A little knowledge. An empire of 123.

Every comparison uses this expedition’s original data and rules. “Would win” describes this matchup only; a different choice would change the later journey.

1. 1
   Round 1Won13 countries · 4 lives left

   SwitzerlandvsChile

   Wealth per person: 93,940 vs 33,174 int’l $ · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered Chile.

   Other category comparisons 0 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Switzerland against Chile

   Category	Switzerland	Chile	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	41,277	756,102	Would lose
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	8,888,822	19,658,835	Would lose
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	93,940	33,174	Would win
   DensityBlocked in Hard · per km² · Higher wins ↑	215.3	26.0	Would win
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	4,634	6,893	Would lose
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	6,435	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	2	3	Would lose
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	46.7° N	23.4° S	Would lose

2. 2
   Round 2Won14 countries · 4 lives left

   MoldovavsAustralia

   Flag colours: 9 vs 3 colours · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered Australia.

   Other category comparisons 0 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Moldova against Australia

   Category	Moldova	Australia	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	33,851	7,741,220	Would lose
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	2,457,783	26,659,922	Would lose
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	17,751	72,273	Would lose
   DensityBlocked in Hard · per km² · Higher wins ↑	72.6	3.4	Would win
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	430	2,228	Would lose
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	25,760	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	9	3	Would win
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	47.5° N	23.1° S	Would lose

3. 3
   Round 3Won15 countries · 4 lives left

   NigeriavsUnited Arab Emirates

   Area: 923,768 vs 83,600 km² · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered United Arab Emirates.

   Other category comparisons 3 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Nigeria against United Arab Emirates

   Category	Nigeria	United Arab Emirates	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	923,768	83,600	Would win
   PopulationBlocked in Hard · people · Higher wins ↑	227,882,945	10,483,751	Would win
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	8,712	78,020	Would lose
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	246.7	125.4	Would win
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	2,419	1,905	Would win
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	853	1,318	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	2	4	Would lose
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	9.4° N	23.5° N	Would win

4. 4
   Round 4Won16 countries · 4 lives left

   Republic of the CongovsSuriname

   Proximity to equator: 0.1° N vs 4.1° N from the equator · Closer wins ↓

   Conquered Suriname.

   Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Republic of the Congo against Suriname

   Category	Republic of the Congo	Suriname	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	342,000	163,820	Would win
   PopulationBlocked in Hard · people · Higher wins ↑	6,182,885	628,886	Would win
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	6,856	21,128	Would lose
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	18.1	3.8	Would win
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	1,020	1,230	Would lose
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	169	386	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	3	4	Would lose
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓ · Chosen	0.1° N	4.1° N	Would win

5. 5
   Round 5Won17 countries · 4 lives left

   BoliviavsFinland

   Proximity to equator: 16.7° S vs 63.3° N from the equator · Closer wins ↓

   Conquered Finland.

   Other category comparisons 3 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Bolivia against Finland

   Category	Bolivia	Finland	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	1,098,581	338,145	Would win
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	12,244,159	5,583,911	Would win
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	12,903	63,467	Would lose
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	11.1	16.5	Would lose
   Highest peakBlocked in Hard · m · Higher wins ↑	6,542	1,328	Would win
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	1,250	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	9	2	Would win
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓ · Chosen	16.7° S	63.3° N	Would win

6. 6
   Round 6Won18 countries · 4 lives left

   KazakhstanvsTrinidad and Tobago

   Population: 20,330,104 vs 1,367,510 people · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered Trinidad and Tobago.

   Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Kazakhstan against Trinidad and Tobago

   Category	Kazakhstan	Trinidad and Tobago	Result
   AreaBlocked in Hard · km² · Higher wins ↑	2,724,900	5,128	Would win
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	20,330,104	1,367,510	Would win
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	38,547	34,652	Would win
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	7.5	266.7	Would lose
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	7,010	940	Would win
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	362	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	2	3	Would lose
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	48.5° N	10.3° N	Would lose

7. 7
   Round 7Won19 countries · 4 lives left

   HaitivsBangladesh

   Flag colours: 7 vs 2 colours · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered Bangladesh.

   Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Haiti against Bangladesh

   Category	Haiti	Bangladesh	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	27,750	148,460	Would lose
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	11,637,398	171,466,990	Would lose
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	3,265	9,155	Would lose
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	419.4	1,155.0	Would lose
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	2,674	1,060	Would win
   CoastlineBlocked in Hard · km · Higher wins ↑	1,771	580	Would win
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	7	2	Would win
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	19.2° N	24.3° N	Would win

8. 8
   Round 8Won20 countries · 4 lives left

   SudanvsItaly

   Proximity to equator: 16.6° N vs 45.1° N from the equator · Closer wins ↓

   Conquered Italy.

   Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

   All eight categories for Sudan against Italy

   Category	Sudan	Italy	Result
   AreaBlocked in Hard · km² · Higher wins ↑	1,861,484	301,340	Would win
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	50,042,791	58,984,216	Would lose
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	2,423	60,350	Would lose
   Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	26.9	195.7	Would lose
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	3,042	4,748	Would lose
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	853	7,600	Would lose
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	4	3	Would win
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓ · Chosen	16.6° N	45.1° N	Would win

9. 9
   Round 9Won21 countries · 4 lives left

   MauritiusvsSouth Sudan

   Coastline: 177 vs 0 km · Higher wins ↑

   Conquered South Sudan.

   Other category comparisons 0 other winning choices

   All eight categories for Mauritius against South Sudan

   Category	Mauritius	South Sudan	Result
   Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	2,040	644,329	Would lose
   Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	1,248,647	11,483,374	Would lose
   Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑South Sudan: World Bank has no 2023 figure for South Sudan.	29,403	Unavailable	Unavailable
   DensityBlocked in Hard · per km² · Higher wins ↑	612.1	17.8	Would win
   Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	828	3,187	Would lose
   Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	177	0	Would win
   Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	4	6	Would lose
   Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	20.3° S	7.1° N	Would lose

10. 10
    Round 10Lost20 countries · 3 lives left

    VanuatuvsCroatia

    Flag colours: 4 vs 6 colours · Higher wins ↑

    Returned to the world: Vanuatu.

    Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

    All eight categories for Vanuatu against Croatia

    Category	Vanuatu	Croatia	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	12,189	56,594	Would lose
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	320,409	3,859,686	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	4,202	47,760	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	26.3	68.2	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	1,877	1,831	Would win
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	2,528	5,835	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	4	6	Would lose
    Proximity to equatorBlocked in Hard · from the equator · Closer wins ↓	15.4° S	45.8° N	Would win

11. 11
    Round 11Won21 countries · 3 lives left

    South AfricavsGeorgia

    Population: 63,212,384 vs 3,715,483 people · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Georgia.

    Other category comparisons 3 other winning choices

    All eight categories for South Africa against Georgia

    Category	South Africa	Georgia	Result
    AreaBlocked in Hard · km² · Higher wins ↑	1,219,090	69,700	Would win
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	63,212,384	3,715,483	Would win
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	15,212	25,093	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	51.9	53.3	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	3,450	5,193	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	2,798	310	Would win
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	6	2	Would win
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	30.2° S	42.4° N	Would win

12. 12
    Round 12Lost20 countries · 2 lives left

    HondurasvsSouth Korea

    Coastline: 823 vs 2,413 km · Higher wins ↑

    Returned to the world: Honduras.

    Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

    All eight categories for Honduras against South Korea

    Category	Honduras	South Korea	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	112,090	99,720	Would win
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	10,644,851	51,712,619	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	7,184	57,430	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	95.0	518.6	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	2,870	1,950	Would win
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	823	2,413	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	2	4	Would lose
    Proximity to equatorBlocked in Hard · from the equator · Closer wins ↓	14.7° N	36.3° N	Would win

13. 13
    Round 13Tied20 countries · 2 lives left

    SwitzerlandvsJapan

    Flag colours: 2 vs 2 colours · Higher wins ↑

    Japan became contested.

    Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

    All eight categories for Switzerland against Japan

    Category	Switzerland	Japan	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	41,277	377,915	Would lose
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	8,888,822	124,516,650	Would lose
    Wealth per personBlocked in Hard · int’l $ · Higher wins ↑	93,940	52,726	Would win
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	215.3	329.5	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	4,634	3,776	Would win
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	29,751	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	2	2	Would tie
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	46.7° N	36.7° N	Would lose

14. 14
    Round 14Won22 countries · 2 lives left

    ChilevsRussia

    Highest peak: 6,893 vs 5,642 m · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Russia, Japan.

    Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

    All eight categories for Chile against Russia

    Category	Chile	Russia	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	756,102	17,098,242	Would lose
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	19,658,835	143,826,130	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	33,174	44,299	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	26.0	8.4	Would win
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	6,893	5,642	Would win
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	6,435	37,653	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	3	3	Would tie
    Proximity to equatorBlocked in Hard · from the equator · Closer wins ↓	23.4° S	63.6° N	Would win

15. 15
    Round 15Won23 countries · 2 lives left

    MoldovavsSlovenia

    Population: 2,457,783 vs 2,120,461 people · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Slovenia.

    Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

    All eight categories for Moldova against Slovenia

    Category	Moldova	Slovenia	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	33,851	20,273	Would win
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	2,457,783	2,120,461	Would win
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	17,751	56,151	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	72.6	104.6	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	430	2,864	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	0	46.6	Would lose
    Flag coloursBlocked in Hard · colours · Higher wins ↑	9	4	Would win
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	47.5° N	46.0° N	Would lose

16. 16
    Round 16Won24 countries · 2 lives left

    AustraliavsArgentina

    Wealth per person: 72,273 vs 30,246 int’l $ · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Argentina.

    Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

    All eight categories for Australia against Argentina

    Category	Australia	Argentina	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	7,741,220	2,780,400	Would win
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	26,659,922	45,538,401	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	72,273	30,246	Would win
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	3.4	16.4	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	2,228	6,962	Would lose
    CoastlineBlocked in Hard · km · Higher wins ↑	25,760	4,989	Would win
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	3	4	Would lose
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	23.1° S	31.4° S	Would win

17. 17
    Round 17Won25 countries · 2 lives left

    NigeriavsEritrea

    Area: 923,768 vs 117,600 km² · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Eritrea.

    Other category comparisons 2 other winning choices

    All eight categories for Nigeria against Eritrea

    Category	Nigeria	Eritrea	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	923,768	117,600	Would win
    PopulationBlocked in Hard · people · Higher wins ↑	227,882,945	3,470,390	Would win
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑Eritrea: World Bank has no 2023 figure for Eritrea.	8,712	Unavailable	Unavailable
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	246.7	29.5	Would win
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	2,419	3,018	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	853	2,234	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	2	4	Would lose
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	9.4° N	16.0° N	Would win

18. 18
    Round 18Won26 countries · 2 lives left

    United Arab EmiratesvsAlbania

    Wealth per person: 78,020 vs 24,848 int’l $ · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Albania.

    Other category comparisons 5 other winning choices

    All eight categories for United Arab Emirates against Albania

    Category	United Arab Emirates	Albania	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	83,600	28,748	Would win
    PopulationBlocked in Hard · people · Higher wins ↑	10,483,751	2,411,658	Would win
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	78,020	24,848	Would win
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	125.4	83.9	Would win
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	1,905	2,764	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	1,318	362	Would win
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑	4	2	Would win
    Proximity to equatorfrom the equator · Closer wins ↓	23.5° N	40.7° N	Would win

19. 19
    Round 19Won27 countries · 2 lives left

    Republic of the CongovsPakistan

    Flag colours: 3 vs 2 colours · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered Pakistan.

    Other category comparisons 1 other winning choice

    All eight categories for Republic of the Congo against Pakistan

    Category	Republic of the Congo	Pakistan	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	342,000	796,095	Would lose
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	6,182,885	247,504,495	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	6,856	6,019	Would win
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	18.1	310.9	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	1,020	8,611	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	169	1,046	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	3	2	Would win
    Proximity to equatorBlocked in Hard · from the equator · Closer wins ↓	0.1° N	27.8° N	Would win

20. 20
    Round 20Won28 countries · 2 lives left

    SurinamevsUnited Kingdom

    Flag colours: 4 vs 3 colours · Higher wins ↑

    Conquered United Kingdom.

    Other category comparisons 0 other winning choices

    All eight categories for Suriname against United Kingdom

    Category	Suriname	United Kingdom	Result
    Areakm² · Higher wins ↑	163,820	243,610	Would lose
    Populationpeople · Higher wins ↑	628,886	68,526,000	Would lose
    Wealth per personint’l $ · Higher wins ↑	21,128	60,787	Would lose
    Densityper km² · Higher wins ↑	3.8	281.3	Would lose
    Highest peakm · Higher wins ↑	1,230	1,345	Would lose
    Coastlinekm · Higher wins ↑	386	12,429	Would lose
    Flag colourscolours · Higher wins ↑ · Chosen	4	3	Would win
    Proximity to equatorBlocked in Hard · from the equator · Closer wins ↓	4.1° N	52.5° N	Would win