The Republic of Illuminating Winter is a gargantuan, orderly nation, renowned for its restrictive gun laws. The cynical population of 11.586 billion Illuminating Winterians 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, moralistic, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Defense, and Welfare. The average income tax rate is 25.5%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The Illuminating Winterian economy, worth 505 trillion baht a year, is led by the Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Trout Farming, Book Publishing, and Beef-Based Agriculture. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 43,595 baht, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.2 times as much as the poorest.

It is illegal to make racist remarks in public and the nation is ravaged by daily union strikes. Crime is almost non-existent, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Illuminating Winter's national animal is the falcon.

Illuminating Winter is ranked 176,492^nd in the world and 1^st in The Kingdom of Kvatch for Most Advanced Defense Forces, scoring 1,289.89 on the Total War Preparedness Rating.