To my intense ambivalence, I was utterly dismayed and delighted to see this post over at The Duchess of Devonshire's Gossip Guide to the 18th Century. I'll be damned if Assassin's Creed isn't coming out with not only a scenario set in Old New Orleans but one featuring a ball-smashing, octoroon, lady assassin. Well, shit. (As an aside, that paragraph probably contains more blue language than the whole sum of every other post here at Triple P. I'll just go ahead and apologize right now: sorry).
Anyway, here's the gist of Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation:
The year is 1765. As the events leading up to the American Revolution heat up in the north, Spanish forces plan to take control of Louisiana in the south - but they have yet to reckon with Aveline, a deadly Assassin who will use every weapon and ability in her arsenal to win freedom for her land and her people.
Sweet beignets! That kicks all kinds of ass on paper! But watching the reveal trailer will really get you pumped. Also, if you're like me, you might be curious about the weapons wielded by Aveline de Granpre. Thankfully, AC has given us a trailer for that too. My personal favorite may surprise the Brethren. Pistols are nice and all, but you never need to reload a machete and the blood splatter stays further away from you than it does with hidden blades.
Anyway, suffice it to say that I would happily welcome Mademoiselle de Granpre aboard my ship as a mate at any time. She'd need to learn the ropes, of course, but she'd be a decided asset in close quarters right off the belaying pin.
Header: Assassin Aveline de Granpre via the Ubisoft website. AC3 will be available in October
Well isn't that something! At least with UbiSoft, Aveline seems to have a real French accent (French Gmaing company with it's largest development studio - 1200 staff - in Montréal, Québec - Canada)
ReplyDeleteI must concur on the choice o' weapon - a Sugar Cane Machete was likely the choice o' many a Caribbean Pyrate - it's basically a wide bladed cutlass, with a somewhat straighter blade (and no hand guard). If it can slice through cane, it'll make short work o' human foes. The Blowgun is a nice touch too - silent, swift and very accurate - used by Indigenous peoples in both N. and S. America!
I must ask though, where did Octoroon come from? She is descibed as "of French and African descent" - which would make her a first generation Creole (Mulatto).
Or were ye simply projecting yerself into the character in yer excitement? ;]
At least this looks better than the "Pirates" game I got for the PC where the ONLY female characters are buxom "wenches" (not that there's anything wrong with buxom wenches, it's just that, well... there should be SOME other female characters that are not SO one dimensional).
ReplyDeleteEven the crappy PotC movies (as ridiculous as they were) had a few female characters who were not just eye candy.
And knowing your fondness for machetes, it does not surprise me at all that you like the "Sugar Cane Machete" that Mademoiselle de Granpre weilds.
Similar to a short sword or a cutlass, it's definitely a great weapon for a female warrior (or assasin as the case may be)...
Ahoy, Captain! I wasn't aware that Ubisoft was a French/Canadian company. Good on them, I say.
ReplyDeleteI actually have used a sugar cane machete before. Not on people, of course, but for clearing brush down Rigolets way and blackberry brambles in Washington State. I've never felt anything quite as comfortable and efficient in the way of long knives. Unfortunately, my brother's ex pawned the one my father had years ago. Another reason to dislike her.
And yeah; a fair call on your part, mate. Maybe I was internalizing Aveline a little. You'll excuse my giddiness :)
Timmy! I agree; the PotC movies actually did a pretty good job with their female characters. Except for poor Elizabeth Swann who went from inept dip to weapons expert in the course of like, three movie months O-o
ReplyDeleteThe biggest problem with this AC3 is, for the first time in my life, I'm actually considering buying a game platform. Damn you, Ubisoft!
Heh - not a game player, but I've always loved the AC trailers and artwork - very atmospheric and period. On an aside, I've heard of Picaroon and Maroon but never Ocaroon - I can guess what it is from the context, but would love to know what it is, lol! Oh, and can we also guess there might be a 'tools of the trade' article to discuss the 'umble cutlass, an icon of the age of sail?
ReplyDeleteAvast - Pauline with a Machete...now why doesn't THAT surprise me in the least? ;]
ReplyDeleteRick, mate - welcome...because folk like things in neat little packages and especially where one's (mixed) genealogy is concerned AND most especially in the "dirty south"...
Mulatto meant ye had one parent who was "of colour" - if the European half happened to be French that made ye Creole (though I believe it also applied to being half Spanish - at least in Louisiana). Of course this often meant yer one parent had been a slave at one time or another. Famous example: Bob Marley (Mother Jamaican, Father British).
A Quadroon meant ye traced yer line to a Grandparent, Octoroon, removed once again (as in "one eighth") to a Great-Grandparent.
In New Orleans there is a long history involving folk o' mixed background - most often French mixed with African or Haitian (though other Caribbean Peoples certainly were involved). There are many who also mixed with the (Indigenous) Peoples o' the Choctaw Nations - many Creole and Cajuns have ancestry with the Houma, Chitimacha... one o' our mates in NOLA is a Creole with Choctaw roots, another mate down the Bayou is a Houma-Cajun mix.
As ye may know, it's us "mixed breeds" that are the strongest and survive the longest!
Rick: Yes! I need to do an updated cutlass post. The most in depth exploration I have ever seen regarding piratical weapons is in Benerson Little's "The Sea Rovers' Practice". I pull that one out all the time while doing research for various purposes.
ReplyDeleteCaptain: You beat me to the punch. Excellent description of our rich ancestry along the Gulf coast. And the Army/Navy store is having a big sale this weekend; now I want a new or gently used machete of my very own. That and a good stock of canned goods will see me and mine through the next natural disaster :)
Well if the A/N sale doesn't pan out, have a look at this http://www.machetespecialists.com/canemachetes.html (and that's just their selection o' Cane Style Machetes!)
ReplyDeleteSo A/N failed me (except for the Carharts). Time to direct the First Mate to Machete Specialists. I feel a yuletide gift coming on.
ReplyDeleteGreat site; thankee, Captain!