Doctor

For the multiplayer character in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, see Doctor (multiplayer character).

File:Dcotor.JPG

Doctors' in-game model

"Bring me your sick and wounded!"

―A doctor to passing civilians.

Doctors are one of the new features added in Assassin's Creed II after Assassin's Creed, which returns in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. Found on the streets of every city in black robes, and often with a mask with a beak-like shape, they can either refill Ezio's Synchronization Bar for a fee, or sell him Medicine that can be carried and used later. They also sell him vials of poison for his Poison Blade.

Doctors are perhaps the most vital service, as the medicine they sell can heal you wherever your current location is.

Appearance and historical relation

The clothes of the doctors are as usual for those in their profession, particularly after one of the deadliest pandemics in human history, known as The Black Death. This plague peaked in Europe during the 14th century, and is said to have killed 30% to 60% percent of Europe's population. That reduced the world's population from an estimated 450 million to between 350 and 375 million in 1400.

To protect from this pandemic and others to come, the doctors thus dressed in a long black cloak covered with a coating of wax, and a very primitive beak-shaped plague mask, although not all doctors wear the mask. Within this Medico Della Peste mask, there was a crude filtration system to prevent any virus from entering their system while they performed their duties. This mask was sometimes even worn in Venice's Carnevale.

The specific mask that the doctors of the Assassin's Creed series wear is called the Maschera Dello Speziale (where speziale refers someone who sells every kind of medicinal herb). The "beak" of the mask was often filled with various herbs, as many doctors thought that this was a viable method to avoid infection by various diseases.

Services

File:AC2 Doctor.jpg

A Renaissance-era doctor in Assassin's Creed II.

Healing

Doctors will replenish all the user's health after being paid a paltry sum of 50 florins. The price from the Doctor in Monteriggioni for his healing services, however, decreases as his stall becomes renovated.

Apothecary

Medicine

Doctors sell Medicine (75ƒ each), a healing item that can be carried with you anywhere you go. These are identified in-game as smelling salts, in this case used as painkillers. The number of Medicine vials the user can carry at one time increases when a larger Medicine Pouch is purchased from a Tailor. This is the only way to heal the player, other than the automatic healing at the start of most memories.

Poison

Doctors sell Poison vials for a sum of 175 florins. When Ezio asks Leonardo why Doctors would sell Poison, he replies that, "when given in high doses, that which cures can kill." Poison is available only after upgrading Ezio's Hidden Blade with the Poison Blade. Poison is useful for players who do not want to assassinate a target quickly, or for those who would rather create a distraction. Poison offers one-use kills, and is easily used on any target, and (due to its delayed effect) runs less of a risk of exposing the user. Therefore, it acts as a fairly stelathy weapon.

In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, players can complete the Doctor's quest to upgrade the Poison sold by doctors so that the infected victim will go berserk immediately, instead of stumbling around for a little while beforehand.

Trivia

• The doctors wore the masks to protect themselves from catching the diseases of a patient. Around the time of Renaissance it was proven that sicknesses could be caught by face-to-face contact with patients, and by touching infected objects, and by bad quality water or from God's punishments as was believed in the Medieval Ages. Masks and washing hands were proven to be excellent measures against disease.

• Ezio can't harm doctors, but the first doctor encountered in the game (when with Federico), is the only one that can be attacked and killed, though only with blades. Doing so doesn't alert guards, doesn't cause or alert you of Desynchronization (due to Ezio killing civilians) and when killed, the doctor rises again. A video of this "bug" can be found at this link. There is, of course, an assassination target in Assassin's Creed : Brotherhood that is a disgraced Doctor.

• Sometimes blacksmiths will also be able to restore some health when armor becomes damaged. Repairing the armor will replace some health.

• In the novel Assassin's Creed: Renaissance, the doctor that Federico introduces to Ezio is their family doctor, Dottore Ceresa. Also, instead of having a small stand like other doctors in Assassin's Creed II, he has his own store.

• The doctor in Monteriggioni is the only one to own a store in Assassin's Creed II, though there are several doctor stores in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood.

• When you fight with guards in front of a doctor, often he will kneel before you and beg you not to kill him.

Gallery

• A Doctor's shop.
  A Doctor's shop.
• A Doctor's stand.
  A Doctor's stand.