These ships were designed to replace the Project 205 (NATO: Osa Class) missile boats. The Tarantul Missile Corvette (Raketnyy Kater RK) are smaller and less capable than the previous Nanuchka Class, though several knots faster. They feature the small hull and basic arrangement of the Pauk Class anti-submarine corvettes with a different propulsion system. They may be considered a better armed successors to the Osa Class missile boats.

In the Tarantul, both the single 76 mm main gun and the two 30 mm Gatling-type guns are used for air defence, together with a comprehensive electronic warfare suite. The corvettes were are built by the several shipyards. A version of these ships for coastal anti submarine warfare and patrol was developed as the Pauk class corvette or Project 12412. The first version was based on the Pauk Class hull, though with a significantly increased weight. Equipped with four P-15M Termit (NATO: SS-N-2 Styx) ship-to-ship missiles (either the 40 km range P-15 Termit missile or the later P-20 variant with 80 km range) and the associated radar targeting system.

Missile Corvette R-256 laid down at the Almaz Shipyard, Leningrad (yard No.404), commissioned 1982.

The corvette was part of the 41st brigade of missile boats of the Black Sea Fleet.

From 1987 missile corvette was renamed to Poltavskiy komsomolets.

In June 1990, was transferred to the Bulgarian Navy, where received a new name - Malniya (hull number 101).