How to solve the Dartmoor murder mystery in Hitman 3
Tired of doing murders? It’s time to solve one.
Want to know the Hitman 3 Dartmoor murder mystery puzzle solution? Hitman 3’s second destination turns the series’ formula on its head: Agent 47 is asked to solve a murder mystery in Dartmoor. Admittedly it leads to him adding to Thornbridge Manor’s body count, but it’s a quirky twist on his usual MO. It’s a rather tangled case with multiple suspects and a house filled with hidden clues. If the Hitman 3 murder mystery has you stumped, let us offer some solutions.
There are three possible outcomes to the Hitman 3 Dartmoor investigation. Three viable suspects to point the finger at, in turn gaining you an audience with your real target, Alexa Carlisle. While only one solution is actually true, any of three accusations can get you in the room with your target. Bearing in mind that, naturally, there are spoilers ahead, here’s how to solve the Dartmoor murder mystery.
How to complete the Hitman 3 Dartmoor murder mystery
How to get the investigator disguise
Before Agent 47 can solve the murder, you need to steal the disguise from the real detective, Phineas Witmer. Getting to Witmer is probably the trickiest bit of the level, as Agent 47 can’t be seen anywhere in Thornbridge Manor’s ground without a disguise. With lots of guards patrolling outside, the best place to grab Witmer is just after he enters the house.
To gain access to the house, hop over the broken wall to the right of the main gates and use the long grass and bushes to head towards the cars parked right of the main house entrance. You can do a quick run to pass the guards around the cars and hop into the open window to the right of the main doors.
Once inside, wait for Witmer to turn up and he’ll take the corridor in front of the window you entered. It’s empty, handily, letting you easily subdue and pop him in one of the many cupboards. Steal his clothes and let the investigation begin.
How to find Zachary’s room clues
Talk to Alexa in the investigator disguise and you’ll be taken to Zachary’s room. You need to find all the clues here to trigger the next step of the investigation. The clues are:
- Scan the dead body in the bed with your phone
- Scan the glass on the bedside table with your phone
- Investigate Zachary’s Laptop on the desk
- Pick up Zachary’s Suicide Note by the fire
- Pull on the book to reveal a hidden passage and enter it
- Pick up the Mansion Floor Plan inside the hidden passage
You will now be prompted to talk to the Fernsby the butler to trigger the full investigation.
How to pin the crime on Fernsby
To pin the murder on the butler you need to break into Mr Fernsby’s Office on the ground floor. The easiest way to do this is to take a lockpick in your pre-mission loadout. If you don’t have the lockpick unlocked (the irony), you can find a crowbar behind the Greenhouse in the northern gardens.
Pick up the Mansion Master Key from the book shelves in Fernsby's office, as this lets you unlock most doors in the house without alerting other staff. Now pick up Zachary’s Half-Burnt Diary from the fire and the Lethal Poison Pill Jar from the window sill and you will have enough clues to accuse Fernsby. If you pick up Mr Fernsby’s List from the desk, you’ll realise that the handwriting doesn’t match the fake suicide note, so you are punishing an innocent man.
To accuse Fernsby, talk to him to gain access to Alexa and tell her the butler did it. This unlocks the feat, A Matter Of Loyalty.
How to pin the crime on Zachary
To convince Alexa that Zachary committed suicide, you need to find a secret note from his past. Head to Emma and Gregory’s Room on the first floor, using the Mansion Master Key from Fernsby’s Office to unlock the door without suspicion.
Just inside the door you’ll find a Walking Cane with a lovely dog’s head on it. This is a key for opening Thornbridge’s hidden doors. Pick it up and head to the first floor level of the library. In the north east corner of the room use the Walking Cane to activate the Mysterious Switch, revealing the Secret Room. Pick up Montgomery’s Long Lost Letter and you’ll have what you need to convince Alexa it was suicide.
To accuse Zachary, talk to Fernsby to gain access to Alexa and make your claim. Again, this is a lie—the handwriting in Zachary’s Half-Burnt Diary doesn’t match the handwriting on the Suicide Note—but this accusation does lead to a guilt-ridden Alexa jumping off her balcony, meaning you don’t have to do the dirty work yourself. This unlocks the feat, A Matter Of Guilt.
How to reveal the real killer
To pin the crime on the real guilty party, head to Emma and Gregory’s room on the first floor, using the Mansion Master Key from Fernsby’s Office to unlock the door without alerting the staff. Inside the room, you need to collect all the following evidence:
- Scan the muddy shoes by the wardrobe in the corner
- Pick up the Greenhouse Key Chain by the suitcases
- Pick up the Letter From Emma’s Mother on the bedside table
- Pick up the Walking Cane with the dog’s head
The key chain suggests someone has been to the Greenhouse, so head there next. It’s outside and north of the house. You need to break into the Greenhouse to find the evidence inside. Either include a lockpick in your pre-mission loadout or pick up the handy crowbar on the crate behind the Greenhouse.
Breaking in can be easily done from the southern door of the Greenhouse. A guard walks back and forth to the left of the door and there’s a gardener who sometimes relaxes to the right. Wait for both to be moving away to crack open the door.
Inside the Greenhouse walk towards the Distillation Kit for the first clue and then use the camera to scan the nearby book to read the second clue.
Leave the Greenhouse and head to the Sitting Room on the ground floor of the house. Just outside the right-hand door into the room (coming from the gardens) scan the muddy footprints to link them to the shoes in Emma and Gregory’s Room room. Head inside and talk to Emma and you’ll now have enough evidence to reveal her as the killer.
To accuse Emma, talk to Fernsby to gain access to Alexa and reveal your findings. This accusation unlocks the feat, A Matter Of Justice.
How to prove other suspects innocent
To solve the Dartmoor mystery, you only need to find enough evidence to accuse Emma or Fernsby or Zachary. But if you want to do a thorough job and prove the other family members innocent, here’s how you do it.
Talk to Gregory in the ground floor Sitting Room and then talk to Edward in the Dining Room, also on the ground floor. Their alibis clear both of them of guilt.
Talk to Patrick in the ground floor Library and then talk to the sobbing servant girl Rosie in the ground floor Staff Room. She’ll prove Patrick’s alibi.
Talk to Rebecca in the Trophy Room and then head to Rebecca’s Room on the first floor and look at her laptop to prove her alibi.
You don’t get anything for proving them innocent, but it’s nice to know they aren’t all cold-blooded rotters. This doesn’t prevent IO putting in several feats for pacifying them with bludgeoning objects, but a Hitman’s gonna hit, right?