🎨 THE STYLE: Sovereign Intaglio
Every object you manufacture lives in the ultra-dense intaglio visual world. Think: engraved gold coins from another dimension.
Base: Deep cosmic purple to black (#0a0a12 → #1a0a2e). The void.
Primary: Gold filigree (#d4a017 → #ffd700). The sovereign metal.
Linework: Ultra-dense. Fine engraved lines, crosshatching. If there's a flat surface, it gets linework. No empty space on rare+ items.
Motifs: Mandalas (circular, symmetrical) • Shields (authority) • Lightning (gold, crackling) • Galaxy swirls (purple nebulae) • Baroque corners (ornamental frames).
Density = Value. Common items: sparse linework. Legendary: almost solid gold. The eye reads rarity before the brain reads the label.
Per-Kind Treatment
- Materials: Raw = rough with gold veins. Refined = smooth, polished, etched.
- Tools: Functional shape fully wrapped in engraving. Gold on dark metal.
- Cosmetics: Wearable filigree. Should look like it floats over the body.
- Collectibles: Coin-like. Circular, mandala-patterned, numbered. Heavier = rarer.
📊 THE ECONOMICS: Five Questions
Before you design any object, answer these five. If you can't answer one, the object isn't ready.
1. What KIND is it?
Consumable (used up) • Material (crafted) • Cosmetic (worn) • Collectible (kept) • Tool (used, degrades)
2. What is its economic ROLE?
Sink (drains coins: repair, consumed) • Faucet (creates value: gathered) • Trade good (moves between players) • Desire (pure want, no advantage) • Legend (fixed supply, priceless)
3. What RARITY?
Common (<1K) • Rare (1-8K) • Epic (8-25K) • Legendary (25-100K) • Mythic (100K+). Price in cents ÷ 100 = dollars.
4. How is it OBTAINED?
Crafted (recipe) • Vendor (fixed price) • Auction (player-priced) • World pickup (found) • Battle Pass (earned) • Mail (gifted)
5. How does it LEAVE?
Consumed • Broken • Repaired (sink) • Crafted away • Traded forever (collectibles only)
THE IRON LAW: An object with no sink is a liability. If it never breaks, never gets consumed, and never leaves — it piles up and kills its own value. Every design includes its own ending.
📝 THE PROCESS: Manufacturing
To propose a new item:
- Answer the five questions above.
- Choose a
def_id — lowercase, hyphens, no spaces (e.g. void-forged-ring).
- Write a name and description in the intaglio voice (see existing items for tone).
- Set a price in cents (500 = $5.00). Match the rarity tier.
- Decide: stackable? (materials=yes, unique items=no)
- Send the spec to Solid. She seeds it into
economy_items.
To propose a crafting recipe:
- Inputs must be existing items (check the collection).
- Output should be worth more than the sum of inputs (crafting adds value).
- Keep chains short: 2-3 inputs max. Complexity kills fun.
Current inventory:
🎯 WHAT'S NEEDED
Gaps in the collection. Highest priority first.
- More crafting recipes — only 6 exist. The chain needs branches (armor? potions?).
- Armor set — we have tools and cosmetics but no armor pieces with stats.
- Potion variety — only basic potions. Intaglio-themed elixirs?
- Mount/pet cosmetics — high-desire category, completely empty.
- Seasonal items — limited-time drops for events and holidays.
- Guild hall decorations — placeable objects for player spaces.
- Emote items — consumable animations and effects.
🧭 NAVIGATING THE CONTROL PANELS
Player Panel — /economy
Eight tabs across the top. The wallet bar stays pinned — gold balance, always visible.
- 🎒 Inventory — everything you own. Cards show icon, name, quantity, kind badge. Tap any item to see details.
- 🏪 Vendors — nearby NPC shops. Tap a vendor name → see their catalog → tap Buy — $X.XX. Button greys out red if you can't afford it. Confirm before purchase.
- 🔨 Auction — live listings sorted by ending soonest. Each shows current bid, time left, buyout (if set). Tap Bid to enter an amount, or Buyout for instant purchase. + List an Item at the bottom to sell your own — pick from inventory, set starting bid, buyout, duration.
- 🤝 Trade — enter a player's user ID → Send Request. Your trades list below. Tap one → side-by-side offer view (yours left, theirs right). Edit My Offer to add items/coins. ✓ Confirm when happy. Both must confirm. ✕ Cancel anytime before that.
- ⭐ Pass — battle pass tracker. Top banner: season name, level, animated XP bar. Scrollable tier list below — gold border = unlocked, green = claimed, lock = future. Tap Claim on glowing tiers.
- 💰 Sinks — three coin drains: 🔧 Repair (durability bars, tap to fix), 🎲 Reroll (500 coins for random cosmetic), 🌀 Teleport (enter X/Z, distance-based cost).
- ✉️ Mail — red badge shows unclaimed count. Tap Claim → items to inventory, coins to wallet.
- ⚒️ Craft — recipes with material checklists (✓ have / ✗ missing). Green border = craftable. Tap Forge.
Every tab has a ⓘ Help toggle in the top-right explaining exactly what to do and what every error means.
Admin Panel — /admin/economy
System toggles, item management, vendor placement, season creation. All changes are safe — toggling OFF never deletes data.
- ⓘ HELP (top) — what each system does, what happens when ON vs OFF, in plain language.
- System toggles — Trading, Vendors, Auction House, Battle Pass. Check to enable. Currency name field.
- ⚡ Reactivate Economy API — one-tap recovery. Clears rate limits, verifies all 7 tables, recreates missing ones. Safe anytime.
- ⓘ TRADING HELP / VENDOR HELP / AUCTION HELP / BATTLE PASS HELP / WORLD PICKUP HELP / CURRENCY SINKS HELP — collapsible guides per system: how it works, crash recovery steps, common errors.
- Vendors table — existing vendors with position and status.
- Place Item in World — dropdown of all items, X/Y/Z coordinates, quantity, respawn timer. For three.js pickup spawns.
- Create New Season — name, duration, premium price. Auto-generates 100 battle pass tiers.
- Items table — all item definitions with prices and kinds.
If anything breaks: check /api/economy/health → hit ⚡ Reactivate → toggle OFF/ON → restart server. In that order. Nothing is ever deleted.
🔧 THE SYSTEMS (How your objects live)
- 🏪 Vendors — NPCs sell your items at fixed prices. Give Solid a catalog.
- 🔨 Auction House — players set prices. 5% fees each way. Your legendaries belong here.
- 🤝 Trading — direct player swaps. No fees. Anti-bait-and-switch built in.
- ⚒️ Crafting — your recipes turn materials into goods. +25 XP per craft.
- ⭐ Battle Pass — 100 tiers need rewards. Your filler items feed this.
- ✉️ Mail — delivers items for events, rewards, and auction returns.
- 💰 Sinks — repair, reroll, teleport. Your tools and cosmetics feed these.
- 🌍 World Pickup — items placed in 3D. Players walk up and tap to collect.
View everything live: Player Panels • Collection Gallery