The World of Cossack

The Great Hetman

Visionary leader, cunning diplomat, iron-willed in battle

Wants: Win freedom for the Cossack nation

Koshovyi Otaman, the Characternyk

Legendary warrior-sorcerer — bullets pass through him, armies flee at his name

Wants: Defend the Sich and crush every invader who dares approach

Gatekeeper of the Sich

Ancient as oak and iron, rooted to the island fortress he has held for thirty winters

Wants: Ride out from the Sich gate to guard the western approach across the rapids

Watchman of the Dnipro Rapids

Sharp-eyed and steppe-quiet, he reads the far bank the way the kobzar reads a song

Wants: Sally from the watchtower to guard the eastern flank and cry the alarm across the Wild Fields

The Undying

Cossack sorcerer — blades turn aside, fire bends around him

Wants: Shield the brotherhood with ancient steppe magic

The Blind Bard

Wandering minstrel who sees fate in his songs

Wants: Sing men to courage and keep the memory of the free people alive

Sea Ataman

Bold naval raider who struck Istanbul itself

Wants: Carry the Cossack banner wherever the enemy hides

The Reckless Prince

Prince-turned-Cossack, laughs in the face of death

Wants: Live free and die gloriously

The Hunter

Proud Ottoman overlord who demanded Cossack surrender

Wants: Subjugate the steppe and silence the Cossack defiance

Lord of the Crimea

The Sultan's most powerful vassal, commands the Tatar hordes

Wants: Sweep the Wild Fields clean and fill the slave markets of Kefe

Warden of Kefe

Grave and unhurried, a man who carries the weight of the sorrowful port he commands and does not pretend it is glory

Wants: Hold Kefe on the Black Sea and anchor the western flank of the Khanate

Commander of Ochakiv

Iron-disciplined and watchful, a janissary who lets his cannon speak before he does

Wants: Bar the Cossack path to the sea from the ramparts of Ochakiv on the Bug

The Whispering Flame

Mystic advisor who reads smoke and stars

Wants: Bend the will of heaven to the Sultan's cause

Eye of the Crescent

Court stargazer who times every campaign by celestial signs

Wants: Ensure the stars favor the Horde's advance

Tatar Wolf

Elite cavalry commander, master of lightning raids

Wants: Strike fast, vanish faster, leave nothing standing

The Black Rider

Ottoman heavy cavalryman, armored and relentless

Wants: Crush resistance under iron hooves