The Grand Imperial Republic of Alardonia is a colossal, cultured nation, ruled by August Granver with an even hand, and renowned for its barren, inhospitable landscape, ubiquitous missile silos, and daily referendums. The hard-nosed, hard-working, devout population of 4.112 billion Alardonians are free to succeed or fail in life on their own merits; the successful tend to enjoy an opulent (but moralistic) lifestyle, while the failures can be seen crowding out most jails.

The relatively small, corrupt, pro-business government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Law & Order, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Avengelt. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 29.4%.

The frighteningly efficient Alardonian economy, worth 591 trillion Fonders a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Door-to-door Insurance Sales. Average income is an impressive 143,797 Fonders, but there is a large disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 576,050 per year while the poor average 24,085, a ratio of 23.9 to 1.

What's in your genes matters more than what's in your jeans, state-sanctioned torture is okay so long as there's no icky blood, spontaneous nocturnal decapitation is considered 'death by natural causes' for enemies of Alardonia, and for 25 Fonders tourists can gawk at the site of national tragedy. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Alardonia's national animal is the Gyrfalcon, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to toxic air pollution.

Alardonia is ranked 28,785^th in the world and 19^th in Mitteleuropa for Highest Average Incomes, with 143,797.43 Standard Monetary Units.