10 of the Best Assassin’s Creed Villains & Antagonists

The Assassin’s Creed series is known for its diverse open worlds, amazing take on historical fiction, and carefully crafted characters. While the spotlight is mostly on the heroes for the majority of each game’s runtime, the villains and antagonists are what makes the story of the game intensely thrilling. With that in mind, we’ve crafted a list of 10 of the best villains and antagonists to grace the series with their presence.

Related: Every Assassin’s Creed protagonist, ranked

10 of the Best Villains & Antagonists in the Assassin’s Creed Series

Below, we’ve outlined 10 of the antagonists and villains that we believe are the best throughout the entire franchise. They’re not listed in any particular order because each one has their merits, but we believe they’re the cream of the crop when it comes to the people players are working against to fight for what’s right.

1) Cesare Borgia

Cesare Borgia was featured as the main antagonist in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood to Ezio Auditore. Right from the start, we notice how brutal and cunning he was when he attacked the Auditore home of Monterrigioni and executed Ezio’s uncle, Mario. His lust for power knew no bounds which even led him to kill his father. This contrasted perfectly with Ezio’s outlook of liberating Rome from Cesare’s troops and influence and helped shape him into a better Assassin. It’s truly one of the best hero-villain pairings in the series.

2) Charles Lee

When we were first introduced to Charles Lee in Assassin’s Creed III, he seemed just a simple, honest, and solid number two to Haytham Kenway. When Haytham becomes the Grand Master of the Colonial Templar Order, Lee becomes his second in command. After rising through the Templar ranks, Lee became violent, aggressive, greedy, and ruthless. This sort of behavior led to him threatening Connor and his loved ones, a threat the protagonist did not take so kindly. After being defeated by Connor, Lee accepted his death gracefully by sharing a drink with Connor before being stabbed in the heart. The final boss battle against this villian is far from bombastic, but it manages to capture the gritty reality of a brawl and feels true to not just the time period, but both Connor and Charles Lee’s character.

3) Crawford Starrick

Crawford Starrick is featured in Assassin’s Creed Syndicate as the Grandmaster of the British Templar Order. Although he is a Templar, Starrick is a bit more reasonable and pragmatic in his approach to everything. He seemed a businessman, manipulator, and leader at heart in his exploits early in the game but becomes much more ruthless and violent when the Frye twins start to disrupt his plans. Not to mention, the way he carries himself is simply extraordinary.

4) Deimos

Deimos is featured as the main antagonist in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. Originally known as Alexios, he was raised and ultimately brainwashed by the Cult of Kosmos after being presumed dead. His unhinged and violent personality along with a God-complex made him extremely terrifying even to the very people who raised him. This made him one of the most unforgiving and brutal antagonists in the series till now.

5) Francoise Thomas-Germain

Francoise Thomas-Germain was featured in Assassin’s Creed Unity as the Grandmaster of the French Templar Order and a Sage. Germain was presumed dead after he was exiled by the former Templar Grandmaster, Francois de la Serre for being too radical in his approach. Then, with the help of his other radical Templar allies, he manages to kill De La Serre and become Grandmaster himself. He eventually framed the French Royal Family for hoarding food during the French Revolution which led to the execution of King Louis XVI. Not only that, he even managed to manipulate Arno Dorian into rescuing him.

6) Gaius Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar was featured in Assassin’s Creed: Origins mainly as an ally to Cleopatra, Pharaoh of Egypt. His ambitious and deterministic personality as he was known for in real-life was prevalent throughout his conversations with Bayek and Aya. With the help of the Order of Ancients, Caesar manages to install Cleopatra as the Pharaoh much to the dismay of Bayek and Aya. His actions and ambitions truly make him a compelling villain in the game.

Related: The 10 best historical characters in the Assassin’s Creed series

7) Haytham Kenway

Haytham Kenway is an interesting antagonist because we also got to play him in Assassin’s Creed III. His charming James Bond-like personality made him simply the best character in the game even outshining his son, Connor. His struggle with his own belief and his son’s Assassin morale made him conflicted with his feelings which made him a really interesting character. Even beneath that charming personality, he was still ruthless in his approach toward his foes.

Related: How to play the Assassin’s Creed games in order – chronological and release orders

8) Rodrigo Borgia

Rodrigo Borgia is featured as the main antagonist in Assassin’s Creed II and Brotherhood. He’s easily one of the smartest and most deceptive Templars in the game. His ruthless and unforgiving personality helps him to dominate people and order them to do dirty work while he remains in the shadows. Not to mention, his political ambitions knew no bounds as he became the Pope. This made him a perfect villain for young Ezio to tackle. His deceptive personality was also highlighted when he conflicted with his son Caesar as well.

9) Uberto Alberti

Uberto Alberti is another antagonist from Assassin’s Creed II who plays a pivotal role in Ezio Auditore taking up the Assassin cape. Uberto was a close associate of Giovanni Auditore, an Assassin, all while being a Templar under the command of Rodrigo Borgia. When Giovanni was imprisoned, Uberto betrayed him for his interests and sentenced him and two of his sons to death. This led Ezio to take up the Assassin mantle and take down Uberto as his first major target in a brutal public assassination.

1) Warren Vidic

Warren Vidic appeared in the early Assassin’s Creed games as the Director of the Animus Project in Abstergo Industries, the primary front of the modern-day Templars. Being a fanatical member of the Templar Order, Vidic was extremely focused on the Animus Project as well as on making scientific breakthroughs for them. He was also focused on taking down his former test subject, Desmond Miles, now a part of the Assassins after seeing no use for him. There’s also a bit of a manipulation trait that was in him when he convinced Lucy to defect from the Assassins and join the Templars. But, as cruel as he was, he expressed sadness when Lucy was killed by Desmond under the influence of Juno.