Introducing mn-scaffold: The fastest way to start building on Midnight

General
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One thing I kept running into while building on Midnight:

Getting started took longer than it should.

  • Browse repos

  • Find the right template

  • Clone

  • Clean up

  • Then finally start building

It breaks momentum.

So I built:

npx mn-scaffold

npx mn-scaffold

Spin up Midnight smart contract templates in seconds.

What it does

The CLI guides you through a simple flow:

  1. Pick a category (Basics, DeFi, ZK & Privacy, etc.)

  2. Choose a template (with clear descriptions)

  3. Name your project

And you’re done.

Your project is scaffolded locally and ready to build.

Why it’s different

  • No full repo clones: only the template you choose

  • Live template registry: always up-to-date via Midnight Club

  • Multiple real use-cases: not just a single starter app

  • Built for exploration: try ideas quickly, not just one setup

Powered by Midnight Club

Templates are fetched live from:
:backhand_index_pointing_right: https://midnight-club-lac.vercel.app/

Which means:

  • New templates are instantly available

  • No need to update the CLI

  • The ecosystem can grow organically

What you can build right now

  • Basics → Hello World, Counter, Calculator

  • State → Todo, Bulletin Board

  • Governance → Voting, Quadratic Voting, Escrow

  • DeFi → Token Transfers, Bonding Curve

  • ZK → Allowlist, Battleship

All templates are Compact smart contracts targeting the Midnight preprod.

Where this fits

This is not meant to replace existing tools like create-mn-app.

Think of it as:

  • create-mn-app → standard starting point

  • mn-scaffold → fast exploration + instant execution

Use it when you want to:

  • try ideas quickly

  • explore different primitives

  • bootstrap hackathon projects

Contributing

Adding a template is simple:

  1. Add it to the repo: https://github.com/tusharpamnani/midnight-programs-list

  2. Open a PR

Once merged:

your template is instantly live in the CLI

The goal

Reduce the time from “idea” → “working Midnight project” to seconds.

What’s next

  • Smarter template recommendations

  • Featured / popular templates

  • Better post-scaffold DX

  • More advanced templates

Would love feedback:

  • What templates do you want to see?

  • What slowed you down while getting started?

  • What would make this 10x better?

Let’s make building on Midnight ridiculously fast :high_voltage:

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