Which Assassin's Creed character is the main protagonist of the original 2007 game?

Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad is the main protagonist of the original 2007 Assassin's Creed game.

Altaïr is a Syrian Assassin active during the Third Crusade. At the beginning of the game, he is a highly ranked member of the Brotherhood, but a failed mission causes him to lose his rank and equipment. His mentor, Al Mualim, then assigns him a sequence of assassination investigations.

The game uses Altaïr's missions to introduce the series' core ideas: historical targets, social stealth, rooftop movement, hidden blades, and the ideological conflict between Assassins and Templars. His journey also reveals information about the Apple of Eden and the wider science-fiction mythology.

Altaïr is sometimes confused with Ezio Auditore, who leads Assassin's Creed II, Brotherhood, and Revelations. They are different protagonists from different periods. Altaïr also appears in later franchise stories, especially Assassin's Creed: Revelations, which connects his life with Ezio's.