MTW Assassin

Assassin
Cost:	200
Faction Discount:	Byzantines
Turns to Build:	1
Culture:	Catholic, Orthodox, Muslim
Buildings Needed:	Tavern
Province Bonus:	+1 valour in Syria
Unit Card:	Western Muslim:

The Assassin is used to eliminate troublesome individuals. Assassins are invisible on the campaign map to other factions, generally the only way to know if they are around are the sudden death of your generals or agents, or when they are caught.

Passive Abilities

• An assassin positioned in a province owned by another faction will reveal all buildings and troops present in the province.

• When stationed in a province owned by his faction, the assassin has a chance to catch spies and assassins of other factions that travel through the province. The chance is dependent on the valour of both the counterspying assassin and the valour of the assassin/spy in the territory. Catching assassins/spies will increase the assassin's valour, but the presence of a Border Fort in the province will reduce the chance of a valour increase. (need to detail this effect more).

Assassinations

The assassin can kill agents, generals, faction leaders, of any faction. Dropping the Assassin piece on an agent or army stack will start the assassination attempt. The assassin will then attempt to kill the agent or general, following that piece around the campaign map until the attempt can be made. The attempt will be made when the target piece and the assassin are in the same province and the target does not move during the end turn phase. Before the attempt is made, the assassin is subject to the counterspying agents in provinces traveled, and can be caught and killed without even making the attempt. If the assassin makes the attempt, then the chance of success is determined by the target type and the valour of both the assassin and the target. If successful, the target is eliminated and the assassin gains valour, if the attempt fails the assassin is killed. Generals that are subjected to assassination attempts may start to become paranoid and pick up vices.

The pattern for assassination success rates seems to fit the following pattern:

Assassination Success Scale, At Equal Valour
Success Chance	Target Type
0%
7%
10%
14%
17%	Faction Leader
24%
34%	Faction Heir, General
50%	Princess
66%	Inquisitor, Grand Inquisitor, Cardinal, Orthodox Bishop, Imam, Assassin, Spy
76%	Bishop, Priest, Alim
83%	Emissary
86%
90%
93%
95%
97%

For each star of valour difference between the assassin and target, the position from the target's starting point on the scale will move up (target has more value) or down (assassin has more valour) to determine the attempt chance of success.

Survival

Assassins require no upkeep once they are recruited, and will not die of old age. Assassins can be caught by counterspying spies, assassins, or Border Forts from other factions. They will also die if they fail an Assassination mission. Assassins will need to have pretty high valour to survive in Border Fort provinces, generally they will need to have 4 or 5 stars before having much longevity in enemy territory.

Credits

Entrance Hall Agents thread

Main Hall Subterfuge Thread

sbroadbent's MTW: Total Subterfuge Guide, found in the downloads section

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