If you’re looking to be part of Bitcoin royalty, now is your chance.
The Royals are a collection of 10,080 unique, noble characters that are generated on-chain, by the chain. A fully decentralized collection of art created by Bitcoin, each Royal Ordinal is unique.
Digital Matter Theory and Its Impact
The Royals project is powered by Digital Matter Theory, which pushes the boundaries of art in crypto by using existing patterns inside the data. This has made The Royals an integral part of introducing DMT to the broader Ordinal ecosystem. Digital Matter Theory, or DMT, is a system of identifying and utilizing blockchain data patterns to create what are known as digital substances.
In practice, Bitcoin users have found patterns within block data that they use to generate characteristics, rather than assigning traits and designing the images themselves. This has allowed for art that’s created on-chain and by the chain. One of the main differences between DMT and traditional Ordinals is the way the data gets saved. Both utilize on-chain inscriptions. But where Ordinals save the entire file, DMT focuses on metadata related to the mint, which allows for real-time generation and more efficient use of space on the blockchain.
The Royals Collection History
The collection was created by @kingpunkape, a pseudonymous BTC and ETH artist with a long history in the blockchain space. King was an early adherent to Ordinals, having also created the Bitcoin Babbies project. After seeing numerous posts about DMT and the Natcats collection, King was inspired to take a deeper dive into the theory. The result was The Royals, which launched in May 2024. The project’s goal is to set a new standard for the potential of digital collectibles on-chain. “You’re taking that whole idea of digital art – or something that exists, you know, digitally – and you’re just creating it in a way that it can’t exist anywhere else,” King said in an interview with The Block Runner, “and I think to me, pushing those boundaries are really exciting around crypto art.”
There’s a strong emphasis on the inherent specialness of The Royals artwork across their social media. The characters are not simply a .png or random art. The traits come from patterns on the chain because the artwork is actually made from Bitcoin. To paraphrase one of their recurring tweets: art that is BTC is better than art that is on BTC.
The Royals Collection Concept
At the time of its minting, there were 10,080 Royals, with no two alike. However, this supply number is dynamic – it’s based on how often the pattern “cc” appears in the hexadecimal bits field of BTC’s block data. According to King, the goal “was to create art that was simple enough to be remixed, but also strong enough to have its own iconic style.” To achieve that goal, the collection is full of sharp lines and bright colors.
The artwork for The Royals comes from Core Traits that are determined by specific digits of its block number. These include the Background, Headgear (encompassing everything from beanies to crowns), Body Type, Eye, Mouth and Nose traits. There are also some special traits, which not every character has:
Headgear: The type of headgear worn by each Royal is determined by the last digit in the block number. These digits are also impacted by other patterns that occur within the same block number. For example, a Regal Crown would be generated if the last digit is 2 and the block number string contains "38582" or "192572".
Mouth: The appearance of the mouth is based on the fourth-to-last digit of the reversed block number. Similarly to headgear, some additional traits can be determined by other patterns within the block number. For example, you would end up with a Black & White mouth if the string contains both "99" and a "2”.
Nose: The nose is determined by the second digit of the reversed block number. For example, a Cyan nose is generated when that digit is “1”.
The result is a wide range of unique combinations and because of the flexible nature of the eventual supply, trait rarity is a term worth using loosely. “Nobody knows the traits for #DMT The Royals and how they are tied to the block numbers, but me,” King posted on X. “For that reason my allocation - along with the treasury - will be assigned randomly.”
According to The Royals Gitbook, “Minters battled it out on an interactive Block pad created by Mscribe in a PvP environment. Only those with WL access could mint a Royal (a first) without any front-running, creating a fair mint with wide distribution.” King has credited the Trac team for building the priv authority to allow for a fair mint. Though the tech behind the project is complex, the vibes are straightforward. The Royals community doesn’t need you to understand everything about it; they’re perfectly fine with you just liking the art.
The Royals Collection Development
For two months prior to launching the collection, the creators hid the name of the project. This was to help preserve the necessary token ticket for the deployment. The launch occurred in May, with Phase One allocating roughly 24 hours for Bitcoin Babbies holders to choose their blocks. The following phases lasted six hours each. Mscribe was an official launch partner and built the blockpad infrastructure.
According to The Royals Gitbook, “Minters battled it out on an interactive Block pad created by Mscribe in a PvP environment. Only those with WL access could mint a Royal (a first) without any front-running, creating a fair mint with wide distribution.” King has credited the Trac team for building the priv authority to allow for a fair mint. Though the tech behind the project is complex, the vibes are straightforward. The Royals community doesn’t need you to understand everything about it; they’re perfectly fine with you just liking the art.
How to Buy The Royals with Leather
Leather wallet holders can purchase The Royals on the Magic Eden secondary market. At the time of this writing, they have a floor price of 0.0029 BTC.
