yourself so that the camera can see your target, but your 
character itself is out of their line of sight. Your compass or 
Portrait should not be lit up. Then, slowly walk around the corner, 
and stop when you are in the line of sight. This should allow you 
to determine which one is the real target. Once you master this 
technique, you can do it more quickly, so your target does not get 
suspicious. You can also do it with rooftops, to find out who you 
need to swoop down upon.

- Look for non-NPC behavior. NPCs don't run. NPCs don't climb. NPCs 
hardly even fast walk. NPCs have distinctive walking patterns that 
are difficult for players to replicate, even if they try. There 
are areas where NPCs never set foot, but players do (for example, 
behind the giant tree in the middle of Virginian Plantation, or 
through chase breakers). Learn these things, and lock them into 
your memory. If you think somebody is acting strangely, you're 
probably correct. Finally, NPCs do things with their hands, like 
stretching their arms, cracking their knuckles, sneezing, etc. 
which players never do except when walking in moving blend groups.

- Find derps. When a player is in a blend group, and moves around 
unnaturally, this is what we high-level players call a "derp". 
Players derp, NPCs don't. This mostly applies to blend groups. 
Players instinctively stand in a spot where they are surrounded 
by civilians. In moving blend groups, they either release their 
controls and automatically slip to the back, or consciously fast 
walk to the front. Both of these are telltale signs of a player.

- Use your abilities. If you're really stumped at where your target 
is, consider using an ability to root them out. The most obvious 
ones are Money Bomb and Firecrackers (the latter is much better 
than the former, by the way). However, you can do this using 
unorthodox abilities as well. 

- I like to call this the "counter-Morph". By Morphing a group your 
target has already Morphed, you leave them as the last person that 
wasn't affected, because Morph doesn't affect players. However, 
this may give them time to stun you. The Blender perk can help with 
this as well, but since it only changes one character and a random 
one at that, it's not nearly as effective or reliable.

- Players of Revelations will enjoy this: Even though Mute has been 
removed from the game, the new ability Wipe will reveal targets 
even more obviously than Mute did. Allow me to explain. When a Wipe 
activates, all players affected by it will have a rather obvious 
blue outline around them. The keyword here is "all", so not only 
your target will be outlined, but everybody within range. However, 
this isn't the best tactic because it takes a second for your mind 
to register who glowed, and by that time your target may already 
try to stun you.

- This won't always work, but sending a Decoy or Bodyguard out 
toward your target may make them twitch in their group, or even 
try to stun the decoy. Watch closely.

- The least effective strategy is to use a ranged ability, like 
Pistol (but you're not using that, are you?) or Poison Dart. This 
almost never works, because the effect is entirely psychological. 
Aim at the character you think is your target, but do not fire. 
When they hear the noise, they may panic and run. However, this 
doesn't always induce a reaction, making it ineffective.

LESSON 7: Defend thy self

In Assassin's Creed multiplayer, you're going to die. A lot. 
There's a reason this game puts almost no emphasis on kill/death 
ratio, and that's because it's really not the way to measure a 
player's worth in this game. But hopefully, if you follow these 
tips, you will see your targets coming, and know how to deal with 
them. And then you won't die quite as much.

- WHISPERS!!! You may wonder why I wrote that so big. That's because 
Whispers are SO IMPORTANT in this game that the developers made 
them five times as loud as they were before, and actually include 
a bit on them in the mandatory tutorial sessions. If you have no 
idea what I'm talking about, here's the deal: Because you no longer 
see a giant red B button over your nearby pursuer's head, it's 
harder to tell where exactly they are. Whispers are exactly what 
they sound like: Whispers from the "The Ring" girl that get louder 
when a pursuer is nearby. Use observation to find out where they 
are and use the tactics below to take them out.

- Don't rush at your pursuers! In Open Conflict (when a pursuer 
and target press X on each other at the same time), the pursuer 
always wins. Always. However, the target gets a 100 point Honorable 
Death bonus, the pursuer's score is decreased, and they move slower 
for a bit. But considering they can still get upwards of 300 points 
from a Contested Kill like this, it's not worth it to point starve </pre><pre id="faqspan-2">
every pursuer and get killed over and over in the process.

- Lure your pursuer. If you don't know exactly who they are, try 
making yourself obvious to them on purpose. Run away from where 
you think they are, and around a corner. Because you're "on to 
them", they will chase after at full speed. Stand just out of sight 
behind the corner, and keep your camera focused on them. When they 
turn the corner, press X to sock them right in the jaw. That's a 
free stun, with no time-consuming escapes or wasted abilities. 
"Corner stunning" like this is righteous and fun, and you should 
do it often.

-Drop stuns: Not quite as you remember them.

Drop stuns, as you may remember from Brotherhood and Revelations, 
occur when a pursuer chases a target off a high ledge, and the 
clever target knows that if they attempt to stun their pursuer just 
as they hit the ground, they will never get killed. I loved using 
this strategy, and it is my great displeasure to tell you that they 
have been removed in an early patch in the game, because according 
to Ubisoft, drop stunning was "never an intended game mechanic".

But I digress. Drop stunning has not been removed completely, but 
reversed. Now, the player that will always have the advantage is 
the one performing the jump. That is to say, if a pursuer jumps 
off a high ledge and lands near his target, the button prompt to 
stun the pursuer will not appear, so the pursuer will always get 
an uncontested kill. Likewise, if a target knows that a pursuer 
is below, and jumps toward them, they will always get the stun.

- Abilities: There are so many abilities that are meant to 
camouflage you from pursuers or block them once they see you, that 
I'm not going to even attempt to list them all. However…

- Using Knives to stun people: Knives are usually used on offense 
to slow down targets (Note: please do not use them offensively 
yourself. It's cheap, and if your target is any good at all, they'll 
throw a smoke bomb and kick your teeth in). However, with a bit 
of practice, they can be used to stun pursuers as well!

Here's how to do it: First, lock your pursuer. Next, throw your 
knife. They will bend over in pain, then limp. They can still kill 
you, so if you run in for the stun you will only get an honorable 
death and have wasted a good knife. Instead, you need to get as 
close as possible to stun them, without getting in their kill 
range, which has been reduced by the knife. (Note: This may cause 
you to receive a message calling you a "****less, laggy, cheating 
noob" I kid you not. Somebody actually said this to me for knife 
stunning them. People on Xbox LIVE really need to re-read Lesson 
One.


LESSON 8: Be social

As with any multiplayer game, Assassin's Creed 3 is much more fun 
with friends or other people you play in a team with. Anybody who 
has tried to play a team-based mode with randoms knows what I'm 
talking about. So convince your friends to buy this game, and if 
they have trouble, refer them to my guide! 


LESSON 9: Counter-strategies

For every strategy, there is a counter. I have taught you skills 
that will make you better at this game, but there is a cost. Your 
enemies, the other players, now know these secrets as well. In the 
interest of fairness, here are the counters to popular techniques, 
including but not limited to the ones I have described earlier in 
the guide.

- Counter corner-stun: The easiest way to do not get corner-stunned 
is to not chase your targets at full speed. However, if you lock 
on to them first (and you should), you'll know when they are hiding 
behind a corner. You could make a wider turn around the corner and 
get a contested kill on them… or better yet, climb over the wall 
they are hiding behind and try to get an arial kill!

- Counter drop stun: Don't chase targets, obviously, but NEVER 
chase them off cliffs. If they know how to drop stun, they will 
get you every time. If you absolutely HAVE to follow a fleeing 
target off a long drop, hang off the edge and then drop, but do 
not jump. It's slow and your target will probably get away, but 
hey, you were the idiot who got in a chase in the first place.

- Countering Tripwire Bombs: Tripwire bombs are annoying. You 
think you're about to get a super-sneaky kill, and then a huge 
explosion pops in your face, and the next thing you know there's 
a fist smashing your pretty nose. Well, a large part of countering 
Tripwire Bombs is knowing which players use them.

Your thought process should go like this:
"OK, I'm about to kill that Pioneer. But wait! The last time I had 
her a few minutes ago, she got me with a Tripwire Mine, and it's 
had time to recharge since then. Did she drop one near her?

And then search the ground near her feet for a small box. If there 
is one, you have a few options. You could go for an arial kill, 
or you could piss her off even more and walk right through the bomb. 
If you walk VERY SLOWLY around the boundary of the bomb's activate 
radius, it will go off but you will not be affected. Do this, and 
while she's celebrating you getting "tricked", stab her in the 
throat. Enjoy that kill, you earned it.

- Counter OSB (Offensive Smoke Bomb): That got your attention, 
didn't it? Using Smoke Bombs offensively (as in, to assist in 
killing your target) is one of the most hated tactics in Assassin's 
Creed multiplayer. It was started by poor lost lambs who were bad 
at Brotherhood and could never get their focus or poison bonuses 
off. So, they used Smoke Bombs to stop their targets for a free 
kill. Ubisoft made the matter worse by introducing Contested Kills 
in Revelations, giving noobs one more reason to incapacitate their 
targets so they could kill them without getting b*tch-slapped in 
the process. It seems that Offensive Smoke Bomb was impenetrable, 
but it's time to fight back, and show them that their master plan 
for quality kills isn't so perfect after all.

 This part is similar to the counter-Tripwire bomb method, in which 
you have to get hit by an OSB to realize who is using them. After 
that, when you see an OSB user as your pursuer, and realize that 
he has had enough time to recharge his weapon, try to… 

- Climb onto a nearby roof to make him waste the smoke bomb, climb 
up, jump off, and when he follows you, drop-stun him.
- Throw a defensive Smoke Bomb at him, then run in for the stun.
- Run away so he gets in a chase with you, then corner-stun him.

These are especially satisfying in Assassinate, where you can stun 
the sucker and then get a free focus poison kill on him while he's 
on the ground picking up his teeth, with all your abilities still 
ready to go. Poetic justice.

- Conter Defensive OSB

Pretty much everything I've described in the offensive section 
(Except using your own SB to counter theirs, because now you're 
just using OSB). However, because you're the pursuer and have a 
wider way of killing than a target does of stunning, you can climb 
up a wall and kill them from their for a quick Acrobatic bonus. 
This ain't Revelations, where going anywhere above a smoke bomb 
will get you.

- Counter Pistol

I am about to say something that not everybody may like. This is 
that you really shouldn't counter the Pistol. Yes, I am saying that 
if some noob is pointing a pistol at you, you should let them kill 
you. The points they earn are not significant enough that you 
should waste an ability on them. For example, it is really not worth 
it to put Animus Shield in one of your ability slots solely to 
counter Pistol-users. If your pursuer is in sight, you could hit 
them with a Throwing Knife to stop their gun and then knife stun 
them.. but that knife is better saved for a time when a stealthier 
pursuer is about to get a larger-point kill off of you.

If you can get out of the way of the Pistol before they shoot you, 
and manage to get them off your tail without using abilities, more 
power to you. I just don't think that it's worth using a valuable 
ability to counter an idiot shooting for minimal score, especially 
in AC3 where all the ability cooldowns are longer than in previous 
games. And that's that.

LESSON 10: Know your surroundings

As you well know by now, Assassin's Creed is about quality over 
quantity. The more environmental bonuses you can take advantage 
of, the better. Target is standing on a roof? Try to hang on the 
edge near them and pull them off for a tasty 450-point Grab kill. 
As much as I dislike people who roof all the time, you should get 
at least one arial kill per match, to get your variety up. Use 
benches, blend groups, and hay bales to get many hidden kills, and 
the list goes on and on. Even if your target gets killed by another 
player, don't be discouraged. Instead, use the bonuses the game 
gives you to get a tiny advantage. If you are near them when they 
die, you can kick their lifeless corpse for a 50-point Ground 
Finish. Hey, it's better than nothing, and it counts toward your 
Varieties! 

This lesson is extremely important in Assassinate. Why? Because 
if you stun a pursuer, you can then take your time looking around 
for environment pieces to kill them with while they are stunned. 
If you feel bad about picking up a 1200 point Hidden Focus Silent 
Acrobatic kill, boosting your score a huge amount from one single 
kill, just remember: they would do the exact same thing to you, 
and they would have probably used OSB to make it an Incognito.


BONUSES [ACBO]

So, since there are no descriptions of the bonuses you can earn 
within the game, I think it is prudent that I list them here. With 
a few exceptions, all of these bonuses count toward the Variety, 
Greater Variety, and Extreme Variety bonuses.

ACCOLADES:

BONUSES:
Kill - 100
Generic bonus for any basic kill.

Aerial Kill - 100
Kill your target from above.

Acrobatic Kill - 200
Kill a target while climbing or crouching.

Hidden Kill - 300
Kill your target while hidden in a crowd, on a bench or in a 
haystack.

Grab Kill - 450
Kill your target from while hanging on an edge while your target 
is on a rooftop.

Reckless - 50
Kill your target when your approach meter is on reckless.

Discreet - 150
Kill your target when your approach meter is on discreet.

Silent - 250
Kill your target when your approach meter is on silent.

Incognito - 350
Kill your target when your approach meter is maxed out.

Grounded - 50
Kill your target while your target is stunned.

Contested Kill - 100
Kill your target while your target tries to stun you, forfeiting 
your approach bonus.

Honorable Death - 100
Attempt to stun your target while they kill you.

Ground Finish - 50
Perform a ground finish on your target after your target is killed 
by another player.

Mid-Air - 100
Perform a kill with the Pistol while your target is in the air.

Execution - 100
Use the Pistol to kill a running target.

Focus - 150
Perform a kill after staying near your target for at least 3 seconds 
while the kill button is displayed above your target's head.

Ambush - 100
Kill or stun an opponent shortly after entering his line of sight.

Poison - 200
Use Poison to kill your target.

Poison Dart - 250
Kill your target with a Poison Dart.

Pistol Kill - 100
Kill your target with the Pistol.

Animus Hack - (point value increases with each consecutive Animus 
Hack kill)
Kill your target with the Animus Hack or Silent Animus Hack 
killstreak, or the Minor Hack loss streak.

Variety - 200
Earn 5 different bonuses in a game session.

Greater Variety - 400
Earn 10 different bonuses in a game session.

Extreme Variety - 600
Earn 15 different bonuses in a game session.

Assist Kill - 50
Kill a target that one of your teammates has locked.

Assist Stun - 50
Stun a pursuer that one of your teammates has locked.

Assist - 50
A teammate performed a kill or a stun on the player you had locked.

Diversion - 50
A teammate kills a target you are chasing.

Revive - 50
Help a stunned teammate get to their feet.

Double Multi Kill - 100
Your team killed two targets within 3 seconds.

Triple Multi Kill - 250
You team killed three targets within 6 seconds.

Quadruple Multi Kill - 400
Your team killed four targets within 9 seconds.

Opportunist - 50
Kill a target who is being chased by your teammate.

Knock Out - 100
Your team stunned 2 pursuers within 4 seconds.

CONTACT AND LEGAL [ACCL]
"How did you find me?!"
-Cesare Borgia

"The email address at the end of this crappy FAQ led me here!"
-Ezio Auditore

I have a confession to make. Though looking through this guide may 
make you think I am an omnipotent god-king at Assassin's Creed 3 
multiplayer, this.. is only half true. I am not omnipotent in the 
slightest, and being a god-king without being omnipotent is like 
being a bottle of wine without a side dish of cheese.

But let me get to the point. I need you to run out to your local 
farmer's market and pick up some cheese to smear all over this 
guide.

.. That came out wrong. What I'm REALLY trying to say is, I am not 
perfect. I am nowhere near perfect. I'm not even that great. I have 
never prestiged as of the writing of this sentence. Do you know 
what my highest score is in a single AC3 match? 9100. Nine thousand. 
One hundred. In an Assassinate match. That is PITIFUL by the 
standards of high level players. I've never broken 10k in this 
game. As such, there are many techniques about this game that I 
am not aware of. And hey, if you have an idea that NOBODY is aware 
of, this guide may help you gain fame and fortune among the 4 people 
who will ever read it!

If you have an idea to add to this guide, or a question, complaint, 
comment, concern, or frothy-mouthed rant about any of the content 
in this guide, you are welcome to shoot me an email at:

homsarrunner3@aol.com

Please include AC3 in the subject bar, and I will not, repeat NOT, 
respond to any messages from deposed Nigerian kings or gentlemen 
in tuxedos who want to help me get  "XXX hot babes in ur crib 
tonite!!!!1!!!!1111one!". I do not sleep in a crib, thank you very 
much. I graduated to the big boy bed last month, in fact.

Oh yeah, and if you want to find me on Xbox 360, my Gamertag is 
Ot1sman . I'll be the one kicking ass and chewing bubble gum.

Legal mumbo:
This guide was written by me, homsarrunner3. The views expressed 
in this guide do not necessarily portray the views of anybody else 
who works or contributes at gamefaqs.com. All of the content in 
this guide was based off my own experience in the Xbox 360 version 
of Assassin's Creed III (3). This guide is intended for private 
use only (that sounds a lot dirtier than I meant it to), and should 
not be used by anybody for any sort of profit.

If you wish to add this guide to your NON-PROFIT website, please 
send me an email at the address above.

Currently, these are the only websites allowed to have this guide. 
If found this website on another site, it is STOLEN (or I just 
haven't added them yet. But I do that fairly quickly), and you 
should send me an email regarding this.

Allowed sites: 

gamefaqs.com


VERSION HISTORY

v1.0 First version of the guide written and uploaded to gamefaqs. 
Coming soon: Perk and Killstreak guide, and more ability 
strategies!

v1.1 Second version of the guide edited and uploaded. No Perk and 
Killstreak guide yet, but there are some general spelling and 
information fixes, as well as the addition of the Accolades 
section.

CREDITS

This guide is like a child to me. Keeping with that theme, here 
are all the wonderful little sperm cells who helped it grow into 
what it is today!

Thanks to Ubisoft: For making this amazing game and series. If 
anybody from Ubisoft is reading this, please remove Pistol in the 
next patch. C'mon, I know you want to.

Thanks to gamefaqs.com: For being the first to host this guide.

Thanks to TheShenmue36: For his videos, which taught me about The 
Whispers and how to play the game properly in general.

Thanks to Raininstormwake: For his videos, which taught me how to 
knife stun and drop stun. (Not that the latter matters anymore in 
this game…)

Thanks to MajorHerQ: For tips regarding Poison, Tripwire Bomb, and 
Decoy.

Thanks to My friend Luke, gamertag 13LACK D3ATH (on Xbox it looks 
like "Black Death") for some great Wolfpack games. Unfortunately, 
he has recently turned to the dark side: he now plays Call of Duty: 
Black Ops 2 almost exclusively. If you ever see him, please spam 
his inbox with RETURN TO AC3 LUKE. RETURN TO AC3 LUKE. RETURN TO 
AC3 LUKE.

And thank YOU, for putting up with this crap.


May the Father of Understanding guide you.

[[[[[END DOCUMENT]]]]]