Hidden Blade

"The hidden blade has been a constant companion of ours over the years. Some would say it defines us - and they would not be entirely wrong. Many of our successes would not have been possible without it."

- Altaïr's Codex, Page 13

The iconic weapon of the Assassins, the Hidden Blade is a weapon used for both stealth assassinations and regular combat, and is the most versatile weapon in the entire series with multiple upgrades and forms of use.

Assassin's Creed
The Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad initially wielded a hidden blade, however, due to his failure in retrieving the Apple of Eden, and his breaking of the Creed, he was demoted to a Novice by Al Mualim, and was stripped of his weapons. At his first promotion to Rank 2, however, he earned back his hidden blade, along with his sword.

Aside from assassinations, the hidden blade was also used in a variety of investigations. For missions given by informants, wherein Altaïr was asked to stealthily assassinate a number of targets, he could only make use of his hidden blade or throwing knives in order to remain undetected. Additionally, after successfully interrogating a target, Altaïr was forced to kill them so they could not reveal their plans, and did so by burying his hidden blade into their stomach.

Although the blade is used for stealth, it can be used in open conflict, but only for countering enemy attacks. This is later revised in Assassin's Creed II and Brotherhood, as it can deflect attacks and deal blows to the opponent.

Assassin's Creed: Lineage
In his own time as an Assassin, Giovanni Auditore also wielded a hidden blade, albeit one that had been modified with the times. As outlined in the Codex, the revised blade had been designed by Altaïr so that the Assassins, who he intended to go undercover, could not be identified by their lack of a ring finger.

Furthermore, the mechanism did not require a wrist "flick" to extend the blade, thus the user could retract the blade without any wrist or hand movement. Additionally, as pictured, the weapon could be used with a clenched fist, although Giovanni is one of the few known Assassins to use it in that manner.

While there is a rotating wheel atop the rear portion of the mechanism's housing, its function has not been identified, and there are no known schematics or explanations for the mechanism.

Assassin's Creed II
Upon inheriting the role and blade of an Assassin from his father, Ezio Auditore at first carried and made use of a single hidden blade. After he had gained proficiency with the first, Ezio would later gain a secondary blade from Leonardo da Vinci, who built it based upon the designs elaborated in Altaïr's Codex. Later on, Ezio was able to learn a variety of assassination techniques (summarized below), from instructions also detailed in the Codex.

Modern Times
During the escape from the Hideout, Desmond obtained a hidden blade and bracer that was almost identical to Ezio's hidden blade. He later used that hidden blade to fend off the Abstergo guards who had come to capture him.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
"Now I can kill double the guards."

- Ezio Auditore, regarding the secondary hidden blade.

Though Ezio possessed the same two hidden blades until 1499, upon the Fall of Monteriggioni, he lost most of his weapons, and was only able to salvage the blade and bracer of his father. Upon his arrival in Rome, he was equipped with a single hidden blade, though its bracer had been replaced, courtesy of Niccolò Machiavelli. Later on, however, Leonardo da Vinci was again able to reconstruct a secondary hidden blade for him, with Ezio providing him with the money necessary for the materials.

Aside from wielding it in battle, Ezio also made use of the hidden blade to unlock the entrances of certain Lairs of Romulus.

Apprentices
Additionally, Ezio's Assassin recruits were each equipped with a single hidden blade, as the right to use two hidden blades was only reserved for the most trusted of Assassins, or those who had earned the rank of the Master Assassin. The apprentices were capable of all of the standard assassination techniques.

Modern Times
In the Animus Virtual Training Program developed by Rebecca Crane, Desmond Miles was given the chance to hone his skills with the hidden blade. Such challenges included Stealth Assassinations and Flawless Kill Streaks using only the hidden blade.

The hidden blade used by Desmond is much different than the one he used at the hideout, as it has no bracer and no strings or any mechanisms. One possible explanation is that Desmond removed the bracer from the blade to make it harder to see on his arm.

While in the field, Desmond also used the hidden blade to operate a mechanism in the tunnels underneath the Sanctuary.

High/Low Profile Assassinations
Altaïr rams the blade into the victim's abdomen when facing the target, and through his spine when behind the target. When stealth is not a priority, Altaïr may also perform a high profile assassination, which involves sprinting towards the target, jumping and then thrusting the blade into the victims throat or major arteries in the neck as he lands on him. Alternatively, if approaching from behind, Altaïr may push the target onto his knees and stab him in the neck.

The hidden blade is the only weapon that Altaïr may wield while sprinting. When Altaïr is close enough to the victim during a pursuit, he may carry out an assassination. Altaïr will perform a running leap, landing on his victim from behind and burying the blade in the neck.

Air to Assassinate
From higher ground above a target, such as a nearby roof or beam, Altaïr leaps directly onto his victim and stabs him in the throat.

Open Combat
The hidden blade can also be used while in combat. An enemy who has been grabbed and thrown (or counter thrown with a grab break) can easily be killed while he lies on the ground. Using the blade in combat against large groups is challenging, as Altaïr is unable to block any attack. Additionally, the time frame in which Altaïr can counter-attack is extremely small, especially in comparison to that of the sword and the short blade. Successfully countering enables one of several different – and always lethal – counter-attacks, in which Altaïr stabs his opponent in the chest, head, abdomen, base of the skull, or spine.

Double Assassination
Due to the addition of the second hidden blade, Ezio is able to kill two enemies at once. This technique may be performed on the ground (from behind, in front or between two guards) or from above, as elaborated below.

Air Assassination
Similarly to the "air to assassinate" technique in Assassin's Creed', this allows Ezio to kill an enemy by leaping onto them from above. He may also perform a Double Air Assassination, and kill two enemies from above at once, as long as they are close to each other. However, this technique is easily noticed by guards, and they will immediately attack upon witnessing it.

Hiding Spot Assassination
Ezio may now assassinate enemies while hiding. Particularly useful against Seekers, he may perform an assassination from hay stacks, benches, wells or any other hiding spot.

Ledge Assassination
This technique may be performed on any enemy standing above a ledge from which Ezio may hang, and is particularly used against archers. Depending whether it is done in high or low profile, he will either pull the guard from the roof, or jump up to stab him in the chest.

Open Combat
The hidden blades in Assassin's Creed II are vastly more useful in combat than they were previously; they can now be used offensively, and Ezio is also able to block attacks with them like any other weapon. The blades are a fast, but low damage weapon, which makes them useful for suppressing enemy attacks.

Unlike other weapons, every counter attack with the hidden blades is an instant kill. The disadvantage is the timing window is short compared to other weapons. Unlike the sword or the short blade, the hidden blades can counter attacks from Brutes and Seekers.

The hidden blade also allows Ezio to attack very quickly, and gives more freedom in movement than the other weapons. For example, Ezio can easily strafe a 180° arc in the time it takes for the enemy to attack. This is barely possible (except from very close range) with the sword or dagger. It also allows Ezio to quickly flee from a battle without having to take the time to sheathe his weapon.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
All of the techniques for the hidden blades in Brotherhood are the same as in Assassin's Creed II, aside from improvements to the hidden blade upgrades, which are stated below.

Open Combat
In Assassins Creed: Brotherhood, combat with the hidden blade has again improved. The time segment where Ezio can counter with the hidden blade is slightly increased, allowing for more counter kills.

Also, a new ability called execution streaks are introduced, allowing Ezio to perform multiple instant kills after killing a single guard. Each kill must be quickly followed up with another in order to keep the streak going. Being attacked cancels the streak, requiring Ezio to start another one.

Ezio is also unable to block multiple attacks with the hidden blades, promoting a more offensive style of gameplay.

Upgrades
Throughout his travels, Ezio would acquire several Codex pages that, upon decryption, detailed upgrades for the hidden blade that were envisioned by Altaïr. These improvements were then developed for Ezio by Leonardo da Vinci. The first of these improvements was the addition of a second, darker hidden blade made from a difficult-to-obtain metal. The second was a metal plate on top of the primary blade's bracer that would allow one to safely deflect enemy attacks with the blades.

The other upgrades to the hidden blade included the Poison blade, which allowed Ezio to stab an enemy and leave them to die slowly, granting both a low-profile assassination as well as a distraction to kill or bypass other enemies, and the Pistol, which is one of the more deadly of the upgrades, allowing Ezio to kill from a distance. Additionally, both blades may be supplemented with various vambraces which act as armor, giving Ezio more health.

Upon arrival in Rome, Leonardo also envisioned further improvements to the hidden blade, such as a Poison dart launcher, that allowed the use of the poison blade from a distance.

Trivia

 * The hidden blade is used in every major assassination. Even if the player begins by attacking the enemy with a sword, the Assassin will always finish them off with the hidden blade.
 * In the E3 teaser trailer of Assassin's Creed (as well as in certain concept art), Altaïr can be seen pushing a button to operate his hidden blade. In the actual games, however, no such button or other trigger mechanism exists.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Renaissance and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (novel), unleashing the hidden blade required the use of a button, via a certain muscle on the forearm being flexed.
 * In an Assassin's Creed Developer Diary video, Jade Raymond speaks about Altair's lack of his ring finger, which is due to the initiation ceremony when a novice is promoted to an Assassin. The ring finger of the left hand is cut off, the hidden blade is installed, and the new born Assassin is ready to complete the missions bestowed upon him or her.
 * Despite being equipped with a hidden blade, some Assassins (such as Malik Al-Sayf) did not have an amputated finger.
 * Patrice Desilets, the creative director of the game, stated that the addition of a second blade in Assassin's Creed II also had a lucid reason: it's Assassin's Creed II, so there are two blades.
 * The first recorded usage of the hidden blade by an Assassin was by Darius, when he assassinated Xerxes of Persia. However, his ring finger remained intact and he wielded it on his right hand.
 * The original design of Ezio's second hidden blade in Assassin's Creed II was displayed as a brown glove, however, in-game, it was replaced with a second bracer. This was reverted in Brotherhood, however, where his second hidden blade included a glove, until a bracer was purchased.
 * It is unknown why the Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood box art, E3 Trailer and other official media depict Ezio with a secondary hidden blade bracer identical to his primary one, as in-game, no such second bracer exists.
 * The hidden blade is a crafted item in Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy. The materials for its construction are 2 Coils, 1 Iron, 1 Hide and 1 Box of Components (which in turn is crafted using 3 Gears, 3 Screws, 1 Chain and 2 Sprockets).
 * The second hidden blade is marginally longer than the primary one in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, perhaps designed to be a more effective melee weapon to complement the primary hidden blade's design as an assassination tool.
 * Some fans of the games have suggested that aliens were somehow involved in the creation and in teaching the Assassins how to use their hidden blades.

Gallery
thumb|300px|left|A video guide for the hidden blade in Assassin's Creed. thumb|right|300px|A video guide for the hidden blade in Assassin's Creed II.