The Holy Empire of Histarctica is a massive, safe nation, ruled by Emperor Conrad II with an iron fist, and remarkable for its public floggings, frequent executions, and smutty television. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, devout population of 1.931 billion Histarcticans are kept under strict control by the oppressive government, which measures its success by the nation's GDP and refers to individual citizens as "human resources."

The medium-sized, corrupt, moralistic, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Education, and Healthcare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Entioch. The average income tax rate is 33.9%.

The powerhouse Histarctican economy, worth 184 trillion Imperial Kroner a year, is fairly diversified and led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Book Publishing, and Information Technology. Black market activity is notable. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 95,376 Imperial Kroner, with the richest citizens earning 5.3 times as much as the poorest.

Those who turn the other cheek seem to enjoy being slapped just a little too much, what's in your genes matters more than what's in your jeans, newspapers are running a front-page picture of Emperor Conrad II holding a crowbar and standing over a bloodied stockbroker, and police are trained in using their steel-capped boots as a tool of law enforcement. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Histarctica's national animal is the wolf, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is Church of Light.

Histarctica is ranked 258,606^th in the world and 11^th in Imperial Sanctuary for Nicest Citizens, with 0.96 average smiles per day.