Hostile Negotiations: Full Sync and Firecracker
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.
FYI, here's a Firecracker test on dry land that also killed Johnson. Connor gets caught up in the explosion for a wonderfully chaotic finish. I also had success killing Johnson at his cowering location (not shown).
It must be that I was too far away to get the kill. Because I swear the explosion went off at his feet... oh well 
“Force has no place where there is need of skill." Herodotus
Excellent video.
I had no idea there was an alternate (and much faster/easier) route to get to the house. I hated this mission every time I played it because it was such a pain in the ass to get up there without being detected. I don't think I'll ever go the long route again. 
I had no idea there was an alternate (and much faster/easier) route to get to the house.
Thanks, Asaic. I'm not sure that this is the fastest or easiest route. I selected it because it was interesting and not well documented (although Cheese thinks he saw it in a pre-release demo).
Most of the videos on YouTube show variations on the southern road - the one Johnson uses to flee to the dock. This one is noteworthy because he took to the trees above the road. Another option is simply to run up the road and low profile stab everyone you encounter. It's okay to get a red SSI as long as you kill them before entering Open Conflict.
Most of the videos on YouTube show variations on the southern road - the one Johnson uses to flee to the dock. This one is noteworthy because he took to the trees above the road. Another option is simply to run up the road and low profile stab everyone you encounter. It's okay to get a red SSI as long as you kill them before entering Open Conflict.
That's the problem – the change from red SSI to open combat is a short window which depends largely on distance. When he sprinted behind those two guys, he was extremely lucky they didn't turn around to see what was causing the running sound (as they usually do). If they saw him at that range, instant mission failure.
Even yellow SSI arrows are a pain because they force you to move forward whether the timing is right or not, as the guard will approach you. Moving forward or making the kill are both risky. Killing him will often be witnessed by one of the many other guards patrolling the area, especially since they like to approach you in pairs. Moving forward while under investigation often causes you to run into line-of-sight with another guard and cause another yellow SSI, forcing you to keep moving forward and just hope for the best. Or practice ad infinitum until you find the ideal path to blitz, which I have neither the time nor the patience for. 
I always took the trees when I did it, but the toughest part was getting up to that point. Particularly the fork in the path. You can be in view of up to five guards at once in that spot. It's tough to find good timing for moving forward without triggering a yellow SSI. And I was pretty surprised at him getting across the water so quickly; I don't know if it was changed in a patch, but my first time through this mission I tried following that line of reeds and it wasn't shallow water – you could only swim through them and they didn't hide you from the guys on the dock. If they changed that in an update, that's a big plus. Judging by how radically the "day-one" patch changed the Hickey chase, it wouldn't surprise me.
Whatever the case, I'm going to stick to the cliff from now on. It's too potentially frustrating the other way.
Asaic wrote:
I had no idea there was an alternate (and much faster/easier) route to get to the house.Thanks, Asaic. I'm not sure that this is the fastest or easiest route. I selected it because it was interesting and not well documented (although Cheese thinks he saw it in a pre-release demo).
Most of the videos on YouTube show variations on the southern road - the one Johnson uses to flee to the dock. This one is noteworthy because he took to the trees above the road. Another option is simply to run up the road and low profile stab everyone you encounter. It's okay to get a red SSI as long as you kill them before entering Open Conflict.
Maybe I'm making it up... maybe I just REALLY wanted to go up the cliff and tried it first... who knows... haha
“Force has no place where there is need of skill." Herodotus
FANTASTIC!!! 
Thanks for making my idea work!
A few comments:
1 - I think the memory is called Hostile Negotiations
2 - The route up the cliff is what the devs intended... as that's what they showed in the video leading up to the game... at least I think they did... glad you found it though.
3 - When you play through the game the first time (not through a replay), all the guards are redcoats, right? I know only two of them are here, and the rest are colonists. I'm just trying to figure out if this is the case. If so, it may change the escape as far as other videos are concerned (because the redcoats and colonists will fight eachother rather than chase). Maybe this is only the case if you liberate the closest fort?
4 - Don't you hate how even with a double assassination, the other redcoat magically is alive after the memory corridor scene?
“Force has no place where there is need of skill." Herodotus
1 - I think the memory is called Hostile Negotiations
How embarrassing. I've been replaying this memory for so long I forgot its name. Fixed (everywhere except the rendered title screen).
I also added a comment about the maximum distance between Powder Kegs: about 8 walking paces.
When you play through the game the first time (not through a replay), all the guards are redcoats, right?
You mean the guard circle in front of Johnson House? I don't know but have a pre-mission savegame that I could use to check.
When you play through the game the first time (not through a replay), all the guards are redcoats, right?You mean the guard circle in front of Johnson House? I don't know but have a pre-mission savegame that I could use to check.
Both the guard circle, AND all the guards leading up to the house.
I KNOW the guards on the docks are redcoats early in the game (before liberating forts).
Again, i'm not sure how this difference would affect the ability to do all the "set-up" kills. The redcoats vs colonials... do they act the same but are skinned differently? or do they actually act differently as well? And if so, does it matter?
“Force has no place where there is need of skill." Herodotus