The Cornelian Dominion of Maritzal is a titanic, cultured nation, ruled by Cornelius I with an iron fist, and notable for its barren, inhospitable landscape, keen interest in outer space, and compulsory gun ownership. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless population of 21.644 billion Maritzalians are ruled with an iron fist by the corrupt, dictatorship government, which oppresses anyone who isn't on the board of a Fortune 500 company. Large corporations tend to be above the law, and use their financial clout to gain ever-increasing government benefits at the expense of the poor and unemployed.

The tiny, corrupt, moralistic, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Defense, and Industry. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Meridian. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 61.5%.

The frighteningly efficient Maritzalian economy, worth an astonishing 11,820 trillion Pistas a year, is mostly comprised of black market activity, especially in Information Technology, Retail, Arms Manufacturing, and Book Publishing. Average income is a breathtaking 546,151 Pistas, but there is a significant disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 1,753,801 per year while the poor average 128,914, a ratio of 13.6 to 1.

People say that cubists are rubbish because they can't draw faces, credit scores fluctuate wildly with every change of government, scenic beaches are now protected by massive concrete walls, and aid workers deliver life-saving supplies with a devious gleam in their eyes. Crime, especially youth-related, is all-pervasive, with the police force struggling against a lack of funding and a high mortality rate. Maritzal's national animal is the Cat, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is The Order Of Our Lord Cornelius.

Maritzal is ranked 332,069^th in the world and 922^nd in Europe for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring -35.06 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.