Batman is a detective first. People forget that. They see the tank-battles and the bone-crunching combat in Rocksteady’s final trilogy entry, but the real heart of the game often lies in the side stories. One of the earliest and most grounding missions you'll encounter is Batman Arkham Knight The Line of Duty. It isn't about stopping a world-ending chemical bomb or unmasking a new villain; it’s about saving civil servants who got caught in the crossfire of a city-wide riot.
Honestly, it’s one of the most sobering Most Wanted tracks in the game. While you're busy chasing the Arkham Knight’s militia, there are seventeen members of Fire Station 17 scattered across Gotham, held hostage by various thugs. You have to find them.
Why the Chief and His Crew Matter
The setup is simple. Chief Underhill and his crew stayed behind when the city evacuated. They're heroes. But as you progress through the mission, you start to realize things don't exactly add up. Why were they all at different locations? Why did the fires start so systematically?
It’s a slow burn.
Most players stumble upon the first fireman near the Dixon Docks. You hear the chatter of thugs, you see the blue outline in Detective Mode, and you swoop in. But as you rescue more of them—crossing from Bleake Island to Founders' Island—the narrative shifts from a simple rescue op to a mystery about insurance, desperation, and the lengths a leader will go to to save his department from budget cuts. It’s remarkably human for a superhero game.
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Tracking Down the Firemen Without a Guide
If you’re playing without a map pulled up on your phone, you have to rely on your ears. Seriously. The game uses spatial audio to hint at hostage locations. You’ll hear the thugs taunting the firemen before you see them.
The locations are spread out. On Bleake Island alone, you’ve got guys trapped at the Falcone Shipping Yards and under the bridge near Panessa Studios. Miagani Island has them tucked away in the Grand Station and near the Wayne Tower area. Founders' Island is the toughest because of the heavy militia presence, especially the guys held near the Port Adams area.
Don't just rush in. Some of these groups have "Lead" thugs or guys with guns. If you aren't careful, they’ll execute the hostage. Use your smoke pellets. Use the Fear Multi-Takedown. It’s what it’s there for.
The Twist at the End of The Line of Duty
Once you’ve saved the sixteen subordinates, you finally get the location of Chief Underhill. He’s being held at a building in the City Vision Construction area.
Here is the kicker.
Once you clear the room and "save" him, Batman doesn't just give him a pat on the back. He arrests him. It turns out Underhill was working with Firefly. He allowed the arsonist to set fire to abandoned buildings to ensure his men stayed employed and his station stayed open. It’s a tragic motive. It’s not "evil" in the way the Joker is evil, but it's a betrayal of the badge.
The dialogue in the Batmobile on the way to the GCPD is some of the best writing in the game. Underhill tries to justify it. Batman, in his typical stoic fashion, doesn't budge. He reminds the Chief that his actions put his own men in the hands of murderers.
Gameplay Mechanics You Might Miss
There’s a nuance to the combat in these encounters. Because these are "hostage" situations, the AI behaves differently. They stay closer to the captive.
- Environmental Takedowns: Many of these spots have fuse boxes or loose pallets. Use them.
- The Disruptor: Use it on the thugs with firearms first. Nothing ruins a rescue like a stray bullet.
- Detective Mode: Look for the heart rate monitor on the hostages. If it spikes, the thugs are getting nervous.
The difficulty scales. The first few rescues on Bleake Island are basically tutorials. By the time you’re on Founders' Island, you’re dealing with shields, batons, and even some brutes.
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Completing the Mission for the Full Ending
You cannot get the "Knightfall Protocol" (the true ending) without finishing Batman Arkham Knight The Line of Duty. It is a mandatory piece of the 100% completion puzzle.
A lot of people complain that the "find them yourself" aspect is tedious. It can be. But it forces you to actually explore Gotham on foot (or via grapple) rather than just flying over it at 80 miles per hour. You see the graffiti. You hear the thug conversations about the Penguin and Two-Face. It builds the world.
If you are stuck finding the last few, check the bridges. Often, there’s a fireman tucked under the structural supports of the bridges connecting the islands. It’s a classic hiding spot for the developers.
Practical Steps for Clearing the Mission Fast
- Upgrade your Fear Multi-Takedown early. Being able to take out five guys instantly makes the Founders' Island rescues trivial.
- Clear the skies first. Don’t bother hunting firemen until you’ve taken out the militia watchtowers and drones in that specific district. It’s annoying to get shot by a tank while trying to sneak up on a group of thugs.
- Listen for the "Help!" The audio cues are surprisingly long-range. If you’re gliding and hear a faint shout, dive-bomb and level out to find the source.
- Check the GCPD. After you lock up Underhill, go talk to him in his cell. He has additional dialogue that fleshes out his regret, or lack thereof, depending on how you interpret his tone.
The mission wraps up with Underhill behind bars and the GCPD taking over. It’s a dark reminder that in a city like Gotham, even the "good guys" can break when the pressure gets high enough. It’s a perfect microcosm of the game's overall theme: what happens when heroes fail to live up to their own ideals?
Stop looking for icons on the map. Start looking for the smoke and listening for the screams. That’s how you actually play Batman.
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To finish this thread of the story, ensure you have also tracked down Firefly in the "Gotham on Fire" side mission, as the two narratives are intrinsically linked through Underhill's confession. Once both are behind bars, you'll have cleared a significant portion of the city's arson-related crimes and moved one step closer to the final confrontation with the Knight.