Assassination contract

"Take these carrier pigeons for example. Each one sent from Machiavelli bears the name of an important Templar in Roma. Eliminate them and you will have more of an impact than a battle ever could."

- Pantasilea to Ezio Auditore.

Assassination Contracts were contracts sent to Ezio Auditore da Firenze, instructing him to assassinate key people responsible for certain nefarious deeds. The details of these contracts were sent via carrier pigeon, a method similar to the messaging system Al Mualim once used. The contracts were acquired in the same order, regardless of which Pigeon Coop the contract is obtained from.

The contracts available in the cities of Florence, Tuscany, Romagna, and Venice, were given by Lorenzo de' Medici. In Rome, contracts were provided by Niccolò Machiavelli, and Ezio could also provide contracts of his own for his Assassin recruits.

Day at the Market
thumb|250px|right|Day At The Market Lorenzo explained that there was a plot to cut off Florence's supply line, which could be prevented by assassinating a merchant located in the San Marco district. It was relatively simple, as he was standing next to an Art Merchant. Eagle Vision could detect him easily. There was an Elite Guard near one of the entrances of the corridor that leads to the target.

Fallen Archers
Several Pazzi Archers were spotted attacking the Palazzo della Signoria and tracked down to the San Marco district, the largest district in Florence. There were 3 of them, and they were spread out quite thinly, so Ezio had to travel a while to reach them. Open combat or stealthy assassination were acceptable ways to take them out.

Political Suicide
thumb|250px|right|Political Suicide Lorenzo claimed that a member of the Signoria was working with the Pazzi to turn the tide against the Medici. They were meeting in a low passageway, concealed from the rooftops. Each entrance was guarded by 4 guards. Hiring some Courtesans or Thieves allowed Ezio to distract the guards (using Mercenaries resulted in desynchronization), and some of them concealed him from the target. He could not be detected by the target or his companion.

Caveat Emptor
It seemed that a member of the Salvucci family, who helped smuggle enemies into Florence, had been sighted. Ezio had to find the target and kill him without being detected. The target had one guard following him.

Meeting Adjourned
Several enemies were planning a meeting in the city; Ezio had to tail the only known lead and then kill all those affiliated. As soon as he accepted the contract, Ezio could clear out the area of the guards stationed nearby in the courtyard. Then when the target returns, the area was less guarded. Following the target, Ezio saw he'd walked into a heavily guarded room. The number of targets increased, and Ezio had to kill all those responsible. Ezio could toss a smoke bomb to reduce the chances of his targets fleeing, but he had to beware an escapee in order to remove all the targets.

Needle in a Haystack
thumb|250px|right|Needle in a Haystack Lorenzo remarked that the Assassins were so close to eliminating all those responsible for the attack on Florence. One of the conspirators had been spotted near the Santa Maria Novella. The target would be in one of the courtyards within the area. It appeared to be entirely random as to which garden he appeared in. Ezio was best suited to searching from the rooftops and using Eagle Vision to find his prey without being detected.

Peacekeeper
thumb|250px|left|PeacekeeperA contingent of traitorous guards were planning to march to Lorenzo's palazzo, and Ezio had to kill them before they started a riot. The timer only started once he had killed one of them. They were just west of the bridge, where the company of guards was composed of 10 Brutes. It was easy to dispatch them by tossing a Smoke Bomb and assassinating or poisoning each guard in turn. Ezio could also hire the mercenaries nearby and have them fight them. So long as Ezio hadn't been spotted, using the Hidden Blade allowed him to quickly remove the guards without an alert sounding.

Leader of the Pack
Several condotierri who attacked Lorenzo's palazzo were regrouping. Ezio had to tail one of them to their garrison and kill their leader. Once he found the target, Ezio had to follow him for a while as more guards started to follow him. The target led Ezio to a guarded alley that lead to a garden, from which the leader could be removed.

Reap What You Sow
thumb|250px|right|Reap What You Sow One of the benefactors of the Pazzi had been found in a farm east of San Gimignano. Ezio first went to the View Point located conveniently near his target and performed a Leap of Faith into the hay below. This cart of hay was adjacent to t he target, so Ezio assassinated him from the Hiding Spot. If he had seen Ezio, he would have fled.

Don’t get your Hands Dirty
There were 4 guards who wanted Lorenzo dead. Ezio's task was to have these guards killed without appearing to have killed them himself. It was fairly easy because three of the guards were on towers. Ezio simply had to climb up to the top of the tower, grab them, and throw them over the edge to their death. The fourth guard was in the market at ground level and easily removed.

Supply in Demand
A local guild leader had been supplying the Pazzi with arms. Ezio's task was to tail one of his men to find him then kill him. After following the member, he simply had to assassinate the leader by running to him.

Flee Market
thumb|250px|right|Flee Market There were several conspirators who plot against Florence. Arriving in the area, Ezio had to dispatch the Archers first to avoid being detected. Perform a Leap of Faith into the cart of leaves below, Ezio assassinated both targets before they left the area.

Vertical Slice
thumb|250px|right|Vertical Slice Several Borgia soldiers might have been planning a coup. Needing to kill them without being seen, as Rodrigo Borgia might have used his involvement as an excuse for a war, Ezio had to carefully use his hiding abilities to remove the conspiring soldiers.

No Camping
Ezio had to kill the leaders of several troop encampments without being detected. Horse-riding was a necessity to fill the time requirement, and stealth was advisable to slow the response of other guards who might have gotten in Ezio's way.

Showtime
thumb|250px|right|Showtime One of the people responsible for hiring the condotierri who attacked Florence had been spotted. He regularly took a walk around the countryside and could be ambushed in the Ancient Roman Theater. Ezio had to tail the target to the Theater and approach him from the opposite side of the landmark to avoid conflict with the guards as much as possible. The target kept two Brutes close fled to the center of the theater if he saw Ezio.

Thin the Ranks
Six guards, posted in pairs, needed to be eliminated in the city.

Beginnings of a Conspiracy
Some of Girolamo Riario 's men broke into the Palazzo Pitti and stole a valuable map. Ezio needed to kill them without being spotted. One was near a fountain, one near the west side of the district, and one with a bodyguard near an overhang from which he could be air-assassinated.

Arch Enemies
Some Borgia archers had to be taken care of quickly. Ten archers posted on the roofs of the buildings on the edge of the river needed to be cleared within two minutes. Free-running and using throwing knives eased Ezio's work.

Wet Work
thumb|250px|right|Wet Work An Ottoman boat had been seen scouting for a suitable place for an attack, and Ezio needed to kill the captain. Either by swimming or using a Gondola, Ezio traveled out to the ship and removed the threat. Had he removed the surrounding guards, his work would have been easier.

Dead on Arrival
Ezio needed to dispatch the courier before the message was delivered. Located not far from the pigeon coop, he would flee upon detecting Ezio, but he could be easily dispatched with throwing knives or a hidden blade high-profile assassination.

Go towards the Light
thumb|250px|right|Go towards the Light Ezio was told to kill the new commander of the army of Forlì at the lighthouse. Using mercenaries near the lighthouse, Ezio was able to distract the guards and remove the threat after climbing the lighthouse.

Mark and Execute
thumb|250px|right|Mark and Execute Ezio had to kill the captor of two of Lorenzo's spies without being detected—no mean feat. The target and his bodyguard could easily be executed by a double air-assassination once the archers had been removed.

Thicker than Water
thumb|250px|right|Thicker than Water Following a gondolier supplied by Lorenzo, Ezio remained undetected until he reached the target. His easiest method of removing the target unseen was a ledge assassination.

Zero Tolerance
A family friend of Lorenzo was being harassed by a merchant, who had to be killed without her noticing. Finding the target was difficult, since he and Lorenzo's friend were constantly circling around the area. Poisoning the man from a blended moving crowd or assassinating him from a hide spot with the Hidden blade were easiest.

Blade in the Crowd
The Doge had decided to send several trusted administrators to rouse the populace in Florence. They were supposed to meet with the Doge soon after. Ezio needed to find and kill them before the meeting, without alerting them to your presence in three minutes.

Honorable Thief
One of Lorenzo's connections uncovered a plot to destroy the Venetian branch of the Medici bank. Ezio met his informant, a nimble thief, and followed him to the target's location to kill him. The informant was to the north of Piazza di San Marco, and archers lined to rooftops to interfere with Ezio's mission.

No Laughing Matter
thumb|250px|right|No Laughing Matter There were three harlequins that are actually co-conspirators of Archbishop Salviati, already marked and identified. One was in the open, easily dealt with. The two others were in guarded locations, easily removed if flushed out or assassinated from a hide spot.

Crash a Party
thumb|250px|right|Crash a Party One of Francesco de' Pazzi 's cousins was throwing a party. Ezio tailed one of the guests and assassinated him. The area was on high alert, but Ezio could easily bypass it by taking to the rooftops.

False Legacy
thumb|250px|right|False Legacy A Venetian Condottiero (a Brute, actually) was forcing artists to depict him as a war hero. This job was quite difficult, as he was surrounded by Elite Guards, though he was easy to distinguish. Any method to remove the guards from the equation eased Ezio's work.

Hunting the Hunter
thumb|250px|right|Hunting the Hunter This mission was the last contract Ezio received. Your first task was to kill a marked target—an Agile. A single shot from the Pistol ended him. Looting the body gave Ezio another location. He approached the 'person' in front of the fountain, revealing it to actually be a scarecrow. Afterwards, a Venetian Agile and some Medici Leader Guards ambushed him. Killing the Agile finished mission.

Two's Company
In an attempt to scare the citizens of Roma, the Borgia hired two notoriously cruel guards to beat up anyone they see. Ezio removed them using the Hidden Blades from the streets to give people hope.

Tactical Correction
Cesare called one of his chief tacticians back to Roma. He was a valuable asset, so the Captain General had provided a horse and an escort. Ezio removed the tactician within two minutes of receiving the contract.

...And Three's a Crowd
Cesare hoped that the Assassin-sponsored rebels would stumble into his line of fire. His expert gunmen waited, instructed by their master to shoot unsavory targets on sight. Ezio removed them in three minutes.

Serf's Turf
Farmers had a hard enough time turning a profit in times of war, but Romans had to deal with the Borgia taking their hefty share. Ezio removed at least three of the oppressors with the Hidden Blade.

The Three Amici
To bolster his troops, Cesare began to recruit untrained soldiers. His veteran trainers were critical to his success, so Ezio assassinated them using the Hidden Blades.

Red Letter Day
The Assassin's enemy was feeling pressure as they closed in. Important messages were starting to be delivered by armored mercenaries. Ezio removed the couriers within a minute.

The Merchant of Rome
Merchants under Borgia protection often traded favors at the expense of their honest peers. Ezio used Assassin Apprentices to teach the merchants a lesson.

Bearers of Bad News
The Borgia unleashed their interrogators. They brutalized the people of Roma until they found answers when they couldn't find the Assassins. Ezio removed the given targets before they could call for reinforcements.

Cardinal Sin
Servants of the Borgia believed they could hide behind the church, their actions protected by the clothing they wear. Ezio killed a Borgia-sponsored cardinal before he reached the Basilica di San Pietro.

Turning the Tables
Cesare's charisma had brought his guards the best equipment available. Ezio killed at least one Brute, one Seeker, and one Papal Guard in the process of ending the given targets.

Graduation
Four of the Borgia Papal Guards were scheduled to complete their training when Ezio removed them flawlessly.

Brutes and Brutality
The Borgia sent large numbers of heavily armored guards in the city, hoping to further dissuade any opposition. Ezio removed them within fifteen seconds as a demonstration of his mastery.

Trivia

 * In Assassin's Creed II, during Sequences 13 and 14, as well as the succeeding free-roaming sequence, these contracts are still available, even though Lorenzo de' Medici is already dead. Ezio is also tasked to assassinate associates of various characters who have been dead for years.
 * In Hunting the Hunter, the attacking guards bear Medici colors.
 * Additionally, if you loot the scarecrow target afterward, it will yield a set of keys (noted with a multiplier, indicating multiple keys may be held). A similar set of keys can be obtained from looting any scarecrow target throughout the game, such as those found after testing your pistol for the first time. Their use and purpose remain unknown.