A Staged Accident is a kill method first properly introduced in Hitman: Blood Money, but having made occasional appearances in the previous games. They return in Hitman: Absolution, HITMAN™, & HITMAN™ 2 and HITMAN III. It makes the kill look like an accident, and thus the guards will not search the area for a murderer (in some cases the body is completely hidden by the accident.) Additionally, if the body is found, this will not count against the rating. Also, in Blood Money, accident kills on non-targets do not count against the rating which is very useful for eliminating witnesses. Most of the following accidents are context sensitive, meaning they are only available in very specific locations, but some, such as falling, can be done in any level where there are heights great enough to kill the target.
Common Accidents[]
These types of accidents can be performed on almost any level, with some exceptions.
47 pushing a worker in Curtains Down
Falling[]
Involves pushing an NPC over a ledge or any other high fall. They can also be dragged and flipped over the ledges to achieve the same effect when knocked out. It's the most common type of accident and can be done in any Hitman: Blood Money mission except for Amendment XXV. It also appears in Hitman: Absolution and HITMAN™ World of Assassination, although this accident can only be done if the target is standing near a ledge and a button prompt appears. It is also possible to pull people down from below or side on certain locations.
Dumping an unconscious person over a railing or over a ledge will sometimes result in an accidental elimination in HITMAN™, though the game is somewhat inconsistent, and high elevation alone does not necessarily guarantee a fatality. It is probable that only certain locations are coded to create lethal falls.
47 pushing a guard down stairs in You Better Watch Out...
Falling down stairs (Blood Money Only)[]
Similar to the above, this involves falling down stairs instead. It is doable in any Hitman: Blood Money mission. It does not seem to work in PC, as the victim is merely knocked unconscious. However, in the mission Till Death Do Us Part, doing this to John Leblanc will instantly kill him, which is somewhat realistic given his old age.
Drowning[]
Any NPC pushed, dropped or dragged into water will die. This is doable in any mission with bodies of water, including A Vintage Year, Flatline, A New Life, You Better Watch Out…, Death on the Mississippi, Till Death Do Us Part and A Dance with the Devil.
In HITMAN™ World of Assassination, Agent 47 can drown people in toilets or any equivalent water containers if said person are standing in front of it (either they've been sickened and are vomiting into it, or the player set up/distract them, so they stand in front it). In a few specific cases, particularly on Haven Island, some targets will relax in a hot tub or pool and the player can drown them by approaching from behind, whereupon the option to hold them under the water will appear. Additionally, in some outdoor maps the player can enter the very edge of a large body of water such as an ocean shore. A character dragged into the water or knocked out here will drown. This can be very useful in some cases, for example, shooting target's leg while they're standing in the water will make them fall into the water bodies and drowned, and the player doesn't have to directly knock out the target, as the shot can be made from far away, out of everyone's sight. Due to either glitches or developer oversights, however, some water bodies were not given this property.
Suspended objects falling[]
Agent 47 about to detonate an RU-AP mine connected to a chandelier in Till Death Do Us Part..
Some suspended objects can be made to drop onto anyone located underneath, including chandeliers, suspended barrels or light racks. In Hitman: Blood Money this is done using the RU-AP Mine, which when planted on the winch will cause the object to fall. This is featured in Death of a Showman, A Vintage Year, Curtains Down, Flatline, The Murder of Crows, You Better Watch Out... and Till Death Do Us Part.
In Hitman: Absolution, some suspended objects will be dropped by shooting the chain that holds them up, as demonstrated in many missions of Hitman: Absolution, where things such as chandeliers may be shot down. A third method is to pull a lever, or a press a switch to make them drop. It has only been featured in Rendezvous in Rotterdam, Run For Your Life, Shaving Lenny, Hunter and Hunted, Fight Night, Blackwater Park, and Absolution. The Rendezvous in Rotterdam and Shaving Lenny accidents both are accidents involving targets being crushed by cars descending, though the former counts negatively in the player's stats, adding one enemy kill.
There are numerous suspended objects in HITMANTM and the rest of the World of Assassination trilogy, everything from chandeliers to street shop signs or even natural objects such as coconuts growing in trees. Usually, the object itself or the chain or rope holding it must be shot to release the load, but in some cases such as industrial equipment the player must manually operate a control panel and maneuver the object over the target.
Elevator accident (Blood Money only)[]
While presumably a bug, in Hitman: Blood Money anyone pushed in a descending elevator will usually die. It can be done in any level with an accessible elevator, namely A Vintage Year, You Better Watch Out..., A House of Cards and A Dance with the Devil. If done while the elevator is stationary or going up, the victim will merely be knocked unconscious.
Poison[]
In the World of Assassination Trilogy, NPCs killed by poison, whether administered via syringe, food, drinks, or other means, will be regarded as having died of accidents, and their bodies can be discovered without affecting the player's rating (as long as the action of administering poison isn't spotted by another NPC) In Blood Money however, poisoning (directly or indirectly) is always considered a kill by the player and will affect mission rating.
Rarer Accidents[]
These types of accidents only appear on a few levels.
Eaten by animals[]
Alligator in Till Death Do Us Part;
Whilst functionally identical to the above, in Till Death Do Us Part and A Dance with the Devil, any NPC's dropped into the water will be eaten by respectively Alligators and Sharks, preventing it from being found. A carnivorous pet Hippopotamus (hippos can indeed eat meat when necessary) appears in the HITMAN 2 and can be used to dispose of target Rico Delgado in the mission Three-Headed Serpent. Incidentally, doing so will fulfill a challenge.
47 planting a bomb on a chandelier in Flatline
Car accident[]
47 himself dying from a car accident in A New Life
In most missions with moving vehicles, you can lure or knock out people on to the path of the vehicles, and the victim will be killed. The easiest mission to do this is A New Life, but it can also be done in A House of Cards. This type of accident is featured as an easter egg in End of the Road mission.
Sabotaged barbecue[]
If the barbecue grill in A New Life is rigged with Lighter Fluid, Mrs. Sinistra will be burned when she operates it. This accident returns in Shaving Lenny, where player can replace a bottle of hot sauce with lighter fuel, and setting Mason McCready on fire.
Sauna accident[]
This accident can be done in Traditions of the Trade. When Fritz Fuchs is inside the sauna, a valve nearby can be turned, suffocating him to death. However, since accidents are not introduced yet in Contracts, if his body is discovered, it will count against the rating. It can also be done in Situs Inversus, with Yuki Yamazaki, by locking her in an overheated sauna room. Any other NPCs who spend too much time in the room will also expire.
47 rigging the barbecue grill with lighter fluid in A New Life
Sabotaged gas[]
47 sabotaging gas in Flatline
In Hitman: Blood Money, Lorenzo Lombardo has a private gas kitchen, and if sabotaged, it will explode into his face when he next tries using it, killing him. Shooting the propane tank will also cause it to explode, but his death will not count as an accident. This accident returns in HITMAN™ (2016) and is much more common. As long as 47 has a wrench on his inventory, he can sabotage Gas canisters and even common kitchen ovens to release gas, which will explode if anything flammable is used nearby (Shooting, explosives, NPCs smoking etc.) or when the oven is turned back on. Note that sabotaging is considered suspicious unless 47 is wearing a specific disguise, and remember to turn off the ovens that you plan to sabotage, so it wont explode immediately after the action.
Glass floor accident[]
Can only be done in You Better Watch Out…. Chad Bingham, Jr. is sitting in a glass-bottomed pool, and if shot out or exploded, he and several girls will fall down unto the pier below. The bodies can be discovered by the guests at the pier. A similar accident is featured in Death Factory, where player can shoot the glass floor of the operating room in Test Facility, and let Marcus Green fall through it. Interestingly, doing this will not have any report associated to gunshots in the newspaper session.
Electrified items[]
In Hunter and Hunted (Absolution), Shaving Lenny and Attack of the Saints, the player can connect a cable from a generator to a conductor, and when the lever was turned, the metal current will kill the ones using the item. Can be used to kill Larry Clay, Bill Dole, Gavin LeBlond, Mason McCready and Louisa Cain.
The accident returns in HITMAN™ (2016), and is more common. As long as 47 has a screwdriver on his inventory, he can break certain fuses so they release electricity. Most of them appear near puddles of water, making said puddle lethal to step on. Sometimes the puddle needs to be created by 47 himself, often by overflowing a sink. Note that sabotaging fuses is considered suspicious unless 47 is wearing a certain disguise, and make sure everything connected to the item in question is turned off to avoid accidental suicide. Puddles can also be electrified using remote or proximity tasers or by tossing car batteries into them. The ICA Electrocution Phone, present only in Hitman 2 (2018 video game), can also be used to deliver a shock immediately, with no need for water or other environmental effects.
Gas pump accident[]
In Hunter and Hunted (Absolution), Shaving Lenny and Attack of the Saints, there are gas pumps that can be sabotaged. The gas pump will explode when someone drops a cigarette on it or if the player shoots it. Anybody nearby will be killed and registered as an accident.
Oil accident[]
Similar to the Gas Pump accident, In HITMAN™ 47 can sabotage certain objects (Oil Barrels, Motorcycles, Cars), so they leak oil around them. If the oil is lit by any means (Explosion, shot, NPC smoking, nearby generators activated) the oil bursts on flame, killing any NPCs that were standing on the oil. Vehicles will always explode if the oil is lit.
Sabotaging these objects is considered suspicious unless disguised fittingly, and 47 needs to have a Screwdriver (Oil drums) or a wrench (Motorcycles) in his inventory to sabotage the items. If there's no available tools, 47 can shoot them as well (they won't be highlighted anymore in Instinct Mode when sabotaged). And although cars don't highlight in Instinct Mode and they can't be sabotaged by any tool, 47 can shoot them (cause enough damage on the car or shoot precisely at its gas tank) to create oil leak and make them explode.
Firearm Accidents[]
In the mission Curtains Down, the player can replace the prop WWI Pistol with a real one, causing the actor playing as the executioner to kill the target Alvaro D'Alvade by accident. Alternatively, the player can take on the role as executioner and do it himself. If timed correctly, shooting Alvaro with the weapon will not raise any suspicion towards the player. Also, in Blood Money, NPCs who are killed by guards while being held as a human shield by the player will not count against the rating, making it a great way to dispose witnesses when no opportunities to stage accidents are nearby.
Accidents involving firearms are some of the rarest in HITMANTM and its sequels, occurring on only three levels. In The Finish Line, the experimental androids in the indoor firing range are armed with automatic pistols and can be programmed to shoot a particular target using facial recognition software. In Chasing a Ghost, 47 can set up for "The Khasmirian" to assassinate Dawood Rangan and Vanya Shah from the chawls. In The Farewell, the security force's own sniper team can be tricked into eliminating two specific targets: Tamara Vidal, or the elusive target Joanne Bayswater, if the player obtains the proper uniform (specifically Gaucho) and a communications earpiece. This ability cannot be used in contracts mode against other targets. Such an elimination will count as both a ballistic kill and an accident, a rare combination. Quite unrealistically, even if the target is shot in full view, the security detail will immediately recognize the death as an accident and behave quite apathetically about their charge's sudden demise.
Level Specific Accidents[]
These types of accidents only appear on a certain level.
47 choking Carmine DeSalvo in Flatline
Weightlifting accident[]
Can be done in Flatline: when Carmine DeSalvo is lifting weights, he can be choked using the weight. It can be done again in The Last Resort in Hitman 2 with Steven Bradley.
Glass roof broken by a coin in A New Life
Glass roof accident[]
Can only be done in A New Life. When the wife enters the indoor pool, the glass roof can be hit by thrown items or shot, and the falling glass will kill her, making it look like an accident. The coin can also be used to break it, which will not make noise or waste ammo.
Bodies falling through the broken glass floor in You Better Watch Out
Rigged pyroshow[]
Can only be done in A Dance with the Devil. Vaana Ketlyn's pyroshow can be rigged, causing her to go on fire when performing it, then jump into the water, then get eaten by sharks.
Coal engine accident[]
Can only be done in Death on the Mississippi. Anyone disposed of into the boiler of the steamboat will be burned and die. However, this will count as a kill by the player instead of an accident and will affect mission rating.
Unfinished Landmine Accident[]
In Death Factory, an unfinished landmine and a proximity detector can be found in the room which the player disables the security system in the test facility. If the player puts the proximity detector on the unfinished landmine, Marcus Green will be blown up when he is examining it.
Early testing accident[]
In Death Factory, Dr. Green will go to the "lawn" testing zone to check the results. The player can activate the test early by pressing the button in the operation room, and blow him up. Note that other NPCs and 47 himself can be blown up this way also.
Fire Paste accident[]
In Death Factory there is an item called Fire Paste. It can be added into the prototype baldness cure in the chemical lab and set Raymond Valentine's head on fire when he tests it.
Electric Gun accident[]
Can only be done in Death Factory. Raymond Valentine is testing an electricity gun. If the player obtained the safety code for the electricity gun, they can turn it on when he goes in the test area and electrocute him.
Bomb Factory accident[]
Can only be done in Death Factory. Raymond Valentine will sometimes go to a bomb chamber and see results. When that happens, player can activate a computer nearby and close the chamber, bombing Dr. Valentine.
Robot Arm accident[]
Can only be done in Death Factory. Warren Ashford will sometimes sit on a seat to test it, player can activate the robot arms by using the computer nearby, and stab Dr Ashford.
It can also be done on Erich Soders in Situs Inversus. Surgical robot arms can be programmed to repeatedly stab Soders in the operating room.
Poisoning[]
Although technically not an accident, poisoned targets in Contracts Mode registers as accident kills, and in all modes are treated as accidents for anything that requires an accidental kill.
Propaganda Printer Accident[]
In A Gilded Cage, If 47 impersonates a member of the poster crew and returns to the school with the rest of the crew, he can perform this accident. If the printer is turned off when General Zeydan visits the room, he will turn it back on and check the machine. During this time, 47 can shove him into the machine, killing him instantly. This accident also destroys the body.