The Burnt World of Athas is a gargantuan, orderly nation, ruled by Tithian of Mericles with an iron fist, and renowned for its fear of technology, free-roaming dinosaurs, and hatred of cheese. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless population of 18.821 billion Athasians are ruled by a mostly-benevolent dictator, who grants the populace the freedom to live their own lives but watches carefully for anyone to slip up.

The medium-sized, corrupt, well-organized government is primarily concerned with Defense, with Industry, Environment, and Education also on the agenda, while Welfare and Social Policy are ignored. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Tyr. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 91.2%.

The frighteningly efficient Athasian economy, worth a remarkable 7,860 trillion gold pieces a year, is mostly comprised of black market activity, especially in Gambling, Arms Manufacturing, Retail, and Tourism. Average income is an amazing 417,641 gold pieces, but there is an enormous disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 2,351,872 per year while the poor average 36,569, a ratio of 64.3 to 1.

Thri-kreens that venture near secret military bases are routinely executed for espionage, chalkboards are replaced with billboards in the classroom, newly synthesized elements' half-lives are a million times shorter than the time it takes to say their names, and the national guard is mobilized whenever a mother gets separated from her child at the mall. Crime, especially youth-related, is so common that it is unusual to encounter someone following the law, with the police force struggling against a lack of funding and a high mortality rate. Athas's national animal is the Thri-kreen, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Psionics.

Athas is ranked 64,884^th in the world and 5^th in Athas for Most Popular Tourist Destinations, with 1,001.96 Tourists Per Hour.