The Empire of Woodsmere is a mammoth, safe nation, ruled by Provisional Government with an even hand, and renowned for its strictly enforced bedtime, frequent executions, and anti-smoking policies. The hard-nosed, hard-working, humorless population of 5.355 billion Meares are highly moralistic and fiercely conservative, in the sense that they tend to believe most things should be outlawed. People who have good jobs and work quietly at them are lauded; others are viewed with suspicion.

The medium-sized, corrupt, moralistic government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Education, and Industry. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Wassenstad. The average income tax rate is 69.9%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Woodsmerean economy, worth 939 trillion Tokens a year, is fairly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Tourism, Arms Manufacturing, and Beef-Based Agriculture. Average income is an impressive 175,459 Tokens, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.1 times as much as the poorest.

The government thinks Meares can achieve social cohesion by drinking soda together, the government is on the side of working people (like CEOs, bankers and billionaires), when shaking hands with foreign leaders Provisional Government wears an armoured gauntlet, and innocent defendants often plead guilty for fear of receiving a much harsher sentence before jury. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Woodsmere's national animal is the Hare, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Catholicism.

Woodsmere is ranked 114,000^th in the world and 12^th in Kryndel for Largest Gambling Industry, scoring 1,352.22 on the Kelly Criterion Productivity Index.