Learn what is DeGods, a deflationary NFT project that offers plenty of utility through the $DUST token and is governed by a DAO.
It’s no secret that the FTX shambles seriously hurt Solana, and the NFT projects built on the once mighty network have suffered. DeGods has always been held up as the Solana NFT poster child, a true BAYC competitor that had the Ethereum fan club feeling nervous. So, has the collapse of Solana taken DeGods down with it?
The short answer is no. DeGods is already planning its future on a new blockchain, its community is still buzzing, and with SOL trading around $15, picking up a DeGod feels more tempting than ever.
In this post, you’ll find all the information you need about DeGods, the $DUST token, the DeadGods, and learn about its planned transition from Solana to Ethereum.
Table of Contents
DeGods Explained
DeGods is a collection of 10,000 fantastic-looking PFPs on the Solana (SOL) blockchain.
The project was the first deflationary PFP collection minted on Solana, and it’s widely regarded as one of Solana’s most successful NFT collections.
The DeGods community is awash with innovators and creators who’ve used the collection to network and build separate web 3.0 projects. You can experience the community for yourself on Twitter and Discord.
Who Created DeGods?
DeGods was created by Rohun Vora, who is also known as ‘Frank III’ on Twitter, and wasn’t doxxed until November 2022 when he revealed his identity in a short clip posted on Twitter. The project was supported by the Web 3.0 software company DustLabs, which Rohun co-founded.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Rohun dropped out of UCLA, gained experience as a full-stack developer, and later worked at Main Stree. Rohun is also the founder of one the top generative art projects on Solana called y00ts.
The majority of the DeGods team remains undoxxed and includes:
- COO, Taylor: The COO of the DeGods project goes by the Twitter handle @taylordegods and posts every now and then normally about the DeGods or y00ts.
- CTO, Chill: The Chief Technology Officer of DeGods goes by @0x_chill on Twitter and also appears to be the CTO for y00ts.
- Artist, SCUM: One of the key artists in DeGods goes by the handle @SCUMSOL, whose role in creating the DeadGods collection appears to have been central, according to a related Twitter thread and website.
- Artist, Sir Candy Apple: According to Candy Apple’s website, they were hired to create part of the DeadGods collection, and on Twitter, they go by the handle @sircandyapple.
In an interview on the Malc Colcer Podcast, Rohun said there are no plans to doxx the rest of the DeGods team, as anonymity improves personal safety and allows members to express themselves without fear of a backlash.
So if you want more information about the DeGods team than a Twitter handle or a personal website, you will struggle to find much.
When Did DeGods Launch?
DeGods launched in October 2021 with an initial mint price of 3 SOL, worth around $450. Early buyers were asked to post videos of themselves talking about the project with their friends and family on social media to secure a spot on the mint list.
Unfortunately, the launch went wrong, as the bots managing the mint were exploited, people on the mint list were left out in the cold while all the DeGods were minted within just seven seconds, and the project was immediately labeled as a rug pull.
The floor price of DeGods plummeted, and Taylor Tweeted that by November 2021, team members were considering giving up.
DeGods Launch 2.0
By early 2022, things were getting desperate for DeGods, and the community had been left devastated by the mint. In January, the $DUST token protocol was approved, and its tokenomics were made public.
At the end of January, the DeadGods collection was released. DeGods holders had to feed 1000 $DUST to their DeGods to create a DeadGods. To avoid diluting the value of DeGods, the new Dead versions do not count as separate NFTs. Instead, their metadata is linked directly to the original DeGods.
The launch of the $DUST token and the DeadGods gave a new turn of life to the project driving its floor price up and bringing the community together.
You can follow the exact timeline of the launch meltdown and recovery here.
What Makes DeGods Unique?
Every DeGods is unique. Each character has a combination of features assigned to it through a generative art program resulting in countless potential combinations and rarity scores.
The DeGods are divided into five categories Common, Uncommon, Rare, Super Rare, and Mystic. Every DeGod has 4-7 traits, including Skin, Clothes, Background, Eyes, and Head.
Interestingly, according to Rarity Sniper, the rarest DeGods in the collection have fewer traits. Around 35% of the tokens have seven traits, while less than 1% have four traits.
The rarest DeGods with a rarity score of 7845 is #2885 because it has just four traits (0.5%), including the Joker Skin (2.4%) and the Medusa Head (0.25%).
What does DeGods Do?
The reason DeGods managed to rebuild itself following the disastrous launch to become one of the most successful Solana NFT projects is because of its multi-utility ecosystem. When you purchase DeGods, you get access to some fantastic perks, and new features are constantly being developed through the DAO.
$DUST
At the core of the DeGods utility features is the $DUST token, which currently exists on the Solana blockchain and has a maximum supply of 33 million. The token’s primary use case is minting DeadGod and we’ll explain how this works in the next section.
The only way to earn $DUST is through staking and burning:
- Stake DeGods: Maximum 1.25 $DUST per day.
- Stake DeadGods: Maximum 3.75 $DUST per day.
- Burn DeGods/DeadGods: DeGods can be burnt in exchange for $DUST by sending the token to the burn wallet. The amount of $DUST received depends on rarity and supply.
Beyond staking and minting DeadGods, you can also use $DUST to buy exclusive DeGods merchandise, access community events, and buy a ticket to raffles at the Dustie’s store.
According to CoinGecko, $DUST hit its all-time high in May 2022 with a price of $7.58, and as of writing, it trades at a 90% discount for $0.074.
It’s worth noting that news around DeGods and y00ts migrating chains has pushed $DUST over 80% higher in the last 30 days. Furthermore, the DeGods whitepaper states a third halving event for the $DUST token is expected this year, reducing staking rewards by 50%, and potentially resulting in bullish price action.
DeadGods
DeadGods are visually enhanced versions of DeGods that offer holders an awesome PFP and improved $DUST staking rewards. DeadGods traits are essentially the same as the DeGods, as they have the same rarity score, but their art is upgraded.
At first, the mechanic appears to be the same as the Mutant Ape collection within BAYC, but DeadGods function differently.
Unlike a Mutant Ape, a DeadGod isn’t a separate NFT. Instead, they’re linked directly to the original DeGods. As a result, DeadGods don’t increase the collection’s supply and therefore don’t create negative price action. You can swamp between the two Gods whenever you like, giving you two cool PFPs.
Because the two Gods are connected, they can’t be sold separately, so if you sold your DeGod, the buyer would also end up with your DeadGod.
You can also burn your original DeGod which will earn you $DUST and increase the collection’s value by reducing the supply while your DeadGod continues to earn staking rewards.
To transcend your DeGod to a DeadGod, visit the official Transcend page, connect your Solana wallet that holds the DeGod, and then pay the $DUST fee.
The fee for generating a DeadGod is currently 1554 $DUST, but it can fluctuate regularly, so make sure you check the fee on the transcend page before confirming the transaction.
DAO
A DAO controls the DeGods ecosystem made up of DeGods holders who actively participate in the project’s decision-making through proposals and voting. The DAO was founded through royalty fees that were set at 9.99%. However, an official Tweet in late 2022 announced that the fee was being eliminated, so at the moment, it’s unclear where the funding stems from.
One of the most exciting decisions made by the DAO was to spend treasury funds on purchasing Killer 3s, a Basketball team in the rapper Ice Cube’s Big3 league, for $625k. The move made headlines worldwide and helped DeGods gain exposure outside the NFT community.
Solana to Ethereum Migration
At the end of December 2022, Rohun announced on Twitter in a heartfelt animated video that it was time for DeGods to leave Solana in favor of Ethereum. Solana was once held up as the Ethereum killer, but 2022 was a brutal year for the network, during which its $SOL token lost over $40 billion from its market capitalization.
The migration is slated to be completed in Q1 of 2023 and will also see the $DUST token bridged onto Polygon, a layer-2 scaling solution that operates on top of the Ethereum network.
It’s unclear how the move will affect the price of $DUST or DeGods, and Rohun clarified in his Tweet that he wouldn’t speculate on the topic.
Rohun added that his other project, y00ts, would also leave Solana and migrate over to Polygon after DeLabs received a $3 million grant from the Polygon foundation to support the transition.
How To Buy DeGods?
The best place to purchase a DeGods is on MagicEden or OpenSea, but we’re going to use OpenSea as an example, as once the NFTs move onto Ethereum, they’re likely to stop trading on the Solana-based MagicEden marketplace.
Before you buy a DeGods, it’s recommended that you use TheThirdWeb deal finder tool to look for bargains. Enter your budget and the rarity of DeGod you want, and ThirdWeb will give you a list of DeGods that meet your criteria.
- Get a Crypto Wallet: Set up a Phantom wallet and load it with $SOL.
- Connect to OpenSea: Visit the DeGods OpenSea page and click the wallet icon at the top of the page to link your wallet to the website.
- Explore: Browse the DeGodscollection or search for the suggestions you got from ThirdWeb. You can also use the filters on OpenSea to adjust price and rarity.
- Buy: Purchase a DeGods by pressing Buy Now or submitting a Bid.
Buying DeGods isn’t easy simply because the community is notorious for HODLING, so you should expect to spend a fair amount of time waiting for the right DeGod to be listed.
The Future Of DeGods
DeGods got off to an extremely rough start, as it burnt and crashed just moments after its initial launch. However, the team behind the project quickly bounced back through the $DUST token and DeadGods collection. The project’s future couldn’t be more exciting as by migrating to Ethereum, DeGods is putting itself at loggerheads with the biggest names in the NFT space.
However, transitioning to a new blockchain is no easy task, and the project’s success hinges on a smooth transition. Whatever happens, we can be sure that 2023 will be an exciting year for DeGods.
