Introducing Van of the CHANverse
Van, also known as VanCHAN, is a quiet, yet confident, action-oriented character who could care less about the popularity his peers have bestowed upon him. His keen interest in Sports has consistently led him to root for the underdog, which likely reflects the place he calls home, below the heart of Tokyo in what’s known by its underground citizens as the CHANverse.
Calm, cool and collected, Van isn’t much for talking. But when he does his deeply philosophical metaphors expose a mysteriousness the likes of which can be difficult for those around him to relate to. Van’s creativity is uniquely expressed through Music and you can find him Beatboxing, humming random melodies or spitting spontaneous lyrics about his surroundings and despite always ending up the center of attention, all he really wants to do is his own thing.
Van’s journey is one of upheaval and self-discovery. Separated from his family as a child during the Great Tsunami of 2023, a young Van was forced to find refuge in a hidden air-locked tunnel system below Koto, on the outskirts of Tokyo. Lost and alone, he was found by an old man from the CHAN, who took him under his wing and showed him the ways of his new home, the CHANverse.
It’s now the year 2034 and a lot has changed in the world above, where a highly centralized cabal of global elites have instituted a technocratic control grid so tight that life for the ordinary person is nothing like how Van once knew it. Contrasted with life below, the slow but steady softening on the surface did not go unnoticed, as Van himself bore witness to the dystopian nightmare as it unfolded.
Denizens of the CHANverse would often surface topside over the years since the Great Tsunami, watching the changes taking place, it grew increasingly difficult for them to navigate. There came a time, after a group of CHANs were captured and imprisoned, when tactical training was a requirement for anyone wishing to surface, and teams were formed to ensure the safety of the treacherous topside excursions. But Van was of his own mind, a lone wolf who knew the risks involved yet would still venture out on his own, despite the frequent pleas of his friends.
Until one day…
(to be continued)
VanCHAN — Challenge #1
By drawing inspiration from the introductory storyline above, Challenge #1 is to create a scene from the CHANverse inspired by our main character Van, who can be visualized with the help of this Style Guide below.
Represent!
Bring your best skill to your interpretation of the scene and use your imagination by putting yourself in Van’s shoes, see things from his perspective, from a CHANverse perspective, and infuse your own signature style!
You can submit up to 3 entries!
Once you’ve finished crafting your piece for Challenge #1 we ask that you mint it on Paras as a 1/1 edition NFT, put it on sale for 5 NEAR and fill out this Submission Form.
Post your entry on Twitter with the hashtag #VanCHAN & tag @vandigital for even more exposure! Here’s an example of what you can write:
Check out my entry for #VanCHAN Challenge #1 by @vandigital and have a look at my #NFT on @parasHQ
(insert url from Paras)
Challenge #1 will run from the 15th January until February 15th 2022
The Selections
A total of 10 VanCHAN NFTs created by the community will be selected and purchased by the VanDAO at the end of the Challenge, around the 15th of February. Los Vandalitos , what we affectionately call our VanDAO members, will play a key role in the selection process, so we invite you to join the Telegram Channel and get involved!
Looking ahead, we can imagine short stories attached to each visual scene the DAO selects, so expect something a bit different for Challenge #2!
Submission Form is HERE