Illuvium DAO Votes Against Illuvitar NFT Package Opening Contest With Controversial Crypto Identity Su Zhu

If you’re not a crypto-head but have heard the term DAO and wondered what the hell it is, Illuvium just gave a pretty good demonstration. It just went against a plan the game project had in mind to stage a marketing-led Illuvitar NFT pack opening contest with infamous industry identity Su Zhu.

A DAO is a decentralized autonomous organization – a bottom-up governance structure without a single central authority. It’s a concept, then especially new for the gaming industry. WDespite the fact that they may end up opening up a regulatory can of worms that has yet to be fully addressed, the DAO benefits are clear for crypto/blockchain projects that strive to achieve the goals of like-minded groups of people.

And for Illuvium’s decentralized council (Illuvinati Council), it turns out that the idea of ​​one of the most prominent blockchain gaming ecosystems in development having even the slightest degree of association with one of the industry’s brightest individuals just wasn’t worth the extra exposure. it would have brought to the Illuvitars.

Su Zhu is one of the founders of the imploded, now bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), which was involved in last year’s Terra Luna “crypto contagion”.

3AC was found to be involved in over-leveraged, far-reaching risky trades that ultimately contributed to a contagion implosion effect that was wrapped up in many other crypto industry companies and investors. At one point, 3AC managed as much as US$10 billion in assets, but its reckless actions ultimately left it unable to repay lenders.

The Illuvitars event with Su Zhu, meanwhile, was intended as an eye-catching promotion for the new Illuvitar NFT collectible game, Illuvium: Beyond, but has been blocked from taking place by unanimous vote of the DAO Council.

What do the Illuvitar package opening events involve?

This particular Illuvitar NFT pack opening competition, to be held between Illuvium’s co-founder and CEO Kieran Warwick and Su Zhu, was billed as a “Celebrity Pack Battle”. A celebrity in this case refers to a Crypto Twitter account holder with more than 10,000 followers.

Illuvium’s Celebrity Pack Battles pit two high-profile industry identities against each other to open “D1SK” packs of Illuvitar creature NFTs and accessories, and earn points for the highest Illuvitars opened. It’s kind of like a Pokémon card pack opening contest, if you’ve ever seen one.

By the way, every Illuvium Celebrity Pack Battle results in a donation to the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Here was the Illuvium tweet setting up the Warkick/Su Zhu showdown:

“I fully understand the reasoning behind the vote”

Warwick, who helped initiate the pack fight, suggested that the matter be put to a vote in the five-member, six-month service council, aware of the growing concerns of the Illuvium community regarding the event.

Stockhead spoke to him briefly about the council’s decision.

How do you feel about what happened with the DAO council vote, Kieran?
“Well, what it did was show the flexibility and coordination of our governance structure, and so ultimately I’m glad we were able to decide to align with the best interests of the project.”

So you understand why the DAO voted the way it did?
“Yes, I fully understand the reasoning behind the vote. So I had weighed the pros and cons of involving Su Zhu and decided that the potential benefits it would bring outweighed the risk of community backlash. But… maybe I was wrong!

What were the “pros” that convinced you to contact someone like Su Zhu for this?

“While I knew there was a possibility of community backlash, I also thought that involving him could help us reach new audiences and attract more attention to the project. It was as simple as that, really. But as I said , I completely understand the decision.”

Avoid reputational risk as a priority

Two-term council member “Deraji,” meanwhile, offered some additional insight into the DAO’s decision:

“Illuvium is working hard to be a leader in decentralized governance and the Web3 gaming space. To do so, we need to avoid potential associations with unethical individuals and events that could prevent mainstream adoption.

“Illuvium’s core vision is to focus on quality and to listen to our community. In this case, the community made its collective voices heard that this incident risked the reputation that The DAO has worked so hard to build. We leveraged our governance model to avoid our most famous character sharing the stage with Zhu.”

“As a firm believer in community governance, I have full confidence in the decision made by our community and the DAO,” added Warwick. “And I will always respect the council’s judgment. Our unwavering commitment is to provide a safe and ethical gaming atmosphere for all our users, and we will continuously strive to achieve this goal.”

Spread the decision-making power

According to Warwick, the DAO’s unanimous vote to block Su Zhu’s participation in the Illuvitar D1SK opening match has sparked an Illuvium community conversation around the DAO’s power and responsibility.

Someone in the Illuvium Discord group has apparently expressed that the decision is extreme. However, Warwick noted, the council is adamant that the DAO’s vote reflects Illuvium’s transparency, integrity and ethical values.

Stockhead also asked the Illuvium founder about his views on DAOs more broadly, and why he considers them to be important in the crypto space.

“That’s because they represent a new way of organizing and managing communities that is really about giving community stakeholders a greater say,” the Illuvium CEO explained.

“In the traditional, centralized model, decision-making power is concentrated in the hands of a few individuals or entities, which can lead to issues of accountability, transparency and trust. DAOs, on the other hand, allow for more inclusive and democratic decision-making, where each member has a say in the direction of the organization.”