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Attention, Empire Citizens!
This article or section may contain older content that is now considered non-canon.
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If you ask any inhabitant of the Taiga who is the strongest man in the land, you will invariably get the same answer, Ilja of Murova. This grim and skilled hunter has won every contest of strength in Kislev during the last twenty years. Once, by the personal request of the Tzarina, he wrestled a great grizzly bear unarmed and emerged victorious. Ilja of Murova is a bear of a man, standing well over seven feet tall. His hair is already showing signs of greying, but he has lost nothing of his skill with the bow or axe. His arms and shoulders are as mighty as ever, and no one, even amongst the Sibyrians, dare to challenge him in a contest of power. There are even those who believe that Ilja has been blessed by the gods with the spirit of a Great Bear. Ilja hunts alone, for the prey that he searches is far too dangerous. He openly challenges the creatures of Chaos and the Beastman Warbands, bringing their hides to the feet of the Tzarina in the yearly Summer Fair. In wartime Ilja is always the first man to stand beside the ruler of Kislev, and his awesome strength is welcomed by all.[1a]
Ilja is almost literally a bear of a man and therefore is able to take far more punishment than a normal man.[1b]