- Oct 2, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 9
The History and Inspirations behind Mirage’s Weapons
- Written by Adam -
When it comes to weapons, Assassin’s Creed has always had a habit of respecting its roots based on real-world history. Assassin’s Creed Mirage is no different. With the release of the official Mirage cosplay guide, I thought it would be interesting to take a deep dive into Mirage’s weapons, the forging techniques used to create them, and what makes them stand the test of time.
The Hidden Blade - Assassin's Creed Mirage Cosplay guide - Ubisoft
I can’t think of a better weapon to start than the Assassins’ bread and butter, the hidden blade! My first thought was that the blade would be forged from Damascus steel, a very complex and beautiful steel whose original forging techniques have been largely lost to time. Thinking about it more, I realised that it wouldn’t make sense. In this period, the hidden blade was strictly used as a tool for assassinations and little else. This is further emphasised in its design, a very acute tip designed for puncturing. Combat was not part of its function as we have seen in later time periods such as Renaissance Italy and beyond and because of this, it didn't need to be as durable.
Page 14 of Altair's Codex, detailing his thoughts and techniques of the hidden blade - Ubisoft
It also would contradict Assassin’s Creed lore which states that Altair was shown an extremely strong alloy used by the Isu when delving into the Apple of Eden’s secrets. This alloy turned out to be Damascus, written by Altair in his Codex. Steel or iron was cheap, plentiful, and easy to work with, making it the perfect material for Hidden Blades that were mass-produced for every Hidden One/Assassin.
Basim’s Sword - Assassin’s Creed Mirage Cosplay Guide - Ubisoft
Basim’s sword is a beautiful piece. Beautifully adorned with golden patterns on the hilt, pommel and guard, the sword has more in common with a fantasy Scimitar and Western straight blades. The only noticeable curve is a gentle one, stretching from the foible* section of the blade to the tip. If Basim utilises the curved tip in a downwards slicing motion, it would leave a vicious wound that people would not recover from anytime soon.
*Foible - French for weak.
Having a largely straight blade is an interesting choice because Arabian knives and swords are usually very strongly curved both for aesthetic reasons and the fact most soldiers wore little armour. In theory, curved blades cut deeper and work better against lightly armoured targets. This is why Western swords are primarily straight to account for more heavily armoured targets.
The pommel and guard shape invokes an avian feeling, a brotherhood trademark by now. Looking at Basim’s blade, we can see patterns on the surface of the blade. This is a technique known as damascening*. The art of damascening is ancient and can be traced back to China (surprise, surprise) where a piece dating back to 600 years B.C. has been discovered. *Damascening - Inlaying various metals, usually gold and silver into other darkly oxidised metals without damaging the metal itself.
Another example of damascening - The Khalili Collection
Roshan’s Sword - Assassin’s Creed Cosplay Guide - Ubisoft
Remember how I said that Arabian swords were mostly curved? Well, Roshan’s blade is one of those exceptions. Proud of her Persian origins, Roshan sports a weapon similar to an Akinake, also known as an Acinace. A Persian sword widely used throughout the empire and the ancient world. It can be traced back to the Scythians, steppe people from Central Asia, nomadic people who roamed around what is now modern-day Ukraine and Romania. While its origins are Scythian, it gets its renown from Persia, where it was commonly used in battles and rituals.
A historical Akinake/Acinace - National Museum of Iran
The sword is also linked to nobility. It’s depicted in a painting of Darius the Great, his soldiers are wielding it and many other Persian leaders of great renown are depicted with it.
Roshan’s sword is forged out of Damascus steel or, as it is put in the cosplay guide: damask steel. In modern times, it is also known as pattern-welded steel but more on that later. If you look closely at her sword, you can see a vivid and beautiful pattern within the steel itself. This is what Damascus is famous for. It is a remarkably strong alloy introduced to the wider world via the Crusades when the Franks fought Muslim warriors wielding Damascus blades.
However, the modern method of creating Damascus is to take two different types of steel, stack or weld them together and heat them in a forge while continuously folding them over each other, creating a multiple-layered Damascus billet. The layer count of Damascus blades can number in the hundreds and this makes Damascus blades beautiful but also incredibly tricky to work with since there is a lot that can go wrong in the forging process.
This process allows a blade to hold a pattern because high-carbon steel and low-carbon steel will oxidise at different rates and have different colours. The high-carbon steel is darker and the low-carbon steel is shiny. By annealing* and etching a blade in acid, a bladesmith can make the pattern stand out.
*Annealing - Typically softening a blade in order to be able to shape it.
A few common patterns - Barmond Special Steels
But why have a Damascus blade? The answer is simple; the blade is more durable and holds a better edge. However, the harder the steel is, the more brittle and prone to failure it can be. This is why bladesmiths shift the high carbon steel (Damascus) to the edge, giving the blade excellent cutting potential and the low carbon steel to the spine; therefore allowing the blade to absorb the shock of hitting something and making it less likely to fail.
You may have noticed that Roshan has the luxury of owning a Damascus sword, not Basim. This is most likely because Damascus was and still is very expensive and temperamental and therefore it is reserved for higher-ranking members of the order. One curious factor is how the original method for forging Damascus was lost in the years between Mirage and AC1, given that they are not that far apart, historically speaking.
Basim’s throwing knives - Assassin’s Creed Mirage Cosplay Guide - Ubisoft
What Mirage calls throwing knives could be considered a misnomer because in reality, they are daggers, not knives. The biggest difference between a knife and a dagger, is that daggers are symmetrical while knives are not. Now, I'm sure you know the purpose of these weapons. But what you may not know is that they come in two types: Balanced and unbalanced. The Balanced type is preferred for two reasons: They can be thrown from the hilt and the blade and the user can switch from one dagger to another with ease. Basim is holding it by the hilt when thrown and it flies straight and true. This indicates that they are balanced.
This may sound obvious but the weight of the dagger can affect the throwing speed and the force of impact. Looking at the snippet of footage that we have, Basim’s daggers are rather large and when thrown, they look like they have some weight to them. This would prevent any ‘bounce back’, give them more stable characteristics in flight and allow them to penetrate further than a lighter blade.
However, throwing these would require more strength to throw accurately. Like the hidden blade, these daggers are most likely cheap and mass-produced as they are a tool for every Hidden One/Assassin.
We can also see that the daggers in the footage are significantly different from those in the cosplay guide; much larger and with a ring hilt. The daggers in the cosplay guide are likely the base ones that Basim receives when he is first inducted into the order and he later upgrades to the daggers we see in the gameplay footage.
While there are always elements of weaponry that the franchise gets wrong or is forced to make changes for the sake of the game, Assassin’s Creed has always had a respectful relationship with history and Mirage looks to be no different. Whether it’s the setting or the weapons, AC always takes the historical aspect of the time period and setting and skilfully weaves it into their games.
By Adam Price
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