The Most Serene Republic of Hythos is a huge, safe nation, notable for its museums and concert halls, irreverence towards religion, and punitive income tax rates. The compassionate, democratic population of 597 million Hythosians are free to do what they want with their own bodies, and vote for whomever they like in elections; if they go into business, however, they are regulated to within an inch of their lives.

The large, liberal, socially-minded, outspoken government juggles the competing demands of Education, Administration, and Welfare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Makrinopolis. The average income tax rate is 78.3%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The powerhouse Hythosian economy, worth 59.3 trillion Bits 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 Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Book Publishing, Beef-Based Agriculture, and Tourism. Average income is 99,359 Bits, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

The Supreme Court vehemently protects civil rights and the right to privacy, attendance of fathers at PTA meetings is at an all-time high, too many developers spoil the codebase, and the Treasury has been accused of flushing money down the toilet. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Hythos's national animal is the Open-water Platypus, which frolics freely in the nation's sparkling oceans.

Hythos is ranked 175,115^th in the world and 37^th in Trica for Largest Manufacturing Sector, scoring 7,017.99 on the Gooback-Jerbs Productivity Index.