What is the Bronze Age Collapse?

Archaeologists and Anthropologists will tell you that the Bronze Age Collapse is one of the greatest periods in history that no one knows about. But plenty of people do. A quick YouTube search will pull up hundreds of videos detailing this time period. I am fascinated with it.

So what is it?

The Bronze Age Collapse, occurring from about 1200 BCE to 1150 BCE, was a culmination of events that caused the demise of many historic and once mighty societies. Multiple forces played into the collapse: environmental changes that caused drought and famine, invasions and/or migrations of people namely the Sea Peoples, the destruction of major population centers and historic cities, and disruptions to historic trade routes that caused bronze production to plummet.

Whole civilizations disappeared, written languages were forgotten, and after, the world was thrown into a dark age while whoever was left tried to pick up the pieces of their world and put it back together. It’s wild stuff.

Who are the players here?

The Hittites, Greeks, Babylonians, Egyptians, Assyrians, and all the other interconnected kingdoms of the day were all involved. Some of them survived, in some form. Others completely collapsed.

Why Did the Bronze Age Collapse Happen?

People far more educated than I have so many resources available that I am not qualified to explain the details. I am not a historian, just someone who loves history.

Warfare Changed

Armies emerged that fought with swords instead of spears so they could take on chariots, the tanks of that time.

Sea Peoples

The Sea Peoples were groups of people appearing from mysterious places across the sea. They arrived to burn cities, invade, and cause mass destruction all over the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Historians now think these people might have been running from drought and famine of their own.

Climate Change

Drought peppered the landscape, and once flourishing farms dried up to dust. This could have been happening for centuries before it was collapse time, but all of a sudden within a few generations the lands that were once fertile and lush were no longer productive.

Fascinating

The fall of civilizations is a fascinating topic that people devote their entire careers studying. And this particular societal collapse doesn’t just encompass the fall of one society, but an entire network of great civilizations that had been around for centuries, all terminating in this one cataclysmic time period. It’s a super interesting point in history to set a story.

Enter Assassin’s Creed

Assassin’s Creed is an incredible IP that can be a launching point for someone to get really into history. I’m talking about myself. I have always found history to be interesting but Assassin’s Creed does something really compelling: It immerses you into the history as part of the gameplay. This makes you feel like you’re a part of the history. You’re surrounded by it. You’re listening to the sounds of the people around you, you’re looking at the markets, the landscapes, the outfits, the people. To me, Assassin’s Creed makes history come alive in a way that just telling a story cannot. And through that immersion, deeply impactful stories can be lived, not just listened to.

And this time period? The Bronze Age Collapse? Legit thousands of stories could be told.

Would this be too similar to Assassin’s Creed Odyssey? Origins?

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey takes place during the Peloponnesian War from 431-422 BCE. Origins takes place in Ptolemaic Egypt from 49 to 38 BCE. The Bronze Age Collapse occurred from 1200 BCE to 1150 BCE, more than 600 years before the time explored in AC Odyssey and a millennia before Origins.

Why Go Back to the Mediterranean?

This region of the world was the birthplace of great civilizations, and there’s so much incredible history to be spun here.

Assassin’s Creed is Alternative History, Remember?

Sure, sure. I get that the people at Ubisoft take real history, and weave some fiction through it to tell their own stories. That’s part of why the IP is a game and not a history software. But what they can do is bigger than that. I have learned an incredible amount of actual history from each AC game that I have played, from the Borgia Italy with the Ezio Trilogy to the French Revolution (bonus: I played the game in French so it was incredible, let me tell you), to the Peloponnesian War. I have immersed myself in both the fiction of the Assassin’s Creed world AND the real history through each game. And I think they could do so, so much with the Bronze Age Collapse.

Ubisoft Knows the Potential

Ubisoft knows how much potential their games have to get people to learn real history. I loved the part in Origins that let you walk around and learn about Alexandria, etc from a purely historical standpoint, with no violence or hidden blading people (though I love that part of the game too!)

In 2023 Ubisoft partnered with the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford England to explore Odyssey’s depiction of Knossos and the Labyrinth of King Minos and the myth of the Minotaur:

Visit the island of Crete in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and you’ll encounter the ancient (even by Kassandra’s standards) Knossos, one of the oldest documented Greek settlements. Excavated by Sir Arthur Evans in the early 20th century, Knossos was home to the Minoans, a civilization of Greeks that came and went more than 1,000 years before the events of Odyssey. Venture underneath the ancient palace as Kassandra or Alexios, and you’ll uncover the fabled Labyrinth of King Minos, where he hid the mythical Minotaur. While this might be where Odyssey begins to divert from history, the Labyrinth and Minotaur, like most myths, is rooted in reality. In fact, the myth is the subject of the current exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, Labyrinth: Knossos, Myth & Reality.

The museum featured an area with Ubisoft’s depiction of the Minoan palace projected on a screen and an interactive display to explore the area. This wasn’t the first time Ubisoft has hammered into the historical elements in their stories and partnered with museums, they also had a partnership with the British Library for an Alexander the Great exhibition.

A Plea to Ubisoft

So there you have it. Ubisoft people, Assassin’s Creed development teams, please! Think about this idea, it’d be so freaking cool!

Also, one more thing. Is Ubisoft Quebec really where most of the AC games are made? C’est pas juste, ça! Je parle français, je voudrais travailler avec eux!!!

The post Bronze Age Collapse: Assassin’s Creed Idea appeared first on Fae’s Journal.

Because I both game and crochet (and knit, and cross-stitch), I am always happy when I find the intersection between geek fandoms and crafty creativity. And the Assassin’s Creed IP has tons of ways to smash the two facets of my interests together. Today, I’ve gathered patterns from various crafts themed for Assassin’s Creed in this post, just for you! OK, OK I know you’re impatient.

Assassin’s Creed Inspires Your Imagination

If you are a fan of the Assassin’s Creed games, like I am, then you’ve almost definitely imagined yourself scaling buildings wearing one of the game’s most recognizable features: The hooded cowls that the player characters wear that cover their head and come down into a point over the face, partially masking the Assassin wearing it.

When I first got into Assassin’s Creed, I imagined Altaïr or Ezio scaling every cool building I saw. Any cool building, I would say to myself, hey self, that building would be cool as hell to climb up, as if I personally have any ability to climb anything more than a ladder. And I get vertigo on ladders!

I’ve played Assassin’s Creed since the very first game, and at the time the mechanics in the game were so limitless. Climbing up buildings by clinging to their facades was just incredibly cool.

I mean, it still is. While game engines have expanded in capabilities so more and more games include climbing functions, the ability to climb almost everything is such a game changer for how one plays a game. Even with the glitches that came with Assassin’s Creed Unity, I had so much fun scaling up the sides of Paris’ limestone buildings.

Ok, ok I know you’re impatient. Here’s the Assassin’s Creed Crochet and Cross-stitch Content you’ve been waiting for!

Crafts Galore: Assassin’s Creed Crochet, Knit, Cross-Stitch and More!

Assassin’s Creed Crochet Patterns

Cowl

The ubiquitous Assassin’s Cowl is probably the most beginner-friendly and popular Assassin’s Creed crochet project. There are several patterns out there for free, along with some you have to pay for.

The Assassins Creed Inspired Scoodie is a free Ravelry download. The pattern designer, Kristen’s Kords mentions a few other patterns she was inspired by, one of which is a discontinued AC scarf with the hood. This crochet pattern is written for an adult sized head, while a few other ones I looked at might be more for a child’s head.

There is another pattern with the same name also available on Ravelry as a free download. I am not sure which would be better as they look similar, but both are free so I am linking them here.

You do need a Ravelry account to be able to download those patterns, but it’s free and if you are a fiber crafter you likely already have an account so no worries there.

If you venture onto Etsy you’ll find several patterns available for download. I don’t know what the deal is with Etsy these days though, is it still a place where people can actually get handmade things from? Etsy’s quality has dipped, and it seems like drop-shippers reign supreme. I am not sure if they are the online destination to shop for handcrafted goods anymore. It all comes down to whether they actively keep non-handcrafted goods off their site, and uphold their their policies fidelity.

Assassin’s Creed Amigurumi

If you’re more proficient in crochet you might want to make an Assassin’s Creed Amigurumi. Amigurumi are the little stuffies that people crochet, and the possibilities are really limitless

Ezio Sackboy

The Ezio Sackboy doll is so, so cute. Stuffies are amazing. Sadly, I am not great at making stuffies with crochet. One of my goals is to get better at this part of crochet. This doll is great. It’s a bit bigger than a lot of the tiny amigurumi that you see online. I have a hard time with the smaller-scale stuffie patterns, maybe I’m just not dextrous enough but I feel like I am fumbling whenever I try to make a tiny stuffie.

You can watch the YouTube tutorial here:

Assassin’s Creed Cross Stitch Pattern

Back in 2018, I went through a cross-stitch phase. Obsessed, I sought out tons of patterns on Etsy and bought lots of pdfs. I was going to become a factory of cross-stitch projects. That’s a bit of self-deprecation in my tone, yes. I quickly realized I have very, very little patience for counted cross-stitch. I love the finished look of a cross-stitch pattern. My mother used to cross-stitch incredibly intricate designs. And my auntie is an amazing cross-stitcher. However, I have ADHD and, well, when I don’t see results I lose interest. It’s a bit embarrassing how many abandoned cross-stitch projects I have nestled away in totes.

One of the cross-stitch patterns I purchased was an Assassin’s Creed cross-stitch pattern. I made it fairly far into the pattern before I got tired of it and left it to collect dust.

I looked on Etsy for this pattern and unfortunately, it is not available on Etsy anymore. However, worry not, there are more out there similar to it. Etsy’s search SUCKS though, I was having trouble making it display anything on topic so I suggest you search Google first.

Other Crochet and Knitting Patterns

There are a few crochet and knitting patterns here on my site, but none for Assassin’s Creed. That’s why I rounded these up just for you!

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