Hidden Ones
When most think of assassins, they think of the Hidden Ones. They are the most well-known and widespread.
The Order believes in a strong set of values that strictly govern their way of life, referred to as "the Creed". This Creed consists of three tenets:
1. "Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."
2. "Hide in plain sight, be one with the crowd."
3. "Never compromise the Brotherhood."
These tenets permeated every aspect of the Assassins' daily life, as well as their fight for "peace in all things". The Assassins carry out their duties through political, strategic assassination, in the hope that killing one individual will lead to the salvation of thousands. They also believe that they fight on the behalf of those who do not possess the abilities, resources, or knowledge to speak out against those who abuse their power.
Throughout its long existence, the Assassin Order has opposed tyrants and oppressors alike, priding itself as a "champion of the poor" and downtrodden, while assuming ideals such as equality and freedom and other principles associated with human rights. Though these principles may encourage the view that the Assassins are, like their sworn enemies the Templars, founded on a distinct set of ideals, at its roots, the Assassins' philosophy is grounded not in idealism, but in rationalism and epistemology, with the unique viewpoint that before one devises a specific code of ethics or belief system, one must first approach the world from a chiefly scientific standpoint, un-tempered by biases or such subjective products as morality or faith. To an Assassin, knowledge should be obtained first and foremost through strict objective reasoning, but this method is disrupted by each individual's fundamental dependency on his or her own senses to acquire information. These senses can be deceived in some measure, or otherwise will never convey the precise intrinsic quality of an object. Consequently, they are rendered unreliable, with the end result being that "true" or "full" objectivity is, unreachable. The driving theory behind the Assassin's Creed is thus that "one can only know that one knows nothing."
The second component of the Creed, "everything is permitted" is an extension of this principle of uncertainty. Because the quantity of variables is infinite, it follows that theoretically, anything within nature is possible, for as long as there is no absolute answer to any query, no impossibility can be ascertained. Therefore, one must remain vigilantly open-minded to the unexpected and unknown, drawing to a conclusion while being ever mindful of that conclusion's plausibility of error. Beyond being a further vessel for pluralism, Assassins are taught to be watchful of pretensions and their own capability to achieve either great dreams or great destruction. In essence, this corollary commands one to take responsibility for one's actions towards oneself and society at large
The Hidden Ones operate all over the globe and tend to operate in cities where a chapter is located. Rumors say the Hidden Ones are trying to get a chapter somewhere in Ilvin.
The Order believes in a strong set of values that strictly govern their way of life, referred to as "the Creed". This Creed consists of three tenets:
1. "Stay your blade from the flesh of an innocent."
2. "Hide in plain sight, be one with the crowd."
3. "Never compromise the Brotherhood."
These tenets permeated every aspect of the Assassins' daily life, as well as their fight for "peace in all things". The Assassins carry out their duties through political, strategic assassination, in the hope that killing one individual will lead to the salvation of thousands. They also believe that they fight on the behalf of those who do not possess the abilities, resources, or knowledge to speak out against those who abuse their power.
Throughout its long existence, the Assassin Order has opposed tyrants and oppressors alike, priding itself as a "champion of the poor" and downtrodden, while assuming ideals such as equality and freedom and other principles associated with human rights. Though these principles may encourage the view that the Assassins are, like their sworn enemies the Templars, founded on a distinct set of ideals, at its roots, the Assassins' philosophy is grounded not in idealism, but in rationalism and epistemology, with the unique viewpoint that before one devises a specific code of ethics or belief system, one must first approach the world from a chiefly scientific standpoint, un-tempered by biases or such subjective products as morality or faith. To an Assassin, knowledge should be obtained first and foremost through strict objective reasoning, but this method is disrupted by each individual's fundamental dependency on his or her own senses to acquire information. These senses can be deceived in some measure, or otherwise will never convey the precise intrinsic quality of an object. Consequently, they are rendered unreliable, with the end result being that "true" or "full" objectivity is, unreachable. The driving theory behind the Assassin's Creed is thus that "one can only know that one knows nothing."
The second component of the Creed, "everything is permitted" is an extension of this principle of uncertainty. Because the quantity of variables is infinite, it follows that theoretically, anything within nature is possible, for as long as there is no absolute answer to any query, no impossibility can be ascertained. Therefore, one must remain vigilantly open-minded to the unexpected and unknown, drawing to a conclusion while being ever mindful of that conclusion's plausibility of error. Beyond being a further vessel for pluralism, Assassins are taught to be watchful of pretensions and their own capability to achieve either great dreams or great destruction. In essence, this corollary commands one to take responsibility for one's actions towards oneself and society at large
The Hidden Ones operate all over the globe and tend to operate in cities where a chapter is located. Rumors say the Hidden Ones are trying to get a chapter somewhere in Ilvin.
Structure
There are two ways of entering into the Order: through birth or through recruitment.
After declaring oneself an Assassin under the Creed, a trainee would be tested to prove their worth over an unspecified period of time. For example, famed leader Ezio Auditore was tasked with hunting down conspirators over years before he was officially inducted, whereas Assassin apprentices have to gain enough experience in their contract missions across the world before joining the Assassins Guild as fully-fledged members.
The Assassins spend their entire lives training to kill. From an early age, they are taught to observe their surroundings and plan ahead. Combat skills are essential and focused on bladed weaponry. However, the most important consideration in the Assassins' training is concealment. Stealth is the greatest weapon of the Assassins, and everything about their lives emphasizes a devotion to it. It is essential for an Assassin to be able to reach their target unnoticed and then slip back into the crowd after they had struck.
Another significant focus of an Assassin's training was maneuverability. By the time an Assassin reaches the rank of Master Assassin, they were also a master of freerunning, an early form of parkour extensively utilized by the Assassins. Widely seen as alien by the general populace, this method of movement allowed the Assassins to reach areas not otherwise accessible. Freerunning gave the Assassins a significant advantage over nearly all of their enemies and city guards, and could be used to traverse crowded urban environments quickly and efficiently.
However, not all Assassins were trained from birth, particularly those recruited later in life. Trainees had to learn the ways of their craft through personal experience and the teachings from other Assassins in the field.
After declaring oneself an Assassin under the Creed, a trainee would be tested to prove their worth over an unspecified period of time. For example, famed leader Ezio Auditore was tasked with hunting down conspirators over years before he was officially inducted, whereas Assassin apprentices have to gain enough experience in their contract missions across the world before joining the Assassins Guild as fully-fledged members.
The Assassins spend their entire lives training to kill. From an early age, they are taught to observe their surroundings and plan ahead. Combat skills are essential and focused on bladed weaponry. However, the most important consideration in the Assassins' training is concealment. Stealth is the greatest weapon of the Assassins, and everything about their lives emphasizes a devotion to it. It is essential for an Assassin to be able to reach their target unnoticed and then slip back into the crowd after they had struck.
Another significant focus of an Assassin's training was maneuverability. By the time an Assassin reaches the rank of Master Assassin, they were also a master of freerunning, an early form of parkour extensively utilized by the Assassins. Widely seen as alien by the general populace, this method of movement allowed the Assassins to reach areas not otherwise accessible. Freerunning gave the Assassins a significant advantage over nearly all of their enemies and city guards, and could be used to traverse crowded urban environments quickly and efficiently.
However, not all Assassins were trained from birth, particularly those recruited later in life. Trainees had to learn the ways of their craft through personal experience and the teachings from other Assassins in the field.
Culture
Though the Assassins' philosophy begins with a purely empirical assessment of life that seemingly verges on nihilism, their order is profoundly idealistic, with a deep sentiment for the principles of social justice, humanitarianism, egalitarianism, and liberty.
The Assassins' justify perspectivism with the view that it is logical and realistic, but it is further reinforced ethically by their ardent belief in the "sanctity of life" and each individual's humanity.[1] This, in conjunction with moral relativism, are the guiding motives behind their support for cultural diversity and free will. Assassins perceive societal norms and conventions as artificial structures that can hinder one's partiality and lead to prejudices. These false boundaries include but are not limited to national borders, gender, ethnicity, social class, and race. As a result, Assassins oppose discrimination of virtually every kind, with physical abuse and slavery being especially abhorrent.
It is possible for members of the Order to be expelled for various reasons, including but not limited to breaking the tenents of the Creed. In such situations, the Assassin Council could call for a vote of expulsion. After being expelled, the Assassin would be stripped of their rank and exiled from the Brotherhood. The Assassin Arno Dorian was expelled from the Order, after he had defied the Council's orders, performed several assassinations without the Council's consent and in their words "flouted the Creed at every step". Arno would be welcomed back into the Order, however, after he later reformed and demonstrated true fidelity to the Creed.[6] In cases of extreme disregard for the Creed's tenets, an expelled member may further become the target of assassination by their former comrades,
The Assassins' justify perspectivism with the view that it is logical and realistic, but it is further reinforced ethically by their ardent belief in the "sanctity of life" and each individual's humanity.[1] This, in conjunction with moral relativism, are the guiding motives behind their support for cultural diversity and free will. Assassins perceive societal norms and conventions as artificial structures that can hinder one's partiality and lead to prejudices. These false boundaries include but are not limited to national borders, gender, ethnicity, social class, and race. As a result, Assassins oppose discrimination of virtually every kind, with physical abuse and slavery being especially abhorrent.
It is possible for members of the Order to be expelled for various reasons, including but not limited to breaking the tenents of the Creed. In such situations, the Assassin Council could call for a vote of expulsion. After being expelled, the Assassin would be stripped of their rank and exiled from the Brotherhood. The Assassin Arno Dorian was expelled from the Order, after he had defied the Council's orders, performed several assassinations without the Council's consent and in their words "flouted the Creed at every step". Arno would be welcomed back into the Order, however, after he later reformed and demonstrated true fidelity to the Creed.[6] In cases of extreme disregard for the Creed's tenets, an expelled member may further become the target of assassination by their former comrades,
Public Agenda
In light of their antipathy for authoritarianism, the Assassins throughout history have fought under the banner of liberation for oppressed peoples. In spite of this, freedom was not at the heart of their ambitions, but peace. The Assassins aspire for the establishment of global prosperity and harmony, the genesis of what essentially amounts to a utopia. In this, they share with the Templars a sincere desire to resolve the chaos that plagues humanity. Their incompatible visions of the means by which such a utopia could be achieved dismantled this common spirit.
Nothing is true. Everything is permitted.
Type
Guild, Assassins
Training Level
Elite
Veterancy Level
Decorated/Honored
Comments