Mikhail Kuznetsov

## Background

Kuznetsov was born in 38 BBY into a peasant family in a farming village on the planet of Pasmin in the Outer Rim. His father, a Tatooine immigrant, had settled in Pasmin with his mother who was an Arkinean native. He would spend most of his childhood life in this backwater world where he would grow a fondness for space travel from the stories his father would tell him, while his mother would teach him early on, the values of honesty, humility and kindness wherever he went. By 22 BBY, right before the outbreak of the Clone Wars, at the age of 16, Kuznetsov had left Pasmin with his father towards Coruscant to help his father find work. But the Chancellors declaration of war, motivated by the idea of adventure as well as his childhood love for starships, convinced his father to let him sign up for the Naval Academy, adding two years to his age to make himself eligible to serve. After about two years into academy training, he was rushed to the front lines to fill the officer gaps within the ever growing Republic Navy, from there he would fight until the end of the clone wars, after which he returned to Coruscant to finish the rest of his academy training. Upon graduation from Anaxes War College, this time into the Imperial Navy, Kuznetsov first service was on the cruiser Challenger, first as watch officer and then as First Lieutenant. In 16 BBY he took another course this time at the Anaxes War College where another four years later in 12 BBY he graduated after studying operational tactics, especially regarding Carrier Operations, despite the implementation of the Tarkin Doctrine which he viewed as Franky stupid. Upon graduation however, he was offered two options; desk job within the general staff or a command post on a starship, to which he chose the later. Kuznetsov successfully applied for the post of executive officer on cruiser Inexorable and within a year the young officer earned his next promotion. In 10 BBY Mikhail returned to the cruiser Challenger, this time as her commander, and under Kuznetsov the ship became an outstanding example of discipline and organization, quickly drawing attention to her young captain. From late 9 BBY to mid 8 BBY, Kuznetsov served on the frontlines of the Separatist Campaign in the outer rim, during the early stages of which he began to develop a strong dislike of the empire and its policies in the outer rim, becoming disillusioned of his service and commitment. On returning home to Pasmin however, he would come face to face with the Empire's cruelty and Xenophobia on his home planet, after learning of his mother's harassment and assault due to her Arkinean background, which would be the last straw. After securing his mother's safe passage offworld and her reunification with his father on Chandrila, he returned to the navy with a plan..... After being promoted to the rank of Flag officer, he personally requested command of an old Venator Class Star Destroyer. In the year 3 BBY, with the help of sympathetic crew members, rebel spies as we as hired mercenaries, an attack was staged on the destroyer while en route to Estaria, coupled with an onboard mutiny, carefully orchestrated by the implanted rebel cell within the crew and Kuznetsov himself. After a short but intense firefight, the vessel was firmly within rebel hands, with Kuznetsov being chosen by the new crew as their captain, officially sealing Mikhail Kuznetsovs defection into the Rebel Alliance and making it known to the rebellion by driving the cruiser to Yavin 4.

### Personality

Kuznetsov shares a unique combination of traits. Though soft-spoken, he can have very strong opinions and will fight tirelessly for an idea he believes in. Decisive and strong-willed, but will rarely use that energy for his personal gain. Mikhail acts with creativity, imagination, conviction, and sensitivity not to create an advantage, but to create balance. Egalitarianism and karma are very attractive ideas to him and he tends to believe that nothing would help the Galaxy so much as using love and compassion to soften the hearts of tyrants. Mikhail finds it easy to make connections with others as others do with him. He has a talent for warm, sensitive language, speaking in human terms, rather than with pure logic and fact. It makes sense that their friends and colleagues will come to think of him as a Quiet Extravert . However, they would all do well to remember that Kuznetsov needs time alone to decompress and recharge, and not to become too alarmed when he suddenly withdraws or disappears. He takes great care of others’ feelings, and he expects the favor to be returned – sometimes that means giving him the space he needs for a few days. Really, though, it is most important for him to remember to take care of himself. The passion of his convictions are perfectly capable of carrying them past his breaking point. If his zeal gets out of hand, he can find himself exhausted, unhealthy, and stressed. This becomes especially apparent when Mikhail finds himself up against conflict and criticism. His sensitivity forces him to do everything he can to evade these seemingly personal attacks. When the circumstances are unavoidable, however, he can fight back in highly irrational, and unhelpful ways.