April Thoughts

In the popular imagination, the conflict between Assassins and Templars is a grand, shadowy war between "freedom" and "order," largely shaped by the Assassin’s Creed franchise. However, as historian Steve Tibble says, the real history is actually far more nuanced and interesting. Let's start by summarizing our players:

 

The Assassins (Nizari Ismailis)
The real Assassins were a secretive Shi'ite Muslim sect known as the Nizari Ismailis. Founded in 1094 after a religious split, they were a tiny, persecuted minority surrounded by enemies—both the Sunni Muslim Seljuk Turks and the invading Christian Crusaders.

Because they lacked a massive army, they perfected the surgical strike: They understood that killing one high-ranking leader was more effective than losing thousands of soldiers in a shotgun approach.

The name "Assassin" likely comes from the derogatory term hashshashin (implying they were "drugged-up junkies"), a label used by their enemies to explain their fanatical bravery. In reality, they were highly disciplined, sober, and often well-read in philosophy.

The Knights Templar
Formed in 1119, the Templars were warrior monks—an international standing army of elite Christian knights sworn to defend pilgrims and the Holy Land. Unlike the noble families around them, the Templars were a corporation. If you killed their Grand Master, a new one was elected by Wednesday morning. This made them nearly impossible to dismantle through traditional means. And while they were warriors in the East, they were bankers and lawyers in Europe. They invented early forms of international banking to fund their massive, expensive network of castles.

 

The very interesting part is that these 2 organizations where contemporaries. That is to say, they really did live at the same time. And you'd think they'd be in a state of constant war, but actually... no. The relationship between the two was not a simple black-and-white war. Instead, it was a fractious, unstable mosaic of politics:

• Mutual Extortion: For years, the Templars were the only group "brave and crazy enough" to extort protection money from the Assassins.

• Strategic Alliances: The Assassins often allied with the Crusaders against their Sunni rivals. At one point, they were so close to a diplomatic alliance with the King of Jerusalem that the Templars, fearing they would lose a source of income, massacred the Assassin diplomats to sabotage the peace deal.

• The Common Enemy: Both groups shared a deep hatred for Saladin, the great Muslim unifier. The Assassins sent 13 men into Saladin’s camp to kill him, while 84 Templars once charged a 20,000-man army just to reach Saladin’s personal standard. (Ultimately, both of them failed of course. Saladin did his thing very successfully). 

Now, history is all very well, but how do you apply it to your world? There are four interesting techniques to explore: 

• Asymmetric Warfare: Create a faction that is numerically weak but survives through a "Halo Effect" of fear. If the world believes your cult is unstoppable and everywhere, they might never dare to attack you.

• The Corporate Sect: Make your factions resistant to political assassination. If a faction's power is tied to an office rather than a bloodline, they become a persistent, unkillable antagonist in your narrative.

• Conflict of Roles: Borrow the Templar duality. A faction could be seen as holy protectors in one region while acting as ruthless, exploitative bankers in another. This creates internal tension: does the hero fight the "banker" or the "knight"?

• Strange Bedfellows: Instead of two factions that always fight, have them cooperate when a third, larger power (like a Saladin figure) threatens both. Their mutual suspicion while working together creates excellent dramatic tension.

 

The knights series will start dribbling out to the public, but of course the members of the Just In Time Worldbuilding channel get access way faster. So if you want to see my detailed thoughts on knights, join the channel today!

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