Brute
Brutes are enemies first featured in Assassin's Creed II. They are essentially human tanks, wearing heavy, durable armor and carrying large, heavy weapons. They are the strongest guards in terms of combat difficulty, however, they move very slowly due to the weight of their equipment and can thus be easily avoided.
They return in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood with a reworked appearance, though they are now comparable in terms of difficulty to the Papal guards.
Combat
Brutes are tricky enemies to defeat due to the nature of their attacks, though they can still be dispatched with some tactics and skills.
Normal attacks
Brute normal attacks can be blocked with any weapon, however they cannot be countered with a short blade or any sheath-able weapon. A counter attack may only be performed with another heavy weapon such as those the Brutes themselves carry, a long weapon (carried by Seekers), or by the hidden blade. The successful timing window for the last, however, is notoriously short, as it is only a fraction of a second.
Brutes can also be countered with Fists, which will disarm the Brute, and leave them open to a lethal, follow-up attack. The timing for the disarm is short, albeit slightly longer than that of the hidden blade counter.
Other than disarming or countering, a less risky (though more time consuming) tactic is to dodge the Brute's attacks and follow up with a combo of your own. When performed correctly, the combo may end with an execution. The maximum number of hits in a Brute combo is three.
Additionally, like all other enemies, a Brute is most easily dispatched by being assassinated either from above, or while undetected; with either the hidden blades, or a ranged weapon, such as the hidden gun or crossbow.
Special attacks
Neither of the Brute's special attacks can be blocked or countered, and can only be evaded by striking preemptively, or by dodging. There are two variants of a Brute's special attacks.
Smash
The Brute takes a strong downward swing with his weapon, knocking Ezio on his back and doing about as much damage as a normal attack. The Smash special attack takes less time for a Brute to prepare (approximately one second) than a Disarm Smash special attack.
A Brute is about to perform a smash attack if he raises his weapon high above his head.
Disarm Smash
More forceful than Ezio's equivalent disarm ability, the Brute performs a Disarm Smash with a hard right-to-left swing with his weapon, breaking Ezio's guard. If Ezio is using a short blade, mace or sword, this move knocks it out of his hand. The attack does no damage, but as mentioned, it opens Ezio to attacks from other foes in the fight.
A Disarm Smash special attack can be predicted when a Brute holds his weapon out behind him.
Weaponry
| Name | Damage | Speed | Deflect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bastard Sword |
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| Bearded Axe |
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| Labrys |
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Intelligence, Agility, and Methods of Escape
Brutes are not highly intelligent and can be escaped once you've gotten out of sight by blending or hiding. They are also neither agile nor quick, and cannot free-run or climb. Thus, taking to the rooftops is an easy method of escape.
Ranking and Morale
Certain Brutes appear to have a black-brown finish or trim on their armor plating, marking them as higher-ranked Brutes that are more resistant to Ezio's attacks, and have a higher morale than others.
Brutes, like certain other guards, have a very high morale (the highest morale of any guard in Assassin's Creed II). This means that, unlike their allies, they will almost never run away, unless you disarm them when they are alone. Killing a Brute causes the other guards accompanying him (particularly those with lower ranks) to flee.
Special Brutes
- Dante Moro carries a Bearded Axe with an enlarged head, and fights like a Brute, only with far more health and immunity from being disarmed (unless you use the Heavy Weapon Disarm).
- Bartolomeo d'Alviano carries what appears to be a Bastard Sword, (although the design and coloring of the handle differ from those carried by Brute guards) which he fondly calls "Bianca." He behaves like a Brute in combat, only with far more health.
- Francesco Salviati carried an Axe with him when in his villa and fights like a Brute.
- The Mercenaries also fight like Brutes and carry similar weapons.
- The Templar Spy from Assassin's Creed II: Discovery uses the model of a Brute.
- Some Papal Guards, when equipped with a heavy weapon, will fight like Brutes.
- Auguste Oberlin (the Blacksmith) fights like a Brute in the singleplayer mode of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood.
Trivia
- Ezio has special taunts that are specific to Brutes. If a Brute is targeted and taunted, Ezio will sometimes say things insulting their weight like "Can you even hear me in there metal man!?" and "Well you're certainly well fed!" and "That looks heavy!"
- In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Brutes are rarer and harder to disarm than in Assassin's Creed II.
- In the Cristina missions in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, the brutes have French flags pinned to their armor.
- In the mission Infrequent Flier, during the cutscene where Ezio abandons a burning Flying Machine, you can see a Brute and a Seeker on the roof of the Palazzo Ducale. Strangely, these are the only two guards that can't Free-Run or climb.
- When using the throwing knife special attack, Brutes can be killed with one knife, despite their armour.
Gallery
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Concept art of a Brute for Assassin's Creed II. -
Ezio fighting a Brute in Venice.
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A Brute with two other guards.
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Ezio fighting a Brute on a rooftop.
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A Brute with a reworked appearance from Brotherhood.
