Motif · from book 1
Sponsorship
The patron system Mordecai explains in the tutorial guild — organisations that sponsor a crawler by buying boxes, and the Benefactor Boxes only patrons can send — changed by the AI as the second floor opens: three patron slots per crawler, each auctioned for one day as the fourth, fifth and sixth floors open, bids from one credit, and 'the more your patron pays for you, the more and higher-quality Benefactor Boxes you may receive.'
First appears: Book 1
Series arc
Through book 1
Mordecai's patrons, who sponsor a crawler by buying boxes and alone can send Benefactor Boxes (B1 ch. 4); Odette's five, a record then (B1 ch. 29); the AI's change as the second floor opens — three patron slots, each auctioned for a day as the fourth, fifth and sixth floors open, from a one-credit bid, better boxes for a higher bid (B1 ch. 31); Borant's cash grab, in Mordecai's words (B1 ch. 36); 'a lot of interest already' (B1 ch. 39); Zev's 'deity sponsorship' aside (B1 ch. 44).
The bids
The system's own sponsorship notices: bids opened, sponsors named and sponsors lost.
| Book | Chapter | What |
|---|
Where they appear
| Book | Chapters they are in (of the book's) | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 1 — Dungeon Crawler Carl | 3/48 | Ch. 4, Ch. 36, Ch. 44 · the book's own page |
By book
Sponsorship in book 1 — Dungeon Crawler Carl
Mordecai, in the tutorial guild: patrons — usually organisations, not individuals — sponsor a crawler by buying boxes, and only patrons can send Benefactor Boxes (ch. 4). Odette had five sponsors on her own crawl, a record at the time (ch. 29). As the second floor opens the AI announces the change: every crawler limited to three patrons, each slot auctioned for one day as the fourth, fifth and sixth floors open, every slot available from a bid of one credit, and the more a patron pays, the more and better Benefactor Boxes (ch. 31). Mordecai calls it Borant's cash grab, money it does not see until the season is over (ch. 36); the AI reports 'a lot of interest already in the new patron-bidding program' (ch. 39); Zev mentions in passing that a hostile government could 'spring for a deity sponsorship this season' (ch. 44).