SchreckNet Data File
- Real/Birth Name: Tatyana Dragomirovna Yurlova
- Known Identity/Mortal Alias: Tatjana
- Place of Origin: Raevskaya, Russian Empire
- Height: 5'7"
- Occupation: Hired Assassin (presumed)
- Apparent Age: Mid-20s
- Embraced: 1926
- Kindred Status: Ancilla
- Sire: Joan d'Aulon
- Clan: Toreador
- Camarilla Status: Autarkis (former Scourge)
- Sabbat Status: Unknown (formerly Priest & Black Hand Ductus)
- Player/Type: PC (Fenton)
Appearance
Even without using her ability with the Vicissitude discipline, Tatjana appears as a striking woman in her mid-20s. A hard life of military family background, and fighting in both the Great War and the Russian Revolution that followed it, has granted her a naturally athletic physique that enhances the beauty of her sharp facial features, light brown eyes and near-black hair. However through the use of Vicissitude she has altered her appearance slightly to a more typically perfect physique akin to fitness and glamour models, than simply that of a soldier.
Whilst she can (and does) use her Vicissitude to change her appearance to suit different occasions or needs, Tatjana appears to take pains to ensure she returns her to normal/idealised form, in which she typically has long, straight hair, and wears makeup that accents her features, usually with dark mascara and scarlet lipstic, or similary attention-grabbing colours. Some people say that she's a Toreador, and gives herself a conspicuously striking appearance out of typical vanity; but others state that she simply wields her beauty like another weapon, and is arrogant enough that she does not hide from her enemies - wanting them to know who is about to end their existence.
Her clothing changes depending on the occasion, but she is typically seen wearing stretch jeans, t-shirts or vests (typically dark or striking colours, such as rock bands or similar, although she also seems fond of shades of near-white or light pink; she very rarely wears fashion-t-shirts of designer brands, unless there is a very specific purpose to); but for someone who appears to deplore fashion and has a well-earnt reputation for being a stone-cold killer, Tatjana has a good grasp of fashion (or at least what works) and more than capable of wearing a little black Givenchy dress and stunning Bulgari jewellery when the occasion deems her to (usually, when infiltrating an event to assassinate someone; but she has been spotted wearing similar outfits at the opera, with no-one apparently killed in the process).
Background
Cossack Origin & Imperial Military Volunteer
Tatjana was born to the daughter of a colonel of the Kuban Cossacks with long tradition of military service to the Tsars. Youngest of 4 siblings, and the only woman, she was raised more like a boy than a girl, and learnt how to fire a rifle and use a sword from an early age. When Imperial Russia entered the Great War in 1914, Tatjana ran away from home with a group of women who were following their husbands and brothers into battle as part of the Kuban Cossack group which mobilized and travelled by train south towards Armenia and the Turkish enemy. She became a child soldier volunteer in the Russian army at age 14, joining the Reconnaissance Sotnia (100 horse squadron) of the 3rd Ekaterinodar Regiment. There she worked as an official Volunteer army groom in Armenia; where she was mentored and protected by a sergeant in the army of the Caucasus named Kosel, who procured a uniform for her, and made her a sort of mascot for his unit. It was something, though, and she was proud to serve. In 1915 she was on a dangerous mission in which Kosel was killed, and she was shot in the leg whilst blasting bridges across the Araxes River near Yerevan. She was treated at the Red Cross hospital in Baku, then returned to the Southern Front where she trained as an auto mechanic and became a military driver.
1st Petrograd Women's Battalion & Outbreak of Civil War
The war did not go well for Imperial Russia, however. The high casualties and alleged incompetence and callousness of the Tsar caused severe war weariness in the troops,. In 1917 Maria Bochkareva, a Siberian peasant and combat veteran created the 1st Russian Battalion of Death. Although Bochkareva took seriously the intent of the women as a combat unit, the leadership saw it as a propaganda tool to counteract war weariness in the men, by inspiring them with women serving at the front and encouraging further enrollment. Although Tatjana was not involved with this, she heard about it, and when there was a recruitment call for further female-only battalions, she immediately applied, desiring to be able to proudly serve in a full capacity, without pretence. Because of her experience, she was made a Korporal in the 1st Petrograd Women's Battalion. Before being deployed to the front, however, her unit received orders on 24th October 1917 to report to the Winter Palace for a parade, wherein General Alexander Kerensky would review the female troops prior to their departure. On arrival, the Petrograd Military District commander ordered the unit to defend the Provisional Government. Although the batallion commander sent the majority of the unit back to their encampment, he left Tatjana's 2nd company (137 soldiers) to defend the some fuel trucks, but soon found themselves defending the palace alongside units of Cossacks and cadets. Although they fought their best, they were greatly outnumbered by Bolshevik supporters and eventually surrendered. During their transfer to a holding camp, some of the women suffered verbal, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of the Red Guards and soldiers. Tatjana nearly became such a victim when a Red Guard attempted to rape her. She fought him off, tearing off a chunk of his lip when he forcibly kissed her. Although she fought bravely and viciously against the guard in the ensuing struggle and would have soundly defeated him, other Red Gaurds joined the fray, wounding her with a pistol shot and, considering her too much trouble, threw her off the moving train.
But she didn't die, and ended up in a Petrograd hospital. The captivity of her unit was short lives as the wife of the British ambassador to Russia requested that the British military attaché in Petrograd, General Alfred Knox, intervene to secure their release, which was accomplished the following day (October 26). Tatjana, however, spend nearly the entire year 1918 in a Petrograd hospital, suffering from concussion and neck trauma in addition to the gunshot wound in her abdomen. As she recovered the Russian Civil War was in full sway, and the White Army and their supporters were actively hunted and she was taken from the hospital and thrown into a prison by Bolsheviks. Soon after, all the male prisoners were murdered while she, the lone female POW, was abandoned in her locked cell when the Bolsheviks left. Unguarded, she managed to escape and fled eastward by train across Russia in winter. En route she was conscripted into White Russian forces under command of Captain Kappel while weak with the pervasive lack of food and still not fully recovered. In a fight she was shot again, through the armpit muscles and shoulder by Bolsheviks while on patrol, and spent three more weeks recovering in an infirmary in Omsk. Due to the intervention of a friendly officer, however, she was released and given passage and 500 rubles to travel to Vladivostok. The train she was a passenger on was stopped in the middle of the Siberian wasteland, sandwiched between two Bolshevik armies. Led by a contingent of Russian officers, she abandoned the train along with a party of about 100 Royalists (both men and women) and walked through Siberia for a month evading war and destruction of the populace, eventually reaching the Russian military hospital in Vladivostok.
Departure From Russia
At the military hospital Tatjana was placed in a small ward with a few senior officers, and she quickly became a staff favorite. By this stage in the long war and revolution, the collapsed national economy had already caused several years of food shortage and famine, lack of medical care, vanished government services and total societal collapse from warfare and marauding gangs pillaging and massacring villages across the continent. The military who gave their all in service their nation, to preserve life and order, were being hunted down and killed along with all administrators, intelligentsia, businessmen, clergy, and royalty at all levels, whether rich or poor. Tatjana's remaining family died in these hunts, angering her - that her own people had done this to them, after they had been so loyal and given so much for Russia. This was when she decided that this new Russia was not deserving of her support any longer, and that she would leave. The hospital was funded by American Red Cross donations and an American Doctor there approved her for evacuation. After recuperating there for three weeks, she was given passport and passage to a sanatorium at Chigasaki, Japan. She spent several years as one of many Russian expatriate refugees adrift and desperate in daily life in a vibrant Japan twelve years prior to invasion of Manchuria. There her her strong will, built by a strong set of moral values instilled by her Cossack work ethic formative years, empowered her efforts to develop employable skills, such as memorizing the English dictionary. Eventually in 1922, she managed to immigrate to the United states with little but the ironic three Cross of Saint George medals she had received for bravery for her service during the war and early stage of the revolution.
Life in America
She thought life in America would be better, but it was not. She barely spoke the language, and opportunities were bleak. Employers were often abusive or slave-drivers, and she had little tolerance for it. She ended up working for the wrong people, as a dancer in a Speakeasy run by the Mafia. She tried to stay out of things until a gunfight broke out between rival families and two of the final, desperate shooters on the losing side grabbed her to use as a human shield for his withdrawal. Her reaction surprised everyone as she employed her insticts and experience to quickly turn on her attacker, stunning him and using his own pistol to dispatch the other, before allegedly finishing off her initial attacker by striking his head against the bar repeatedly until she was no longer able to hold on to the pulped remains. The Mafia saw that she had talent wasted as a dancer, and she quickly found herself using her acquired skills for her new employer's benefits. Things went well for a while, and she earnt both money and infamy but, in the end, she was caught by the police, and sentenced to death by hanging for multiple homicide convictions (although there were far more actual homicides committed that remain unknown still than she was actually sentenced for).
The Embrace
Her execution was official, but a Toreador elder, and Seneschal of Washington DC, had taken notice of Tatjana and her talents - even employed her through her connections at times - was not ready to lose this efficient, useful and (some argue most importantly for a Toreador) strikingly beautiful assassin, who's ability to kill was artistic and beautiful in and of itself. Arrangements were made, and Tatjana had the dubious honour of being both one of the first, and the first woman sentenced to be executed by the new electric chair (as opposed to hanging, which became the state standard until it was replaced in 1928 by the electric chair). Joan embraced Tatjana shortly before her execution, then allowed it to proceed. The electric chair wouldn't kill a kindred, but Tatjana states "I still remember it hurt like hell."
Tatjana's unlife was a duality. The Toreador primogen was pure evil as Tatjana described her - the perfect socialite and image of respectability in public and the halls of Elysium; and Tatjana was taught much about conforming to this high standard of Toreador society. But Joan d'Aulon was also merciless and cruel, and would secretly use Tatjana to eliminate those she desired - typically along with any loose ends that may be attached, such as spouses and children, and witnesses. Anything that could be traced back to Joan either disappeared or met unfortunate accidents. Tatjana had always been a warrior, and later a mafia assassin, but she had honour. What she was doing now, forced by the Blood Bond her sire maintained over her, was simply monstrous and Tatjana struggled with her humanity. Most elders did not know of her situation, or her uses - and those who knew didn't care, seeing it as Joan's rights as the sire to do as she willed with Tatjana. Still, to Camarilla society Tatjana was the perfect example of how the Toreador could embrace a rough urchin and turn her into a respectable Kindred, with tempered attitude and a loyal and efficient Scourge.
Sabbat Defection
This would be her fate for the next few decades until she was approached in 1962 by the Sabbat; who offered to break her Blood Bond if she would defect and aid the Sabbat in an assault against Washington DC. Although the assault ultimately failed to remove the city from the Camarilla's grasp, it did buy Tatjana her freedom from the Blood Bond and her sire, and she heartily defected to the Sabbat; where her combat prowess soon got the attention of the sect's infamous Black Hand subsect of assassins, and an Assamite Antitribu known only as William became her mentor in the Black Hand. She served the Black Hand and the Sabbat loyally, and in 1979 single-handedly killed two Camarilla Alastors who laid an ambush for her, granting her notoriety in the Camarilla, and accorded much respect within the Sabbat. Tatjana in time became her pack's Priest, a role she took to with aplomb once her mentor began teaching her some of the secret lore of the Book of Nod, and of Gehenna, that the Camarilla elders worked so hard to conceal from its own members. Despite opportunities, however, Tatjana never progressed above the role of Priest as she stated that she was a soldier, happy to serve in the field, but not a General. Serving the Sabbat/Black Hand, and the opportunities gained to increase her power through diablerie of elder-blooded enemies she killed, seemed to be her main agenda.
Murder of Joan d'Aulon
The Camarilla is unsure of events after the 1979 conflict, as Tatjana moved around a lot with her own Black Hand pack, often in undercover operations in Camarilla territory. It is known that she surfaced in Ashford in 1999, originally forming a new pack of Sabbat recruits to disrupt Camarilla operations; but although they killed some Camarilla kindred, most of the pack died whilst fighting a Camarilla coterie later on. Still, a few months later Tatjana mysteriously appeared again and, if rumour is true, fought with a coalition of Camarilla kindred that included Valerie Leigh of Clan Senya (who, allegedly, had been one of the kindred to have killed one of her recruits), several Lupines and a Werecoyote to kill her sire Joan d'Aulon who was in Ashford for unknown reasons. Tales of what truly occurred are known only by those present - many of who have died since, and the now-discredited Valerie being possibly the only kindred left existing to tell the tale - and was heavily covered and any information aggressively silenced by the Camarilla; who officially claim that the autarkis came and killed a respected Toreador elder, although no-one still knows why the elder was in Ashford in the first place (or at least, no-one is talking).
Murderer, or Saviour?
If the rumours are to believed, however, Tatjana allegedly approached the same coterie that had defeated her pack (and in doing so, earned her respect) and provided them evidence that she had uncovered that her sire Joan was in fact an infernal diabolist, after an artefact known as the Vase of Solomon - a mythical, unbreakable magical object where, allegedly, the ancient legendary King Solomon had trapped the essence of 40 powerful demons - and was performing a ritual that would shatter the vase and release the demons for her demonic master's army. The rumours state that although Tatjana indeed killed her sire during the ritual, and her coterie/lupine allies defeated Joan's diabolist cultists (both ghoul, kindred, and a allegedly some unearthly beasts), that they were too slow and the ritual had cracked the vase. The rumour persists that, being unable to prevent the vase from breaking, another desperate ritual was performed with the aid of a magus that, again allegedly, opened a rift directly to Hell to send the vase - but the ritual required a being to sacrifice themselves taking the vase over, and would be condemned to Hell along with the demons.
It is claimed that Tatjana herself was about to go through with the sacrificial ritual, but then was attacked by a werecoyote known as Laughs-at-Rage who surprised her by driving Tatjana's own motorcycle into her, then snatched the vase off her in the momentary chaos. The story ends with statements that as the rift closed two sounds could be heard drifting into the distance - the unearthly screams of angered demons; and the fading laughter of a werecoyote.
The Sabbat Crusade
Since then Tatjana has almost dropped out of sight. Camarilla spies have confirmed that Tatjana has apparently taken no active Sabbat/Black Hand missions since the aforementioned vase event, and there have been rumours that she has been sighted in Ashford various times; especially rumoured to have allegedly for years taken care of a young orphaned girl who the Camarilla now believes is Stephanie "Silverwrath" Wolfthorn, a renown Lupine pack leader and rising star in her Sept. But in 2004 she disappeared yet again, curiously shortly before Silverwrath left for Russia in 2008. Tatjana was sighted again in 2012, a mere few months after Silverwrath's sudden return from Russia; witnesses seeing Tatjana fighting a pack of red-furred lupines, who were in turn fighting Silverwrath. The kindred who claimed to witnessed this understandably did not hang around to see the outcome of that battle.
Then the Sabbat Crusade began on Christmas day 2016 with the infamous Christmas Day Opera House Massacre, which marked the beginning of the Sabbat Crusade against Ashford. The surprise attack killed various Primogen, elders and notable Camarilla power holders; including Clarissa Jade, the Senya Whip (and sire of Willa Jade, a Fledgling of Clan Senya). As Clarissa died protecting her childe Willa, and the Malkavian Whip known as AJ, the two neonates fled the opera house and encountered a Sabbat rearguard group guarding one of the exits. They believed their fates were sealed, when a then-unknown, striking, mysterious woman in a black evening gown (that would later be identified as Tatjana) appeared, also wanting to exit the location. Unlike the neonates who were fleeing for their lives in terror, this woman was calm and simply allegedly told the Sabbat, who's leader became enraged by her presence, to simply get out of the way and let her pass, or be destroyed. Willa Jades stated afterwards "I have never in my unlife seen a kindred that fast or deadly!" as the Sabbat attacked and this woman brought a pair of handguns out and took out the Sabbat within seconds using incendiary rounds. The woman then simply told the neonates that they should consider it their lucky day, and left.
Eventually, after her identity was confirmed, it would ultimately be Tatjana's information and assistance that would end the Crusade. The Malkavian Whip AJ, along with other kindred such as Willa Jade and Valerie Leigh of Clan Senya, convinced Tatjana to sit for a negotiation with the new Primogen council who, in return for her information and assistance, would grant her an official pardon (at least within the Ashford domain, the Camarilla has yet to officially confirm the removal of her Autarkis status outside the domain - although they have not rejected it, leading most to believe they are taking the attitude of turning a blind eye, rather than needlessly provoking the Russian bear). Tatjana revealed the identity of the Crusade leader to be a Lasombra Black Hand member known as Grace Williams, who had been Masquerading as a Malkavian neonate known as Graziella Cohen, along with the aid of a Malkavian turncoat known as Paul Bairstow. Grace was a former student of hers and Tatjana identified her tactics and various Sabbat safe-houses that they had set up in Ashford years ago when Tatjana was still a Black Hand member herself. Information provided by Clan Senya narrowed down the list of locations, and the group led an attack that resulted in Grace and Bairstow's deaths, decapitating the remaining Sabbat Crusade leadership, which dwindled to nothingness shortly after.
Since then, Tatjana has been keeping to herself, doing her own concerns and not causing any major problems for the Camarilla. She has seemingly joined the unofficial coterie known as The Guild, a coterie of kindred assassins and mercenaries for hire, but is selective about the jobs she takes - she seems to have a criteria, but will not share or explain it. Some have noticed that these actions seem to aid the ambitions of the Lupines of the now-allied Sept of Sacrificial Friendship. Politically, she is no longer either Camarilla or Sabbat and, officially at least, Autarkis or hunted by both sects (although the Camarilla are respecting their agreement and she is safe within the domain). Although she never had much association with them, she now finds herself agreeing with many of the ideologies of the Anarch Movement, and has been seen with various of their members. If she really has joined the Anarchs, then they have gained a very powerful ally.
Mortal Society
Tatjana has no known contact with mortal society. The Sabbat believe that humans are simply tools for sustenance, recruitment, or entertainment and unsurprisingly Tatjana has therefore not been involved with mortal society since her defection to the Sabbat.
Kindred with underworld connections, however, have heard (and the Assamite clan have recently added confirmation, claiming that her services can be employed via The Guild) that the local underworld is aware of the presence of a highly-reputed assassin known simply as Tatjana who is extremely fussy about which jobs she takes; but they are always extremely high-paying, and against honourable targets (no children, innocents and with a preference on hitting targets of corruption or authority). Her limited interactions with mortals appear to be for feeding, for taking assassination contracts, and for purchasing weapons or other equipment she may need.
No one knows what she is up to. Some believe, not even Tatjana herself.
Personality
No-one is really sure of Tatjana's personality. She has been a celebrated national war hero and a traitor to her country. A Camarilla scourge then defector. A Sabbat ductus, priest, black hand captain and now possibly traitor and independent. Her current attitude appears to have been shaped by many events and sources; seemingly allying herself to causes or groups by choice, need or circumstance, but then equally seeming to suddenly betray them at a later stage if they fail to live up to some morale or ethical compass that Tatjana appears to have, but no-one really understands. Some would argue that her betrayals are justifiably so, as though she commits to a group but when then discovers truths she does not like, leaves them for another more noble group - which ultimately she leaves when dissatisfied again. This would reflect either a person with a deep sense of honour, or who ultimately only cares about her own survival and well being. Or both? To most of the Camarilla and Sabbat elders, she is simply someone with a proven history of disloyalty and treachery.
One thing that is known is that after joining the Sabbat, she abandoned her humanity for the ethics of the Path of Honorable Accord. This would imply that she is an honorable kindred who's word and loyalty can be trusted (though scholars of the path will point out that this does not mean honourable in the human or chivalrous sense, and by no means kind). Although some argue that if she has indeed left the Sabbat that this proves otherwise, scholars of the path state that the path is about Honour as a path to control the beast, and duty to a cause - but that followers of the path can change causes (though rarely do unless serious events occur). Ultimately, no-one has been able to ask her about this and get a response, and live; although recent sightings seem to indicate that she has at least some control over the beast and has not degenerated as those who lose their way often do.
Tatjana kills quickly and mercifully; or may impassionately torture pleading victims for days on end to extract information. She is vicious, vengeful and merciless; but also compassionate and kind to others. She kills monsters; then aids other monsters such as the Lupines.
She is an enigma.
Other Notes
NOT an Antitribu
Because she is known as a Sabbat assassin, many people mistakenly consider her to be a Toreador antitribu. This is technically true only in the sense that the Toreador are Camarilla stalwarts, and she defected from there. But by this definition, all Toreador anarchs would also be antitribu. People who have spoken to her about it find that Tatjana does not much care for her bloodline, but does actually take offence if called a Toreador antitribu who, in her own words "are a bunch of vainglorious, sadistic and generally useless assholes with god complexes!"
PC to NPC: Secret History
Personal entry by player: Fenton
I originally created Tatjana for Dermont's modern-era Sabbat game set in New York. Although we had neonate-level characters, I made her an assassin, good with guns and very fast (invested virtually everything into buying high-level Celerity) and also bought the Black Hand membership background. Oh, and a silver 1200cc Harley-Davidson Sportster (an improved, custom-version of the 883cc Sportster I actually had in real life). The game eventually concluded, but Tatjana was one of the few PCs left standing and had survived a lot of crap - a freaky supernatural carnival obviously inspired by "Something Wicked This Way Comes" and committed diablerie a few times, enough to be able to get Celerity 6 and Firearms 6, which allowed creative and supernatural shooting abilities not possible for humans or normal kindred (such as in one case ricocheting rounds off a gravestone to strike a traitorous PC in the head after he killed Divineshadow's character and was hiding behind what he thought was total cover). It had from the offset been said that she was not a Toreador antitribu (I disliked their whole sadism thing, and liked the idea that, despite the horror of her existence and it being a Sabbat campaign, she was still noble deep down and loved art and music), and so a Camarilla defector it'd be. It was loosely stated that she'd defected because she hated her sire and being controlled by her, but that was about it. So I turned her into an NPC for my Ashford game, where I actually used her as an antagonist for the Camarilla players but as a mentor for a small group of Sabbat players in a small College RPG group I ran at lunchtimes (eventually these characters would try to kill the PCs of the main group and, after a big battle with casualties on both sides, lost). It was during this little group that I introduced the character of Grace, another Sabbat Black Hand member who Tatjana was mentoring. Grace would end up being the archvillain behind the Sabbat Crusade that's reset the setting.
But after she became an NPC, especially after the death of her pack (ie the above-mentioned PCs) I started using her more like an antihero antagonist than a pure villain. I read up on the "true Black Hand" when the book came out and decided it made sense for her. Tbh I had more her ideology and personality than actual history. It was known she was considered an enemy of the Camarilla, and I wanted to write a story that would contain flashbacks to her past, showing key events that made her who she is, along different periods of time. It ended up being a short story (wasn't intended to be a short story, but I tended to begin writing a lot of stories and lose steam after a chapter or two, and this was no exception) that covered the dirty crap her sire made her do (mostly via forced blood bond) and how she killed two Camarilla alastors sent to kill her.It also effectively canonised her love for classical music (especially Tchaikovsky) which would eventually be a tie-in as to why she would be in the Opera House on the opening salvo of the Sabbat Crusade. This would end up being the official retcon/explanation of why she defected (the Black Hand realised she hated her sire and all they had to do was offer to break her bond, and she'd be a ready-made perfect double-agent) and how she got her Harley (I retconned that to make it an older-series Harley, whilst in the original game it'd been assumed it was a fairly new one she'd taken off some undefined victim - Sabbat don't tend to buy things legally from mortals, after all). I even had her tie in with some of the PCs, mentor them and help them for her own reasons - usually left undefined except for her own, misunderstood (even by herself) sense of honour. I also ran a story where the PCs ended up helping Tatjana kill her sire, who it turned out was a diabolist and was helping Black Spirals and Nephandi carry out a ritual to break The Vase of Solomon where legend had it that King Solomon had trapped 40 powerful demons; and this would release the demons unfettered into the world. Of course, this meant Tatjana aiding Camarilla kindred, but in a way that annoyed both the Camarilla (who saw it as Tatjana once again assassinating a respected Camarilla elder) and the Sabbat (who actually thought the diabolists' plan working would actually cause the Camarilla damage and thus further their plans; something Tatjana found reprehensible and - after meaningful contact with Camarilla kindred - made her wonder if perhaps the Sabbat was "the right side" after all) who declared her rogue for it.
But then when the WoD started gearing up to Gehenna, White Wolf removed the True Black Hand - they had it wiped out, with the Sabbat's Black Hand learning about it and doing a pogrom, amongst other problems. This gave me an impetus to create a scenario whereby Tatjana and her Black Hand recruiter and mentor, "William", were both True Hand, but Grace was not - she was a great assassin, but too loyal to the Sabbat. I had William be killed during the purge (never stated by who, but headcanoned that it was by Grace leading other Sabbat-Black Hands, and causing a mortal emnity between the two former friends) and learning that Tatjana was also a True Hand member. Already considered rogue, Tatjana managed to escape their wrath by both being outside their territory and doing what she is good at - disappearing (having gained Vicissitude via diablerie meant she could easily change her appearance) and hiding in Ashford (as a Camarilla town it would be harder for the Sabbat to find her), although she ran around various places for a while - an origin story I wrote for my character Nicole/Faith from Divineshadow's Vancouver game had Faith be accidentally embraced by dying whilst lying in a pool of blood by the Assamite that killed her, Persephone, but in fact Faith's informants' tip-off had been Tatjana's doing, using the poor young Garou as bait to lure out Persephone, so Tatjana could disable and then diablerise her (it was never said why, but I always took it that Persephone was hired to kill Tatjana possibly by the Sabbat or her sire, and Tatjana wanted to increase her blood-potency anyhow). Tatjana then took Persephone's likeness and, for a while, masqueraded as her even being Ashford's sheriff for a while. It was during this time that I introduced a young Garou named Stephanie - I had rival Garou slaughter her family on an attack whilst Stephanie was ice-skating to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake; but the players (all Camarilla Kindred, but including "Persephone") saved Stephanie (who underwent her first transformation during the trauma of the massacre) and took care of her as her own tribe seemed set to kill her (I just put it down at the time as rival houses, as the Silver Fangs were famous for that kind of infighting, but I would eventually flesh it out more seriously and even give Stephanie a surname! See Stephanie's bio for more info). They trained her to defend herself (ok, Tatjana trained her in combat, but the players cared for her in other ways) and helped her through the aftermath her first change - eventually finding a Children of Gaia they could trust to take care of Stephanie, as they realised that taking care of a Garou would get them all killed if Kratus found out, and she was better off with her own people (though their help would shape Stephanie's attitude towards Kindred, which became a key influencer as to her pack and sept aiding the Camarilla against the Sabbat eventually).
Shortly after this "Persephone" disappeared from Ashford. I basically decided that Tatjana had been fairly aimless since the fall of the true Black Hand, and Persephone was a temporary cover whilst she figured out what to do with her unlife. Tatjana was a contradiction that she doesn't do well in servitude, but needs a master/cause to serve - one she feels is worthy of her service, and is loyal, but needs to prove itself worthy to her constantly. I decided that she secretly kept mentoring Stephanie (secret from both the Kindred and the Garou, for both her sake and Stephanie's) and learnt more about the Garou and their fight against the Wyrm than most Kindred know. I decided that this would be just the kind of cause that she would think would be the most noble and honorable cause she could fight for... but of course, there's no way the Garou would allow a Kindred into their ranks. So after reading about Samuel Haight in the Chaos factor, where he was originally a kinfolk who underwent a ritual (involving skinning 5 Garou) to become a Garou himself, I decided to have Tatjana somehow (undefined) discover the ritual (she was a Thaumaturgist already) and end up doing the ritual on herself (she'd learnt about Nicole/Faith and so knew Vampire-Werewolves, aka Abombinations, were possible). I used this to show her descent in morality; the original 3 skins were from rival werewolves she killed whilst protecting Stephanie, but the final 2 ended up being ones she deliberately hunted to finish the ritual, deliberately picking rivals of Stephanie. Then I had the whole thing backfire - Stephanie was not pleased about her rivals being killed, or Tatjana becoming an Abomination (they may have been rivals, but Tatjana didn't understand Garou honour or Litany rules, as she didn't really know the Garou as well as she thought she did) and caused them to have a serious falling out as Stephanie was horrified at what her friend and mentor had done. I had Stephanie leave for Russia shortly after (to go learn under the head of her House) and Tatjana hit a period of all-time low, with her humanity (or rather, the Path of Honorable Accord she followed) hitting a dangerous low point as she became aimless and lost in her isolation and misery. But there's only so much you can develop an NPCs story in the background or around the events of the players (the players were investigating the skinned Garou corpses found and tried to help Stephanie prevent the ritual when they found out what was going on, but failed (arrived too late) - so she went into the background once again. Surfacing occasionally as a bogey-monster that would do things unpredictably and for no explicable motivation.
When I geared up for the V20 revival, I decided I wanted to "fix" Tatjana and bring her back in a more meaningful way. I undid her becoming an abomination (I simply wrote it off as the ritual was intended for a Kinfolk, and as a Kindred, the effects ended up being temporary and eventually she reverted back to being a base Kindred - and she decided not to attempt to "fix" the ritual and try again permanently). I decided that she'd been trying hard to help the Garou (or rather, the recently-returned and more mature, now pack-leader and reclaimed-heritage Stephanie Wolfthorn) and whilst Stephanie was still pissed at her, the anger had tempered somewhat (so the relationship was now "cool" rather than "hostile") after Tatjana nearly died saving Stephanie from rival Garou assassins - and in the process Tatjana met a Toreador neonate that helped Tatjana after finding her badly wounded after the fight and aided her, not turning her in even after finding out she was an autarkis, and that Tatjana (who still needed a cause) somehow mentally equated this Toreador with Stephanie, and began mentoring her (though this relationship is a secret and not known by my players, it is alluded to in the Ashford by Night information). I also, for the first time, gave her a very detailed origin story. Because Tatjana was insanely powerful (to any standard, much the less one technically a neonate) I retconned her age to make her older so she was now actually an ancilla during the time of the original Sabbat campaign (she could simply have been lying about her age - not that I recall anyone asking about it; we were simply the pack and all made fairly, so the retcon in her age/history has no effect on the game or events that occurred, only that she was a few decades older than she would have been known to be). I also retconned her bike to be a model of Harley-Davidson that actually existed in the retconned time period the event would have occurred; as I finally did a timeline of all the major events she'd been involved in since her mortal days (explaining why she was such a good shot and assassin during the original game; which was never defined) through her kindred years until the beginning of the campaign. I looked up the bio for a real Russian WW1 sniper woman who served during the war then ended up in America (she actually became an actress and died of old age, but I had Tatjana's life in America take a darker turn which led to her embrace). In the end, her new background was a good tale in itself that led to a good description as to why Tatjana was such a great shooter/assassin, and why she resents authority and "unfit leaders/causes" after a history of (from her perspective) being ordered around by those who don't deserve her loyalty, to be often discarded as soon as it suits them.
The end of the Sabbat Crusade has ended with an official pardon for Tatjana (the Camarilla as a sect will not forgive her, but as long as she's in Ashford she has amnesty) and her unofficially joining the anarchs, supporting their general ethos. Where her story goes from here will depend on how the players interact with her and perhaps influence her where to go. After all, she's still trying to figure out what to do with her life - especially now that she doesn't have to be hidden all the time.
Combat Style
A kindred witness of one of Tatjana's contract killings stated "I once saw her kill three men in a bar... with a pencil, with a fucking pencil!" and this describes her perfectly. Tatjana is deadly with any weapon you put in her hands, and even without them. In her mortal days she fought two wars and so began unlife with good shooting skills and physique; and she has since been thoroughly trained by both her sire and the Black Hand for one purpose - to destroy her enemies by any means necessary (and usually, without subtlety). She is fast, strong and tough; and varies her combat style depending on the situation; often switching styles in mid-combat to throw opponents off guard or as a more effective tactic against a style used against her.
Despite her overall deadliness, however, Tatjana is infamous for her most famed ability - speed and marksmanship. It is not known what generation she is, but it is known that she had committed diablerie many times; with her victims including various Camarilla ancilla and elders, as well as Persephone, an Assamite elder and professional rival who was contracted by Camarilla elders to assassinate her, whom Tatjana counter-ambushed in Canada and diablerised. As such she has a mastery of Celerity impossible to those of higher generations, and capable of actions deemed impossible to them. Her marksmanship is legendary, with her having once allegedly taken down a kindred by ricocheting pistol rounds off a tombstone and into the kindred's head.
Unsurprisingly, this means that Tatjana typically relies on a combination of accurate, high-velocity shots and swift movement to avoid damage. This is not unheard of for Brujah. City Gangrel and Toreadors who rely on speed, but unlike many of them when she is engaged in close combat, she is not at much of a disadvantage, as she is a master with most forms of combat; either via training and much experience, or learnt by her many diableries. Her choice of favoured combat style is a preference, not a crutch.
Social Style
Tatjana is renown for keeping her word - even against enemies - and have a strong sense of honour (although honour for adherents of the Path of Honorable Accord should not be confused with mortal-style honour). Whatever else has been said or alleged about her, this is known. Therefore if one wishes to survive an encounter with her, being honorable and keeping one's word is the logical conduct. Tatjana may have a higher execution count than the state of Texas, but she has never been known (unlike many Sabbat, and even Camarilla) to kill without a reason (hurt, maim, yes; kill, no) and therefore if approached under a flag of truce is likely to respect it and allow the person to walk away (this seems true at least when she is not in Sabbat domain; Camarilla approaching her in a Sabbat domain during her Black Hand years would be effectively making a choice to defect or seek final death).
The scary part is if SHE approaches you. Not renown for socialising, when she approaches someone there's usually a purpose - a specific discussion to be had, negotiation, information exchange - or to assassinate them. Some take small comfort in the fact that with her mastery of sniper rifles, if you actually see her coming it probably means she doesn't intend to kill you. At least, not immediately.
Signature Equipment
Tatjana is renown to have many weapons at her disposal, so what she has at any moment will vary. Some people have said that she seems to travel light, usually with a large duffel-bag (seemingly full of weapons) on her motorcycle; but when she creates a haven, sets up an armoury in it. She funds her purchasing (both weapons and fashion) with money from assassination payments, or looting her enemies.
- 1971 Harley-Davidson FX1200 Superglide (heavily customised) - taken from the Gangrel alastor who tried to kill her in 1979
- Biker Jacket (taken from same alastor)
- Twin HK USP40 pistols (usually with incendiary rounds)
- Chinese Hair Pins
- Boot dagger
- SVD Dragunov Sniper Rifle
- M4 Carbine
- Ithaca M37 Shotgun
Signature Quotes
- "I want no part in this, so I will tell you just once - get out of my way, or die!"
- "Relax tovarisch; if I wanted you dead you'd never even have seen it coming."
Gallery
Tatjana
Tatjana in a casual moment
Tatjana appearing glamorously for infiltration
Tatyana during mortal days