Andrei Korisov was a master gunsmith in Russia, who had taught himself to read and calculate ballistics, and had even managed to move himself from the Streltzi to the service nobility. He was originally assigned to Natalia Gorchakovna's research and development center ("the Dacha"), where he was considered good at his job, but a very irritating person. After explaining that he could not duplicate Bernie Zeppi's up-time .30-06 rifle except as a handcrafted item that would have to be made one at a time, he was assigned to come up with something that could be produced.