The Empire of Appalachya is a massive, socially progressive nation, remarkable for its barren, inhospitable landscape, pith helmet sales, and spontaneously combusting cars. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic population of 1.255 billion Appalachyans have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.

The relatively small government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Law & Order, and Education. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 8.8%.

The strong Appalachyan economy, worth 77.8 trillion Dollars a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Automobile Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Book Publishing, and Uranium Mining. Average income is 62,005 Dollars, with the richest citizens earning 9.4 times as much as the poorest.

Government projects are full of waste, surrealist houses shaped like mushrooms and volcanoes dominate the wealthiest neighborhoods, the diplomatic corps tends to open negotiations by insulting all the foreigners in the room, and every microwave and toaster is being disassembled and probed by inspectors. Crime, especially youth-related, is well under control, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Appalachya's national animal is the Eagle, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to toxic air pollution.

Appalachya is ranked 147,469^th in the world and 2^nd in Appalachia for Most Scientifically Advanced, scoring 75.17 on the Kurzweil Singularity Index.