Metaversal is aBankless newsletterfor weekly level-ups on NFTs, virtual worlds, & collectibles
Dear Bankless Nation,
Ever since Bored Ape Yacht Club launched in late April 2021, the popularity of the NFT collectibles project — whose 10,000 NFTs double as “Yacht Club membership cards” — has simply exploded.
Indeed, in four short months since going live BAYC has surged into the ranks of the top 5 most-traded NFT projects of all-time. That achievement’s impressive any way you slice it, and it speaks to how BAYC rapidly joined CryptoPunks, Axie Infinity, and Art Blocks as among the most iconic NFT projects to date.
Bored Ape Yacht Club @BoredApeYC
Strange noises can be heard from the basem*nt of the club. The clinking of glass and the turning of gears . . .The Mutant Ape Yacht Club is now live. 🧪boredapeyachtclub.com/#/mayc
boredapeyachtclub.comBored Ape Yacht ClubA limited NFT collection where the token itself doubles as your membership to a swamp club for apes. The club is open! Ape in with us.
12:41 AM ∙ Aug 29, 2021
1,158Likes254Retweets
Yet if that quick ascension isn’t wild enough for you, how about the BAYC team’s blockbuster rollout of the Mutant Ape Yacht Club collection over the weekend?
MAYC rewards BAYC’s early community members and opens the project’s doors to more newcomers, and in a matter of days the series has already entered the top 10 most-traded NFT projects ever! Let’s catch up on all the excitement in today’s Metaversal 🦍
-WMP
🙏 Sponsor:Immutable X — Scaling Ethereum and NFTs!
Last week the BAYC team announced a surprise airdrop of 10k “mutant serum” NFTs on a 1:1 basis with Bored Ape holders and in doing so unveiled the arrival of the MAYC collection.
Shortly thereafter, BAYC revealed up to 20k new Mutant Apes would be possible: 10k from mutations via mutant serums, and 10k from mints during a public Dutch Auction sale. As BAYC’s website explained:
“The MAYC is a way to reward our ape holders with an entirely new NFT—a “mutant” version of their ape—while also allowing newcomers into the BAYC ecosystem at a lower tier of membership. Mutants represent the final tier of membership; everything going forward occurs with the intention of accruing utility and member’s-only benefits to Bored Apes foremost, but also Mutants, and to a lesser extent, Bored Apes with BAKC companions.”
M1, M2, & Mega Mutant Madness
Using Chainlink VRF technology, BAYC randomly airdropped three different tiers of mutant serums: M1 serums, M2 serums, and M3 “Mega Mutant” serums, with each level up providing holders with wilder mutation possibilities.
The idea, then? Once the aforementioned Dutch Auction was complete (and that didn’t take long courtesy of extreme demand), serum holders could start applying their serums to their Bored Apes to generate new Mutant Ape spinoff collectibles. The main caveat? Apes can only be mutated once.
Bored Ape Yacht Club @BoredApeYC
There are two ways to acquire a Mutant. The first is by MUTATION - exposing a Bored Ape to a vial of Mutant Serum. There are three tiers of Mutant Serum - M1, M2, and Mega Mutant. MUTATION will begin after the public sale concludes.
12:41 AM ∙ Aug 29, 2021
265Likes34Retweets
After the conclusion of the public sale, a frenzy of mutations began as excited holders started exploring the unlocked possibilities, and secondary trading activity around mutant serums and newly-created MAYC collectibles on OpenSea quickly exploded. Altogether, nearly 15k of the 20k possible Mutant Apes have been created so far.
For visual context, here are some mutation examples from community members:
Mutant options.. still have no idea what ima do!!! Where are all the new #BAYC members!? I wanna follow some Mutants!!! #apefollowape #mutantfollowmutant
8:09 PM ∙ Aug 30, 2021
464Likes48Retweets
richerd @richerd
How it started.... How It's going...A Trippy Triptych: The de-evolution of a #BAYCApe → M1 → M2
3:41 PM ∙ Aug 29, 2021
567Likes49Retweets
What’s next for MAYC
Regarding the future of MAYC, BAYC’s builders (who are currently hiring for multiple roles) noted in the project’s Discord over the weekend:
“Mutant Apes are definitely part of the club and come with a lower tier of [BAYC] membership benefits. What that means is that some utilities will be exclusive to Bored Apes while other utilities will include both, or be tiered [...] in the case of limited merch drops, some items may be accessible only to BAYC members, some items to both BAYC and MAYC.
We also wanted to take a moment to give a quick roadmap update. There’s only one more item left on Roadmap 1.0—The Treasure Hunt (note: this is BAYC only). The hunt will be launching shortly […] after that it’s all about Roadmap 2.0. We have some ambitious plans for the utility we plan on offering across the BAYC ecosystem and will be unveiling the full Roadmap 2.0 in the coming weeks, but wanted to tease one Roadmap 2.0 item—
Every single Bored Ape and Mutant Ape will receive a free, fully rendered and rigged 3D model that they can use in the metaverse. We’re working with Polygonal Mind to accomplish this, and given the sheer number of traits it’s going to take a few months, but we’re really excited.”
Bored Ape Yacht Club @BoredApeYC
Work-in-progress renders BAYC x MAYC, by @polygonalmind
7:44 PM ∙ Aug 29, 2021
822Likes152Retweets
Bigger things on the horizon?
With BAYC collectibles being auctioned through both Christie’s and Sotheby’s next month, it seems that the Bored Ape takeover is only just beginning to heat up.
Yet if we zoom out, what’s the big picture?
Perhaps it’s BAYC steamrolling its way to Hollywood and beyond and becoming a mainstream brand. After all, today we did just see CryptoPunks creators Larva Labs sign a major deal with the powerhouse United Talent Agency to bring Punks, Autoglyphs, and Meebits to the bring screen, games, and more. Maybe the BAYC community will eventually follow suit? That remains to be seen for now, to be sure, but it’s now decidedly in the realm of possibility!
Action steps
👀 Check out the MAYC landing page to learn more about the new project!
Subscribe toBankless. $22 per mo. Includesarchive access,Inner Circle&Badge.
🙏Thanks to our sponsor
Build an app in < 2 hours with gas-free NFTs onImmutable X, Ethereum’s Layer-2 scaling solution.
Immutable Xis Ethereum’s first Layer-2 scaling solution for NFTs. Instantly scale your NFT application with instant trade confirmation, massive scalability (9,000 TPS+), zero gas fees -- without compromising user custody. Developed on top of StarkWare’s bleeding edge zero-knowledge rollup technology, our protocol ensures developers can level up and build a mainstream NFT game, dapp or marketplace in days, not months.
👉 Learn how tobuild with Immutable X here.
👉 Visit Immutable’s contact form andapply to build.
Not financial or tax advice.This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure.From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See ourinvestment disclosures here.
