The Hidden Blade Assassin's Creed in Depth

Eagle Strike

Start off by taking a fast stealthy path. Run to the left of the docks (shallow water, no swimming necessary). One of the guards there can see me, but you don't have to worry about getting into open conflict. After that continue forward, keeping to the edge of the restricted area. After climbing up a cliff turn right along the edge. Running up the low hanging tree will lead you to the cliff where the scene starts. There are two guards patrolling, so wait until their backs are turned (or just double kill them) to get past anonymously. If you are aiming for full synch, go behind the house right behind William Johnson, or skip the cinematic.

For the Eagle Strike climb the house in front of you and wait for the scene to end (if you skip the cinematic or start from the last checkpoint you spawn at a default location). The setup after the scene allows you to stay on the roof until the assassination. Shoot the two previously mentioned patrolling guards with the bow (guns will alert all the enemies in the area, which can ruin the assassination). You being detected will cause the target to flee. Wait until he reaches the right place to perform the Eagle Strike.

Now for the kill itself. From standing on the roof a fall to the ground below the cliff is high enough to cause death. Most of the cliff is just far enough away that you can't jump past the edge, but luckily a small part of it is closer.

Firecracker Assassination

I placed William Johnson at the end of the dock by first using Rope Dart and then bumping him into position while carrying a Powder Keg. To move him with Rope Dart just tap . Connor will not kill him unless you are standing close together (or you accidentally drag Johnson over a Trip Mine). My thought was that if the explosion didn't kill him then falling into water would.

It turns out that the explosion does indeed kill the target. I have confirmed this result on dry land. When Double McStab with Cheese experimented with this style of assassination he reported that Johnson was moved but not killed. The difference must be the proximity of Connor to the target. I wanted a clear shot to the first Powder Keg and a good view of the assassination, so I arranged the Powder Kegs and Trip Mines in a semicircle around a high vantage point. The maximum distance between Powder Kegs seems to be about 8 walking paces for Connor.

Full Sync

The requirements for 100% Synchronization are:
1. Reach Johnson Undetected (both before and after the "Are you threatening us?" cutscene)
2. Limit Native American casualties - 0/1
3. Perform a swan dive to escape

If you skip the cutscene or reload from last checkpoint, it places Connor a distance north of the Johnson House, even if you approached from the south. This got me thinking that there must be a viable approach from the north. That's when I discovered this route which essentially goes up the face of a cliff. The first time you come this way you will find a feather on the log at 2:03.

One good thing about this route is that you encounter few guards. I chose to stealth assassinate the first one at 2:30 so that his body would distract the second one (visible on the left at 2:33). If you just try to run past the second guard you will usually get a brief SSI indicator, blowing an otherwise ghost run.

The air assassination from the roof of Johnson House is standard. There are several places to perform a swan dive to escape. I chose one that is easily accessible but often overlooked. It plunges Connor into shallow water just off the beach with two guards.