In the original Assassin's Creed, which 12th-century assassin is the playable protagonist?

Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad is the playable protagonist of the original Assassin's Creed.

Altaïr is a Syrian Assassin operating during the Third Crusade, and the game follows his missions in cities including Masyaf, Jerusalem, Acre, and Damascus. After breaking the Brotherhood's rules during an early mission, he is demoted and must regain his rank by completing a series of investigations and assassinations.

The character is sometimes confused with Ezio Auditore, who leads Assassin's Creed II and its Renaissance-era sequels, or with Desmond Miles, the modern-day character whose genetic memories provide the framing story. Altaïr's name is Arabic and is commonly translated as “the flying one.”

The original game established several series traditions: social stealth, reconnaissance from viewpoints, rooftop traversal, and investigations before major targets are eliminated. Altaïr also returns in later franchise stories, but Assassin's Creed is the game that introduces him as the central playable Assassin.