RomanPunks is a retrofuturistic, cyberpunk derivative world-building project inspired by fine art, history and the cryptopunk movement.
A total of 1,000 RomanPunk characters have been frozen in time and minted as Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) on the Ethereum, WAX, Polygon and Algorand blockchains.
RomanPunk characters are comprised of commoners and famous individuals based on Roman history, art history and pop culture.
The basis for RomanPunk lore and backstories is exhaustively researched by history/sci-fi buff and co-founder, Punktavian.
All images are drawn by hand by woman artist and co-founder, Cleopunktra, without the aid of AI or generative tools.
RomanPunks came into existence through early minting on OpenSea, promoting on Twitter and building a Discord community through giveaways and engagement. The idea of a cyberpunk-derivative ‘RomanPunk’ theme was in our heads for years, but it was the success of the Cryptopunks that became the catalyst for project conception and launch.
After a hard working first 60 days spent networking and attracting new collectors to RomanPunks, our community had begun to flourish and sales increased. We began to offer our collectors an opportunity to battle their NFTs in a tournament bracket powered by dice rolls.
Encouraged by the tight knit community and the carbon-neutral blockchain with lightning fast and low cost transactions, we launched 'romanpunksio' collection on WAX Blockchain as the first step to expand the backstories of our RomanPunk characters and the baseline for future development of a card game.
RomanPunks integrated with Chainlink Labs to utilize VRF (Verified Randomness Function) to host a giveaway raffle for our holders. We developed a smart contract on Ethereum which guarantees true random number selection on chain and can be used for a wide range of functions that require random selection.
After much anticipation in the community, we released our first WAX NFT card 'pack' through the Neftyblocks platform, which sold out in less than a week.
We launched our Twitch channel and begun building an audience by offering numerous giveaways of WAX NFTs from our collection, as well as giving participants a chance to win RomanPunk ETH NFT airdrops for taking top spot at the end of the 'season'.
As firm believers in a metaverse future and land owners in The Sandbox, we undertook to build the RomanPunk Colosseum on 1x1 land and entered our experience "Gladiator Bloodsport" into a GameJam contest. We will continue to build the Colosseum into a PVP arena and social hub once The Sandbox offers creators the ability to do so.
Thanks to the user friendly tools offered by NeftyBlocks, we launched a comprehensive blending system on WAX, allowing our collectors to blend the common NFTs they earn in our Discord RPG up into Legendary famous NFTs through the use of blending 'coins' that can also be earned on the Discord as reward for helping to promote the RomanPunks project.
We launched the VX collection on Polygon. Each owner of an ETH NFT gets their voxel equivalent airdropped to them, and these NFTs can be redeemed for official NFTs on The Sandbox Marketplace once available.
All 1,000 original, unique 1:1 RomanPunk characters hand drawn by Cleopunktra and minted on OpenSea.
The RomanPunk WAX NFT Trading Card Fighter Pack Series II consists of 3 NFTs randomly selected from over 236 characters.
Upcoming plans for RomanPunks include:
Below is a comprehensive and searchable directory of all 1,000 RomanPunk Characters.
Born 219 BC in Larissa, Zoe is the rebellious daughter of a wealthy lord who cast her lot with the invading Romans before the Battle of Cynoscephalae. She ended up wedding a soldier, Viggo, with whom she ran away by funding a voyage to an alternate steampunk dimension that has been ravaged by the undead.
Born 249 BC in Drepana, Marius is a former centurion who became a dimension hopping vigilante after being enslaved and crucified by alien cyborgs, then forced to watch while his entire village was beheaded. Rescued by Archimedes, he now searches time and space for the extraterrestrial brigands responsible for the atrocity.
Born 39 AD in Volubilius, Chaka is a direct descendant of Cleopatra VII. She was raised in secrecy by a Roman equestrian family after the execution of her father, Ptolemy of Mauretania. Blessed with unsurpassed singing talent, she tours interdimensionally to entertain galactic civilizations.
Born 2488 AD in Ancyra, Draven comes from a long line of notorious highfalutin slave traders. He uses advanced telescopic lenses to scout his victims interdimensionally, then dispatches time traffickers through a portal to kidnap them as slaves for his base entertainment empire of lewd karaoke clubs, casinos, and virtual brothels in 26th century AD Neo-Byzantium. Charismatic yet ruthless, Draven’s influence extends back to ancient Galatia, long a haven for the effete elite, including covert colonialist cyborgs.
Born 2182 AD in Naissus, Rada runs an antique photo booth shop in Neo-Carthage’s souk. Armed with a vintage Hasselblad and a closet of outfits spanning millennia, she offers customers a chance to step into another era. But rumors swirl that her collection isn’t just for show—some say she holds a device for interdimensional travel, turning her shop into a refuge for outlaws, exiles, and time-stranded wanderers. Rada remains as inscrutable as her wares, guarding her secrets behind a wry smile and a haze of smoke.
Born in 303 BC in Scythian Neapolis, not much is known about Suzy Sparthra other than she is a dimension-hopping Amazonian gladiatrix who battles in the 28th century AD cybercolosseums with a war harpoon and a 9mm watergun loaded with superacid.
Born 199 AD in Cirta, Bagduda came from a tribe of futuristic warrior women who traveled through an interdimensional portal in Egypt to change the course of history by preventing the assassination of Emperor Severus Alexander.
Born 125 AD in Emerita Augusta, Mads is an ancestor of Ferdinand Magellan and a former slave who, after being released from servitude on a Roman quinquereme, became an interdimensional explorer and the first ancient citizen to visit hedonistic late 20th century AD.
Born 2025 AD in Neo-Volubilis, daughter of a textile magnate, Samia founded a clothing design empire after using an interdimensional portal to gain inspiration for fashion designs across time and space.
Born 99 AD in Gordium, Midas is a magician who dazzled Rome with time-weaving illusions that he learned after stepping through an interdimensional portal to the 20th century AD. His final illusion to bury Emperor Commodus alive became fatal when the Praetorian Guard intervened, turning trick into true entombment.
Born 1 AD in Rome, Larry is a crypt keeper who sometimes takes a little extra liking to a corpse.
Born 88 AD in Frisia, Tilly witnessed the death of her parents by the orders of Trajan. With the help of a sympathetic centurion, she crossed dimensions learning the art of revenge.
Born 30 AD in Augusta Vindelicorum, Otto is a famous drinking gladiator who triumphed in the Bacchalian games of Titus for being the only contestant to complete the centurion challenge: one hundred tankards in one hundred minutes.
Born 2190 AD in Naissus, Varik rose to prominence as the head of an interdimensional conglomerate specializing in nano processors for A.I. star freighters. Secretly harbouring a licentious penchant for cyborg supermodels, he turns a blind eye to his wife Lexia’s nocturnal indulgences, as the two maintain an unblemished public facade for the good of the company and the empire.
Born 83 BC in Rome, Marco was once a celebrated general and senator, renowned for his cunning and valor. His life took a fateful turn in Tarsus, where an interdimensional portal whisked him into an alternate universe, strikingly similar to his own. Yet, the transition bore an unforeseen glitch, rendering him completely invisible. Embracing his new form, Marco now clandestinely aids his counterpart, wielding his unseen presence as a tool to spy on foes and secure treasures, all while navigating the challenges of a world where he is forever unseen, but profoundly felt.
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© 2023 RomanPunks NFT
romanpunks@protonmail.ch
Registered in Ontario, Canada
