The Theocracy of Maria Sanctus is a tiny, environmentally stunning nation, notable for its compulsory military service, state-planned economy, and punitive income tax rates. The hard-nosed, cynical, devout population of 18 million Maria Sanctusians are ruled without fear or favor by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as "my little playthings."

The government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked, moralistic, socially-minded, well-organized morass — juggles the competing demands of Spirituality, Law & Order, and Administration. The average income tax rate is 77.9%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The struggling Maria Sanctusian economy, worth 351 billion Sheckels a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is quite specialized, is led by the Automobile Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Retail, Arms Manufacturing, and Furniture Restoration. Average income is 19,550 Sheckels, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Banning party poppers has been a real party pooper, drills and shovels have been banned as the government cracks down on any means of fracking, whales in captivity live in little more than glorified goldfish bowls, and refugees without a PhD are sent back to where they came from. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Maria Sanctus's national animal is the White Dove, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Maria Sanctus is ranked 35,173^rd in the world and 35^th in The Land of Kings and Emperors for Most Primitive, scoring 66.59 on the Scary Big Number Scale.