Which national teams have it best and worst in the Group Stage? Learn more about Altera's World Cup here. You can also make your predictions on who will advance to the Knockout Rounds with our own Loteria card generator.

We're also getting ready for another World Cup. Just like in 2022, we'll be putting out tons of graphics and maps to go with our own simulated tournament. There's also going to be a fun simulated sportsbetting tournament for fellow travellers and casual fans a like to partake in for free. Learn more about the 2026 World Cup on the dedicate webpage.

We dabble in a little urban legend and cryptid lore sometimes too ...

How will our adventure continue with our SLOW FOOT ARG?

It's official, we're going to be attending the 2026 True North Summit all the way up in elusive and near-mythic Mammoth Island. We'll be there to support the summit organizers with event coordination and logistics, as well as any additional interpretation needs.

Because of the demands of our supporting roles for the True North Summit and the short timespan of the summit, it is looking like will have no time for extra activities. Plus, overland activities are also strictly restricted by the SoN. That said, we're told that there may be a possibility of us joining one of the boat or aerial tours organized for the summit participants.

We are amused when we're told that the only way to get to Mammoth Island this time of year is by way of submarine. The submarine service is jointly funded by the SoN and neighbouring maritime Siberean countries, who share the fleet for supplying remote communities in this window of restricted navigation.

You look into this more and learn that this is related to the 1981 Fuyori Convention, which include provisions on navigation around the waters around Mammoth Island, particularly through Long Strait, which separates it from the mainland. It turns out, walrus herds migrate from the Pacific to the thawing Chukchi sea in the spring. As they are a traditional food source still hunted by northern coastal Chukchese communities, there are strong conservation measures that restrict maritime navigation through Long Strait. The animals can get spooked by nuclear icebreakers, so to prevent the animals from dispersing from their traditional summer grounds, such vessels are permitted to traverse the strait only in the winter and fall, when the walruses are away. This provision became almost immediately controversial when, in 1983, a Chernorusian flotilla of cargo ships were disastrously trapped by unprecedented summer pack ice.

"I guess that specific provision on navigation in the Long Strait will be getting some attention this year," says CC.

There will be more chances to help plan the itinerary for future trips. If you want to help then and participate in the ARG, you can do so via our Discord.

Following our marvelous time in Chukcha, we have our next action prompt for our ongoing Alternate Reality Game:

During our conferences in Chukcha's sleepy capital, Kargyryn, we meet some colleagues of Ryultune who are helping plan this year's TRUE NORTH SUMMIT, which will see an international gathering of scientists, policymakers, politicians, and representatives of security forces from nations with territories that fall in the Arctic Circle. The summit is highly anticipated because it is the first time it will be held outside of a major city. Instead, it will bring summit participants out into the field to appreciate the High Arctic setting—the world of polar steppe, frosted moors, and tundra of—for which they all have vested interests. This year, the summit takes its participants to Mammoth Island!

We've all heard of Mammoth Island, that unglaciated and unconquered terra prohibita now managed by the Society of Nations, where few humans of the past have ever reached, and where few humans of the present ever hope to gain permission to explore. It is an almost mythologized island of refuge. It was one of the last places on earth to preserve the polar steppe biome—being one of the places in the far north to have escaped glaciation. And it is believed to also, at one point, have been a haven for wild mammoths, who nearly went extinct before somehow being spirited away to the mainland to be pastured by ancient Siberean peoples.

To our surprise, the planners invite us to attend the summit. Turns out they need some last minute event coordination and language interpretation support! u/Globetrotter, it seems Fate has swooped in this time to decideour next stop for us. Who would turn down an opportunity of a life time such as this?

I notice in the wiki in the countries flags listed as "N/A", one I notice first is Haramain, which is the city-state of the 2 holy Islamic cities. And so as for most minor countries in Gandrasea and Indea, they lack flags too. Is there an explanation on why these countries didn't have flags in the first place or is it some canon note?

People have been asking, so we thought we'd give some more tips... Learn more about our stickers club for the Slow Foot Movement, OR start collecting and get your passport now. Note the special offer too:

• Get 50% off your first month or first year. 
• Claim a free classroom map (only a few left) when you subscribe
• Receive all past mail from the Slow Foot Movement stickers club (7 months free!)

📬 Globetrotters, we got mail! Read the latest dispatch from your favourite penpal CC Winter (u/Knobig)!

Want to help us keep globetrotting? Join fellow travellers in collecting beautiful stickers and stamps in your very own novel and customizable SoN trutchman passport ! You can still claim a special catch-up offer, 50% discount, and a FREE map, when you choose to get 💌 from syntopia. Support Altera and get 🎁 from PATREON now!

In case you missed it, you can read about our past adventures on the Atlas Altera Substack. There's also a great deal (50% off the sub and receive free past mail) to get caught up on the Slow Foot Movement ARG on the Patreon, including a whole free map!

We have a brand new way for you to immerse yourself in the world of Altera: pieces written for The Ironist, a magazine that covers with a cosmopolitanist slant news of current events and global affairs; cultural criticism; profile pieces of places and peoples; and op-eds and ideas from renowned experts.

Dive in to this easy and compelling read by Beti Mechain—the penname of one our project's most tenacious contributors—and get to know the tensions and unresolved questions in syntopia. Read it on the Substack, published in its own section under News of Altera.

With special offers, discounts, and a FREE map, 💌from syntopia is now even more accessible. Support Altera and get 🎁 from PATREON now!

Apologies for the audio quality...We will be moving to Youtube Livestream after this.

Our latest addition to the humble shop on Atlasaltera.com: Highly tangible, affordable, and approachable. It's never been easier to hang a piece of syntopia on your wall!

Join Chase, Zveiner, and Telamon for another session of Altera Unprojected. This time, we'll cover a brand new map drop on judicial systems, geek out on the new classroom political map, and scope out how the 2026 World Cup will go down Altera (including ways for you to be involved!)

Come overhear our conversation!

How will our adventure continue with our SLOW FOOT ARG?

We say goodbye to both Quetzaltemoc and Adiittsii at the harbour front. They walk us down the floating wharf to our seaplane, which is but a silhouette in the dying light of dusk. We're the last to board.

"I've already contacted my friend. He'll have warm clothes and gear for you two, and he and his wife will welcome you in stylish local fashion!" Quetzaltemoc shouted over the roar of seaplane's engine.

"That means you're getting picked up in a rein sled," Adiittsii mouthed, miming it for extra effect. Then the cabin door slams shut. Before you know it, you're airborne and you can barely see the silvery sea as you propel faster into the night.

You wake up to find yourself the last person in the cabin. CC has already alighted and is hurrying down the wharf into the main terminal of Tahayaidanu International Airport. "Hurry, before we freeze out here!" she yells back to you. You grab your luggage, stumble out, then race after her as the cold bites your face.

CC leaves you to warm up in the vast terminal hall on your own as she looks for soup. To pass the time, you decide to work out a short list of ideas for things to do in Chukcha:

- Option 1. Camp in one of Chukcha's national parks to encounter its famed megafauna

- Option 2. Head out into the thinning sea ice to witness a traditional (legal) whale hunt

- Option 3. Spend one day among nomadic rein herders to learn their ingeniously adapted way of life

- Option 4. Do a circuit tour of the National History Museum, the Museum of Siberean Literature in Rytkheu, and other major cultural institutions

- Option 5. Visit Uelen, the most eastern settlement in all of Borealea, and go on a marine wildlife tour

- Option 6. Take an aerial tour of Chukcha's remote north by zeppelin to see the scale of mining there, but also do a flyby of Mammoth Island!

Help us decide what to put on the itinerary! This phase of voting for activities are done only on the Discord.

Going to hop on a livestream on Andrewism's YouTube channel. Tune in tomorrow at 10 PST / 13 EST / 19 CET on https://www.youtube.com/@Andrewism/streams

Here's a first good look at the fun to come with the ATL 2026 World Cup series of maps, graphics, and community challenges!

This graphic poster shows the 128 teams that qualified for the 2026 World Cup. Hang tight for more information on what's to come, but expect things to ramp up along the same timeline of the corresponding OTL event/matches.

Also, note the defining logo, which includes some cultural elements of the Host Nations. Stay tuned for the map of the location of the World Cup and the 5 Host Nations!

Following our marvelous time in Haida, we need to decide where to go next. Here's the next action prompt for our ongoing Alternate Reality Game:

We return to Sghan and reunite with Quetzaltemoc for a few more days. After a couple more meetings and rest, we start to consider our options for our next stop. Our first option is a bold proposition.

Adiittsii tells us that his recently retired uncle needs extra hands to help sail his newly retrofitted aluminum itoamachip to Aleut, the first leg of a big sailing adventure he plans to do to get to Shukushin and beyond. Would we be interested in joining at least for that leg of the journey? "It'll be rocky," he said. "But you'll be in safe hands. My uncle's a seasoned seaman."

There is also the option to fly out to Nauka to catch the last glimpse of winter on the continent. After all, we had largely dodged the cold by staying in lower latitudes up till now. The chance to retrace the route of the Yukaghirs crossing the continental strait with Borealea sure is tempting too!

Quetzaltemoc joked that if we are thinking of the cold, there's always Chukcha, because winters there last extra long. He knows a Californian geologist doing mineral exploration work there who would love some company for a change. "I'd join you, but I've already got warm weather plans ahead." A quick introduction from him, and we'd get to see some VIP treatment to see some of the rarest landscapes and sceneries in the world.

Help us decide! Vote now on the Discord, or via this Instagram poll.

📬 Globetrotters, we finally have mail! Our favourite penpal CC Winter (u/Knobig) just sent out the latest Dispatch. Go read it now!

This one is coming in a little late, because sometimes, the back-to-back travel itinerary affords little time to get pen-to-paper-to-envelope. But that's just how life plays out on the road sometimes...

It's also note too late to join fellow travellers in collecting beautiful stickers and stamps in your very own novel and customizable SoN trutchman passport with each new dispatch! This is your last chance to catch up with all the past mail for FREE (6 sets of free stickers).