Latveria, also known as the Pearl of the Balkans, lay between Hungary, Serbia, and Romania. The Carpathian Mountains encircled its north, while the Mahla Mountains bordered its south.
It was a poor, backward little country. Like most nations in Eastern Europe, it had long been caught in cycles of regime change and unrest. As the economy declined and party conflicts intensified, the people suffered from war and disease. The aftershocks and consequences of the upheaval in Eastern Europe continued to spread even to this day.
Since the great Red Empire had collapsed and disintegrated, the situation in Central and Eastern Europe had been a complete mess. Unemployment had risen sharply, inflation remained high, and public resistance toward new policies and authorities was running strong. Massive waves of strikes, severe economic hardship... these were enough to drag the nations of Eastern Europe into a bottomless mire, and Latveria was among them.
After the Yalta System had been completely shattered, the world began moving toward multipolarity. Some countries had temporarily gained a chance to survive by paying the price of joining the European Union, such as Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Ukraine. Backward little countries like Latveria, however, could only seek favor on all sides amid the turbulent tide of change, struggling to survive in pursuit of a sliver of hope.
This was criminal soil where the law of the jungle prevailed. With no stable order, the Blood Clan and werewolves hunted down and driven away by Sanctum Sorcerers could breed, hide, and lie dormant here. Even the London Sanctum could not exert deep influence over this chaotic paradise controlled by gangs, Warlords, and political factions.
Doctor Doom, shrouded beneath a dark green cloak, finally set foot on the barren land where he had grown up after twelve days at sea and