In Assassin's Creed, the assassin who begins the game as a Master Assassin in 1191 is Altaïr.
Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad is the central protagonist of the first Assassin's Creed game. The story takes place during the Third Crusade, primarily in the cities of Jerusalem, Acre, and Damascus. Altaïr's early failure during a mission causes him to lose his rank and equipment, after which he must complete assignments for Al Mualim, the Mentor of the Levantine Brotherhood.
The name Altaïr comes from Arabic and is also the name of a star in the Aquila constellation. The character's full name, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, means “Altaïr, son of no one.” Players sometimes confuse him with Ezio Auditore, who leads the next major story arc, but Ezio first appears in Assassin's Creed II, set several centuries later in Renaissance Italy.
Altaïr also appears in later games and transmedia stories, but the original 2007 game establishes his transformation from an arrogant senior assassin into a more reflective leader.