Highlights

• Assassin's Creed features a diverse cast of unique assassins with different skill sets and personalities.
• The story of each assassin adds depth and complexity to the overall plot of the franchise.
• The effectiveness and power of each assassin vary, with some being more formidable than others.

Assassin's Creed is one of the largest franchises in gaming, with a story spanning over ten games, along with several spinoffs, over the course of fifteen years. The story of Altaïr pulled in a diverse pool of fans, while the continuation with every new Assassin's Creed protagonist keeps players glued to their chairs. With every rendition of the title, the plot thickens from assassin to assassin.

Each assassin is more unique than the last having a new story to tell and a new lesson to learn. Even if they do not start out as one, each assassin has a different skill set, personality, and defining attributes. Strength is a necessity for every member of the creed, but some have more than their previous brothers and sisters.

Updated on November 27, 2023, by Ritwik Mitra: Assassin's Creed is a legendary series that has seen its fair share of ups and downs. The annual release schedule of this title annoyed many fans for the longest time before Ubisoft went back to the drawing board in a bid to reinvigorate interest in the title once again. There have been numerous protagonists for this series across several mainline entries and spin-offs, all of whom boast varying degrees of power and effectiveness in battle.

14 Shay Cormac

Assassin's Creed Rogue

Shay Cormac was once a member of the assassin order before a mission got out of hand causing him to turn on his former brothers and sisters, join the Templars, and start a violent campaign to eradicate the order. In terms of physical capability, he did okay. Shay could fight, he could do the standard parkour associated with the order.

Unfortunately, he was ultimately held back by arrogance and self-righteousness. Shay was an impulsive man who was prone to jumping to conclusions and acting without thinking. His "black sheep" status within the Brotherhood was largely caused by self-alienation brought on by a stubborn refusal to cooperate or even try to learn from his fellow assassins, as he was so sure he was better than all of them.

This is also true of his infamous betrayal, which was brought about because of one mission not going as planned and Shay's immediate jumping to conclusions about the Brotherhood's intentions when he clearly did not have the full picture. This made it easy for the Templars to exploit his pent-up anger and resentment to turn him into a weapon that came dangerously close to wiping out the Assassins.

13 Ratonhnhaké:ton (Connor Kenway)

Assassin's Creed 3

Assassin's Creed 3 introduced the illegitimate son of Haytham Kenway, Ratonhnhaké:ton, more commonly known as “Connor” in the Assassin's Creed franchise. Connor donned the hood of an Assassin after the burning of his village, seeking to remove the invaders of his people's land.

Throughout the game's story, Connor deals with betrayal and disillusionment while trying to survive one of the harshest environments during one of the most volatile moments in American history. While one of the youngest assassins, Connor was also one of the toughest; greatly injured and fatigued, he was still a match for his father, Haytham Kenway, and bested him in a duel.

12 Altair

Assassin's Creed

The original Assassin that spawned the franchise and no doubt one of the greatest and strongest assassins to carry the hidden blade was Altair. Altair shaped the course of history For centuries to come and is one of the few to stand against both the Brotherhood and the Templars.

Like many assassins strive to do, Altair understood that the danger to humanity did not just come from the threat of Templars but from within the Brotherhood itself on the rare occasions where the Order of Assassins would lose their way. Altair fought against legions of Templars and Assassins to protect humanity from power-hungry zealots and gave his life fully to the creed. The dedication and conviction made Altair's strength difficult to match.

11 Basim Ibn Ishaq

Assassin's Creed Mirage

After three entries that combined the gameplay of Assassin's Creed with RPG elements, fans decided that they'd had enough. Ubisoft complied with their demands and decided to bring Assassin's Creed back to its roots with the release of Mirage.

The game harkens back to the classic gameplay goodness of the first few Assassin's Creed games, with players having to rely on stealth while reducing their notoriety level as much as possible. Basim may be powerful in the shadows, but he's far from effective in combat and will be cut down if the numbers overwhelm him.

10 Adewale

Assassin's Creed Freedom Cry

A DLC for Assassin's Creed 4 that eventually turned into a standalone piece of content in the series, Assassin's Creed Freedom Cry is a fun side adventure that players can get lost in for a few hours if they want to explore more of what the franchise has to offer.

The protagonist of this DLC, Adewale, is a competent warrior but not really someone notable in terms of pure power. He can be pretty serviceable in both stealth and combat, but the adventure is too brief for Adewale to really evolve his powers beyond what players are allowed to play around with from the get-go.

9 Jacob Frye

Assassin's Creed Syndicate

Assassin's Creed Syndicate introduced the twins Jacob and Evie Frye. Both were capable fighters, but Jacob was the brawler. He had a talent for getting into trouble and quickly embraced life in London's criminal underworld. In fact, it was his idea to break up the Templars' hold over London by starting a gang.

He could certainly handle himself, but his aggressive personality and impulsivity would often get in the way. He had a habit of charging into situations without thinking and often assumed he could punch his way through every possible situation.

8 Edward Kenway

Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag

Edward Kenway served as the main protagonist of Assassin's Creed: Black Flag; he was a ruthless and cunning pirate during the War of Spanish Succession. Kenway found himself a member of the West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins by happenstance when he impersonated a Templar and learned of their secret plot regarding an ancient artifact.

While it was Kenway’s greed that led him to become an assassin, his dedication revealed itself the more he learned about the real threat the Templars embodied. Kenway was a brilliant tactician and one of the strongest warriors, becoming one of the most influential assassins throughout history.

7 Arno Dorian

Assassin's Creed Unity

Arno served as the main protagonist of Assassin's Creed Unity; he is a member of the French Order of Assassins and was a prominent force during the French Revolution. Arno was orphaned after his father was murdered by Shay Cormac; growing up, he became rash and quick to immature temper.

However, indulging himself by taking part in street fights made him grow up strong and sure of himself. His unusual circumstances, which allowed him to exist between the Assassin and Templar Orders (which are usually mutually exclusive) also allowed him to see things in a very different light compared to his colleagues.

He could see problems on both sides, rather than dedicating himself to one or the other. In a fight, Arno is a spectacular combatant and expert swordsman whom no man or woman would want to cross swords with. Some of his peers, however, arguably have more to their resumes.

6 Bayek Of Siwa

Assassin's Creed Origins

Bayek of Siwa is one of the founding members of the Hidden Ones, second to Aya, his wife. Together, the pair set off on a path of blood and vengeance after the death of their son at the hands of the Order of the Ancients. Bayek stood out from other protagonists of the series due to his proficiency as a warrior rather than a traditional assassin. Although he does develop the skills to produce effective precision strikes against the Order, his real talent is in direct confrontation. Bayek was ruthless and held nothing back when it came to combat, and he could handle a lot of different weapons.

However, Bayek did have the disadvantage of being blinded by hatred for the Order and a single-minded focus on revenge for his son's death. While this fueled his relentless pursuit of justice and the brutality of his attacks, it also caused him to act recklessly and nearly killed him on multiple occasions. This issue also made it more difficult for him to see the bigger picture and easily allowed his decisions to be clouded by emotion rather than practical reasoning.

5 Eivor

Assassin's Creed Valhalla

Eivor was a high-born noble who lost her parents during a raid by the wolf clan. She was adopted by a Norwegian king by the name of Styrbjorn Sigvaldisson and molded into a mighty warrior. Eivor would not immediately become entrenched in the way of the Brotherhood of Assassins, only being introduced to them as an adult.

By the time she was brought into their ranks, Eivor was already proficient in most melee weapons of the Viking era, some of which required considerable strength to wield. This gave her not only a physical advantage but also a lot more versatility than other protagonists, many of whom specialized in particular weapons or fighting styles.

Eivor could be quite brash and had a fiery temper, but unlike Jacob Frye, hers was tempered by an intelligent mind. She was a talented flyter, which might not seem like much on its own until one considers the skills involved. Flyting requires an ability to think quickly and adapt to being thrown a curveball, which are extremely valuable skills for a warrior. Eivor was not only capable of brute force, but she could outwit her enemies, and her intelligence was easily underestimated.

4 Evie Frye

Assassin's Creed Syndicate

Jacob may be the more experienced Brawler, but Evie was quite talented in her own right. One need look no further than seeing her in action at the numerous fight clubs of Victorian London, where she pummeled the living daylights out of men twice her size. Of course, the main reason Evie was not seen brawling as often was that she had a few advantages over her brother. Jacob easily fell victim to the flawed idea that might makes right. He tended to operate on the idea that he could punch his way through any issue. This made him a lot more reckless and impulsive.

Evie, on the other hand, had his fighting skills mixed with a lot more intelligence and tactical prowess. She could outwit her enemies just as readily as she could fight them head-on. This gave her the obvious advantage of being able to rely more on ambush and surprise tactics, while not leaving such a huge mess in her wake, but it also gave her a few unique skills when it came to fighting. She did not need to rely exclusively on brute force. She could also rely on her agility to outwit and trip up her opponents.

3 Ezio Auditore

Assassin's Creed 2, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Assassin's Creed: Revelations

Ezio Auditore served as the protagonist of Assassin's Creed 2 but would also appear in the next two installments of the franchise: Assassin's Creed Brotherhood and Assassin's Creed Revelations. Ezio was a dedicated assassin who followed the teachings of Altair closely, having reunited the lost pieces of his codex, which laid out the foundation for what the Brotherhood should strive to be. He shaped the path for what the Brotherhood of Assassins eventually became and trained several new recruits, such as Shoa Jun from Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China.

Ezio had a distinct combination of skills that proved valuable to fighting the Templars. He was already an expert swordsman and quickly adapted to the growing presence of firearms. He was also quick on his feet and could perform tons of exceptional parkour to get around. He also knew how to strike with precision. But the biggest strength he had was leadership. Ezio proved amazingly resourceful even when faced with seemingly hopeless odds. This was the man who began a revolution against the Borgia family that nobody thought possible. His talent for fighting was balanced with tactical skill- a dangerous combination.

2 Aya

Assassin's Creed Origins

Aya or Amunet, as she later became known to the Assassins, was one of the founding members of the Hidden Ones. Like her husband Bayek, Aya became consumed by a desire for vengeance over the murder of their son. However, Aya's rage took a slightly different form from that of her husband.

Where Bayek opted for a violent rampage through Egypt, Aya was a bit more ambitious. She saw how the cult hurt others. She was able to make contacts and allies to gather information about the cult, eventually putting together an organization dedicated to that exact purpose.

Though Aya could certainly be hotheaded and reckless in her own right, she ultimately recognized the value of balancing intelligence with force. This gave her some excellent managerial skills that proved essential to getting the Hidden Ones (and ultimately the Brotherhood) off the ground.

1 Kassandra

Assassin's Creed Odyssey

Kassandra was one of the more unique protagonists of the Assassin's Creed series. She was not technically an assassin (and in fact pre-dated the Hidden Ones by a century) although she definitely has aspects of what would become the creed. She was a mercenary in Greece during the Peloponnesian War, a skill that naturally lent itself to strength. Kassandra was tough. One doesn't need to look much further than her muscular build to get a sense of her physical prowess. But there's more than meets the eye when it comes to this warrior's strength.

A major factor is undoubtedly her Spartan heritage. Being born into a militaristic culture known to value physical strength meant she was already getting basic combat training from a young age. Being the granddaughter of the legendary King Leonidas also produced a hard legacy to live up to. But what really gives Kassandra an edge is her unusual genes. She is part of a rare bloodline that mixes human DNA with that of the Isu precursors. This has a few notable effects, including enhanced strength and considerable resistance to damage.

Considering the Isu are depicted as the inspiration for gods of various mythologies, Kassandra is basically the closest thing one can get to being a demigod by Assassin's Creed rules. Of course, it's not just physical stamina that gives Kassandra her skill. She also has the advantage of being clever, strategic, and quick to learn. She easily took command of an entire ship and could outwit an opponent just as readily as beat the snot out of them, often doing both at the same time.