> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://the-heist-1.gitbook.io/the-heist-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://the-heist-1.gitbook.io/the-heist-docs/how-it-works/the-hideout.md).

# Phase 5 — The Hideout

The Hideout is where MERRY holders put their tokens to work. Staking here earns you two separate payouts at once — a share of every new LOOT batch, and a real WETH payout from protocol revenue — plus a loyalty bonus for sticking around.

## The staking lifecycle

```mermaid
flowchart TD
    A[Stake MERRY] --> B[Activates at the start\nof the next 6-hour cycle]
    B --> C[Now earning:\nLOOT batch share + WETH payouts]
    C --> D[Loyalty bonus grows\nevery unbroken cycle, up to 1.5x]
    D --> E{Want to unstake?}
    E -->|Request it -- loyalty\nbonus resets now| F[12-hour wait]
    F --> G[Withdraw your MERRY]
    C --> H{A new LOOT batch arrives}
    H --> I{How do you want to claim it?}
    I -->|Right now| J[25% cost, shrinking to 0%\nover 5 days -- destroyed]
    I -->|Wait 5 days| K[Claim for free]
    I -->|Lock into liquidity instead| L[Free, and it earns\nfees while locked]
```

## Why activation waits one cycle

Your stake goes live at the **start of the next cycle**, not the instant you stake. Without this delay, someone could watch a fresh batch about to land, throw in a huge stake seconds beforehand, grab a share of it, and pull right back out — collecting rewards without ever taking on any real risk. The one-cycle delay makes that kind of sniping impossible: nothing can earn a share of a batch it wasn't already staked for.

## Heat — the loyalty bonus

Every cycle your stake stays active without a break, your bonus grows a little, up to a cap of **1.5×**. A staker at full 1.5× earns 50% more from every batch and payout than someone with the exact same stake and zero bonus.

This bonus **reshuffles** rewards among stakers — it never changes how much a batch is worth in total. It resets to zero if you request an unstake, or if you claim a batch while it still costs something. It does **not** reset if you wait for a batch to become free, and it does not reset if you lock a batch into liquidity instead — patience is never punished on either of the free paths.

## Three ways to claim a fresh batch

| Path                                       | Cost                             | Effect on your loyalty bonus |
| ------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| **Claim it right now**                     | 25%, shrinking to 0% over 5 days | Resets to zero               |
| **Wait for it to fully decay, then claim** | Free                             | Unaffected                   |
| **Lock it into liquidity instead**         | Free, always                     | Unaffected                   |

**Whatever you pay by claiming early is destroyed** — not sent to anyone, not redirected anywhere. Destroying it directly shrinks LOOT's supply, which raises [the Floor](/the-heist-docs/how-it-works/the-floor.md)'s backing for every token that's left. Being impatient literally strengthens the system for everyone who stays patient.

### Locking a batch into liquidity instead

The third option exists specifically to reward the most productive thing you can do with a fresh batch: pair its LOOT with your own WETH and lock it directly into the protocol's own liquidity instead of taking it to market.

* **Costs nothing**, because the LOOT never becomes sell pressure at all.
* **Locked for whatever's left of that batch's countdown** — a totally fresh batch locks for the full period; one that's already partway decayed locks for correspondingly less.
* While locked, it **earns ordinary trading fees and farming rewards**, just like any other liquidity position — see [Gauge Farms & Voting](/the-heist-docs/how-it-works/gauge-farms-and-voting.md).
* **You can always exit early** if you change your mind — but the LOOT side pays whatever the normal claim cost would be at that moment, exactly as if you'd claimed it right then. Nothing in this protocol is ever permanently locked with no way out.
* Waiting out the full lock naturally earns you a **small bonus to your loyalty streak** on top of everything else — only if you let it unlock naturally, never on an early exit.

## WETH payouts

Beyond LOOT batches, Hideout stakers also earn a running share of the **Treasury's WETH payouts** — see [The Treasury](/the-heist-docs/how-it-works/the-treasury.md). These build up continuously and are claimed separately from LOOT batches, with the same loyalty weighting applied.

## Unstaking

Requesting an unstake starts a **12-hour wait** before your MERRY is actually withdrawable. It's short and deliberately not punitive — long enough to stop flash-loan-style abuse, short enough that it never feels like being locked up.

## Unclaimed batches expire after 90 days

A batch you never claim doesn't just sit there forever — after 90 days, whatever's left of it becomes claimable by anyone (as a cleanup step) and gets destroyed, the same way an early claim's cost is. **The Hideout isn't a savings account you can ignore.** This is the one place in the protocol where doing nothing can actually cost you, so it's worth saying plainly: check in on what you're owed.

Next: [Gauge Farms & Voting](/the-heist-docs/how-it-works/gauge-farms-and-voting.md) — how MERRY rewards get split across liquidity pools, and how Hideout stakers get a direct vote in that decision.


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