The Watchfires of Ara-1 is a titanic, environmentally stunning nation, notable for its ubiquitous missile silos, free-roaming dinosaurs, and unlimited-speed roads. The hard-nosed, cynical, humorless, devout population of 21.532 billion Ara-1ians 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 Law & Order, Defense, and Education. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 62.7%.

The all-consuming Ara-1ian economy, worth a remarkable 2,285 trillion $$s a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Information Technology, and Uranium Mining. Black market activity is frequent. State-owned companies are common. Average income is an impressive 106,127 $$s, but there is a significant disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 364,097 per year while the poor average 22,703, a ratio of 16.0 to 1.

Warfare increasingly resembles a video game, a favorite "life hack" for gap year backpackers is to pretend to be homeless for government handouts, professional athletes juggle part-time jobs to avoid bankruptcy, and the roundel of the Ara-1ian Air Force has become an internationally recognized symbol of destruction. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Ara-1's national animal is the Death's-head hawkmoth, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Ara-1 is ranked 149,530^th in the world and 1^st in Aragon for Largest Publishing Industry, scoring 1,849.68 on the Bella Potter Productivity e-Index.