The map shown above may look like a conventional political map of Asia, but it does not represent the real countries of the Indo-Pacific. Instead, it belongs to a fictional operational world created for military training. Names such as Olvana, Himaldesh, North Torbia, South Torbia, Bagansait, Khorathidin and Sungzon are part of the U.S. Army’s Decisive Action Training Environment (DATE), a scenario framework designed to help military personnel train for complex conflicts without relying entirely on real-world classified or politically sensitive situations.

The map provides a fascinating picture of how military planners can construct an imaginary region that resembles the strategic realities of the Indo-Pacific.

A Fictional World With Real-World Strategic Lessons

The U.S. Army describes DATE Indo-Pacific as a geographically diverse training environment extending from the Himalayan region to island groups in the Pacific. It incorporates mountains, jungles, deserts, densely populated cities and maritime environments.

Rather than simply inventing random countries, the scenario combines fictional geography with political, economic and military characteristics that allow soldiers and commanders to practice decision-making in realistic circumstances.

The result is a world that feels familiar while remaining fictional.

For example, the map includes Himaldesh, a large continental power positioned around the Himalayan region; Olvana, a major regional power; North Torbia and South Torbia, which occupy different portions of the same island; and several smaller states spread across mainland Southeast Asia and the surrounding islands.

The fictional geography therefore creates strategic problems similar to those encountered in the real Indo-Pacific without directly assigning every scenario to an actual country.

Olvana: The Major Regional Power

One of the most important countries in the fictional environment is Olvana.

According to the Army’s description, Olvana is the largest country in the region by both territory and population and seeks to establish itself as the regional hegemon. It also possesses the largest military in the fictional Pacific region.

This gives Olvana an important role in training scenarios involving military competition, economic influence and maritime power.

The fictional country is particularly useful because modern Indo-Pacific security involves more than conventional land warfare. Military planners must consider naval operations, air power, trade routes, economic pressure, cyber capabilities, diplomacy and alliances simultaneously.

DATE is designed around precisely this kind of multidomain environment.

North and South Torbia

Another major feature of the map is the division between North Torbia and South Torbia.

North Torbia is portrayed as an extremely militarized state with a large active-duty force and substantial reserves. The fictional country also maintains territorial claims involving South Torbia, creating the possibility of a major confrontation.

South Torbia, by contrast, is described as a constitutional republic with a more stable political system.

The relationship between the two fictional states allows military exercises to explore situations involving territorial disputes, military escalation, alliance commitments and regional intervention.

The Australian Defence Force has even used DATE scenarios in which Australia operates as part of a U.S.-led multinational force against North Torbia in a conflict involving South Torbia. The scenario is known as Operation Bronze Achilles.

Himaldesh and the Continental Dimension

The map also places Himaldesh at the center of the continental portion of the fictional Indo-Pacific.

Himaldesh is presented as a significant international actor and an alternative source of regional influence to Olvana. This makes the country strategically important within the scenario’s balance of power.

Its location is particularly interesting because the fictional geography connects mountainous continental terrain with the wider maritime Indo-Pacific.

This reflects an important feature of real-world strategic planning: conflicts in Asia cannot always be separated into neat geographical categories. Events in mountainous border regions can affect maritime security, trade, diplomacy and military alliances hundreds or thousands of kilometers away.

Smaller Countries Also Matter

The map does not focus exclusively on major powers.

Countries such as Bagansait, Khorathidin, Gabal, Belesia, Patani Baru and Sunda Baru play important roles in the fictional environment.

Their presence reflects another important lesson of modern geopolitics: smaller countries can have enormous strategic importance because of their location, ports, natural resources, political relationships or access to important sea routes.

For example, the Army’s material describes Bagansait as a country experiencing political and ethnic instability, while Khorathidin has its own complicated political and regional relationships.

This allows exercises to incorporate issues such as insurgency, political instability, border disputes, migration, economic dependence and competing international partnerships.

Why Use Fictional Countries?

There is a practical reason behind this approach.

If every training exercise used real countries and real political circumstances, participants could become focused on the specific politics of today’s world rather than learning broader military concepts.

Fictional countries provide greater flexibility.

Commanders can change alliances, borders, military capabilities and political conditions according to the training objective. Participants must respond to the situation presented to them rather than relying solely on assumptions about real governments.

The Army describes DATE as a realistic and intelligence-informed training environment intended to support preparation for multidomain and large-scale combat operations. The framework is also designed to remain publicly releasable and usable by joint, multinational and interagency partners.

The Indo-Pacific Is More Than a Military Battlefield

One of the most interesting aspects of the map is that military power is only one part of the fictional world.

The scenarios incorporate political instability, economic relationships, ethnic tensions, international partnerships and maritime competition.

This reflects the reality that modern strategic competition rarely begins with tanks crossing a border.

Economic investments can increase political influence. A port can become strategically important because of its location. Political instability can create refugee movements. A territorial dispute can affect shipping. A military partnership can change the balance of power.

Consequently, a realistic training environment must bring all of these elements together.

From the Himalayas to the Pacific Islands

The map also demonstrates the enormous geographical scale of the Indo-Pacific.

At the northern edge is the Arctic, while the fictional countries stretch across Eurasia and Southeast Asia toward the island chains of the Indo-Pacific. The Southern Ocean forms the southern boundary of the broader training environment.

The Army identifies the Arctic and Southern Ocean as cross-cutting regions within DATE, linking different operational environments into a wider strategic picture.

This broad geographic design helps military planners think beyond a single battlefield.

A crisis in one area could potentially create consequences elsewhere through alliance obligations, trade, military deployments or political pressure.

A Training Map, Not a Prediction

It is important not to interpret the fictional names on this map as secret code names for current countries.

The map is part of a notional training environment. Its purpose is to create realistic circumstances for military education and exercises.

However, the strategic problems represented by the fictional countries are intentionally recognizable: competition between major powers, territorial disputes, maritime security, unstable governments, insurgencies, economic influence and multinational military cooperation.

That is what makes the map particularly interesting.

It is not a prediction of what the Indo-Pacific will look like in the future. Instead, it is a structured way of asking military planners a difficult question:

What happens when political instability, military competition, economic interests and geography collide across one of the world’s most strategically important regions?

The fictional answer provided by DATE gives commanders an environment in which they can practice dealing with that complexity before confronting comparable challenges in the real world.