Bratsk Communal Vanguard

The **Bratsk Communal Vanguard** is one of the many warlords arising in the wake of the collapse of the Holy Russian Empire, following the death of Sergey Taboritsky. Put in direct opposition to the rump Siberian Black Army, they fight one of the few canon wars in the new wasteland of Russia. Their men spend time partying and brawling with one another at the conquered home of the former Bratsk governor, with drinks constantly served from the basement distillery to fuel their antics. Unlike the genuine anarchists of the Siberian Free Territory, whose ideology is Socialism, the Bratsk Communal Vanguard's ideology is Despotism. Any sort of anarchist doctrine they may seem to hold is merely a veneer for their brutal rule, as shown by their actions. They don't really care about their rhetoric, only using the ideology as a means to placate their potential targets for plunder. This is further backed by the fact that they often voice just how much they enjoy pilfering the goods of their enemies and the populace. Their soldiers steal crops and gains from the populace, swearing that they are merely doing 'inspections'. Forcibly separating people from their goods is mockingly referred to as 'taxation'.

## History

Already before getting conquered, either by Tabortisky or another warlord, anarchism in the Free Territory had been actively undermined by those sworn to protect it. Under the leadership of Ivan Stepanov, high ranking officers of the Black Army sought to bring an end to anarchism from within. One of their number was Androniy Mishurenko, the oldest of the generals of the Army yet still aiming his sights high.

With the myriad of genocidal campaigns of the Holy Russian Empire, not much remained of Russia nor the Siberian Black Army, yet two figures of importance remained: Yevgeniya Taratuta and Androniy Mishurenko, both at odds as to what anarchism still meant. Taratuta retaining the egalitarian philosophy the Free Territory originally espoused and an ultra-individualist reading of it espoused by Mishurenko. With clashes intensifying between the two warlords, soon the time for war would come.

## Military

The Vanguard largely consists of those Black Army soldiers that survived the nightmare of Taboritsky's empire. In high spirits and intensely loyal to Mishurenko, they are a serious force to be reckoned with in the wasteland. Yet their small number, compared to Taratuta's forces, means that their victory is far from assured.

## Politics

Mishurenko's interpretation of anarchism sees absolute freedom for himself and his men. To drink, plunder and kill as they please. In practice this means that despite their ostensible anarchist rhetoric and garb, the Vanguard operates as a *de facto* bandit state: the people being largely left to their own devices in their day to day lives, but the soldiers of the Vanguard being free to steal and plunder from the populace as they please. Even killing civilians should they get in the way of their robberies.

## Trivia

* The Vanguard is the only warlord arising from the collapse of the Holy Russian Empire to declare war on another warlord before the end of their event chain.
* Albeit non-canon, the Vanguard is also the only post-Taboritsky warlord explicitly stated to be on the verge of collapse should the player re-unify Russia with them.