Brand Book
v0.3

Validation Status

This brand book reflects current working choices. None of the items below are locked yet — they are the best current guess after internal review and will be re-tested before public launch.

Mission & Doctrine

The visual identity exists to serve the protocol. Every design choice in this book traces back to a strategic pillar.

• Gravitational, not imperial. The Foundation administrates an open standard; it does not own the ecosystem.
• A physics law for energy economy. Noethrion is the verification primitive for generation, expressed through code and hardware.
• Does not threaten sovereign currencies. Noethrion serves USD / EUR / CNY as an energy infrastructure layer.
• 100% algorithmic emission of NOET (rule-based, no discretionary issuance); Foundation receives max 5% treasury with 4-year vesting.
• Distribution via certified integration partners. The Foundation administers the open standard; partners build the products that use it. Enterprise relationships are mediated through certified third parties.
• Multi-client implementation — 3–5 independent reference clients for resilience.

Working Primary Mark — D2

D2 is the working primary mark as of 2026-05-06. It is used for consistency across all surfaces during the pre-launch phase. Subject to revision before public launch.

Where D2 is currently in use

• Twitter / X profile picture
• YouTube channel avatar
• GitHub organization icon
• Discord / Telegram avatars
• Paragraph publication header

If in doubt about which logo to use → use D2.

Color Palette · Working Selection

Three colors carry the entire identity. Every Noethrion surface lives inside this palette.

These three are the current selection. Pending an accessibility audit before lock. Extended palette tokens (noir-2, bone-2, eta-dim, pulse, terra) exist in the addendum but should be used sparingly.

Typography

The η is the design. Typography around it stays quiet.

Don't mix fonts. If a surface looks busy, remove a font, not add one. The η is the design.

Baseline Rule (Formal)

The horizontal baseline below η is a defining brand element. v0.3 formalizes it.

Semantic meaning

The baseline represents:

• Physical grounding — the protocol is anchored to physical electricity generation, not abstract claims.
• The horizon line — energy is generated from sources that exist in physical reality.
• A signature line — like a contract, every kWh is signed at a specific point in time.

Geometric rules (from Addendum §3.2.1)

When the baseline is present, it must be:

• Horizontal (no diagonals, curves, or breaks except in approved variants like B3 wave or B4 pulse).
• Centered horizontally on the η character.
• Width: 50–65% of the visual width of η at the same scale (default 55%).
• Positioned directly below the descender of η (the right-side descender).
• Stroke weight: 0.6–1.5% of the height of η (default 0.7%).

D2 implementation (1024 × 1024 canvas, η in fallback Times New Roman Italic)

η visual width measured at ~307px on a 1024 canvas (font-size 720). 55% of that = 168px baseline span, centered on the visual ink center of η.

Note: Instrument Serif Italic does not include Greek glyphs — η renders via the fallback chain (Times New Roman Italic on macOS/iOS, Georgia Italic on some Android). Measurements above are taken from Times New Roman Italic. Visual width in Georgia Italic is ~14% wider; this falls inside the 50–65% addendum range and does not require canvas-specific adjustment.

Visual demonstrations

Logo System — Four Categories

The logo system has four formal categories. Each has a defined purpose and is mapped to specific surfaces in the Usage Matrix.

Category D — Brand Marks (square monograms)

The η on noir. The default brand identity. Used for avatars and primary surfaces.

Category E — Mono Marks (technical contexts)

[η] in JetBrains Mono. Required for GitHub, npm, technical docs, terminal screenshots.

Category F — Display (editorial / hero)

Editorial compositions for landing pages, pitch decks, banners. Default for marketing surfaces.

Category G — Contextual (specialized formats)

Avatars, favicons, light mode, official seal. Use when context requires a specific format.

v2 archive — historical, do not use for new applications

The v2 series (A1–A4 baselines, B1–B4 line variants, C1–C4 lockups) was the working set before v3 categorization. Archived for historical reference only — not redistributed in this repository. Don't use for new surfaces. Use the v3 D / E / F / G categories instead.

Logo DON'Ts

These are formally prohibited. Violations break brand integrity and must be rejected at design review.

Usage Matrix · Where to Use What

When in doubt about which logo variant fits a context, consult this table. For surfaces not listed, use D2.

Validation Testing Protocol

Before locking the primary mark choice, run a structured visual test with at least 5 reviewers. The goal: confirm D2 actually communicates what we think it does, before it's locked into surfaces that are hard to revise later.

Until validation completes, treat the working primary as a default — not a commitment.

File Map

All public SVG assets live in assets/logos/{D,E,F,G}/ (repository-relative paths). E / F / G categories are mirrored as the repo grows; D category is fully populated.