Core Similarities of the Mythic Scenes in "Assassin's Creed 2"

There are 20 truth puzzles in "Assassin's Creed 2." Six of these puzzles are mythic scenes that share a core similarity. The only puzzle that actually states this in the hint is the puzzle "In the Beginning." However, all six of these puzzle challenges require the player to choose the five paintings from the group that share a common similarity. This core similarity is stated in the hint, but never stated plainly.

The hint for this puzzle is "Five of these mythic scenes share a core similarity. Pick them out and you'll begin to see." The first line is both part of the instructions and the hint. In this and future puzzles, players must find the five paintings with a common theme. However, core is also the clue here. The five paintings all have an apple somewhere in the scene. These five paintings are the solution: Atalanta and Hippomenes, Judgment of Paris, Idun and the Apples, The Fall and Hercules in the Garden of Hesperides.

This puzzle's hint is "The power they wielded cut down their enemies." The core similarity of these scenes is cut, which refers to the five paintings that contain a sword. The correct five paintings are Perseus, Greece; Attila the Hun, Eurasia; King Arthur, Britannia; Sigmund, Nose; and Joan of Arc, France.

This puzzle bears the hint “In their hands, the wise lean on a great force.” The five correct paintings share the core similarity of something one can “lean on”, which is a staff. The five paintings that contain a staff are Shabataka, Egypt; Peter, Jerusalem; Moses, Egypt; John the Baptist, Jerusalem; and Alexander the Great, Macedonia.

The hint for this puzzle is “First plucked from a tree guarded by a snake, its powers perform miracles. Then, worn across the ages, torn asunder, hidden under a sea of red, reconstruct the time-line.” This hint is clouded with useless information; “red” is the core similarity. The five correct paintings contain the color red and they are Christ Disrobed, Jerusalem, c. 30; Joseph, Egypt, c. 1,700 B.C.E; Jesus Christ, Jerusalem, c. 30; David and Goliath, Valley of Elah, c. 970 B.C.E; and Jason, Greece, Prehistory.

This puzzle’s hint is “The seeds were planted as two worlds became one. Behold, the Assassins, the children of two worlds.” This hint requires knowledge about the Greek myths. The core similarity is “children of two worlds” which refers to children born of a mortal and a god. The correct five paintings contain both a mortal and a god. These paintings are Jupiter and Io, Danae visited by Zeus, Cupid and Psyche, Leda and the Swan and Rape of Europa.

This puzzle bears the hint “Once worshipped, now ignored, from a distance it watches and waits.” Like “Bloodlines,” this puzzle requires knowledge about myths. The core similarity referred to here is the Sun. It is referred to both directly and indirectly within the five correct paintings. The puzzle’s solution is these paintings: Aztec Calendar Stone, 1427; The Eastern Gate, 1816; Sistine Chapel Ceiling Fresco, 1512; Nazca Textile, c. 200; and Book of the Dead, c. 1310 B. C. E.