Koschei the Deathless
Note: While Koschei is in the public domain, the portions of his history that are specific to the Reese Unlimited universe (third paragraph under Background) are copyright Barry Reese 2024.

ADVANTAGES: Contact (The Assembly) -3D, Contact (Russian Government) -4D, Intimidating Grin -2D, Leadership Ability -2D
DISADVANTAGES: Enemy (The Dark Society) +6D, Narcissistic +3D

NOTE: Koschei’s greatest power is his ability to store his soul (sometimes called his “death”) into an inanimate object. As long as his soul is safely locked away, he gains the Invulnerability, Resurrection, and Healing (self-only) powers listed below. If the object containing his soul is destroyed, his soul returns to Koschei’s body and he loses all three of those powers — meaning he can be harmed, defeated, and even killed. He can automatically succeed in placing his soul into an object but it does require a ritual that takes approximately fifteen minutes to complete.

POWERS: Sorcery 15D, Longevity 5D, Invulnerability 10D (Limitation: Removeable), Heal (Self-Only) 12D (Limitation: Removeable), Resurrection 40D (Limitation: Removeable)

BACKGROUND: Koschei is an archetypal male antagonist in Russian folklore. Koschei is a common villain in east-Slavic folk tales. He usually functions as the antagonist or rival to a hero. Common themes are love and rivalry. In other tales, Koschei can cast a sleep spell that can be broken by playing an enchanted gusli. Depending on the tale he has different characteristics: he may ride a three- or seven-legged horse; may have tusks or fangs; and may possess a variety of different magic objects (like cloaks and rings) that a hero is sent to obtain; or he may have other magic powers. In one tale he has eyelids so heavy he requires servants to lift them. The parallel female figure, Baba Yaga, as a rule does not appear in the same tale with Koschei, though exceptions exists where both appear together as a married couple, or as siblings. Sometimes, Baba Yaga appears in tales along with Koschei as an old woman figure, such as his mother or aunt

The most common feature of tales involving Koschei is a spell which prevents him from being killed. He hides “his death” inside nested objects to protect it. For example, his death may be hidden in a needle that is hidden inside an egg, the egg is in a duck, the duck is in a hare, the hare is in a chest, the chest is buried or chained up on a far island. Usually he takes the role of a malevolent rival figure, who competes for (or entraps) a male hero’s love interest.

In the Reese Unlimited universe, Koschei was placed in suspended animation that lasted until the modern day. Once freed by Mr. Justice, who mistakenly believed Koschei to be a victim of unknown forces, Koschei allied himself with the Russian government in exchange for a place to stay and access to modern technology. While the government put Koschei in command of their superhuman task force (The Assembly), Koschei recruited Octobriana to the cause and moved his soul into a new artifact. Koschei intended to use The Assembly to launch a nuclear war, one which would leave Russia as the supreme force on the planet. Unfortunately for Koschei, the Dark Society managed to put a halt to his plans, successfully locating his hidden soul. This allowed Koschei to be defeated — but they stopped short of killing him, choosing instead to turn him over to a world court for crimes against humanity. Thanks to a spell cast by Catalyst, he is currently unable to transfer his soul from his body, ensuring that he remains a prisoner. The Assembly continues on without him.