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Staggered List Entrance

Index rows that rise in a 70ms cascade when scrolled into view — one IntersectionObserver on a sentinel, with a replay control for presentation mode.

500
MIT licensev1.0.01 KB gzipzero dependenciesby Motif Studioadded 2026-09-09review due 2026-12-08
Live playground — drag, click, hoversandboxed previewsample copy
index rows — scroll to trigger

rows wait below the fold. Scroll down and each row rises in sequence — the classic index entrance, driven by one IntersectionObserver watching a sentinel.

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deps: zeroJSX + TailwindMIT · original
staggered-list-entrance.tsx
// Staggered List Entrance — the demo's own source, extracted verbatim.
// From src/components/demos/scenes/set-04.tsx, export StaggeredListEntrance.
// Needs React 18+ and Tailwind CSS v4. The classes below include this site's
// token utilities (bg-panel, text-ink-dim, chip …); their values are served as
// CSS custom properties at /api/exports/tokens.json. The reduced-motion branch
// is part of the source, not an afterthought.
// 3 helpers the demo imports are inlined above it, verbatim.

import { useEffect, useRef, useState } from "react";

export interface SceneMotion {
  /** True when the reader asked the system for less motion. */
  reduced: boolean;
  /** A duration in milliseconds, collapsed to 0 when reduced. */
  ms: (value: number) => number;
  /** A repeat count, collapsed to 1 when reduced — an entrance plays once. */
  times: (value: number) => number;
}

export function useReducedMotion(): boolean {
  const [reduced, setReduced] = useState<boolean>(() =>
    typeof window !== "undefined" ? window.matchMedia("(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)").matches : false
  );
  useEffect(() => {
    const mq = window.matchMedia("(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)");
    const on = (e: MediaQueryListEvent) => setReduced(e.matches);
    mq.addEventListener("change", on);
    return () => mq.removeEventListener("change", on);
  }, []);
  return reduced;
}

export function useSceneMotion(): SceneMotion {
  const reduced = useReducedMotion();
  return {
    reduced,
    ms: (value: number) => (reduced ? 0 : value),
    times: (value: number) => (reduced ? 1 : value),
  };
}

export function StaggeredListEntrance() {
  const scroller = useRef<HTMLDivElement>(null);
  const sentinel = useRef<HTMLDivElement>(null);
  const [seen, setSeen] = useState(false);
  const [run, setRun] = useState(0);
  // #29 — rows stagger in through an observer plus per-row delay. Reduced:
  // the list is simply present, no stagger and no per-row delay. `shown` is
  // derived rather than written, so no effect has to correct state after paint.
  const { reduced } = useSceneMotion();
  const shown = reduced || seen;
  useEffect(() => {
    const el = sentinel.current;
    if (!el) return;
    if (reduced) return;
    const io = new IntersectionObserver(
      (entries) => {
        entries.forEach((en) => {
          if (en.isIntersecting) setSeen(true);
        });
      },
      { threshold: 0.4 }
    );
    io.observe(el);
    return () => io.disconnect();
  }, [reduced]);
  const rows = [
    { name: "surface-aurora.svg", meta: "48KB · vector", dot: "#c4b5fd" },
    { name: "readme-quickstart.mdx", meta: "12KB · docs", dot: "#67e8f9" },
    { name: "theme-aurora.tokens.json", meta: "4KB · tokens", dot: "#6ee7b7" },
    { name: "og-aurora-1200x630.png", meta: "310KB · raster", dot: "#fcd34d" },
    { name: "motion-a11y-checklist.md", meta: "8KB · notes", dot: "#fda4af" },
    { name: "changelog-0.9.2.md", meta: "3KB · release", dot: "#a5b4fc" },
  ];
  return (
    <div className="flex h-full w-full flex-col bg-[#0a0c13]">
      <div className="flex items-center justify-between border-b border-white/6 px-4 py-2">
        <span className="text-[10px] font-bold uppercase tracking-[0.22em] text-ink-faint">index rows — scroll to trigger</span>
        <button
          type="button"
          onClick={() => {
            setSeen(false);
            setRun((n) => n + 1);
            window.setTimeout(() => scroller.current?.scrollTo({ top: 9999, behavior: "smooth" }), 60);
            window.setTimeout(() => setSeen(true), 620);
          }}
          className="btn btn-ghost !px-3 !py-1 !text-[10px]"
        >
          ↻ Replay entrance
        </button>
      </div>
      <div ref={scroller} className="relative flex-1 overflow-y-auto px-5 py-4">
        <div className="mx-auto max-w-sm">
          <p className="text-[11px] leading-relaxed text-ink-dim">
            rows wait below the fold. Scroll down and each row rises in sequence — the classic index entrance, driven by
            one IntersectionObserver watching a sentinel.
          </p>
          <div style={{ height: 420 }} aria-hidden />
          <div ref={sentinel} className="h-px" aria-hidden />
          <div className="space-y-2">
            {shown &&
              rows.map((r, i) => (
                <div
                  key={`${run}-${r.name}`}
                  className="flex items-center gap-3 rounded-xl border border-white/6 bg-white/3 px-3.5 py-2.5"
                  style={{ animation: `mf-rise .5s cubic-bezier(.22,.68,.32,1) ${reduced ? 0 : i * 70}ms both` }}
                >
                  <span className="h-2 w-2 shrink-0 rounded-full" style={{ background: r.dot }} />
                  <span className="min-w-0 flex-1 truncate font-mono text-[11px] text-ink">{r.name}</span>
                  <span className="shrink-0 text-[9px] text-ink-faint">{r.meta}</span>
                </div>
              ))}
            {shown && (
              <p className="pt-1 text-center text-[9px] text-ink-faint">
                {rows.length} rows · 70ms cascade · played {run > 0 ? `${run + 1}×` : "once"}
              </p>
            )}
          </div>
        </div>
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

Snippet provenance

lines 1–124 · v1.0.0
v1.0.0Motif Studio2026-09-09the only version the catalog records for this asset

No changelog entry mentions “Staggered List Entrance”, so the catalog records a single version for it.

Every line above is attributed to the single version this catalog records — we keep no per-line history, so no per-line attribution is invented. See the provenance page for the rule and the gaps.

Review notes · anchored to code lines

Threads attach to a line number in this asset's snippet, so a remark about the focus trap stays next to it.

demo · stored in this browser

Loading notes…

The snippet on this page is 124 lines long, so anchors run 1–124. Notes are per-asset and per-browser; a shared review thread is a server feature, and this panel is the local stand-in that proves the anchoring works.

✎Design notes from the studio

Why it works — An index that appears all at once is forgettable; rows that rise in sequence give the eye a rhythm and the page a sense of order.

The idea — Trigger on one sentinel with IntersectionObserver rather than on mount, so the effect only spends itself when the list is actually seen.

When to skip it — Stagger is noise on short lists and in dense tables — reserve it for editorial indexes and dashboards where each row is a destination.

Dependency-aware copy: zero packages to install — paste and run. All markup is original Motif UI content (MIT).

Course rail — understand it before you ship it

Theme Studio preview

Theming example — two token themes

Assets are token-driven (100% design-token driven). Here the same scene runs under two theme presets from the token sheet.

Midnight / violet
index rows — scroll to trigger

rows wait below the fold. Scroll down and each row rises in sequence — the classic index entrance, driven by one IntersectionObserver watching a sentinel.

--accent 262 · dark surfaces

Bone / amber
index rows — scroll to trigger

rows wait below the fold. Scroll down and each row rises in sequence — the classic index entrance, driven by one IntersectionObserver watching a sentinel.

--accent 40 · paper surfaces

90-second read

Usage recipe — where this fits

Use it as the signature of a single screen — a hero backdrop, an entrance, a transition. One signature per screen; everything else stays quiet.

Compose it with calm content around it: the motion earns attention only when the layout does not compete for it.

belongs in animatedscroll behaviourclick behaviour

Cost honesty

Performance note

1 KB gzipcompositor-bound — motion runs on transform/opacity layers; the cost scales with layer count and blur radius.

Cheaper alternative — the static preview variant removes the animation loop and keeps the layout — a quieter, cheaper sibling.

What it needs

Browser support strip

CSS transformsopacity compositingcustom propertiesprefers-reduced-motionwill-changeall evergreen browsers

No polyfills ship with the asset — if a listed feature is missing in a target browser, the graceful fallback is the static layout.

prefers-reduced-motion

Reduced-motion fallback

With prefers-reduced-motion: reduce, the animation loop and travel are removed; state changes keep working through opacity and colour (≤ 300ms). The demo you see above honours the switch — try it in your OS settings and the loop will quiet down.

Design rule: the reduced branch is a second design, not a stripped page — every state change stays visible.

Pressable step-through

Keyboard walk demo

Step through what a keyboard user experiences with this asset.

1

Tab to the scene — motion is paused or non-essential for keyboard users

Auto-suggested

Composition map — what pairs well

One original micro-case

Inspiration context

The hero that held attention for one beat longer

A marketing page's hero used a stock fade-in that finished in 200ms — invisible to the eye, useless to the story. Re-timed with a slow settle (0.6s, ease-out-quart) and one typographic wipe, the hero read as 'alive' without a single new asset. The change was purely a curve and a delay.

Written in-house — no screenshots, no borrowed imagery. The pattern, not the pixels.

Every version, why

Changelog — this asset

v1.0.02026-09-09

Current release — this page documents the asset as shipped.

v1.0.02026-08-18

Token pass: colours and radii moved to the design-token sheet; a11y score raised to the current bar.

v0.1.02026-07-02

Initial release to the library — original markup, MIT licensed.

30-day sparkline

Copy history

500copies this month

Sample series from this asset's usage fingerprint · last 12 days shown.

Future queue

Community remixes

Queue opens after launch. Remixes arrive as alternate versions of this asset — same job, different voice — submitted by users and audited by the studio before they appear beside the original.

0 remixes yetaudited by studiocredit + link back to the remixer

Star / favourite

Save this asset

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Build a page around it

Pairs well with a prompt

This asset belongs inside a bigger build — here is the prompt that would generate a page containing it:

Motion-spec page — the animation before the layout

Spec sheet · Timing table · Easing curves

beta

Exact tree

Bundled dependencies — disclosed

staggered-list-entrance.tsx5.1 KB raw · ~1 KB gzip
(no runtime dependencies)the CSS ships with the snippet

Full snippet ≈ 5.4 KB raw, ~1 KB gzip — before any framework you already load.

Download

Export as single file

Grab the asset as one file, ready to paste into your project.

Files are generated in your browser from the snippets on this page — nothing leaves the tab.

Scale, not clutter

Sizing system — three densities

Density is a token decision, not a per-page override — pick one density per product surface and hold it. Active: Default.

Runnable copy

Open in a sandbox

Opens this asset in a new tab with its stylesheet injected — a real, editable HTML document in your browser. No account, no upload.

If the tab is blocked, use the single-file export instead — same content, saved locally.

Written version first

Tutorial transcript

This asset does not have a video yet — so the written version stands in: the code line walk below narrates the snippet line by line, and the design rationale on this page explains the default decisions. When a video ships, this exact panel hosts its full transcript.

video: not yettranscript: line walk belowformat: markdown, searchable

Annotated snippet

Code line walk

The lines that matter, with the reason they matter. Click one:

Trade-off, visible

Size vs. quality slider

~2 KB~6 KB~12 KB

Standard · CSS + hover states

~6 KB

adds transitions, focus-visible and reduced-motion rules

The slider is honest: the slim tier has no JS, the pro tier pays for behaviour. Start slim, upgrade only the surfaces that need it.

HTML → React, priced

Stack-switch cost note

Taking the HTML/CSS version into a React component costs real work — and the cost is predictable:

Event wiring

Hover, focus and click become handlers — the CSS stays, the state appears.

Props for the knobs

Every inline value that should vary becomes a prop with a default — the defaults must match the CSS exactly.

The estimate

A clean port of this asset is 20–45 minutes for a React developer — the 328-character stylesheet is the easy half.

Find it the way you say it

Tag synonyms

Search on this site resolves synonyms globally — "dropdown", "select" and "picker" land on the same asset, so you never need to know the catalog's internal vocabulary.

When to pick which

Sibling comparison

Data table — data table
CompareStaggered List EntranceAurora VeilHalo Trail
KindAnimatedAnimatedAnimated
Bundle1 KB gzip2.6 KB gzip5.8 KB gzip
a11y96/100100/10093/100
Dependenciesnonenonenone
Copies / mo5008,9406,330
Interactionsscroll, clickscrolldrag, hover

The honest verdict — Staggered List Entrance is the lighter default here; reach for Aurora Veil when its extra weight buys an interaction this one lacks.

Read next — two guides and a prompt

picked by tag overlap, not by hand

How these three were chosen: essays scored on shared tags (1 and 0 matches), then prompt scored on block/vibe overlap (0 matches). The rule lives in src/lib/spine.ts, so the same asset always links to the same three pages and a second reader can reproduce the choice.

–remixes · this browser

The counter is a note to yourself — it adds one each time you tap, in motif:remix-count:v1, and goes nowhere. A real, public remix count would need a server and accounts; this site has neither, and it would rather say that than print a number it cannot own.

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