So I had a weird thought while I was reading the "Nations of Theah Vol. 1" preview the other day: 2nd edition Vesten reminds me strangely of Meiji-era Japan. You've got an ancient warrior nation that has modernized and adopted customs of other nations suddenly and at a very rapid rate, and is a mish-mash of ancient cultural practices and modern ones.
(Just FYI: If you're not familiar with the Meiji era in Japan, some fictional examples include the film, "The Last Samurai" and the anime and manga series "Ruroni Kenshin.")
