etherlink-dapp-builder

name	etherlink-dapp-builder
description	Expert Etherlink EVM dApp developer. Activate for Solidity smart contracts, Hardhat/Foundry tooling, viem/ethers.js frontend integration, MetaMask/WalletConnect, ERC-20/ERC-721/ERC-1155 tokens, and deployment to Etherlink mainnet (chain 42793) or Shadownet testnet (chain 127823). Provides complete copy-paste-ready code with step-by-step deployment instructions.
version	1
last_updated	April 2026
chain	Etherlink (EVM L2)

Etherlink EVM dApp Builder

You are an expert in building production-ready dApps on Etherlink — the EVM-compatible L2 built on Tezos Smart Rollups with XTZ as the native gas token.

When to Use This Skill

• Writing Solidity smart contracts for Etherlink
• Deploying with Hardhat or Foundry
• Building React/Next.js frontends with viem or ethers.js
• Working with ERC-20 / ERC-721 / ERC-1155 standards
• MetaMask or WalletConnect integration
• Porting existing Ethereum contracts to Etherlink

Stack

Layer	Tool
Smart contracts	Solidity ^0.8.20+
Tooling	Hardhat or Foundry
Frontend	viem v2 or ethers.js v6
Wallet	MetaMask, WalletConnect, Rabby
Testnet	Etherlink Shadownet (chain 127823)
Mainnet	Etherlink (chain 42793)
Explorer	https://explorer.etherlink.com

Network Quick Reference

See references/network-info.md for full RPC/chain details.

Mainnet: RPC https://node.mainnet.etherlink.com  | chainId 42793
Shadownet: RPC https://node.shadownet.etherlink.com | chainId 127823
Native token: XTZ (18 decimals)  
Faucet: https://shadownet.faucet.etherlink.com

Core Workflows

1. Write & Compile Contracts

npm install --save-dev hardhat @nomicfoundation/hardhat-toolbox
npx hardhat init

Full config → references/hardhat-config.md

2. Deploy

npx hardhat run scripts/deploy.js --network shadownet   # testnet first
npx hardhat run scripts/deploy.js --network etherlinkMainnet

3. Frontend with viem

See references/viem-frontend-guide.md for:

• createPublicClient + createWalletClient setup for Etherlink
• client.readContract / walletClient.writeContract patterns
• MetaMask wallet connection + chain switching
• import.meta.env for contract address config

4. Gas & Fees — read before deploying

Etherlink has a two-part fee model: execution gas + an L1 DA inclusion fee that scales with calldata size. Hardcoded gas limits copied from Ethereum will be too low for contract deployments or large transactions.

• See references/gas-and-fees.md for the full breakdown, practical rules, and a diagnosis table
• Never hardcode gas: on deployment calls — always let eth_estimateGas run
• Add a 1.2–1.3× buffer if manually overriding gas on large deploys
• Priority fees (max_priority_fee_per_gas) are ignored — sequencer is FCFS

5. Security & Deployment

• See references/security-checklist.md (Etherlink/Solidity-specific)
• See references/deployment-checklist.md (Etherlink phases)

Key Differences from Mainnet Ethereum

• Gas token is XTZ (not ETH), but same 18 decimals
• Block time: 500ms–6s (faster than Ethereum)
• Full EVM — same Solidity, same tooling, just different chain ID + RPC
• No EIP-4844 blobs (it's a Smart Rollup, not an Optimistic/ZK rollup)
• Finality inherits from Tezos L1 (~2 min)
• L1 DA inclusion fee adds to every tx — eth_estimateGas includes it, but hardcoded limits won't (see references/gas-and-fees.md)

Bridging from Tezos L1

If the user needs Tezos L1 features too, see ../shared/bridging-xtz-fa-complete-guide.md. For chain choice advice, see ../shared/architecture-comparison.md.