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Il Lupo

2011-04-07T01:19:36Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Spoilerhd}}
[[File:Char prowler.png|thumb|Il Lupo]]
'''Il Lupo''' was a member of the [[Templars|Templar Order]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref>

==Biography==
After [[Fiora Cavazza]] and [[Baltasar de Silva]] had studied the [[Assassins]] for some time, they tried to mimic their techniques and 'create' their own Assassin. They trained Il Lupo to master everything they knew about the Assassins and he was later sent on missions by [[Cesare Borgia]] himself.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

Some time later, however, Fiora was betrayed by Cesare and she joined forces with the Assassins. To eliminate any damage made to the Assassin Order, Fiora planned to eliminate Il Lupo. She then left a signal for contact. A symbol left on the statue Pasquino. She later met with him at their usual rendezvous and said Cesare had assigned him to eliminate a target on a boat out in the water. Il Lupo turned towards the boat, his back facing Fiora. Fiora slit Il Lupo's back with a poisoned iron tiped fan, though Il Lupo wouldn't yield. He resisted, but this was a vain effort as the poison quickly starting showing off its effects and Il Lupo succumbed.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

Il Lupo appears in the [[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood multiplayer characters|multiplayer]] of ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'', under the title of The [[Prowler]].

==Trivia==
*II Lupo is roughly translated to 'The Wolf'.
*The belief that Il Lupo is an opposite to La Volpe, is supported by an inn in the Assassin's Creed Brotherhood novel called 'The Lone Wolf Inn', La Volpe having an inn, called 'The Sleeping Fox', The Lone Wolf inn, in the novel, is a base from which Cesare Borgia tries to recruit a new army.

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lupo}}
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy Characters]]
[[Category:Templars]]

Il Lupo

2011-04-07T01:17:56Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Spoilerhd}}
[[File:Char prowler.png|thumb|Il Lupo]]
'''Il Lupo''' was a member of the [[Templars|Templar Order]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref>

==Biography==
After [[Fiora Cavazza]] and [[Baltasar de Silva]] had studied the [[Assassins]] for some time, they tried to mimic their techniques and 'create' their own Assassin. They trained Il Lupo to master everything they knew about the Assassins and he was later sent on missions by [[Cesare Borgia]] himself.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

Some time later, however, Fiora was betrayed by Cesare and she joined forces with the Assassins. To eliminate any damage made to the Assassin Order, Fiora planned to eliminate Il Lupo. She then left a signal for contact. A symbol left on the statue Pasquino. She later met with him at their usual rendezvous and said Cesare had assigned him to eliminate a target on a boat out in the water. Il Lupo turned towards the boat, his back facing Fiora. Fiora slit Il Lupo's back with a poisoned iron tiped fan, though Il Lupo wouldn't yield. He resisted, but this was a vain effort as the poison quickly starting showing off its effects and Il Lupo succumbed.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

Il Lupo appears in the [[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood multiplayer characters|multiplayer]] of ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'', under the title of The [[Prowler]].

==Trivia==
*II Lupo is roughly translated to 'The Wolf'.
*The belief that Il Lupo is an opposite to La Volpe, is supported by an inn in the Assassin's Creed Brotherhood novel called 'The Lone Wolf Inn', La Volpe having an inn, called 'The Sleeping Fox', The Lone Wolf inn, in the novel, is a base from which Cesare Borgia tries to recruit a new army.
*Although Il Lupo was said to appear in the singleplayer he never made an apperance

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lupo}}
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy Characters]]
[[Category:Templars]]

Assassins

2011-03-31T01:24:58Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Era|Altair's Chronicles|AC1|Bloodlines|AC2|Discovery|Brotherhood|PL|Renaissance|Bbook|Lineage|Assassins}}
{{WP-REAL|Hashshashin}}
{{Faction Infobox
|name =
|image =498px-AssassinLogo.png
|imgdesc =The emblem of the Assassin Order.
|hideo =
|founder =[[Adam and Eve]]'s descendants<ref name="Assassin's Creed II">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>
|leader =[[The Mentor]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
|headquarters =''Middle ages'':<br>[[Masyaf]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><br>[[Alep]]<br>[[Cyprus]]<br> ''Renaissance'':<br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)]]''</ref><br>[[Tiber Island]], [[Rome]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref><br>''Modern times'':<br>[[wikipedia:Dubai|Dubai]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #3''</ref>
|locations =''Renaissance'':<br>[[Florence]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Venice]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Forlì]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>''Modern times'':<br>Worldwide<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|related =*[[Thugs]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />
*[[Mercenaries]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Courtesans]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Thieves]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[House of Medici]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|religion =
|hideh =
|formed =Pre-history
|reorganised =1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|collapsed =
|hidea =
|notable =*[[Marcus Junius Brutus]]
*[[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]
*[[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]
*[[Nikolai Orelov]]
*[[Daniel Cross]]
*[[Desmond Miles]]
|}}
{{Quote|We work in the dark, to serve the light. We are Assassins.|[[Niccolò Machiavelli]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The '''Assassins''', also known as the '''Assassin Order''', '''Assassin Brotherhood''' and '''Hashshashin''', were an organized order of assassins who fought a continuous secret war with the [[Templars]] for over two-thousand years. Whereas the Templars strove for the power to save humanity from itself by controlling free will, the Assassin Order struggled to ensure the survival of free will, as it is what allows for the progression of new ideas and the growth of individuality.

The Assassins, if not the order itself, had existed since at least 456 BC, throughout the [[wikipedia:Roman Era|Roman era]], the Middle Ages, the [[Renaissance]], and into the [[Modern Times|21<sup>st</sup> Century]].

==The Creed==
{{quote|Laa shay'a waqi'a mutlaq bla kul'un mumkin.<br />("Nothing is true, everything is permitted" in Arabic)''|[[The Creed|The Assassin's Creed]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The order believed in a strong set of values that strictly governed their way of life. This Creed consisted of three [[tenets]]:
#"Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."
#"Hide in plain sight, be one with the crowd."
#"Never compromise the Brotherhood."<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
These tenets permeated every aspect of the Assassins' daily life, as well as their fight for "peace in all things." The Assassins carried out their duties through political, strategic assassination, in the hope that killing one individual would lead to the salvation of thousands. The Assassins believed that they fought on the behalf of those who did not possess the abilities, resources, or knowledge to speak out against those who abused their power.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Despite their service to those who would otherwise suffer, the Assassins were still feared by the general populace, due mainly to their method of ensuring peace. The Assassins were most feared due to their terrifying reputation for taking life in public places, before many witnesses - so as to bring fear into the hearts of those who might abuse their power or corrupt the innocent - before vanishing into the crowd without a trace.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> To aid in this, the Assassins used a particularly efficient weapon for assassinations: the [[Hidden Blade]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> a single thrust from which could end the life of its victim.

However, in order to ascertain which death might best assist the Assassins' goals, extensive political knowledge was a must have. Thus, the Assassins endeavored to remain in tune with the ever-changing politics surrounding them. Obtaining information on this was the job of low-level members of the Order, who would be stationed throughout the cities of the world. These [[Informants|spies]] would watch the local nobles and rulers, looking for signs of corruption, or for membership in the Templars. Once gathered, any information was passed on to the Assassins responsible for the actual execution.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

[[File:AssassinGuard.png|thumb|200px|left|Rauf, a combat instructor, wearing similar robes to other high ranked Assassin guards in Masyaf.]]

===Training===
The Assassins spent their entire lifetime training to kill.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> From an early age, they were taught to observe their surroundings and plan ahead. Combat skills were essential, and its training was continuous, with a focus on bladed weapons of all sorts. However, despite such a concentration on combat, the most important consideration in the Assassins' training was concealment. Stealth was the greatest weapon of the Assassin, and everything about their life (the clothes they wore, where they lived, and even how they walked) emphasized a devotion to it.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> It was essential for an Assassin to be able to reach their target unnoticed, and then slip back into the crowd after they had struck.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />.

Another significant focus of an Assassins' training was maneuverability. By the time an Assassin reached the [[Ranks|rank]] of [[Master Assassin]], he was also a master of an early form of [[Free-Running|parkour]], extensively utilized by the Assassins. Widely seen as alien by the general populace, this method of movement allowed the Assassins to reach areas not normally accessible to man. From scaling a wall, to climbing to one of a city's many [[view point]]s, [[Free Running]] gave the Assassins a significant advantage over nearly all their enemies and city [[Guards|guards]] and can be used to get anywhere in the city at any time.

==History==
===Middle Ages===
[[File:Almualimassassins.png|thumb|250px|Al Mualim and the Assassins in the fortress of Masyaf.]]
In 1191, during the [[Third Crusade]], the [[Syria]]n branch of the Assassin Order was centered in the fortress of [[Masyaf]], deep within the kingdom of the [[wikipedia:Holy Land|Holy Land]]. Led by [[Al Mualim]], the Assassins battled with the [[Templars]] and their leader, [[Robert de Sable]], over ideologies and the means with which to accomplish them. It was during the Third Crusade that the Assassins learned of a Templar interest in an [[Sixth Apple|ancient artifact]], hidden within the catacombs of [[Solomon's Temple]]. It was decided to liberate the treasure from them, and the mission was a success, although a costly one. With the death of [[Kadar A-Sayf|one Assassin]], the severe injury of [[Malik A-Sayf|another]], and the arrival of the Templar army at the gates of Masyaf, the Assassins were nearly overwhelmed by the [[Siege of Masyaf|following battle]]. However, by crushing most of the Templar army under a concealed onslaught of rolling logs, they were able to drive the Templars from the fortress and village below.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Following the assault, the Assassin blamed for the loss of life that day – [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] – was severely reprimanded, and tasked with removing nine influential individuals, who plagued the Holy Land with their corrupt rule. As Altaïr made his way down the list made up of both [[Crusader]] and [[Saracen]] individuals, he was greatly unsettled by the realization that their goal to bring peace to the people of the Holy Land was just, as he that felt his victims were "misguided perhaps, but pure in motive." This was a view shared by Al Mualim, who agreed with their goals, but felt that their attitude of "the end justifies the means" undermined the good they sought to ensure. As his mission progressed, Altaïr sought to know what bound his victims together, and the discovery that they were all Templars only served to reinforce the Assassin's determination to bring an end to the Templar plot.

By the end of the year, the Assassins were victorious over their Templar enemies. [[Robert de Sable]], [[Grand Master of the Templar Order]], was dead, however the treachery of one of their own had also hit the Assassin Order hard. Al Mualim, [[Grand Master of the Assassin Order]], and a former member of a coalition of ''ten'' Templar leaders, was revealed to be a traitor, and was killed by the very man he had sent to eliminate his fellow Templar conspirators. With Al Mualim dead, Altaïr took over as Grand Master of the Order, leading the Assassins in their attempts to rebuild their strength after the costly conflict.

Eventually, it was decided that the [[Pieces of Eden|Piece of Eden]] was too great a threat to keep in Masyaf, and the decision was made to store it on the island of [[Cyprus]], in the [[Templar Archive|Limassol archives]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines">''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''</ref> However, following the liberation of the island from its Templar rulers, the Piece was kept by Altaïr until he had at least completed his fabled [[Codex]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>

===Renaissance===
{{Quote|In this modern age, we are not as literal as our ancestors; but our seal is no less permanent…|Mario Auditore|Assassin's Creed II}}
[[File:Asslogorenaissance.png|thumb|left|Renaissance variation of the Assassins' emblem.]]
The Order continued to thrive, despite being forced to adopt an even more secretive and isolated existence. During the time period known as the [[Renaissance]], the Assassin Order had apparently "gone underground." The reason for this is explained inside the Codex pages, where Altaïr states that even though the Templar Order was served a crushing defeat in the Holy Land and Cyprus, they still survived in more inconspicuous ways. As such, Altaïr believed that the Assassins too had to change tactics so as to live on.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Having abandoned the fortress of Masyaf, the Assassins spread out across the [[wikipedia:Mediterranean|Mediterranean]], taking up residence in places like northern [[Italy]] and [[Spain]]. However, the Templars too had done as much, headquartering themselves in [[Rome]]. By 1321, the Assassin Order had successfully integrated itself into modern day life of northern Italy, widely unknown to the average folk. That same year, a young sailor by the name of [[Domenico Auditore|Domenico]], the son of an Assassin, was apprenticed to the poet and Assassin [[Dante Alighieri]], who had been tasked with transporting the Codex of Altaïr from [[Venice]] to Spain.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt">''[[Auditore Family Crypt|Uplay Content - Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Family Crypt]]''</ref> Upon his death, however, the undertaking fell instead to Domenico. During the voyage, pirates under the employ of the Templars ambushed the ship looking for the Codex, consequently killing the wife of Domenico. Fortunately for the Assassins, Domenico managed to break apart the Codex and hide its pages from the pirates before he and his son were forced overboard.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

Eventually returning to Venice, Domenico found his father and his patron, [[Marco Polo]], an ally of the Assassins, dead. Thus, Domenico emptied the bank accounts of Messer Polo, and traveled to the city of [[Florence]] under the assumed name of [[House of Auditore|Auditore]]. He eventually constructed the [[Auditore Family Villa|Auditore Villa]] in the city of [[Monteriggioni]], which became the center of the Assassin Order in Italy.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

[[File:Assassins1503E3.png|thumb|350px|Ezio and his apprentices, facing Cesare and Rodrigo Borgia in Rome in 1503.]]
Despite the order "modernizing" since the 12<sup>th</sup> Century, they still retained many of the rituals and practices, albeit altered. The practice of removing one's ring finger had been stopped, although the seal of the Order was branded upon the finger instead; such was the induction of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio Auditore]] in 1487. Although significantly fewer in number, the Assassins were supported by the [[courtesans]], [[thieves]] and [[Mercenary|condottieri]] of Florence and Venice; the guilds of which were each run by a member of the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

During this time period, the Assassins entered another period of increased hostilities with the Templars, who were attempting to overthrow the ruling [[House of Medici]] in Florence, and the [[wikipedia:Doge|Doge]] of Venice. Having already killed the [[Galeazzo Maria Sforza|Duke]] of [[Milano|Milan]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage">''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''</ref> in 1476, [[Rodrigo Borgia]], the Grand Master of the Templar Order, brought the noble families of [[House of Pazzi|Pazzi]], [[House of Barbarigo|Barbarigo]] and [[House of Orsi|Orsi]] together<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /> to accomplish his goals. Entering into conflict with the Assassins, Borgia dealt a crippling blow to the Order in 1476, when he executed the experienced warrior [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze|Giovanni Auditore]] and his two sons, [[Federico Auditore da Firenze|Federico]] and [[Petruccio Auditore da Firenze|Petruccio]], although a third son, Ezio, managed to escape. With the aid of Ezio, the Assassins were able to counter Borgia's plot over a [[Assassin's Creed II|twenty-three year campaign]], defeating him at every turn.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

In 1487, the Order of Assassins learned that the Templars had retrieved an important artifact from the island of Cyprus, and deemed its capture necessary. Following the artifact from [[L'Arsenale di Venezia]], Ezio managed to overpower and replace the Templar guard carrying the artifact. Under this guise, Ezio met with Borgia himself, and the two engaged in battle. Borgia fled upon the arrival of other Assassins, and the artifact fell once again into the hands of the Assassins. The Assassins of this age, however, were unaware of the nature of the artifact, although they did recognize it as one of the Pieces of Eden mentioned within Altaïr's Codex.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

[[File:Romaassassins.png|thumb|300px|left|The Assassins in Rome.]]
By 1500, right after [[Cesare Borgia]] [[Fall of Monteriggioni|besieged]] the city of [[Monteriggioni]], murdering [[Mario Auditore]] and once again claiming ''the Apple'' for the Templars, Ezio Auditore had moved to Rome, meeting up with Niccolò Machiavelli and laying the foundations of a new "brotherhood" of Assassins. Utilizing the mercenaries, thieves and courtesans of [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]], [[La Volpe]] and [[Claudia Auditore da Firenze|Claudia Auditore]] respectively, Ezio's brotherhood worked to [[Liberation of Roma|combat the influence and power]] of the Borgia family, and by extension the Papacy itself. Headquartered in an underground store-room owned by [[Fabio Orsini]], on [[Tiber Island]] in the center of Rome, the Assassins begun to spread their influence throughout the city, recruiting those who had been saved by Ezio Auditore. Many undertook a variety of missions across Europe, aiding their brothers in cities such as London, Lisbon, Moscow and Calicut.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

Over a period of three years, Ezio's brotherhood whittled away the Borgia family's power, and with the murder of Rodrigo Borgia at the hands of his own son, and the arrest of Cesare by the [[Papal Guard]] of Julius II, the Templars' influence over the city of Rome was shattered.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern times===
{{Quote|In the old days, that usually meant killing anyone who became too powerful or greedy. ''[…]'' These days, it means subversion of established regimes. ''[…]'' Countries. Corporations. We change the system from within.|[[The Mentor (2000)|"The Mentor"]], in 2000, on the Assassin Order|Assassin's Creed: The Fall}}

By the 21<sup>st</sup> Century, the tactics and practices of the Assassin Order had changed greatly.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Whilst the Order of Assassins had kept to their policy of remote camps and isolation,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> the Templars had begun to infiltrate society further; taking the form of many corporations such as [[NASA]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and [[Abstergo]]. The Assassins relied less upon killing powerful or greedy individuals, and more on changing the "established regime" from within, using politics as well as the blade to achieve their aims. Indeed, by the year 2000, the hidden blade had become a largely ceremonial weapon.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> In the meantime however, the Templars continued to search for and investigate the various Pieces of Eden they discovered throughout this period,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> whilst the Assassins continued their war against them; notably being responsible for the destruction of at least one Templar-controlled base in [[wikipedia:Siberia|Siberia]] in 1908, known in public as the [[Tunguska explosion]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> However, by the year 1985, the Templars, under the guise of their front company [[Abstergo Industries]], had begun kidnapping Assassins or those related to them in an attempt to locate even more Pieces of Eden.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

That same year, the child [[Daniel Cross]], a descendant of the Assassin [[Nikolai Orelov]] was kidnapped by Abstergo's [[Lineage Research and Acquisition|Lineage Research and Acquisition department]] and entered into the [[Animus project]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #1''</ref> Years later, in 1998, Daniel joined the Order as a prospective, but with a mission to find then-current [[The Mentor (2000)|Mentor]]. Two years later, he was granted his wish and inducted into the Order by the Mentor himself; Cross subsequently murdered the Mentor with the very hidden blade he had been bequeathed by his victim just moments before, a result of brainwashing instilled in him by Warren Vidic during his time as an Abstergo captive.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Other notable Assassins held captive by Abstergo included the mysterious [[Subject Sixteen]], and [[Desmond Miles]] - descendants of both Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

{{Quote|We lost two more teams last night. That's eight more of us just… gone.|Lucy Stillman, 2012.|Assassin's Creed II}}

Using Desmond, Abstergo managed to obtain a map of the locations of the Pieces of Eden across the globe, and subsequently begun their attempts to claim them. Not long after, the Assassins were able to free Desmond<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> with the aid of [[Lucy Stillman]] (an Assassin who had been working undercover at Abstergo for at least seven years by 2012)<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> as well as obtain their own copy of the map.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> Following this, Desmond agreed to aid the Assassins in their quest to defeat Abstergo, mostly for revenge, but also for closure. Utilizing the [[Animus|Animus 2.0]], a copy of the machine used by Abstergo to explore his genetic memories previously,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Desmond followed the memories of Ezio Auditore, adopting his skills in combat and free-running, while the rest of the Order concentrated to locating the Pieces of Eden before their Templar counterparts. Despite this, however, the war with the Templars had taken a turn for the worse. With their numbers dwindling, the Order of Assassins was in danger of losing the war.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

As technology progressed, so did the weapons used against the Assassins. By 2012, the Templars were using cell phone towers and satellites to track down the Assassins. As a result, Desmond and his group had to take refuge within the [[Sanctuary]], deep beneath the city of [[Monteriggioni]]. By this point the Order was using at least one e-mail network, known as the [[Hephaestus Email Network]], to facilitate communications.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

==Known Assassins==
''See also: [[List of known Assassins]]''
[[File:Zw-renaissance-assassins.png|thumb|300px|Ezio's initiation into the Brotherhood.]]
{{quote|The seeds were planted as two worlds became one. Behold, the Assassins, the children of two worlds!|Subject 16|Assassin's Creed II}}

The Assassins had existed since before the turn of the first millennium; several known figures included [[Darius]], [[Iltani]], [[Wei Yu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]], [[Marcus Junius Brutus]] and their co-conspirators,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Amunet]] and [[Leonius]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Historically however, the fore-bearers of the Assassins have existed since before recorded time, possibly reaching as far back as [[Adam and Eve]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

===Medieval and Renaissance periods===
During the [[Third Crusade]], the Syrian sect of the Order of Assassins was mainly made up of native, Syrian-born individuals; although some, like Altaïr, were born to parents of both religions. Led by [[Al Mualim]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed " /> and later [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] himself,<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> other members included [[Harash]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /> [[Malik A-Sayf|Malik]] and [[Kadar A-Sayf]], [[Rauf]], [[Abbas]], [[Masun]], [[Jamal]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> and [[Qulan Gal]], the death-bringer of [[Genghis Khan]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Allies also included various individuals, such as [[Adha]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles">''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''</ref> and even former Templars like [[Maria Thorpe]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Others included [[Dante Alighieri]] and [[Domenico Auditore]], <ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> founder of the [[Auditore Villa]].

[[File:Vlcsnap-2010-11-12-17h45m54s20.jpg|thumb|274px|Bartolomeo d'Alviano and La Volpe with the Assassin Brotherhood.]]
Later on, during the Renaissance, the Order's numbers had dwindled significantly. Having become much more secretive, members of the Order often had occupations and lives outside of the Order, ranging from artists<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Renaissance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''</ref> to thieves<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> to royal treasurers.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''</ref> They included the Florentine banker [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> his brother [[Mario Auditore]], caretaker of the Auditore Villa and ''[[Mercenary|condottieri]]'' leader; [[Federico Auditore da Firenze]] and his brother [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]; [[Paola]] and [[Teodora]], the heads of the Florentine and Venetian courtesans respectively; [[Antonio]], the head of the Venetian Thieves Guild; [[La Volpe]], the head of the Florentine Thieves Guild; [[Niccolò Machiavelli]], a writer and head of the Florentine Mercenaries; [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> ''condottiero'' of [[Venice]]; [[Perotto Calderon]], undercover in the employ of the Borgia. Others included [[Giovanni Borgia]], the illegitimate son of Calderon and [[Lucrezia Borgia]]; [[Bombastus|Paracelcus]], Swiss scientist and alchemist; [[Francesco Vecellio]], Renaissance painter,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Tessa Varzi]] and [[Cipriano Enu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Rinaldo Vitturi]], the keeper of [[the Shroud]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Ridolfo Fioravant]] and [[Pietro Antonio Solari]], spies working undercover as architects on the [[wikipedia:Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" /> and [[Luis de Santángel]] and [[Raphael Sanchez]], finance minister to Ferdinand II and treasurer of Queen Isabella I respectively.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

Once again, the Order had many allies amongst the common folk of Italy, as well as amongst the nobility. Foremost among them was [[Leonardo da Vinci]], Ezio's closest friend and a genius of invention. Others included [[Caterina Sforza]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì">''[[Battle of Forlì (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì]]''</ref> the Countess of [[Forlì]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Lorenzo de' Medici]], the ruler of Florence;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Agostino Barbarigo]], the Doge of Venice from 1486;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and the famed explorer [[Christoffa Corombo]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

By 1500, Ezio Auditore and Niccolò Machiavelli had begun training new initiates in the Order from their [[Tiber Island|base]] in [[Rome]]. During this time [[Claudia Auditore]], sister of Ezio, also joined the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern Times===
At the turn of the 20<sup>th</sup> Century, the Assassins' Order had spread as far the Russian Empire, with a strong presence in and around [[Petrograd]]. Members of the [[Narodnaya Volya]] were in fact members of the Assassin Order. Some known Assassins include [[Nikolai Orelov]] and [[Aleksandr Ulyanov]], the older brother of [[Vladimir Lenin]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />

[[File:Swap.png|thumb|The Medic and his Target]]During World War I, there was an [[Assassin]] on the western front, an unidentified medic fighting for the British on the front line. The medic assassinated [[Erich Albert]], a German general and member of the Templars.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

During the late 20th and 21<sup>st</sup> Century, however, the Order seemed to have sunk further into hiding, with their numbers fewer than ever.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Although it is evident that more existed, only a few were known to: the mysterious '[[Subject 16]]',[[Desmond Miles| Desmond Miles]], [[Lucy Stillman]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> [[Rebecca Crane]] , [[Shaun Hastings]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Hannah Mueller]], [[Paul Bellamy]], [[Daniel Cross]], [[Bill Miles]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #2">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #2''</ref> and [[William M.]] There were also known groups of Assassins based in São Paulo, Brazil, in Moscow, Russia, in Osaka, Japan and Denver, Colorado, US.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />.

==Known victims==
{{Quote|Find them, kill them. In doing so, you will sow the seeds of peace.|[[Al Mualim]] to Altaïr|Assassin's Creed}}
Over the [[Timeline|centuries]], the Order of Assassins killed hundreds, if not thousands of individuals who they saw to be corrupt in their ways and a danger to humanity. Their intense rivalry with the Templars also ensured that many underlings who served their Templar masters often shared the same fate.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Tamir (Altaïr's Chronicles)|Tamir of Damascus]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Alaat]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Roland Napule]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[The Master's Student]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Master of the Tower]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Harash]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Basilisk|Lord Basilisk]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Tamir|Tamir, the arms dealer]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Garnier de Naplouse]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Talal]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Abu'l Nuqoud]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[William of Montferrat]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Majd Addin]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Jubair al Hakim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Sibrand]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Robert de Sable]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Al Mualim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Frederick the Red]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Moloch]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Dark Oracle]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shalim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shahar]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Pirate captain]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Armand Bouchart]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Uberto Alberti]] in 1476<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Vieri de' Pazzi]] in 1477<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco de' Pazzi]] in 1478<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Stefano da Bagnone]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Bernardo Baroncelli]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Antonio Maffei]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco Salviati]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Jacopo de' Pazzi]] in 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Emilio Barbarigo]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Carlo Grimaldi]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Marco Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Silvio Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Dante Moro]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ludovico Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Checco Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Gaspar Martinez]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Pedro Llorente]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Juan de Marillo]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Girolamo Savonarola]] in 1498<ref>''[[Bonfire of the Vanities (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Bonfire of the Vanities]]''</ref>
*[[Il Carnefice]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Master of the Sacred Palace]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Malfatto]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Silvestro Sabbatini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lanz]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lia de Russo]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Brother Ristoro]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Donato Mancini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Gaspar de la Croix]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Auguste Oberlin]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Juan Borgia the Elder]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Octavian de Valois]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Ercole Massimo]] in 1506<ref name="The Da Vinci Disappearance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'' - ''[[The Da Vinci Disappearance]]''</ref>
*[[Cesare Borgia]] in 1507<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of the known victims of other Assassins:<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Xerxes I of Persia|King Xerxes the Great]], by [[Darius]] in 456 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander the Great]], by [[Iltani]] in 323 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Qin Shi Huang]], by [[Wei Yu]] in 210 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Gaius Julius Caesar]], by various in 44 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Cleopatra]], by [[Amunet]] in 31 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Caligula]], by [[Leonius]] in 41<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Genghis Khan]], by [[Qulan Gal]] in 1227<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Tomás de Torquemada]], in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Perotto Calderon]], by various in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Agostino Barbarigo]], by [[Tessa Varzi]] in 1501<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Margaret of York]], in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Isabella I of Castile]], in 1504<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Niccolò di Pitigliano]], by [[Francesco Vecellio]] in 1510 <ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Francisco Pizzaro]], in 1541<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Mary I of England]], in 1558<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ivan Ivanovich of Russia]], in 1581<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[John Wilkes Booth]], in 1865<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander II of Russia]], in 1881<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Alexander III of Russia]], indirectly by [[Nikolai Orelov]] in 1894<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Grigori Rasputin]], in 1916<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Adolf Hitler]], in 1945<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Joseph Stalin]], in 1953<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[François Duvalier]], in 1971<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

==See also==
*[[The Creed]]

==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Ascendance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lost Legacy]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''

==Notes and references==
[[File:AssassinInformant.png|thumb|right|An Assassin informant.]]
{{reflist}}

{{ACSeries}}
{{ACAC}}
{{AC}}
{{ACBL}}
{{ACII}}
{{ACIID}}
{{ACBrotherhood}}
{{ACLL}}
{{ACTF}}
[[Category:Assassin Order]]
[[Category:Factions]]

Assassins

2011-03-31T01:20:57Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Era|Altair's Chronicles|AC1|Bloodlines|AC2|Discovery|Brotherhood|PL|Renaissance|Bbook|Lineage|Assassins}}
{{WP-REAL|Hashshashin}}
{{Faction Infobox
|name =
|image =498px-AssassinLogo.png
|imgdesc =The emblem of the Assassin Order.
|hideo =
|founder =[[Adam and Eve]]'s descendants<ref name="Assassin's Creed II">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>
|leader =[[The Mentor]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
|headquarters =''Middle ages'':<br>[[Masyaf]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><br>[[Alep]]<br>[[Cyprus]]<br> ''Renaissance'':<br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)]]''</ref><br>[[Tiber Island]], [[Rome]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref><br>''Modern times'':<br>[[wikipedia:Dubai|Dubai]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #3''</ref>
|locations =''Renaissance'':<br>[[Florence]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Venice]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Forlì]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>''Modern times'':<br>Worldwide<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|related =*[[Thugs]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />
*[[Mercenaries]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Courtesans]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Thieves]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[House of Medici]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|religion =
|hideh =
|formed =Pre-history
|reorganised =1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|collapsed =
|hidea =
|notable =*[[Marcus Junius Brutus]]
*[[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]
*[[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]
*[[Nikolai Orelov]]
*[[Daniel Cross]]
*[[Desmond Miles]]
|}}
{{Quote|We work in the light, to serve the dark. We are Bitches.|[[Niccolò Machiavelli]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The '''Assassins''', also known as the '''Assassin Order''', '''Assassin Brotherhood''' and '''Hashshashin''', were an organized order of assassins who fought a continuous secret war with the [[Templars]] for over two-thousand years. Whereas the Templars strove for the power to save humanity from itself by controlling free will, the Assassin Order struggled to ensure the survival of free will, as it is what allows for the progression of new ideas and the growth of individuality.

The Assassins, if not the order itself, had existed since at least 456 BC, throughout the [[wikipedia:Roman Era|Roman era]], the Middle Ages, the [[Renaissance]], and into the [[Modern Times|21<sup>st</sup> Century]].

==The Creed==
{{quote|Laa shay'a waqi'a mutlaq bla kul'un mumkin.<br />("Nothing is true, everything is permitted" in Arabic)''|[[The Creed|The Assassin's Creed]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The order believed in a strong set of values that strictly governed their way of life. This Creed consisted of three [[tenets]]:
#"Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."
#"Hide in plain sight, be one with the crowd."
#"Never compromise the Brotherhood."<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
These tenets permeated every aspect of the Assassins' daily life, as well as their fight for "peace in all things." The Assassins carried out their duties through political, strategic assassination, in the hope that killing one individual would lead to the salvation of thousands. The Assassins believed that they fought on the behalf of those who did not possess the abilities, resources, or knowledge to speak out against those who abused their power.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Despite their service to those who would otherwise suffer, the Assassins were still feared by the general populace, due mainly to their method of ensuring peace. The Assassins were most feared due to their terrifying reputation for taking life in public places, before many witnesses - so as to bring fear into the hearts of those who might abuse their power or corrupt the innocent - before vanishing into the crowd without a trace.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> To aid in this, the Assassins used a particularly efficient weapon for assassinations: the [[Hidden Blade]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> a single thrust from which could end the life of its victim.

However, in order to ascertain which death might best assist the Assassins' goals, extensive political knowledge was a must have. Thus, the Assassins endeavored to remain in tune with the ever-changing politics surrounding them. Obtaining information on this was the job of low-level members of the Order, who would be stationed throughout the cities of the world. These [[Informants|spies]] would watch the local nobles and rulers, looking for signs of corruption, or for membership in the Templars. Once gathered, any information was passed on to the Assassins responsible for the actual execution.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

[[File:AssassinGuard.png|thumb|200px|left|Rauf, a combat instructor, wearing similar robes to other high ranked Assassin guards in Masyaf.]]

===Training===
The Assassins spent their entire lifetime training to kill.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> From an early age, they were taught to observe their surroundings and plan ahead. Combat skills were essential, and its training was continuous, with a focus on bladed weapons of all sorts. However, despite such a concentration on combat, the most important consideration in the Assassins' training was concealment. Stealth was the greatest weapon of the Assassin, and everything about their life (the clothes they wore, where they lived, and even how they walked) emphasized a devotion to it.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> It was essential for an Assassin to be able to reach their target unnoticed, and then slip back into the crowd after they had struck.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />.

Another significant focus of an Assassins' training was maneuverability. By the time an Assassin reached the [[Ranks|rank]] of [[Master Assassin]], he was also a master of an early form of [[Free-Running|parkour]], extensively utilized by the Assassins. Widely seen as alien by the general populace, this method of movement allowed the Assassins to reach areas not normally accessible to man. From scaling a wall, to climbing to one of a city's many [[view point]]s, [[Free Running]] gave the Assassins a significant advantage over nearly all their enemies and city [[Guards|guards]] and can be used to get anywhere in the city at any time.

==History==
===Middle Ages===
[[File:Almualimassassins.png|thumb|250px|Al Mualim and the Assassins in the fortress of Masyaf.]]
In 1191, during the [[Third Crusade]], the [[Syria]]n branch of the Assassin Order was centered in the fortress of [[Masyaf]], deep within the kingdom of the [[wikipedia:Holy Land|Holy Land]]. Led by [[Al Mualim]], the Assassins battled with the [[Templars]] and their leader, [[Robert de Sable]], over ideologies and the means with which to accomplish them. It was during the Third Crusade that the Assassins learned of a Templar interest in an [[Sixth Apple|ancient artifact]], hidden within the catacombs of [[Solomon's Temple]]. It was decided to liberate the treasure from them, and the mission was a success, although a costly one. With the death of [[Kadar A-Sayf|one Assassin]], the severe injury of [[Malik A-Sayf|another]], and the arrival of the Templar army at the gates of Masyaf, the Assassins were nearly overwhelmed by the [[Siege of Masyaf|following battle]]. However, by crushing most of the Templar army under a concealed onslaught of rolling logs, they were able to drive the Templars from the fortress and village below.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Following the assault, the Assassin blamed for the loss of life that day – [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] – was severely reprimanded, and tasked with removing nine influential individuals, who plagued the Holy Land with their corrupt rule. As Altaïr made his way down the list made up of both [[Crusader]] and [[Saracen]] individuals, he was greatly unsettled by the realization that their goal to bring peace to the people of the Holy Land was just, as he that felt his victims were "misguided perhaps, but pure in motive." This was a view shared by Al Mualim, who agreed with their goals, but felt that their attitude of "the end justifies the means" undermined the good they sought to ensure. As his mission progressed, Altaïr sought to know what bound his victims together, and the discovery that they were all Templars only served to reinforce the Assassin's determination to bring an end to the Templar plot.

By the end of the year, the Assassins were victorious over their Templar enemies. [[Robert de Sable]], [[Grand Master of the Templar Order]], was dead, however the treachery of one of their own had also hit the Assassin Order hard. Al Mualim, [[Grand Master of the Assassin Order]], and a former member of a coalition of ''ten'' Templar leaders, was revealed to be a traitor, and was killed by the very man he had sent to eliminate his fellow Templar conspirators. With Al Mualim dead, Altaïr took over as Grand Master of the Order, leading the Assassins in their attempts to rebuild their strength after the costly conflict.

Eventually, it was decided that the [[Pieces of Eden|Piece of Eden]] was too great a threat to keep in Masyaf, and the decision was made to store it on the island of [[Cyprus]], in the [[Templar Archive|Limassol archives]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines">''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''</ref> However, following the liberation of the island from its Templar rulers, the Piece was kept by Altaïr until he had at least completed his fabled [[Codex]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>

===Renaissance===
{{Quote|In this modern age, we are not as literal as our ancestors; but our seal is no less permanent…|Mario Auditore|Assassin's Creed II}}
[[File:Asslogorenaissance.png|thumb|left|Renaissance variation of the Assassins' emblem.]]
The Order continued to thrive, despite being forced to adopt an even more secretive and isolated existence. During the time period known as the [[Renaissance]], the Assassin Order had apparently "gone underground." The reason for this is explained inside the Codex pages, where Altaïr states that even though the Templar Order was served a crushing defeat in the Holy Land and Cyprus, they still survived in more inconspicuous ways. As such, Altaïr believed that the Assassins too had to change tactics so as to live on.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Having abandoned the fortress of Masyaf, the Assassins spread out across the [[wikipedia:Mediterranean|Mediterranean]], taking up residence in places like northern [[Italy]] and [[Spain]]. However, the Templars too had done as much, headquartering themselves in [[Rome]]. By 1321, the Assassin Order had successfully integrated itself into modern day life of northern Italy, widely unknown to the average folk. That same year, a young sailor by the name of [[Domenico Auditore|Domenico]], the son of an Assassin, was apprenticed to the poet and Assassin [[Dante Alighieri]], who had been tasked with transporting the Codex of Altaïr from [[Venice]] to Spain.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt">''[[Auditore Family Crypt|Uplay Content - Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Family Crypt]]''</ref> Upon his death, however, the undertaking fell instead to Domenico. During the voyage, pirates under the employ of the Templars ambushed the ship looking for the Codex, consequently killing the wife of Domenico. Fortunately for the Assassins, Domenico managed to break apart the Codex and hide its pages from the pirates before he and his son were forced overboard.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

Eventually returning to Venice, Domenico found his father and his patron, [[Marco Polo]], an ally of the Assassins, dead. Thus, Domenico emptied the bank accounts of Messer Polo, and traveled to the city of [[Florence]] under the assumed name of [[House of Auditore|Auditore]]. He eventually constructed the [[Auditore Family Villa|Auditore Villa]] in the city of [[Monteriggioni]], which became the center of the Assassin Order in Italy.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

[[File:Assassins1503E3.png|thumb|350px|Ezio and his apprentices, facing Cesare and Rodrigo Borgia in Rome in 1503.]]
Despite the order "modernizing" since the 12<sup>th</sup> Century, they still retained many of the rituals and practices, albeit altered. The practice of removing one's ring finger had been stopped, although the seal of the Order was branded upon the finger instead; such was the induction of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio Auditore]] in 1487. Although significantly fewer in number, the Assassins were supported by the [[courtesans]], [[thieves]] and [[Mercenary|condottieri]] of Florence and Venice; the guilds of which were each run by a member of the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

During this time period, the Assassins entered another period of increased hostilities with the Templars, who were attempting to overthrow the ruling [[House of Medici]] in Florence, and the [[wikipedia:Doge|Doge]] of Venice. Having already killed the [[Galeazzo Maria Sforza|Duke]] of [[Milano|Milan]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage">''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''</ref> in 1476, [[Rodrigo Borgia]], the Grand Master of the Templar Order, brought the noble families of [[House of Pazzi|Pazzi]], [[House of Barbarigo|Barbarigo]] and [[House of Orsi|Orsi]] together<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /> to accomplish his goals. Entering into conflict with the Assassins, Borgia dealt a crippling blow to the Order in 1476, when he executed the experienced warrior [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze|Giovanni Auditore]] and his two sons, [[Federico Auditore da Firenze|Federico]] and [[Petruccio Auditore da Firenze|Petruccio]], although a third son, Ezio, managed to escape. With the aid of Ezio, the Assassins were able to counter Borgia's plot over a [[Assassin's Creed II|twenty-three year campaign]], defeating him at every turn.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

In 1487, the Order of Assassins learned that the Templars had retrieved an important artifact from the island of Cyprus, and deemed its capture necessary. Following the artifact from [[L'Arsenale di Venezia]], Ezio managed to overpower and replace the Templar guard carrying the artifact. Under this guise, Ezio met with Borgia himself, and the two engaged in battle. Borgia fled upon the arrival of other Assassins, and the artifact fell once again into the hands of the Assassins. The Assassins of this age, however, were unaware of the nature of the artifact, although they did recognize it as one of the Pieces of Eden mentioned within Altaïr's Codex.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

[[File:Romaassassins.png|thumb|300px|left|The Assassins in Rome.]]
By 1500, right after [[Cesare Borgia]] [[Fall of Monteriggioni|besieged]] the city of [[Monteriggioni]], murdering [[Mario Auditore]] and once again claiming ''the Apple'' for the Templars, Ezio Auditore had moved to Rome, meeting up with Niccolò Machiavelli and laying the foundations of a new "brotherhood" of Assassins. Utilizing the mercenaries, thieves and courtesans of [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]], [[La Volpe]] and [[Claudia Auditore da Firenze|Claudia Auditore]] respectively, Ezio's brotherhood worked to [[Liberation of Roma|combat the influence and power]] of the Borgia family, and by extension the Papacy itself. Headquartered in an underground store-room owned by [[Fabio Orsini]], on [[Tiber Island]] in the center of Rome, the Assassins begun to spread their influence throughout the city, recruiting those who had been saved by Ezio Auditore. Many undertook a variety of missions across Europe, aiding their brothers in cities such as London, Lisbon, Moscow and Calicut.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

Over a period of three years, Ezio's brotherhood whittled away the Borgia family's power, and with the murder of Rodrigo Borgia at the hands of his own son, and the arrest of Cesare by the [[Papal Guard]] of Julius II, the Templars' influence over the city of Rome was shattered.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern times===
{{Quote|In the old days, that usually meant killing anyone who became too powerful or greedy. ''[…]'' These days, it means subversion of established regimes. ''[…]'' Countries. Corporations. We change the system from within.|[[The Mentor (2000)|"The Mentor"]], in 2000, on the Assassin Order|Assassin's Creed: The Fall}}

By the 21<sup>st</sup> Century, the tactics and practices of the Assassin Order had changed greatly.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Whilst the Order of Assassins had kept to their policy of remote camps and isolation,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> the Templars had begun to infiltrate society further; taking the form of many corporations such as [[NASA]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and [[Abstergo]]. The Assassins relied less upon killing powerful or greedy individuals, and more on changing the "established regime" from within, using politics as well as the blade to achieve their aims. Indeed, by the year 2000, the hidden blade had become a largely ceremonial weapon.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> In the meantime however, the Templars continued to search for and investigate the various Pieces of Eden they discovered throughout this period,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> whilst the Assassins continued their war against them; notably being responsible for the destruction of at least one Templar-controlled base in [[wikipedia:Siberia|Siberia]] in 1908, known in public as the [[Tunguska explosion]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> However, by the year 1985, the Templars, under the guise of their front company [[Abstergo Industries]], had begun kidnapping Assassins or those related to them in an attempt to locate even more Pieces of Eden.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

That same year, the child [[Daniel Cross]], a descendant of the Assassin [[Nikolai Orelov]] was kidnapped by Abstergo's [[Lineage Research and Acquisition|Lineage Research and Acquisition department]] and entered into the [[Animus project]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #1''</ref> Years later, in 1998, Daniel joined the Order as a prospective, but with a mission to find then-current [[The Mentor (2000)|Mentor]]. Two years later, he was granted his wish and inducted into the Order by the Mentor himself; Cross subsequently murdered the Mentor with the very hidden blade he had been bequeathed by his victim just moments before, a result of brainwashing instilled in him by Warren Vidic during his time as an Abstergo captive.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Other notable Assassins held captive by Abstergo included the mysterious [[Subject Sixteen]], and [[Desmond Miles]] - descendants of both Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

{{Quote|We lost two more teams last night. That's eight more of us just… gone.|Lucy Stillman, 2012.|Assassin's Creed II}}

Using Desmond, Abstergo managed to obtain a map of the locations of the Pieces of Eden across the globe, and subsequently begun their attempts to claim them. Not long after, the Assassins were able to free Desmond<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> with the aid of [[Lucy Stillman]] (an Assassin who had been working undercover at Abstergo for at least seven years by 2012)<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> as well as obtain their own copy of the map.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> Following this, Desmond agreed to aid the Assassins in their quest to defeat Abstergo, mostly for revenge, but also for closure. Utilizing the [[Animus|Animus 2.0]], a copy of the machine used by Abstergo to explore his genetic memories previously,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Desmond followed the memories of Ezio Auditore, adopting his skills in combat and free-running, while the rest of the Order concentrated to locating the Pieces of Eden before their Templar counterparts. Despite this, however, the war with the Templars had taken a turn for the worse. With their numbers dwindling, the Order of Assassins was in danger of losing the war.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

As technology progressed, so did the weapons used against the Assassins. By 2012, the Templars were using cell phone towers and satellites to track down the Assassins. As a result, Desmond and his group had to take refuge within the [[Sanctuary]], deep beneath the city of [[Monteriggioni]]. By this point the Order was using at least one e-mail network, known as the [[Hephaestus Email Network]], to facilitate communications.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

==Known Assassins==
''See also: [[List of known Assassins]]''
[[File:Zw-renaissance-assassins.png|thumb|300px|Ezio's initiation into the Brotherhood.]]
{{quote|The seeds were planted as two worlds became one. Behold, the Assassins, the children of two worlds!|Subject 16|Assassin's Creed II}}

The Assassins had existed since before the turn of the first millennium; several known figures included [[Darius]], [[Iltani]], [[Wei Yu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]], [[Marcus Junius Brutus]] and their co-conspirators,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Amunet]] and [[Leonius]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Historically however, the fore-bearers of the Assassins have existed since before recorded time, possibly reaching as far back as [[Adam and Eve]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

===Medieval and Renaissance periods===
During the [[Third Crusade]], the Syrian sect of the Order of Assassins was mainly made up of native, Syrian-born individuals; although some, like Altaïr, were born to parents of both religions. Led by [[Al Mualim]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed " /> and later [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] himself,<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> other members included [[Harash]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /> [[Malik A-Sayf|Malik]] and [[Kadar A-Sayf]], [[Rauf]], [[Abbas]], [[Masun]], [[Jamal]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> and [[Qulan Gal]], the death-bringer of [[Genghis Khan]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Allies also included various individuals, such as [[Adha]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles">''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''</ref> and even former Templars like [[Maria Thorpe]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Others included [[Dante Alighieri]] and [[Domenico Auditore]], <ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> founder of the [[Auditore Villa]].

[[File:Vlcsnap-2010-11-12-17h45m54s20.jpg|thumb|274px|Bartolomeo d'Alviano and La Volpe with the Assassin Brotherhood.]]
Later on, during the Renaissance, the Order's numbers had dwindled significantly. Having become much more secretive, members of the Order often had occupations and lives outside of the Order, ranging from artists<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Renaissance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''</ref> to thieves<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> to royal treasurers.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''</ref> They included the Florentine banker [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> his brother [[Mario Auditore]], caretaker of the Auditore Villa and ''[[Mercenary|condottieri]]'' leader; [[Federico Auditore da Firenze]] and his brother [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]; [[Paola]] and [[Teodora]], the heads of the Florentine and Venetian courtesans respectively; [[Antonio]], the head of the Venetian Thieves Guild; [[La Volpe]], the head of the Florentine Thieves Guild; [[Niccolò Machiavelli]], a writer and head of the Florentine Mercenaries; [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> ''condottiero'' of [[Venice]]; [[Perotto Calderon]], undercover in the employ of the Borgia. Others included [[Giovanni Borgia]], the illegitimate son of Calderon and [[Lucrezia Borgia]]; [[Bombastus|Paracelcus]], Swiss scientist and alchemist; [[Francesco Vecellio]], Renaissance painter,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Tessa Varzi]] and [[Cipriano Enu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Rinaldo Vitturi]], the keeper of [[the Shroud]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Ridolfo Fioravant]] and [[Pietro Antonio Solari]], spies working undercover as architects on the [[wikipedia:Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" /> and [[Luis de Santángel]] and [[Raphael Sanchez]], finance minister to Ferdinand II and treasurer of Queen Isabella I respectively.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

Once again, the Order had many allies amongst the common folk of Italy, as well as amongst the nobility. Foremost among them was [[Leonardo da Vinci]], Ezio's closest friend and a genius of invention. Others included [[Caterina Sforza]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì">''[[Battle of Forlì (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì]]''</ref> the Countess of [[Forlì]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Lorenzo de' Medici]], the ruler of Florence;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Agostino Barbarigo]], the Doge of Venice from 1486;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and the famed explorer [[Christoffa Corombo]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

By 1500, Ezio Auditore and Niccolò Machiavelli had begun training new initiates in the Order from their [[Tiber Island|base]] in [[Rome]]. During this time [[Claudia Auditore]], sister of Ezio, also joined the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern Times===
At the turn of the 20<sup>th</sup> Century, the Assassins' Order had spread as far the Russian Empire, with a strong presence in and around [[Petrograd]]. Members of the [[Narodnaya Volya]] were in fact members of the Assassin Order. Some known Assassins include [[Nikolai Orelov]] and [[Aleksandr Ulyanov]], the older brother of [[Vladimir Lenin]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />

[[File:Swap.png|thumb|The Medic and his Target]]During World War I, there was an [[Assassin]] on the western front, an unidentified medic fighting for the British on the front line. The medic assassinated [[Erich Albert]], a German general and member of the Templars.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

During the late 20th and 21<sup>st</sup> Century, however, the Order seemed to have sunk further into hiding, with their numbers fewer than ever.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Although it is evident that more existed, only a few were known to: the mysterious '[[Subject 16]]',[[Desmond Miles| Desmond Miles]], [[Lucy Stillman]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> [[Rebecca Crane]] , [[Shaun Hastings]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Hannah Mueller]], [[Paul Bellamy]], [[Daniel Cross]], [[Bill Miles]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #2">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #2''</ref> and [[William M.]] There were also known groups of Assassins based in São Paulo, Brazil, in Moscow, Russia, in Osaka, Japan and Denver, Colorado, US.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />.

==Known victims==
{{Quote|Find them, kill them. In doing so, you will sow the seeds of peace.|[[Al Mualim]] to Altaïr|Assassin's Creed}}
Over the [[Timeline|centuries]], the Order of Assassins killed hundreds, if not thousands of individuals who they saw to be corrupt in their ways and a danger to humanity. Their intense rivalry with the Templars also ensured that many underlings who served their Templar masters often shared the same fate.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Tamir (Altaïr's Chronicles)|Tamir of Damascus]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Alaat]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Roland Napule]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[The Master's Student]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Master of the Tower]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Harash]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Basilisk|Lord Basilisk]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Tamir|Tamir, the arms dealer]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Garnier de Naplouse]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Talal]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Abu'l Nuqoud]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[William of Montferrat]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Majd Addin]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Jubair al Hakim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Sibrand]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Robert de Sable]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Al Mualim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Frederick the Red]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Moloch]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Dark Oracle]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shalim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shahar]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Pirate captain]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Armand Bouchart]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Uberto Alberti]] in 1476<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Vieri de' Pazzi]] in 1477<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco de' Pazzi]] in 1478<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Stefano da Bagnone]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Bernardo Baroncelli]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Antonio Maffei]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco Salviati]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Jacopo de' Pazzi]] in 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Emilio Barbarigo]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Carlo Grimaldi]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Marco Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Silvio Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Dante Moro]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ludovico Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Checco Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Gaspar Martinez]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Pedro Llorente]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Juan de Marillo]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Girolamo Savonarola]] in 1498<ref>''[[Bonfire of the Vanities (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Bonfire of the Vanities]]''</ref>
*[[Il Carnefice]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Master of the Sacred Palace]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Malfatto]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Silvestro Sabbatini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lanz]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lia de Russo]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Brother Ristoro]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Donato Mancini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Gaspar de la Croix]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Auguste Oberlin]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Juan Borgia the Elder]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Octavian de Valois]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Ercole Massimo]] in 1506<ref name="The Da Vinci Disappearance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'' - ''[[The Da Vinci Disappearance]]''</ref>
*[[Cesare Borgia]] in 1507<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of the known victims of other Assassins:<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Xerxes I of Persia|King Xerxes the Great]], by [[Darius]] in 456 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander the Great]], by [[Iltani]] in 323 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Qin Shi Huang]], by [[Wei Yu]] in 210 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Gaius Julius Caesar]], by various in 44 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Cleopatra]], by [[Amunet]] in 31 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Caligula]], by [[Leonius]] in 41<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Genghis Khan]], by [[Qulan Gal]] in 1227<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Tomás de Torquemada]], in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Perotto Calderon]], by various in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Agostino Barbarigo]], by [[Tessa Varzi]] in 1501<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Margaret of York]], in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Isabella I of Castile]], in 1504<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Niccolò di Pitigliano]], by [[Francesco Vecellio]] in 1510 <ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Francisco Pizzaro]], in 1541<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Mary I of England]], in 1558<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ivan Ivanovich of Russia]], in 1581<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[John Wilkes Booth]], in 1865<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander II of Russia]], in 1881<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Alexander III of Russia]], indirectly by [[Nikolai Orelov]] in 1894<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Grigori Rasputin]], in 1916<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Adolf Hitler]], in 1945<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Joseph Stalin]], in 1953<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[François Duvalier]], in 1971<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

==See also==
*[[The Creed]]

==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Ascendance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lost Legacy]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''

==Notes and references==
[[File:AssassinInformant.png|thumb|right|An Assassin informant.]]
{{reflist}}

{{ACSeries}}
{{ACAC}}
{{AC}}
{{ACBL}}
{{ACII}}
{{ACIID}}
{{ACBrotherhood}}
{{ACLL}}
{{ACTF}}
[[Category:Assassin Order]]
[[Category:Factions]]

Assassins

2011-03-31T01:19:26Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Era|Altair's Chronicles|AC1|Bloodlines|AC2|Discovery|Brotherhood|PL|Renaissance|Bbook|Lineage|Assassins}}
{{WP-REAL|Hashshashin}}
{{Faction Infobox
|name =
|image =498px-AssassinLogo.png
|imgdesc =The emblem of the Assassin Order.
|hideo =
|founder =[[Adam and Eve]]'s descendants<ref name="Assassin's Creed II">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>
|leader =[[The Mentor]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
|headquarters =''Middle ages'':<br>[[Masyaf]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><br>[[Alep]]<br>[[Cyprus]]<br> ''Renaissance'':<br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel)]]''</ref><br>[[Tiber Island]], [[Rome]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref><br>''Modern times'':<br>[[wikipedia:Dubai|Dubai]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #3''</ref>
|locations =''Renaissance'':<br>[[Florence]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Monteriggioni]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Venice]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>[[Forlì]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><br>''Modern times'':<br>Worldwide<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|related =*[[Thugs]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />
*[[Mercenaries]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Courtesans]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Thieves]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[House of Medici]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|religion =
|hideh =
|formed =Pre-history
|reorganised =1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
|collapsed =
|hidea =
|notable =*[[Marcus Junius Brutus]]
*[[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]
*[[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]
*[[Nikolai Orelov]]
*[[Daniel Cross]]
*[[Desmond Miles]]
|}}
{{Quote|We work in the light, to serve the dark. We are Assassins.|[[Niccolò Machiavelli]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The '''Assassins''', also known as the '''Assassin Order''', '''Assassin Brotherhood''' and '''Hashshashin''', were an organized order of assassins who fought a continuous secret war with the [[Templars]] for over two-thousand years. Whereas the Templars strove for the power to save humanity from itself by controlling free will, the Assassin Order struggled to ensure the survival of free will, as it is what allows for the progression of new ideas and the growth of individuality.

The Assassins, if not the order itself, had existed since at least 456 BC, throughout the [[wikipedia:Roman Era|Roman era]], the Middle Ages, the [[Renaissance]], and into the [[Modern Times|21<sup>st</sup> Century]].

==The Creed==
{{quote|Laa shay'a waqi'a mutlaq bla kul'un mumkin.<br />("Nothing is true, everything is permitted" in Arabic)''|[[The Creed|The Assassin's Creed]]|Assassin's Creed II}}
The order believed in a strong set of values that strictly governed their way of life. This Creed consisted of three [[tenets]]:
#"Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."
#"Hide in plain sight, be one with the crowd."
#"Never compromise the Brotherhood."<ref name="Assassin's Creed">''[[Assassin's Creed]]''</ref>
These tenets permeated every aspect of the Assassins' daily life, as well as their fight for "peace in all things." The Assassins carried out their duties through political, strategic assassination, in the hope that killing one individual would lead to the salvation of thousands. The Assassins believed that they fought on the behalf of those who did not possess the abilities, resources, or knowledge to speak out against those who abused their power.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Despite their service to those who would otherwise suffer, the Assassins were still feared by the general populace, due mainly to their method of ensuring peace. The Assassins were most feared due to their terrifying reputation for taking life in public places, before many witnesses - so as to bring fear into the hearts of those who might abuse their power or corrupt the innocent - before vanishing into the crowd without a trace.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> To aid in this, the Assassins used a particularly efficient weapon for assassinations: the [[Hidden Blade]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> a single thrust from which could end the life of its victim.

However, in order to ascertain which death might best assist the Assassins' goals, extensive political knowledge was a must have. Thus, the Assassins endeavored to remain in tune with the ever-changing politics surrounding them. Obtaining information on this was the job of low-level members of the Order, who would be stationed throughout the cities of the world. These [[Informants|spies]] would watch the local nobles and rulers, looking for signs of corruption, or for membership in the Templars. Once gathered, any information was passed on to the Assassins responsible for the actual execution.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

[[File:AssassinGuard.png|thumb|200px|left|Rauf, a combat instructor, wearing similar robes to other high ranked Assassin guards in Masyaf.]]

===Training===
The Assassins spent their entire lifetime training to kill.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> From an early age, they were taught to observe their surroundings and plan ahead. Combat skills were essential, and its training was continuous, with a focus on bladed weapons of all sorts. However, despite such a concentration on combat, the most important consideration in the Assassins' training was concealment. Stealth was the greatest weapon of the Assassin, and everything about their life (the clothes they wore, where they lived, and even how they walked) emphasized a devotion to it.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> It was essential for an Assassin to be able to reach their target unnoticed, and then slip back into the crowd after they had struck.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />.

Another significant focus of an Assassins' training was maneuverability. By the time an Assassin reached the [[Ranks|rank]] of [[Master Assassin]], he was also a master of an early form of [[Free-Running|parkour]], extensively utilized by the Assassins. Widely seen as alien by the general populace, this method of movement allowed the Assassins to reach areas not normally accessible to man. From scaling a wall, to climbing to one of a city's many [[view point]]s, [[Free Running]] gave the Assassins a significant advantage over nearly all their enemies and city [[Guards|guards]] and can be used to get anywhere in the city at any time.

==History==
===Middle Ages===
[[File:Almualimassassins.png|thumb|250px|Al Mualim and the Assassins in the fortress of Masyaf.]]
In 1191, during the [[Third Crusade]], the [[Syria]]n branch of the Assassin Order was centered in the fortress of [[Masyaf]], deep within the kingdom of the [[wikipedia:Holy Land|Holy Land]]. Led by [[Al Mualim]], the Assassins battled with the [[Templars]] and their leader, [[Robert de Sable]], over ideologies and the means with which to accomplish them. It was during the Third Crusade that the Assassins learned of a Templar interest in an [[Sixth Apple|ancient artifact]], hidden within the catacombs of [[Solomon's Temple]]. It was decided to liberate the treasure from them, and the mission was a success, although a costly one. With the death of [[Kadar A-Sayf|one Assassin]], the severe injury of [[Malik A-Sayf|another]], and the arrival of the Templar army at the gates of Masyaf, the Assassins were nearly overwhelmed by the [[Siege of Masyaf|following battle]]. However, by crushing most of the Templar army under a concealed onslaught of rolling logs, they were able to drive the Templars from the fortress and village below.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Following the assault, the Assassin blamed for the loss of life that day – [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] – was severely reprimanded, and tasked with removing nine influential individuals, who plagued the Holy Land with their corrupt rule. As Altaïr made his way down the list made up of both [[Crusader]] and [[Saracen]] individuals, he was greatly unsettled by the realization that their goal to bring peace to the people of the Holy Land was just, as he that felt his victims were "misguided perhaps, but pure in motive." This was a view shared by Al Mualim, who agreed with their goals, but felt that their attitude of "the end justifies the means" undermined the good they sought to ensure. As his mission progressed, Altaïr sought to know what bound his victims together, and the discovery that they were all Templars only served to reinforce the Assassin's determination to bring an end to the Templar plot.

By the end of the year, the Assassins were victorious over their Templar enemies. [[Robert de Sable]], [[Grand Master of the Templar Order]], was dead, however the treachery of one of their own had also hit the Assassin Order hard. Al Mualim, [[Grand Master of the Assassin Order]], and a former member of a coalition of ''ten'' Templar leaders, was revealed to be a traitor, and was killed by the very man he had sent to eliminate his fellow Templar conspirators. With Al Mualim dead, Altaïr took over as Grand Master of the Order, leading the Assassins in their attempts to rebuild their strength after the costly conflict.

Eventually, it was decided that the [[Pieces of Eden|Piece of Eden]] was too great a threat to keep in Masyaf, and the decision was made to store it on the island of [[Cyprus]], in the [[Templar Archive|Limassol archives]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines">''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''</ref> However, following the liberation of the island from its Templar rulers, the Piece was kept by Altaïr until he had at least completed his fabled [[Codex]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>

===Renaissance===
{{Quote|In this modern age, we are not as literal as our ancestors; but our seal is no less permanent…|Mario Auditore|Assassin's Creed II}}
[[File:Asslogorenaissance.png|thumb|left|Renaissance variation of the Assassins' emblem.]]
The Order continued to thrive, despite being forced to adopt an even more secretive and isolated existence. During the time period known as the [[Renaissance]], the Assassin Order had apparently "gone underground." The reason for this is explained inside the Codex pages, where Altaïr states that even though the Templar Order was served a crushing defeat in the Holy Land and Cyprus, they still survived in more inconspicuous ways. As such, Altaïr believed that the Assassins too had to change tactics so as to live on.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

Having abandoned the fortress of Masyaf, the Assassins spread out across the [[wikipedia:Mediterranean|Mediterranean]], taking up residence in places like northern [[Italy]] and [[Spain]]. However, the Templars too had done as much, headquartering themselves in [[Rome]]. By 1321, the Assassin Order had successfully integrated itself into modern day life of northern Italy, widely unknown to the average folk. That same year, a young sailor by the name of [[Domenico Auditore|Domenico]], the son of an Assassin, was apprenticed to the poet and Assassin [[Dante Alighieri]], who had been tasked with transporting the Codex of Altaïr from [[Venice]] to Spain.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt">''[[Auditore Family Crypt|Uplay Content - Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Family Crypt]]''</ref> Upon his death, however, the undertaking fell instead to Domenico. During the voyage, pirates under the employ of the Templars ambushed the ship looking for the Codex, consequently killing the wife of Domenico. Fortunately for the Assassins, Domenico managed to break apart the Codex and hide its pages from the pirates before he and his son were forced overboard.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

Eventually returning to Venice, Domenico found his father and his patron, [[Marco Polo]], an ally of the Assassins, dead. Thus, Domenico emptied the bank accounts of Messer Polo, and traveled to the city of [[Florence]] under the assumed name of [[House of Auditore|Auditore]]. He eventually constructed the [[Auditore Family Villa|Auditore Villa]] in the city of [[Monteriggioni]], which became the center of the Assassin Order in Italy.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Auditore Crypt" />

[[File:Assassins1503E3.png|thumb|350px|Ezio and his apprentices, facing Cesare and Rodrigo Borgia in Rome in 1503.]]
Despite the order "modernizing" since the 12<sup>th</sup> Century, they still retained many of the rituals and practices, albeit altered. The practice of removing one's ring finger had been stopped, although the seal of the Order was branded upon the finger instead; such was the induction of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio Auditore]] in 1487. Although significantly fewer in number, the Assassins were supported by the [[courtesans]], [[thieves]] and [[Mercenary|condottieri]] of Florence and Venice; the guilds of which were each run by a member of the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

During this time period, the Assassins entered another period of increased hostilities with the Templars, who were attempting to overthrow the ruling [[House of Medici]] in Florence, and the [[wikipedia:Doge|Doge]] of Venice. Having already killed the [[Galeazzo Maria Sforza|Duke]] of [[Milano|Milan]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage">''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''</ref> in 1476, [[Rodrigo Borgia]], the Grand Master of the Templar Order, brought the noble families of [[House of Pazzi|Pazzi]], [[House of Barbarigo|Barbarigo]] and [[House of Orsi|Orsi]] together<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /> to accomplish his goals. Entering into conflict with the Assassins, Borgia dealt a crippling blow to the Order in 1476, when he executed the experienced warrior [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze|Giovanni Auditore]] and his two sons, [[Federico Auditore da Firenze|Federico]] and [[Petruccio Auditore da Firenze|Petruccio]], although a third son, Ezio, managed to escape. With the aid of Ezio, the Assassins were able to counter Borgia's plot over a [[Assassin's Creed II|twenty-three year campaign]], defeating him at every turn.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

In 1487, the Order of Assassins learned that the Templars had retrieved an important artifact from the island of Cyprus, and deemed its capture necessary. Following the artifact from [[L'Arsenale di Venezia]], Ezio managed to overpower and replace the Templar guard carrying the artifact. Under this guise, Ezio met with Borgia himself, and the two engaged in battle. Borgia fled upon the arrival of other Assassins, and the artifact fell once again into the hands of the Assassins. The Assassins of this age, however, were unaware of the nature of the artifact, although they did recognize it as one of the Pieces of Eden mentioned within Altaïr's Codex.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

[[File:Romaassassins.png|thumb|300px|left|The Assassins in Rome.]]
By 1500, right after [[Cesare Borgia]] [[Fall of Monteriggioni|besieged]] the city of [[Monteriggioni]], murdering [[Mario Auditore]] and once again claiming ''the Apple'' for the Templars, Ezio Auditore had moved to Rome, meeting up with Niccolò Machiavelli and laying the foundations of a new "brotherhood" of Assassins. Utilizing the mercenaries, thieves and courtesans of [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]], [[La Volpe]] and [[Claudia Auditore da Firenze|Claudia Auditore]] respectively, Ezio's brotherhood worked to [[Liberation of Roma|combat the influence and power]] of the Borgia family, and by extension the Papacy itself. Headquartered in an underground store-room owned by [[Fabio Orsini]], on [[Tiber Island]] in the center of Rome, the Assassins begun to spread their influence throughout the city, recruiting those who had been saved by Ezio Auditore. Many undertook a variety of missions across Europe, aiding their brothers in cities such as London, Lisbon, Moscow and Calicut.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

Over a period of three years, Ezio's brotherhood whittled away the Borgia family's power, and with the murder of Rodrigo Borgia at the hands of his own son, and the arrest of Cesare by the [[Papal Guard]] of Julius II, the Templars' influence over the city of Rome was shattered.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern times===
{{Quote|In the old days, that usually meant killing anyone who became too powerful or greedy. ''[…]'' These days, it means subversion of established regimes. ''[…]'' Countries. Corporations. We change the system from within.|[[The Mentor (2000)|"The Mentor"]], in 2000, on the Assassin Order|Assassin's Creed: The Fall}}

By the 21<sup>st</sup> Century, the tactics and practices of the Assassin Order had changed greatly.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Whilst the Order of Assassins had kept to their policy of remote camps and isolation,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> the Templars had begun to infiltrate society further; taking the form of many corporations such as [[NASA]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and [[Abstergo]]. The Assassins relied less upon killing powerful or greedy individuals, and more on changing the "established regime" from within, using politics as well as the blade to achieve their aims. Indeed, by the year 2000, the hidden blade had become a largely ceremonial weapon.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> In the meantime however, the Templars continued to search for and investigate the various Pieces of Eden they discovered throughout this period,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> whilst the Assassins continued their war against them; notably being responsible for the destruction of at least one Templar-controlled base in [[wikipedia:Siberia|Siberia]] in 1908, known in public as the [[Tunguska explosion]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> However, by the year 1985, the Templars, under the guise of their front company [[Abstergo Industries]], had begun kidnapping Assassins or those related to them in an attempt to locate even more Pieces of Eden.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

That same year, the child [[Daniel Cross]], a descendant of the Assassin [[Nikolai Orelov]] was kidnapped by Abstergo's [[Lineage Research and Acquisition|Lineage Research and Acquisition department]] and entered into the [[Animus project]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #1''</ref> Years later, in 1998, Daniel joined the Order as a prospective, but with a mission to find then-current [[The Mentor (2000)|Mentor]]. Two years later, he was granted his wish and inducted into the Order by the Mentor himself; Cross subsequently murdered the Mentor with the very hidden blade he had been bequeathed by his victim just moments before, a result of brainwashing instilled in him by Warren Vidic during his time as an Abstergo captive.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #3" /> Other notable Assassins held captive by Abstergo included the mysterious [[Subject Sixteen]], and [[Desmond Miles]] - descendants of both Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" />

{{Quote|We lost two more teams last night. That's eight more of us just… gone.|Lucy Stillman, 2012.|Assassin's Creed II}}

Using Desmond, Abstergo managed to obtain a map of the locations of the Pieces of Eden across the globe, and subsequently begun their attempts to claim them. Not long after, the Assassins were able to free Desmond<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> with the aid of [[Lucy Stillman]] (an Assassin who had been working undercover at Abstergo for at least seven years by 2012)<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> as well as obtain their own copy of the map.<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> Following this, Desmond agreed to aid the Assassins in their quest to defeat Abstergo, mostly for revenge, but also for closure. Utilizing the [[Animus|Animus 2.0]], a copy of the machine used by Abstergo to explore his genetic memories previously,<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Desmond followed the memories of Ezio Auditore, adopting his skills in combat and free-running, while the rest of the Order concentrated to locating the Pieces of Eden before their Templar counterparts. Despite this, however, the war with the Templars had taken a turn for the worse. With their numbers dwindling, the Order of Assassins was in danger of losing the war.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

As technology progressed, so did the weapons used against the Assassins. By 2012, the Templars were using cell phone towers and satellites to track down the Assassins. As a result, Desmond and his group had to take refuge within the [[Sanctuary]], deep beneath the city of [[Monteriggioni]]. By this point the Order was using at least one e-mail network, known as the [[Hephaestus Email Network]], to facilitate communications.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

==Known Assassins==
''See also: [[List of known Assassins]]''
[[File:Zw-renaissance-assassins.png|thumb|300px|Ezio's initiation into the Brotherhood.]]
{{quote|The seeds were planted as two worlds became one. Behold, the Assassins, the children of two worlds!|Subject 16|Assassin's Creed II}}

The Assassins had existed since before the turn of the first millennium; several known figures included [[Darius]], [[Iltani]], [[Wei Yu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]], [[Marcus Junius Brutus]] and their co-conspirators,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Amunet]] and [[Leonius]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Historically however, the fore-bearers of the Assassins have existed since before recorded time, possibly reaching as far back as [[Adam and Eve]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

===Medieval and Renaissance periods===
During the [[Third Crusade]], the Syrian sect of the Order of Assassins was mainly made up of native, Syrian-born individuals; although some, like Altaïr, were born to parents of both religions. Led by [[Al Mualim]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed " /> and later [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] himself,<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> other members included [[Harash]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /> [[Malik A-Sayf|Malik]] and [[Kadar A-Sayf]], [[Rauf]], [[Abbas]], [[Masun]], [[Jamal]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> and [[Qulan Gal]], the death-bringer of [[Genghis Khan]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Allies also included various individuals, such as [[Adha]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles">''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''</ref> and even former Templars like [[Maria Thorpe]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Others included [[Dante Alighieri]] and [[Domenico Auditore]], <ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> founder of the [[Auditore Villa]].

[[File:Vlcsnap-2010-11-12-17h45m54s20.jpg|thumb|274px|Bartolomeo d'Alviano and La Volpe with the Assassin Brotherhood.]]
Later on, during the Renaissance, the Order's numbers had dwindled significantly. Having become much more secretive, members of the Order often had occupations and lives outside of the Order, ranging from artists<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Renaissance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''</ref> to thieves<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> to royal treasurers.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''</ref> They included the Florentine banker [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> his brother [[Mario Auditore]], caretaker of the Auditore Villa and ''[[Mercenary|condottieri]]'' leader; [[Federico Auditore da Firenze]] and his brother [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]; [[Paola]] and [[Teodora]], the heads of the Florentine and Venetian courtesans respectively; [[Antonio]], the head of the Venetian Thieves Guild; [[La Volpe]], the head of the Florentine Thieves Guild; [[Niccolò Machiavelli]], a writer and head of the Florentine Mercenaries; [[Bartolomeo d'Alviano]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> ''condottiero'' of [[Venice]]; [[Perotto Calderon]], undercover in the employ of the Borgia. Others included [[Giovanni Borgia]], the illegitimate son of Calderon and [[Lucrezia Borgia]]; [[Bombastus|Paracelcus]], Swiss scientist and alchemist; [[Francesco Vecellio]], Renaissance painter,<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref> [[Tessa Varzi]] and [[Cipriano Enu]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Rinaldo Vitturi]], the keeper of [[the Shroud]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" /> [[Ridolfo Fioravant]] and [[Pietro Antonio Solari]], spies working undercover as architects on the [[wikipedia:Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]]<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" /> and [[Luis de Santángel]] and [[Raphael Sanchez]], finance minister to Ferdinand II and treasurer of Queen Isabella I respectively.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

Once again, the Order had many allies amongst the common folk of Italy, as well as amongst the nobility. Foremost among them was [[Leonardo da Vinci]], Ezio's closest friend and a genius of invention. Others included [[Caterina Sforza]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì">''[[Battle of Forlì (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì]]''</ref> the Countess of [[Forlì]];<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Lorenzo de' Medici]], the ruler of Florence;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Agostino Barbarigo]], the Doge of Venice from 1486;<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> and the famed explorer [[Christoffa Corombo]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />

By 1500, Ezio Auditore and Niccolò Machiavelli had begun training new initiates in the Order from their [[Tiber Island|base]] in [[Rome]]. During this time [[Claudia Auditore]], sister of Ezio, also joined the Order.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />

===Modern Times===
At the turn of the 20<sup>th</sup> Century, the Assassins' Order had spread as far the Russian Empire, with a strong presence in and around [[Petrograd]]. Members of the [[Narodnaya Volya]] were in fact members of the Assassin Order. Some known Assassins include [[Nikolai Orelov]] and [[Aleksandr Ulyanov]], the older brother of [[Vladimir Lenin]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />

[[File:Swap.png|thumb|The Medic and his Target]]During World War I, there was an [[Assassin]] on the western front, an unidentified medic fighting for the British on the front line. The medic assassinated [[Erich Albert]], a German general and member of the Templars.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />

During the late 20th and 21<sup>st</sup> Century, however, the Order seemed to have sunk further into hiding, with their numbers fewer than ever.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> Although it is evident that more existed, only a few were known to: the mysterious '[[Subject 16]]',[[Desmond Miles| Desmond Miles]], [[Lucy Stillman]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed" /> [[Rebecca Crane]] , [[Shaun Hastings]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /> [[Hannah Mueller]], [[Paul Bellamy]], [[Daniel Cross]], [[Bill Miles]],<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #2">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]] - Issue #2''</ref> and [[William M.]] There were also known groups of Assassins based in São Paulo, Brazil, in Moscow, Russia, in Osaka, Japan and Denver, Colorado, US.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />.

==Known victims==
{{Quote|Find them, kill them. In doing so, you will sow the seeds of peace.|[[Al Mualim]] to Altaïr|Assassin's Creed}}
Over the [[Timeline|centuries]], the Order of Assassins killed hundreds, if not thousands of individuals who they saw to be corrupt in their ways and a danger to humanity. Their intense rivalry with the Templars also ensured that many underlings who served their Templar masters often shared the same fate.<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Tamir (Altaïr's Chronicles)|Tamir of Damascus]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Alaat]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Roland Napule]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[The Master's Student]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Master of the Tower]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Harash]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Basilisk|Lord Basilisk]] in 1190<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles"/>
*[[Tamir|Tamir, the arms dealer]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Garnier de Naplouse]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Talal]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Abu'l Nuqoud]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[William of Montferrat]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Majd Addin]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Jubair al Hakim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Sibrand]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Robert de Sable]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Al Mualim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed"/>
*[[Frederick the Red]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Moloch]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Dark Oracle]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shalim]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Shahar]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Pirate captain]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
*[[Armand Bouchart]] in 1191<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines"/>
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of notable victims of [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]]:

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Uberto Alberti]] in 1476<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Vieri de' Pazzi]] in 1477<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco de' Pazzi]] in 1478<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Stefano da Bagnone]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Bernardo Baroncelli]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Antonio Maffei]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Francesco Salviati]] in 1478 - 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Jacopo de' Pazzi]] in 1480<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Emilio Barbarigo]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Carlo Grimaldi]] in 1485<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Marco Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Silvio Barbarigo]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Dante Moro]] in 1486<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ludovico Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Checco Orsi]] in 1488<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Battle of Forlì " />
*[[Gaspar Martinez]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Pedro Llorente]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Juan de Marillo]] in 1492<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery" />
*[[Girolamo Savonarola]] in 1498<ref>''[[Bonfire of the Vanities (DLC)|Assassin's Creed II: Bonfire of the Vanities]]''</ref>
*[[Il Carnefice]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Master of the Sacred Palace]] in 1500<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Malfatto]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Silvestro Sabbatini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lanz]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Lia de Russo]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Brother Ristoro]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Donato Mancini]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Gaspar de la Croix]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Auguste Oberlin]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Juan Borgia the Elder]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Octavian de Valois]] in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Ercole Massimo]] in 1506<ref name="The Da Vinci Disappearance">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'' - ''[[The Da Vinci Disappearance]]''</ref>
*[[Cesare Borgia]] in 1507<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

Below is a chronological list of the known victims of other Assassins:<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />

<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
*[[Xerxes I of Persia|King Xerxes the Great]], by [[Darius]] in 456 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander the Great]], by [[Iltani]] in 323 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Qin Shi Huang]], by [[Wei Yu]] in 210 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Gaius Julius Caesar]], by various in 44 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Cleopatra]], by [[Amunet]] in 31 BC<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Caligula]], by [[Leonius]] in 41<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Genghis Khan]], by [[Qulan Gal]] in 1227<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Tomás de Torquemada]], in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Perotto Calderon]], by various in 1498<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Agostino Barbarigo]], by [[Tessa Varzi]] in 1501<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Margaret of York]], in 1503<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
*[[Isabella I of Castile]], in 1504<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" />
</div>

<div style="float:right; width:48%;">
*[[Niccolò di Pitigliano]], by [[Francesco Vecellio]] in 1510 <ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy" />
*[[Francisco Pizzaro]], in 1541<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Mary I of England]], in 1558<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Ivan Ivanovich of Russia]], in 1581<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[John Wilkes Booth]], in 1865<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Alexander II of Russia]], in 1881<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" /><ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Alexander III of Russia]], indirectly by [[Nikolai Orelov]] in 1894<ref name="Assassin's Creed: The Fall - Issue #1" />
*[[Grigori Rasputin]], in 1916<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Adolf Hitler]], in 1945<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[Joseph Stalin]], in 1953<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
*[[François Duvalier]], in 1971<ref name="Assassin's Creed II" />
</div>
<br clear="all" />

==See also==
*[[The Creed]]

==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Ascendance]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Lost Legacy]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Fall]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''

==Notes and references==
[[File:AssassinInformant.png|thumb|right|An Assassin informant.]]
{{reflist}}

{{ACSeries}}
{{ACAC}}
{{AC}}
{{ACBL}}
{{ACII}}
{{ACIID}}
{{ACBrotherhood}}
{{ACLL}}
{{ACTF}}
[[Category:Assassin Order]]
[[Category:Factions]]

Sword of Altaïr

2011-03-29T02:00:50Z

24.118.194.75:

{{Era|ACAC|AC|Bloodlines|AC2|ACB}}
[[File:Sword_of_Altairpng.png|right|270px|The sword of Altaïr.]]
Throughout the events of ''[[Assassin's Creed]]'', ''[[Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles]]'', and ''[[Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines|Assassin's Creed: Bloodline]]'', the [[Assassin]] [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]] wielded a '''personal sword''' of superior power compared to all other weapons. The sword continues its appearence in ''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'', and ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'', where it is named, the "Sword of Altaïr". However, it is now used by [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]], a descendant of Altaïr. The blade's guard is shaped like an eagle's wings and the bottom of the hilt has the shape of an eagle's head, while the blade itself is both long and agile, making it a light and deadly weapon.

==''Assassin's Creed''==
[[File:AltairsSword.png|thumb|left|215px|Altaïr equipping his sword.]]
The game starts with Altaïr using the Syrian [[sword]], which he uses with great skill and ease, until [[Al Mualim]] demotes him to [[Novice]] for breaking all three tenets of [[The Creed]]. During his progression back into the higher ranks, he starts off with a basic sword similar to the Sword of Altaïr, though it does not have a cross guard. After he assassinates his four assigned targets, he is granted the use of his personal sword once more. He continues to uses this sword until he is finally given the Syrian sword.

==''Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines''==
Altaïr still possesses his sword during the events after ''Assassin's Creed'', in ''Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines''. In fact, his swords can now be found hanging within [[Kantara Castle]]'s Great Hall (in "[[Moloch|The Bull]]" stage), as ornaments. During the game, this is the only sword available for his use. In the beginning, its attack power is rather low, and enemies have to be struck with it multiple times to be killed. However, upgrades for the sword and other weapons of Altaïr can be purchased by collecting [[Templars|Templar]] coins.

==''Assassin's Creed II''==
[[File:Altairsword1.png|thumb|right|190px|Ezio using his ancestor's sword.]]
Altaïr's Sword is available at the [[Monteriggioni]] [[blacksmith]] for 50,000ƒ (or less if the store has been renovated) after DNA Sequence 8. This sword is the most powerful melee weapon, as all three stats are maxed out. Ezio wielded this sword when he fought [[Rodrigo Borgia]] in the [[Vatican Vault|Vault]].

==''Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood''==
[[File:ACBSwordAltaïr.jpg|thumb|295px|left|The Sword of Altaïr in the [[Animus]] menu screen.]]
Since ''Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'' takes place directly after ''Assassin's Creed II,'' [[Ezio Auditore]] was still wielding the sword while he made his escape from the [[Vatican Vault]] into [[Rome]] with his uncle [[Mario Auditore|Mario]]. During the [[Siege of Monteriggioni]], a cannon ball was shot through his room. As he was sleeping with [[Caterina Sforza]] at the time, he was unable to re-equip it, along with most of his armor and other weapons. However, he can re-acquire it by completing all five Assassin's [[Guild Challenges|Guild Challenges.]]

==Trivia==
*The [[guards]] at [[Masyaf]] are seen wielding this sword.
*It is unknown why the sword is available from the Monteriggioni blacksmith, since the sword (being Altaïr's personal weapon) would be assumed to be available together with [[Altaïr's armor|his armor]] once it was unlocked.
*It is interesting to note that the picture of the weapon's hilt in the blacksmith is wrapped in leather, however, the weapon itself does not have any leather wrapping.
*After buying the sword, it may occasionally be replaced with the common sword. To properly acquire it if this occurs, simply go to the [[Auditore Villa|Villa]]'s weapon rack, and re-equip it.
*After doing the training exercise in Monteriggioni, ''Picking Up Weapons'', Ezio's sword automatically falls from it's sheath. Using this, then re-equipping the sword from the weapons rack, results in two Swords of Altaïr.
*The swords appearance is slightly altered in ''Assassin's Creed II'' and ''Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'', with the handle turning from bronzed color, to completely silver.
*This sword is shorter compared to the other longswords Ezio can use, with the entire sword being only a little longer than the length of his arm. Despite this, Altaïr's sword is still the strongest weapon available.
*Strangely, though Altaïr's sword is considered the best sword in ''Assassin's Creed II ''and ''Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'', in ''Assassin's Creed'', the Syrian sword (which in ''Assassin's Creed II'' was among the cheapest weapons) was the best sword.
*It is interesting to note that in later memory sequences, if the player has the sword equipped, it is possible to be knocked out of Ezio's hands by [[Brute]] guards, and even picked up by an NPC. It can, however, be re-equipped in the Villa or the [[Tiber Island Hideout]], depending on which game is being played.
*The sword appears on a weapon rack in the Tiber Island Hideout once Ezio completes all five [[Guild Challenges|Assassin's Guild challenges]], and can only be equipped from there. Just as it did in ''Assassin's Creed II'', it has maximum damage, speed, and deflect stats.
*Assassin [[Apprentices]] are able to use this sword once they reach the final rank of ''Assassino'', however for them, it is called the ''Assassin Sword''.
*During the memory [[Follow The Money|Follow the Money]], in ''Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'', Ezio kills and impersonates a guard named Luigi in order reach, and infiltrate, [[Juan Borgia the Elder]]'s [[Incident at the Pagan Party|party]] to assassinate him, when a fellow guard draws and raises the Sword of Altaïr to "convince" the senate to hand the chest to Luigi. This is rather unusual, and unclear if intentional or rendered accidentally by the developers.
[[Category:Assassin's Creed II Weapons]]
[[Category:Assassin's Creed Weapons]]
[[Category:Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Weapons]]
[[Category:Weapons]]