Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the latest addition to the long-standing series, immerses players in the rich tapestry of feudal Japan, setting it at the midpoint of the Assassin's Creed timeline. This timeline doesn't follow a chronological order but rather leaps through history, from the ancient Peloponnesian War in Greece to the dawn of the First World War, exploring pivotal moments across centuries.

With 14 mainline games and counting, the timeline becomes increasingly intricate. IGN has meticulously analyzed the series' lore to create a comprehensive timeline that spans centuries and connects the overarching narrative across all the games, presented here in chronological order.

The Isu Era
75,000 BCE

To fully appreciate the timeline, it's essential to delve into the lore of the Assassin's Creed universe. Long before recorded history, a technologically advanced race known as the Isu ruled Earth. They created humanity to serve as their slaves, controlling them with powerful artifacts called the Apples of Eden. However, humanity's desire for freedom led Eve and Adam to steal an Apple, sparking a revolutionary war against their creators.

This conflict lasted a decade until a catastrophic solar flare wiped out the Isu, leaving humanity to rise from the ashes and inherit the planet.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
431 to 422 BCE - Peloponnesian War

During the tumultuous Peloponnesian War, mercenary Kassandra uncovers the Cult of Kosmos, a secretive group manipulating the conflict from the shadows. Among its ranks is her brother Alexios, kidnapped by the Cult and transformed into a powerful weapon due to his lineage from the legendary Spartan King Leonidas, an Isu descendant.

Kassandra's journey to thwart the Cult's dominance leads her to destroy an Isu device used to predict future outcomes. She reunites with her father Pythagoras, another Isu descendant, who entrusts her with the Staff of Hermes, granting immortality and the responsibility to guard Atlantis.

Assassin’s Creed Origins
49 to 43 BCE - Ptolemaic Egypt

In Cleopatra's Egypt, the Order of the Ancients, linked to the Cult of Kosmos, kidnaps peacekeeper Bayek and his son to access an Isu vault. When Bayek inadvertently causes his son's death during their escape, he vows vengeance against the Order.

With his wife Aya, Bayek dismantles the Order's grip on Egypt, uncovering its global ambitions to control politics and religion using the Apples of Eden. In response, they form the Hidden Ones, a clandestine group of assassins and spies, to combat the Order's tyranny.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage
861 - Islamic Golden Age

By the 9th century, the Hidden Ones have established bases worldwide, including Alamut in Iran. Basim, a former street thief from Baghdad, joins the assassins to thwart the Order of the Ancients' pursuit of an Isu temple beneath Alamut.

Inside, Basim uncovers a prison that once held the Isu Loki, learning of his own past life as Loki and vowing to seek revenge against those who imprisoned him.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
872 to 878 - Viking Invasion of England

A decade later, Basim joins a Viking clan in England, led by Sigurd and Eivor, in their quest to dismantle the Order. They uncover King Alfred's tyrannical rule and his ties to the Order, aiming to impose a Christian regime.

After discovering an Isu artifact, Sigurd experiences visions of his divine origins, leading Basim to reveal Eivor and Sigurd as reincarnations of Odin and Týr, respectively. Eivor traps Basim in a simulated world within the Yggdrasil computer, and Sigurd hands leadership to Eivor, who returns to England to defeat King Alfred and solidify their settlement.

Assassin’s Creed
1191 - Third Crusade

Three centuries later, the Hidden Ones evolve into the Assassin Brotherhood, facing the Order's transformation into the Knights Templar. During the Third Crusade, assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad aims to steal an Apple of Eden from the Templars.

His mission to assassinate nine Templar leaders uncovers a plot involving the Apple, and he discovers his mentor Al Mualim's betrayal. Altaïr kills Al Mualim to prevent him from using the Apple to impose forced peace and assumes leadership of the Brotherhood.

Assassin’s Creed 2
1476 to 1499 - Italian Renaissance

During the Italian Renaissance, Ezio Auditore da Firenze joins the Assassin Brotherhood to avenge his family's execution by the Templars. Armed with his father's equipment and Leonardo da Vinci's inventions, Ezio battles the Templar-aligned Borgia family.

He acquires an Apple of Eden, which leads him to an Isu vault beneath the Vatican. Inside, he meets the Isu Minerva, who warns of an impending global catastrophe in 2012, revealing the existence of Isu vaults that could save humanity.

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
1499 to 1507 - Italian Renaissance

Despite defeating Pope Rodrigo Borgia, Ezio spares his life, a decision that leads to the Borgia's retaliation, besieging Ezio's villa and reclaiming the Apple. Ezio rebuilds the weakened Assassin Brotherhood, becoming the leader of the Italian Bureau.

They dismantle the Borgia regime in Rome and secure the Apple, which Ezio hides in an Isu vault beneath the Colosseum, safeguarding it from the Templars.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations
1511 to 1512 - Ottoman Civil War

In pursuit of more Isu knowledge, Ezio travels to Masyaf to explore Altaïr's library. The Templars seek the same, trying to gather the keys to unlock it. Ezio allies with the Ottoman Assassins in Constantinople to thwart the Byzantine Templars' plans.

Inside the library, Ezio finds Altaïr's remains and a message from the Isu Jupiter, revealing data vital for humanity's survival stored in the Grand Temple. Realizing this knowledge is for a future observer, Ezio leaves the Apple locked in the library and retires, succumbing to his accumulated injuries soon after.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows
1579 - Sengoku Period

Details about Assassin's Creed Shadows' storyline are scarce, but it is set during Japan's Sengoku period. An African mercenary, Yasuke, travels with a Jesuit missionary to Japan, joining forces with the powerful lord Oda Nobunaga in his quest to unify the country's warring clans.

Yasuke becomes a samurai and participates in the invasion of the Iga province, home to Naoe, daughter of shinobi master Fujibayashi Nagato. Despite their opposing allegiances, Yasuke and Naoe eventually unite for a common cause.

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag
1715 to 1722 - Golden Age of Piracy

In the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy, pirate Edward Kenway becomes entangled in a Templar plot to control the world using the Observatory, an Isu device capable of spying on anyone. The device requires the Sage, a reincarnation of the Isu Aita, to activate.

Edward allies with pirates to find the current Sage, Bartholomew Roberts, and eventually confronts the Templars, sealing away the Observatory's power source after avenging his betrayal by Roberts. He returns to England to live out his days with his children, Jennifer and Haytham.

Assassin’s Creed Rogue
1752 to 1776 - French and Indian War

Assassin Shay Patrick Cormac is sent to retrieve an Isu artifact from a Lisbon temple, inadvertently causing a devastating earthquake. Guilt-ridden, he defects from the Brotherhood, stealing their map of Isu temples. Rescued by the Templars, Shay rises through their ranks, aiming to stop the Assassins from accessing more Isu sites.

In the Arctic, he and Haytham Kenway, Edward's son, confront Shay's former mentor Achilles, leaving him alive to prevent further Assassin interference. Shay suggests a French revolution to counter the Assassins' American uprising.

Assassin’s Creed 3
1754 to 1783 - American Revolution

The Templars seek to unlock the Grand Temple, and Haytham Kenway kills for the key, eventually falling in love with Kaniehti:io and fathering Ratonhnhaké:ton, who later becomes Connor Kenway.

After his mother's death, Connor joins the Assassins and battles the Templars during the American Revolution. He reunites with Haytham but their conflicting visions lead to a tragic confrontation, resulting in Connor burying the Grand Temple key to thwart the Templars.

Assassin’s Creed Liberation
1765 to 1777 - Spanish Occupation of Louisiana

In parallel, Aveline de Grandpré, an Assassin in New Orleans, uncovers a Templar plot to control Louisiana using slaves to find an Isu temple. She assembles a Prophecy Disk, revealing the story of Eve and the human rebellion against the Isu.

Aveline discovers her stepmother is the Company Man behind the plot and kills her, activating the Prophecy Disk to learn more about the Isu's past.

Assassin’s Creed Unity
1789 to 1794 - French Revolution

Orphaned Arno Dorian, raised by the Templar Grand Master François de la Serre, is framed for his murder and joins the Assassins to uncover the truth. They expose a Templar faction led by François-Thomas Germain, aiming to overthrow the monarchy.

Arno and his sister Élise pursue Germain to a crypt where he uses a Sword of Eden, resulting in Élise's death and Germain's injury. Before dying, Germain reveals his identity as the current Sage, and Arno seals his remains in the Paris Catacombs.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
1868 - Victorian England

In Victorian London, twin Assassins Jacob and Evie Frye hunt for the Shroud, an Isu device. They discover the Templars' control over the city through industry and crime. While Jacob targets the Templar leadership, Evie races to find the Shroud.

Despite losing several lieutenants, Templar leader Crawford Starrick steals the Shroud from Buckingham Palace. The Frye twins assassinate Starrick and return the Shroud to its vault, securing another victory for the Assassins.

Transition Period
1914 to 2012

The Assassin's Creed series uses a modern-day framing story. During the transition from the Victorian era to the modern storyline, the Templars establish Abstergo Industries in 1937, aiming to control the world through capitalism. By the late 1970s, Abstergo develops the Animus, a machine to explore ancestral memories and control the future.

Assassin’s Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood, Revelations, and 3
2012

In 2012, Desmond Miles is abducted by Abstergo to locate Isu artifacts through his ancestor Altaïr's memories. With help from Assassin mole Lucy Stillman, Desmond escapes and joins the Assassins to prevent an impending apocalypse.

Exploring Ezio's memories, Desmond learns of the apocalypse and finds an Apple of Eden. However, the Isu Juno possesses Desmond, forcing him to kill Lucy. Desmond awakens from a coma to explore Ezio's final memories, learning about the Grand Temple and its potential to avert the apocalypse.

At the Grand Temple, Desmond sacrifices himself to activate Isu technology, preventing the apocalypse but releasing Juno, who plans to control humanity.

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag
2013

Abstergo continues using Desmond's DNA to explore Edward Kenway's memories in search of the Observatory. A researcher, "The Noob," is tasked with hacking Abstergo's systems by the modern-day Sage, John Standish, who plans to host Juno.

However, Juno isn't ready to emerge, and Standish tries to kill The Noob to keep her secret, but is killed by Abstergo security instead.

Assassin’s Creed Unity
2014

Abstergo releases "Helix," allowing the public to experience genetic memories. An Assassin initiate, guided by Bishop, relives Arno Dorian's life to find Sage remains, learning that Germain's bones are safely hidden in the Paris Catacombs.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
2015

The initiate then searches for the Shroud in London through Jacob and Evie Frye's memories. Abstergo beats the Assassins to the Shroud, planning to create a living Isu. Juno manipulates Abstergo employees to sabotage these plans.

Assassin’s Creed Origins
2017

Layla Hassan, an Abstergo researcher, develops a new Animus that uses DNA samples to explore memories. In Egypt, she discovers Bayek and Aya's remains and relives the origins of the Hidden Ones. William Miles recruits her into the Assassin Brotherhood.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
2018

Using DNA from the Spear of Leonidas, Layla explores Kassandra's memories, locating Atlantis. Kassandra, immortal due to the Staff of Hermes, explains the need for balance between the Assassins and Templars, prophesying Layla's role in maintaining this balance before passing on the Staff and dying.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
2020

Layla and the Assassins explore Eivor's memories to understand Earth's magnetic field fluctuations caused by Desmond's activation of Isu technology. In Norway, Layla uses the Yggdrasil computer to enter a simulation, meeting Basim and a manifestation of Desmond's mind, "The Reader."

Layla abandons her mortal form to work with The Reader to prevent future apocalypses. Meanwhile, Basim escapes with the Staff of Hermes, which contains Aletheia's consciousness, and joins the Assassins to search for Loki's children.