- For the enemies featured in Zombies, see Templar Zombie.
- "Returning to action after faking his death, Edouard "Templar" Couteau is devoted to breaking the hold the Tontine has on his family, to free Sophia from their schemes, even if it costs his own life."
- — In-game biography
Édouard Couteau, also known as the Templar, is a character featured in Call of Duty: Mobile and was added in the game on November 13, 2020, during Season 12 Going Dark as part of Dark Omen Draw. [1] Templar also appears in the Comics, where he was one of the antagonists, later turned deuteragonist and then protagonist.
Biography[]
- "I am called The Templar. It's a bit dramatic, but very threatening, no?"
- — Templar introduces himself to Ghost.
Not much is known about him besides his membership in The Five Knights. In the comics, he is seen putting on his helmet and then throwing a few knives with great accuracy at a picture of Mara, Soap, Price, Ghost and Tank, prominently hitting Tank. Later on, Templar intercepts Soap and Price. He grabs Soap by the throat and tosses him aside, when 2 SEALs attempt to intervene. Soap and Price devise a plan to take him down but it fails and he escapes after having a brief standoff with Price, leaving Soap mortally wounded.
In Season 13 - Wint3r War, Templar appears again on a base in Siberia, where Ghost had just discovered that Makarov is still alive, and agreed to take him in exchange of intel on the Five Knights. A short hustle occurs and Templar throws a knife into Ghost's wrist, wounding him, and then performing a coup de grâce. Templar is disappointed because he expected a warrior of equal strength, but instead he got a "Ghost". He then takes Ghost's mask as a souvenir, saying "That's one less loose end".
In Season 2: Day of Reckoning, Templar appears in his Royal Knight uniform, helping Raul Menendez to escape from Charly and her squad by killing them all, save Charly herself, whom he wounds with his throwing knife.
He later appears again, speaking with an unknown individual, likely his employer who is apparently the 5th Knight. The individual reprimands Templar for not being able to find Makarov. When he asks to find him, his employer tells him that Makarov isn't a priority anymore and that he has another mission for him, which he accepts.
Menendez, who under interrogation by Captain Price & Shepherd, reveals that Templar had been dispatched to Texas--the same hideout that Ghost apparently raided in the events of the first Seasonal Battle Pass comic, to uncover what he had missed out on.
Later on, it's revealed that Templar's assignment was merely a ploy; it's actually an ambush set up for the UAC members who have also embarked here on their mission to locate him. Templar, working alongside his consort Cecilia "Dame" Perrin, kills the spec ops soldiers on their end, and then later engages Price and Mace singlehandedly while Dame deals with Charly and Rosa. During the scuffle, Templar throws a knife into Mace's hand just he did to Ghost and then proceeds to knock him and Price out with little difficulty.
He is later shown to have tied up the UAC operators to pillars so that they can't escape. He examines Rosa who appears to be unconscious, remarking that Dame might've hit her too hard, to which she replies that she thought the "Americans" would've had harder heads, but Price tells them that they aren't American, though Templar views it of little concern. When Dame looks upon Rosa believing that she is not actually unconscious, she is spat at by the latter, which angers Templar, causing him to punch Rosa. However, Rosa simply mocks him for having struck a nerve and Price agrees, stating that the mighty Templar seems to have a weakness, causing him to hold a knife to Price's eye and telling him to watch his mouth. Gabriel Rorke then appears, telling them that the operators haven't yet outlived their usefulness, and that he and Dame can have their "heartwarming reunion" afterwards.
When Rorke is later attacked by Mace who had broken free of his binds, Templar is there to witness the arrival of Adler and his group of soldiers as reinforcements. Adler says he's also brought in an "old friend"--a statement that leaves Templar in shock and denial, as the old friend is revealed to be Ghost, whom he believed he had killed in Siberia.
Ghost tells Templar that they have a score to settle--to which Templar responds by immediately throwing his knife at Ghost, but the latter catches it and swivels it around his wrist before throwing it back, hitting Rorke in his arm. Ghost then orders his fellow Ghosts to secure Rorke and the facility while he deals with Templar.
Rorke, deciding to exfil, orders Dame to escort to the underground bunker where he intends to exfil via helicopter. Templar tells Dame to go with him while he deals with Ghost. As he unsheathes his sword to confront his enemy, he remarks that he's killed Ghost before and that he can do it again.
The pair then engage in a vicious duel, with Ghost mentioning a "Dark Covenant" and that he knows Templar's real name is "Edouard", which annoys him. Mace, who had broken free of his binds, joins in the fight as well, punching Templar just as he throws Ghost aside. Now double-teamed by the 2 skull masked operators, Templar tries his best to fend them off, managing to throw knives into Mace's forearms but Ghost manages to thwart him before he can do the same to him.
Ghost throws Templar to the ground and attempts to use the same "coup de grace" on him, but it fails and Templar kicks him away. Mace can't move his arms due to Templar having struck his nerve clusters, but Ghost recovers swiftly, managing to stab Templar in his leg, but he then retaliates by swiping Ghost across the face with his wrist blades. He then attempts to stab Ghost in the head, but the latter blocks it with his palm and manages to grab his knife-wielding arm, breaking it and putting him in a submission hold. Ghost then prepares to kill Templar, but at the nick of time, Dame appears to save her consort and kicks Ghost away. The wounded Templar is then carried away by Dame as Ghost is unable to recover in time to stop them.
After arriving in Panama, Dame helps Templar get off the ship. He is clearly in bad shape as he nearly stumbles over when he insists that he doesn't need help. He and his consort discuss among each other, stating that Hidora and Rorke only care about themselves and they're not fit to lead; they need a true leader, and Dame believes that he should be their leader instead.
Some time later, Templar is shown putting on his old armor, with Dame remarking she always liked the old Dark armor better. Wearing her Usurper uniform, Dame goes on to say why Templar should become leader of the Five Knights; he was always the best of them even at his worst, the Templar and the Crusader. Although he insists that he's anything but a traitor, Dame tells him not to think of killing Rorke as betrayal, but as service to the soldiers who had to follow his bad decisions. Templar is shocked to discover later on that his consort had summoned the rest of the Dark Covenant, comprising of Dark Shepherd, Artery, Dark Rider, Witch Doctor, and surprisingly, Stansfield.
Templar later on interrupts on conversation between Rorke and Rott, before ultimately putting his plan into action by taking out Rorke's mercs. Rorke attempts to escape in the ensuing battle, but Stansfield blows up his ship, preventing him from leaving. Rorke attempts to fend off Templar, but he wounds him by throwing his knife into his torso. Later on, he bears witness as Dame executes Rorke by slitting his throat.
Betraying the Dark Covenant[]
Some time later, Templar is shown to be at Blackout with the rest of the Covenant. Through his conversation with Dame, it's revealed that he served in the Covenant for the sake of daughter, Sophia. Edouard apparently wants to leave the Covenant, taking his daughter with him. But Dame shoots down the idea, telling him that Sophia has been well taken care of by the Covenant and that she belongs to them. Despite this, Templar insists on taking her away, to which Dame chuckles and wishes him good luck in finding her. He then demands an explanation for her statement, to which Dame derides him for thinking the Covenant would've simply handed over Sophia to him, as she is bound by blood to the Covenant and will grow to be an operator like them. Templar doesn't believe this, but Dame goes on to state that Stansfield and the 5th Knight filled his head with lies and false promises.
The last straw for him is broken when Dame says that Sophia will always be an asset to the Dark Covenant and that they will never let her go, as this prompts to Templar to chuckle before he slices Dame's throat open with his wristblades, causing her to bleed out. He remarks that she has "cut his strings" and that he's no one's puppet anymore, before goading the rest of the Covenant into fighting him.
A battle then ensues between Templar and the Covenant members. He manages to wound Dark Rider with his knives and fends off Dark Shepherd and Witch Doctor. Dark Shepherd tells Templar that there's no way out for him as the Covenant is for life, to which he responds that that would mean he has to kill all of them. He then proceeds to render Witch Doctor's Purifier unusable and slices Dark Shepherd's scythe in half as he tells him he won't be walking out of there.
Artery joins the battle, with her expressing her anger at Edouard for betraying them when they are at the cusp of having everything. He replies that he is making a choice, to which Artery retorts that she will make sure Sophia won’t even remember his name, but Edouard insists he will get her back anyway. Dark Shepherd questions him how he intends to do so, as he has no allies, no intel & no resources. Edouard tells them he will resort to whatever means necessary to get her back.
After a grueling battle with the rest of the Covenant members, where Templar is revealed to have sustained significant damage (i.e. his torn cape, scratch marks all over his torso & a cracked helmet exposing his right eye), he has evidently defeated them as Witch Doctor is seen carrying away Dark Shepherd & dragging Artery along with him. Witch Doctor vows that it’s not over before leaving with his vanquished comrades.
Edouard then later meets with Ghost. However, he does not attack him, instead telling him that they would’ve made great allies in another life, but not in this one.
He then hands Ghost a key card, telling him “he’s behind the bookshelf”, revealing that the 5th Knight is in the premises. When Ghost asks why he’s doing this, he replies that it’s not his war anymore, before walking away. Ghost then asks what he’s going to do, to which Edouard replies that he’s going to burn the Dark Covenant to the ground.
Edouard is seen later in an abandoned castle welding and forging his damaged helmet. As he puts on the repaired helmet, he notes that Ghost has found him and states that his footsteps aren't as light as he thinks, to which Ghost replies that it wasn't hard to find him, noting he left quite a trail of bodies. Edouard states that, since the Dark Covenant have gone to ground, he went on a hunt for information in the criminal underground. He also mentions that he cannot be blamed if said criminals were not willing to talk without any sort of persuasion. He then brings up a past subject, the fact that Ghost and himself still have a score to settle. Ghost agrees, and Templar whips around to throw a knife at Ghost.
After a short fight, Templar tells Ghost that he joined the French army at 17, ambitious, aggressive, and young, which drove his teammates to see him as a sadistic and insane soldier. During his time, he worked extensively with Dame, who was his commanding officer at the time and fought several times under her command, but she was soon discharged. After Dame was recruited into the Dark Covenant, Templar joined alongside her in hopes of a peaceful life for his daughter, one that he never had. He then definitely promises to find her, but Ghost intervenes, grasping his hand, saying that they will both find her, and Templar finally says that they would hunt down the Dark Covenant.
Hunting the Dark Covenant[]
Ghost and Templar begin to ambush the Dark Covenant members, their first target being Witch Doctor. As Witch Doctor notices that Ghost and Templar have found him, Templar crashes through the window, having not used his parachute like Ghost did, drop-kicking a nearby guard in the process, and greets Witch Doctor. As Templar approaches the Doctor, Ghost calls him a "Fucking maniac". Templar manages to overpower Witch Doctor, and, with one of his knives in his hand, asks if the Doctor likes surgery. Witch Doctor's fate is left ambiguous.
The next member they ambush is Kryptis, who dodges an incoming Ghost who misses with his pistol, and drives towards Templar. Kryptis calls Templar a traitor as he attempts to gun him down with a KAP-40, and Templar retaliates with a wave of knives. He manages to spin out Kryptis' motorcycle and apprehends him. Kryptis insists he won't betray his comrades, but Templar assures him that he will.
His next target is Dark Shepherd, who's on a hovercraft out in the sea. Despite his guard telling him that no one is following them, Dark Shepherd doubts it & when he discovers the duo making their way up, he throws the guard off in anger.
Ghost attempts to apprehend Dark Shepherd but the latter holds him at gunpoint. When he then asks where Templar is, he responds by putting his knife to Dark Shepherd's throat. Not wanting to die, Dark Shepherd states that he'll talk, to which Templar answers in the affirmative.
The last target they track down is Artery, who's apparently interrogating a man in a hotel room. Ghost busts into the room interrupting her, stating he & Edouard like to have a word with her. Artery however attempts to escape by jumping out the window, but is caught by Edouard by the foot & left dangling off the window ledge. She attempts to convince Edouard to rejoin them, telling him that Ghost is just using him & will backstab once he's done. But Edouard is not convinced & instead tells her that he's going to take his chances; he gives her a choice to either talk or take her chances as well, to which Artery then begrudgingly relents, telling him Stansfield's location in Alaska, giving an address ending with 584S. Edouard then thanks her before he lets go of her foot, dropping her to her supposed demise. Ghost then asks if it was really necessary to drop her, to which Edouard replies that she'll live, but even if she didn't he'd have done a favor for the world.
Later on, the duo are preparing for their mission to Alaska, on board a plane. Edouard reminds Ghost that it's a one way mission & that they may not make it. But if they do, they'll require an exit plan; Edouard has already contacted an old friend to help with that. Ghost sarcastically replies that Edouard has friends, but he then tells him that the old friend is Nikto, if they succeed in their mission, he will be their extraction. Ghost then informs Edouard that he has brought backup as well; the backup comprising of Soap, Alex and Sliver.
The pilot then asks if they're ready for take off, to which Edouard replies that they have one more person coming; the one more being Vagr Modir, accompanied by her pet wolf. Edouard tells her she's right on time, to which she replies that she wouldn't miss the fun as he killed her employer Rorke. Soap & Alex feel uneasy about having Modir with them, which she takes notice of and asks them if they have any hard feelings, to which Soap replies that they won't have any so long as her wolf does not attack them again.
The plane is later seen midair. Sliver is seen sitting down with an arrow in her hand, Vagr Modir is sleeping with her wolf, and Alex and Soap are playing card games. Édouard calls Simon's name and gives him back the mask he took from him in Siberia. Upon receiving the mask, Simon claims that he totally forgot about the mask and that one act of kindness isn't enough to erase all of Édouard's sins. Édouard agrees, and tells Simon to promise him that if anything happens to Édouard, Simon will take care of his daughter, Sophia, with Simon responding "Okay."
As the plane touches down in Alaska, Ghost and Templar make a final agreement on their deal, retreiving both Sophia and a DSM. As the bay doors open and Ghost and Templar get out, Firebreak, along with Dark Covenant soldiers, arrive to ambush the group. Firebreak consequently uses his Purifier to torch the area surrounding the plane, seperating the group. As Ghost and Templar flee the scene to continue their mission, the remaining passengers begin to hold off the Dark Covenant. After a bit of fighting, Alex gets his leg severed from Firebreak's D13 Sector, and Vagr drags him to safety.
Hunting Stansfield[]
Ghost and Templar infiltrate the Alaskan facility, and they split up, with Ghost making his way to Stansfield, and Templar seeking a data terminal for the DSM and his daughter. Ghost finds Stansfield, and they exchange words, Stansfield comparing Ghost as his "new" self, claiming Ghost enjoys the thrill of battle. Templar, after transferring some data into his DSM, finds his daughter tied up in a room. As he retrieves her, he calms her by saying that they will be able to get back to a normal life, and as he begins to slaughter the Dark Covenant guards, he asks Sophia to close her eyes. As Templar makes his way through the facility, he regrets having pulled Sophia into such a dangerous life, and he notes "I am death, and that is all I will ever be," but he believes that Sophia could succeed in having a normal life of her own.
As Templar prepares to exfil with Nikto in his chopper, he spots Vagr Modir pinned to the ground by a Dark Covenant soldier, and as he rushes to help, Nikto asks what he's doing. Templar remarks that "For once, the right thing." as he pulls the soldier off of Vagr, he pulls her up as Ghost and reinforcements arrive, with Templar confirming that Stansfield was killed. As Templar and Vagr approach, Ghost asks if they obtained the DSM, and Templar affirms that he did. Consequently, Ghost pulls a pistol on Vagr, instantly killing her, and as Templar panics, he himself is shot in the helmet by Ghost, commenting that it is the end. As Sophia gets out of the chopper as she sees Templar shot, Nikto is ambushed by the rest of the reinforments, his chopper torn apart by machine gun fire. Sophia escapes the gunfire, making her way over to Templar, and she encourages him to get up, reminding him that he promised her a life in Paris, the two begin to make their way across the ice. Eventually Templar slips and falls. As Sophia attempts to gets Templar back up, he tells Sophia to be better than him, and that he will love her always, passing away in her arms.
The Atlas Ascension[]
However, a long time later, Templar seemingly returns alive, in the Sulyodansk Industrial City where his daughter Sophia is confronting Stitch, Templar's Shadow and Wraith--his revelation shocks Sophia. Templar's Shadow engages in a fierce fight with him. His double has the upper hand initially, until Templar deploys a hidden foot blade, and stabs Templar's Shadow with it before knocking him to the ground with a nearby easel. Stitch tells him that the fight is over and that it's time to accept his fate. However, Dame crashes a cargo truck into the compound they're in, knocking everyone down. Edouard recovers and reunites with Sophia in an embrace.
During the embrace however, Edouard draws a gun to Dame, who responds in kind. Sophia scolds them for trying to kill each other in front of their daughter. But they shift their aim to Stitch's men, whom they take out. Edouard and Dame continue to argue, him telling Sophia that Dame handed her off to the enemy, while Dame retorts that she was safe with them while Edouard couldn't even save himself from getting shot in the face. Sophia tells both of them to shut up and they need to get out of there. Stitch, recovering, advises them to surrender, as there are over ten thousand men in the city who are all loyal to him and there's no escape. Instead, Edouard's group give him a sly look.
Stitch is tied to a truck and Edouard drives it out onto the road, with Stitch's men in hot pursuit. One of the men attempts to jump at Edouard in the driver seat, but Sophia repels them, and they manage to drive the truck out of the city. Afterwards, Edouard is seen talking with Sophia around a campfire in the forest. He questions why she worked for Makarov, and Sophia tells him she had no choice as Nikto ditched her the moment they got back to Europe, a fact that irks Edouard. In addition, she informs him that she'd still be living in the streets if Makarov hadn't found her and took her in. Edouard mockingly asks if Makarov promised to find Ghost for her, hold him down for her so she could kill him.
Sophia shouts that she was trying to avenge Edouard, and he responds that this was not the life he wanted for her, and she retorts that it was the life he left her while he pretended to be dead. Dame chides them for being loud, and to quieten down or they will bring Stitch's men down on top of them. Edouard knows that Sophia had been searching for answers, and decides it is time for her to know them.
He tells her about the Tontine: a fellowship of Five Knight Templars, holy warriors on a righteous crusade; but in truth, they were little more than thugs who sought their fortune in the holy land, using the wealth to buy their way into the halls of power--power which they used to crush the very order they belonged to, erasing their own names from history. Just like that, they were gone, became invisible, they had wormed their way into every court, every church, extending their influence across the breadth of Christendom.
Sophia asks if their family was part of the Tontine, and Edouard confirms: Gideon Couteaux was the mightiest of the Five Knight Templars, their leader and thought by all to be the most devout. But out of fear and jealousy, his fellow knights turned on him, so to save his life and his line, Gideon fled the Tontine--and the Tontine has been hunting his descendants ever since, which are Sophia and Edouard.
Sophia asks about the "prize" that the Tontine is sitting on, and Dame tells her that it's the world, they are competing to see who gets to rule it all. But before they can continue, a grenade drops near them, forcing them to get clear. Flamewing has arrived to ambush them, and announces her intentions: the Tontine has ordered her to bring Edouard in alive, but decides to fight to the death to keep things simple.
A fight ensues, with Edouard disabling Flamewing's Purifier with his knives and engaging in melee combat with her, alongside Sophia. Although Flamewing puts up a valiant effort against the duo, Edouard manages to defeat Flamewing with Sophia's help. Afterwards, Sophia wonders how Flamewing managed to find them, and Edouard deduces that it's a tracker chip implanted under the skin, being the work of Stitch. Knowing she won't be the last assassin the Tontine sends for them, Edouard decides to take Sophia to a place in the French Alps to prepare; a place where their family has hidden for centuries; when Gideon Couteaux fled the Tontine, he took with him their greatest treasure and hid it where they will never find it, and they will do everything in their power to get it back.
Facing the Tontine[]
Edouard brings Sophia and Dame to Turkey. Sophia asks if that is where their treasure is hidden, but Edouard tells her that they're not there to acquire that yet, but to seek help of 'other Couteaus'. Dame comments that Edouard's insane as "she" will probably try to kill him. Sophia asks who "she" is, and he tells her "she" is here; Sophia expresses excitement of meeting 'other Couteaus', and Edouard says that "she" is not like the other Couteaus.
He explains to Sophia that most families are content to stay hidden from the Tontine's notice, biding their time for the right moment to strike, whereas "she" had devoted her life to making the Tontine suffer--apparently having cut herself off from her family to wage war against the Tontine alone. The individual is revealed to be Death Angel Alice.
Some time later, Templar is still staking out with his family in the cave, while Alice is taking care of more Tontine troops as well as Stitch's recovery team. Just before meeting with Alice, he asks if Sophia has his mask, which she confirms, and puts it on. He notes that Alice is a traditionalist and would not accept him if he were unmasked, only for Alice to appear and retort that they are all masked, as none of them are who they present themselves to be. She then demands to know why Templar is there and why he had led the Tontine straight to her doorstep.
Templar tells Alice that he can't let her kill Stitch, as he needs to bring him to the Chapel of Blades. Alice is not satisfied with this answer, as she knows Templar had turned his back on them all these years and now suddenly wishes to lay claim to the family treasure; she retorts that the chapel won't accept him even they bring them Stitch. However, Templar is confident that they will accept, as Stitch is upper echelon of the Tontine, and would be an irresistible prize for them, as the Tontine is enacting their final plans. He declares that their time of hiding is over and they need to take the fight to them.
Alice agrees, and cuts out Stitch's forearm to reveal a tracking device under his skin and showing it to the Couteaus. She tells Templar that it would take more than a Tontine prisoner and her word to convince them, and that he isn't the first to try to unite their family--and fail. Templar notes that he had a lot of time in his exile to think about why Ghost betrayed him; he was content with fading into obscurity, to let the world believe he was dead and make the Tontine forget him. But he knew the Tontine never forgets, as he recalls the time when Tontine troops raided the cabin where he and his caretaker resided and killed the caretaker, and Ghost's own betrayal.
He tells Alice that he knows the identity of a Tontine lord, not only his name, but also his face, and that this will be what he offers to their family. Alice finally agrees, and decides to take him to the monastery where the Gideon armor is kept, and prays that if they're lucky, the armor won't kill him.
Soon, he and Sophia travel to Nice to make their way to the Monastery. While en route, Sophia asks if it's a good idea to leave Stitch with Dame and Alice, and Templar reassures her that they might play with him, but will keep him alive to be brought to the Monastery. Sophia then asks if he knows where they're going, and he responds that he knows, but they're not headed for Mr. Baptiste and his used Peugeot yet--however, he spots someone and tells Sophia to head the other way. Two Interpol agents are revealed to have been tracking the pair, but Templar and Sophia manage to subdue them. Just as Templar is inspecting their badges, sirens wail in the distance.
They spot a police car headed their way, but is barred by a truck. Deciding their current route is too risky, Templar tells Sophia to head back to the safehouse and they will head to the Monastery by another way. Unbeknownst to the pair, they are being spied by Nyx, who is revealed to have agents on the ground holding up the local police, and is planning to let the Couteaus be free to leave the city and lead them to the Monastery.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Templar takes heavy inspiration from the Predator species from the franchise baring its namesake.
- The design of his mask takes inspiration from the original visor design worn by the Predator in the 1987 film.
- Both collect trophies from victorious hunts.
- After he stabs Ghost and takes his mask, he says "That's one less loose end". This is a reference to an iconic quote from General Shepherd at the end of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 mission, Loose Ends.
- Templar's Royal Knight uniform has the Five Knights' logo printed on his cape.
- Despite his apparent membership in The Five Knights, he appears to be a gun for hire, as evidenced by his interactions with Dame as well as Gabriel Rorke, who heads the mercs.
- Although the AS VAL Double Edge blueprint is noted to be one of Templar's weapons, even mentioning him in the blueprint description, he is never seen in the comics using it.
- Templar's last name, “Couteau”, translates to "knife" in French.
- This is a reference to Templar's skills at throwing knifes and melee fights.
- Templar is betrayed by Ghost in a very similar manner to how Shepherd originally betrayed Ghost and Roach in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Both were carrying wounded teammates, asked if they had a DSM, and both them and their teammates were killed.
References[]
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