Shaun Hastings

"What am I - who are you, my mum?"

- Shaun Hastings, addressing a curious Desmond.

Shaun Hastings is a supporting character in Assassin's Creed II. He is voiced by and modeled after Danny Wallace, a British author and comedian. He assists Desmond by creating database entries on various people, places and buildings he will encounter while in the Animus 2.0.

Early life
Shaun was interested in conspiracies and the unknown from an early age. Though he was initially unaware of the existence of modern-day Templars and Assassins, he did realize that there was some power-struggle going on. Shaun tried to dig up information on Abstergo's activities and then attempted to tell others about his findings, not realizing that the Templars would try to silence him. Fortunately, Rebecca Crane "rescued" Shaun and recruited him into the Assassin Order. This was somewhat unconventional, as Assassins are usually born into the order.

Assassin's Creed II
Shaun's role in the order was to provide tactical support to the other Assassins. After Lucy Stillman and Desmond Miles escaped to the hideout, Desmond entered the Animus to relive his ancestor Ezio Auditore da Firenze's memories. Shaun supplied Desmond with interesting database entries and the occasional piece of advice on glyph puzzles. However, as the de facto historian of the Assassins, Shaun was always busy working on his computer and rarely had any opportunities to speak with Desmond - telling him to "go away."

Characteristics and personality
Shaun is often cynical, condescending and pessimistic, but does have a playful side, often inserting humorous tidbits into the database entries of the Renaissance  characters. Sometimes he will have little patience to talk to Desmond, other times he will lead off into long conversations. While Shaun's annoyance is usually directed at Desmond, he does insult Rebecca's immaturity by saying "the grown-ups are talking now" - even though she says she saved his life multiple times. During the modern segments, Shaun says that he enjoys his work researching behind a desk instead of being out in the field. When talking about his status as an Assassin, Shaun says "I’ve killed before, I expect to kill again. It’s just that I’d prefer not to". This other side to Shaun's personality is also shown when he explains that he would like to sit in the Animus and perform Desmond's role.

Trivia

 * Danny Wallace, the voice of the character, was contacted by Ubisoft when he went to the BAFTA video game awards with a friend. He was e-mailed and asked if he would like to be a character in an unknown video game, which he accepted. The game turned out to be Assassin's Creed II.
 * Shaun is very cynical; he is quick to point out that the Assassins are still killers whatever their motives; making them no more the "good guys" than the Templars.
 * Shaun displays a little envy towards Desmond, as he wants to explore the timeline himself. He no doubt holds Rebecca in higher regard than he likes to admit, since she did save him from Abstergo. Only Lucy seems to be above his snide remarks, either as a sign of greater respect or because he knows not to mess with her.
 * Shaun states during the corrupted sequences that he forgot Rodrigo Borgia eventually became Pope even though there is a portrait of him on the wall next to his computer.
 * Shaun says that he also provides tactical support for the Assassins on the field.
 * In one conversation with Desmond, Shaun tells him that he has his own special type of ability, which allows him to see information and decode it more easily. He compares it to Desmond's Eagle Vision, only more "useful" in his opinion. He was probably referring more to his high intellect than some kind of super-human ability though.
 * The character Shaun Hastings is named after Sean Hastings, a cult hero in the computer industry.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Shaun has a portrait of Cesare Borgia near his desk, as well as pictures of famous landmarks in Rome, such as the Patheons, and some of Leonardo Da Vinci's designs, like the crossbow.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
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