Who they are
Desmond makes the historical memories urgent in the present. His arc is the reason release order still matters even when historical chronology is easier to follow.
Their story belongs to Baghdad and the modern story and also touches The Levant and The Ezio era and Colonial America. Basim's origin and the present-day thread that makes memory a contested weapon.
Their story, step by step
- Step 1
Run from inherited conflict
Desmond begins by rejecting a life shaped by Assassin training, wanting an identity that is not simply assigned by his family.
- Step 2
Relive ancestors' choices
The Animus turns ancestral memory into lived responsibility, connecting Altaïr, Ezio and Connor's unfinished conflicts to his own decisions.
- Step 3
What their choices leave behind
Desmond's sacrifice gives the modern story its moral weight: he chooses a future for others even though the conflict cannot be ended by one act.
Turning points
- Being taken by Abstergo and entering the Animus.
- Learning from multiple Assassin ancestors.
- Choosing sacrifice to avert catastrophe.
Where their story stands now
Desmond's sacrifice gives the modern story its moral weight: he chooses a future for others even though the conflict cannot be ended by one act.
Who they are tied to
Games they appear in
- Assassin's Creed →Altaïr is demoted after breaking the Creed and must investigate nine targets across the Levant.
- Assassin's Creed II →Ezio enters the hidden war after members of his family are executed through a political conspiracy.
- Assassin's Creed Brotherhood →After Cesare Borgia attacks Monteriggioni, Ezio moves to Rome and turns a personal defeat into a campaign to rebuild the Brotherhood.
- Assassin's Creed Revelations →Ezio searches for keys to Altaïr's library while supporting the Ottoman Brotherhood and confronting a Templar succession plot.
- Assassin's Creed III →Ratonhnhaké:ton, known as Connor, joins the Assassins to defend his people as the American Revolution reshapes the colonies.
Where this fits in the story
- Baghdad and the modern story · step 1
Follow Desmond
The first games use the Animus to connect historical assassins.
- Baghdad and the modern story · step 2
Meet Layla
Origins through Valhalla shift modern focus to a new researcher.
- Baghdad and the modern story · step 3
Understand Basim
Mirage and Valhalla reframe his role across eras.
- Baghdad and the modern story · step 4
Read Nexus as a bridge
VR memories expand the archive without replacing the core arc.