In the original Assassin's Creed game, Masyaf is the Assassins' headquarters during Altaïr's story.
Masyaf is a fortified mountain settlement in modern-day Syria and serves as the base of the Levantine Brotherhood. Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad returns there repeatedly to receive missions, report to Al Mualim, and use the Brotherhood's facilities. The game presents Masyaf as both a working headquarters and a symbol of the order's authority.
The game takes Altaïr to three major cities—Jerusalem, Acre, and Damascus—but those locations are mission destinations rather than his permanent base. Masyaf is therefore easy to confuse with the cities where most investigations occur. Historically, Masyaf is associated with the Nizari Ismaili community and its fortress, although the game's fictional Assassin leadership and events are dramatized. The settlement also appears in later Assassin's Creed material, reinforcing its importance to the series' Levant setting.