Equipment

There are several ways of saying goodbye in Italian, and Assassin's Creed Brotherhood will give you plenty of chances to practise them all when it comes to your hard-earned cash.

Until Ezio has established some regular sources of income, he'll need to resort to some of his older tricks before he'll be able to afford the equipment he needs. His methods of raising money are as follows:

Mission Rewards: All of the main and optional memories reward the player's efforts with a money prize. They may be delivered to Ezio through the plot, collected incidentally, or awarded on successful completion, but they all pay up.

When completing Secret Location/Lair challenges, some of the optional rewards available may require extra effort and ingenuity to secure: these are simply in addition to what you will earn from reaching the end of the memory.

Looting & Stealing: Looting the dead will draw the disdain of the crowd and the attention of the guards, but this is a way of remaining self-sufficient when it comes to basic supplies of Medicine and ammunition. As for stealing, Roman society recognizes three classes of citizen in its social strata.

An eye for heavy robes and heavier purses (Fig. 1) will maximize your yield to an average of 110 florins per 5 nobles. You can Fast Walk in Low Profile to steal in quick succession, but be warned that male citizens are keener to pick a fight if they suspect a thief.

Figure 01

Civilian Class

Loot Range (f)

Poor

7-12

Middle Class

12-19

Rich

19-25

Treasures: Hidden in forgotten cellars or guarded by Borgia sentries, riches await in Rome's many Treasure Chests. Some conceal rare luxuries, which can be exploited for commercial gain as Trade Items. Other Treasure Chests may contain hundreds or even thousands of florins for the taking. You will spot the unopened containers by their Animus effect, and may also purchase Maps that reveal their locations.

Figure 02

Borgia Couriers: Mingling discreetly with the citizens, Borgia Couriers can nevertheless be identified by a red cap and cape (Fig.2). These trusted runners will flee over river and rooftop if alerted to danger, escaping easily unless cunningly ambushed or skilfully overtaken. Intercepting the delivery will yield an exceptional loot haul of 1,500 florins, but with the automatic penalty of 100% Notoriety if you murder the courier instead of simply tackling him.

Assassin's Guild Contracts: Sending your men on missions across Europe not only trains up recruits but also benefits your Guild with a significant cut of the blood money.

Fight Ring: The Mercenaries Guild is home to a special training ground where Ezio can fight other men and bet money on the outcome of the battle. This Fight Club can be used to make decent amounts of money in very little time.

Rebuilding Rome: Ezio's liberation of the city from Borgia control and taxation opens up business opportunities for local traders. Investment in these businesses will, in time, return a regular income and allow you to maximize your Shop discounts before purchasing the finest equipment.

Health and Equipment

Figure 03

Each piece of armor is rated by the number of Health Squares it adds to the Health Meter. Equipping the best armor that you can purchase for each of the four body locations will thus significantly increase your Health Meter.

Each piece of armor also has a Resistance value that indicates how much damage it can absorb before breaking. This is represented in the game's inventory screens by a star rating, but our tables reveal the exact Hit Point values.

The combat system doesn't distinguish hit locations, such that a blow to the legs would only affect greaves. Instead, every blow endured affects every piece of armor worn. For every Hit Point of damage Ezio suffers, each of his pieces of armor will take a point of damage. When the damage reaches or exceeds the Resistance value, the armor will break. Those extra Health Squares no longer provided by a broken piece of armor appear on the Health Meter as red blocks (Fig. 3), indicating the extent of the damage. Only the Repair services of a Blacksmith will then restore them.

Health Square Status

Injury and Death

Each Health Square is a symbol representing 4 Hit Points in the underlying combat system. Because the damage calculations aren't always neat, an attack can leave one Health Square just partially emptied. But there's a minor recovery mechanism to exploit: if you avoid taking further damage for a few seconds, a block that is incomplete but not fully empty will regenerate to a full white Health Square.

Ezio can also be injured by falling too far. His agility allows him to drop distances of under 8 meters safely, and pushing forward on the Movement Stick will prompt him to roll on touchdown (Fig. 4) for a safe landing from 12 meters. Otherwise, he will sustain damage based on the height of the fall:

• 30% of total Health lost when falling over 8 meters.

• 50% of total Health lost when falling over 12 meters.

• 75% of total Health lost when falling over 16 meters.

• Death (Desynchronization) occurs after falling
  20 meters or more.

Ezio cannot die unless he is hurt further after being reduced to zero Hit Points, whereupon he enters a Critical State indicated by the screen flashing red and white. An injury in this condition will mean instant Desynchronization, but if he manages to avoid further damage for a few seconds then one Health Square will be restored to his bar.

Armor Types

Having escaped the fall of Monteriggioni in his shirt, Ezio must collect new armor as the game unfolds. Protection can be worn on the arms, legs, shoulders and chest, equating to four slots in which items can be equipped (Fig. 5). Because there is no consideration of hit location when taking damage, it's more effective to fill any empty slots first before considering an armor upgrade to an existing piece.

There are four grades of armor to unlock over time, plus a complete suit of secret armor that cannot be purchased from merchants.

Figure 04

Armor Upgrade Level 1:

Roman Armor

Armor Upgrade Level 2:

Rondelle Armor

Armor Upgrade Level 3:

Plate Armor

Armor Upgrade Level 4:

Seusenhofer Armor

Armor Upgrade Level 5:

Armor of Brutus

Arms

Gauntlets and gloves would constrict movement, so Assassins favor a simple forearm protection that leaves the hands free for climbing, stealing and other acts of dexterity. Note that you need to buy the Double Blade from Leonardo to be able to wear Vambraces.

Arms Armor

Legs

Free running demands light armor and free, unencumbered movement. The compromise that the Assassin always has to make is that heavier armor would clank and clatter, weighing them down when tested by attempted stealth or a sudden desire to escape by swimming. These shin pads accommodate the wearing of softer boots for sneaky approaches and extend to a reinforced knee grip or spike to aid climbing.

Legs Armor

Shoulders

These flexibly moulded pads and bands are designed to protect the neck and shoulders by deflecting blows away from the body. They also prevent dislocating injuries to Assassins who like to barge through crowds or catch a fleeing target with a headlong flying tackle.

Shoulder Armor

Chest

While a full chest plate would rule out abdominal flexibility, this composite arrangement of breast armor protects the most likely target spot for a fencing thrust or sniper's bolt. A knife in the back is a professional hazard, so the armor also extends all the way around the upper torso.

Chest Armor

Complete Set

The Armor of Brutus is a unique set of armor that must be worn as a complete suit. Tougher than all the others, it cannot be dented and never needs repair.

Armor of Brutus

Capes

The cape is one of the marks of rank and office, openly proclaiming an allegiance and asking to be recognized by those who would challenge your authority. You may examine and swap capes in the Inventory section of the game menu by selecting the Outfits option.

Auditore Cape

Unlocked by completing the Rome rebuilding metagame to 100%, this cape demonstrates that the city has replaced an old tyranny with a new master. Originally handcrafted by Maria Auditore in mourning for a lost child, this cape makes Ezio permanently Incognito – a very useful feature when you wish to explore the various districts and obtain their many collectibles without being harassed by guards. Once you remove the cape, your Notoriety gauge will return to its original level.

Borgia Cape

Unlocked by collecting 100 Borgia Flags, this cape disguises Ezio as one of his sworn enemies – again making him permanently Incognito.

MEDICI & VENETIAN CAPES

Unlocked by reaching Level 30 on the "Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" Facebook game, the Medici Cape (left) and the Venetian Cape (right) are only cosmetic accessories. They have no influence whatsoever on Ezio's Notoriety.

Parachute

Unlocked by completing all four of Leonardo's War Machine missions, Parachutes are single-use items, opening when Ezio is airborne and discarded when he touches down or releases the guiding ropes. Visit Tailors to buy refills and acquire larger Bags that will permanently increase the maximum number of Parachutes that can be carried in readiness for a mission.

Climb Leap Glove

Another gadget innovation from the mind of Leonardo da Vinci, the Climb Leap Glove enhances the scaling capacity of the climber. Enabling the Climb Leap maneuver, it grants the wearer the ability to make a vertical jump from a wall and reach higher hand-holds than before. This can be used to find (otherwise inaccessible) collectibles, such as Treasure Chest #3 at the very end of the Leader of the Pack Followers Lair. It also strengthens your punches in unarmed combat.

The Climb Leap Glove is only available from Leonardo and appears in Sequence 04 at a cost of 6,100 florins.

Ezio's Appearance

Once the basics are covered, Ezio may divert some of his income toward the sartorial elegance that is deserved of a major player in Roman political affairs. The Tailor now offers 15 new clothes and cape dyes, devoid of any gameplay influence and included purely for the pleasure of defining Ezio in your chosen style and aesthetic.

There's room for fun too. From the Inventory Outfits menu, you can choose from your unlocked skins to play with different appearances of Ezio while enjoying the main game.

Florentine Noble Attire

– This is the appearance of the teenage Ezio as we see him in the Cristina Vespucci Memories, harking back to the early sequences of Assassin's Creed II. You can unlock it on Ubisoft's Uplay service in exchange for two tokens.

Altaïr's Robes

– The original eagle.  Ezio may pass for his ancestor with this Holy Land version of the assassin's robes. You can unlock it on Ubisoft's Uplay service in exchange for two tokens.

Armor of Altaïr –

The Armor of Brutus of its day, this reward allows the Assassin's Creed II player to relive some of their finest moments with an improved move set. You can unlock it on Ubisoft's Uplay service in exchange for two tokens.

Raiden Skin

– In homage to the  VR-trained cybernetic ninja from  Metal Gear Solid 4, this is the reward  for receiving at least a Bronze Medal  in every single Virtual Training mission.