"WE ARE 256, WE ARE 1" is an invitation to a Discord-based puzzle game with the promise of a money prize of unspecified value in Round 10.
It is written as a short mystery story/cult invitation/tabletop RPG with some mysterious Braille Unicode art cabal symbols thrown in, nice work, e.g. the first one:
 ⣤⡀⠀⠀⠠⣤⠀⠀⠀⠀⣤⠀⠀⢠⡄⠀⠀⣤⠀⠀⠀⠀⣤⠄⠀⠀⢀⣤⠀
⠀⠘⢷⣄⠀⠀⠹⣧⡀⠀⠀⢸⡆⠀⢸⡇⠀⢰⡇⠀⠀⢀⣼⠏⠀⠀⣠⡾⠃⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠙⢷⣄⠀⠘⢷⡄⠀⠘⣷⠀⠘⠃⠀⣼⠇⠀⢠⡾⠃⠀⣠⡾⠋⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠻⣦⣀⠀⠻⣧⡀⠈⢿⡄⠀⢿⠄⢀⡀⠠⡿⠀⢠⡿⠁⢀⣼⠟⠀⣀⣴⠟⠀
⠀⠀⠈⠙⢶⣄⠈⠻⣦⡈⢿⡄⠈⢠⣿⣿⡄⠁⢠⡿⢁⣴⠟⠁⣠⡶⠋⠁⠀⠀
⠀⣀⣀⠀⠀⠈⠛⢦⣈⣿⣄⠃⣠⣿⣿⣿⣿⣄⠘⣠⣿⣁⡴⠛⠁⠀⠀⣀⣀⠀
⠀⠈⠙⠛⠷⢦⣤⣀⡉⠻⠋⣰⣿⡿⠿⠿⢿⣿⣆⠙⠟⢉⣀⣤⡴⠾⠛⠋⠁⠀
⠀⢶⣦⣤⣤⣤⣈⣉⣛⠃⢀⣡⡄⢀⡤⠤⠀⢠⣌⡀⠘⣛⣉⣁⣤⣤⣤⣴⡶⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣉⣉⡉⠁⢰⣿⣿⣇⠸⠀⠀⠀⣸⣿⣿⡆⠈⢉⣉⣉⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠛⠛⠉⠉⢉⠉⢁⣤⣈⠛⠻⠿⠷⣤⣤⠾⠿⠟⠛⣁⣤⡈⠉⡉⠉⠉⠛⠛⠀
⠀⣠⣤⡶⠞⠋⢠⣾⣿⣿⣿⣶⣶⣤⣤⣤⣤⣶⣶⣿⣿⣿⣷⡄⠙⠳⢶⣤⣄⠀
⠀⠉⠀⣠⠀⢠⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡄⠀⣄⠀⠉⠀
⠀⢀⣠⡾⠋⣠⠞⠁⣰⡟⠁⢸⡏⠀⢸⡇⠀⢹⡇⠈⢻⣆⠈⠳⣄⠙⢷⣄⡀⠀
⠀⠛⠋⠀⠚⠋⠀⠐⠛⠀⠀⠚⠀⠀⠘⠃⠀⠀⠓⠀⠀⠛⠂⠀⠙⠓⠀⠙⠛⠀
The prize promise is:
Amidst the labyrinthine trials, the ultimate test lies in Round 10, where grand prize money riddles await the most skilled and dedicated participants.
There may also be a pay to win mechanic which is perhaps how the scam works:
In this cryptic journey, the number of 256 Ordinals held becomes a key determinant of progress. Those who hold a higher number of Ordinals, standing as sentinels of wisdom, enjoy an edge over others. They are safeguarded from regressing beyond their current round, their position secured by the strength of their holdings.
However, for those who possess fewer Ordinals, a different fate may await. Purges, shrouded in mystery, can demote participants to lower rounds, challenging them to rise again through determination and resolve. The path to enlightenment demands resilience and the tenacity to overcome setbacks.
Finally further down we see some join instructions:
V. Whitelist Access and Discord Roles
And finally they give concrete join instructions at:
IX. Join the Illuminated Ones
SW4gdGhlIGhhbGxvd2VkIGNoYW1iZXJzIG9mIDI1NiwgYSBzZWxlY3QgZ3JvdXAgZW1lcmdlcyBmcm9tIHRoZSBkZXB ... XBsZXMgb2YgQml0Y29pbiByZWlnbiBzdXByZW1lLg==
Removing the spaces it is just Base64:
xsel -b | tr -d ' ' | base64 -d
giving:
In the hallowed chambers of 256, a select group emerges from the depths of knowledge and mastery. As we ascend through the challenging rounds and unravel the enigmas that lie within, a council of visionaries begins to take shape. These luminaries, the Illuminated Ones, are the chosen few who have delved deepest into the mysteries, unlocking the secrets that bind our shared destiny.
To join the ranks of the Illuminated Ones is to embrace the challenge laid before us. It requires unwavering determination, relentless pursuit of knowledge, and an insatiable curiosity that drives us to unlock the hidden depths of the Watch Tower. As we decode the cryptic puzzles and navigate the labyrinthine maze, we become catalysts of change, shaping the very fabric of our collective future.
Only the smartest, the most intrepid, and the boldest souls will find themselves welcomed into this secret council. They are the ones who have traversed the treacherous terrain, tested their mettle, and emerged triumphant. With each step forward, they gain insights and wisdom that have the power to reshape the very landscape of the digital realm.
Curious and courageous souls are invited to join the ranks of the Illuminated Ones. Those who dare to challenge the boundaries of what is known and venture into the realm of the unknown are the ones who will find their rightful place among the visionaries and leaders of the 256 community. Together, we wield the power to shape our shared destiny, to create a future where decentralization, privacy, and the principles of Bitcoin reign supreme.
so perhaps there is a hidden message in that text to actually access the Discord?
This is the collection on Magic Eden: magiceden.io/ja/ordinals/marketplace/256, which contains links:
Project Xanadu by Ciro Santilli 40 Updated 2025-07-16
Crazy overlaps with Ciro Santilli's OurBigBook Project, Wikipedia states:
Administrators of Project Xanadu have declared it superior to the World Wide Web, with the mission statement: "Today's popular software simulates paper. The World Wide Web (another imitation of paper) trivialises our original hypertext model with one-way ever-breaking links and no management of version or contents.
Video 1.
New Game in Town by TheTedNelson (2016)
Source.
Deep psychological analyses:
Ciro Santilli is a UK resident. He will register as a "solo trader" (slightly funny legal term) and treat donations that he uses for projects as grants, which pay regular income tax:The rates are given at: www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates and are as of writing:
  • 0 - £12,570 0%
  • £12,571 - £50,270: 20%
  • £50,271 - to £125,140: 40%
  • £125,140: 45%
National insurance is also likely going to be paid: www.gov.uk/self-employed-national-insurance-rates:
  • 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270
  • 2% on profits over £50,270
Fortunately however VAT does not need to be paid.
The amount that will be declared is the same as he grant amount that was requested, e.g. if 100k USD is requested for 1 year, then 100k USD will be pro-rata declared on that year.
Any remaining donations that don't yet meet specific grant goals will be initially treated as cash gifts which pay no tax. If in the future they are used as grant money after further goal amounts are reached, then they will taxed as grants.
Note however that if the donor is UK-based and dies within 7 years of the gift being given, inheritance tax has to be paid on them as per: www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax/gifts, at a maximum of 32% and going to to 0% at 7 years, so let me know from the afterlife.
Ciro paid his bill for £24,321.87 ($32,729.70) on 2026-01-02. Announcements:
Crazy shady crypto people seem to like Ciro Santilli, so this is in order.
For the love of God do dot give us proceeds of crime.
Giving to Ciro Santilli is the worst possible way to launder your money, as donations amounts are clearly publicly disclosed (though not donor identities if they with to remain anonymous), and clear records kept of every donation made (including private note of donor identities if known). Also suspicious donations are promptly reported to the authorities.
Donation refunds upon donor's requests are only made at our discretion, and may be declined, unless required by law of course. This is to reduce the risks of us unknowingly serving as money mules or aiding money laundering.
Ciro Santilli believes that he is not require to report large donations to either:
But note that Ciro will preventively report if there are any further suspicious aspects to any donations received.
People love green on black mostly.
news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38492304 about Section "CIA 2010 covert communication websites":
  • user thewildginger:
    Nothing like finding a webpage you can read from Lynx.
  • user socketcluster:
    Based on the choice of fonts and colors, you know this is a serious hacker website ;p
www.reddit.com/r/Monero/comments/1brryao/ciro_santilli_received_a_1000_xmr_donation_to/ from 1000 Monero donation:
  • user -TrustyDwarf-:
    Anyone mind to explain wtf this ugly piece of webpage reminding me of geocities from the 90s is about? I'd read it myself but I can't because it already gave me eye cancer.
  • user rbrunner7:
    It's all quite strange. Never mind the 90s design, people built good websites already back then with the tools at hand, but even their "About" isn't very clear. If you need 5 minutes to be reasonably sure what it is all about they are still doing it wrong.
  • automobi1e
    I'd rather take a look at the welding
Blockchain wiki by Ciro Santilli 40 Updated 2025-07-16
This section is about wikis that are hosted on a blockchain of some sort.
Golden (wiki) by Ciro Santilli 40 Updated 2025-07-16
April 2024: merged with some fraud protection thing, is it sill a Wiki? Unclear, seem sto have lost that aspect: twitter.com/judegomila/status/1783028847983956430
techcrunch.com/2019/04/30/golden-launch/
To state the obvious: Wikipedia is an incredibly useful website, but Gomila pointed out that notable companies and technologies like SV Angel, Benchling, Lisk and Urbit don’t currently have entries. Part of the problem is what he called Wikipedia’s “arbitrary notability threshold,” where pages are deleted for not being notable enough. (This is also what happened years ago to the Wikipedia page about yours truly — which I swear I didn’t write myself.)
Exactly! Deletionism on Wikipedia is so sad, and especially for companies. In particular e.g. Ciro Santilli tried to create a page for PsiQuantum, and it got reverted... and now golden has one of the largest Google hits for it: golden.com/wiki/PsiQuantum-PBDGXRA
TODO how do they do moderation?
As of April 2024
Login is currently disabled.
Asked at: twitter.com/cirosantilli/status/1777250258235302233 Their last tweets were from August 2023, so maybe they just silently shutdown? Their name is too generic and hard to search for efficiently...
They do have knowledge graph built-in which is cool.

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