The Commonwealth of Mariinsk is a massive, cultured nation, ruled by Petra Bedernjak with an even hand, and remarkable for its keen interest in outer space, state-planned economy, and punitive income tax rates. The hard-nosed population of 1.599 billion Mariinskians 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 medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Law & Order, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Muromii. The average income tax rate is 68.9%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Mariinskian economy, worth 226 trillion Rubles a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is fairly diversified, is led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Book Publishing, and Arms Manufacturing. Average income is an impressive 141,733 Rubles, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.0 times as much as the poorest.

High school bands practice by moonlight, angry disenfranchised AIs attempt to hijack the bodies of comatose hospital patients, citizens receive notices of disenfranchisement along with their parking tickets, and guide dogs for the blind have been seen using government websites. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Mariinsk's national animal is the red deer, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is the United National Church of Mariinsk.

Mariinsk is ranked 9,330^th in the world and 198^th in the Rejected Realms for Largest Publishing Industry, scoring 13,461.25 on the Bella Potter Productivity e-Index.