Chernov

"This is not war. This is murder!"

- Chernov after the execution of a German POW

Private Chernov (Russian: Чернов) was a Red Army soldier in Call of Duty: World at War. He was one of the main characters that followed the player through most of the Russian campaign.

Biography
Chernov first appeared in "Their Land, Their Blood" as one of the soldiers under Sergeant Reznov's command, and with the latter rescued Dimitri Petrenko from three Germans. When Reznov ordered Chernov to execute the dying Nazis, he displayed a pacifist nature by refusing to shoot fatally wounded German soldiers that were already bleeding to death. Reznov responds by handing Dimitri Petrenko a Mosin-Nagant rifle, saying, "Then maybe our friend will help them (the Germans) bleed faster." After rescuing Dimitri, Chernov and the others pushed into the German countryside, clearing a barn and a nearby German camp. He and the others then boarded the commandeered train bound to Berlin and pushed the Germans further into the German Capital and eventually reached the city itself. In the beginning of the level "Eviction", a group of Russians killed a German soldier that was begging for mercy and Chernov said "This is not war, this is murder." After ferocious close quarters fighting in a building, and after battling the desperate German troops on the city streets, the squad reached a metro in which three surviving German troops begged not to be killed. After Dimitri decided what to do with the Germans, they entered the metro, and fought until they got to the end of it. Chernov, Reznov, and Dimitri barely escaped with their lives when the metro they were in was flooded by Germans in an attempt to kill the advancing Soviets. After surviving the tunnel flood, Chernov was seen trying to dry off his diary. Reznov then took his diary and said to Chernov, "Which do you think will lead us home? Writing about this war, or fighting it!? No one will ever read this! If you lack the stomach to kill for your country, at least show me you are willing to die for it!" Chernov then took the Red Army flag with him and fought through German infantry defending the Reichstag. When Chernov reached the stairway leading to the Reichstag entrance, he was wounded by a flamethrower-wielding German and fell to the ground coughing and burned. Reznov sympathetically took his diary saying "Someone should read this", in a blatant reversal of his earlier statements. At the beginning of the level "Downfall", Reznov (in a voice-over) read a portion of Chernov's diary, discussing Dimitri. Depending on the player's actions through the game, Chernov either disdained Dimitri, viewed him in a more conflicted light, or acknowledged him as a true hero. He was presumed dead as all the soldiers leave him behind.

Personality and Traits
Although Chernov was loyal to his country and a good soldier, he was a pacifist by nature and was dismayed by his comrades and their cruel and unmerciful methods of waging war against Wehrmacht soldiers (particularly Reznov), whose cold-blooded attitude towards the Germans he did not understand. He appeared to be nearly an opposite to Sergeant Reznov, shown by how he was against the unjust slaughter of the Germans (exemplified when he shouted in protest to the cruel execution of a German soldier, which in contrast, Reznov seemed to relish in). This manifests itself in the fact that Dimitri continuously received compliments from Reznov, while Chernov was always being degraded and told to be more like Dimitri ("Dimitri, you have earned the rest. CHERNOV! You have not.") Reznov thought that men like Chernov need to be toughened up and brought to the Red Army's poster-boy as more of a barbarian than what he was now. When Chernov was wounded by a flamethrower, Reznov actually showed concern, and came running to Chernov's aid. Reznov showed further sympathy towards him by taking his diary when he had possibly died, saying that someone should read it.

His clothing consisted of a standard Red Army uniform, with the addition of a cloth tied over his head like a bonnet. He used a Mosin-Nagant exclusively, even on levels in which the weapon is not readily available or not even available at all, which is the same for Pvt. Polonsky, of the American campaign, with his M1 Garand.

Quotes
"There is no point, Sergeant. They are already bleeding to death."

- Chernov's first words

"This is madness, our rockets are tearing the city apart!"

- Chernov in Eviction

"April 30th, 1945: When he first spoke of Dimitri, Reznov told tales of a hero. Someone we should all aspire to be like. At times, I have seen him show mercy, and at others, complete brutality. I do not understand him. Perhaps heroes need not question their actions."

- Chernov if Dimitri follows some of Reznov's merciless orders.

"April 30th, 1945. When he first spoke of Dimitri, Reznov told tales of a hero. Someone we should all aspire to be like. His merciless brutality defines in more ways a savage, just like the rest of the Red Army. He is no hero."

- Chernov if Dimitri follows all Reznov's merciless orders.

"April 30th, 1945: When he first spoke of Dimitri, Reznov told tales of a hero. Someone we should all aspire to be like. His bravery on the battlefield is beyond question, but he has also shown mercy amidst the brutality of The Red Army. He is indeed a hero."

- Chernov if Dimitri doesn't follow any of Reznov's merciless orders.

"Sergeant Reznov, you seem to relish in the slaughter."

- Chernov

Trivia

 * In the starting cut scene in "Their Land, Their Blood," the player can see Chernov picking up a diary which he found on the floor. This diary is seen several times later in the campaign.
 * As mentioned above, Chernov acquires the diary at the beginning of that level but in the opening cutscene of "Downfall," it says that the diary began in 1942.
 * When he is burned by a flamethrower his name is still displayed, and he also moves, twitches, and groans, possibly indicating that he might have survived. However, no evidence actually supports this apart from the looped animation.
 * Chernov uses a similar character model to Nikolai Belinski.
 * At the end of "Their Land, Their Blood," Reznov will stand on a tank and give a little speech about their victory over the Germans, and if the player looks at Chernov during this, the player can see his eyes popping out. This also happens with the remaining Russian soldiers.
 * If the player looks at his face, it looks like he had been burned before or something else had damaged his face/head, which is probably why he wears the blanket around his head to protect his previous injuries.
 * Despite Reznov seeming to hate him, Reznov seems to at least care about him a little, as he is seen showing concern for him when he is burned by a flamethrower.
 * In the level "Blood and Iron", when the Red Army is entering the train, the player can look to the left and they can see another soldier who looks like Chernov. It has been hinted to be Nikolai Belinski; however, may not because many skins are reused for AIs.
 * Sometimes his Mosin-Nagant can be seen firing semi-automatically, with no pause in between shots.
 * At the end of "Heart of the Reich," if the player points their gun at Chernov, the cross-hair color indicates that he is still alive.
 * In "Heart of the Reich", Chernov appears to react to grenades even after he is burned by the flamethrower, as he will shout "Grenade!" and "Look out!".
 * Chernov has a track from the Call of Duty: World at War soundtrack named after him.
 * Chernov dislikes the execution of the Germans soldiers throughout the war, this is evident in some missions of the game.