Swords of Eden

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"The sword is not of this earth. It binds men to it who might otherwise be disloyal."

―Chaya Shirōjirō Kiyonobu about Oda Nobunaga's Sword of Eden.

The Swords of Eden are Pieces of Eden created by the Isu in the manner of swords. Invented by Hephaestus and Consus for the War of Unification, since the fall of the Isu, the Swords have been most commonly used by influential humans in war and conquest.

Powers

The Swords of Eden are some of the most powerful pieces of technology created by the Isu and possess a myriad of advanced abilities. The Swords empower their wielders with incredible charisma, making all those around them extremely loyal and obedient. They also render their wielders immune to the illusion casting effects of the Staves and the Apples of Eden.

One Sword in particular could cast a sonar-like echolocation, akin to Eagle Vision, which can detect the presence of enemies within the wielder's vicinity. It could additionally project energy blasts that could knock foes unconscious, as seen when an unnamed French Templar used the artifact against the French Assassin Thomas de Carneillon.

Known Swords

Sword of Eden #1

Main article: Sword of Eden 1

Jacques de Molay's advisor placing the Sword on a statue

Created by the Isu scientist Hephaestus for use in the War of Unification, this Sword consisted of two components: the blade itself and the Heart, which unlocked the Sword's full abilities. By the early 14th century, the Sword was in possession of the Knights Templar. After the Templars were branded as heretics in 1307 by Pope Clement V, and the Parisian Temple was attacked by King Philip the Fair's forces, Grand Master Jacques de Molay entrusted his advisor with hiding the Sword and the Codex Pater Intellectus, a book written by de Molay.

The advisor succeeded in his task before being slain by the Master Assassin Thomas de Carneillon, who then attempted to retrieve the Sword but failed. Meanwhile, de Molay, who had secretly removed the Heart from the blade, was captured by King Philip's forces and imprisoned in the Château de Chinon. While awaiting execution, the Grand Master buried the Heart within some graffiti on the wall of his cell.

In 1429, during the Hundred Years' War, Jeanne d'Arc, guided by her 'voices', obtained the Heart during her stay at the Château de Chinon's Coudray Tower while awaiting an audience with the then-uncrowned Charles VII. She later obtained the Sword itself, which at some point had been recovered and buried underneath the Church of Saint-Catherine at Sainte-Catherine-de-Fierbois.

Jeanne went on to use the Sword to secure many victories for France during the war, inspiring her comrades and cowing their enemies. However, she eventually lost the weapon during the Siege of Paris, where it was recovered by Templar agents and placed back in its secret chamber. The Heart, meanwhile, was thrown into the Seine by Geoffroy Thérage following Jeanne's alleged execution.

François-Thomas Germain wielding the Sword

In 1794, during the French Revolution, the Sword was acquired by François-Thomas Germain, the Grand Master of the extremist faction of the Templar Order. Germain used the blade during his fight with Arno Dorian and Élise de la Serre, but it was damaged in the confrontation, shattering and emitting a shockwave which killed Élise and mortally wounded Germain himself. After killing Germain, Arno ended up claiming the Sword for himself, but due to its damages he could not make use of its powers.

By 2016, the depowered Sword was once again in the Templars' possession, being displayed in Alan Rikkin's office at the Abstergo Industries headquarters in London. That year, the Templar Simon Hathaway was given the Sword for research while attempting to find a way to restore its powers. After reliving the memories of his ancestor Gabriel Laxart in the Animus, Hathaway learned about its missing component, the Heart, and was able to find it. He then presented the restored Sword to the Inner Sanctum of the Templar Order before the artifact was returned to Rikkin's office.

Sword of Eden #2

Main article: Sword of Eden 2

Genghis Khan wielding the Sword of Eden 2

This Sword was possessed by the Mongol warlord Genghis Khan during the early 13th century. Using its powers, the Khan was able to lead his Empire through mass expansions into the west, which led the Levantine Assassins' Mentor Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad to deduce that the ruler must have a Piece of Eden in his possession. He subsequently decided to journey east with his family to assassinate Genghis Khan and recover his artifact.

In 1227, Altaïr's son Darim and the Mongolian Assassin Qulan Gal killed Genghis Khan, but failed to recover his Sword. The artifact thus remained in Mongol hands, and Genghis' grandson Hülegü Khan used it in his conquests of the Levant during the 1250s, notably during his attacks on the Assassin strongholds in Alamut and Masyaf.

Harpe of Perseus

Main article: Harpe of Perseus

The Writhing Dread using the Harpe of Perseus to create a protective shield

This Sword of Eden was said to have been wielded Perseus, the mythical Greek hero who killed Medusa, one of the people to be transformed into the hybrid beast known as the "Writhing Dread" by one of the Atlantis artifacts. By the time of the Peloponnesian War, the blade had been acquired by Ligeia, the latest incarnation of the Writhing Dread, granting her a number of advanced abilities, including teleportation and shield projection.

Around 422 BCE, the misthios Kassandra fought and killed Ligeia at the Petrified Temple in Lesbos in order to claim her Atlantis artifact. In the process, she also obtained the Harpe of Perseus, though she was unable to make use of any of its powers.

Sword of Damokles

Main article: Sword of Damokles

Deimos wielding the Sword of Damokles against Kassandra

During the Peloponnesian War, the Cult of Kosmos had a Sword of Eden under their possession, namely the Sword of Damokles. It was used as a personal weapon by Deimos, the younger half-brother of Kassandra and the Cult's personal enforcer, who wielded it in battle against the Spartans. After Deimos' death in 422 BCE, Kassandra obtained the Sword for her own use, though she could not access any of its enhanced abilities.

Gram

Main article: Gram

Around the 6th century, a being claiming to be the Norse god Odin, disguised as a beggar, plunged the Sword of Eden known as Gram into a tree called Barnstokkr, stating that the blade would belong to whoever pulled it free. Only the warrior Sigmund proved able to do so, and subsequently claimed the Sword as his own. According to legend, Gram was later inherited by Sigmund's son Sigurd, who used it to slay the dragon Fafnir.

Excalibur

Main article: Excalibur

Arthur pulling out Excalibur

At some point prior to the 5th century, the Women of the Mist, a secretive group of Celtic witch-warriors based in Avalon, came into possession of a Sword of Eden, which they used to determine their clan's next leader, known as "The Lady". By the early 6th century, this Sword had become lodged in a stone before being pulled out by a young Briton leader, Arthur Pendragon. Naming it "Excalibur", Arthur used the blade to repel Anglo-Saxon invaders and eventually became King of Britain, while also gaining an alliance with the Order of the Ancients.

After Arthur died upon being inadvertently betrayed by those he loved, Excalibur was taken by one of his trusted allies, who sealed the blade deep within a cave known as Myrddin's Cave, which housed an Isu ruin. There, the Sword remained untouched for over three centuries, being surrounded by twelve pillars that kept it in place.

In the 870s, Excalibur was recovered by the Viking Eivor Varinsdottir, who unlocked the pillars surrounding the Sword using the thirteen Treasures of Britain found during her travels. However, Eivor would not get to keep the weapon for long; in 878, Excalibur became the target of several groups seeking the artifact for their own ends, including the Women of the Mist, the Order, and the Descendants of the Round Table.

Niamh of Argyll holding Excalibur

Niamh of Argyll, a member of the Women of the Mist who had joined Eivor's allies, the Hidden Ones, in order to get close to Excalibur, eventually managed to steal the Sword, but was attacked by soldiers sent by the Order and the Descendants to recover the artifact. After being poisoned, she escaped her assailants and met with Ravensthorpe's seeress Valka to receive a cure for the poison.

The soldiers hunting Niamh later attacked Valka's hut, but using Excalibur and with the help of the Hidden One Hytham, Niamh was able to fight them off. She, Hytham and Valka then devised a plan to burn a fake replica of the Sword to fool the world into thinking it had been destroyed, while the real Excalibur would be returned to Avalon.

The plan was successful and, while Hytham and Valka destroyed the replica of Excalibur, Niamh took the real Sword to the Lady of Avalon. As she presented the artifact, Excalibur began to glow in Niamh's hands, which led to her being named the new Lady of Avalon. The Women of the Mist would later form an alliance with the Hidden Ones, who continued to help them protect Excalibur.

Other Swords of Eden

• The Greek hero Perseus wielded a Sword of Eden which, according to Greek mythology, he used to slay the Gorgon Medusa. This Sword may or may not be the same blade as the Harpe of Perseus.
• During the 5th century CE, a Sword of Eden came into the possession of Attila the Hun, after a shepherd unearthed it and gave it to him. With the blade, Attila ravaged Eurasia during his reign, and over time the weapon became known as the Sword of Mars or the Sword of Attila.
• In the latter half of the 16th century, a Sword of Eden wound up in the hands of the Japanese warlord Takeda Shingen. Seeking the artifact, the Japanese Assassins formed an alliance with Tokugawa Ieyasu and, during a raid on Shingen's camp, the warlord was killed by Hattori Hanzō and Honda Tadakatsu. The Sword was later acquired by Ieyasu's ally, Oda Nobunaga, who used the artifact in his conquests. In 1582, he was betrayed and attacked by his vassal Akechi Mitsuhide, a key member of the Shinbakufu, at Honnō-ji. During the confusion, the monk Yamauchi Taka managed to retrieve the Sword at his ally Hattori Hanzō's request, and gave it to the Chinese Assassin Liu Yan to be delivered to China.

Gallery

• 
  Concept art of Gram
• 
  Perseus holding his Sword of Eden while rescuing Andromeda
• 
  Kassandra wielding the Sword of Damokles
• 
  Eivor Varinsdottir retrieving Excalibur
• 
  Jeanne d'Arc holding the Sword of Eden 1
• 
  A Sword of Eden being wielded in battle

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed II (Glyphs only)
• Assassin's Creed: The Secret Crusade (indirect mention only)
• Assassin's Creed: Unity (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Memories
• Assassin's Creed: Heresy
• Assassin's Creed: Reflections (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Odyssey
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
  • The Forgotten Saga
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Sword of the White Horse
• Assassin's Creed: Nexus VR
• Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple
• Assassin's Creed Roleplaying Game