Weapons

Every melee weapon is rated in three categories: Damage, Speed and Combo. These stats define their overall effectiveness in combat.

• Damage: This attribute is used to determine the strength of each successful attack. With most combat deaths achieved through counterattacks and Kill Streaks, this stat is the least important of the three.

• Speed: Weapons with a high Speed rating enable Connor to attack faster and more frequently. Heavier weapons tend to have lower Speed ratings.

• Combo: Weapons differ in the number of hits required before Connor can deliver a finishing blow. Unlike Damage and Speed, lower totals represent a superior Combo stat.

You can switch between weapons in your existing collection via the “Buy” option at any General Store, or by collecting them from the display racks inside the Homestead Manor.

Note: Unless removed briefly by narrative constraints, Connor can always count on his fists and Hidden Blade. He has one inventory slot that can be occupied by a tomahawk or small blade, and a second slot that enables him to carry a single weapon selected from the “Normal”, “Heavy” and “Blunt” categories.

Unarmed

Unarmed fighting enables you to attack at speed, and can be an enjoyable way to fight against weaker assailants, but puts Connor at greater risk – especially as the Parry ability is unavailable. For those seeking a stern test of their abilities, though, it’s definitely the most technically demanding fighting style.

The principal reason to use unarmed combat is to employ the Disarm move, as this will enable you to take your target’s weapon from their hands. Fist fighting can also be employed when

you must disable opponents without killing them. If stealth and mercy are called for, sneak up behind an opponent and tap / to incapacitate them with a non-lethal finishing move.

Small Weapons

Small weapons enable Connor to attack with great speed and, with the Dirk dagger and War Tomahawk, achieve remarkably rapid Combo Kills before other adversaries have time to interrupt his onslaught. The drawback to this category of weapons is that they are only effective at short range, which makes them relatively ill-suited to long Kill Streaks. You can either equip a Tomahawk or a short blade: Connor cannot carry both at once.

The Hidden Blade, long the weapon of choice for Assassin’s Creed purists, is available at all times (unless the demands of the story temporarily dictate otherwise). It functions as a small weapon in terms of its range. It is, however, an appalling choice for combos unless you are facing a solitary opponent. The number of individual blows required before the killing strike means that Connor will often be interrupted by other assailants long before he disables a target.

Small Weapon Attributes

Heavy Weapons

Heavy weapons are carried by Grenadiers, and can be collected after you kill them. From Sequence 06 onwards, you can purchase and equip one of these mighty axes.

Weapons in the Heavy category are ostensibly slow and cumbersome, but their phenomenal reach and – with the best axes – short combos can make them extremely effective. The primary drawback to using heavy weapons is that, being two-handed, they preclude the use of ranged weapons and related Special Counter abilities. In battles against the most dangerous and gifted enemy archetypes, this can be a massive drawback for players who are less adept in

combat situations. That said, the capacity to fell a disarmed Jäger with two or three blows is no trivial characteristic – if you have the composure to do so, that is.

Connor’s Tools may be unavailable while holding an axe, but the button is not left redundant: it is instead assigned to the unique “Slam Attack” instant-kill move. Hold / to charge the assault, then release the button. Connor will slam the axe at the targeted opponent, killing them instantly – but losing the weapon in the process. If you forget to retrieve the axe at the conclusion of the battle, you can reequip it at any General Store or the Homestead Manor.

Heavy Weapon Attributes

Normal Weapons

Normal weapons are standard medium-sized blades that offer a fair blend of range and speed, and combos of a tolerable length, which makes them a balanced (if perhaps unspectacular) choice for any combat situation.

Normal Weapon Attributes

Blunt Weapons

Blunt weapons are functionally very similar to the axes in the Heavy Weapon category, though Connor’s assaults are tailored to bludgeon opponents rather than shear through flesh and solid bone. Other than this primarily aesthetic variation, they have the same benefits and drawbacks as heavy weapons: the better clubs enable shorter combos, and easy counterattacks, but reduce your tactical options through the unavailability of Tools and Special Counters with ranged weapons. Instead of the Slam Attack, they offer a throw assault, the Blunt Attack: hold then release / and you will hurl the weapon at the targeted opponent, incapacitating them instantly. Interestingly, this is actually a non-lethal attack: note how enemies continue to writhe on the floor long after the impact.

Blunt Weapon Attributes

The Musket

Though you cannot purchase or permanently equip muskets, these weapons are easily acquired in most battles. With their excellent range and a cartridge loaded for a “free” ranged shot, they can be collected, used and then discarded without hesitation. As with all weapons, there is a knack to picking them off the ground during active combat: wait for a quiet moment with Connor standing above one on the ground, then briefly hold / and tap /.