Thief Guide. Chapter 7 : The Hidden City Walkthrough - How to Beat Thief-Taker General
The penultimate part of our Thief walkthrough takes you through chapter seven's hidden city.
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How to Beat Thief-Taker General
Thieving Challenges
Remain Undetected - 500 G
2 Environmental Exploits - 300 G
15 Kills or Knockouts - 325 G
Life All Loot Items - 450 G
Before you begin this chapter, make sure you are fully stocked up on all your arrows. Although it is possible to remain undetected, the goal of our walkthrough is to show you the collectible loot items and how to complete the chapter. At times, we may approach situations with straight up combat rather than stealth. Rest assured, there is a Shady Merchant on this level. You can stock up on various arrows before your boss fight with the Thief-Taker General. As a final note, save all of your Blast Arrows for the fight.
Objective 1: Reach the Cathedral in Old Quarter
Go through the locked gate and scale the wall in front of you. Look up and put a Rope Arrow into the anchor beam. There is a Graven on the balcony next to the rope, so ascend carefully and jump over when he is facing south. Stay in the shadows, and even when he walks near you, he won't see you. As soon as he turns his back to you, knock him out in the shadows. If he falls in the light, other Graven will take notice.
From the shadows of his perch, go about picking off the remaining Graven with your Broadhead Arrows. Although you might raise suspicion, remaining undetected is extremely difficult. If you just want to beat the chapter and get the collectibles, start shoot-ing.
When the area is clear, sneak through a south crawl space to reach the south yard. There are two men in this area. Sneak up behind both of them and knock them out. Climb some crates to the south to reach the Bell Tower. There's loot to be had here. When you're done, climb up a rope and leap to some stairs. Head through the wall to complete your objective.
Objective 2: Descend into the Pit
You're now in the Old Cathedral. This area is crawling with Graven and remaining undetected takes a lot of patience. Drop down and take out the Graven with the cross-bow. Head east and do the same with the Graven carrying the torch. That's two down. Most of the others are hanging out to the north. Swoop to the north, along the path where the Graven with the torch was patrolling. Climb on some crates against the east wall and take out the Graven on the balcony with a headshot. Fire a Rope Arrow into the beam above and make your way to the balcony. From here, it's a matter of sneaking through the shadows and systematically knocking out the remaining Graven. When you're all done, pull the lever on the supply lift at the south side of the room, hop on and enjoy the ride.
Objective 3: Find a Way Up to the Graven City
As soon as the elevator comes to a stop, leap out and grab the wall. Shimmy across until you can't go any further and drop down. Move to the valve wheel and turn it to lower the bridge. The bridge will automatically ascend, so jump to it, sprint across and jump to solid ground on the other side. Head into the alcove and snag Unique Loot (9/9) - City Artifact. If you don't have all nine pieces of Unique Loot, try checking our walkthrough for the previous chapters. Much of the collectible items can also be found in The City. Head back across the bridge to return to the side you started on.
Climb the wall to your left and head into the tunnel. Follow it until you reach light. Watch the floor trap on the right. Climb to the top of the room and hack the control box. Grab the loot from the floor before vaulting a short wall to the east. Continue through the tunnel and up the south stairs by its exit. When you run out of stairs, pick the locked door on your left and hack the control box. Loot the room, exit and climb up some crates and a wall in front of you. This will put you behind some Graven, one being to the north, patrolling the walkway. Jump to the walkway and hide behind the ledge, when he moves north, hop the ledge, knock him out and crouch to remain unseen. Your objective should be to the east now. Wait for a Graven to poke his head out from the tunnel near your objective. Follow him when he goes back inside and take the easy knockout. Return to the walkway to finish off the final Graven who is carrying the torch.
From here, proceed to loot the area as you see fit. Look high and low as there are a few secret areas close by. There's no collectible loot, so we'll move on. When you're done, move toward your objective marker until you come across a dying Graven (you might also see a Freak scurry away). Squeeze through the boxes to enter an area with four Freaks and one collectible.
Sneak through the tunnel to see three Freaks to the east. No problem, just stay where you are and get out your Fire Arrows. It doesn't matter what order you do it, but take them out with three well placed headshots. Of course, you need headshots from Fire Arrows and the Bow Strength upgrade from the Shady Merchant. If you've been following our walkthrough, you obtained this upgrade prior to the fifth chapter, The Forsaken.
When all three Freaks are down, exit the tunnel and go down the stairs to the left. Put a Rope Arrow in the anchor beam above and cross over to another platform. There's another rope ahead of you, jump to it and drop to the ground. There will be a Freak directly ahead of you. Take him out with a Fire Arrow headshot to clear the room. Backtrack to the platform between the two ropes. Pick the lock, enter the room and hack the control box. In the chest you will find The Mortal Coils (6/6) - Bronzehead Bracelet. if you don't now have all six, check our walkthroughs for the previous chapter. A great deal of loot is also found in The City.
Now head to the objective marker to the north. Turn the wheel to open the door and head through to the next area.
Keep moving forward until you reach a tall ladder, climb it and keep scaling crates and the wall. You will end up in front of two Graven. Put your back to the wall and they won't see you. Climb the wall to your left and move through the crawl space. Your objective will be just below you. When the guard enters the room, take him out with an aerial attack. Next, move on to knockout the guard in the next room.
Loot the area and proceed toward your objective, squeezing through some debris to reach another room. Turn the wheel to open the door to the north where many Graven are waiting. Keep sneaking toward your objective, taking the opportunity to save if you see a cabinet. A short distance ahead, your objective will be updated.
Objective 4: Enter the Rotunda
There's at least four Graven in this area. Although it is very possible to remain undetected, we're going to advise that you get four of your sharpest Broadhead Arrows out and deal with them quickly. Try to target Graven who are in the shadows, away from the pack.
Also note that the Shady Merchant is showing up on your mini map. Sneak over to him and buy up every arrow type you can get. Make sure you are full of Blast Arrows for the boss battle ahead.
When you have cleaned the area of Graven (and loot), move up to hear a conversation two Graven are having. When they stop, one will pass out in a chair and the other will start off on a patrol. Look up and to the north, toward your objective. There is a rope hanging and an anchor beam for a second one. Put a Rope Arrow in the second beam. When the coast is clear, climb the covered crate to the north and up to another wooden walkway.
Jump from one rope to another, finally landing on a walkway to the north. Continue along this way until you reach the south side. Grab the Memories of the Dead (6/6) - Elder's Memory. If you don't have all of them at this point, try looking back through our walkthrough. Also, many collectibles in Thief are not found within the chapters, but rather The City itself.
Proceed toward your objective, turning the valve wheel to open the doors.
Boss Battle: Thief-Taker General
When the cut scene ends, take cover behind the nearest pillar. For an easy win, equip your Blast Arrows and swoop to your right (counterclockwise). Take cover behind another pillar and hit the Thief-Taker General with a Blast Arrow. Go for body shots to ensure you don't miss. Move to another pillar and take another shot. You can also opt to hit him with a Choke Arrow, briefly stunning him so you get a couple clear shots in. Soon, the Thief-Taker General will drop to one knee, signaling that the battle is over.
You can choose to loot or finish him off. The choice is yours. Either way, snag the Serendi Stone Circles (7/7) - Amber Circle from his body. Make sure you loot the entire room before cranking the two valves to open the gate. Exit through the gate to complete the chapter.
The rest of our Thief guide continues here, and features walkthroughs of every chapter of the game.
By completing this chapter, players will unlock The Hidden City trophy or achievement, depending on what platform you play the game on.
This article was compiled with help from Prima Games
You can find many more hints and tips, plus strategy guides and over 65,000 cheat codes, unlocks, achievements, trophies, Easter eggs and secrets at Prima Games.