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| “ | This memory I buried of this place... this prison, the torture I suffered here... it festered for years, in darkness and dreams... masked as a jinni, to haunt me and hollow me... until it consumed my waking life. But I have faced my past. My pain. Embraced it. I shed my skin once, in another time, another place. But I am whole again. I remember. And as for those who thought to bind me... should any of them still walk the Earth, I so look forward to our reunion. But until that day... a new world awaits. | „ |
| ~ Basim's narration at the end of Assassin's Creed Mirage. |
| “ | He was taken from me. By someone I trusted. A friend, a mentor. A man who I would trust with anything. But a man you trust with anything ... can take anything. | „ |
| ~ Basim Ibn Ishaq to Eivor Varinsdottir. |
Basim Ibn Ishaq is one of the overarching antagonists of the Assassin's Creed franchise.
He is a Master Assassin, former member of the Hidden Ones and current member of the Brotherhood of Assassins. He is also the reincarnation of the Isu Loki, who's personality effectively consumed Basim's own.
He is voiced by Carlo Rota in Valhalla, and by Lee Majdoub in Mirage.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Basim Ibn Ishaq was born in 844 in the Iraq city of Samarra to Ishaq and an unnamed mother, whom passed away when he was young. Unbeknownst to Basim or his parents, he was the reincarnation of the Jötnar Isu Loki, who used the Yggdrasil to place his memories and conscious in hopes to reunite with Aletheia and get revenge on Odin. His father was am architect who was put into exile after someone stole his credit for creating the Great Mosque of Samarra, leaving Basim an orphan. Trying to survive in the Abbasid Caliphate, he turned to stealing to survive and became a street thief under the service of the collector Dervis. During this time, he befriended a fellow street thief named Nehal, who was actually the psychological manifestation of Loki. Additionally, Basim suffered from nightmares of the jinn, whom was in reality repressed memories of Loki's torture inside the Alamut temple.
Assassin's Creed Mirage[]
In 861, Basim was assigned by Dervis to collect a ledger for the Hidden Ones, whom the street thief wanted to join in their fight against injustice. Overhearing Dervis' conversation with the master assassin Roshan on obtaining a chest Basim decided to infiltrate the winter palace alongside a reluctant Nehal. Successful in obtaining the item from the chest, Basim was affected by the disk-like artifact, drawing the attention of Al-Mutawakkil. Basim killed the caliph (as his mind made him believe it was Nehal), and escaped from the palace's guards. The following day, Basim learned that the caliph's guards executed many innocent people due to his actions, and was forced to flee from his home with the assistance of Roshan.
After his escape, Basim joined the Hidden Ones under Roshan's tutelage, and became acquainted with fellow assassins Nur, Fuladh and Rebekah. Once his training was complete, Basim was inducted into the Alamut chapter, and gifted the eagle Enkidu as his companion. When Nur returned injured from his investigation into the Order of the Ancient's control over Baghdad, Rayhan tasked Basim to work with Roshan and Fuladh to travel there. Once connecting with each bureau across the city, Basim continued Nur's investigation to identify each member of the order and assassinate them. However, each target he eliminated ended with vague mentions of his true nature and encounters with the jinn from his nightmares.
When confronting the final member of the order, Qabiha, she reveals that the Hidden Ones are keeping the truth of his nature from him, and hiding it underneath their bureau. However, before she could reveal more, Roshan assassinated her and threatened her apprentice to not enter the temple or she would kill him. Disillusioned with the creed, Basim returned to Nehal and decided to travel back to the bureau to learn the truth. Finding the temple under attack by the caliph's guards, the assassin rescued his colleagues before going underneath the temple. Reaching a strange door, he was attacked by Roshan, but bested her in combat and left his former mentor to live.
Inside the temple, Basim discovered the truth when opening a chamber pod, realizing that Nehal was a figment of Loki's conscious attempting to merge with him. He also learned that the jinn was the repressed memories of Loki's torture inside the temple, and decided to merge with Nehal, thus allowing Loki's conscious to merge with his. Returning to the others, Basim was welcomed back to the brotherhood as Roshan left in protest. Despite the warm welcome, they noticed his change, including Enkidu, whom attacked his former master. Now having all of Loki's memories, Basim focused on finding the reincarnation of Odin to avenge Fenrir's imprisonment.
While determined to get revenge on Odin, Basim remained with the Hidden Ones, continued to perform contracts for Dervis, and came across his future apprentice Hytham.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla[]
Around 870, Basim learned of the death of the assassin Ammon to a Norseman named Sigurd Styrbjornsson, who was noted for having a strange mark on his neck. Believing that Sigurd could potentially be the reincarnation of Odin, the assassin decided to falsely befriend the Viking in hopes to later kill his new target. While putting on the charade, Basim traveled to Norway with Hytham after learning that Sigurd's clan is fighting against Kjotve, whom was a member of the Order of the Ancients. He then met Sigurd's adoptive sister Eivor Varinsdottir, whom was Odin's reincarnation, but couldn't be identified due to her scars caused a wolf attack when she was young.
After Kjotve's death and his son being exiled, Basim and Hytham accompanied Sigurd, Eivor and most of their clan in leaving home to England after Styrbjorn gave his title to King Harald. Once setting Ravensthorpe in England, Basim accompanied Sigurd in making alliances with other clans and manipulating the Norseman, thus hurting his relationship with Eivor. The two started their search for a woman named Fulke, whom they believed could help in revealing Sigurd's destiny, and later asked for Varinsdottir's help in stopping Oxenfordscire's ruler Eadwyn. When meeting with King Alfred, however, Fulke betrayed the trio, opting to take Sigurd hostage instead and later revealing her affiliation with the order. As Eivor continued to form alliances with other clans and assassinating members of the order, Basim managed to track down Fulke to Cent.
Basim and Eivor worked with Cent's abbot Cynerbert to give him information on Alfred's pick for earldorman in exchange of Fulke's whereabouts, but the latter killed the monk and left behind Sigurd's arm in a chest for the assassin and shieldmaiden to find. Despite evading her pursuers, Basim and Eivor allied with the jarl Guntham in taking Portcestre from Fulke, ending with the order member being killed in combat. With Sigurd rescued, Basim became more convinced that he was Odin's reincarnation due to his visions from being "enlighten" by Fulke's torture.
Once Sigurd believed that his visions lead him back to Norway, Basim followed him and Eivor as they entered the Yggdrasil simulation of Valhalla. However, Ibn Ishaq quickly deduced that Eivor was Odin's reincarnation, enacting a fight against the shieldmaiden that ended with him being trapped inside the machine. Following his defeat, Eivor informed Hytham of Basim's betrayal as Sigurd made his adoptive sister jarl of Ravensthorpe.
Modern Day[]
Basim remained trapped in the Yggdrasil for centuries, finding himself in the grey alone until Desmond Miles sacrificed himself in 2012 to save the world. With the Earth's magnetic field being strengthen, Ibn Ishaq managed to send a message to the Assassins, ending with Layla Hassan entering the Yggdrasil. Unbeknownst to Layla, Basim's plan came to fruition alongside Aletheia, tricking her into remaining into the grey as he escaped and used the Staff of Hermes to rejuvenate his body. After "paying his respects" to Eivor's corpse, he decided to continue his enemies' journey from the animus, intending to find his children.
Not long afterwards, Basim finished experiencing the last of Eivor's memories, witnessing her goodbyes to her comrades as she departed England for North America seeking final settling. After having viewed the end of Eivor's memories Basim went to sit by the fire pit outside of the cabin. He experienced a vision caused by the Bleeding Effect, seeing a manifestation of Eivor sitting with him. The two of them shared a friendly nod, showing that Basim had come to understand that Eivor had been separate from Odin, and had made peace with her memory.
An unknown amount of time afterwards, Basim shared a sample of his own blood with William Miles so that the man could view the former's early life and judge if the Brotherhood could trust Basim as an ally, which William in the end seemed to imply that he had chosen to do so.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Eagle Vision: Basim possesses the rare ability of Eagle Vision. He is able to emit a brief pulse that locates and marks nearby enemies and objects of interest, a perception that can even penetrate walls and floors. After becoming the Hidden One, as is customary with the Brotherhood, he was given an eagle companion named Enkidu to help him in his reconnaissance. However, after Basim was consumed by Loki, Enkidu could detect the change with in him and rejected Loki, scarring his face in the process.
- Superhuman Speed: After awaking part of his Isu traits, Basim gained access to the ability to temporarily move at speeds beyond human, even so much that the Animus couldn't proper render it, making it seem as though Basim was teleporting.
Abilities[]
- Peak Human Physical Condition: Raised alone on the streets of Baghdad, Basim made his living as thief and was an accomplished pickpocket. This rough upbringing gave Basim a fit and lean build, allowing him to easily accomplish impressive acrobatic feats as well as parkour and climb easily. While exploring various underwater ruins, he also proved himself to be a strong swimmer, and was able to hold his breath for relatively long periods of time. Basim is incredibly resilient as well, being able to survive in the desert for several days while riding constantly. He was even still fit enough to battle the Caliphate soldiers and defeat his former mentor, Roshan, in a one-on-one duel, despite being near exhaustion when arriving at Alamut.
- Master Freerunner: Even prior to joining the Hidden ones, Basim was able to scale most buildings and natural elements with relative ease, and was a master freerunner, traversing various obstacles almost instantly.
- Master Acrobat: Basim is incredibly agile and flexible, being able to move with great fluidity in combat and jump and run with an excellent degree of control and grace. As Loki, he possessed an acrobatic fighting style that allowed him to nearly equal Odin in combat.
- Genius Level Intellect/Master strategist: Inherited from his progenitor, Basim was a natural prodigy at many subjects from childhood. The son of an architect, Basim was given an advanced education until his father's death and being forced onto the streets. As a youth Basim recalled sneaking into the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, spending hours studying books on multiple sciences, as well as mathematics and a fair degree of medicine and history. As his Nehal split personality, he also studied books on mysticism and dark magic, as well as possibly religion. Basim later showed a competent understanding of sciences and engineering when analyzing the Order of the Ancients' studies into the Pieces of Eden and Isu biology, with assistance from Loki through the Nehal manifestation. Basim is a master strategist and tactician, even prior to the joining the Brotherhood. As a thief he had planned and taken part in many elaborate heists, and successfully planned an infiltration into the Caliph's Anbar palace. After being trained by Roshan and Fuladh his ability greatly improved, allowing him to infiltrate many fortified locations and assassinate the high ranking Order members, as well as additional contracts he carried out. After being consumed by Loki, Basim/Loki proved to be a formidable chess-master of a planner, forming complex and multi-layered plans to achieve his goal of revenge against Odin. He successfully manipulated the de facto leader of the Order of the Ancients in England, Fulke, and made Eivor believe that he was her friend to gain her trust when hunting Fulke down. He easily manipulated Sigurd's ego and increasing god-complex in his favor as well, and successfully drove a wedge between him and Eivor. During the final duel between Basim/Loki and Eivor, He utilized guerilla tactics against her, using the full potential of his Hidden One arsenal to his advantage against her. He only lost when Eivor used his unstable mentally state against him, and even then proved to be the most dangerous opponent she had ever faced.
- Master Investigator/Tracker: Basim is an accomplished investigator and tracker, being able to discern many things about a crime scene helped along by his Eagle vision. In Baghdad Basim could track Ali when no one else could, eventually being able to rescue him. In England, when Fulke captured Sigurd, Basim could easily track Fulke and learn all her whereabouts and he also tracked Eivor and Sigurd to Goinnhellir without either of them realizing.
- Master Hacker/Computer specialist: Through Loki, Basim is an experienced computer expert, devising animus anomalies to test Layla Hassan and was able to hack their animus remotely while still imprisoned in Yggdrasil.
- Master Mathematician: When Basim was sealed in Yggdrasil, he learned to use the Yggdrasil supercomputer and learned to understand modern science and technology, using calculations to find a way to save mankind and also to save himself from Yggdrasil.
- Master hand-to-hand combatant/Martial artist: As a thief, Basim was also a capable fist-fighter, but wasn't skilled enough to defend himself against the Caliphate guards. Following his training in Alamut, he became an accomplished swordsman. While in Baghdad, he would wield both a sword and a dagger in combat, quickly striking at enemies and blocking incoming attacks. He was not an experienced fighter at this point, and while he could handle a few guards with relative ease, he would have a harder time dealing with more numerous or well-armored foes. After rising to the rank of Master Assassin Basim became even more skilled, being able to fight his way out the Caliphate itself facing a near army of soldiers, and later defeated his mentor Roshan in a duel despite having been caught by surprise by her. After Loki's personality took control, his mastery of combat improved even further, reinforced by the Isu's advanced combat experience as a member of the Aesir. Basim/Loki was skilled enough to match elite Saxon soldiers, such as when storming Fulke's stronghold. He was also able to equally match the elite Viking warrior Eivor, who was a master combatant in her own right and had gained some of Odin's combat prowess, only losing due to Eivor taking advantage of his unstable mental condition when fighting her. Basim/Loki's skills have likely improved even further since reliving Eivor's memories and Odin's dreams through the Animus.
- Master Swordsman: Trained by the prolific Master Assassin Roshan bint Al'ahad, Basim is an extremely skilled and formidable sword fighter. He can use his speed to dodge and counter most of his opponent's attacks, and his rolling and swinging sword attacks make it difficult for opponents to predict and dodge. Although Basim is not very strong physically, he can use his skills to easily parry the attacks of those who are stronger than him, His speed and skill making up for his lack of strength. During Basim’s final battle with his mentor Roshan in Alamut, his swordsmanship had improved greatly from before, to the point where he was able to defeat his former master. After Loki took control, Basim/Loki's sword skill rose to an even greater level of lethality, benefitting from the Isu's advanced combat training and experience as a member of the Aesir and of Odin's inner circle. Basim proved capable of cutting his way through Norse soldiers, Viking raiders, Saxon elites, and fighting Eivor, a master combatant in her own right, on equal grounds. It should be noted that Basim/Loki was only defeated by Eivor due to being outsmarted by her, rather than being outmatched by her physically, showing the depth of the older Basim's skill and experience.
- Knife Mastery: Basim is a lethal knife thrower, even being able to potentially "charge" his throw to create enough force to pierce metal armor. Basim is also a proficient dagger wielder, utilizing one in his off hand alongside his sword.
- Master Assassin: As a member of the Hidden Ones who had achieved the rank of Master, Basim is extremely skilled in assassination, as well as espionage and combat.
- Stealth Mastery: Basim had some experience with stealth prior to joining the Hidden Ones, being able to infiltrate the port and the Winter Palace in Anbar, but his stealth skills were refined after joining the Hidden Ones. He learned how to blend into his surroundings, such as crowds and benches, and mastered several assassination techniques.
- Master Thief: Having spent most of his childhood and teenage years as a thief on the streets of the Karhk district of Baghdad and later of Anbar, Basim was a prodigious thief, being naturally talented in pickpocketing and stealth, as well as having a keen sense of awareness. Using Eagle vision, he could even discern higher value targets for his pickpocketing.
Equipment[]
- Hidden Blade:
- Sword:
- Dagger:
- Throwing Knifes:
- Smoke Bombs:
- Blowpipe:
- Staff of Hermes Trismegistus:
Quotes[]
| “ | I am merely the son of a public servant who dedicated his life to the betterment of his people... only to be slighted and forgotten. | „ |
| ~ Basim to Nehal. |
| “ | H-how...? How long has it been? | „ |
| ~ Basim at the end of Mirage with Loki's memories. |
| “ | We live in a strange time, Eivor. Among stranger people. Sigurd may be among the blessed. But who can say for certain? | „ |
| ~ Basim to Eivor, hinting at Sigurd's nature. |
| “ | For too long, I stared at the sun! It blinded me to the truth. That it was you. It was you I wanted all along. | „ |
| ~ Basim to Eivor, realizing that the latter is the reincarnation of Odin. |
| “ | I will leave you here to die! Like a rotting fruit on a dying tree! You died once, you will again! | „ |
| ~ Basim to Eivor during their battle. |
| “ | The Heir of Memories fulfilled her role perfectly. Now then. A new world awaits. | „ |
| ~ Basim upon escaping the Yggdrasil. |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- His name in Arabic means "one who smiles".
See Also[]
[]
 Heroes
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Isu The Hidden Ones Ptolemaic Dynasty Abbasid Caliphate Assassins Italian Brotherhood Spanish Brotherhood British Brotherhood French Brotherhood Indian Brotherhood Chinese Brotherhood Japanese Brotherhood American Brotherhood Ottoman Brotherhood German Brotherhood Russian Brotherhood Others | ||