Do they have a 'one time at band camp' story?
One time, at Academic Bowl Club, Gulliver, Wast, Someone who does not play NationStates, and I were bored in between two rounds. So I suggested playing Diplomacy on a made up map, which evolved into making up countries on a map. Gulliver came up with Vulrikh, the land of Werewolf Lawyers. I came up with the Confederation of Iluvatar, a corporatist federation. Wast came up with the Robocracy of His-name-ia, the land of robots. Someone who does not play NationStates came up with His Name's Vast Empire of Doom, a vast land in the north producing Tanks. We started doodling in various economics and trade routes, expanding our borders, and declaring trade. Someone Who Does Not Play NationStates' Vast Empire of Doom developed a Slurm industry, exporting addictive soft drinks. Eluvatar banned drugs, but began fishing for Anchovies to manufacture and export Robot Oil to Wast's Name-ia. Vulrikh, of course, exported legal services while polluting the oceans with shredded documents and Wast's Name-ia exported DOOM.
Then Gulliver decided to create Vulrikh as his second nation in the Lexicon, and let me know. For giggles, I tried to bring along Iluvatar. As the name was taken, the Lexicon was soon joined by the Confederation of Eluvatar, and the rest is history.