Al Mualim

"Impossible! The student does not defeat the teacher!"

- Al Mualim to Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad when defeated in 1191.

Al Mualim , sometimes known as The Old Man of the Mountain or by his historical name Rashid ad-Din Sinan, is the hidden true main antagonist of the 2007 video game Assassin's Creed. However, Altaïr only finds out about him being a Templar at the very end of the game. He was the Mentor of the Assassins until he was defeated by Altaïr, who became Mentor in his place.

Description
In 1191 AD, Al Mualim sent his best Assassin, Altaïr to retrieve a treasure beneath Solomon's Temple. Altaïr fails at first, making Al Mualim very angry. However, his anger turns to fury when his fellow Assassins come back with the treasure, but heavily wounded. Robert de Sable then attacks Masyaf, and while Al Mualim is speaking to him, Altaïr is told to set off a trap with two other Assassins, though one is injured and the second tries to heal the first's wounds, leaving Altair to set the trap alone. When the Templars start fleeing, Al Mualim demotes Altaïr from Master Assassin to Novice, confiscating all of his weapons. Altaïr gets a chance to redeem himself, by assassinating nine very important Templars: Tamir, Garnier de Naplouse, Talal, Abu'l Nuqoud, William of Montferrat, Majd Addin, Jubair Al Hakim, Sibrand and Robert de Sable.

Altaïr assassinates everyone, but Robert de Sable reveals that Al Mualim was a Templar all along, but he didn't want to share the power of the treasure that they took from Solomon's Temple and was using Altaïr simply to do his dirty work. This treasure was the Second Apple of Eden, which can be used to enslave mankind. Altaïr returns to Masyaf, finding all the Assassins in the city under a hypnotic trance apart from Malik and a small group of other Assassins, controlled by Al Mualim. When Altaïr made his way to the castle, he found out that Al Mualim was using the apple to control the other Assassins. He then confronts Al Mualim. After fighting several illusions that consist of the nine men Altaïr killed before, and copies of Al Mualim, Altaïr finally manages to kill Al Mualim and takes the apple for himself.

Character
Al Mualim is known for being a very wise and soft-spoken leader, but he can be very mysterious and unpredictable. He never talks about personal things about himself, and always changes the subject when someone asks too many questions. He teaches his students to find the inner peace, for there cannot be peace in the world when there is no peace in your mind. He always rewards success richly, but he won't accept failure and doesn't abide traitors.

Abilities and Equipment

 * Swordsmanship: During his battle with Altair, he showed great swordsmanship skills, despite his much elderly age.
 * Leadership: He was the Mentor of the Assassins in Syria and was a very wise and extremely capable leader.
 * Resources: As the head of the Assassins, he had access to all of the organization's resources.
 * Apple of Eden: Al Mualim greatly desired the treasure of Solomon's temple, which was an Apple of Eden. With the Apple, he has access to certain supernatural powers.
 * Mind Control: He was able to mesmerize the entire city of Masyaf into his loyal minions. However, beings of Isu heritage, such as Altair are immune to its mind control effects.
 * Telekinesis: He as able to physically control Altair and even restrain him.
 * Illusion Generation: He is able to generate illusions to not only make himself disappear, but to also create several copies of himself in order to trick his opponent and mask his true presence.