Flags
Reaching Plateau in Antico
Tue, 06/28/2011 - 04:09 — stabguy
Frequently asked question about getting to that raised area in southern Antico for flag #62. This video shows three different ways to cross the broken bridge. Try to guess what Method 1 is. 
Basilica di San Pietro Romulus Lair: Flags 99-101
Tue, 04/19/2011 - 21:31 — stabguyFinally, 101 Borgia Flags collected! I turned Xbox Notifications on in order to record the Capture the Flag Achievement pop-up at the end. I kept my fingers crossed that there wouldn't also be "FLAE has logged in" while recording.
There are three missable cutscenes in this Lair. The first occurs at 0:52 after Ezio enters the Lair. One drunk asks the other, "Did you see that white knight?" You've probably already seen this one. If you jostle one or both of the drunks before opening the trap door, they run off and the cutscene never happens. After Ezio returns from the Lair during story mode, the drunks return for a follow-up cutscene (even if you missed the first one).
The scene after mass at 1:34 can be frustrating. This Lair has a time limit of 8 minutes and we're off like a herd of turtles waiting nearly 2 minutes for the cardinal to leave the room. I don't know of any way to speed up the process so I try to amuse myself to pass the time. You don't need to use Eagle Vision if you instead get up close to the target, so that's the first thing I do. The cardinal pauses two or three times while making his rounds, but not always in the same places. It's okay to poison the guard at 3:15 because he's still alive when the next cutscene begins.
Colosseo Romulus Lair: Flags 96-98
Mon, 04/11/2011 - 21:40 — stabguyThis is my favorite Lair because it has a little of everything: a fight, a chase, an underground jubilee(?), and horses that actually gallop!
At 1:45 I break my own rule and use a Throwing Knife. If instead you approach the man seated in the chair, Ezio reaches for his shoulder causing him to jump up swinging a knife and tossing the chair aside. He then joins five others in the subsequent fight against Ezio. I wanted to demonstrate that using a ranged weapon skips this cutscene and that the seated man remains dead during the fight. That was an epic battle right there.
Palazzo Laterno Romulus Lair: Flags 93-95
Mon, 04/04/2011 - 21:14 — stabguyThis video is rather short because all three flags come early in the Lair - before entering the basilica. You get 100% Sync for not losing more than one health square. There's nobody to fight, so as long as you don't suffer a fall of more than 8 meters (or 12 meters with the Break-Fall move) you're golden.
The sequence I want to talk about begins at 2:38. There are two uneven bars to your left from which Ezio can swing. Players who are worried about losing health may use them to gently reach the ballroom floor. I bypassed them and jumped down from the balcony rail. As long as you use Break-Fall (hold 
while landing) you won't sustain any damage.
From here there are several ways to reach flag #94. The path I chose was direct but has this spot where Ezio gets stuck at 2:51. You can either wiggle out of it (run upstairs then across the top stair) or jump forward as shown in the video.
There are three Borgia Flags inside each Lair. If you are looking for a specific Flag refer to this index:
Flag 93 - 1:48
Flag 94 - 2:51
Flag 95 - 3:48
Piramide Cestia Romulus Lair: Flags 90-92
Mon, 03/28/2011 - 02:16 — stabguyThis is another Lair where you get 100% Sync for completing it in under 8 minutes. The key observation for doing a speed run is that the shortest path is illuminated by torches. Whenever you come to a fork in the road, remember to "follow the light".
Once again it's possible to collect all three Borgia flags and get full sync on the same run. When I collected flag #92 there was over three and a half minutes remaining on the clock. That's plenty of time to climb the cross, fight the followers of Romulus, and enter the shrine. When it comes to the fight scene, I recommend (quickly) fighting everyone. You can ignore them and make a mad dash for the shrine but you risk getting hit and falling back down to the floor. Better to play it safe and kill them all. 
The first major shortcut I took in this video is at 2:24. I manually lined up the jump and proceeded directly to the exit. If you do it right, Ezio actually rolls out the door. If you're off the mark, try doing a Catch Ledge. There's a safer and obvious free running route but it's kind of slow. My other shortcut starts at 4:02. Most players climb the barrels on the right and parkour across all the platforms in this L-shaped room. None of that is necessary.
There are three Borgia Flags inside each Lair. If you are looking for a specific Flag refer to this index:
Flag 90 - 2:19
Flag 91 - 4:22
Flag 92 - 5:51
Terme di Diocleziano Romulus Lair: Flags 87-89
Mon, 03/21/2011 - 21:35 — stabguyFinding this Lair of Romulus for the first time can be a challenge. The icon on your map leads to a tent in a campground. The entrance is actually underground, directly below this tent. This video shows two ways to reach the entrance. The first is based on a procedure outlined by morninglord. At 0:25 I do a regular left jump. If you have the climbing gloves then you can also do a Climb Leap + Catch Ledge Left here.
We believe the game designers intended you to reach the entrance by repairing the aqueducts in two places. This brings water to Cloaca Maxima and allows Ezio to swim right up to the Lair of Romulus. The video shows where to make the two repairs. You may need to topple nearby Borgia towers in order to repair the aqueducts. I haven't determined the earliest time in the game when this approach becomes available.
Once inside Terme di Diocleziano there's plenty of chasing and fighting. The final fight is not shown but here's a tip: there are collapsible structures to Ezio's left and right. Draw the wolf men in by climbing on top of one. Then drop down and Grab/Throw one guy into the scaffold. You can take out a whole wave in one collapse. Repeat on the other side.
At the end of the video is a bonus segment suggested by Asaic. 
There are three Borgia Flags inside each Lair. If you are looking for a specific Flag refer to this index:
Flag 87 - 3:49
Flag 88 - 6:01
Flag 89 - 7:15
Terme di Traiano Romulus Lair: Flags 84-86
Fri, 03/11/2011 - 00:58 — stabguyTo replay this Lair of Romulus, go to the DNA strand and select Sequence 2, Memory 7 ("The Halls of Nero").
There are three Borgia Flags inside each Lair. If you are looking for a specific Flag refer to this index:
Flag 84 - 2:47
Flag 85 - 5:40
Flag 86 - 8:42
Rome - Campagna
Play along with the video below the map to quickly collect Flags 27-52, Feathers 5-7 and Rifts in Campagna.
Rome - Centro
Play along with the video below the map to quickly collect Flags 8-26, Feathers 2-4 and Rifts in Centro.
Rome - Vaticano
Play along with the video below the map to quickly collect Flags 79-83 and Rifts in Vaticano.
