Building on ZERϴ: Philand for Onchain Identity

Things you do onchain form part of your digital identity. And unlike its Web 2.0 counterparts, onchain identity is portable and self-custodial. However, while onchain data is public, it is also hard to understand. Philand made onchain identity not just visual and intuitive but also fun.

What is Philand? 

Launched in 2021, Philand is a social metaverse that visualizes your onchain activity with pixel art.

The idea is simple and fun: once you use a specific protocol (Uniswap, for example), you can claim a free NFT and use it in your ‘land,’ which is tied to one of your ENS handles. To get more objects (NFTs), you can complete quests and claim XP. The more quests you complete, the more objects you get for your virtual space and the higher your Phirank is.

If this sounds complicated, just try it — it’s easy, and Zerion even has a detailed guide to Philand. 

Besides mainnet Ethereum, Philand supports Polygon (where most object NFTs are) and 12+ networks. If you complete quests on any of these networks, you can claim NFTs on Polygon, where gas is cheap. 

The user-facing app is just one visible part of Philand, which also includes Phi API and Phi Protocol. 
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Phi API 

Phi API is a beta version of the public GraphQL API that lets developers access onchain identity without in-depth knowledge of Solidity or specific protocols. 

The API lets you fetch lists of quests, perform eligibility and claimed checks for accounts, get their Phirank, and more. You can also get URLs of specific lands, get their images, and search them. 

Phi Protocol 

The next chapter for Phi is the Phi Protocol, an open credentialing protocol for onchain identity.

In Philand, the Phi team controls which activities can be represented by pixel art (which is also created by the team). Meanwhile, the Protocol will let anyone create new credentials based on onchain history with unique art. This should lead to more quests, more NFTs, and more onchain fun. 

What will be possible with ZERϴ

On ZERϴ, all transactions will be gasless, which means users won’t need to have ETH for gas.

Under the hood, for Zerion Wallet, transactions will also be sponsored so users will not need to worry about gas fees at all. It’s convenience and ease of use, not just the price. For example, you might have tens of ETH on various networks but if you don’t have 0.1 MATIC on Polygon, you won’t be able to claim a Philand NFT. 

For Philand on ZERϴ, the experience should become more enjoyable and rewarding: 

• Zerion users will be able to claim objects on ZERϴ for free 
• Users will be able to move, trade, and use their NFT objects for free
• With the Protocol, creators will be able to launch new objects and reach wider audiences without worrying about gas costs 

All Philand NFT objects already automatically show up in Zerion Wallet, regardless of which L1 or L2 network they are on. Zerion Perks can also show when users are eligible for new users. Together these features can make Philand in Zerion a part of GTM strategies for protocols and dapps. And ZERϴ can make it free for users, removing barriers to trying new things onchain. 

What’s next for Philand and ZERϴ

While the ZERϴ Network is in testnet, Philand will continue working on Phi Protocol and will experiment with ZERϴ. 

Any consumer-facing apps will likely come after the ZERϴ mainnet release, which is expected later this year. For now, try Philand on other chains and start expressing your onchain identity visually. 

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