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Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Official Name: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Ruling Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Bukharinistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Marxism-Leninismnote Orthodox Communism
- The Coup: If Ryutin fails to maintain control over Rumania, then his control over the party will start weakening, making Yagoda and Tukhachevsky force Ryutin to step down.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Josef Stalin died all the way back in the Russian Civil War in Tsaritsyn, which was subsequently renamed after him.
Martemyan Ryutin
Role: Premiernote Head of State
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Bukharinistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Marxism-Leninismnote Orthodox Communism
In-Game Biography Click to Show Martemyan Ryutin has had a long and dynamic career, serving as one of Bukharin’s most faithful and forceful servants. For as long as he has been a party member, he has stood stalwart against the excesses of ultra-leftists and the deception of the social democrats. He is a true pragmatic communist, who has never felt the need to dive headlong into the fires of oppression or feel the deceptive touch of reformism, instead maintaining a forward and true middle path to socialism that benefits all and sacrifices none. However, it seems clear that for both reasons of personal conviction and practicality, he will not be the one to reach the end of that long race towards a better tomorrow.
Ryutin is not much younger than his mentor, Bukharin, and when he accepted the position of Premier he understood that he had only two terms of lucid and vigorous work left within him. Now, with Bukharinist philosophy falling out of favour amongst the younger generation, it seems that the man who has fought extremism and excess all his life will end up with his retirement being the death knell of thoughtful moderation and cooperative politics in the Soviet Union…
Such a thing would only come to pass, however, if Ryutin were to fail in his last years of service. He holds the potential within him to guide the Soviet Union into a new world, and whenever he will do so to its benefit or detriment is determined by what political manoeuvers and machinations he exercises toward the end of his term, and with what finesse and grace he supports or harms the prominent figures of the Union. Regardless, all agree that Martemyan Ryutin, for someone thought so innocuous and lame initially, now holds the keys to the most powerful office in Eurasia, and to what degree he will try to protect the status quo or allow new thought or bloom remains to be seen.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Ryutin will eventually retire as the Premier of the USSR due to his ailing health, leaving his successor to take power.
Mikhail Suslov
Role: Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin succession)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Leninistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Orthodox Leninismnote Heterodox Communism
In-Game Biography Click to Show How does a peasant born on the right bank of the Volga rise to become the leader of one of the great powers of the world? If you look at Mikhail Suslov you get your answer. Communism.
When Lenin proclaimed the Revolution Suslov missed it, stuck as he was in the depths of rural Russia, but as the Civil War spread across Russia the news trickled into the Volga, and the life of the young man changed forever. As the Communists established their control over the Volga, Suslov joined the Communist Party and rapidly began to climb the ranks, and in 1921 he headed off to Moscow. Graduating the same year that his idol passed away, Suslov was ideally placed to witness the power struggle that erupted following the death of Lenin. As the left of the Party was broken, and Bukharin rose to power, Suslov kept on working. First as a teacher spreading the knowledge of Marx and Lenin, and then in 1931 as a member of the Communist Party.
As the Hitlerites invaded, Suslov led the insurgency in the Northern Caucasus fighting against the invaders and the traitors that dared collaborate with them. His dedication to the defence of the Revolution was rewarded in 1947 with his election to the Central Committee, and from there it was only a matter of time. As the man who determined international Communist orthodoxy, Suslov's prominence in the party was only growing. When Ryutin announced his retirement, Suslov was the natural choice to continue the Leninist path within the Union.
Now he sits at the Heart of the Kremlin and the Union shall dance to the tune the Party sets, whatever it may be...
- Red Baron: Suslov, the High Priest of Orthodoxy, is the main figure responsible for determining the world's Communist orthodoxy.
Pyotr Masherov
Role: Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin succession)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Bukharinistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Marxism-Leninismnote Orthodox Communism
In-Game Biography Click to Show Perhaps in another universe, Pyotr Mironovich Masherov would be known only to his students in Rasony. On his obituary, he would have been referred to as a beloved teacher, father, husband, and brother. But just as war takes away, so, too, does it give. And from the darkest nights emerges an unlikely Prometheus to bring forth the gift of fire. Born in rural northeast Belarus during the Russian Civil War, Masherov endured crippling poverty, dropping out of school to support his family. After his elder brother Pavel became a history teacher, Pyotr soon followed suit, becoming a mathematics and physics teacher in 1933. The younger Masherov was popular among the students, and additionally participated in sports activities and the school's drama circle.
During the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Masherov joined the Red Army, and was captured in Western Russia. Put aboard a train with his mother, the fate of the Masherov family could have ended in the same way as millions of other Soviet citizens. But Masherov escaped from the train with his mother, and returned home. From here, along with his former students and Komsomol members, he formulated the beginnings of the partisan forces that eventually liberated the whole of the Belarusian nation from Nazi occupation. This liberation, however, came at no small cost; the slaughter of more than a quarter of the Belarusian population, and the displacement of nearly half.
Following the war's end, Masherov quickly rose through the ranks in the Communist Party apparatus in Belarus, becoming a close friend of fellow partisan leader Kirill Mazurov. Masherov made a name for himself as a humble moderate, devoted to the culture and economy of his home. After Mazurov made the move to the party's centra apparatus in Moscow in the late 1950s, Masherov succeeded him as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Belarus.
And now, Masherov has again risen, this time to the highest office in the Soviet Union. Working in tandem with his formerly-partisan comrades, the Belarusian troika has sought to bring a new light of hope to the Union's stuffy offices. But it is no easy task, with insurmountable resistance on the part of the conservatives and divisions within the troika itself. Will Masherov be the Soviet Prometheus, or will it all be for naught? His opponents certainly hope for the latter.
- Rebel Leader: During World War II, Masherov was a partisan leader in occupied Belarus, and now leads the Partisan clique in the CPSU alongside his comrades Mikhail Zimyanin and Kirill Mazurov.
- War Hawk: Masherov pursues an aggressive foreign policy, leading the ICA and ECO to denounce him as a Bolshevik demagogue.
Alexander Slepkov
Role: Head of Government (Ryutin cabinet), Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin succession)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Bukharinistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Marxism-Leninismnote Orthodox Communism
In-Game Biography (Head of Government) Click to Show Alexander Slepkov was born the son of a beekeeper in Ryazan, and in his earliest days of political life was in fact a Kadet, something he's tried his hardest to forget. However, before long he had switched his party affiliation to the Bolsheviks, and was in fact elected Commissar of Justice after the October Revolution in Ludza, Latvia at a mere 18 years of age. After the Civil War, Slepkov became an editor both for the official journal of the Central Committee, Bolshevik, and the official newspaper of the Communist Party, Pravda. This led him to much political prominence, as his fervent and vocal support for Bukharin's early career during the 20s was vital in securing his position as undisputed head of the Soviet Union.
Since the 20s, Slepkov has come to symbolise Bukharinist orthodoxy above all others, bar perhaps Bukharin himself. Where Ryutin is known as an adherent to his predecessor's policies, Slepkov positively worships them. A firm believer in the NEP and the rights of the peasantry, Slepkov stands out amongst the cadre of Ryutin's orbiters vying for succession as a man who genuinely believes that the Soviet system requires no structural improvement. His unwavering reverence for and lifelong support of Bukharin makes him an obvious favourite of the old man, and common knowledge is he'll try and flex this clout to assure his ascension to the premiership following Ryutin's retirement.
Even in spite of all this, Slepkov's political achievements are seen by some as the result of nepotism, the product of his slavish adherence to Bukharin rather than due to merit. His competency when it comes to matters of policy remains uncertain, and he will surely have to prove himself in some public capacity if he wishes to take over the Union's leadership.
In-Game Biography (Head of State) Click to Show Oh, how the fire of youth fades! Once Alexander Slepkov was the vanguard of the party, a charismatic youth fighting against the revisionists of Trotsky. But time dulls all passions, and though the roaring fire that once burnt within him has faded, it has yet to go out.
First appointed to a major position in 1932 when Martemyan Ryutin recommended him to the position of Chief Editor of Pravda, Slepkov would be elected to the Politburo as a permanent albeit unvoting member when Rykov retired and Bukharin ascended to the position of Premier of the Union. The raging fire that burnt within him faded over the 30's as the minutia of government life and policy settled in.
As the world burnt, Slepkov saw the heartlands of the Union scream underneath the German jackboot, and the fire returned stronger than ever before. As the Fascists were scoured from the Union, Slepkov became one of its most powerful men. Side by side with Ryutin he worked under Bukharin to propel the Union into its rightful place as one of the three superpowers.
When Bukharin stepped down, and Ryutin ascended to Premier, who else was there to take the position of Deputy Premier then Slepkov? And when Ryutin retired, who else but Slepkov to continue the orthodox path of Marxism-Leninism?
Slepkov may be old, but the fire that propelled him forwards in the name of Marxism-Leninism when he was young still burns, and he will lead the Union onwards, in the name of his old friends.
- Hero-Worshipper: Slepkov positively worships Bukharinist orthodoxy, including the NEP and right of peasants, to the point that some attribute his political achievements to nepotism rather than merit.
- Old Shame: Slepkov tries very hard to forget that in his youth, he was once a member of the right-wing Kadets.
Anastas Mikoyan
Role: Foreign Minister (Ryutin cabinet), Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin succession)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Bukharinistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Internationalist Leninismnote Orthodox Communism
In-Game Biography (Foreign Minister) Click to Show Is it possible for a principled communist to seek peace with the United States of America, the world representative of capitalism? Anastas Mikoyan believes that such a thing is not only possible, but inevitable.
Born to Armenian parents in the village of Sanahin in the Russian Empire, Mikoyan had always had a knack for politics, especially party organising. He joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1915 when he was just barely 20 years of age and quickly rose through the ranks of its newly formed successor, the Communist Party, joining the Central Committee in 1923.
One of the few Bolsheviks to visit the United States, the experience left a profound impact on Mikoyan, and he imported many ideas from there. Inspired by his visits to American department stores and his meeting with noted industrialist Henry Ford, he introduced new industrial methods in order to modernise the USSR's nascent food industry.
Despite his unorthodox ideas on foreign policy, he has proven himself to be a valuable asset to the party and more than adept at diplomacy, especially, when it comes to the art of soft power, which earned him his current position. Although he is getting older and is somewhat of an outlier amongst the orthodox Leninists, Mikoyan's position in the party apparatus is still a safe one.
In-Game Biography (Head of State) Click to Show Anastas Mikoyan has come a long way from brawling in the back streets of Baku as a young member of the Bolsheviks. When the Tsar fell and Eurasia collapsed into conflict, he was one of the Bolsheviks' foremost leaders in Baku, first as a commissar and then as one of the founders of the Baku Commune. Only barely escaping with his life, from the fate of the 26 commissars, Mikoyan would continue his fight across the lands under the scarlet banner, being elected to the Central Committee in 1923, a position he has remained in since then.
During the struggle within the party, Mikoyan supported Bukharin and in return was rewarded with the position of People's Commissar for External and Internal Trade. A position that saw him travel the world discovering many things ranging from the Ford method of factory construction to ice cream, something that many joke he loves more than Communism itself, an accusation he strenuously denies despite holding control over all production of ice cream within the Soviet Union to this day. It was during the war that Mikoyan fully secured his eminent position within Soviet leadership, being one of the men who led the USSR'S massive efforts to relocate industry to the east.
From there it has been a smooth ascent, to Minister of Foreign Affairs, and now to Premier of the Soviet Union. A strong advocate for detente with the United States in their mutual struggle against the Entente Commonwealth Organisation, his unorthodox economic policy has also seen many Kremlinologists remaking on the reformist elements have flocked around him.
A new era for the Union has begun, even though it is under yet another Old Bolshevik.
- Enemy Mine: Mikoyan is a strong advocate for détente with the USA, the world representative of capitalism, against their common enemy ECO.
Genrikh Yagoda
Role: Security Minister (Ryutin cabinet), Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin removed)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Leninistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Heterodox Communism
In-Game Biography (Security Minister) Click to Show Who is Genrikh Yagoda? Words once whispered in the corridors of Washington, London, and Paris on a July morning in 1934 have been paradoxically silenced and exaggerated. The name is known well enough. Whether it be on an execution warrant, arrest documents, jury statement, or spyring ledger, Yagoda's name has long been associated with the smothering of dissent within and the agitating of dissent abroad in his dual position as head of the Soviet Union's internal security directorate and overseer of its countless international agents and fellow travellers in the nations of the west. As far as the man himself is concerned, though, it seems even less is known the more notorious he has become. Yagoda rarely speaks in public, or even at private conferences and gatherings. Simultaneously, there is seldom a speech delivered by any member of the Politburo where he cannot be seen lurking in the background, his bald head gleaming and his thin moustache bristling.
Because of this, Yagoda plays an incomparably important (though deeply controversial) role in the Soviet government. Wherever threats manifest, he is always the first to know, and oftentimes effectively dealing with the many assailants to international socialism depends on how much material he chooses to release from his vault at the Kremlin to his associates in the Politburo, though he's never let them down yet (as far as they know). Yagoda's wavering commitments between stability and change make him a queer figure in the eyes of many, and an extremely dangerous potential rogue element in the eyes of many in the government. If anything were to ever fundamentally threaten the existence of the Soviet state as it is known, there are equal chances it would either be Yagoda's fault or responsibility to fix, and perhaps both...
In-Game Biography (Head of State) Click to Show There are many words that could be used to describe Genrikh Yagoda, impressionable, easy to manipulate, a party lover, desperate to appear cultured, and against all the odds Premier of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Never a principled man during the great struggle against the Left Communists in the 1920's, Yagoda fell in with Bukharin, not out of some great ideological belief, nor from the currents of politics, but because Bukharin held better parties. The hedonistic approach against many odds paid off for Yagoda as Bukharin emerged victorious and his position as head of the NKVD was secured for many decades to come. As the years continued Yagoda fell in with the clique of Andrei Zhdanov, the alcoholic's deranged parties enough to secure his friendship with Yagoda. Though Zhdanov may have died, his ideas did not.
As the slow 50's continued, Yagoda's hedonism saw his popularity within the government plummet but his iron grip on the NKVD was enough for him to maintain his position, that was until Ryutin's failure in Rumania. The incompetence that was demonstrated by Ryutin's actions in the puppet state fatally weakened his control over the party. Making a devil's bargain with Tukhachevsky, the NKVD and the army forced Ryutin to step down, and Yagoda was duly elected in a special congress as Premier of the USSR.
Now he stands at the peak of the Union, of all men a weak willed hedonist is going to be the man to lead the USSR through the 60's, but the hedonist may have the last laugh yet.
- Life of the Party: In the 1920s, Yagoda sided with Bukharin against Trotsky, not for ideological or political motivations, but simply because Bukharin held better parties. In the 40s, he fell in with Andrei Zhdanov, who secured Yagoda's friendship through deranged parties.
- The Spymaster: Yagoda is both leader of the USSR's internal security directorate and overseer of its countless international agents in the west.
Mikhail Tukhachevsky
Role: Premiernote Head of State (Ryutin removed)
Party: Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya (bol'shevikov) - Leninistnote All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)
Ideology: Vanguard Socialismnote Heterodox Communism
In-Game Biography Click to Show Amidst the Soviet Army, there stand many with greater ambitions for their future. Mikhail Nikolayevich Tukhachevsky had achieved that goal by becoming the Defence Minister of the Soviet Union, assuming this would be his final duty. Yet, not even Tukhachevsky would have thought his ambition would reach the seat of the Premier of the USSR.
Joining the Bolsheviks in 1917, Tukhachevsky rapidly advanced in rank, earning the position of Ist deputy Commissar for Defence at the end of the Polish-Soviet War. Remaining impartial in the power struggles of the 20s, Tukhachevsky worked on improving the Red Army and his theory of deep Operation, which was rewarded when Tukhachevsky became a Marshal of the Soviet Union in 1935 and entered the Central Committee, but at the same time left Moscow to take control of the Far Eastern Front. After Germany invaded Poland, Tukhachevsky returned and took control over the Leningrad Military District, which became part of the Northern Front after Operation Barbarossa. Whilst holding the North, STAVKA finally decided to begin counter-offensives in 1943 and made Tukhachevsky Chief of the General Staff during the offensive campaigns. By the end of WW2, Tukhachevsky earned a seat on the Politburo and remained Chief of General Staff until he gained the position of Defence Minister in the 50s. An appointment he would have stayed for the rest of his life if it wasn't for Patrascanu's mutiny.
While he always kept out of powerplays, Tukhachevsky could no longer ignore the weakness of Ryutin's administration which led to an uneasy pact with Yagoda to deal with Ryutin. However, he would not let the NKVD take control and chose to bargain with the Party to get elected as the new Premier. Yet, while he controls the highest office of the Union, many see him as a transitional leader, but none undervalue him - Tukhachevsky has faced hardships before, and there's a reason he's known as the Red Napoleon.
- Four-Star Badass: Tukhachevsky was one of the Union's most prominent commanders during the Great Patriotic War, and is famous across the entire world for his modernisations to the Red Army, development of the deep battle theory and sheer military brilliance.
