Bandit

A bandit is an individual, often belonging to a gang, who habitually partakes in illegal activities, typically in an isolated or lawless region.

History

5th century BCE

With the absence of a proper and organized law enforcement, usually fulfilled by guards, bandits were widespread in ancient antiquity. People who had found robbing and harrying of civilians profitable also harassed the Spartan misthios Kassandra throughout her travels across Greece during the Peloponnesian War. At the time, the bandits commonly seemed to favor wearing the Chalkidian Helmet which originated from Chalkidiki, Makedonia. A number of them also sported tattoos, using dark pigments to adorn their faces and their arms with relatively simple markings, though some bore an elaborate image of a griffin on their chests or on their backs.

Exceptions to haphazard bandits did exist, as proven by the existence of The Dagger, a criminal organization haunting the Abantis Islands. Smaller organized groups of bandits also existed, with their leader being a regarded as "chief". A chiefship was an unsteady position, however, and in-fighting for leadership was not uncommon. Allegedly, one chief had made a belt from the skin of their predecessor. Despite their lawlessness, Kassandra sometimes would acquire crews consisting of bandits for her ship, the Adrestia.

When the Assassin Layla Hassan relived Kassandra's genetic memories, she applied the Animus modification "Gang Members" to simulate digital reconstructions of the Victorian era Blighters gang in place of the ship's crew.

1st century BCE

Bandits were also a common sight in ancient Egypt during the Ptolemaic Kingdom, taking advantage of the Phylakes focusing on the war against Cleopatra to plunder villages, rob travelers, and run various criminal enterprises such as forgery and illegal taxation. The Medjay Bayek of Siwa encountered and fought numerous bandits while he was hunting down the Order of the Ancients.

Of special note during this time were the gangs called Hungry Great Ones in Sap-Meh and Sapi-Res Nomes, and the Disciples of the Lioness in the proximity of Letopolis.

9th century CE

During the 870s, England had four kingdoms dividing the country. These troublesome times showed great turmoil and thus some sought to profit from the situation. Many men and women allied themselves with bandit groups, robbing entire villages or passersby, murdering civilians and soldiers alike. They often targeted the Viking Eivor Varinsdottir during her travels. Even bigger cities like Lunden saw bandits hiding in plain sight, causing trouble the city's joint reeves Erke Bodilsson and Stowe had to manage.

12th century

Upon his return to Masyaf, the exiled Levantine Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad encountered the brigand Bayhas and his gang. The Assassin killed the bandits, released the tradesman Mukhlis they had imprisoned, and proceeded to Masyaf. Later, Altaïr also met Bayhas' father, the bandit leader Fahad.

Renaissance

15th century Italy also had its bandit problems which carried over to the following century as well. Bandits occasionally targeted the Italian Assassin Ezio Auditore while he travelled through the landscape of Florence, Forlì, San Gimignano, Tuscany, and Venice. From 1500 onwards, the streets of Rome were plagued by the gang Cento Occhi ("hundred eyes") who had allied with the House of Borgia, while the Followers of Romulus haunted Rome's countryside and the ruins therein.

19th century

In London, bandits were organized into gangs. In 1868, the two leading gangs were the Blighters led by the British Templar Maxwell Roth, and the Clinkers, who were taken over by the twin British Assassins Evie and Jacob Frye and renamed as the Rooks following a gang war in Whitechapel against the street forces commanded by the Templar Rexford Kaylock. The Rooks proved invaluable to the Fryes' liberation of London by thwarting Templar influence in the boroughs, but by 1888 were overtaken by the serial killer Jack the Ripper, who turned them against the Assassins.

Behind the scenes

Though the bandits' emblem in Assassin's Creed: Odyssey seems to be based on a 3rd century BC mosaic of a dragon from Caulonia, Discovery Tour: Ancient Greece says it is based on coins from Halicarnassus that depicted the mythical sea monster Ketos.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed II (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
• Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood novel
• Assassin's Creed: The Secret Crusade (as brigands)
• Assassin's Creed: Syndicate
  • Jack the Ripper
• Assassin's Creed: Origins
• Assassin's Creed: Odyssey
• Discovery Tour: Ancient Greece (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
  • Wrath of the Druids (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Fragments – The Blade of Aizu
• The World of Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Journey to the North – Logs and Files of a Hidden One (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Mirage
• Assassin's Creed: Nexus VR (mentioned in Database entry only)
• Assassin's Creed: Mirage – Daughter of No One

References

An image gallery is available for Bandit