Ishaq ibn Khalid

You cannot know anything. Only suspect. This article contains content from pre-release sources that may or may not be reflective of canon upon release. This article therefore likely contains spoilers.

This article is about Basim Ibn Ishaq's father. You may be looking for the Ottoman Assassin.

"It takes but a few simple tools to build the greatest of mosques."

―Basim, quoting his father, 861.

Ishaq (Arabic: إسحاق) was an architect active in early to mid-9th century Samarra, then the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. He was the father of Basim Ibn Ishaq.

Biography

Though responsible for the construction of the Great Mosque of Samarra, another man stole his credit and Ishaq was sentenced to exile. Abandoning his seven-year-old son, Ishaq left the caliphal capital and was presumed to have later died in poverty, but in truth was held hostage in al-Ula by a group of robbers under 'Abis' command. In Ishaq's absence, and with Basim's mother having died a few years earlier, the boy was considered an orphan and grew up in Baghdad's streets.

Personality and traits

"A public servant who dedicated his life to the betterment of his people... only to be slighted and forgotten"

―Basim describing his father, 861.

In his teenage years, Basim appeared to hold Ishaq in relatively high regard, describing him as someone who had "dedicated his life to the betterment of his people" and hoping to live up to the wisdom of his lessons. Furthermore, the injustice Ishaq had faced inspired in his son a strong desire to fight for justice and help those in need, which eventually led him to join the Hidden Ones. However, Basim's opinion seemingly changed as he became an adult and unlocked Loki's dormant memories inside him. When talking with Hytham during a mission in Constantinople in 867, Basim described Ishaq as someone who "had no love in him for his son", saying that his father had nothing but violence to pass on to him.

Behind the scenes

Ubisoft erroneously stylizes Ishaq's name as "Is'haq". This is a non-standardized way to romanize the Arabic إسحاق but is used to signify that the ⟨sh⟩ is not a digrah pronounced as a single phoneme.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (first mentioned) (indirect mention only)
• Assassin's Creed: The Golden City (indirect mention only)
• The World of Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Journey to the North – Logs and Files of a Hidden One (indirect mention only)
• Assassin's Creed: Mirage (indirect mention only)
  • Valley of Memory (first appearance)