Vassili Schlossman (250 points)


Vassili can claim to be a descendent from the direct bloodline of the vampiric aristocrats who aided Vlad in securing his position of Drakenhof when he first arrived there from the north. Held in the highest esteem by other Counts for his ancestry, Vassili has blemished his reputation by flirting with the aristocracy of the Empire and preying excessively upon young, beautiful women. It is rumoured that Isabella von Carstein once gave her attentions to Vassili before she married Vlad, though whether this is true is unknown and Vlad ignores her mortal past.

After the siege of Altdorf, Vassili fled to Sylvania to become the right hand man of Konrad von Cartein and aided him in his frequent insane invasions of the Empire. Before the battle of Grim Moor Vassili slipped away, for he could see that Konrad's madness would lead to the destruction of all Sylvanian Vampires. In Mannfred's reign, he fought occasionally but never openly declared his allegiance and his relationship with the Carsteins firmly ended before Hel Fenn. During the Witch Hunter purges of Sylvania during Mannfred's retreat, Vassili slipped away north west, travelling speedily in his black carriage to Moussillon where he was able to conceal himself from the watchful eyes of the inquisitors for only the foolhardy would enter Moussillon in search of the damned. A plentiful supply of corpses were available thanks to continuous outbreaks of the Pox and allowed Vassili to build a retinue. Soon he will reveal himself to the Bretonnian rulers and no doubt launch another vampiric invasion of the old world. But then again, Vassili is not like the others, he is more subtle, more cunning and so when he once more stirs the old world will tremble in the face of a completely new horror.

Weapons/Armour: Vassili carries a hand weapon.

may ride: Vassili may ride a skeleton steed.

Magic Items: Vassili may up to 2 magic items.



Special Rules

Commanding the Rats
Like many other Vampires Vassili has power over rodents, and can command swarms of rats to attack his enemies. Every magic phase, Vassili calls upon the rats to gather. From their burrows in the ground or from rotting corpses they rush towards him, gathering as a large mass. Use the Vermin Tide template. Vassili can then command the rats to move 18". Any model the Vermin Tide template passes over suffers an automatic S3 hit with a -1 save. The rats cannot cross rivers except over bridges. Vassili summons count as a spell and may be dispelled as normal. No power cards are needed to cast this and the ability never expires.

Seductive Charm
Vassili's handsome if pallid complexion yields a seductive aura that creates a greater attraction to his victims. Any female model in base contact with Vassili must take their Ld test against the Hypnotic Gaze with a -1 modifier to their Ld. This aura has no effect upon males. Vassili has a notorious reputation among the other vampiric families for his irresistible charm and he became known by many as Vassili the Seducer. When numerous young women vanish without explanation, vampires will say that Vassili it close by.