Arno Dorian

Lore & Background

Scriptwriter Travis Stout explains that Arno Dorian is a lead character who constantly questions the Brotherhood of Assassins' legitimacy and belief system. He created Arno as a 'very well educated young man, raised in a noble household, with access to tutors and books, and thus is very well-read', and that he has a tendency to use humor to deflect whenever he is emotionally vulnerable, and habitually quotes classical texts whenever the opportunity arises. Stout addressed the particular spelling of the character's first name, explaining that besides the fact that the phonetic spelling makes it easier to pronounce, it is in fact an older French/Germanic variation which is less common than the more conventionally French Arnaud. Stout grounds this naming in the Dorian family history, explaining that Arno's family 'is a very old one and they've been Assassins for a very long time so we wanted to give him a slightly more antiquated name'. Unity creative director Alex Amancio explains that Arno joins the Assassins with the ulterior motive to resolve the mystery behind the death of Élise's father. Arno eventually develops a belief in the Assassins' cause and what they stand for, but he is still constantly questioning their methods and refuses to follow their values blindly, especially since the man who raised him and the father of his love interest is a Templar.

In Their Own Story

Arno's story in Unity is set in motion when Élise's father is killed. Amancio explained that both characters have the same goal though their starting point are based on different reasons: while Élise is purely driven by revenge for the murder of her father, Arno strives for redemption and attempts to find out why it occurred in the first place. Amancio said the development team wanted to highlight the bond between Élise and Arno, and that a serious and mature love story is something Ubisoft had been wanting to portray in a video game for a long time. Amancio noted that both are bound by the laws of their respective organizations, who are mortal enemies of each other, and the narrative explores their divergent ways of approaching a situation, and that 'the closer Arno gets to Élise and her methods, the more he will stray from the Assassins and their methods. Ultimately, their goal is to obtain something and it's really what each of them willing to do to reach that goal.' Amancio describes the dilemma Arno faces when it comes to choosing between love and duty as an 'impossible choice'. Amancio explained that Arno does not get very involved politically in the French Revolution, with the ideals and extremism of the historical period merely provide a compelling backdrop for his personal struggles. Arno's goals with the Assassins align in that they are trying to prevent needless or senseless death; as explained by Amancio, the French Assassins are 'trying to prevent the power from exploding, but they're trying to get the least involved as possible, because they also believe people have to go through their mistakes again.'

Reader's Guide

Arno's fighting style involves the smooth executions of his targets. He is capable of swiftly running up to an enemy, kick their legs out from underneath them, and puncturing their chest with the Assassins' signature Hidden Blade. Arno also has new weapons at his disposal like the Phantom Blade, a crossbow-like attachment which adds a projectile mechanism for his Hidden Blade, and is ideal for stealthy or long-range kills. The Dead Kings downloadable content pack also introduces the Guillotine Gun, an axe that also functions like a grenade launcher or blunderbuss with a long-range attack that strikes multiple enemies at once. Dan Jeannotte provides the motion-capture and voice performance for Arno Dorian in Unity. Jeannotte described Arno as relatable and admirable, who uses humor as a defense or coping mechanism in the form of snappy remarks or sarcastic one-liners. Jeannotte noted that Arno is a skeptic who always questions everything about the Brotherhood of Assassins, including their cause and how they operate. Like other characters in Unity, Jeannotte used a British accent for Arno, with comparatively few dialogue or words being delivered in French. Jeannotte explained that while the developmental team had considered French accents during discussions, the final decision was made 'using the cinematic conceit of having historical British accents like you would in something like the movie Gladiator'.

Did You Know?

• Arno's first name is an older French/Germanic variation, less common than the more conventionally French Arnaud, chosen to reflect his family's ancient Assassin lineage.
• Dan Jeannotte estimated the script for the main storyline of Unity to be between 350 and 400 pages, excluding dialogue for optional side missions.
• For romantic scenes involving kissing, Jeannotte would rehearse once with his scene partner without their motion-capture helmets on, then re-enact the scene with helmets on but with a foot of distance between them.
• Arno's Phantom Blade is a crossbow-like attachment that adds a projectile mechanism to his Hidden Blade, ideal for stealthy or long-range kills.
• The Guillotine Gun, introduced in the Dead Kings DLC, is an axe that also functions like a grenade launcher or blunderbuss with a long-range attack that strikes multiple enemies at once.