Slap bang in the middle of a castle complex in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, I start to think I’m in over my head. As Yasuke, I’m standing at a high vantage point, practically holding my breath as I swivel the camera around to try and gauge how best to begin. With no Eagle Vision to help me see through walls or reveal enemies, I have to rely on my own skills of perception to take stock of the area. With a group of armored foes training at the center, I take note of the patrolling guards flanking them on either side. As I study their routine, I spy two threatening bells looming overhead in the distance, which immediately cements my first objective: one wrong move and I’ll be a wanted man, so I need to get them disabled as soon as possible.
But how do I go about this when I don’t have kunai or shuriken at my disposal? Before I’ve even really begun, I feel daunted. But I’m determined to see if I can pull this off. Up until this point, I’d gotten into a pleasing groove checking off castles in Naoe’s sandals. Thanks to her nimble movements, stealthy prowess, and handy Eagle Vision ability, navigating through the grounds and locating the daimyo I needed to kill had almost become second nature.
As Yasuke, I was sure it would be a different story, but through some trial and error – and a stubborn sense of determination on my part to maintain a stealthy approach – conquering a castle as the samurai actually proved to deliver one of the most satisfying challenges in the RPG so far.
The same but different
A legendary chest housing pirate armor for Yasuke was the catalyst for my decision to at last take on my first castle as the samurai. Convinced that I should try clearing one of these heavily guarded areas as the character the gear is actually intended for, I began searching for a way that wouldn’t draw attention. Yasuke’s innate strength and powerful combat skills offer up the perfect ingredients for a gung-ho, smash-through-the-front-door-and-fight approach. But as someone who much prefers to go all cloak-and-dagger if given a choice, I quickly came to a spontaneous decision: I’ll try to conquer this castle as stealthily as I would if I were Naoe.
In hindsight, it might have been a bit ambitious of me to take on my very first castle as Yasuke in this way – given that there was a front gate just begging to be demolished by my charged run – but I was determined to challenge my stealthy prowess, and trying to sneakily secure the legendary test as the brawny samurai felt like the ultimate test. Without Naoe’s arsenal of tools, I had to adapt quickly and change my approach to suit Yaskue’s skills and weapons. In lieu of the kunai and shurikens to take out the bells, I decided to make use of the samurai’s only silent, ranged weapon: the bow.
Of course, the stakes are a lot higher when it comes to using the bow in enemy territory. While Naoe can sling her throwables with quiet ease from hidden positions, Yasuke has to stand up to draw the weapon and take aim. Naturally that meant that I had to ensure that no enemies were nearby who could spot me, and then it was a matter of precision and speed. A misfire could draw unwanted attention, and if I wasn’t fast enough and didn’t retreat from view, I might get spotted. Waiting for just the right time to strike, I bolted upright, took aim, and watched with bated breath as my arrow went soaring.
When the rope snapped and the bell fell with a clang, it was like it was ringing out for my victory. I swiftly got out of plain sight, and the sense of satisfaction that washed over me was far greater than any time I’d pulled off the same thing as Naoe — simply because it was a far riskier endeavor for Yasuke.
Adapting abilities
The risk factor gets to the heart of what makes the challenge of completing castles stealthily as Yasuke so rewarding. From locating to daimyos you need to kill to unlock the legendary chest, to reaching said chest in the first place, everything is working against you when you’re a large, powerful fighter who doesn’t have the advantages of Naoe’s agile form and subtle movements. Not to mention no Eagle Vision to lean on to see what enemies might be lurking inside buildings or around walled corners.
But it’s all about adapting. Sure, Yasuke might not be as quiet as Naoe, but he can sneak. Staying permanently crouched for the most part, much of my time in the castle was a case of trial and error. From hiding behind boxes and whistling to draw out guards I could and couldn’t see, to using my bow to try and make a guard look a certain way, I soon started to find my own groove again as Yasuke.
Performing as many brutal assassinations as possible, and shooting out well aimed arrows to whittle down the guards, the surrounding castle grounds were practically cleared before I knew it, and anyone remaining inside the castle were none the wiser.
Even when I fumbled up my sneaky approach, I still managed to mitigate disaster by retaliating quickly to take any nearby enemies out of the picture before they could draw more attention. Once I worked my way up to the chest holding my prize, all that remained was the final daimyo who stood right in front of my bounty. With one final thwack of my kanabo club, the pirate armor was in my grasp.
My affinity for stealth is such that I took my damn time coming around to the idea of approaching castles as Yasuke in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, but now I can’t stop. While I can see the appeal in smashing my way through the front door and fighting through the grounds head-on, nothing tops being a sneaky, stealthy menace, and pulling it off as Yasuke is incredibly rewarding because of the added challenge it presents. I’m sure I’ll go in weapons blazing sometime just to shake things up, but I’m already setting my sights on Yasuke’s next sneaky conquest.
Forget the hidden blade: if you’re not yeeting enemies in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, you’re missing out.
