The Obsidian Islands in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is found in the southeast of Hydrea, and players are recommended to visit them around level 18. Here Kassandra, or Alexios, can compete in a tournament called the Battle of One Hundred Hands. During their journey through the Obsidian islands, players can find unique items, recruitable lieutenants for their ship, and even a potential romance.
Updated September 13, 2022, by Michael Llewellyn: The open-world nature of the Assassin’s Creed series hides many secrets for players to find. The Origins Trilogy, which consists of Assassin’s Creed Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla, is the most expansive in the series to date. AC Odyssey’s sunkissed Greek islands are a joy to explore. There are near-endless quests to find and hidden areas to discover. While not all the side quests in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey are worthwhile, the battle royale waiting for Alexios or Kassandra on the Obsidian Island is one of the best side quests in the game. The island has a romanceable character to converse with, a lieutenant to recruit, and a Kosmos Cult leader to defeat. There are several sights to see and challenges to complete in AC Odyssey’s Obsidian Islands. This list is updated to include some extra steps to success and outline the EXP gained for the main quests.
Treasures To Find On The Obsidian Islands
Loot treasures are some of the most common collectibles in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. Glowing chests are found throughout every corner of Ancient Greece and often contain unique items.
There are nine loot treasures for players to find on the Obsidian Islands, and all are hidden on Melos. The scouting eagle is needed to pinpoint the precise location of a treasure chest.
Four treasures are under guard within the Trypiti fort. Three treasures are located in the Leader’s House. The remaining two are inside Melos Port.
Entering The Tournament
Players will be initially drawn to the Obsidian Islands by a quest called ‘Call to Arms’. This quest takes the Eagle Bearer to Melos, where they can compete in the legendary Battle of One Hundred Hands.
To enter this tournament, players will either need to:
Convince Roxana - a certified champion of the tournament - to vouch for them. Or pay Drakios a fee of 4500 drachmae.
Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is a game filled with branching paths and side quests, some of which are harder to find than others. It is not recommended to pay the drachmae on the first playthrough, as doing this will cause the player to miss a recruitable lieutenant, among other rewards.
Training With Roxana
After speaking to Drakios, players can choose to sail to Hydrea where they will earn Roxana’s patronage for the tournament by training with her. This training will require the player to complete three challenges and won’t be difficult if leveled up in AC Odyssey:
A sparring match with Roxana - Use a combination of Hero Strikes and the Sparta Kick to knock the shield out of her hand. EXP gained from this quest in AC Odyssey is 9070. Archery practice - Use the Multi-shot ability to kill 8 wolves to impress Roxanna. The wolves can be killed with melee attacks. EXP gained from this quest in AC Odyssey is 9300. A foot race - Simply race Roxanna to the top of the mountain on foot. The protagonist cannot use a horse, but the mission isn’t difficult. EXP gained from this quest in AC Odyssey is 9300.
An Optional Romance
The last test Roxana gives the player is a footrace to the top of a hill. Thankfully the result of the race is not important and Roxana will help the player enter the tournament even if they don’t beat her to the top.
After the race, a cutscene will begin and players will get the option to romance Roxana should they wish to. This isn’t the most satisfying romance in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, as the missions to unlock it are too short and simple for the Eagle Bearer to build good chemistry with their trainer.
The Battle Of One Hundred Hands
After completing their training, the player can return to Melos and enter the tournament on Obsidian Island by speaking to Drakios.
Before entering the arena, use the blacksmith to upgrade weapons and armor before beginning the fight.
After talking to Drakios, the player will be locked into a long fight against multiple enemies. Using second wind is good for getting health back and surviving long enough to win. Players will also want to overpower their attack and use hero strikes to kill the other champions as quickly and efficiently as possible.
There Can Only Be One Champion
After the arena battle, only the Eagle Bearer and Roxana will remain. Drakios will then take the two remaining champions to Typhon’s Revenge for a fight to the death, insisting that there can be only one champion.
Players are free to make their own choice however, they should bear in mind that sparing Roxana will make her available to recruit as a legendary lieutenant. As well as helping in the subsequent fight against Drakios, Roxana offers extra javelin damage and a speed boost when drifting in the ship.
A Trap Laid By The Kosmos Cult
After the player has killed - or spared Roxana - it is revealed that the entire tournament was organized as a trap, laid by the Kosmos cult to capture the Eagle Bearer. This will lead to the quest’s conclusion where players must fight and kill Drakios. It’s recommended that the player spare Roxana as she will help will weakening the Obsidian Island’s cultists.
This fight isn’t difficult as long as the player remembers to run away when Drakios creates a cloud of smoke; this move makes him impossible to see and allows him to surprise the player with a dangerous attack. Killing Drakios will conclude the ‘Legend No More’ quest and reward the player with a large sum of drachmae and strong weapons.
EXP Awarded is 3000.
The Ainigmata Ostraka In The Leader House
After completing the main questline for the Obsidian Islands, players may want to turn their attention to hidden collectibles. The Ainigmata Ostraka are riddles hidden throughout the world that reveal the location of special weapons and items.
After clearing out the leader’s house in the northern region of Melos, players will find an Ainigmata Ostraka called ‘Upon Typhon’s Crown. This riddle leads the player to the island Typhon’s Revenge, located to the northeast of Melos. To find the item players must climb the volcano on this island and stand by the lava flows, while not the most beautiful area in the game, makes for a spectacular sight. The player will find a helmet that adds +8% heavy weapon damage. It’s near the rim of the volcano.
A Great Place To Create Opportunities
Many quests in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey will continue throughout the game as players search for specific items hidden throughout the world. One such recurring collectible is Polemarch seals, which can be given to Demosthenes in Athens as part of the side-quest Creating Opportunities.
Players can find a Polemarch in Trypiti Fort on Melos. Identifying these warriors is made easy by their ornate helmets and the crown symbol above their level. Once players have collected three seals they can return to Athens and collect their reward and progress to their next quest that will require more Polemarch seals to complete.
Leaders And Mercenaries
There are five mercenaries players will encounter on the Obsidian islands. Mercenaries in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey can be killed or recruited as lieutenants for the player’s ship. The easiest way to hire mercenaries is to use Sparta kick when their health is low to knock them out without killing them.
To begin the conquest battle for the islands, players will also need to kill the leader Itylor, Ruler of the Pits, who can be found in the Trypiti fort. Killing this leader and the mercenaries shouldn’t be difficult if the player is at the right level or has been lucky enough to find an overpowered weapon.
A Special Achievement For Exploring All Of The Islands
As well as rooting out the agents of the Kosmos cult and battling mythological monsters, there are numerous other side quests that players can undertake in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey.
To earn the Island Hopper achievement, players will need to visit the Pephka, Obsidian, and Abantis islands and complete 20 sidequests between all three. All of the quests for the Battle of One Hundred Hands count towards this achievement, as well as any other missions that are signified by black diamonds with yellow exclamation points.
Defeating The Obsidian Islands’ Cultist
The Kosmos Cult replaces the Templars from previous games as the story’s primary antagonists. Throughout Odyssey, players will find clues to help them identify and eventually defeat the cult leaders one by one. There are 6 Kosmos Cult Leaders to defeat that have to be defeated in order:
The Mytilenian Shark Asterion Sokos The Octopus Melanthos The Hydra
The protagonist needs to Weaken the Obsidian Islands by killing the Cultist.
The cultist for the Obsidian Islands is called Sokos and players will first learn of him after killing The Mytilenian Shark and Asterion. To track him down, players will need to eliminate the island’s leader and initiate the conquest battle.
During the ensuing naval skirmish, Sokos will appear and the player will be able to fight him. Sparing Roxana and recruiting her as a lieutenant will help massively with this fight, as she will increase the damage dealt by javelins, and give the ship a boost in speed when drifting. Be careful not to accidentally attack the protagonist’s allies as they will turn on Alexios/Kassandra making the battle more difficult.
Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Stadia, and Luna.
MORE: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey: Was Kassandra Supposed To Be The Only Protagonist?
