Cabin is building a distributed city of beautiful neighborhoods for nature-loving creators and remote workers.
In doing so, we are starting to imagine the first civilization-scale game that is played both online and offline. This IRL RPG (in-real-life role-playing game) is a wild experiment in bringing people together in both virtual and physical environments.
Like other world-building projects, Cabin consists of people, places, an in-game currency, and ways to level-up.
In the rest of this article, we’ll detail how to engage with Cabin and describe the “game mechanics” that we believe will best enable the internet’s brightest minds to gather in person and solve some of our biggest problems (like housing and loneliness) through novel, emergent bottom-up human coordination.
The first thing one does in most games is “choose your character.” When you onboard to Cabin, you’ll have the opportunity to choose a role for yourself (you can choose more than one if you’d like). Roles are how you can create association, identity, and reputation that build social capital within Cabin and its neighborhoods.
There are currently six roles that make up the Cabin ecosystem:
Creators are artists, developers, writers, dreamers, and makers who come to Cabin to explore and design things that have never been done before.
Residents live across the Cabin network, cross-pollinating neighborhoods with culture and ideas. They live and work remotely and help support neighborhoods financially.
Builders create the physical environment of neighborhoods. They design and build structures for living, working, and connecting with other members of the community.
Naturalists come to Cabin neighborhoods to regenerate the environment and help communities live with the cycles of the natural world. They grow plants, food, animals, and culture.
Hosts create containers for people to come together IRL and form deep, lasting relationships. They make sure everyone is having a great time in their neighborhoods.
Caretakers are the heart and soul of Cabin neighborhoods. They own and operate properties in the network and build communities that flourish.
Here is how each role can engage both in-real life and virtually:
In Real Life: Creators can apply to be a Creator-in-Residence. Creators in Residence live in Cabin neighborhoods for free and work on any project of their choosing. They are selected by the community each month and anybody can apply via publicly describing their creative project on either Twitter or Instagram.
Online: Cabin hosts regular accountability circles where creators can give and receive feedback on their creative projects. These are not mandatory, but are helpful ways to accelerate one’s path to achieving their creative goals.
In Real Life: Residents pay for rooms on Cabin properties. They usually have a remote job/company/creative endeavor that they work on for part of the day, but they are free to set their own schedules and do their own thing. Cabin neighborhoods have nature out the front door and typically include amenities like saunas, gyms, cold plunge pools, and campfires. If you’re interested in moving into a Cabin neighborhood, you can apply here today.
Online: Residents are welcome to the same community-wide forums that other roles share, which include a regular community video call and several active channels in Discord.
In Real Life: There are two main IRL opportunities for Builders.
Builders can come to neighborhoods for a Build Week, which are ad-hoc 1-2 week projects where a team quickly erects a structure on a Cabin neighborhood in exchange for free room and board. Past Build Weeks have facilitated the creation of a sauna, a pergola, and a bathhouse.
Builders can apply to be a Builder-in-Residence, in which they provide 15-20 hours of weekly work over the course of several months to help build tiny cabins and other projects in exchange for free housing at a Cabin neighborhood. They also lead Build Weeks.
Online: Cabin has a regular call for builders led by a former Builder-in-Residence. Please join the #builders channel in Discord to learn more.
In Real Life: There are two main IRL opportunities for Naturalists.
Naturalists can come to neighborhoods for a Grow Week, which are ad-hoc 1-4 week projects where a team of naturalists restore or help build local regenerative systems. There is an upcoming grow week at an orchard on the Portuguese island of Såo Miguel.
Naturalists can apply to be a Naturalist-in-Residence, in which they provide 15-20 hours of weekly work to help develop or restore local regenerative systems in exchange for free housing at a Cabin neighborhood.
Online: Gardeners, farmers, and folks interested in permaculture are welcome to join the #naturalists channel in Cabin’s discord. We discuss plants we’re growing, grass we’re touching, and crops we’re nurturing.
In Real Life: Hosts can apply to become a Host-In-Residence, in which they provide 15-20 hours of weekly work to create warm spaces and lead the logistics of gathering at a neighborhood.
Online: Hosts gather in Cabin’s discord to meet other gatherers and spacemakers.
In Real Life: Caretakers own and operate Cabin neighborhoods and usually reside on their properties for most of the year. They collaborate with builders and naturalists to improve the physical environment and collaborate with hosts to ensure that everyone living on a property feels comfortable and safe.
Online: Later this year, Cabin will introduce THE NEIGHBORHOOD RACE, which will be a way for prospective and current Caretakers to raise funds from Cabin and their community to develop their neighborhood. Funds must help neighborhoods to do a better job of facilitating Cabin’s values of coliving, creating, and conserving.
Neighborhoods are beautiful properties across the Cabin network. Neighborhoods are typically within 90 minutes of an airport and have high speed internet and immersive nature out the front door. They are owned by Caretakers, who develop neighborhoods alongside each of Cabin’s roles.
Cabin currently has three neighborhoods. Neighborhood Zero (near Austin, Texas) is accepting residents for each of the following roles:
Creator (Apply here)
Resident (Apply here)
Builder (Apply here)
Naturalist (Apply here)
Host (Apply here)
The neighborhood race is how the Cabin community comes together to create new neighborhoods. Members of the community can pledge support and make financial contributions. Winners of the race get access to crowdfunding tools, advising, and matching funds from Cabin. Prospective new neighborhoods can fill out this form.
There are many people within the Cabin ecosystem who are not currently living in a neighborhood. Our physical communities and our online community can communicate with each other on Discord and in other virtual spaces.
₡ABIN is the in-game currency that allows players to make community decisions, earn rewards, and coordinate with others. It helps the Cabin ecosystem align our incentives to develop neighborhoods that better enable us to create, conserve, and colive. ₡ABIN currently has four core functions:
Deciding how we spend our money
Deciding which creators we choose for Creator-in-Residence programs
Deciding which neighborhoods we onboard to the Cabin network of neighborhoods
Granting access to certain channels within the Discord and the Census
Members can hold and interact with their ₡ABIN in a wallet. A wallet is a digital tool where you can store crypto assets (₡ABIN was made on the Ethereum blockchain). Metamask and Rainbow are examples of non-custodial wallets that anyone can use. Reach out to the Cabin team on Twitter/IG if you need help getting set up with a wallet.
Anyone can earn ₡ABIN by participating in the Community Referral Program. Builders, Naturalists, Hosts, and Creators can earn ₡ABIN by participating in IRL events. ₡ABIN is also gifted to community members for their contributions.
The Cabin ecosystem consists of folks with unique skillsets who share a vision to create, colive, and conserve.
Neighborhood Zero is actively accepting residents for each of our different roles. Our success there can serve as a model for future Cabin properties. By implementing the above “game mechanics,” we’re confident that we can accelerate the pace at which our community can come together to develop thriving neighborhoods.
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Jonathan Hillis
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