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

Isu

2010-02-16T20:14:39Z

86.26.22.240: /* Characteristics */

{{spoilerhd}}
[[File:Zw-Minerva-3.png|thumb|250px|[[Minerva]] is the only known representative of "Those Who Came Before"]]

"''Those Who Came Before''," is the name of an ancient and incredibly advanced race of beings who created the [[Piece of Eden|Pieces of Eden]], as well as humanity itself. Exactly who they were, how long ago, or how they came to die out, is still, for the most part, largely unknown. It is believed that they were the gods worshiped by ancient human cultures; i.e. Greek, Roman, Mesopotamian, Egyptian gods, etc. The woman known as [[Minerva]], said that they were not gods, but, in fact, a race more advanced in time who "simply came before."

==Domination of Humans==

Minerva revealed that at some point; her kind created humanity, possibly as some sort of slave race as shown in [[The Truth]] video. In the recorded [[The Truth|memory]], [[Those Who Came Before]] appear to have enslaved humans into doing their bidding through the hypnotic power of the [[Piece of Eden|Pieces of Eden]]. Despite their attempts at mind control, [[The Truth]] video shows how [[Adam and Eve]] stole one of the mythical fruits of the tree of knowledge described in the Bible. It is possible that this was an attempt to free mankind from the oppression of their masters. Adam and Eve were most likely naturally immune to the Pieces of Eden, much like Altair and several other Assassins were, as seen in the first [[Assassins Creed]] when Al Mualim attempted to use it on Altair.

According to [[Minerva]], humans and her species had lived peacefully for some time, however, humans were not treated equally. Mankind is likely to have to been regarded as cattle or slaves, prompting some humans to rebel against their masters. Somehow [[Adam and Eve]] had a resistance to the [[Piece of Eden]], which most likely controlled them.

==Past Events==

[[File:Zw-eden-slave.png|thumb|350px|A frame from [[The Truth]] video, showing "Those Who Came Before" using a [[Piece of Eden]] to control humans]]

While the ancient race was more technologically advanced and powerful, humanity had the advantage of numbers. Minerva stated that both sides craved war, but they were so preoccupied with their fighting; an impending danger was approaching from the "heavens." [[Shaun Hastings]] and [[Lucy Stillman]] hypothesize that this "danger" could have been a massive solar flare which would have had a catastrophic impact on the Earth's weakening magnetic field, reversing the polarity, and making the planet geologically unstable. The geomagnetic reversal of Earth's poles is a possible cause of the destruction, however, it is a natural phenomenon which has occurred multiple times over Earth's history, the last of which was 780,000 years ago.

Despite the unknown cause of destruction, humanity and the ancient race survived. As Minerva said, "We built you in our image, we built you to survive," she confirms that Those Who Came Before altered the skeletal structure of the hominid form they found on Earth to match their own, as seen in one of the [[Glyph|glyph puzzles]]. While both races still existed, they suffered dwindling numbers, and had to rebuild their lives. As the Earth and mankind worked to recover, the race "endeavored to ensure that this tragedy would not be repeated." This lead to the creation of the temples, such as [[The Vault]] in [[Rome]], which were built by "those who learned to turn away from war."

==Characteristics==

Those Who Came Before appear in the mythologies of many of Earth's religions (especially religions that feature pantheons) as gods. As seen with the [[Monteriggioni]] statues, Minerva is associated with the Roman gods. Her kind is very similar to the Sumerian gods, who were believed to have created mankind to serve the gods. Furthermore, Minerva also showed an ancient Egyptian picture of the people rebelling against the Egyptian gods, but still labels the Egyptian gods as "us." It can at least be established that by Ezio's time, the race was effectively extinct - [[Minerva]] states that she is the last of her kind.

"Those Who Came Before" seems to posses some form of precognition, or ability to predict future events. This is shown when [[Minerva]] told a confused [[Ezio]] within the [[The Vault]] that he was simply a conduit, and she spoke directly to the invisible [[Desmond]], showing she knew that he would receive the message over 500 years into the future by viewing it through [[Ezio]] in the [[Animus]].

Interestingly, [[Minerva]] is one of the 8 statuettes you can collect in [[Monteriggioni]]. As Minerva is one of "Those Who Came Before', the other statuettes could be as well. The figures depicted by the statuettes are Neptune and Pluto, Jupiter and Minerva, Dianna and Apollo, and Mars and Venus. It is also worth noting that they are all Roman mythological Gods - perhaps this means that they are remnants of "Those Who Came Before" and survivors of the cataclysmic event described by Minerva, or that they were the ones that helped humans build the temples that she mentioned.

Of further interest, is that Minverva mentions her former name and those of her compatriots; Mera, Uni and Tinia (Minerva, Juno and Jupiter respectively). The former names mentioned by Minerva correspond to the Etruscan supreme Triad of Dieties, who were later modelled by the Roman Dieties, in the Capitoline Triad. (Jupiter, his daughter Minerva and wife Juno). From the ''Assassin's Creed II'' perspective, this may explain why and how understandings of'' Those who Came Before ''bled into one another across different cultures. Most pantheons tend to have strong analogues in different cultural lore; i.e. Zeus, Jupiter, Thor, etc.

==Genetic History==

Also in [[the Truth]] file, "Bloodlines," the player must highlight all of the paintings of gods who have had children with humans, with the heading, "Behold the Assassins, the children of two worlds!" This could mean that at some point in time, the 'gods' (''Those Who Came Before'') had children with humans. The Assassins who posses special abilities (such as [[Eagle Vision]]) are evidence of this relationship, thus explaining why [[Subject 16]] says: "Why do we have these gifts? Because it's in our blood!" However, Eagle vision might not be the only 'power.' It could be hypothosized that most, if not all demigods, such as Heracles and Odysseus, were the offspring of a mortal and ''Those Who Came Before'', and were possibly assassins as well.  

Since Desmond and Subject 16 are both born assassins and that Altaïr, Ezio and Desmond have [[Eagle Vision]] this may prove that they are related to Those Who Came Before, and that the Eagle vision was passed on through their bloodline. This heritage could also explain the resistance to [[Piece of Eden|Pieces of Eden]], and how [[The Vault|the Vault]] recognized [[Ezio]] as the prophet, and not [[Rodrigo Borgia]].

==Trivia==

In the first Assassin's Creed title, at the beginning of Memory Block 4 before Desmond enters the Animus, Doctor Vidic enters to wake him. A conversation ensues where Vidic explains that Abstergo, or its descendants, are basically responsible for every major historical invention or medical breakthrough for the past thousand years. When Desmond questions how they discovered all these things, Vidic replies "They were gifts, Mr. Miles! Gifts from those who came before". Although unbeknownst to players at the time, Vidic is citing that Abstergo has accomplished all that it has so far with the Pieces of Eden belonging to Minerva's race.

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[[Category:Factions]]

Glyphs

2010-02-16T20:07:15Z

86.26.22.240: /* Truth Files */

{{revamp}}{{Imageneed}}{{Spoilerhd}}[[File:Glyph18_-_Torre_Dell'Orologio2--article_image.jpg|thumb|Ezio and the Trefoil glyph.]]

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'''Glyphs''' are encrypted messages that appear in various locations in ''[[Assassin's Creed]]'' and ''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'', created by the late [[Subject 16]] as his final message to the world.

Glyphs and various messages can be seen towards the end of ''[[Assassin's Creed]]'', drawn in blood. These same glyphs are then repeated in [[Ezio Auditore|Ezio's]] [[Genetic memory|memories]] in ''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'', left by Subject 16 before his death. There are a total of 20 glyphs found in Italy.

In ''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'', before she and [[Desmond]] flee from [[Abstergo Industries]], former Abstergo employee and [[Assassin]] [[Lucy Stillman]] copies data from the [[Animus]] to be used in the Animus 2.0, an Animus utilized by the Assassins. It is later discovered that the glyphs were originally hacked into place in the Animus by Subject 16 and copied into the Animus 2.0 by Lucy, albeit accidentally.[[File:0.jpg|thumb|The data inside each glyph must be unlocked.]]

In order to ensure security, Subject 16 locked each file with a series of puzzles with each set of puzzles relevant to the content of the encoded message within the glyph. Each of the glyphs contain messages from Subject 16 (the messages are either voice files or are messages encoded within images in the glyphs. These messages contain snippets of information about the [[Knights Templar]] and the roles that the [[Pieces of Eden]] have played throughout human history. Each glyph also contains a small piece of a video that combine when upon successfully unlocking all of the glyphs and reveal [[The Truth|important secret]].

Regardless of which order the glyphs are located in, the order of the puzzles required to unlock each one will remain the same. As areas with glyphs are discovered, they will be added to the Animus 2.0 database with specific symbols in a manner similar to the [[Assassin Tombs in AC2|Assassin's Tombs]].

==Locations==
===[[Florence]]===
[[Santa Croce]] - Japanese Torii gate

La Rosa Colta - Omega

Mercato Vecchio - Chinese characters 前事不忘，后事之师 ''("Not forgetting the past, a teacher in the future")''

Ospedale Degli Innocenti - Eye of Horus

San Lorenzo - Nazca Line: The Monkey

===[[Monteriggioni]]===
[[Villa Auditore]] - barcode

===[[Tuscany]]/[[San Gimignano]]===
Torrei Dei Salvucci - Twin Pagodas

Torre Del Diavolo - All-Seeing Eye / Eye of Providence

Santa Maria Assunta - Machu Picchu

[[Monte Oliveto Maggiore]] - Mayan Step Pyramid

Antico Teatro Romano - Butterfly (Lorenz's Famous Strange Attractor)

===[[Romagna]]/[[Forlì]]===
Abbazia San Mercuriale - Hebrew Writing עולם הבא ''("The World To Come")''

[[File:Glyph20_-_Scuola_Grande_di_San_Marco2--article_image.jpg|thumb|288px|Ezio and the Nazca Hummingbird glyph.]]

Avamposta Veneziano - Mt. Fuji and Sun

===[[Venice]]===
San Giacomo Rialto - The Apple and Pyramid of Eyes

Gilda Dei Ladri Di Venezia - Pyramids of Giza

Torre dell' Orologio - The Trefoils

Ponte Di Rialto - Nazca Line: The Spider/Ant

Campanile di San Marco - Pentacle

San Pietro di Castello - The Mandelbrot Set

Scuola Grande Di San Marco - Nazca Line: The Hummingbird

==Truth Files==
{|border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" width="100%"
!width="10%"|File Number
!width="20%"|Location
!width="35%"|Solution
!width="40%"|Story/Secret Messages
|-
!Truth File 1 - In The Beginning
|In the second zone of Florence, once you get the hidden blade repaired by a rather well known artist, the next memory marker will be at the door of Paola's house. It is on a wall on the roof of that house.
|Solve the puzzle by choosing the paintings with an apple in them. They are pictures 3, 5, 6, 7, and 9.
|Subject 16 explains that everything he's been told is a lie and has split 20 codes in the animus, and along the way, the truth would be revealed.
|-
!Truth File 2 - Sixty-Four Squares
|In the second zone of Florence, toward the North Eastern corner, is a big buliding, known as Ospedale Degli Innocenti, shaped like a box. It is colored grey on the map. Next to it are two doctors and a blacksmith. It is on a wall on the roof.
|Solve the puzzle more easily by rotating the circle puzzle pieces from towards the middle, then going to the biggest, and finally the smallest.
|  
|-
!Truth File 3 - Descendants
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall
|Solve the puzzle by highlighting the circular object in each photo. The first one is right in front of the two men sitting down before the table. The second one is right below the right hand of the man hanging upside down. The last one is directly on the man in the middle's right elbow.
|
*Pigpen cipher on the photo of Roosevelt reads "The Masons brought it across the sea. George Washington passed it on". George Washington was a member of the Masons, along with a number of the founding fathers, who supposedly were the Knights Templar reborn.
*Morse code on the photo of Houdini reads "They hit him in the stomach". This is reference to the fact that after he was hit in the stomach for a trick, he died of a ruptured appendix.
*Morse code on the photo of Gandhi reads "The bullet hit him in the chest".
|-
!Truth File 4 - Infinite Knowledge
|While hanging from the roof, it's on a wall at Villa Auditore
|Solve the puzzle by taking the hints literally
|
*Hexadecimal cipher on the photo at Brest reads "Antikythera Mechanism, much older than 150 B.C.E."
*Caesar number cipher on the photo at the US civil war reads "Ancient city, Rajastan, Inda, irradiated by PoE".
*Binary code reads "Sumerian. Me 23.", Me 23 being the Sumerian 'divine concept' of weaponry. Apt, considering the subject matter of the Truth File.
|-
!Truth File 5 - Instruments of Power
|In the bottom dwellings of Santa Maria Assunta, it's on a wall near pillars
|Solve the puzzle by choosing the paintings with a sword in them, then, in the next set, all those with a staff
|  
|-
!Truth File 6 - Brothers
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall at Torri Dei Salvucci
|Solve the puzzle more easily by rotating the circle puzzle pieces from smallest circle to the largest, while keeping an eye on the two outer layers that will connect
|
*Morse code text reads "Templar texts adapted by Mr. Smith"
*The Templar emblem is revealed as the Mark of Cain, showing Cain to be the first Templar.
|-
!Truth File 7 - Keep On Seeking, And You Shall Find
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall at Torre Del Diavolo
|Solve the puzzle by choosing the paintings with red in them, this can be done in any order
|  
|-
!Truth File 8 - Martyrs
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall at San Lorenzo
|Solve the puzzle by finding the Pieces of Eden (success is indicated with a sound). Then putting the flame over Joan on the world map. And finally, by moving Rasputin's photo to the top of Czar Nicholas II's photo
|
*Binary code on photo of Czar Nicholas II reads "17th July 1918". This date was the day the Czar and his family were killed off.
* Binary code on painting of Joan of Arc reads "30th May 1431" The day Joan was burned at the stake.
*It is revealed that the Templars stole the Sword from Joan of Arc.
* Rasputin stole the Staff from Czar Nicholas II. Without the staff to control the populace, the Russian Revolution occured.
|-
!Truth File 9 - Hat-Trick
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall at Mercato Vecchio
|Solve the puzzle by taking the hints literally, with the last one being 6=1
|According to the letter, JFK (John F. Kennedy) was planning on giving the people of the US the right to vote to something, so the Templars decided to kill him and take Piece of Eden #3 at the same time. Oswald and an unnamed co conspirator carried it out, and the grassy knoll gunman was a 'phantom' created by a PoE to distract people from the co conspirator. Presumably Jack Ruby, Oswald's killer, was an assassin or Templar ordered to take him out to prevent him talking.
|-
!Truth File 10 - Apollo
|While standing on a roof, it's on a wall at Monte Oliveto Maggiore
|Solve the puzzle by not looking for the Eagle Apollo lander on the moon. When found, it's best to rotate the layers of the puzzle from the inside out until they all align, but note that inner layer 1 rotates on its own despite being connected to layer 4 as well in one instance, same story for layer 6. Lastly, the Piece of Eden is on the Moon's surface.
|
*Pigpen cipher reads "Johnson was one of them. The bees drone too. Follow the money."
*The flag of the USA contains the Abstergo logo.
*The white flag contains the Templar emblem.
*The title of the Moon photo reads "Apollo 11 photograph released to public". Underneath it reads "Original unreleased negative". This means that the original copy was when the US flag was Abstergo and that the white flag is a Templar flag.
|-
!Truth File 11 - The Inventor
|While standing on the floor, it's under a stone arch at Antico Teatro Romano
|Solve the puzzle by highlighting the light bulbs. After that highlight the middle of the photo above the doorway. Then highlight Nikola Tesla's lap.
|
*The picture of Wardenslyffe contains three quotes of Tesla's
*Caesar cipher in the picture of Tesla's lab reads "He used it to develop a bottomless source of energy. Telefunken Wireless Station".
|-
!Truth File 12 - Titans of Industry
|While standing on a roof (not the church tower itself), look down to the side of a wall attached to where you stand at Abbazia Di San Mercuriale
|Solve the puzzle by aligning red 4 with gray 1 on the wheel and entering the related code. Then turn off all the lights on the globe. Select the orb in the middle of the next photo. Solve the last puzzle by lining up the wheel like this: 1=II. 2=I.
|
*Morse code reads "They used it to make Tesla go insane. The organization took his research. Alien property, custodian office".
|-
!Truth File 13 - "I am Become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds"
|Climb the base lookout tower until you see it on part of the stone walling on Avamposto Veneziano
|Solve the puzzle by lining up the wheel like this: 5=circle, square, square. 2=circle 9=triangle. Next press the red button so-to-speak. The last part you'll find near the left-middle bottom of the letter
|  
|-
!Truth File 14 - Bloodlines
|Swim under the Ponte Di Rialto bridge, where you'll find it on a wall near the edge of the water
|Solve the puzzle by choosing the paintings with Gods in them: Jupiter, Zeus, Cupid, the Swan and Europa
|  
|-
!Truth File 15 - Guardians
|While standing on a roof, it's on a higher up wall at Gilda Dei Ladri Di Venezia, right above a wooden hatch
|Solve the puzzle by working from the inside out, and realizing that these layers are connected: 1 to 6, the middle two, and 4 to 5
|  
|-
!Truth File 16 - The Cavalry
|Climb up the Campanile Di San Marco bell tower, until you can climb in, at which point you'll find it on the floor
|Solve the puzzle by selecting Tunguska. It's OK if you select others first but Tunguska solves the puzzle. Give the staff to the picture.
|  
|-
!Truth File 17 - The Bunker
|Climb up the Torre Dell ‘Orologio and on the floor you'll find it
|Solve the puzzle by lining up the wheel like this: 7=broken square symbol, 9=six-sided hourglass symbol, 1=square with little square inside of it. Then the attic on the top-right will reveal an Assassin symbol for you to ID
|Cipher reads "His double was killed in his bunker". Near the bottom left of the picture, it'll read RIP in the magnified area
|-
!Truth File 18 - Synapses
|While standing on a roof (not the highest roof), it's on a wall at San Pietro Di Castello
|Solve the puzzle by aligning the wheel like this: 6=YYY, 0=the equivalent of 17 (in Summarian) <YYY,YYY,Y, 3= (31) or <<<Y.
|  
|-
!Truth File 19 - The Fourth Day
|It's on the back of one of the rounded-top walls that stick out on the side-parts of Scuola Grande Di San Marco
|Solve the puzzle by choosing the paintings with a sun in them. I'm not sure if this has to be done in any specific order, if so it's: Aztec Calendar, Easter Gate, Sistine Chapel Ceiling, Nazca Textile and Book of the Dead. Then find the part of the sun photo that has the most radiation and ID it
|  
|-
!Truth File 20 - The Origin of the Species
|
From the roof with a fire near it, it's there when you look down to a wall on the side of San Giacomo Di Rialto. This is in Venice.
|Solve the puzzle by working from the inside out, and realizing that these layers are not connected: 2nd inner layer, 5th outer layer. Then ID the sun. Next you can line up the code wheel any way you want to complete the puzzle. Any symbols you choose will complete the code. In the final puzzle, move the cursor over the bones to change the skeleton from an ape into a human.
|  
|}

==Trivia==
*The number on Glyph #4 (the barcode) is actually 12/21/2012, which is the date that some believe to be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon the end of the world.]

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[[Category:Assassin's Creed II]]