Documentation
Overview
This documentation covers every aspect of PAWN and the ERC-5D standard in full technical and practical detail. If you are new to the project, start here. If you are looking for a specific mechanic, use the sidebar to navigate directly.
What is PAWN?
PAWN is a fixed-supply token on Base implementing the ERC-5D standard. It is simultaneously an ERC-20 fungible token and an ERC-721 non-fungible token collection of exactly 2000 pieces. The token and NFT layers are not separate; they are one unified contract system where fungible balance and non-fungible ownership are synchronized automatically.
PAWN extends the ERC-404 concept by adding two additional dimensions: Access (on-chain credential) and Open (extensible architecture). Together with the foundational Hybrid and Rewards dimensions, these four properties form the basis of the ERC-5D name.
The total supply is 2000 PAWN, hard capped. There is no mint function. No new PAWN can ever be created. All token activity (trading, transfers, NFT minting, and burning) happens through the standard ERC-20 and ERC-721 interfaces, with no special infrastructure required beyond a standard wallet.
Design principles
PAWN is designed around two principles: on-chain completeness and long-run fairness.
On-chain completeness means every protocol action (reward distribution, NFT assignment, and claiming) is driven by contract state alone. There is no backend server, no oracle, and no off-chain scheduler required for core mechanics. Epoch distribution still requires a trigger transaction from the owner (or auto-distribute mode, which fires on each tax swap), but all reward accounting is fully on-chain.
Long-run fairness refers to the reward rotation design. Because each Pawn type rotates through all four reward rates across every four-epoch cycle, no type has a structural advantage over any other. All holders accumulate rewards at the same effective rate over any complete cycle, regardless of which type they hold.
Two contracts
The system is split across two contracts deployed on Base:
PawnToken
The primary ERC-20 and ERC-721 contract. Handles token transfers, NFT minting and burning, type assignment, and opt-out (SkipPawn). Also manages the trade tax engine that routes ETH to the Treasury.
PawnTreasury
The reward distribution contract. Holds the Phalanx (the on-chain PAWN reward reserve) and accumulated ETH from trading. Tracks epoch state, distributes rewards at each epoch boundary, and handles individual holder claim() calls. Manages the 24-hour claim window per epoch.