Emergency Session of the Soviet Presidium, 1953

Single Delegate

It is March 1953, and Joseph Stalin is dead. No clear successor has emerged, leaving only a powerful circle of rivals within the Presidium, each with their own vision for advancing the Soviet Union. Security officials move to consolidate control over intelligence networks and internal order, military leaders grapple with suppressing unrest in the Eastern Bloc, and political elites maneuver to preserve ideological authority while filling the void Stalin has left behind. Alliances are fragile, distrust is pervasive, and espionage—both within the Soviet system and beyond—quickly becomes central to how power will be divided.

At the same time, the Union faces mounting pressure. Satellite governments grow increasingly rebellious, strained economic conditions fuel internal instability, and competing chains of command create uncertainty across the state and military apparatus. Delegates must navigate this pivotal moment by balancing their individual ambitions with the broader goals of the Presidium and the Union. Each decision carries consequences, and missteps may deepen the crisis rather than resolve it. Delegates must form shrewd alliances, respond decisively to unrest, and construct new structures of leadership to reestablish authority and preserve—and ultimately strengthen—the Soviet Union at this moment of profound vulnerability.