Herald
Heralds were citizens who informed the populations of cities about recent news, such as those concerning laws, taxation, public health issues or executions.
Formation
Heralds came about due to the lack of an effective means of information transfer, and were precursors to the communication system of modern times.
At the time of the Third Crusade, heralds were found in major cities such as Acre, Damascus, and Jerusalem, attempting to convince the citizens to join the Crusaders or Saracens, depending on which faction controlled the city at the time.
During the Italian Renaissance, should Ezio Auditore commit a crime, the heralds would begin warning the people about the presence of the Assassin. To keep himself hidden, Ezio would often bribe them with 500 florins, and encourage them to speak of other matters. Similarly, in Constantinople, Ezio would bribe heralds with 100 Akçe.
The heralds in Florence, Venice, Forlì and San Gimignano warned the public about the black plague, while the heralds in Rome warned about swine flu and syphilis.
In Constantinople, heralds would talk about the war between Selim and his father. They also commented on Manuel Palaiologos, Byzantines, and Ezio's assassination of Tarik Barleti.
When viewed with Eagle Vision, heralds were marked with blue if they were announcing normal events. If they spoke of the Assassins (mostly lies and slander), they were seen glowing red, as any other enemy. They sometimes also glowed yellow.
Trivia
- Bribing a herald lowered notoriety by 50%. In Assassin's Creed: Revelations, this was lowered to 25%.
- In Assassin's Creed II, heralds would appear on the map as long as Ezio's notoriety was not at 0%. In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, notoriety must have been greater than 50%, and in Revelations, they appeared around 25% Templar awareness. It should be noted that, in Assassin's Creed II, in Venice they appeared at 50% notoriety.
- In both Brotherhood and Revelations, it was possible to steal back the money that Ezio used to bribe heralds, though they would initiate a fistfight should Ezio remain in the area afterwards. The Brotherhood achievement "Easy Come, Easy Go" could be earned by doing so.
- In this achievement, a herald is referred to as an "orator."
- In Assassin's Creed III, heralds were replaced by town criers, which did not attract crowds like in earlier games, and held up newspapers instead.
Gallery
-
Civilians listening to a herald in Acre -
Ezio bribing a herald -
A herald in Italy -
A herald in Constantinople
References
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||