- "Dearest of All My Friends"
- ―Vladimir Lem's catchphrase
Vladimir "Vlad" Lem (Russian: Владимир Лем) is the deuteragonist of Max Payne, and the main antagonist of Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. He is a Russian mobster who runs in the arms trade and was in war with the Punchinello Crime Family during the Valkyr Case.
He helps Max Payne obtain weapons against the Punchinellos. Despite being friends with Max, he is responsible for an attempted assassination on Max and was leader of the Cleaners, the main antagonistic force in Max Payne 2.
He is killed by Max for his treasonous actions and for killing Mona Sax before dying of wounds and falling to his death.
Biography[]
Background[]
Not much is known about Vlad's life. It is unknown if he was born in Russia or the United States. At some point in his life, Vlad was exposed to the world of drugs and gangs. He became a weapons dealer sometime after.
In New York City, Vlad started his own Russian Mob. The Mob's main enemies were the Punchinello Crime Family.
Vlad restarted a brutal and bloody mob war with the Punchinello family. Vlad, however, was not the instigator of this war as according to a letter written by Vinnie Gognitti, the mob had made a hit on his weapons shipments which was believed to have left the Russians too weak to fight back. [1]
A side-conflict in the war was the rivalry between Vlad and Gognitti; the two hated and wanted to kill each other.
Lem was also the protégé of Alfred Woden, the central member of the Inner Circle.
2001[]
First actions[]
Vlad meeting Max, and offering him some help
In 2001, Vladimir Lem is first seen driving away from Jack Lupino's bombed out apartment building, after setting a powerful bomb near the place, thus continuing the gang war between the Russian and Italian mobs.
"An Offer You Can't Refuse"[]
Vladimir returns to help Max out. After hearing about him killing so many mobsters, Vlad arrives back at the hotel to give Max a lift, to propose a truce and to make him "an offer he couldn't refuse:" Sending Max to kill one of his former lieutenants, Boris Dime, who has crossed over to Punchinello's side.
Max complies and, following with Vlad's apparent code of ethics, he allows Max to use some of his weaponry and promises to help whenever he wants.
2003[]
Second Mob War[]
In 2003, the war has heated up some, but thanks to Max Payne's help, the Russians were able to hit back at the mafia harder than ever, leaving Lem a very successful man, wearing expensive suits and running the old Ragna Rock nightclub, renamed "Vodka". But Lem soon becomes greedy and decides to wipe out the mob completely. Moreover, Lem decides to rid himself of Max by placing a hit on him.
Mona Sax is the one who shot Lem in the arm during one of their run-ins. That is why he is in an arm sling when Max saves him at Vodka.
Revelations[]
- "Vlad had lied. The cleaning company commandos were his men."
- ―Max Payne
Lem dates Winterson, Max's partner. She is in love with him, attracted by him due to his attention to her and her blind child. When Vlad captures both Max and Vinnie at Mona's hideout, he shoots Max in the head for the "insults done to his lady;" aka Max killing Winterson. He then blows up Vinnie with his "Trojan Horse" - a giant Captain BaseBallBat-Boy costume with a bomb in it, thus ending the two men's rivalry. Before he shoots Max, he tells him Alfred Woden sent the Valhalla files to the D.A., which, in return, had gotten Michelle Payne killed.
Eventually, Max finds out the many truths about Lem: he is an Inner Circle member, the Cleaning Company commandos are his men, and he is leading the coup d'état against Woden.
Final Battle and Death[]
Vlad confronting Alfred Woden
When Lem arrives at Woden's Manor, he leads an attack against Woden; Woden's own bodyguards betray him and join Lem. Max and Mona Sax go there as well to stop and kill Lem. Near Woden's panic room, Mona tries to kill Max on Woden's orders, but realizes that she cannot. That's when Lem shoots Mona in the back. Woden then comes out and tells Lem to stop the killing, and tries to disarm the Russian himself, only to be shot and killed. Max then attacks Lem and disarms him. During the fight with Max, Lem detonates the bomb under them, causing the floor to collapse. Then he makes a run for it, throwing whatever he has left at Max, but Max manages to get through all the guards. In the end, Lem reaches the top part of the manor, a platform from where he throws explosives. Max shoots the weak points of the platform, causing Lem to get close enough to him so that the cop can get a shot at him. As the remains of the platform collapse down together with Lem and his Molotovs, his corpse falls down on the ground floor burning.
Equipment and Tactics[]
Vlad is extremely fond of explosives, often using bombs to eliminate his enemies. In Max Payne, he uses a series of bombs to destroy the slum buildings being used by Jack Lupino as a base of operations. In Max Payne 2, he kills Vinnie Gognitti with a Captain BaseBallBat-Boy costume rigged with explosives, and also plans to blow up Alfred Woden's mansion with a massive quantity of explosive charges.
In Max Payne 2, Vlad primarily wields a Desert Eagle, which he uses to fight off Vinnie Gognitti and his goons during Vinnie's attack on the Vodka club, and later during his attack on Alfred Woden's manor, using it to kill Mona Sax and Alfred Woden. Vlad loses the gun in a struggle with Max Payne; after losing all his own weapons, Max picks up Vlad's Desert Eagle and promises to give it back to Vlad, "one bullet at a time."
During the final battle between Max and Vlad, Vlad wields an M4 Carbine, Molotov Cocktails, and bundles of timed explosives. He'll initially shoot at Max while retreating to the roof of the mansion. After taking cover in the large hanging structure in the attic, Vlad will periodically throw timed explosives at Max from concealment. After Max forces Vlad out of cover by destroying the hanging structure by targeting its supports, Vlad makes a last stand strafing back and forth while firing with his M4 and throwing Molotov Cocktails. Similar to Kaufman, Vlad has more health than a normal enemy or even a Commando or Mike, but still dies quickly after several hits from an assault rifle. Vlad has about 4 times the amount of health as most regular enemies, but does not wear body armor. He also does not take extra damage from headshots.
Appearances[]
- Max Payne
- Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
- Max Payne 3
- Multiplayer via Classic Character Pack[2]
- Max Payne 3 comics
- "Hoboken Blues" (Mentioned only)
- "Fight and Flight" (Appears in flashback(s))
Quotes[]
- "Bang. You're dead, Max Payne."
- ―Seeing Max Payne
- "Have no fear, Vlad is here!"
- ―One of Vladimir's catchphrases
- "Dearest of all my friends!"
- ―One of Vladimir's catchphrases
- "You should be glad, Max. I did you a favor, finished off your revenge for you. The murderer of your loved ones is dead."
- ―When Vlad is attacking Max near the top of Woden's Manor
- "Ha ha ha, that was...Max, dearest of all my friends, I was supposed to be the hero..."
- ―Vlad's last words
- "Annie was a princess. They killed her for no reason."
- ―Vlad talking about Annie Finn
Gallery[]
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ http://www.giantbomb.com/vladimir-lem/94-2933/
- ↑ "Announcing the Max Payne 3 Special Edition" on the Rockstar Newswire Retrieved November 21, 2011
External links[]
| Max Payne • Alex Balder • B.B. • Jim Bravura • Vincent Gognitti • Nicole Horne • Mona Sax • Vladimir Lem • Jack Lupino • Michelle Payne • Angelo Punchinello • Alfred Woden
Candy Dawn • Boris Dime • Finito Brothers • Rico Muerte • Frankie Niagara • Rose Payne • Lisa Punchinello • Kyra Silver • The Trio |
| Max Payne • Mona Sax • Jim Bravura • Vincent Gognitti • Kaufman • Vladimir Lem • Mike • Valerie Winterson • Alfred Woden
Andrews • Broussard • Clay • Corcoran • Ed • Feller • Annie Finn • Mary • Miller • Mitchum • Petersburg • Violet Sebastian Gate • Max Heat • Magdalena • Laura Norder • Kyra Silver • Sammy Waters |