Eagle Vision

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"I've seen its like before. Glowing like moonlight on the ocean. Ah! Right. I know this feeling. I have since I was a lad. It's like using every sense at once, isn't it? To see sounds and hear shapes. Quite a combination."

―Edward Kenway describing his Eagle Vision to Mary Read, 1716.

Altaïr using Eagle Vision to observe William of Montferrat and his guards

Eagle Vision is an extrasensory perception, or "sixth sense", that lies dormant within human beings as a result of interbreeding between ancient human beings and Isu. The term is used in the modern day and has been known by different terms through history, such as Talent or Gift. It was known as Odin's Sight to the Vikings. Amongst the Isu, who naturally possessed complete access to this sixth sense, it was known simply as Knowledge.

Though each average human holds the potential to utilize it through intense and very long training, some rare individuals display a greater concentration of the necessary Isu genes, and thus are more likely to naturally exhibit Eagle Vision as well as some of its more advanced variations.

Those who possess the gift are able to instinctively sense how people and objects relate to them. However, as Desmond Miles was at least initially unaware of Lucy Stillman's true affiliation with the Templars, it suggests the sixth sense is not entirely infallible.

When an individual masters Eagle Vision, the ability can evolve to the more advanced Eagle Sense. This stage heightens all the senses of its user, allowing them to detect the heartbeat of a target in the area, even foresee a target's path. Some individuals also developed exotic variations of the gift; one application allowing its wielder to peer into the memories of their target upon killing them, while another one allowed a gifted individual to become a kind of lie detector, knowing when someone was lying or telling the truth to them.

History

Antiquity

Classical Greece

"We are able to feel certain things happening around us. That is our family's gift."

―Myrrine to Kassandra, c. 451 BCE.

In the 5th century BCE, Myrrine, the daughter of Leonidas I of Sparta and the mother of the misthios Kassandra, taught her child that their family had a "gift" called "Athena's sight" or "Revelation" which other people did not, describing it as an ability to "feel certain things happening around" them. As an adult during the Peloponnesian War, Kassandra explored Aletheia's simulation of Atlantis, where she learned that her "gift" represented a limited form of the Isu's sixth sense, "knowledge". During her time in Atlantis, Kassandra learned to commune with the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus and fully opened herself up to the Isu's sixth sense.

Individuals with a rare form of Eagle Vision could develop a shared vision with avians, such as eagles

Additionally, Kassandra possessed a more literal "Eagle Vision" in the form of a shared sense with her eagle companion Ikaros, who aided her in reconnaissance.

Ptolemaic Egypt

"Be my eyes, Senu!"

―Bayek calling out to Senu, 40s BCE.

In the 1st century BCE, the Medjay Bayek of Siwa possessed the same rare variation of Eagle Vision as Kassandra, which allowed him to see through the eyes of his eagle companion, Senu. This greatly aided Bayek in reconnaissance, as he could observe enemy camps from above and "tag" guards and valuable items such as chests.

Middle Ages

9th century

During the Islamic Golden Age, the Hidden One Roshan possessed a form of Eagle Vision which enhanced all of her senses, allowing her to hear sounds and see markings that would normally be inaudible or invisible. After her mother got upset with her for asking questions about her "sense" as a child, Roshan decided to keep it a secret. As an adult, Roshan mastered her gift and became capable of deducing a person's intentions just by observing them, though this was not always infallible.

The thief Basim Ibn Ishaq, who was secretly the human incarnation of the Isu Loki, also had Eagle Vision, which he used to detect valuable items to pickpocket from unsuspecting people. After joining the Hidden Ones, Basim developed a shared vision with his new eagle companion, Enkidu. During his missions, Basim would make use of both his Eagle Vision and Enkidu to locate and tag enemies and objects of interest.

During the Viking expansion into England, the Raven Clan shieldmaiden and Odin's incarnation Eivor Varinsdottir possessed Eagle Vision, dubbed "Odin's Sight." Like Kassandra, Bayek, and Basim, she also had a shared vision with her pet raven, Sýnin. In addition to tagging enemies and objects of interest, Eivor could also use her Eagle Vision to identify triquetra markings on numerous landmarks in England left behind by the Irish monk and Sage Brendan of Clonfert.

Crusades

The Levantine Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad possessed Eagle Vision from an early age. His fellow Assassins knew of his special ability and dubbed it "Eagle Vision". With it, Altaïr found himself able to read the emotions and intentions of all those around him, driving him to perfect the ability in secret. In his later life, he would make use of it during his many assassinations and investigations. Altaïr's Eagle Vision proved particularly useful during his duel with his Mentor Al Mualim, who used an Apple of Eden to create phantoms of himself. With his ability, Altaïr was able to pinpoint and kill the true Al Mualim from the crowd of illusions.

Renaissance

Ezio Auditore da Firenze

"Listen closely: Return to the house. In my office is a hidden door. Use your talent to find it."

―Giovanni Auditore instructing Ezio to use his Eagle Vision, 1476.

Eagle Vision used on the Codex Wall

The Assassin Ezio Auditore, much like Altaïr, possessed Eagle Vision and made use of it to locate hidden passages, as well as to predict his allies' and enemies' intentions. Additionally, he was also able to see the map hidden beneath the pages of Altaïr's Codex with it. Though it was never explicitly labeled "Eagle Vision", his father Giovanni once referred to Ezio's ability as his "talent", and Salaì spoke of it as his "gift".

The Ottoman Assassins also knew of Ezio's ability even before they had met him. When Piri Reis instructed him to use it to see through a smoke screen, Ezio pretended not to know what he was referring to, but Piri merely answered that "word gets around". Upon hearing this, Ezio asked that he keep the information to himself. Yusuf Tazim spoke of Ezio's skill as his "legendary senses", and Piri once mentioned that Ezio was a "special sort of man, with strange gifts". Ezio himself also admitted that his senses were "more finely tuned than most".

Others

"The note told me to use my other eyes. Sometimes I see things that are not there. Drawings or waves."

―Giovanni Borgia describing his Eagle Vision.

Giovanni Borgia using Eagle Vision

The master thief and Assassin La Volpe was thought to possess an advanced form of Eagle Vision, with rumors spread by Florentine citizens claiming he could "see through buildings". Giovanni Borgia also had Eagle Vision, which he used to locate and tail Francesco Vecellio through a crowd. He was also able to see images or drawings that were not really there, such as waves, arrows, and footprints. Francesco referred to Giovanni's ability as "us[ing his] other eyes".

Lo Sparviero used the Eagle Vision to identify the Crows, Templar agents trained in counter-Assassin techniques who had uncanny disguise skills. He also identified enemies, allies, targets, the Assassin insignia drawn with Leonardo da Vinci's special paint, and specific chests which held mission-critical contents. In Niccolò Machiavelli's journal, Machiavelli referred to Lo Sparviero's ability as his "special power". Some members of the Spanish Brotherhood possessed Eagle Vision, such as Flora de la Cruz and Jariya al-Zakiyya. Mayya al-Dabbaj and Shakir al-Zahid even mastered this ability and had an Eagle Sense.

The Chinese Assassin Shao Jun possessed Eagle Vision, which greatly aided her during her quest to eliminate the Eight Tigers, allowing her to detect guards' patrol paths and the distance that sound carried from dogs, birds, and wind chimes.

Age of Imperialism

Golden Age of Piracy

"Every man and woman on this Earth has in them a kind of intuition hidden deep away. [...] Most never find it. Others it takes years to tease out. But for a rare few it comes as natural as breathing. What you feel is the light of life. Of living things past and present. The residue of vitality, come and gone."

―Mary Read telling Edward Kenway about Eagle Vision, 1716.

Edward using Eagle Vision to mark a target

According to the West Indies Assassin Mary Read, Eagle Vision was the residue of life essence, attaching itself to every living thing around those who had what she called "the Sense". She claimed that every person could harness the Sense, but most either did not know they could or were unable to truly use the power until later in life. Edward Kenway claimed to have known the ability since childhood.

Much like Altaïr and Ezio, Edward could identify enemies, allies, and targets, but he could also "tag" these people, allowing him to see their location when out of Eagle Vision, even through walls and other obstacles. He was also able to see hiding spots, such as hay bales and bushes, which would shine with golden and green glows, respectively. Adéwalé, Edward's quartermaster-turned-Assassin, also possessed Eagle Vision that operated in a similar capacity.

In 1725, during an altercation in Manila with a monk who wielded a crescent amulet, the Piece of Eden proved capable of tampering with Edward's Eagle Vision by reducing the amount of time he could use it and momentarily preventing the Assassin from locating the monk. Even after some time had passed since the encounter, Edward was still unable to maintain his Eagle Vision active for long, hindering his tracking abilities.

Colonial America

Ratonhnhaké:ton: "How did you know?"

Io:nhiòte: "I saw... we saw."

—Io:nhiòte telling her father about her shared sense with an eagle, 1796.

Shay using Eagle Vision

The Colonial Assassin Shay Cormac possessed a form of Eagle Vision similar to Edward Kenway and Adéwalé's, allowing him to mark potential targets. Following his defection to the Templar Order, Shay's Eagle Vision gained two new features. When not in use, the edges of his vision gained a cloudy, pinkish hue, and ominous whispering could be heard, indicating that hidden gang leaders or Assassin stalkers were planning to ambush him. On activating it in the presence of hidden assailants, it would pinpoint the direction the attack would come from, and if Shay decided to investigate, would narrow its focus to the ambusher's exact location.

Shay's son and grandson Cudgel inherited his Eagle Vision and were tutored in its use by Shay, mastering the ability. Cudgel's distant descendant Javier Mondragón also possessed Eagle Vision, as did his friend Owen Meyers.

The Templar Haytham Kenway possessed Eagle Vision, though he was unable to mark specific targets. Haytham's son Ratonhnhaké:ton also possessed Eagle Vision which functioned in a similar manner. During his early years, Ratonhnhaké:ton learned how to use his gift to improve his tracking skills, and would use it to hunt animals. He continued to rely on Eagle Vision upon joining the Assassins in 1769. One notable instance of this presented itself while Ratonhnhaké:ton hunted down one of the pieces of William Kidd's map, contained at Edinburgh Castle in Jamaica, where he used his Eagle Vision to examine clues in order to reconstruct the murder of one of Lewis Hutchinson's victims, later finding the man's body and retrieving the map piece.

Sometime during the 1780s, Ratonhnhaké:ton married a native woman and had a son and two daughters, and soon recognized that one of his girls, Io:nhiòte, had untapped talent with Eagle Vision. On a hunting trip in April 1796, Io:nhiòte fell from a small cliff drop and sprained her ankle. As Ratonhnhaké:ton left to find water to bring the swelling down in Io:nhiòte's leg, she noticed fresh wolf tracks and tried to warn her father, but he was too far away to hear her. Panicking, she saw an eagle in the sky and inexplicably connected with it to fly over her father and screech a warning before the wolf leapt at him. After killing the wolf, Ratonhnhaké:ton returned and was amazed that Io:nhiòte knew of the wolf attack.

Aveline using Eagle Vision to see hidden tracks

Aveline de Grandpré was one of the few known female Assassins to possess Eagle Vision, which functioned similarly to Ratonhnhaké:ton's, though certain things possessed purple highlights, such as blood and wanted posters. Much like Ratonhnhaké:ton, she could use Eagle Vision to examine clues to reconstruct past events and crimes, aiding her in investigations and finding targets. By the year 1784, Aveline had gained the ability to mark targets with her Eagle Vision.

French Revolution

Bellec: "Look at the wall."

Arno: "What are you doing—"

Bellec: "Concentrate. Concentrate!"

—Pierre Bellec instructing Arno Dorian to use his Eagle Vision to see hidden symbols, 1789.

During the French Revolution, the French Assassin Arno Dorian possessed a peculiar variation of Eagle Vision that could manifest in several ways. Also known as Eagle Pulse, this variation could only be maintained for brief periods of time, requiring Arno to wait before he could activate it again. While it functioned similarly to more traditional forms of Eagle Vision, it notably granted Arno the ability to view his victims' memories; he could not converse with them directly while examining them unless they also had high concentrations of Isu DNA.

Arno's Eagle Vision in-use

Arno also had the ability to read guards' patrol paths, albeit only after having read them on a map. This skill appears to have been connected with Arno's auditory system, allowing him to hear conversations from far away with perfect clarity once he had climbed to a high enough viewpoint and focused in on the locations. He appeared to be able to maintain great focus while using it, as the pulse was sustained even while climbing or fighting. He could still use Eagle Pulse after heavily consuming alcohol, though the process caused him pain.

Lastly, a more refined feature known as Communal Sense allowed Arno to share the insights obtained by his Eagle Pulse with his fellow Assassins while granting longer periods of use.

Sikh Empire

During the mid-19th century, Arbaaz Mir, an Indian Assassin active in the Sikh Empire, used Eagle Vision in his quest to recover the Koh-i-Noor from the Templars. It functioned similarly to Shao Jun's form of the vision, allowing Arbaaz to see the path of guards and detect the area of effect for tigers, bells, and various traps.

Early modern era

Industrial Revolution

The twins Jacob and Evie Frye possessed Eagle Vision, which unlike most variations caused very little distortion in sight, causing them to see the world around them in muted tones of black and white. When using this sense, they could see and "mark" targets from very long distances, and even identify individuals by names, objectives, and opportunities to aid them in assassinations. Targets showed up in yellow, allies in green, enemy Templars and Blighters in red, and members of the Metropolitan Police Service in blue. Unlike other Assassins, both twins could only use Eagle Vision when stationary or moving no faster than a walking pace.

Jacob using Eagle Vision during an investigation

In one notable instance, Evie Frye was able to solve a puzzle Edward Kenway had left in his home because, unlike their Templar antagonists, Evie was able to see the hidden clues with her Eagle Vision. The twins also utilized Eagle Vision during criminal investigations, such as a series of murders tasked to them by Henry Raymond in 1868, and the Whitechapel murders committed by Jack the Ripper in 1888. Through the sense, the twins were able to identify clues as well as mark their own observations and trajectories based on the information acquired.

Jack also possessed Eagle Vision; however, it become unstable upon activation and Jack would regularly hallucinate words in the air related to his objectives. Jacob's granddaughter Lydia Frye inherited his Eagle Vision, which she made use of in her hunt for the Master Spy in 1916.

Russian Revolution

At some point prior to the Russian Revolution, the Russian Assassin Nikolai Orelov developed a form of Eagle Vision similar to the one possessed by Shao Jun and Arbaaz Mir. During his quest to protect the Precursor box and Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanova, Nikolai's vision gave him the edge over his enemies, including the Bolsheviks and his own Brotherhood, as it allowed him to see the path of guards and the area of effect for tools such as radios and telephones.

After the Precursor box inadvertently interacted with Nikolai's shard of the Imperial Sceptre, Anastasia also developed Eagle Vision that functioned identically to Nikolai's, as a result of absorbing Shao Jun's memories and skills.

Modern times

"Try using that special sight you learned from Altaïr."

―Lucy Stillman to Desmond Miles in the Sanctuary, 2012.

Desmond using Eagle Vision to find the code to a keypad

By using the Animus to follow the memories of his ancestors, Desmond Miles also gained the ability to use Eagle Vision, likely as a result of the Bleeding Effect. Through it, he was able to see Lucy Stillman and Warren Vidic shimmering with a blue and red aura, respectively. He was also able to use this ability to see the cryptic messages that Subject 16, Clay Kaczmarek, had written in the Abstergo laboratory with his own blood. Clay also hid a series of Glyphs within the rendered Animus environment, which needed to be scanned with Eagle Vision to be unlocked. Similarly, the Rifts that the Glyph puzzles led to also needed Eagle Vision to be both seen and accessed.

During his escape from Abstergo Industries, Desmond found another application for his newly acquired power. Much like thermal vision, he used it to discover the code of a keypad, by seeing the heat signature of the fingerprints left upon the correct numbers. Later, upon reaching Monteriggioni, Desmond was also able to use Eagle Vision to see a message that Ezio had left upon the wall of the Sanctuary stairwell, which bore the password to the Colosseum Vault. While traveling through the Colosseum to the Santa Maria in Aracoeli, Desmond used Eagle Vision to locate a series of switches to open hidden entrances. He also made use of it to see the proper sequence of levers he needed to activate, in order to access the Apple of Eden hidden inside.

The Abstergo recruits who participated in the Animi Training Program were also granted an ability named Templar Vision. This rendered ability mimicked Eagle Vision, and was able to be used for approximately 3.5 seconds.

When he traveled to Osaka, Japan on 4 December 2013 to seek aid from the local Brotherhood, Gavin Banks used his Eagle Vision to determine that the yakuza, not Abstergo, had killed the Assassin cell in the city, though this invariably taxed his energy.

In 2014, a Templar agent working for Abstergo Entertainment was able to identify both Arno Dorian's fingerprints and the residue of his tears on Charles Dorian's pocket watch using their Eagle Vision, a feat which impressed Grand Master Alan Rikkin.

In 2023, after using the Animus to relive the memories of his ancestor Edward Kenway, Noa Kim gained the ability to use Eagle Vision. It notably helped him to locate the hidden entrance to the old Zhang residence at the A-Ma Cultural Village in Macau. Later, while in Cebu, Noa used his vision to search for leads that would allow him and Shimazu Sei to trace Edward's footsteps and to identify Doom Eagle thugs who were pursuing him and Sei inside a crowded shopping mall.

Eagle Sense

"As Ezio matured, so did many of his stranger abilities, not least of which was a rare form of extrasensory perception—you know, what we Assassins call 'Eagle Sense' in its most robust form."

―Clay Kaczmarek's digital construct, 2012.

Ezio using Eagle Sense

Mastering Eagle Vision led to the user being granted Eagle Sense. A more heightened form of Eagle Vision, it allowed one to focus on a target and intuitively approximately where they had gone, or inversely, where they would go, even going so far as to be able to sense the presence of stalkers and when they would strike. This was particularly helpful in tailing a target, or detecting the path a guard would take, in order to set up a bomb or lay an ambush.

With Eagle Sense, Ezio was also able to pick up cold trails, or locate disguised enemies. However, for the latter, he was required to concentrate harder and scrutinize people individually, rather than as a crowd. Ezio also once used his Eagle Sense to follow datura scent vapors and to diagnose an injured mercenary by listening to his heartbeat. As such, the latter technique allowed him to conclude that the man was alive but weak, and likely affected by some form of poison.

Variations

Throughout history, there have been a handful of individuals who had an advanced form of Eagle Vision manifesting as a sort of reversal to Arno Dorian's Communal Sense, whereby they were able to telepathically see and hear through the senses of avians, particularly eagles. The known individuals who had this ability were:

• Kassandra, a Spartan misthios during the Peloponnesian War, with her eagle Ikaros;
• Bayek, the last Medjay of Egypt and co-founder of the Hidden Ones, with his eagle Senu;
• Li E, a Chinese Hidden One during the Tang dynasty, with his eagle familiar;
• Basim Ibn Ishaq, a 9th-century member of the Alamut Hidden Ones, with his eagle Enkidu;
• Eivor Varinsdottir, a shieldmaiden of the Raven Clan during the Viking expansion into England, with her raven Sýnin;
• Io:nhiòte, the daughter of the Colonial Assassin Ratonhnhaké:ton, who displayed the ability with a random eagle during a hunting trip.

Display

The animus is able to display Eagle Vision visually for those that don't possess the ability. The most common method is via color coding the user's intuitive conclusions which manifests as a colored glow, much like an aura, around persons and points of interest. Red indicates enemies or spilled blood, blue indicates allies, white indicates sources of information or hiding spots, and gold indicates targets or objects of interest.

The Animus models based on Layla Hassan's designs made use of the Animus Pulse usability program to visualize Eagle Vision within the simulated environment. Later sessions combine both methods to display the ability.

Behind the scenes

Assassin's Creed

• An Assassin guard could be seen glowing red in Eagle Vision at the Kingdom entrance to Masyaf, but he reacted in normal guard behavior. This guard was Jamal, an Assassin who aided Masun in betraying the Brotherhood, and was originally intended to have been a target. However, the sequence where Altaïr assassinated him was cut, leaving him as a minor Easter egg.
• In the original Assassin's Creed, movement was restricted while using Eagle Vision, and Altaïr was required to be at maximum synchronization. These requirements were removed in most of the succeeding games.

Assassin's Creed II

• The users of Eagle Vision saw themselves marked with blue.
• At the beginning of the game, while playing as Desmond in the hideout, he could see equipment shine blue in Eagle Vision. This indicated that they could be used for freerunning purposes.
• When Desmond asked Lucy how to find the sensors for the hideout's defense system, which she had tasked him to switch on, Lucy made a reference to the ability by saying "Open your eyes, Desmond".
• In some memories in both Assassin's Creed II and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, water was shown to be glowing white like hiding spots when Eagle Vision was activated.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

• When traveling through Rome, Eagle Vision could be used to mark flags, feathers, or treasure chests on the map.
• While using Eagle Vision and roaming Monteriggioni as Desmond, a red trail was visible that led from the fountain with the Assassin insignia to the door of Mario Auditore's study. The trail was colored similarly to the blood glyphs of Subject 16, and appeared to be made up of many footprints.
  • In an interview with Andrien Gbinigie, the developers Darby McDevitt and Falko Poiker explained that the trail was intended to help gamers find their way back to the Sanctuary, though its red color was a design oversight.
• When outside of the Animus, there was sometimes a pause that caused allies to glow gold for a few seconds.
• Unlike in Assassins Creed II, enemies and allies did not glow their standard colors after they died, and would appear grey like civilians and inanimate objects.
• If Eagle Vision was activated when Ezio was dressed as a Borgia guard captain in the memory "When in Rome...", the armor would glow red, though Ezio himself would still be marked with blue.
• Unlike Eagle Vision, Templar Vision marked targets with blue rather than with gold, since they were hunting other Templars and could be considered allies within a contained session.

Assassin's Creed: Revelations

• During Ezio's pilgrimage and Altaïr's return from exile, ghostly images from Altaïr's past could be seen in Masyaf.
• Unlike regular enemies, the paths of officials and the two guards accompanying them could not be tracked with Eagle Sense.

Assassin's Creed III

• In the Grand Temple, Desmond, Rebecca Crane, Shaun Hastings, and William Miles were not highlighted at all in Eagle Vision.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

• Similar to the way it functioned in the original Assassin's Creed, Eagle Vision could not be used while moving in high profile.
• Corpses of enemies that have not yet been looted would glow white.

Others

• A mini-game in the Assassin's Creed room of PlayStation Home featured an Eagle Vision puzzle that, when completed, opened up the Hideout.
• In gaming magazine Nintendo Gamer's Issue #74 released April 2012, it stated that the Wii U tablet controller could be used as an alternate view for Eagle Vision in Assassin's Creed III, using the built-in accelerometer to control the camera view.
• Ezio's Eagle Sense functioned in a clairvoyant manner.
• Desmond, unlike his ancestors, did not naturally possess a practical form of Eagle Vision, but rather possessed it as a dormant trait like most humans, despite having a significantly high concentration of Isu genes.
• In Watch Dogs 2, another Ubisoft game, the NetHack ability is very similar to Eagle Vision.
• In Thief, a game developed by Eidos-Montréal and published by Square Enix, the main character Garrett possesses an ability known as "Focus", which not only works similarly to Eagle Vision, but it also enhances Garrett's thieving and combat skills.