Assassin’s Creed Shadows marks the latest addition to the iconic series, set during the feudal Japan of the Sengoku period in 1579. This setting positions it at the midpoint of the series' historical timeline, which is known for its non-linear progression through different eras. From the ancient Peloponnesian War in Greece to the dawn of the First World War, the franchise has explored significant historical events, jumping forward and backward in time with each entry.
With over 14 games in the mainline series, the timeline can be quite complex. That's why IGN has meticulously analyzed every piece of lore to create a comprehensive timeline that organizes the series' events chronologically, offering insights into the overarching narrative and how each game fits into the larger story.
The Isu Era
75,000 BCE
To fully understand the timeline, it's essential to delve into the lore of the Isu, a highly advanced civilization of god-like beings who once ruled Earth. These beings created humans to serve as their slaves, controlling them with powerful artifacts known as the Apples of Eden. However, humans, led by Eve and Adam, rebelled against their Isu masters after stealing an Apple, sparking a revolutionary war. This conflict lasted a decade until a solar flare devastated the Isu, allowing humanity to rise and claim the planet.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
431 to 422 BCE - Peloponnesian War
During the Peloponnesian War in Greece, the mercenary Kassandra uncovers The Cult of Kosmos, a secretive group manipulating the war from the shadows. Among its members is her long-lost brother, Alexios, who was abducted and transformed into a formidable weapon by the Cult. Kassandra learns that the Cult targeted Alexios due to his lineage tracing back to the legendary Spartan King Leonidas, a direct descendant of the Isu. Her mission to thwart the Cult's plans leads her to destroy an Isu device used to predict futures, ultimately ending the conflict in Greece. Kassandra's journey also reconnects her 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 Cleopatra's Egypt, The Order of the Ancients, another shadowy group linked to the Cult of Kosmos, kidnaps peacekeeper Bayek and his son, believing Bayek's bloodline can unlock an Isu vault. In the struggle to escape, Bayek inadvertently causes his son's death, fueling his quest for vengeance against The Order. Alongside his wife Aya, Bayek dismantles The Order's grip on Egypt, which manipulates both Cleopatra and Julius Caesar. Discovering The Order's global ambitions to control politics and religion using the Apples of Eden, Bayek and Aya form The Hidden Ones, a secret society of assassins and spies dedicated to opposing The Order's tyranny.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage
861 - Islamic Golden Age
A century later, The Hidden Ones have established strongholds worldwide, including Alamut in Iran. Here, Basim, a street thief from Baghdad, is trained as an assassin and sent to investigate The Order's activities in his city. He uncovers their plan to access an Isu temple beneath Alamut, which houses a prison containing Loki, an Isu now revered as a Norse god. Basim learns of his own reincarnation as Loki and vows to seek revenge on his ancient captors.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
872 to 878 - Viking Invasion of England
In the following decade, Basim joins a Viking clan in England, hunting members of The Order of the Ancients. The clan's leaders, Sigurd and Eivor, navigate the country to establish their settlement, Ravensthorpe, and confront the oppressive rule of King Alfred, a key figure in The Order. After discovering an Isu artifact, Sigurd experiences visions convincing him of his divine status. Basim reveals that Eivor and Sigurd are reincarnations of Odin and Týr, the Isu who imprisoned him as Loki, and attempts to exact his revenge. Eivor traps Basim in a simulated world within an Isu computer, leading to Sigurd's abdication and Eivor's triumphant return to Ravensthorpe after defeating King Alfred at the Battle of Chippenham.
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, transform into The Knights Templar, maintaining their goal of establishing a new world order. During the Third Crusade, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, a member of the Brotherhood, steals an Apple of Eden from the Templars, but his arrogance leads to a fellow assassin's death. Tasked with redeeming himself by assassinating nine Templar leaders, Altaïr uncovers a conspiracy involving the Apple. He learns that his mentor, Al Mualim, betrayed the Templars to seize the Apple and impose forced peace. Altaïr kills Al Mualim and assumes leadership of the Brotherhood.
Assassin’s Creed 2
1476 to 1499 - Italian Renaissance
During the Italian Renaissance, Ezio Auditore da Firenze joins the Assassin Brotherhood seeking vengeance for his father and brothers, killed by the Templars. Armed with his father's equipment and innovations from Leonardo da Vinci, Ezio battles the Templar-aligned Borgia family, eventually securing an Apple of Eden that leads him to a secret Isu vault beneath the Vatican. There, Ezio encounters Minerva, an Isu who warns of an impending apocalypse in 2012 and reveals the existence of a network of Isu vaults that could save humanity.
Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
1499 to 1507 - Italian Renaissance
Despite defeating Pope Rodrigo Borgia in combat, Ezio spares his life, a decision that backfires when Borgia's forces attack Ezio's villa and reclaim the Apple. In response, Ezio rebuilds the weakened Assassin Brotherhood, becoming the leader of the Italian Bureau. Their efforts dismantle the Borgia regime in Rome, and Ezio hides the Apple in an Isu vault beneath the Colosseum, safeguarding it from the Templars.
Assassin’s Creed Revelations
1511 to 1512 - Ottoman Civil War
Seeking more Isu knowledge, Ezio travels to Masyaf to explore a library built by Altaïr, but finds the Templars already searching for its keys. He allies with the Ottoman Assassins in Constantinople to thwart the Byzantine Templars' plans to revive their empire. Inside the library, Ezio discovers Altaïr's remains and an Apple projecting a message from the Isu Jupiter about crucial data stored in the Grand Temple to aid humanity against the apocalypse. Realizing the message is intended for a future observer, Ezio leaves the Apple sealed and retires, eventually succumbing to injuries sustained over his long career.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows
1579 - Sengoku Period
Set during Japan's Sengoku period, Assassin’s Creed Shadows follows an African mercenary who travels with a Catholic Jesuit missionary and meets Oda Nobunaga, a powerful daimyo unifying Japan's warring clans. The mercenary, renamed Yasuke, becomes one of Nobunaga's samurai and participates in the invasion of the Iga province. Here, he encounters Naoe, the daughter of a shinobi master, and despite their initial opposition, they unite to pursue a common goal.
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag
1715 to 1722 - Golden Age of Piracy
During the Golden Age of Piracy, Edward Kenway inadvertently joins the Assassin Brotherhood after killing an Assassin and taking his place. He learns of the Templars' search for The Observatory, an Isu machine capable of spying on anyone, with the goal of blackmailing world leaders. Only the 'Sage,' a reincarnation of the Isu Aita, can unlock it. Edward allies with pirates to find the current Sage, Bartholomew Roberts, and disrupt the Templars' plans. After a series of betrayals and battles, Edward kills Templar leader Laureano de Torres y Ayala, seals the Observatory, and returns 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, accidentally triggers an earthquake in Lisbon that devastates the city. Guilt-ridden, Shay defects and steals a map of Isu temples. Rescued by the Templars, he rises through their ranks, targeting key Assassins, including his former mentor Achilles. In the Arctic, Shay and Haytham Kenway (Edward's son) injure Achilles to prevent further Isu temple excavations. Shay later suggests the Templars instigate a revolution in France in response to the American uprising.
Assassin’s Creed 3
1754 to 1783 - American Revolution
The Templars aim to unlock the Isu Grand Temple, with Haytham Kenway killing for the key and journeying to the American Colonies. He falls in love with a Mohawk woman, Kaniehti:io, and fathers a child, Ratonhnhaké:ton, but abandons them. Years later, after the Mohawk settlement's destruction, Ratonhnhaké:ton, now Connor Kenway, trains as an Assassin and fights the Templars during the American Revolution. His quest leads to a confrontation with Haytham, ending in Connor killing his father and burying the Grand Temple key, thwarting the Templars' plans.
Assassin’s Creed Liberation
1765 to 1777 - Spanish Occupation of Louisiana
In parallel to Connor's story, Aveline de Grandpré, an Assassin in New Orleans, uncovers a Templar plot to control Louisiana. Her investigation reveals a broader conspiracy led by the 'Company Man,' who uses slaves to find an Isu temple. Aveline collects three components forming an Isu 'Prophecy Disk,' which recounts the human rebellion against the Isu led by Eve. She discovers her stepmother is the Company Man, kills her, and activates the disk.
Assassin’s Creed Unity
1789 to 1794 - French Revolution
Arno Dorian, orphaned after Shay Cormac kills his father, is raised by the Templar Grand Master François de la Serre and grows up with his daughter, Élise. Framed for de la Serre's murder, Arno is imprisoned in the Bastille, where he joins the Assassin Brotherhood to find the killer. Their investigation uncovers a Templar faction led by François-Thomas Germain, who sparks the French Revolution. Arno and Élise track Germain to a Templar crypt, where he uses a Sword of Eden against Arno. The sword's explosion kills Élise and wounds Germain, who reveals himself as the current Sage before dying. Arno seals Germain's remains in the Paris Catacombs.
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
1868 - Victorian England
In 1868, twin Assassins Jacob and Evie Frye arrive in London to find The Shroud, an Isu device. They discover the Templars control the city through industry, politics, and crime. Jacob focuses on assassinating Templar leaders, while Evie seeks The Shroud. Despite the death of his lieutenants, Templar leader Crawford Starrick learns The Shroud's location and steals it from beneath Buckingham Palace. Jacob and Evie assassinate Starrick and return The Shroud to its vault. Jacob later leads the London Assassins, and Evie tracks down and kills Jack the Ripper. Their daughter, Lydia, becomes an Assassin and during World War I, she investigates a Templar espionage facility, killing its leader, the latest Sage.
Transition Period
1914 to 2012
The Assassin’s Creed series employs a modern framing story that connects the historical narratives. During this transition period, the Templars establish Abstergo Industries in 1937 as a pharmaceutical company to control the world through capitalism. In the late 1970s, Abstergo develops the Animus, a virtual reality machine that allows exploration of ancestral memories to control the future.
Assassin’s Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood, Revelations, and 3
2012
In 2012, Desmond Miles, a bartender with Assassin ancestry, is abducted by Abstergo to locate Isu artifacts through his memories. With help from an Assassin mole, Lucy Stillman, Desmond escapes and joins the modern Assassin Brotherhood. Exploring Ezio's memories, Desmond learns of the impending apocalypse and finds an Apple of Eden, which projects a vision of Juno, who possesses him and forces him to kill Lucy. Despite a coma, Desmond continues to explore Ezio's memories, discovering the Grand Temple's existence. He sacrifices himself to activate the temple's 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 secretly hacks Abstergo's systems at the request of the company's head of IT, John Standish, who is revealed to be the modern-day Sage. Standish's plan to host Juno in The Noob fails, and he is killed by Abstergo security.
Assassin’s Creed Unity
2014
To track down the remains of past Sages, Abstergo releases "Helix," a public software that simulates genetic memories. An initiate, guided by the Assassin Bishop, relives Arno Dorian's life and learns the location of François-Thomas Germain's remains, sealed in the Paris Catacombs, safe from Abstergo.
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
2015
The initiate then searches for The Shroud in London by exploring Jacob and Evie Frye's memories. Abstergo retrieves The Shroud first, planning to create a living Isu. Juno manipulates Abstergo employees to sabotage this plan, while the Assassins hack into the Templars' systems to learn more.
Assassin’s Creed Origins
2017
Layla Hassan, an Abstergo researcher, develops a new Animus version that uses DNA samples to explore memories. In Egypt, she discovers Bayek and Aya's remains and relives their story, forming The Hidden Ones. William Miles recruits Layla into the Assassin Brotherhood.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
2018
Using DNA from the Spear of Leonidas, Layla explores Kassandra's memories and discovers Atlantis. Kassandra, immortal due to the Staff of Hermes, explains the need for balance between the Assassins and Templars and prophesies Layla's role in achieving it. Kassandra dies after gifting Layla the Staff.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
2020
Observing Earth's magnetic field fluctuations, Layla explores Eivor's memories to find the Yggdrasil computer in Norway. She enters its simulation, meeting Basim and a manifestation of Desmond's mind, "The Reader." Layla abandons her mortal form to prevent future apocalypses, while Basim escapes with the Staff of Hermes, containing Aletheia's consciousness, and joins the Assassins to find Loki's children.
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