# Breeding

At the core of ZED RUN is the opportunity to own, grow, and compete using a stable of racehorses. In order to participate in-game, you must first obtain access to a racehorse. ZED RUN racehorses are currently available on secondary markets such as [OpenSea](https://www.opensea.io) and [Hawku](https://www.hawku.com/zed).

### The Importance of Breeding

Racehorses are intended to be actively managed, where rewards are distributed to the most skilful and experienced players. Players that plan their breeding strategies wisely will gain notability in the ecosystem and therefore have the opportunity to demand higher premiums for their new foals.

This then opens up the following choices:&#x20;

1. Players can continue to purchase horses from notable breeders, or
2. Players can choose to breed their own offspring(s)

The fees paid to create new offspring (and trade them) are directly applied to the reward systems throughout ZED RUN. Therefore, at the heart of the ecosystem is **breeding**. This creates a virtuous cycle in which players are given a level playing field where they can compete for rewards and reinvest those rewards towards breeding even better horses.

Currently, the team is developing a plan to provide lower cost methods to enter the ecosystem, such as [renting](https://rob-13.gitbook.io/zed-token/Lhnc05bMso9x9leu1ifM/zed-run-ecosystem/renting-coming-soon).

### Breeding and the ZED token

The first core utility for the ZED token will power the *breeding loop* as the transition begins from a wETH-based token system.

Stud owners (i.e. male racehorse owners) will set the breeding fee, where other stable owners with female racehorses only can elect which studs they would like to breed with. &#x20;

![](https://227006023-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F93N1pLvXfHDCKSDOj6jQ%2Fuploads%2FoKtX2pXoDMKfN57GM7YP%2FZED%20RUN%20-%20Breeding%20Flow.jpg?alt=media\&token=0ee217a9-b66e-4c89-89ae-d72e7601e61a)

{% hint style="info" %}
For more information on how breeding works, please visit the [ZED RUN Guide](https://guide.zed.run).
{% endhint %}

Breeding fees collected will be split as follows:

| Distribution        | Fee Allocation |
| ------------------- | -------------- |
| Stud Owner          | 60%            |
| Prize Pool Treasury | 15%            |
| Retirement Treasury | 10%            |
| ZED RUN Fee         | 15%            |
