So what's the difference between an assassin and a murderer?

[Lightningfalcon]

I just learnt today that an assassin is always paid, i always thought an assassin was just a stealthy killer, paid or not (as im writing this im starting to feel more retarded but i want to know)

As i was playing skyrim in front of my step dad i said i assassinate not really for money but for justice and i only assassinate bad guys. I roleplay a bit and my character is good and is an ex thieves guild member but uses the armor to steal from the thieves guild itself.
And my step dad called me just a common murderer. This was said while i was killing the dark brotherhood cos their evil devil worshipping killers only in it for money. I usually play like my favourite superhero, rorschach from watchmen.

So what's the difference between an assassin, a mercenary and a murderer?

 

[Lady Redpool the Unlifer]

Assassin = profesional killer, usualy with a cause even if that cause is money.
Mercenary = Services are available for purchase. May be guard duty, fighting a war, mission specific activities, or killing but not necessarily all or any of them. Basically violence for hire.
Murderer = someone who kills another, usually does something stupid and gets caught.

 

[sticky runes]

Assassination doesn't always have to be for money, it doesn't always have to be carried out by somebody who has been professionally trained in lethal combat skills. Just about anybody could be an assassin, and it could be for any purpose, like religion or even personal reasons like revenge.

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

Assassination lies more in the status of the victim than the killer. High profile targets such as religious or political leaders are assassinated. Homeless drunkards, village folk, fishermen, jugglers, candle-stick-makers and the rest of us are murdered.

 

[Seanu Reaves]

Don't forget in fiction there are two kinds of "professional killer. " hitmen are brutish and gritty. Assassibs high class.now a murderer for me is less professional and only kills due to emotional reasons. I am on my phone so can't explain much better right now.

 

[Lightningfalcon]

Assassin = profesional killer, usualy with a cause even if that cause is money.
Mercenary = Services are available for purchase. May be guard duty, fighting a war, mission specific activities, or killing but not necessarily all or any of them. Basically violence for hire.
Murderer = someone who kills another, usually does something stupid and gets caught.

Wait, so what am i?

I kill bad people such as bandits and other evil people and will accept money for it if it's work. I don't do anything stupid because i'm never seen attacking them.

 

[Nighthiker77]

I would call that a vigilante taking donations

 

[Seanu Reaves]

Well your Step Dad isn't thinking within the parameters of the world. So basically he isn't a gamer and doesn't realize how comparatively brutal the worlds are. So tell him then are members of the armed forces considered murderers in his eyes?
Depending on his answer it points to hypocrisy or just interesting debate.

 

[RY14NCE]

Assassins are murderers.

But murderers aren't necessarily assassins.

Assassins commit murder, therefore they are murderers, but because they are normally hired, its just a sort of job title

Just like being a spy and being a nosy bastard, they both do the same thing, but the spy gets paid.

 

[Mr Forz]

Assassins tend to brag alot and think highly of themselves too, at least within the general gaming community.

Murder is the very definition of killing in general/with known reason, mostly within civilians. Then you've got all the variants with different reasons.

 

[Tawneey]

I believe that assassination is killing one high profile target, in order to effect hundreds, thousands etc. more. I'd say assassination would be used from a mostly political standpoint.

Murder is, well, murdering someone, anyone. You could say it all depends on motive and other things.

A mercenary will do pretty much any gruesome or violent task for one sole reason, money.

It's your choice what you would like to be, but perhaps so far your step-dad is correct.

 

[Jader]

Assassins are nothing but tools to be used by their clients,like if you shoot someone does it make the gun evil or the person wielding it?

 

[Spleed]

The Assassin is the one who gets contracts to kill someone and get money.
The Murderer is the one who kills people for fun sometimes he may have mental problems.

 

[Joker]

In this game, Assassins have a brotherhood and special armor. Murderers get arrested and put in prison, have to pay a fine, or try to escape......That is the difference in terms of this game....

 

[TheRedGoblin]

Wait, so what am i?

I kill bad people such as bandits and other evil people and will accept money for it if it's work. I don't do anything stupid because i'm never seen attacking them.

I would call you a typical "Adventurer"

New guy shows up in town. The townsfolk are like hey go kill these bandits, goblins, vampires, etc. We will pay you gold and give you these glowing swords and stuff.

 

[Joker]

Wait, so what am i?

I kill bad people such as bandits and other evil people and will accept money for it if it's work. I don't do anything stupid because i'm never seen attacking them.

Smart, you are smart......

 

[Black Orchid]

The Assassin is the one who gets contracts to kill someone and get money.
The Murderer is the one who kills people for fun sometimes he may have mental problems.

You know, I was thinking about this when I came up with the 'Ghost Warrior' backstory for my character Rashka the Slayer, and came to the conclusion that she's a little of both. She's trained in the art of assassination, but doesn't care about any sort of payment. She does it because she's essentially a zealot for the Nord-Stormcloak cause.

 

[Dagmar]

A murderer is simply someone who unlawfully kills someone. All assassins are by definition murderers but not all murderers are assassins. Assassins target their victims either because they're paid to do so (contract killings) or because they're fanatics doing so for political/religious reasons where the victims have some degree of prominence (e.g. the original Muslim Assassins during the Crusades, the Bosnian Serbian assassins who assassinated Archduke Ferdinand which led to World War I, and Lee Harvey Oswald's assassination of President John F. Kennedy). The Dark Brotherhood are an example of the former while the Morag Tong are an example of the latter.

 

[Lightningfalcon]

A murderer is simply someone who unlawfully kills someone. All assassins are by definition murderers but not all murderers are assassins. Assassins target their victims either because they're paid to do so (contract killings) or because they're fanatics doing so for political/religious reasons where the victims have some degree of prominence (e.g. the original Muslim Assassins during the Crusades, the Bosnian Serbian assassins who assassinated Archduke Ferdinand which led to World War I, and Lee Harvey Oswald's assassination of President John F. Kennedy). The Dark Brotherhood are an example of the former while the Morag Tong are an example of the latter.

I didn't get the last line :/ , morag tongs in the last dlc right? Havent got it yet.

 

[Jader]

Always thought both groups were fanatical. db for night mother and mt for w/e daedric they worship(mephala or azura I forget)