The Technocracy States of Azzarel is a titanic, orderly nation, ruled by The Shepherd with an iron fist, and notable for its compulsory military service, otherworldly petting zoo, and flagrant waste-dumping. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless population of 19.433 billion Azzas are ruled with an iron fist by the corrupt, dictatorship government, which oppresses anyone who isn't on the board of a Fortune 500 company. Large corporations tend to be above the law, and use their financial clout to gain ever-increasing government benefits at the expense of the poor and unemployed.

The relatively small, corrupt, moralistic, pro-business, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Industry, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Airstrip One. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 22.6%.

The frighteningly efficient Azza economy, worth a remarkable 6,498 trillion Credits a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Retail and Arms Manufacturing. Black market activity is rampant. Average income is an amazing 334,412 Credits, with the richest citizens earning 9.0 times as much as the poorest.

The government is full of esquivalience, resident physicians are said to have a silver scalpel in their hands, the cruise missile launchers on the field hospital roof are purely deterrent in purpose, and parents must decide between buying food and taking their children to the park. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Azzarel's national animal is the Meerkat, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

Azzarel is ranked 650^th in the world and 17^th in The North Pacific for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring 12,222.44 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.