The Republic of Ulm 358 is a massive, orderly nation, renowned for its ubiquitous missile silos, smutty television, and restrictive gun laws. The compassionate, cynical, humorless, devout population of 1.443 billion Ulm 358ians are kept under strict control by the oppressive government, which measures its success by the nation's GDP and refers to individual citizens as "human resources."

The medium-sized, corrupt, moralistic, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Education, Law & Order, and Defense. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 69.9%.

The frighteningly efficient Ulm 358ian economy, worth 176 trillion Ducats a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a slick, highly efficient black market in Information Technology, Arms Manufacturing, Tourism, and Beef-Based Agriculture. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is an impressive 122,619 Ducats, but there is a large disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 548,102 per year while the poor average 17,013, a ratio of 32.2 to 1.

Funeral directors are frequently looking at their watches during funerals, criticism of Leader is considered unpatriotic, the police double as repo men, and when shaking hands with foreign leaders Leader wears an armoured gauntlet. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Ulm 358's national animal is the Bear, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Ulm 358 is ranked 170,695^th in the world and 153^rd in Swabian autonomous region for Largest Gambling Industry, scoring 193.42 on the Kelly Criterion Productivity Index.