Assassin's Creed: Full Timeline Revealed

Assassin’s Creed Shadows marks the latest installment in the storied Assassin’s Creed series, setting its sights on feudal Japan during the Sengoku period in 1579. This placement situates it at the midpoint of the series’ historical timeline, a series that doesn't follow a straightforward chronological progression but instead jumps through different eras, from the Peloponnesian War in Ancient Greece to the dawn of the First World War. With a total of 14 mainline games and counting, the timeline can become quite complex. To help fans navigate this intricate web of history and lore, IGN has meticulously compiled a comprehensive timeline that organizes all the key events of the Assassin’s Creed saga in chronological order.

The Isu Era

75,000 BCE

Before delving into the timeline, it's essential to understand the lore. Far back in time, a highly advanced civilization known as the Isu ruled Earth. These god-like beings created humanity as their slaves, controlling them with powerful artifacts called the Apples of Eden. However, humans, led by Eve and Adam, rebelled after stealing an Apple of Eden, sparking a revolutionary war against their creators. This conflict lasted a decade until a catastrophic solar flare wiped out the Isu, leaving humanity to rise from the ashes and inherit the planet.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

431 to 422 BCE - Peloponnesian War

During the Peloponnesian War in Greece, mercenary Kassandra uncovers The Cult of Kosmos, a shadowy organization manipulating the conflict. Her journey reveals that her brother Alexios, kidnapped and transformed into a weapon by the Cult, possesses the genes of their grandfather, the legendary Spartan King Leonidas, a direct descendant of the Isu. Kassandra's mission to dismantle the Cult leads her to destroy an Isu device used to predict future outcomes, effectively ending the war. She reunites with her father, Pythagoras, another Isu descendant, who entrusts her with the Staff of Hermes, granting immortality, and tasks her with guarding Atlantis.

Assassin’s Creed Origins

49 to 43 BCE - Ptolemaic Egypt

In Ptolemaic Egypt, during Cleopatra's reign, the Order of the Ancients kidnaps peacekeeper Bayek and his son, believing Bayek's bloodline can unlock an Isu vault. The attempt fails, and in the ensuing chaos, Bayek accidentally kills his son, vowing revenge on the Order. Together with his wife Aya, they dismantle the Order, discovering its global ambitions to control politics and religion using the Apples of Eden. To combat this, they establish The Hidden Ones, a network of spies and assassins, operating from strongholds in Egypt and Rome.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage

861 - Islamic Golden Age

Nearly a century later, The Hidden Ones have spread globally, including a fortress in Alamut, Iran. Here, Basim, a Baghdad street thief, is trained as an assassin to thwart the Order of the Ancients. Discovering their plot to access an Isu temple beneath Alamut, Basim helps fend off the Order and finds a technologically advanced prison holding Loki, an Isu revered as a god by the Norse. Realizing he is Loki's reincarnation, Basim seeks revenge on those who imprisoned him in his past life.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

872 to 878 - Viking Invasion of England

A decade later, Basim joins a Viking clan in England, hunting members of the Order of the Ancients. Clan leader Sigurd and his sibling Eivor seek to establish a settlement, Ravensthorpe, and confront the tyranny of King Alfred, an Order member aiming to replace the regime with a Christian system. After finding an Isu artifact, Sigurd experiences visions of divinity. Basim reveals that Eivor and Sigurd are reincarnations of Odin and Týr, whom he seeks to punish for imprisoning him as Loki. Eivor traps Basim in a simulated world, and Sigurd relinquishes leadership to Eivor, who defeats King Alfred and returns to Ravensthorpe as a hero.

Assassin’s Creed

1191 - Third Crusade

Over the next three centuries, The Hidden Ones evolve into the Assassin Brotherhood, while their adversaries, the Order of the Ancients, become the Knights Templar. Both factions maintain their goals of global control. During the Third Crusade, assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad works to steal an Apple of Eden from the Templars. His mission involves assassinating nine Templar leaders, uncovering a plot to use the Apple's powers. However, he learns that his mentor, Al Mualim, betrayed the Templars to control the Apple himself. Altaïr kills Al Mualim, taking command of the Brotherhood.

Assassin’s Creed 2

1476 to 1499 - Italian Renaissance

During the Italian Renaissance, Ezio Auditore Da Firenze joins the Assassin Brotherhood to avenge his family's execution by the Templars. Armed with his father's equipment and innovations from Leonardo Da Vinci, Ezio battles the Templar-aligned Borgia family. He acquires an Apple of Eden, uncovering an Isu vault beneath the Vatican. After defeating the Pope, Ezio learns from the Isu Minerva about an impending apocalypse in 2012, hinting that a network of Isu vaults could prevent it.

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

1499 to 1507 - Italian Renaissance

Despite defeating the Pope, Ezio spares his life, a choice that backfires when the Papal Army besieges his villa and steals the Apple of Eden. In response, Ezio strengthens the Assassin Brotherhood, becoming the leader of the Italian Bureau. They dismantle the Borgia regime in Rome, reclaiming the Apple and securing it in an Isu vault beneath the Colosseum.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations

1511 to 1512 - Ottoman Civil War

Seeking more Isu knowledge, Ezio travels to Masyaf to investigate Altaïr's library. The Templars have already secured five keys to unlock it. Ezio allies with the Ottoman Assassins in Constantinople to stop the Byzantine Templars' plans. Inside the library, he discovers Altaïr's remains and an Apple of Eden, which projects a message from Jupiter about data crucial for humanity's survival in the Grand Temple. Ezio leaves the Apple locked away and retires, later succumbing to injuries sustained over his career.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

1579 - Sengoku Period

Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes us to 16th-century Japan during the Sengoku period. An African mercenary, accompanied by a Catholic Jesuit missionary, arrives and meets Oda Nobunaga, a powerful lord unifying Japan. The mercenary, named Yasuke, becomes one of Nobunaga's samurai and participates in the invasion of the Iga province. Here, he encounters Naoe, daughter of shinobi master Fujibayashi Nagato. Despite their initial opposition, Yasuke and Naoe unite for a common cause.

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag

1715 to 1722 - Golden Age of Piracy

In the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy, Edward Kenway infiltrates the Templar conspiracy after killing an Assassin. The Templars seek The Observatory, an Isu device for spying on humanity, which can only be unlocked by the 'Sage,' a reincarnation of the Isu Aita. Edward allies with pirates, including Bartholomew Roberts, the current Sage, to disrupt the Templars. After a betrayal, Edward retrieves the device's power source and assassinates Templar leader Laureano de Torres y Ayala, returning to England to live with his family.

Assassin’s Creed Rogue

1752 to 1776 - French and Indian War

Shay Patrick Cormac, sent by the Assassin Brotherhood to retrieve an Isu artifact, inadvertently causes an earthquake in Lisbon. Guilt-ridden, he defects, stealing the Brotherhood's map of Isu temples. Rescued by the Templars, Shay ascends their ranks, hunting down Assassins. He and Haytham Kenway, Edward's son, confront their former mentor Achilles, preventing further Isu temple searches. Shay later suggests sparking a revolution in France to counter an Assassin-led uprising in America.

Assassin’s Creed 3

1754 to 1783 - American Revolution

Haytham Kenway seeks to unlock the Isu's Grand Temple, but fails. He falls in love with Mohawk woman Kaniehti:io, fathering Ratonhnhaké:ton (later Connor Kenway). After his mother's death, Connor trains as an Assassin under Achilles, targeting Templars during the American Revolution. Reuniting with Haytham, their conflicting ideals lead to Connor killing his father. He then buries the Grand Temple key, thwarting the Templars' plans.

Assassin’s Creed Liberation

1765 to 1777 - Spanish Occupation of Louisiana

In parallel with Connor's story, New Orleans assassin Aveline de Grandpré uncovers a Templar plot to control Louisiana. Her investigation reveals a larger conspiracy involving the 'Company Man,' who uses slaves to uncover an Isu temple. Aveline discovers her stepmother is behind the plot and kills her, activating the Isu 'Prophecy Disk,' which narrates Eve's role in the human rebellion against the Isu.

Assassin’s Creed Unity

1789 to 1794 - French Revolution

Arno Dorian, orphaned by Shay Cormac, is raised by the Templar Grand Master François de la Serre. Framed for de la Serre's murder, Arno joins the Assassins to find the killer, extremist Templar François-Thomas Germain, who aims to incite revolution. Arno and his sister Élise pursue Germain, who attempts to kill Arno with a Sword of Eden. The sword explodes, killing Élise and wounding Germain, who reveals himself as the Sage. Arno seals Germain's remains in the Paris Catacombs, keeping them from the Templars.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

1868 - Victorian England

In Victorian London, twin assassins Jacob and Evie Frye seek The Shroud, another Isu device. They find the city under Templar control through industry, politics, and crime. Jacob targets Templar leaders while Evie races to find The Shroud. Despite losing his lieutenants, Templar leader Crawford Starrick locates The Shroud beneath Buckingham Palace. The twins assassinate Starrick, returning The Shroud to its vault. Later, Jacob leads the London Assassins, and Evie tracks down and kills Jack the Ripper.

Transition Period

1914 to 2012

The Assassin’s Creed series uses a modern-day framing story. During the transition from Syndicate's Victorian era to the modern narrative, the Templars establish Abstergo Industries in 1937 as a pharmaceutical front to control the world through capitalism. By the late 1970s, Abstergo develops the Animus, a device to explore ancestral memories, aiming to locate Isu artifacts and control the future.

Assassin’s Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood, Revelations, and 3

2012

In 2012, Desmond Miles, a bartender descended from Altaïr, is abducted by Abstergo to locate Isu artifacts through the Animus. Helped by Assassin mole Lucy Stillman, Desmond escapes to a Brotherhood safehouse, where he explores Ezio's memories, learning of an impending apocalypse. Using Ezio's memories, Desmond locates an Apple of Eden but is possessed by the Isu Juno, forcing him to kill Lucy. Comatose, Desmond relives Ezio's final memories, discovering the Grand Temple. Awakened, he sacrifices himself to activate Isu technology, preventing the apocalypse but releasing Juno.

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag

2013

Using Desmond's DNA, Abstergo explores Edward Kenway's memories to find The Observatory. An unnamed researcher, "The Noob," is tasked with this mission and hacking Abstergo's systems. The head of IT, John Standish, the modern-day Sage, plans to use The Noob as a host for Juno. When Juno isn't ready, Standish tries to kill The Noob but is eliminated by Abstergo security.

Assassin’s Creed Unity

2014

Abstergo releases "Helix," a public software to explore genetic memories, aiming to locate Sage remains. An initiate, guided by Assassin Bishop, relives Arno Dorian's life, learning that Arno sealed Sage François-Thomas Germain's remains in the Paris Catacombs, keeping them safe from Abstergo.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

2015

The initiate searches for The Shroud in London through Jacob and Evie Frye's memories. Abstergo retrieves The Shroud before the Assassins, planning to create a living Isu. Juno manipulates Abstergo to sabotage this plan.

Assassin’s Creed Origins

2017

Layla Hassan, an Abstergo researcher, develops a new Animus version to explore memories via DNA samples. In Egypt, she uses Bayek and Aya's remains to relive the origins of The Hidden Ones. William Miles recruits her into the Assassin Brotherhood.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

2018

Using DNA from the Spear of Leonidas, Layla explores Kassandra's memories, locating Atlantis. Kassandra, kept alive by the Staff of Hermes, reveals humanity needs balance between the Assassins and Templars. She gives Layla the staff and dies, relieved of her duty.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

2020

After detecting magnetic field fluctuations, Layla and the Assassins explore Eivor's memories, discovering the Yggdrasil computer in Norway. Inside its simulation, Layla works with Desmond's consciousness to prevent future apocalypses. Basim escapes, claiming the Staff of Hermes containing Aletheia's consciousness, and joins the Assassins to find Loki's children.