S7 M1: The Hidden City

Sequence 07, Memory 01 -- The Hidden City

NOTE: After you arrive and are standing on the docks take a quick peak at the map and you will notice that you are now standing in the final zone containing the last of the Aniumus Data Fragments!  Obviously this is of particular interest to us, since it allows us to complete a very extensive and complicated collection, scoring us yet another Achievement or Trophy, and how cool is that?  The thing is, getting those collected will require you to do things that are certain to get you detected -- so your best approach for now is to ignore the Data Fragments and complete this memory, and then reload it once you have full synchronization and concentrate just on getting the collection done!

-- Back to the Story --

As the ship pulls into the harbor we are given the briefest of long glances at its narrow but mostly empty dock before we are prompted to accept the first Memory Mission -- The Hidden City -- which we do of course!   When you check the map you will note that it is covered by the Fog of War -- we need to locate a Vantage Point and Perch and scan the region in order to make that go away, but as luck would have it doing that is part of the primary function of this memory, so hey, bonus!

To obtain 100% Synchronization on this memory we will need to progress through zone without being detected -- but this should happen as natural matter since we are now in an area where we have absolutely no reputation -- good or bad -- to follow us around.  You should bear in mind though that gaining any notoriety in this district/city is a bad idea because there are no Heralds here, so you cannot get rid of it once you obtain it.  Ouch!  Unless we do something ill-advised like attack a patrol or kill a civilian, steal, or otherwise draw attention to ourselves, we should not acquire any notoriety anyway, so no hoohoo.

From the docks walk along the path and up the stairs, take a hard right and follow the path here to another set of stairs -- go up them and head for the entrance to what looks like a cave in the side of the mountain but what is really the entrance of a passageway that leads through the mountain and into the underground city ahead.

When you reach the exit to the passageway / entrance to the underground city your arrival will trigger a brief CS in which we look over the city and the nearby enemy.  It is at this point that we have to make a decision -- how will we proceed?

-- Your Path Splits -- or -- Ezio Goes Postal --

You have two choices to make here and both of them require that you avoid being detected at any point in this mission!  Your choices are:

(A) Go Stealthy and proceed to the marker without ever engaging or killing anyone.  You do not even stub a tow, you just calmly make your way to the marker.

(B) You use your Poison Darts, Fragmentation Bombs, Crossbow, and other weapons to Ninja your way to the marker.


-- Method A: The Stealthy and Non-Violent Approach

If you have any trouble here please watch the video.  Basically while you will see loads of red dots that mark hostile Templar Guards who will potentially aggro on you given the slightest of provocation, but the truth is that the only Templar red dots that are even a little threatening are the ones that belong to the Riflemen on the rooftops, and these represent only about 1 in every 20 dots.

To take the non-violent stealthy approach all that you need to do is walk (not run) along the city streets as you make your way to the marker spot, which is a large and thick column of bedrock that has been carved around in the creation of this city.  At the very top of this is situation the perch (Vantage Point) that you need to reach in order to scan the area and fill in the map, removing the Fog of War.

While it is true that the period in which you move from the ground to the second level of the pillar is a time when bad luck could easily get you detected, the reality is that you would actually need bad luck!  If you have no luck or good luck you will make the trip up the side of the pillar without anyone noticing, you will arrive at the perch, you will scan, and then you will make a Leap of Faith and find yourself back on ground level with that lovely emerald-colored search area just beckoning for you to turn on Eagle Vision and begin the long process of searching for your target -- who happens to be Tarik's spy and a woman...

Owning the Underground City of Cappadocia

-- Method B: Mad Bomber In the City!

As grim as this looks with respect to being able to get through this underground city that is literally filthy with red-dot Templar the reality is actually much simpler than you might be thinking... 

The first thing you should be aware of is that as long as you are not actually SEEN tossing a bomb, using the Impact Shrapnel Bombs in your Inventory will NOT cause an alarm to be set off or cause you to be detected!  And conversely as long as you are not seen using your dart gun, shooting a Guard with a poison dart, you should also be OK.

Before we begin this path I want to remind you, you do not have to do this...  If you are doing it because you LIKE this approach, that is fine, but if you are doing it because you think you have to, well, no, you don't...  Go read Method A again.

Still with us?  Hmm...

After you do a  quick check of your Inventory and replace any of the Impact Shrapnel Bombs you have used bringing your total in the bag to 4, replace any of the Cherry or Smoke Bombs you have used as well and then look over your left shoulder (behind you).

There is a pair of red-tinted Templar who represent a potential source of detection, so very discretely lob a bomb at them to kill them, and then stand still.  See?  Nobody noticed you at all! 

When the Templar on the roof to the right walks to your side of his roof, take him out with a bomb, then make replacements and lob a Cherry bomb down in the street by that wooden bridge.  Around 8 Templar will come to investigate -- one bomb will take all 8 out!  Doing it this way also reduced the potential number of innocent bystanders you kill and, since you are not supposed to do that, killing as few civilians as you can manage is the way to go here!

Pop another Cherry Bomb down there to draw in the remaining patrolling Templar and kill them with another bomb, and you are ready to begin making your way through the city.  You can replace your poison darts at the Doctor who is located at the junction of the two streets that run down on the right side from the area where you entered and killed the two groups of Templar with bombs -- and you should go ahead and replace them all and buy medicine while you are at it.

Now here is basic advice that you really need to follow to succeed and not be detected:

(1) DO NOT LOOT BODIES
(2) Do NOT use your Crossbow unless you are hidden/blended
(3) Try not to kill civilians
(4) Avoid the bodies of Templar you have already killed
(5) Avoid returning to areas you have already passed through
(6) Avoid standing still for too long

Now simply follow the path down towards the pair of Templar that are guarding the chest, taking them both out either with a bomb or darts, then cross the bridge to your right and make your way to the place where the marker is close to the street.  When it is safe to do so, start climbing!


-- The Two Methods Arrive at the Same Place --
Regardless of which of the two methods you chose, eventually you arrive near a house at the base of the pillar where you are going to need to start cimbing...

Look for the house with the pair of beams that cross the street to the other side -- you want to climb up at that point as you cannot be seen by the Rifleman who is on the far set of buildings to the right or the Rifleman on the nearest set behind you.  Do not worry about the patrols as long as you do not begin climbing while they can see you.  Basically take a look around and, when the coast is clear, climb up between the two beams.

On this roof turn to the right and climb to the next roof, and then climb up the rock on the other side to reach the wooden platform above.  From there jump across the first beam to the second one, climb on top o fit, and then climb the stone shallow ledges of the wall it is attached to to the top of this stone ledge.  There is a black outline of what looks like a door or tunnel entrance -- it is neither.

Turn to the right here and jump the gap and then scale the collapsed wooden walkway you just jumped onto -- at the top move to the far side and jump to the beam and then to the next walkway section, do that again, and then jump and climb the next beam and jump over to the skeleton that was the walkway support before it collapsed ages ago.  This leads up to the perch (Vantage Point).

-- At the Vantage Point --

As with the Vantage Points in Constantinople you need to move out onto the perch and click the Left Joystick down to trigger a Vantage Point Scan -- and you get a nice vision of the area around and below you.  More important than that is that the area is now added to your map, including all of the locations in it -- open the map now to check that and you will see what I mean.

You are very close to having this Memory completed!

-- Searching for the Target --

From the perch complete the Leap of Faith.  There is a Templar Guard patrolling here -- wait until he approaches and then stealth kill him, pulling his body into the Hay Pile and thus killing and concealing him at the same time.

On your radar map you can see the search area.  Turn on Eagle Vision and proceed off of the roof to ground level and begin scanning for the target and as you work your way through the district towards the marker you will eventually spot the woman who is Tarik's spy here in Cappadocia!

Once you have ID'd her -- like all good and innocent civilians she takes off running -- and you have to chase her down!  Do not panic here, she is not going to get away because the script says so!

Just run (not sprint) after her down the narrow ally and you will find her around the corner trying to pick open the lock on a door to one of the houses.  as you approach her you trigger the brief CS in which she draws a dagger and threatens you with it and you tell her to take it easy, because Tarik sent you.  Her reaction suggests that she was expecting someone from Tarik, but several someones, not one man -- and from what she says it appears that she has fighting trouble that she needs to deal with.

The CS then ends, and as long as you followed the advice above, in addition to being notified that there are some new items in the shops you should also see the notification for 100% Synchronization.  Normally this is where the section would end and we would move on to the next memory, but this is not a normal situation, and so it is not ending here as we have some other stuff to do!


-- Post Story-Time in Memory 01 --

Now that this Memory is in the bag you do not have to worry about being detected anymore -- so open the Pause Menu and select DNA > SEQUENCE 7 UNDERWORLD > MEMORY 1 THE HIDDEN CITY and select it, then confirm that you want to access the memory to replay it.

Now simply look at the map, mark the nearest Data Fragment and go collect it.  Rinse and repeat until you have all 12 Fragments and you unlock the Achievement "Capped" (20 GS) for collecting all of the Animus Data Fragments.  Well done!

With that mischief managed you will want to either end the memory or complete it if you like -- either way it is time to move on to the next memory!