Poison Blade

What if this was all a construction? A masterfully crafted simulation?
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"It's another blade design... for delivering poison!"

―Leonardo da Vinci, upon deciphering a Codex page with the blade's design, 1478.^[src]^-[m]

The Poison Blade was one of several upgrades to the Hidden Blade, invented by the Levantine Assassins' Mentor Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad using knowledge from the Apple of Eden in his possession.

Based on Altaïr's design in the Codex, it was later crafted by the Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci for the Italian Assassin Ezio Auditore to use. The weapon was essentially a thin, hollow needle hidden within the blade which could be filled with poison. Because of its exceedingly thin profile and the requirement of a hollow chamber, the Poison Blade risked being particularly brittle, and in his Codex, Altaïr cautioned that deviations from his exact schematics would likely produce a blade that could easily fracture.

Description[edit | edit source]

Even more inconspicuous than the Hidden Blade, the Poison Blade could be used to inject a target with poison, causing them to attack anyone within range as they slowly succumbed to its effects. Due to its delayed reaction, the Assassin was given much more time to escape than when using the Hidden Blade.^[1] Besides dealing a direct kill to the intended assassination target, the Poison Blade could also be used as a distraction, as anyone within the immediate area would stop to watch the poisoned victim. This proved especially useful when approaching restricted areas, as the guards would leave their posts to observe the poisoned victim, allowing the Assassin to slip by unnoticed.^[1]

The Poison Blade was also useful when completing assassination contracts, as in many cases, targets would either be followed by guards or within a guarded area. Ezio could purchase poison vials from a doctor at 175 florins each, and up to five could be initially carried at a time. The maximum number of vials could be increased to ten or fifteen after buying poison vial upgrades, purchasable from any tailor.^[1]

Upgrades[edit | edit source]

Fast Poison[edit | edit source]

This upgrade was a more potent poison that could be purchased from the doctor on Tiber Island after Ezio had completed their shop quests. Fast Poison sent enemies immediately into a crazed state, rather than after a delay. As such, it was a more precise and quicker means of creating a diversion.^[2]

Poison darts[edit | edit source]

Main article: Poison darts

Somewhat of a joint upgrade for both the Poison Blade and the Hidden Gun, poison darts allowed Ezio to use the effects of the Poison Blade from a distance. This upgrade was provided by Leonardo da Vinci, after Ezio had destroyed his war machines and met with the inventor at one of the marked benches around Rome.^[2]

Efficient use[edit | edit source]

Silent kill: Guards would not notice the poisoning process, unless it was directly next to them and in their line of sight, though even then it was not guaranteed that they would always notice.
Attention: Distraction was an important tool to any Assassin. If Ezio was looking for a silent approach that smoke bombs could not provide, and if he could not find any thieves, mercenaries, or courtesans within the immediate area, the Poison Blade could be used as an effective substitute. Poisoning anyone within ten meters of a guard's position would cause them, as well as all other guards near them, to move away from their position to where the poisoned victim was standing. Once the victim had drawn their attention, Ezio could either assassinate the guards and give away his position, or silently proceed towards his objective. Once the victim succumbed to the poison, the guards would immediately start an investigation and would become suspicious of Ezio if they spotted him.
Clean kill: When performing an assassination contract, a single target could have at least one guard following close behind them. Ezio could poison the guard and move away into a hiding spot, while the aforementioned guard could inadvertently kill the target for him, eliminating the need to ever come out of hiding after the first administration.

Trivia[edit | edit source]

In Assassin's Creed II, the "Doctor" achievement could be earned by performing an air assassination on an already poisoned guard.
If Ezio poisoned two guards who were close to each other, one might knock the other one out. In this case, the knocked out guard would not die (despite being previously poisoned), but would remain unconscious as if they were beaten in a fistfight.
In the novelization of Assassin's Creed II, the Poison Blade could be used in combat for an instant kill. In the game, however, this was not the case, as the target died slowly and painfully.
- Also in the novel, it was mentioned that the poison utilized was a distillation of hemlock, before Ezio later replaced it with henbane.
In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, the Poison Blade was not visible when unsheathing, aside from when Ezio was in a state of loading in the Animus, such as when equipping armor or dyeing robes, or within the Animus Virtual Training Program.
Completing the "Venomous" shop quest would unlock Fast Poison, but in the process, it would also lock the standard poison in the "Supplies" inventory menu.
When an archer was poisoned with regular poison and staggered over the edge of a building, they would not fall, but continue walking instead. However, once they started attacking, if they got close enough to the edge, they would then fall.
Despite the fact that Ezio can still make use of both the Poison Blade and the poison dart launcher in Assassin's Creed: Revelations, neither are mentioned in the game's novelization.