One of the strengths of the Dystopian Age setting is that it allows us to expand and develop concepts in ways where it simply wouldn’t be necessary for a single game. To illustrate this, let’s take a look at the mighty Imperium, one of the eight Great Powers of the era.

The Imperium is a relatively young power in the Dystopian Age, having been formed in the early nineteenth century by the political and economic unification of Prussia with Austria, Bavaria, Bohemia, Croatia-Slavonia, Denmark, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Serbia and Sweden. This, in turn, caused conflict with both French Republique over the Alsace region and the Russian Commonwealth over Finland.

The Imperium is often referred to by outsiders as the Prussian Imperium due to the dominant influence Prussia has in the group of nations, however, it is never referred to as such by member states (with the exception of the Prussians in private of course). In the eyes of their rivals, the people of the Imperium have a reputation for hard work and industry. They are seen as pragmatic, though somewhat arrogant and favouring austerity over artistry. Of course, although the Imperium itself is newly founded as an institution, the nations that comprise it have centuries of history and culture to draw upon. An individual is no more humourless, austere and artless than a Frenchman, Turk or an Irishman. But as the Imperium strives to establish a single identity for the world stage, the individual nation’s cultural richness is beginning to be eroded by the dominant Prussian-centric propaganda. It is too early to say whether this strategy will unify or divide this Great Power in the coming decades.