The Empire of Free Zaun is a massive, cultured nation, ruled by Emperor Silco with an iron fist, and renowned for its museums and concert halls, keen interest in outer space, and frequent executions. The hard-nosed, cynical, devout population of 3.665 billion Zaunites are ruled without fear or favor by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as "my little playthings."

The large, corrupt, moralistic, socially-minded, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Law & Order, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of New Zaun. The average income tax rate is 61.6%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The large but underdeveloped Free Zaunian economy, worth 133 trillion Golden Hexes a year, is quite specialized and mostly made up of the Trout Farming industry, with significant contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Book Publishing, and Information Technology. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 36,318 Golden Hexes, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Rural Zaunites stare in awe at the bright lights of the big cities, recent events have left citizens both shaken and stirred, taxpayers cringe whenever someone brings up the Former Antagonist Reparations Treaty, and short shrift is being given to applications for political asylum from illegal immigrants. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Free Zaun's national animal is the Poro, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is The Nine Divines.

Free Zaun is ranked 54,328^th in the world and 2^nd in The League of Empires for Lowest Crime Rates, with 73.03 law-abiding acts per hour.