Tools & Ranged Weapons

In many situations, tools and ranged weapons can be just as lethal as the most powerful swords or axes. Note that you can increase Arno’s capacity of consumables and ammo by obtaining better pieces of equipment. Forearm equipment can enable you to carry more Phantom Blades and Berserk Blades, while Waist equipment can have the same effect for the other types of consumables.

For all tools and ranged weapons that can be manually aimed, you can cancel the aiming process without firing by pressing /.

Phantom Blades

This powerful and silent weapon is perfect for stealth kills from a safe distance or elevation once acquired early in Sequence 04. You can fire Phantom Blades in two different ways:

■ To perform a quick shot at close range, just tap / to fire at the highlighted target. This is a very effective way to swiftly eliminate a dangerous foe during a battle. You can, for example, instantly kill a fearsome Seeker or Officer archetype with a quick shot after briefly incapacitating him with a Perfect Parry or Staggering Strike ( ).

■ To aim manually, hold /, then aim with and press / to fire ( ).

Even though the Phantom Blades are silent, it doesn’t mean that you can use them recklessly. If you open fire while a guard is close or looking in your direction, this will instantly raise the alarm and trigger open conflict – so it pays to always try to fire from a concealed position. If you use the Phantom Blades while Blended in a crowd, it will usually cause all nearby civilians to move away from you, ruining your cover.

Berserk Blades

Berserk Blades function in the same way as other ranged weapons, but they intoxicate their victim instead of killing them outright. The afflicted target will then engage anyone – friend and foe alike – in combat until incapacitated.

This can be especially effective on the stronger archetypes, who will then turn their weapons against their allies. Furthermore, a berserk target will attract the attention of everyone within range while afflicted ( ). Defenders are prime targets, as their resilience means that they can survive for a long time even when engaged in a ruckus with large groups of high-level archetypes; Seekers are a good second choice. Whenever you need to create a localized diversion, Berserk Blades are one of the most powerful weapons at Arno’s disposal.

Money Pouch

Throwing money draws multiple civilians to the area where the coins are tossed, creating a Blend opportunity for Arno ( ). Unlike civilians, guards are not attracted (except in Restricted Areas). The effect lasts for 15 seconds. You can only throw money every 17 seconds.

Cherry Bombs

A Cherry Bomb will attract enemies – and allies – to the location where it explodes, creating opportunities for a stealth approach.

■ You can use this to draw a sentry away from his post ( ).

■ Another application is to toss a Cherry Bomb to draw multiple enemies to the same spot and initiate conflicts between red-clad Extremists and blue-clad guards ( ). If they do not attack each other by themselves, you can easily engineer this by hitting one with a ranged weapon from a concealed position.

All Bombs are thrown with /. You can either tap the button for an instant use, or hold and release, which enables you to aim manually with . Cancel the aiming process at any time with /.

Poison Gas Bombs

This bomb releases a circular gas cloud that has a five-meter radius. The gas takes two seconds to spread after the explosion. Targets caught in the area of effect gradually lose health and remain poisoned for six seconds. Poisoned enemies have a 10% chance of propagating the effect to others around them for as long as they remain poisoned.

Poison Gas Bombs can be a very effective way to deal with packed groups of enemies, either with a snap throw when you are caught in a large brawl, or with a manual throw directed at multiple targets. You can even create ambushes by luring multiple opponents into close proximity (with a Cherry Bomb or a Berserk Blade strike on a suitable victim), then eliminate the entire group with Poison Gas Bombs ( ).

Smoke Bombs

The cloud caused by a Smoke Bomb has a 14-meter diameter and appears immediately after the explosion. The smoke blinds all guards in the vicinity and breaks their line of sight, then disappears after 10 seconds. Arno’s vision (and, by extension, your view) is also impeded by the smoke, though you can activate Eagle Vision to see through it. Unlike in previous episodes, Smoke Bombs do not incapacitate enemies: they simply blind them, which can take a little getting used to for Assassin’s Creed veterans.

In Unity, Smoke Bombs prove useful in two instances: when you want to escape open conflict ( ) and, for expert players, as a method to approach a target without being detected.

Stun Bombs

Stun Bombs (also referred to as Stun Grenades) incapacitate their targets for five seconds ( ). Attacking an affected enemy immediately alleviates the stun effect, so this tool is primarily a defensive device. They can be useful for disorienting groups to enable you to quickly weaken or dispatch a specific target. Arno himself is not affected by his own Stun Bombs, though certain enemies can use a similar weapon against him. When this happens, you will notice that your screen is saturated with light for five seconds, making it difficult to keep track of your opponents.

Stun Bombs can also be used to briefly incapacitate targets when you need to pickpocket a document or item they’re carrying. If you are fast and precise, you can complete the robbery and step out of sight before the victim has the time to recover.