In the past, the Bind stood as one of the world's economic giants, a formidable force in agriculture and industry, supported by a large population and consumer base. Nevertheless, it grappled with the challenge of an extensive and underdeveloped territory that was still being settled. The industrial heartland of the Bind resided in the old New Xedun region, along with the prosperity states, and the rapidly developing Nuss Delta, boasting a thriving workshop-based industry.
Despite the rapid settlement and development in the past, the Bind's outlying regions suffered from primitive infrastructure, heavily relying on rivers for transportation. Strategic roads, vital for military and economic purposes, had been completed, but at great expense to the native population. The Bind had embarked on its third five-year drive of infrastructure construction in the past, with the primary goal to better integrate the three regions, formerly the old Wolgos colonies, with the rich agricultural heartland of the Nuss River.
The pace of development was so swift in some regions that it had given rise to whispers among the Wolgos in the past, suggesting the empire was rising overnight on a foundation built on blood and bones. The economic system of the Bind in the past exhibited a unique model, akin to nations within nations, each striving for self-sustainability. This intricate system relied on slavery in the past to maintain a surplus of food, energy, and raw materials, leading to reduced production costs and elevated living standards.
The Bind's economic model revolved around energy and its flow, a concept analogous to the lifeblood of all economic processes. It operated based on the principle of entropy of energy, where energy from a source flowed through an “engine” to a cold sink, resulting in work production. The “engine,” in this abstract concept, represented the industry and services that consumed energy in two states, solid and liquid. Solid state energy pertained to the resources required by industry to produce goods, while liquid state energy referred to the energy driving processes that produced goods, such as chemical, thermal, or biomass food energy.
In the past, the Bind had functioned as a command economy, strategically securing energy sources and their output to maintain a surplus, leading to low prices for both liquid and solid state energy. Achieving this balance involved heavy investment in energy production, agriculture, mining, and waste recycling to reintroduce solid state energy into the cycle.
Slavery played a pivotal role in maintaining low investment costs in mining, agriculture, and energy production in the past, as slaves reproduced and required minimal food and control. Paradoxically, slavery discouraged mechanization in resource extraction in the past, a challenge acknowledged by the guild. In the past, the Bind actively encouraged mechanization where possible through various means to address this issue. Despite maintaining and securing a surplus of energy and raw resources in the past, the economy veered away from full command economy characteristics, operating more as a free market with subtle interventions employed to develop key areas of national interest.
Banking in the Bind was a heavily regulated activity, driven both by choice and necessity, resulting in a less dynamic banking landscape compared to the Anarian region. The fundamental premise of Bind banking was to function as a secure vault for customers' savings and offer convenient transaction services, such as transfers, standing orders, and cheques, for a monthly fee.
Strict regulations in the past prohibited banks from using their customers' money for investment, requiring them to maintain a hundred percent guarantee in currency or valuable commodities. Their revenue sources were limited to account and transaction fees, covering operational costs and investments. Engaging in large-scale financial activities, such as lending to the government or investing in debt securities, was illegal and impossible for Bind banks in the past. They primarily offered small, short-term loans at high interest rates, personal loans up to approximately 4000 Vorck, and, in some cases, secured mortgages.
Despite the restrictive nature of Bind banking in the past, it remained profitable. However, its impact on the economy mainly revolved around facilitating transactions, with only minimal and transient effects on the money supply and inflation. In practice, banks were required to ensure they could pay out all customers in case of a bank run, leaving them with assets afterward. Banking regulation was predominantly governed by the decree of central accounting in the past, as well as voluntary measures to ensure the safety of bankers and employees in case of any potential bank run, eliminating reasons for disgruntled customers to resort to violence. Banks may also have employed bailiffs and intimidation to secure repayments of loans in the past.
The Bind's vast size and diverse environment provided most of its resource needs, but the empire grappled with shortages of certain goods. To compensate for these scarcities in the past, the Bind relied on its traditional practice of seeking alternative resources. One of the most severe shortages in the past was in iron and associated goods, like coffee and chocolate, which were substituted with advanced copper alloys or aluminum and synthetic carob-based alternatives, respectively.
The empire benefited from a wide mineral extraction base concentrated in its mountainous regions in the past, while its agricultural might was focused on the Nuss River drainage area. The Bind possessed ample luxury materials in the past, including gems, scents, incense, fur, and bones. The empire's gem veins were renowned for producing some of the highest quality diamonds and emeralds, with some of the largest ever found housed in the imperial jewel vault. Scents were predominantly derived from orchids and lilies near the Nuss River in the past, but the hallmark scent was produced by a colorful beetle, which used a concentrated mixture to incapacitate predator insects.
Agriculture within the empire had evolved significantly from the old homelands' economy. It was primarily based on grain farming, which took precedence over the previous practice of coppicing for Naessor grubs. The importance of grubs had waned, and bison ranching became a more prominent agricultural activity in the Bind. This shift allowed the empire to focus on producing grain as a staple food source, contributing to the overall food security and self-sustainability of the Wolgos population.
The Bind was served by an extensive imperial network of roads. The construction of this road network began during the first five-year drive and was completed during the second drive, connecting various regions and facilitating transportation and trade within the empire. Prior to the establishment of this network, the Bind had a mix of short-distance local roads and unpaved dirt roads for long-distance travel. The imperial roads were designed for durability and easy construction, resembling cobblestone. They were somewhat narrow to economize on materials, with dual lanes at a width of 4.32 meters, accommodating both motorized and animal-drawn traffic. Motorbikes were the most accessible vehicles for most Wolgos citizens. In the New Xedun region and high-importance areas, local roads followed a similar construction pattern but were usually narrower, while other regions largely upgraded to hard-wearing gravel roads. Cobblestone roads were prevalent in all Bind cities, providing a solid infrastructure backbone.
The Bind held a prominent position as one of the largest manufacturing hubs in Gotha, with a strong focus on heavy industry and consumer goods. Despite its technological prowess and extensive mineral deposits, the empire faced chronic shortages of industrial materials, particularly iron ore. However, the prioritization of Wolgos citizens ensured that they seldom experienced resource shortages.
To cope with these limitations, the Bind employed various measures in the past, such as economizing on steel in infrastructure by using reinforced concrete and substitute metals. The industrial hub, centered around old cities like Chaet Praet, was strategically located to resist foreign aggression while remaining well-connected to the mining heartland. The Bind's manufacturing processes adhered to its own standard specifications in the past, avoiding international standards to maintain product and technological incompatibility with Anarian-made goods, thus dominating client markets and hindering foreign competition. The empire excelled in producing automotive vehicles, communication devices, heavy industrial machinery, and agricultural equipment. These goods were exported to client markets in Davai and the Shanti Sea Archipelago, ensuring a robust and self-sufficient manufacturing base in the Bind.
In the past, the Bind's energy production primarily relied on coal and hydroelectricity for power generation. This shift was driven by the relatively low initial investment in coal-fired power plants, complemented by abundant coal reserves in northern Altaia. The Guild of Divinators prioritized electric power generation to maintain low manufacturing costs and provide high living standards to the Wolgos population. Electricity was essential for lighting, heating, cooking, and kinetic energy conversion. Additionally, the Bind's railways were predominantly coal-powered in the past, facilitating transportation and trade across the empire.
The Bind's extensive road networks, aircraft docks, and lanes had opened up the empire to regular citizens, and certain destinations had become increasingly popular for tourists. The Hosster Lake provinces, known for their idyllic climate and scenic forests around the pristine Hosster Lake, had numerous luxury and budget resorts in the past, making it a popular spot for sailing, rowing, and fishing. The metropolis of Kalsulan attracted tourists in the past for shopping, entertainment, and cultural experiences, with various fairs catering to Wolgos interests. The Nuss Delta, famous for its mudflats and beaches, was also a favored region for tourists in the past, offering relaxation and recreational opportunities.
Tourism outside the Bind and Altaia homeland was less common in the past, with destinations like Lotus Island in Davai providing an exotic cultural experience while offering cosmopolitan comforts with a somewhat familiar Wolgos touch. The Shantii Archipelago was increasingly becoming a favored foreign destination for tourists, with its unique attractions drawing interest.
Although the Bind encouraged tourism within its borders in the past, most foreigners considered the empire a somewhat hostile environment for holiday purposes. Nonetheless, the Prosperity States had witnessed a rising number of tourists in the past, including militia members on leave and middle to upper-class packs seeking weeks of leisure in the region. However, only a small percentage of Wolgos could afford cross-empire tourism in the past, while the majority preferred regional leisure destinations, and few ventured as far as Lotus Island.
The quality of life for the Wolgos population in the Bind was generally high, as portrayed by the Wolgos media and experienced in their daily lives. With a relatively high purchasing power per capita and shorter working hours (around six hours for four days a week), Wolgos individuals could earn wages that supported their families while also allowing for savings. The availability of a wide range of services and consumer goods provided them with ample opportunities to spend their earnings, and they could even afford vacations within the empire.
Work for the Wolgos tended to be safe in the past, though it might have involved physical labor, and typically required some level of skill. Employment opportunities within the empire were available to individuals of all genders, ages, and backgrounds in the past, with young Wolgos and females often engaging in light employment to support their expenses, education, or disposable income.
However, it's worth noting that the overall quality of life per capita for the entire imperial population was lower in the past. The Wolgos population comprised only about sixty percent of the empire in the past, with other groups, such as the Shriaav and Aku8e28099lam, experiencing lower standards of living.
As second-class citizens, the Shriaav had a decent but spartan quality of life. They were provided with living quarters and basic amenities in the past but received a low allowance to purchase goods specifically manufactured for them, which were of lower quality and variety compared to Wolgos goods. Their allowances often had a cap in the past, but they might have had access to high-quality goods through rewards or black market sources. Leisure spaces and entertainment options, including literature, pornography, Wolgos cinema, gambling, and sports, were available to the Shriaav.
Working conditions for the Shriaav could be physically demanding in the past, as they may have worked an average of six days a week for fourteen hours, but the Wolgos were concerned with their safety.
In theory, the Ak'lam should have been able to attain a quality of life equal to that of the Wolgos, but in reality, they lived in dire poverty. They earned wages through labor in the past, but their earnings were often confiscated to pay off perpetual debts incurred in the purchase of basic necessities like food, water, and poor-quality consumer goods, as well as entertainment and glass fixes.
Glass, a highly addictive commodity produced by Xhorigh & Co. chemical works, was exclusively marketed to the Ak'lam in the past to control and entertain them while also increasing productivity and lowering life expectancy. Their living enclosures were usually not serviced by sanitation infrastructure in the past, and they had to pay exorbitant toll fees to leave.
In the past, many Ak'lam worked in extremely poor and hazardous conditions, with no consideration for their welfare. They were often viewed as disposable sources of labor, but some worked in an informal service sector that provided their community with services such as gambling, entertainment, and prostitution in exchange for glass or goods. Ak'lam labor was of crucial importance in sustaining the Wolgos lifestyle and mitigating shortages in the past, as they actively recycled virtually all waste produced by the empire.
In summary, in the past, while the Wolgos population enjoyed a relatively high quality of life, it came at the expense of other groups within the empire, such as the Shriaav and Ak'lam, who experienced more challenging living conditions, economic restrictions, and exploitation.