Which character is the playable protagonist of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag?

Edward Kenway is the playable protagonist of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.

Released in 2013, Black Flag follows Edward Kenway, a Welsh privateer and pirate who becomes involved with the Assassin-Templar conflict during the early eighteenth century. The main historical setting is the Caribbean, where Edward sails between islands and port cities aboard his ship, the Jackdaw.

Edward is the father of Haytham Kenway and the grandfather of Ratonhnhaké:ton, also called Connor, who appear in Assassin’s Creed III. That family connection makes Black Flag part of the wider Kenway saga, but Edward is a separate character with his own motivations and arc.

Players sometimes answer Haytham or Connor because both are playable Kenways in other games. Haytham is prominent in Assassin’s Creed III, while Connor is that game’s principal playable character. Black Flag instead centers on Edward, whose early pursuit of wealth gradually develops into a deeper engagement with the Brotherhood.