No.499 · Sections· New
Arcade Breaker
A section that opens under a colonnade: a row of arches, the middle one taller and wider, each a window onto the same sky. As the section scrolls through the viewport the day passes behind them — a pink dawn, a blue noon, a warm dusk — with the sun crossing from arch to arch and soft clouds drifting by. The copy sits centred under the great arch.
The prompt
Written for the variant you picked above: Terracotta
Build a section that opens under a row of arches with a sky behind them. Props: eyebrow, title, lead, primary and secondary links {label, href}, palette {wall, shade, ink, muted, line, accent, onAccent}, onNavigate and className. Sky and arches (pure functions): five sky stops over 0–1 (dawn #3b3f7a → #f4a77f, morning, a blue noon #3d8fe0 → #cfe8fb, afternoon, dusk #24245c → #ee7a52), each a top and bottom colour and a sun colour, blended between the nearest pair; the sun's place — across from 8% to 92% and rising on a sine to its noon height; the arcade's travel up the viewport (0 as its top enters at the bottom, 1 once it's half its height above the top), so dawn breaks as the section arrives and dusk falls as the arches leave; and the arches for a width — 7 (5 below 960px, 3 below 560px) with gaps of 1.8% of the width, the middle one 1.5× wider and taller — each drawn as two straight jambs up to a semicircular head. The arcade is as tall as 21% of the width (180–300px). Behind, a sky layer: a vertical gradient from CSS variables, a glowing sun disc and three blurred clouds drifting across over 70–120s. In front, an SVG wall: one even-odd path of the full rectangle with every arch cut out, a darker reveal stroke round each opening, a small keystone over each, and a sill along the bottom. On scroll — of the window or any scrolling ancestor, so a capture-phase listener on the document — (one rAF per frame, listening only while the section is on screen) set the sky colours and sun position as CSS variables on the section — no React re-render per scroll. The body continues the wall colour: centred eyebrow in spaced capitals, a large serif title, a muted lead and two pill links — the primary filled in the accent, the secondary outlined. Reduced motion stops the clouds; the sky still follows the scroll position. Selected variant — Terracotta (terracotta): A terracotta wall #9c4528 with shade #7d341c, cream ink #fff4ea and muted #f6dccd, and a cream primary button with dark brown text. This selection takes precedence over references to other themes or options in the general brief. Implement this selected appearance; do not add a variant picker or alternative appearances unless requested. Implementation requirements: Use React and TypeScript. Keep the component self-contained, with uniquely scoped CSS and no animation libraries. Include required imports, styles and font setup in the result. Interaction: Scroll past it and the day goes by behind the arches; the links work as normal. Motion: Scroll-linked sky and sun; clouds drift continuously. Reduced motion keeps the clouds still. Accessibility: A labelled section with real links; the arcade is decorative and hidden. Text keeps 4.5:1 contrast on the wall colour in every palette. Responsive behavior: Seven arches on desktop, five on tablets, three on phones, always with a larger centre arch. Touch: Touch scrolling drives the sky the same way. Preserve keyboard access, visible focus and reduced-motion behavior. Keep fictional demo data and simulated service calls in a separate usage example; expose callbacks for real actions and recover from rejected requests. Keep usage-example links inside the demo: use local buttons or prevent navigation. Demonstration links must not navigate to Vitrine routes or open other pages; preserve real URL support in the reusable component itself. Verify the result at narrow and wide viewport sizes, with keyboard input and reduced motion enabled.
Notes
- Interaction
- Scroll past it and the day goes by behind the arches; the links work as normal.
- Motion
- Scroll-linked sky and sun; clouds drift continuously. Reduced motion keeps the clouds still.
- Accessibility
- A labelled section with real links; the arcade is decorative and hidden. Text keeps 4.5:1 contrast on the wall colour in every palette.
- Responsive
- Seven arches on desktop, five on tablets, three on phones, always with a larger centre arch.
- On touch
- Touch scrolling drives the sky the same way.