Vitalii B. Horbach (Kratos)

Vitaliy Borysovych Horbach was born on October 18, 1985, in the city of Mena in Chernihiv Oblast. Vitaliy is from that generation that was shaped during the spread of gaming consoles. His true passion for video games began with the first "Dendy," which was gifted to him by his uncle. Over time, Vitaliy had not just one but an entire collection of gaming consoles. Back then, children and teenagers spent almost the entire day engaged in virtual battles. Vitaliy had many favorite characters, but the one he respected the most was Kratos, the main character from the "God of War" video game series. Perhaps due to the apparent resemblance to him, Kratos became Vitaliy's call sign in the war. Immediately after graduating from the Mena Gymnasium, Vitaliy enlisted for mandatory military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. After 1.5 years, upon returning from the army, he worked in security services. He gained his first combat experience in 2014 when military actions began in Eastern Ukraine. He was mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine and served for over a year in Donbas. After demobilization in 2015, he returned to his hometown. He served in the separate special forces unit of the National Guard of Ukraine "Azov" since 2019. In January 2022, his contract was ending, and Vitaliy decided to extend it. On March 15, 2022, he was killed in battles against the aggressor during the defense of the city of Mariupol. On August 6, 2022, Vitaliy Horbach was buried at the central cemetery in the city of Mena, Chernihiv Oblast.