Swords of Eden

2014-11-16T23:39:18Z

80.57.96.12: /* History */

{{Era|AC2|ACU|ACM|TWCB}}
{{Spoilerhd}}
{{Quote|The sword is not of this earth. It binds men to it who might otherwise be disloyal.|[[Chaya Shirōjirō Kiyonobu]] about [[Oda Nobunaga]]'s Sword of Eden|Assassin's Creed: Memories}}
[[File:SoE.png|thumb|250px|A Sword of Eden]]
The '''Swords of Eden''' were sword-like artifacts created by the [[First Civilization]]. These [[Pieces of Eden]] seemed to grant their bearers great power and leadership, and were most commonly used by influential [[humans]] in war and conquest; several famous conquerors and heroes had been in possession of a Sword of Eden. Wielders of the Swords appear capable of negating the effectiveness of illusions cast by [[Apples of Eden]].<ref name="ACM">''[[Assassin's Creed: Memories]]''</ref> The Swords also appear to grant the ability to project lightning at foes.<ref name="ACU">''[[Assassin's Creed: Unity]]''</ref>

==History==
The first known use of a Sword of Eden by an individual other than the First Civilization was [[Perseus]], who used it to slay the {{Wiki|Gorgon}} {{Wiki|Medusa}}.<ref name="AC2">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>

During the 5th century, a Sword came into the possession of [[Attila the Hun]], after a shepherd unearthed it and gave it to him – with the Sword, Attila ravaged Eurasia during his reign. It was during this time that the Sword became known as the Sword of Mars or the Sword of Attila.<ref name="AC2"/>

In the late 5th to early 6th century, [[Arthur]] pulled a Sword of Eden out of a stone, named it {{Wiki|Excalibur|"Excalibur" or "Caliburn"}}, and used it to become King of [[United Kingdom|Britain]].<ref name="AC2"/>

Possibly in the late 6th century, a being claiming to be the Norse god {{Wiki|Odin}}, disguised as a beggar, plunged a Sword into a tree called {{Wiki|Barnstokkr}}, stating that whomever was able to pull it free would receive it as a gift. Only the warrior [[Sigmund]] proved able to do so, and subsequently claimed the Sword as his own.<ref name="AC2"/>

[[File:ACM Genghis Khan 1.png|thumb|200px|left|Genghis Khan with his Sword of Eden]]
During the early 13th century, the [[Mongol Empire|Mongol]] warlord [[Genghis Khan]] led his Empire through mass expansions into the West. The [[Mentor]] of the [[Levantine Assassins]], [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]], suspected Genghis Khan of wielding a Piece of Eden,<ref name="AC2"/> presumably a Sword. Altaïr's son [[Darim Ibn-La'Ahad]] and the [[Mongolian Assassins|Mongolian Assassin]] [[Qulan Gal]] killed Genghis Khan in 1227.<ref name="ACTSC">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Secret Crusade]]''</ref> The artifact remained in Mongol hands, however, and [[Hülegü Khan]] used it in his conquests in the Middle East during the 1250s, notably during his attacks on the Assassin forts of [[Alamut]] and [[Masyaf]].<ref name="ACM"/>

A [[France|French]] peasant girl, [[Jeanne d'Arc|Joan of Arc]], came to discover a Sword and take ownership of it during the {{Wiki|Hundred Years' War}}, with which she entered into the war on the side of the French forces. Turning into a heroine of her people, Joan led the French forces to many victories over the English and their allies. However, she was eventually captured by Burgundian soldiers and handed over to the English. The [[Templars]] then burned her at the stake, in order to take her Sword for themselves.<ref name="AC2"/>

By the early 14th century a Sword was in the possessions of the Knights Templars. After the Templars were branded as heretics by [[Philip IV of France]], [[Jacques de Molay]], then [[Grand Master]], sent one of his most trusted lieutenants to safeguard the sword. <ref name="ACU"/> The sword was briefly in possession of the Assassin [[Thomas de Carneillon]] during the downfall of the public face of the [[Templars]], stealing it from their storage along with a copy of de Molay's ''[[Codex Pater Intellectus]]'', before he was defeated in combat with one of de Molay's agents using the Sword's lightning effect. The agent then placed the Sword in a hidden vault, its location unknown to the Assassins, as Carneillon later killed the agent before the man could reveal the weapon's hiding place.<ref name="ACU"/>

In the later half of the 16th century, a Sword of Eden wound up in the hands of the [[Japan]]ese warlord [[Takeda Shingen]]. With the power of the artifact at his disposal, Shingen started making his way to the capital of Kyoto to conquer Japan. Several months after routing [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]]'s army at the {{Wiki|Battle of Mikatagahara}}, Shingen was killed in a raid led by Ieyasu's vassals, the [[Assassins|Assassin]] [[Hattori Hanzo]] and [[Honda Tadakatsu]]. The artifact later wound up in the hands of Ieyasu's ally, [[Oda Nobunaga]], who in turn used it to conquer the lands of other warlords. When Nobunaga's vassal [[Akechi Mitsuhide]] betrayed Nobunaga and attacked him in Kyoto, Nobunaga was killed by the Assassin [[Yamauchi Taka]] and the artifact was transported to [[China]] by [[Liu Yan]].<ref name="ACM"/>

Sometime before the [[French revolution]], The Sword was acquired by the Templar Grand master [[Francois-Thomas Germain]]. Who used it in his fight with [[Arno Dorian]] and [[Élise de la Serre]]. And proceeded to kill Élise with the swords firing 'lighting' ability. After the fight, the sword went into the possession of Arno.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{TWCB}}
[[Category:Pieces of Eden]]

Assassin's Creed Wiki - User contributions [en-gb]

Swords of Eden