The Most Serene Republic of Mercantile Expanse is a very large, safe nation, remarkable for its public floggings, keen interest in outer space, and irreverence towards religion. The compassionate, hard-working population of 249 million Mercantile Expanseans 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 Healthcare, Law & Order, and Defense. The average income tax rate is 33.0%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The strong Mercantile Expansean economy, worth 13.9 trillion Mercantile Bucks a year, is broadly diversified and dominated by the Automobile Manufacturing industry, with significant contributions from Basket Weaving, Arms Manufacturing, and Information Technology. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 55,711 Mercantile Bucks, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 3.0 times as much as the poorest.

Lobotomies haven't been the same after the practice was severed, the silencing of dissent speaks volumes about the quality of Mercantile Expansean democracy, the Mercantile Expanse City Prison Revue puts on a better stage show than anything in the Theatre District, and sex offenders find themselves cut off from the ability to repeat their crimes. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Mercantile Expanse's national animal is the Lion, which can occasionally be seen sifting through garbage in the nation's cities.

Mercantile Expanse is ranked 292,062^nd in the world and 2^nd in Mercantile Pursuits for Largest Populations, with 249 million capita.