The Assassin’s Creed series over the years has left us all with some of the most memorable heroes in the gaming world, be it the infamous Ezio Auditore or the humble servant of the brotherhood, Altair.
The series not only made its heroes memorable but its villains as well. Some of the most interesting characters in the franchise were the Templars, who were responsible for most of the events in the games and served as the direct opposites of the assassins.
So, to give due credit to some of the best villains in the franchise, I have prepared a list of the strongest Templars in the Assassin’s Creed franchise, in my opinion, judging them on both their brains and brawn.
10Laureano de Torres y Ayala
Laureano de Torres y Ayala was a Spanish governor and served as the Templar Grandmaster for the West Indies Rite.
Torres was a great diplomat and a mediator. He was responsible for the search of the Sage, Bartholomew Roberts, and was also responsible for the exploration of the Isu site of Observatory.
Although he was not physically strong, he made it up for it with his intelligence. He was even successful in identifying Edward as an imposter and even managed to avoid him later in the story by planting a decoy.
9Al Mualim
Al Mualim was the Mentor of the Levantine Brotherhood but he was also secretly a Templar and was responsible for the events in Assassin’s Creed 1.
Al Mualim was an intelligent man. He used Altair to wipe out the Templars so that he could climb up the ranks and assume the rank of a senior Templar to further expand his power and wealth.
He was a greed-driven man and played both sides, for personal gain. Although Al Mualim was old, he was still physically capable as evidenced by the fact that he punished Altair by stabbing him with a hidden blade himself.
8Robert de Sable
Robert de Sable was the Grandmaster of the Levantine Templar Rite. He also served as the lieutenant in King Richard the Lionheart’s Crusader Army.
Robert was certainly a well-trained warrior and a capable leader of men, as evident by the fact that he was able to stop Altair at the beginning of the game. He was capable of combat, as it is not fair to assume that he fought alongside King Richard in the Crusades.
7Crawford Starrick
Crawford Starrick was a businessman in Victorian England and practically owned the city of London.
Crawford was a decent fighter and tactician. He was very well-known and influential. It is not an easy task to keep an entire city under one’s thumb and despite this Starrick was capable of doing so which proves he was certainly intelligent and strong.
He was able to acquire the Shroud of Eden which healed him during his fight against the Frye twins but was eventually defeated by them.
6Francois-Thomas Germain
Francois-Thomas Germain was a silversmith, a Templar Grandmaster, and a Sage. He was the reincarnation of an Isu, which provided him with various abilities.
Germain made use of his skills as a Templar and a Sage and led the Templars of the French Rite, to new heights. He was a decent fighter and frequently used his intelligence to outplay his enemies.
He was responsible for the plan of the elimination of not one but two Templar Grandmasters so that he can climb up the ranks for his gains. He was also successful in deceiving Arno and the Assassins.
5Charles Lee
Charles Lee was a member of the Colonial Templar Rite and he briefly became the Grandmaster of the Templars.
Lee was a veteran of 7 years of war and was very ruthless and sadistic in nature. He was cruel and showed little to no compassion and was opposed to parley with the Assassins. He was very intelligent and also served as a general in the continental army. For most of his life, he served under Haytham, who trained Lee to eventually take up the role of Grandmaster.
4Cesare Borgia
Cesare Borgia was the son of Pope Rodrigo Borgia and was one of the most skilled fighters of his time.
Cesare was smart but not as smart as his father, but he certainly knew how to get things done. And where he did outshine was in his ability to fight. He was the Captain General of the Papal Army and murdered his father to become the Grandmaster of Templars.
Whatever Cesare did, was not always for the benefit of Templars. In fact, he was only motivated by personal gains, but this did not mean he was not strong. In my opinion, Cesare Borgia is one of the strongest Templars due to all the things he achieved in so little time.
3Rodrigo Borgia
Now, Rodrigo Borgia is an interesting pick. Not only the character is based on the real Rodrigo Borgia (who was also a pope) but also shares certain qualities with him.
Rodrigo Borgia was arguably the most powerful man of his time. He was a great tactician and managed to avoid assassins and Ezio for at least 20 years. He formulated great plans, schemes, and conspiracies to horde power for himself and his family.
Not only that Rodrigo was a skilled fighter as evidenced by the duel with Ezio, and I believe he lost only due to his old age and not lack of skills. This makes Rodrigo one of the strongest Templars to ever live.
2Haytham Kenway
Haytham Kenway was the son of Assassin Edward Kenway and was the Grandmaster of Templar’s Colonial Rite. He was also the father of assassin Connor Kenway.
Haytham was certainly a very skilled fighter and was very intelligent. He was cunning, quick and charming, and very street-smart. He is one of those men who know how to get things that they want. Haytham knew the importance of when to act and when to not, which made his actions even more dangerous as they always had a huge effect on the world.
Haytham is certainly a strong Templar. Not only he can outplay his opponents, but he can also outmatch them in combat.
1Shay Patrick Cormac
Shay is the strongest Templar in the Assassin’s Creed series. He is single-handedly responsible for the elimination of the Colonial Brotherhood and has killed more assassins than any other Templar. He was also responsible for the death of Arno’s father Charles Dorian.
Shay is extremely intelligent, smart and is an excellent warrior. He was trained as an assassin but later joined the Templars after witnessing how ignorant the assassins are. This makes him extremely experienced in both combat and intelligence. Shay is very agile unlike some other Templars and boasts quite a good physical strength.
About Assassin’s Creed
Assassin’s Creed is the first instalment in the classic Assassin’s Creed franchise. It introduced one of the most influential characters in the series, Altair, who embarks on a quest to regain his honor after a failed mission.
The game was developed and published by Ubisoft. It is considered a classic, having been a memorable part of everyone’s childhoods. Even then, it featured some of the finest work in graphics, action sequences, and storyline.
No Comments on Strongest Templars in the Assassin’s Creed Franchise