From: thepipeline_xyz
The Monad community, often referred to as “the nads,” has grown significantly over two years to become a formidable and well-known organization within the broader cryptocurrency space [00:00:15]. Extensive research, including studies from historians, archaeologists, and ethnographers, has documented this online society’s growth and dominance [00:00:39]. This article dives into the various elements of Monad lore, exploring the origins of its characters, mimetics, and significant social aspects [00:00:58]. Many individuals have been involved with Monad since its “Genesis” [00:01:21].
The Monad lore is often described as an iceberg, with only a small percentage visible to the public, while a much larger, deeper element remains below the surface [00:02:33].
Notable Memes and Characters
Ganad
One of the most obvious calling cards of Monad is “Ganad” [00:03:27]. The first Ganad tweet, a simple “GM,” was sent in December 2022 [00:03:47]. The original art for the purple Pepe ganad was created by John W rich kid, who had no affiliation with Monad at the time but was a friend asked to create Monad sticker packs [00:03:59]. The first recorded “gamanad” was posted in the Discord [00:05:18].
Mandac
Monad’s beloved hedgehog, Mandac, originated when a community member, Sapphire, dropped a picture of a purple hedgehog into the Discord [00:12:52]. The image file was named “mandak PNG,” which gave the character its name [00:14:14]. Months later, it was discovered that “landak” means “hedgehog” in Indonesian, thus combining “Mo” for Monad and “landak” [00:14:30]. Early usage of Mandac involved photoshopping it into historical photos to suggest its ubiquity [00:13:26].
Memes of the Week
The “Memes of the Week” initiative was inspired by a common tweet chain and aimed to showcase the top four memes created by the community each week [00:16:04]. It ran for a year, spontaneously ending after 52 weeks, but a larger outlet is now needed due to the proliferation of memes [00:16:20].
Original Purple Pepe
Before the community could create its own mascot, the original purple Pepe served as a placeholder character [00:16:48]. Pepe is a staple of crypto Twitter, so the team customized it by making it purple [00:17:08]. This character set the right tone, inspiring future characters like Mandac and Moyak, which initially had Pepe-esque facial features [00:17:34]. John W rich kid also created the initial purple Pepe images [00:18:16].
Chog
Chog is an AI representation of a Mandac, created when RayJ used an AI program to draw a Mandac [00:21:57]. The most familiar Chog is named Monal, who is RayJ’s son and is both a Chog and a Mandac [00:22:15]. Chog is characterized by its pink under-eye bags [00:22:30]. Research suggests a DNA split from the Mandac species occurred about 1.8 million years ago, making Chog its own distinct species [00:22:49]. “Chog Thoughts” is an account where Chog uploaded its brain into a computer, making it an early AI Twitter account [00:23:25].
Mon Hats
Mon hats are a popular community item [00:28:07]. The original was the bowler hat, which evolved after Bill Mundi saw beanies with “nipples on top” in New York, leading to the creation of the striped Mon beanie with Han River [00:28:45]. These real-life hats have good staying power within the community [00:29:14].
Salmonad
Salmonad is a salmon, described as generally useless with no defining skills or direction [00:32:37]. It has been adopted by the developer community, perhaps out of sympathy [00:32:51]. Salmonad resonates most with “extreme empaths” [00:33:11].
The Mooch
The “Mooch” refers to the French, hated by some members of the community [00:33:25].
Madel
Madel is a Monad animal that never gained popularity, perhaps even less than Salmonad [00:40:44]. It is described as a transitional animal in an evolutionary history, resembling a fish crawling on land [00:41:00]. It is considered an “awkward picture” from the community’s past [00:42:01].
Monal Weasley
Monal Weasley was a failed character based on Harry Potter, whose name was later recycled when RayJ named his Chog “Monal” [00:42:27].
Moss Fatu
Moss Fatu is another failed Monad animal, originating from a spooky SpongeBob episode featuring a Dracula-like character [00:45:12]. The character “did not have a long, you know, it’s almost like a vampire right the second it touches the sunlight everyone knows that it’s just dead” [00:45:49].
Community Events and Activities
The Locked Telegram
The “locked telegram” group chat was established in April 2023 [00:19:50]. It was an exclusive group capped at 999 members [00:20:00].
Thursday Purge Day
To make room for new members in the locked telegram, “Thursday Purge Day” was instituted as a ritualistic, sacrificial day [00:20:06]. Every Thursday at noon, John W rich kid would “execute” members, initially 100 people, then 50, and eventually 20 [00:20:14]. This was a way to “trim the fat” from the chat [00:20:30].
Poker Knights on Discord
Poker Knights, a weekly event running for close to two years, started as “Ports Poker” [00:25:20]. The idea and setup were designed by youngest peso, and the settings have remained largely unchanged [00:25:46]. It is considered the first weekly event to maintain its relevance [00:26:12].
The Pipeline Podcast
The “Pipeline” podcast and media arm was created to provide high-level updates, news, and alpha on Monad in an accessible format for the community [00:31:24]. It stemmed from the desire to contribute to Monad’s growth after finding a home in its community [00:31:16]. The podcast has grown significantly, celebrating its one-year anniversary [00:32:04].
The Cake Punch Incident
Claire, an active Korean community member, created an ornately decorated Monad cake [00:34:27]. She then live-streamed or filmed herself punching her fist through the cake, a “provocative” act that “got the people going” [00:34:50].
Mon Mem Generator
The Mon Mem Generator website was created to simplify meme creation for the community, initially allowing users to drag and drop the Monad bowler hat onto images [00:35:30]. It later integrated AI tools for background generation and allowed for the addition of multiple characters [00:36:06]. The site is now a functioning platform [00:36:47].
Bean Ads Day
Bean Ads Day is a holiday celebrated in the Monad community where everyone changes their profile picture to “beads” and pretends for a day [00:39:42].
Mcraft (Monad Minecraft Server)
Gaming was a fundamental part of early Monad community events. Around 13 months ago, a custom Monad-themed Minecraft server called “Mcraft” was created [00:46:35]. It hosted Bean Ads-themed happy hours and encouraged users to create dwellings, sculptures, and statues [00:46:53].
Other Lore and Inside Jokes
John W Rich Kid the Fry Cook
John W rich kid is described as having been mentored by a speaker on “fundamentals” and trading tips during the 2021 “shitcoin season” [00:18:55].
Intern Locked in the Bathroom
An incident occurred where an intern was accidentally (or perhaps intentionally) locked in an office bathroom for 25 minutes [00:26:50]. Kieran and James eventually kicked down the door to release him [00:27:31].
Fake One Fone
Fake One Fone was a rapper from LA with thousands of “Street tweets” [00:37:44]. His account was hacked, and his profile picture and name were changed to resemble “Keon,” making it appear as though the old tweets came from him [00:38:00].
Port is Not Real
Early in the community, there was a belief that “Port” was not a real person [00:38:43]. This later proved to be false, and also led to the creation of an AI Port [00:38:49].
Live Laugh and Monat (with a T)
This phrase originated from non-native English speakers commenting “random gu” in the Discord, leading the community to adopt “I love Monet so much” [00:40:11].
Shrimp Posting / Shrimp Decks
This lore relates to RayJ’s early interest in high-density aquaponics, specifically shrimp farming, during a “Perma winter” in crypto [00:43:00]. This interest led him to create ideas around “shrimp decks,” “shrimp NFTs,” and general “shrimp posting” [00:43:21].
Tunes, You’re Fired
This is a running joke where a speaker calls out “Tunes” for actions that would typically lead to being fired in other industries [00:43:48]. Tunes is safe, having only accumulated 37 out of 50 “strikes” [00:44:20].
Bill Mundi = Plant
This refers to Bill Mundi’s practice of using a camera feed of a different plant as his stream background each week to maintain anonymity [00:46:04].
Dong Dang Do Mr Bill
This phrase originated from an AI video by RayJ, where “Bean EDS” would say “Please don’t beat me Mr Bill” translated into Vietnamese [00:47:27]. It is a “bastardized phrase” that is fun to say [00:47:51].
Samantha
Samantha is a mysterious redheaded ex-girlfriend whom the community misses [00:48:09]. A shrine to Samantha was even built in Mcraft in the early days, in an unsuccessful attempt to lure her back [00:48:45]. The mystery surrounding her identity remains [00:48:32].
The Monad community continues to foster new lore, events, and memes, looking forward to its continued growth and evolution [00:50:08].