It’s been an incredible week. We’re now officially on Mars, and we’re planning to go even further. So without much ado, let’s talk about it:
Development/Design
— We launched avatars on Saturday at 4am PT.
— We began redesigning the Mars UI, branding, and user experience.
— We postponed the DEX to focus entirely on the avatars launch, and have now resumed testing.
— We’re refactoring the code base to accomodate the next launches and a cross-chain framework.
— We produced a quick render we’ll show you soon, and are storyboarding a couple interesting videos. . .
— We began building decryption and coding missions.
Community
— YOU MINTED 21,000 AVATAR NFTs IN LESS THAN 20 MINUTES
— 7,000 OF THOSE IN 3 MINUTES
— ABSOLUTE MADLADS
— Harmony retweeted that rick roll I got you with on April Fool’s Day 
— I went on the Harmonize Podcast to rant about cults (and the vision we’ve got for Mars).
— I’ve been slow to publish the incentive models that community focus groups came up with, but this week all of us in the community will have a chance to compare various mission rewards models and decide the future of the chain.
What’s next?
So. . . avatars have launched.
That moment we’ve all been waiting months for has finally come, and it was fucking amazing (I haven’t verified it for certain yet, but that had to be a record of some kind, right?)
But now what?
We’re not taking a break. There’s a lot to do and build, and we aren’t slowing down. But now that the latest big release has happened, it will take some time to build up to the next one. In this wave with less hype, we’ll need everyone to come together to do the work of building out the Colonies.
Here’s how:
DAO
MockDAO is coming. The new governance experiment will begin as we discuss mission incentives together, use forum polls to decide which ideas have the most merit, and then blockchain-based voting to decide on the final one.
From there, we’ll refine the focus group structure into one that begins with guilds, goes through mediators to the core team, and then gets voted on by the community.
Eventually, the Harmony Colony will elect a group of representatives (that are much more fluid than long-term Earth politicians) who can serve as their votes on the inter-blockchain Mars Council.
The Mars Council will be a federation of independent colonies who represent each blockchain that Mars has colonized, and unify the Colonies, while retaining their independence. It will not be like the American federation of states, which has become very centralized. The Colonies will be independent and make all decisions that only affect their chain independently, and the federation will only weigh decisions that affect all chains.
Anyway, there’s a lot more that needs to be explained, but that’s just an intro for now. More on the DAO later.
Missions
When are missions coming?
It’s hard to tell. It will be multiple weeks, as we have to finalize the incentive model, and build it into the quests, which we also have to finish building, and then test extensively. It’s a pretty complicated setup, so don’t latch on to any specific dates. We’ll have better estimates as we get closer.
This week, I should be able to post each focus group’s idea, as well as the core team’s, for discussion. Whichever idea you choose, we will honor.
However, it’s important to keep in mind what that means.
We will always support you. And we want you to decide the fate of this Colony for yourselves. But, we trust our decisions and make them very carefully. So, the core team’s proposal for mission incentives will be implemented from launch on Polygon when we go cross-chain, and other chains in the future, to set those Colonies up in the way we think will equip the Colonies the best.
We’ll never force a decision on anyone, so you’re free to not use the colonization framework we’re using for other blockchains. But, depending on the framework you choose, that could de-couple the economies and development plans of Harmony from future chains. So, be cautious.
Honestly, from the discussions I’ve had with focus groups, I don’t think it will be an issue, we all seem to be relatively on the same page, with more creative differences than structural. So don’t worry. I just want you to be aware that, as the pioneers of your own destiny, it will be important to look ahead and be aware of the consequences of all decisions.
If in doubt, we’re always here to support you. We will tell you if you are at risk of something like that, and you’re always free to choose that path if it’s what you all feel is right for the Colonies.
So, as we’re preparing to debate the future of the Colonies, remember that disagreements and debates are good, and that we’re all on the same side, whatever our opinions.
Dates
Speaking of dates, there’s been a bit of confusion around timelines in the community recently. We’ve promised releases that had to be pushed back, or team members have shared estimates that weren’t intended to be locked in.
To avoid confusion, we’re setting this rule in place:
Only dates given as an official “launch date” and posted as such here on the forum are official.
If I or any other team member give an estimate in conversation or on other platforms, hold it loosely.
DEX
The DEX, which many are calling the SeX, and which is officially called the SPEX, was paused to allow for full focus on the avatar launch. Now, we’re resolving development debts (just a term for post-launch maintenance, pivots, bug fixes, etc) and getting back to DEX testing.
I don’t have an ETA, but it’s not far off.
Cross-chain
I’ll tell you more about cross-chain later, but basically, it’s coming soon. Once the DEX and missions are live, Harmony will have all the component parts of the Colonies operational, and the only thing left will be to improve them and colonize other chains, which is what we’ll do.
We’re aiming for Polygon, and a successful launch (which we’ll need your help with, but more on that later) means we can secure enough funding for Mars to withstand even the worst of bear markets and build for years. We’d also be welcoming an entire community, and you all as the big brothers and sisters would help guide them as new Martians.
Things are about to get so much bigger.
There’s so much more to talk about, but not enough time. This next month is going to be insanely busy for us as we grind endlessly to get all the prep for feature launches and expansions done.
Mars is getting an app refresh, new branding, a playable game, a DEX, new users, some actual marketing, a bunch of new hires, and so much more in the next few months, so stay tuned (and bear with me if comms are slow 
).
So for now, just enjoy yourselves, keep making friends here to prepare for Guilds, and feel free to invite your friends to Mars while it’s still early.
Forward 
— brother
Is hard not to be excited.