The Republic of Zarlan is a huge, socially progressive nation, remarkable for its daily referendums, irreverence towards religion, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate population of 655 million Zarlanians enjoy extensive civil rights and enjoy a level of social equality free from the usual accompanying government corruption.

The medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Education, and Welfare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Zarlan City. The average income tax rate is 44.9%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The very strong Zarlanian economy, worth 53.8 trillion Zaris a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Trout Farming, Tourism, and Book Publishing. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 82,188 Zaris, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Zarlanians seem to be catching more chills, atheists in the nation feel uneasy living in buildings where they were once vilified, judicial torture is outsourced overseas, and the government has started a campaign to crack down on road rage and encourage alternate means of commuting. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Zarlan's national animal is the leopard, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Zarlan is ranked 289,617^th in the world and 2,306^th in the West Pacific for Highest Unexpected Death Rate, scoring 24.28 on the Bus Surprisal Index.