The Federal Republic of Hedestand is a small, genial nation, renowned for its compulsory military service and suspicion of poets. The democratic population of 36 million Hedestandians enjoy a sensible mix of personal and economic freedoms, while the political process is open and the people's right to vote held sacrosanct.

The medium-sized, outspoken government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Defense, and Education. The average income tax rate is 31.6%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The Hedestandian economy, worth 1.75 trillion Pounds a year, is fairly diversified and led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Beef-Based Agriculture, and Basket Weaving. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 48,739 Pounds, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

East Lebatuckese luxury goods are plundered by the working class of Hedestand, hundreds of subterranean tunnels are being built as part of "Project Morlock", it is illegal to distribute Girl Guide Cookies without an advanced food hygiene diploma, and government-run screening operations remove embryos with severe genetic disorders. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Hedestand's national animal is the Stag.

Hedestand is ranked 32,963^rd in the world and 252^nd in Europeia for Safest, scoring 107.92 on the Bubble-Rapp Safety Rating.