Ezio's Swords[]
Okay, I should probably take this to the talk page. I thought it might be more convenient to keep the text in the article for easy reference hence my reversion. I don't really think that what I wrote was too much of an assumption. Why would Ezio's swords be modeled after the swords he used in Revelations and named after him if they're not based on his swords? I find that this should at least be addressed, and it would be unhelpful otherwise, if a bit of a deduction.
I suppose perhaps a distinction might be made between saying that it establishes that THE Ezio's swords (Sword of Ezio) is an Assassin Yataghan sword as opposed to that AN Ezio's sword is an Assassin Yataghan sword. So my original rhetoric might have been too strong, or maybe that was too far of a leap. I believe that the implied meaning of it being named Ezio's sword and included in a DLC pack expressly encompassing the items of Altaïr and Ezio, along with the description of the swords as having once been owned by Ezio if I recall correctly, should be explained.
The only matter is that after re-reading it, I admit that the language should probably be moderated. Sol Pacificus(Cyfiero) 22:30, August 10, 2017 (UTC)
Actually on second thought, I think it's better to leave the safer edit instead, so here's the original text for reference:
- That the appearance of Ezio's Swords in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag is identical to that of the Assassin Yataghan Sword in Assassin's Creed: Revelations seems to establish that Ezio Auditore's personal sword is the Assassin yataghan sword. This is reinforced by the appearance of Altaïr's Swords as well which are identical to the Sword of Altaïr well established as the personal weapon of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad from Assassin's Creed. Indeed, the Assassin yataghan sword is the default sword for Ezio in Revelations, the weapon he begins the game with and ends with in his last cutscenes of the game.
- Ezio's Swords in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag share their appearance with the Assassin Yataghan Sword that Ezio uses at the start of Revelations.
- As with the Sword of Altaïr, although Ezio only wields one sword at a time, the sword is duplicated in Black Flag so as to adapt to Edward Kenway's dual-wielding combat style.
- As with the Sword of Altaïr, although Ezio only wields one sword at a time, the sword is duplicated in Black Flag so as to adapt to Edward Kenway's dual-wielding combat style.
- Because Black Flag establishes that the personal sword of Ezio Auditore is the Assassin yataghan sword, it follows that the sword might be said to have appeared in the cutscenes of Revelations where Ezio is seen wielding it even if the particular yataghan sword he wields is not explicitly named after him. Sol Pacificus(Cyfiero) 22:37, August 10, 2017 (UTC)
Admittedly, the language in the original version was immensely difficult for me to follow. It also seemed far too wordy. Referring to the Assassin Yataghan Sword as "Ezio's personal sword" (akin to the Sword of Altaïr) seems like a leap, since he started out his journey in 1510, and even if he used the sword before that, he still didn't use it prior to 1507. And as we know, he abandoned the cause in 1512, meaning he would have owned the sword for about two years. For all intents and purposes, Ezio's personal sword is the Sword of Altaïr, having made use of it variably from 1486 to 1507, possibly even beyond.
They are, of course, based on the Assassin Yataghan Sword, which I never removed from the article. Why these swords were chosen though is anyone's guess. They aren't really appropriate, but that's not much of an issue. They are technically Ezio's swords, since he did own them. He also travelled across extensively with them, so, I guess, that counts for something.
The thing I really take issue with though is what you said about the ending cutscene depicting the Assassin Yataghan Sword and connecting that to it being Ezio's preferred weapon. That cutscene strips Ezio of all of his gear. His armour (which we know he bought at least the pauldrons for), his dagger, and his crossbow are all missing. I assume it was done for the sake of convenience, so as to avoid animating Ezio removing invisible gear like a crossbow and dagger, and also for the shot of Ezio's sword hitting the floor at an angle only possible due to the AYS's hilt (unless I'm making that up). This cutscene is set up the way it is for convenience's sake, and I don't think it's meant to set Ezio's equipment in stone as far as canon is concerned. I also don't think Black Flag meant to retroactively confirm "Yes, this was Ezio's weapon of choice". Maybe they chose the AYS because it has the most interesting design? It stands out from the other swords in both Revelations and Black Flag. Maybe they just chose it because (as far as I know) a lot of the same people worked on both games.
When the games carry over legacy content from older games, all kinds of little details crop up that shouldn't be thought about too deeply. I'll name a few:
- In Brotherhood Giovanni's robes are missing their red interior, and the cape looks, well crinkly, for lack of a better word. All stretched and weird.
- In Best Man, Ezio has the Sword of Altaïr, Notched Cinqueada, metal armour, and the Medici Cape, even though he owned none of those things at the time in AC2.
- In Revelations, Altaïr's robes are pretty different when it comes to the finer details (I'll spare you from them, though).
- In AC3, Black Flag, Rogue, Unity, and Syndicate, "Ezio's robes" (his Brotherhood set) are adorned with throwing knives, and are missing their red interior (hold up, why does this keep happening, exactly?).
- In Black Flag, Rogue, and Unity, Connor's robes are missing their gloves.
- In Unity, Altaïr's robes are missing the sheath for the short blade sheath.
My point in listing all that nonsense is that a lot of the time, when later games touch on or include things from older games in a gameplay context, a lot of things tend to be overlooked or ignored, but shouldn't change how we view the prior instalments. Which is why I don't agree with the position that the inclusion of Ezio's Swords (as a small piece of nostalgia DLC, no less) definitely establishes the Assassin Yataghan Sword as his personal weapon of choice like the Sword of Altaïr was for Altaïr (which we see Altaïr went back to in Bloodlines and Revelations, just in case somebody - rightly - points out that it was AC2 that established it as his preferred weapon). If we had some media which showed Ezio using the sword more extensively, or if it hadn't cropped up just in Revelations, I'd probably be more agreeing, but as it stands, I don't think it's meant as anything more than a nostalgic thing for gameplay, and isn't meant to add to the lore at all. A bit like the Edward the Legend suit from Uplay, I guess. Anyway, I wrote this at 2am, so it's probably all garbage. Hopefully some of it is understood though. --Crimson Knight Intercom 01:10, August 11, 2017 (UTC)
- Don't worry, I think you made some valid points. I think maybe my conclusion was a bit too zealous, hence what I said earlier that I suppose there's a distinction between it being THE personal sword of Ezio as opposed to just a sword that Ezio wielded. In this, I am convinced about the first bullet point, but you also removed the last one, which really only states that if these swords are the Assassin yataghan swords of Ezio, then it may be the same one he used in Revelations at the beginning of the game (and at the end), and therefore can be said to have appeared in Revelations. The fact that you retained Revelations in the Appearances would seem to say that you agree except that you removed the explanation about it. Some people in some online forums have said that the weapon's description in fact states that the swords were used by Ezio, which would suggest that the swords here (or one of them) really is the same one used by Ezio at the beginning of Revelations, but I don't have the game with me to double-check this right now. Sol Pacificus(Cyfiero) 01:34, August 11, 2017 (UTC)