Assassin's Creed Shadows: How to find Apprentice Assassin armor

Looking for the classic Assassin armor set for Naoe in Assassin's Creed Shadows? As you go through Naoe's story in AC Shadows, you'll learn of her clan's secret ties to the Brotherhood of Assassins. At the end of it all, you'll be able to obtain a version of the iconic red and white outfit that the Assassin's Creed series is known for, and here it's called the Apprentice Assassin set.

The Apprentice Assassin armor is classed as epic gear (purple), and it consists of the Apprentice Assassin Gear and Apprentice Assassin Hood, which come with the exclusive perks of restoring 1% of health on hit and removing an additional health segment on successful assassinations. They're an absolutely stylish pair, and any fan of the Assassin's Creed franchise owes it to themselves to hunt them down. This guide will explain where you can find Naoe's Apprentice Assassin armor set in AC Shadows, including the quest requirements for unlocking it.

Apprentice Assassin armor set location

The Apprentice Assassin armor set is located in the Old Kofun, a location that Naoe visits during the game's prologue. You don't get a chance to explore the area then, however, because that's where Naoe gets knocked out by an enemy samurai and her clan's prized box is stolen.

In case you need a refresher, the Old Kofun is located west of the Izumi Coast sub-region in the starting region of Izumi Settsu. It's between the port village of Sakai on the west and Makinoodera Temple to the east, where Naoe awakens following the prologue.

But hold your horses - if you try to go back to the Old Kofun without completing the necessary quests, you won't be able to access the area. You'll need to complete Naoe's personal questline first.

How to unlock Naoe's Apprentice Assassin armor

In order to open the way to retrieve the Apprentice Assassin armor set, you have to first make sure you have progressed the questline for Naoe's Journey. In the first part of this quest, you need to find four Kuji-Kiri locations, which will reveal her backstory through flashback missions. You can find these with our Kuji-Kiri locations in Izumi Settsu guide.

Once this is done, you will unlock the next quest called Wolves and Foxes, which requires you to be at level 20. Head to the marker at an area in Yamashiro called Little Leaf Glade. You'll reach a location called Uji Tawara where you'll meet Tokugawa, who you'll need to defend from an ambush.

After you've spoken to Tokugawa, Hattori Hanzo (who you'll have last seen in Naoe's last flashback) will also show up. Follow him and then talk to him when prompted. He will eventually tell you to search the Tomb of the Ancients in Settsu, which can in fact be found in the Old Kofun area.

This then begins the next quest, Secrets of the Blade. Make your way back to the Old Kofun and retrace your steps. you'll need to crawl through gaps, swim underneath caverns and swing across chasms with your grappling hook. After you reach a stone door with the Assassins' insignia, which Naoe previously opened in the prologue, continue to the left of the chest and you can continue climbing up a path. Keep following this path up some steps, which then slopes you down a one-way route, and you'll come across a gap you can squeeze through.

Inside, you'll find corpses of presumably the Igan clan, who have been dead for years. Keep following the path and you'll come across another stone door with the insignia. Approach and interact to open it with the hidden blade, and you'll reach the Tomb of the Ancients. Have a look around and you'll not only find a European notebook that is part of this quest, but also a room with a mannequin dressed in a familiar-looking outfit. It's the Apprentice Assassin outfit that belonged to someone in the Kakushiba Ikki, but was styled after the Brotherhood of Assassins. And now it's yours!

Once you've got the goods, you won't be able to fast travel out of Old Kofun. But as you leave the tomb, there's a blocked path that also has a red pot. Throw a projectile at it to blow those rocks out of the way, which fortunately takes you back near to when you first entered Old Kofun. You'll also find Yasuke waiting for you as this questline continues.

That's it for this Apprentice Assassin armor set guide in Assassin's Creed Shadows. Now that you're decked out, you might want to know how to transmog gear, or how to show it off in photo mode. If you're more interested in reading up on skills for each character, take a peek at our guides for Naoe's best Mastery skills and Yasuke's best Mastery skills.