▶ TINY RPG · COMPLETE 12 MISSIONS · BECOME JOB-READY

Missions RPG

Imagine this is you. A tech newbie with a laptop, wifi and a Sigmaschool enrollment. 12 missions stand between you and becoming job-ready. Each one you prove you can build + explain without leaning on AI. Mastery-based learning, not time-based learning. Have fun!

📖 Step 1 · Read the briefings

▶ NEW GAME

Missions RPG

A tiny RPG of the Sigmaschool 12-week pathway. First read the briefing (it’s short). Then a quick 4-question check unlocks the 16 missions.

Progress saves to your browser

▼ See all missions & checkpoints

▶ EVERY MISSION · WHAT YOU SHIP · WHAT PROVES IT

All 16 missions - 12 core + 4 optional bonus.

The same curriculum the cohort walks every week. Checkpoints are the chapters inside each mission; the lesson counts come from the full programme curriculum.

MISSION 1Foundations22 lessons · 4 checkpoints
First Web Build + AI-Native Developer Setup
“I can set up my tools, write basic code, deploy my work, use AI properly, and explain what I built.”
Start from zero with just a laptop. Set up your AI-native dev tools, build your first web page, and deploy it live so anyone can open the link.
🧰 Tech stack
CursorHTML5CSS3GitHubVercel
🤝 AI Companion
Most guidance · you still write first
🏁 What proves it
GitHub repo + live Vercel link + Loom walkthrough explaining your code
🪙 Reward
🏆 AI-Native Developer Setup Badge
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- AI-Native Dev Setup · 6 lessons
  - Install Cursor & set up your AI coding workspace
  - Prompt AI to write, explain & edit code for you
  - How a project is laid out - files, folders & the terminal
  - Run a project locally with the dev server (localhost)
  - Read AI output critically - when to trust it, when not to
  - Lock in your daily AI-native developer workflow
- Your First Web Page · 8 lessons
  - HTML document structure - head, body & tags
  - Headings, paragraphs & writing text content
  - Links & images - connecting & embedding media
  - Lists, buttons & semantic elements
  - Build a working form with labelled inputs
  - CSS basics - colours, fonts & text styling
  - Spacing & the box model - margin, padding, border
  - Assemble it all into one polished page
- Deploy & Share · 5 lessons
  - What "deploying" actually means (local → public)
  - Create a repo & push your code to GitHub
  - Connect GitHub to Vercel & ship your first deploy
  - Get your live, shareable public URL
  - Share it & collect your first real feedback
- Record Your Loom · 3 lessons
  - Why explaining your build matters as much as building it
  - Record a 2-minute Loom walking through your code
  - Publish your dev link & introduce yourself
MISSION 2Foundations30 lessons · 4 checkpoints
JavaScript Fundamentals + Build-in-Public Training
“I can think through code logic.”
Learn the core of JavaScript. Work through logic puzzles, then prove you can solve them without leaning on autocomplete.
🧰 Tech stack
JavaScriptCursorGitHub
🤝 AI Companion
Most guidance · you still write first
🏁 What proves it
6-challenge logic pack + Loom explaining 3 solutions + No-AI logic drill
🪙 Reward
🧠 +5 Reasoning · Public build log opened
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- Variables & Data Types · 8 lessons
  - let, const & var - what each does and when to use it
  - Strings - template literals, slicing & common methods
  - Numbers & math operators (and floating-point gotchas)
  - Booleans & truthy / falsy values
  - null vs undefined - the two kinds of "nothing"
  - Arrays - ordered lists of data
  - Objects - key/value data structures
  - Type coercion gotchas - == vs === and friends
- Functions · 9 lessons
  - Declaring & calling functions
  - Parameters & arguments - passing data in
  - Return values - getting data back out
  - Arrow functions & modern syntax
  - Scope - global vs local variables
  - Closures - functions that remember (intro)
  - Callbacks - passing functions as arguments
  - Pure functions & avoiding side effects
  - Refactor repeated code into reusable functions
- Logic, Loops, Arrays, Objects · 9 lessons
  - if / else - branching your logic
  - Comparison & logical operators (&&, ||, !)
  - switch statements for many cases
  - for loops - repeat a fixed number of times
  - while loops - repeat until a condition flips
  - .map() - transform every item in an array
  - .filter() - keep only the items you want
  - .reduce() - collapse an array to a single value
  - Loop over an object’s keys & values
- Build-in-Public Habit · 4 lessons
  - Explain your code out loud to lock in understanding
  - Write a build-in-public progress post
  - Share your repo publicly
  - Take real feedback & iterate on it
MISSION 3Foundations20 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Debugging and Problem Solving
“I can find and fix broken code.”
You get a broken task-tracker app. Reproduce the bugs, find the root cause of each, fix them - and document how you did it.
🧰 Tech stack
JavaScriptCursorGitHub
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Fixed repo + 3 bug reports + Loom debugging walkthrough
🪙 Reward
🐛 Debugger title earned
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Reading Errors · 6 lessons
  - Anatomy of an error message - what it’s telling you
  - Syntax errors vs runtime errors
  - Read a stack trace top-to-bottom
  - Common JavaScript errors & what they mean
  - Use console.log to see what your code actually does
  - Sanity-check AI error explanations before trusting them
- Debugging Tools · 7 lessons
  - Tour the browser DevTools
  - Console tab - logs & running JS live
  - Elements tab - inspect & edit the live DOM
  - Network tab - watch requests & responses
  - Set breakpoints to pause your code
  - Step through code line by line
  - Inspect variable values at runtime
- Problem-Solving Patterns · 7 lessons
  - Reliably reproduce the bug first
  - Form a hypothesis about the cause
  - Isolate it - binary search & comment-out
  - Read the code slowly & carefully
  - Rubber-duck the problem out loud
  - Use AI to debug - without letting it mislead you
  - Fix it, then verify the fix actually holds
MISSION 4Foundations24 lessons · 4 checkpoints
Build Your First Real App
“I can build a small interactive app from scratch.”
Take everything from the first three missions and combine into one shipped interactive app - the foundation for everything after.
🧰 Tech stack
JavaScriptHTML5CSS3Vercel
🤝 AI Companion
Most guidance · you still write first
🏁 What proves it
Deployed interactive app + first portfolio case study
🪙 Reward
📁 Portfolio repo unlocked
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- The DOM · 7 lessons
  - What the DOM is - your page as a live tree
  - Select elements with querySelector
  - Change text & innerHTML
  - Change styles & toggle CSS classes
  - Create brand-new elements in JS
  - Remove elements from the page
  - Traverse parents, children & siblings
- Events & Interactivity · 8 lessons
  - Click events
  - Input & change events on form fields
  - addEventListener - wiring up handlers
  - The event object - reading what happened
  - Handle form submission
  - preventDefault - stop the default behaviour
  - Event delegation for dynamic content
  - Update the UI in response to user actions
- Ship the App · 6 lessons
  - Plan a small interactive app
  - Structure your project files
  - Build the core feature end-to-end
  - Persist data with localStorage
  - Style & polish the interface
  - Deploy the finished app
- Write the Case Study · 3 lessons
  - Add screenshots & a one-line summary
  - Explain what you built & why
  - Note what you learned & what was hard
MISSION 5Real Apps21 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Connect to the Real Internet
“I can connect my app to external data from the internet.”
Make your app talk to the internet. Fetch real-world data from an API - and handle the times the network fails.
🧰 Tech stack
JavaScriptNode.jsVercel
🤝 AI Companion
Most guidance · you still write first
🏁 What proves it
API-driven app with real data + loading + error + empty states
🪙 Reward
🌐 Network Caller rank
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- How the Web Talks · 6 lessons
  - Clients & servers - who asks, who answers
  - HTTP requests & responses
  - HTTP methods - GET, POST, PUT, DELETE
  - Status codes - 200, 404, 500 & friends
  - JSON - the data language of APIs
  - What an API actually is, in plain English
- Fetching APIs · 8 lessons
  - The fetch() function
  - Promises - handling work that finishes later
  - async / await for readable async code
  - Parse JSON responses into usable data
  - Send query parameters
  - Set request headers
  - POST data to an API
  - Read real-world API documentation
- Handling Responses · 7 lessons
  - Render live API data into the UI
  - Loading states while you wait
  - Error states when requests fail
  - Empty states when there’s no data
  - Retries & timeouts for flaky networks
  - Keep API keys & secrets out of your code
  - Respect rate limits
MISSION 6Real Apps32 lessons · 4 checkpoints
Build Like a Modern Frontend Developer
“I can build a modern frontend app with React, Next.js, and TypeScript basics.”
Learn how modern frontends are built - components, props, state, and routes - the mental model behind React and Next.js.
🧰 Tech stack
ReactNext.jsTypeScriptTailwind
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Deployed React + Next.js dashboard with architecture explanation
🪙 Reward
⚛️ Frontend Mage class unlocked
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- React Components · 9 lessons
  - Why React exists & the problem it solves
  - JSX syntax - HTML inside JavaScript
  - Build your first components
  - Pass data down with props
  - Compose small components into bigger ones
  - Conditional rendering - show/hide UI
  - Render lists with keys
  - Handle events the React way
  - Think in components - break a UI into a tree
- State & Hooks · 8 lessons
  - useState - give components memory
  - Update state correctly & immutably
  - Lift state up to share it between components
  - useEffect - run side effects
  - Effect dependency arrays - control when effects run
  - Fetch data inside a React component
  - Write your own custom hook
  - Avoid the most common hook mistakes
- Next.js App Router · 8 lessons
  - Pages & file-based routing
  - Shared layouts across pages
  - Navigation with <Link>
  - Server vs client components - when to use each
  - Loading & error UI built into routes
  - Dynamic route params (/blog/[slug])
  - Server actions - mutate data without an API (intro)
  - TypeScript basics inside Next.js
- Dashboard Build · 7 lessons
  - Plan the dashboard layout & data
  - Compose the page from layout pieces
  - Build reusable UI components
  - Render data in tables
  - Visualise data with charts
  - Add filters & search
  - Explain your component architecture
MISSION 7Real Apps24 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Connect Frontend to Database
“I can connect a frontend app to a real database and perform CRUD.”
Build the full-stack data loop - the frontend writes, the database remembers, the frontend reads, and the UI updates.
🧰 Tech stack
SupabasePostgreSQLPrismaNext.js
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Full-stack CRUD app + data-flow explanation
🪙 Reward
🗄️ Database Keeper rank
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Databases 101 · 7 lessons
  - What a database is & why apps need one
  - Tables, rows & columns
  - Primary & foreign keys
  - Relational vs NoSQL - the tradeoffs
  - Design a schema for your app
  - SQL basics - SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE
  - Relationships between tables
- Reading & Writing Data · 9 lessons
  - Set up a Supabase project
  - Connect your app to the database
  - Create - insert new rows
  - Read - select rows back out
  - Update existing rows
  - Delete rows
  - Filter & sort your queries
  - Paginate large result sets
  - Handle database errors gracefully
- Frontend ↔ Database · 8 lessons
  - Server actions & API routes
  - Fetch data on the server
  - Display live data in the UI
  - Build forms that write to the database
  - Optimistic UI - update before the server replies
  - Revalidate & refresh stale data
  - Trace the full end-to-end data flow
  - Explain the complete data loop
MISSION 8Real Apps24 lessons · 4 checkpoints
Build a Private App With Login
“I can build an app where users log in and only access their own data.”
Build an app where users log in and only see their own data - protected by row-level security.
🧰 Tech stack
SupabaseNext.jsPostgreSQL
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Auth-gated multi-user app + auth explanation + resume draft
🪙 Reward
🔐 Gatekeeper title earned
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- Auth Basics · 7 lessons
  - Authentication vs authorization
  - Passwords & hashing - concepts
  - Sessions - staying logged in
  - Tokens & JWT - concepts
  - Cookies & how the browser stores auth
  - OAuth & social login (Google, GitHub)
  - Common security pitfalls to avoid
- Sessions & Protected Routes · 8 lessons
  - Set up Supabase Auth
  - Build the sign-up flow
  - Build the login flow
  - Build logout
  - Persist the session across reloads
  - Protect routes from logged-out users
  - Auth middleware
  - Redirect unauthenticated users
- Private Data · 6 lessons
  - Model per-user data
  - Row-level security (RLS)
  - Write access policies
  - Read only your own rows
  - Write data as the current user
  - Test that access control actually holds
- Draft Your Resume · 3 lessons
  - Turn your projects into resume bullets
  - Quantify your impact with numbers
  - Tailor the resume to a specific role
MISSION 9AI Products20 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Build and Evaluate an AI Product Feature
“I can add an AI-powered feature into a real product and explain the AI flow responsibly.”
Embed a real AI feature into a real product, then evaluate it like a product team - not as a magic trick.
🧰 Tech stack
ClaudeOpenAINext.jsVercel
🤝 AI Companion
AI runs inside what you build
🏁 What proves it
Live AI feature in a real app + evaluation report + portfolio story
🪙 Reward
🌟 AI Product Builder rank
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Design the AI Feature · 6 lessons
  - Pick a real user problem worth solving with AI
  - Choose the right model for the job
  - Prompt design basics
  - System vs user prompts
  - Design for uncertainty - AI gets things wrong
  - Sketch the feature’s UX
- Build It · 8 lessons
  - Store the API key safely (never in the client)
  - Call the Claude / OpenAI API
  - Send context & well-structured prompts
  - Stream responses token-by-token
  - Render AI output cleanly in the UI
  - Handle loading & error states
  - Guard against bad or unsafe output
  - Add a user feedback loop
- Evaluate Quality · 6 lessons
  - Define what "good output" means for your feature
  - Build a test set of real inputs
  - Measure output quality
  - Catch hallucinations
  - Iterate on the prompt to improve results
  - Write the evaluation report
MISSION 10AI Products24 lessons · 4 checkpoints
Agentic Engineering Workflow
“I can direct an AI coding agent through a full ship cycle.”
Direct an AI coding agent through one full ship cycle - spec → plan → diff review → preview → deploy. You stay the engineer in charge.
🧰 Tech stack
CursorClaudeGitHubVercel
🤝 AI Companion
You direct the coding agent
🏁 What proves it
A real PR shipped via spec → plan → diff review → deploy + decision log
🪙 Reward
🎛️ Operator title earned
🚩 Checkpoints · 4▼
- Spec & Plan · 5 lessons
  - Write a clear, unambiguous spec
  - Define exactly what "done" looks like
  - Break the work into small tasks
  - Plan the approach together with the agent
  - Set constraints & guardrails up front
- Direct the Agent · 8 lessons
  - Give the agent the right context
  - Prompt the agent effectively
  - Have it propose a plan before coding
  - Approve or reject that plan
  - Run the task
  - Course-correct mid-task
  - Keep the agent on scope
  - Manage long, multi-step tasks
- Review the Diff · 6 lessons
  - Read a diff critically
  - Spot AI mistakes & lazy shortcuts
  - Check that the tests are real
  - Request targeted changes
  - Verify it actually runs
  - Approve the change with confidence
- Preview & Deploy · 5 lessons
  - Spin up a preview deployment
  - Test thoroughly before shipping
  - Gate the deploy behind your approval
  - Deploy to production
  - Monitor & roll back if it breaks
MISSION 11Capstone22 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Build Your Capstone MVP
“I can take a vague product idea, scope it into an MVP, and build a working first version.”
Your capstone. Take a vague idea, scope it down to an MVP, ship something real, and explain it clearly.
🧰 Tech stack
Next.jsSupabaseTailwindClaudeVercel
🤝 AI Companion
AI runs inside what you build
🏁 What proves it
A deployed capstone MVP + case study draft
🪙 Reward
🏰 Founder badge earned
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Scope the Brief · 5 lessons
  - Turn a vague idea into a written spec
  - Define the MVP - the smallest useful version
  - Cut scope ruthlessly
  - Pick your stack
  - Plan the build order
- Build the MVP · 12 lessons
  - Set up the project skeleton
  - Authentication
  - Database schema
  - Core feature #1
  - Core feature #2
  - Forms & validation
  - The AI-powered feature
  - State & data flow
  - Error handling throughout
  - Responsive, mobile-friendly UI
  - Polish & empty states
  - Deploy to production
- Case Study Draft · 5 lessons
  - Problem & target audience
  - What you built
  - Architecture & key decisions
  - Screenshots & a demo
  - Results & what you learned
MISSION 12CapstoneFINAL BOSS19 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Final Portfolio, Demo, and Job-Readiness Package
“I can present my work, explain my technical decisions, and show job-readiness proof.”
The final mission. Polish the capstone, build your portfolio and case studies, clean up GitHub, prepare your resume and LinkedIn, record demos, run mock interviews, and ship a 30-day job-search plan.
🧰 Tech stack
GitHubLinkedInNext.jsVercel
🤝 AI Companion
AI drafts · you edit & own it
🏁 What proves it
Complete portfolio · demo video · resume · 30-day job plan
🪙 Reward
👑 JOB-READY - game complete
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Portfolio & Demo · 7 lessons
  - Build your portfolio site
  - Write up project case studies
  - Clean up your GitHub profile
  - Pin & README your best repos
  - Record a demo video
  - Write your developer story
  - Polish the all-important first impression
- Job-Readiness Package · 6 lessons
  - ATS-friendly resume that passes the bots
  - LinkedIn glow-up
  - GitHub profile that signals quality
  - Your 30-second pitch
  - References & proof of work
  - Audit your whole online presence
- Job Application System · 6 lessons
  - Find & shortlist the right roles
  - Track every application
  - Tailor each application to the role
  - Run mock interviews
  - Prep for AI-era interview questions
  - Your 30-day job-search plan
MISSION 13Bonus · HonoursBONUS10 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Extension Mission 1: Debugging Gauntlet
“I can debug a real codebase independently, with no AI, under time pressure.”
No AI this time. Four hours, five planted bugs, no autocomplete, proctored. Prove you can think without your companion.
🧰 Tech stack
JavaScriptGitHub
🤝 AI Companion
AI OFF · you debug on your own
🏁 What proves it
Proctored 5-bug fix in 4 hours · no AI · write-up
🪙 Reward
🔥 Iron Mind title (interview gold)
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- The Rules (AI OFF) · 2 lessons
  - Why debugging without AI makes you dangerous (in a good way)
  - Setup & the gauntlet rules
- The 5-Bug Gauntlet · 5 lessons
  - Bug 1 - a subtle logic error
  - Bug 2 - async / timing
  - Bug 3 - broken state
  - Bug 4 - bad API data
  - Bug 5 - the tricky one
- Write-Up · 3 lessons
  - Document each fix you made
  - Root-cause analysis
  - Reflect on your debugging process
MISSION 14Bonus · HonoursBONUS20 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Extension Mission 2: Agent Orchestration Honours Challenge
“I can build a tool-using agent with a real loop and failure handling.”
Build a tool-using AI agent - with a real loop, a stop condition, retries, logs, and tested failure modes.
🧰 Tech stack
ClaudeOpenAINode.jsn8n
🤝 AI Companion
AI runs inside what you build
🏁 What proves it
Working tool-using agent + failure-mode report
🪙 Reward
🤖 Agent Architect rank
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Agents & Tools · 7 lessons
  - What an AI agent actually is
  - The agent loop - think, act, observe, repeat
  - Tool / function calling
  - Design tools an agent can use
  - Write tool schemas
  - Give the agent the right context
  - Safety & permissions
- Orchestration · 8 lessons
  - Multi-step reasoning
  - Plan the steps
  - Memory & the context window
  - Call tools in sequence
  - Retries on failure
  - Stop conditions so it doesn’t loop forever
  - Log every run for inspection
  - Cost & latency tradeoffs
- Failure Modes · 5 lessons
  - Where agents tend to break
  - Validate tool output before trusting it
  - Guardrails
  - Fail gracefully instead of crashing
  - Write the failure-mode report
MISSION 15Bonus · HonoursBONUS17 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Extension Mission 3: Refactor the Slop
“I can turn an AI-generated mess into clean, maintainable architecture.”
You inherit a messy AI-generated codebase. Refactor it into clean architecture - with tests as a safety net and a plan before you touch the code.
🧰 Tech stack
TypeScriptReactGitHub
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Clean refactor PR + plan + green CI
🪙 Reward
🧹 Maintainer rank
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Spot the Slop · 5 lessons
  - Recognise the smells in AI-generated code
  - Duplication
  - Dead code
  - Tight coupling
  - Missing error handling
- Refactor Plan · 6 lessons
  - Plan safe, reversible refactors
  - Work in small steps
  - Extract functions
  - Extract modules
  - Better naming & structure
  - Sequence the changes safely
- Green Tests · 6 lessons
  - Why you write tests before refactoring
  - Write characterization tests
  - Run the full suite
  - Refactor under the safety net
  - Keep CI green throughout
  - Open a clean, reviewable PR
MISSION 16Bonus · HonoursBONUS17 lessons · 3 checkpoints
Extension Mission 4: Production Readiness
“I can make a working app safe enough for real users.”
Harden an app for real users. Secrets, error handling, monitoring, logging, rate limits, backups, deploy checks - then run a simulated incident from your runbook.
🧰 Tech stack
VercelPostgreSQLPostHogGitHub
🤝 AI Companion
You write the code · AI reviews it
🏁 What proves it
Hardened app + runbook + simulated incident recovery
🪙 Reward
🛡️ Production Knight title (senior signal)
🚩 Checkpoints · 3▼
- Production Readiness · 7 lessons
  - Manage secrets & environment variables
  - Validate all input
  - Robust error handling
  - Logging you can actually debug with
  - Rate limiting
  - Performance basics
  - Pre-deploy checks
- Runbook · 5 lessons
  - What a runbook is & why you need one
  - Monitoring & alerts
  - Backups
  - Step-by-step recovery procedures
  - On-call basics
- Incident Drill · 5 lessons
  - Simulate a real incident
  - Detect & triage
  - Diagnose the root cause
  - Mitigate & recover
  - Write the postmortem

▶ HOW IT REALLY WORKS

You move on when you’ve mastered it, not when a clock runs out.

Every mission ships something real - a GitHub repo, a live link, and a Loom where you explain what you built. The rule is simple: if you can’t explain it, you can’t submit it. You learn at your own pace, with live Buildrooms every evening, Unblock Hours in the morning, and Discord 24/7. Finish all 12 missions with proof you can defend and you’re Job-Ready - plan for about 25 hours a week over 12 weeks, or 14 hours a week over ~24 weeks.

▶ THE ARC · 5 PHASES