An Unique Take a look at the Rising Solana Neighborhood

Relying on what your Twitter timeline seems to be like, you may have seen your favorite influencer or dealer speaking about Claynosaurz, the lovable 3D dinosaurs on Solana which are taking the NFT world by storm. Regardless of the SOL and ETH communities being comparatively unbiased of each other, this mission has introduced them collectively, attracting Ethereum lovers to SOL.

Today, chain crossovers aren’t uncommon. Most just lately, prime Solana initiatives DeGods and y00ts, have additionally migrated chains to Ethereum and Polygon, respectively. As NFTs develop into more and more chain-agnostic, the boundaries between completely different blockchain worlds have gotten extra blurred and built-in. Because of this, customers can now simply entry and make the most of these digital property with out going through as a lot friction or complexities.

Whereas there are dozens of comprehensive Twitter threads on Claynosaurz, they typically get buried and fall into obscurity with the fixed stream of latest content material. To make sure that’s not the case, we spoke with the mission’s CEO, Andrew Pelekis, and co-founder Nic Cabana (Cabanimation) to present you a complete information on all the pieces that you must know concerning the world of Claynosaurz. Dive in for the story of how Claynosaurz began, their plans to construct the model’s IP, a glance behind its wildly well-liked IRL booster pack activations, and a few unique visuals.

What’s Claynosaurz?

Claynosaurz is a 3D manufacturing studio that focuses on growing high quality leisure IP in Web3 with an emphasis on ongoing neighborhood engagement. The group is constructed by artists from Sony, Disney, Dreamworks, Ubisoft, Netflix, Warner Bros, Marvel, Industrial Gentle & Magic, and extra.

The thought began in late 2021 when Nic and his associate Dan Cabral, each seasoned professionals within the animation trade, started conceptualizing the Claynosaurz mental property. With the meteoric rise of NFTs, Nic’s brother Phil Cabana steered bringing the thought into the world of Web3 and growing it as an NFT mission.

In November 2022, the group reworked the thought into a group of 10,000 animated 3D NFTs. This genesis assortment included six species of Clayno: Rex, Trice, Stego, Ankylo, Bronto, and Raptor. The preliminary launch was met with nice success, reaching greater than 130ok in buying and selling quantity after only a few hours and 600ok after simply two weeks. The ground sits at 63.26 SOL ($1,355.64) on the time of writing.

Pelekis, who had been serving as an advisor, formally joined the group as CEO shortly thereafter. Alongside the founding members, the group additionally contains 11 further artists.

The lore of Claynosaurz

The origin story of Claynosaurz follows a younger boy spending his summer time at his grandparents’ home. As he rummages via his grandpa’s attic, he uncovers toys, clay, and maps, which he makes use of to create dinosaurs that stroll round an space known as Claynotopia. Claynosaurz is a figment of his colourful and curious creativeness. Regardless of the fleeting nature of summer time, this story pays tribute to the boundless creativeness of a kid, whereby a world exists inside their thoughts with no sign of ending.

However that is just the start of the story. Pelekins defined that the lore is purposefully unfinished.

“We’ve a foundation of the story, and we all know the place our North Star is,” Pelekis mentioned. “Whereas we’ve an enormous image of what the longer arc is, the remainder we are going to supply [from] our neighborhood. Our view is that this makes the model extra relatable and artistic.”

This concept prevails all through Web3. Many filmmakers, artists, and storytellers have embraced the ability of NFTs to carry audiences into the artistic course of earlier and extra incessantly. This ends in a way more significant connection between the buyer and the product, amongst different advantages.

“Historically, IP growth meant giant upfront funding over a very long time, like making a film, sport, or TV present,” Pelekis mentioned, citing the variations between constructing in Web2 and Web3. “However, you solely get actual suggestions on launch, and it’s a hit and miss. In Web3, you possibly can monetize early within the product growth cycle, construct a neighborhood that provides ongoing suggestions, and [create] unparalleled model loyalty via a way of possession and being part of the journey.”

Claymakers, clay, croissants, and extra

Creating 10,000 3D animated NFTs could appear to be a formidable feat, however the Clayno ecosystem is definitely a lot, a lot greater. Since its launch, they’ve launched further collections, together with Claymakers, Clays, Sardinhas, Croissants, Tacos, and Pizzas.

Early NFT holders had been airdropped Claymakers and Clay, however new holders can nonetheless purchase these things on a Solana market. In complete, there are 10,000 Claymakers and 31,000 Clay NFTs. “The Claymaker acts as a transmuter. It’s mainly a software in sport to craft objects,” Pelekis defined. “Type of like how the kid taking part in with clay has their software to create new issues.”

There are three varieties of Claymakers: First (single-use), Deluxe (5 makes use of), and Restricted (limitless makes use of). Additional, there are six colours of single-use Clay (Black, Blue, Purple, Inexperienced, White, and Yellow) and one unlimited-use Clay (Gold).

Down the road, Clay can be utilized to forge armor for the Claynos, who will then tackle completely different courses consequently.

The Claymaker will also be used with the objects obtained from IRL occasions to function a burning or minting expertise known as “molding” to create new objects within the story. At every in-person occasion, unique digital objects are given out to the neighborhood within the type of booster packs relying on location.

“The group handed out NFTs with artwork representing sardine cans in Lisbon, croissants in Paris, and pizza slices at NFT NYC,” Pelekis mentioned. “Every merchandise is an homage to the placement the place it was handed out, a nod to what they’re greatest identified for.”

Utilizing the Claymaker, the Croissants from Paris may be molded into Medieval-themed gear sooner or later, and Tacos will be capable to be molded into Metropolis of Angels-themed gear for the dinos. At present, the Sardinhas may be molded into eggs. The eggs will later hatch into a brand new species of Clayno — however extra on that later.

IRL as a guerrilla activation for onboarding

Among the many traditional choices of Web3 IRL occasions, resembling open bars, DJs, and over-the-top artwork installations, Claynosaurz has achieved notable popularity of its booster packs that distinguish themselves from the norm.

By incorporating the joys and nostalgia of opening a beloved childhood Pokémon card pack, they’ve succeeded in seamlessly mixing the digital and in-person experiences for attendees. In a video by content creator Minhxdynasty, attendees (who’re given a free booster pack for attending a Claynosaurz occasion) may be seen united of their eagerness and anticipation to open a coveted “uncommon” card. The price of each frequent and uncommon playing cards can span from lots of to tens of 1000’s of {dollars}.

Nic says this has been a good way to recruit new individuals into the ecosystem. Claynosaurz works with Cupcake Protocol to make use of communication expertise (NFC) on cell gadgets via safe NFC tags on every card, that are paired with sensible contracts.

“What we’re doing with Cupcake provides us the chance to reward individuals for being there at these occasions. It has a component of enjoyable, which we’re all about. And provides a component of thriller. It additionally presents NFTs in a approach that’s extraordinarily approachable to a brand new demographic,” says Nic.

This supplies an elevated probability for the buddies of Web3 natives, who might not be acquainted with Web3, to be onboarded and launched to the platform.

“There are individuals who know nothing about NFTs and say it’s like Pokémon playing cards, however with many added use circumstances as a result of it’s digital,” Nic mentioned. They faucet it on their telephone and get a free digital collectible. And that digital collectible is value one thing.”

What’s subsequent in Claynotopia

There’s so much to be enthusiastic about for followers of Claynotopia. Within the brief time period, the neighborhood will see the discharge of latest objects that may be constructed via the Claymaker, together with companions for the dinosaurs. Quickly, a brand new species of Clayno will likely be obtainable: the Pterodactyl. Utilizing the Claymaker, Sardinhas holders will be capable to burn their NFT for an egg which can hatch right into a clay Dactyl.