The Collapse occured when Rasputin lowered then Shield with then sole intention of killing as many people as he could without destroying humanity (it was to generate light, which is human souls). All the Dead people in Old Russia were those trying to flee during the Collapse.
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Where did you read yhis information regarding rasputin?
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It's one of the Grimoire cards about the darkness
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And if the player character was among those people, they could not have died pre-Traveller, could they?