Memory Block 4: William de Montferrat (ACRE)

Head back to Acre. I don’t know if the Assassin moo-moo combined with the black shawl is a good look; it makes Rafik, the Bureau chief look like a penguin. The man wonders aloud if Altair’s diligence is to redeem him for his former transgressions. The target this time is William de Montferrat who is watching the city while Richard the Lion Heart is off to war. William is given the unwanted task of overseeing Acre because his son is being a douche in Tyre.

Investigation:

Your area of research should be in the citie’s Rich district. In the area is a huge cathedral that is called the “Church of the Holy Cross” and it is interesting for a few reasons. One, you have to access the viewpoint on the very top of it. Two, it is architecturally speaking, wrong. This next few paragraphs are going to dip into a little art history but don’t skip it because I think every gamer should know about medieval architecture if only because about a third of all games we play take place during this time period. I promise I will keep it brief. 

Romanesque Church	Gothic Church
Fat, short, thick	Light, tall, fluffy
(1000 - 1149 AD)	(1150 - 1400 AD)

Medieval Architecture, which is a time period of about 1000 years, is split into two major styles, Romanesque and Gothic. Now these two styles are quite distinct once you learn their traits.

The early architectural period is called Romanesque. Buildings in this style are thick, with heavy walls that have tiny windows, and use a lot of half circle arches and half circle rooms. Think of it as simple, blocky, 8-bit architecture.

Then, at the midway point of the middle-ages, architects figured that if you replaced the heavy stone walls (that were so popular with the Romanesque style) with giant windows, the whole building would be lighter and you could build them much higher and do some really fanciful and intricate stonework. So Gothic was born. Think of it as the Hi-def architecture that replaced the old Romanesque.

The Gothic style (started in 1140) was contemporary with third crusade (started in 1189) but the art was firmly tied to Europe (it was developed in France). Gothic’s complex building structure required artisan craftsmanship and wouldn’t be exported to a place as volatile as the holy land especially while the crusades were tearing the place apart. The problem is that Assassin’s Creed puts a light, fluffy, beautiful Gothic cathedral right where there should be a big, fat, thick Romanesque one.

I know it sounds like I am going on some snobby rant here but videogames quote these two styles frequently and it is important to know the basic differences.

Ok, so you still have to get up to the top of the Gothic Cathedral. The easy way is to go to the apse of the building where you see some big windows with bars over them. Climb on them and then climb up next to the flying buttresses and then jump over to the bar that goes between them. Then, climb up the buttress to the roof and run along the peak to avoid being seen by the guards. Despite being artistically incorrect, it really is cool and is my favorite part of the game.

Stealing a page (well all of them really) from the Robin Hood legend, a temporary leader, named William, has been overreaching his given authority in Acre while King Richard is busy fighting the war. While William doesn’t have a Sheriff of Nottingham to call his own he does have a butt-load of archers protecting him. This would work fine for William except that Richard is back from the battlefield to check up on things. William is stressed by this mid-year performance review and will retreat into his citadel to pout. This is where Altair will strike. Hmmm, doesn’t seem very assassin like to hit a place in broad daylight that is heavily fortified, high profile, and well watched. But, here we go.

The Kill:

This is the best part in Assassin’s Creed. If they had just cut it down to this cut-scene and then the assassination of William de Montferrat while Massive Attack’s Teardrop plays in constant loop, the game would be a perfect 10. Altair arrives at the citadel gates and the king’s horns blow. The crowd walks up to the gates and the royal guards set up a perimeter as Richard, on horseback, comes parading out. Still on his high horse, Richard publicly reprimands William for killing 3000 Saracen prisoners who were going to be exchanged for a similar number of Crusaders. William’s excuse is that they would have never have upheld their end of the deal and this mass killing will show the Saracens the ruthlessness of the Crusaders. Richard then calls him a pussy for not fighting in the war before riding off on his awesome horse. William goes back to his castle to brood. Extra Credit: If you wondering Richard, king of England, has a French accent it is because the historical Richard, despite ruling over England, was born in France and never spoke English.

Head into the gates and continue around the castle walls. Kill any archers you meet along the way. If you are quiet, hang out on the roof above William to watch him to try out Altair’s job and assassinate his insubordinate troops for “whoring and drinking on the job.” Drop down and try to stab him stealthily but more likely you will alert the whole citadel and have to fight him and ten other guards simultaneously.

The Blue Screen of Death:

If anyone is going to know about assassinations its going to be Altair and he accuses William of plotting to kill Richard so his son could take Acre. But boy was Altair wrong. It seems that William is quite the populist and was stealing from his people to build a public reserve for the bad times ahead. And, he is not a militant just a guy likes to keep thing in order and show people the meaning of hard work. Altair once again is the bad guy, causing crime in the city with all his pick pocketing and ease dropping and bench sitting. Altair lets him die and brushes him with the assassination feather.

The citadel gate is closed now so to get out of here, climb over the northwest wall.

Assassin Debriefing:

Obviously thinking about William’s resourceful take on public policy, Altair wonders why we killed a man whose death could destabilize the region during the chaos of the coming war. It was also strange that William didn’t want Acre for himself, he wanted it for some greater good.

Back at HQ:

When he speaks to Al Mualim, Altair wonders why all of these targets are so sure that they are doing the right thing and what ties them all together. Mualim’s answer is very long but is essentially “don’t believe all you hear and don’t ask questions, you are just a hired thug.”

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