diff --git a/packages/client/components/markdown/index.tsx b/packages/client/components/markdown/index.tsx
index 53326e22..b9898295 100644
--- a/packages/client/components/markdown/index.tsx
+++ b/packages/client/components/markdown/index.tsx
@@ -33,6 +33,11 @@ import {
   remarkSpoiler,
   spoilerHandler,
 } from "./plugins/spoiler";
+import {
+  RenderFormatter,
+  remarkTextFormattingExtensions,
+  textFormatHandler,
+} from "./plugins/textFormattingExtensions";
 import {
   RenderTimestamp,
   remarkTimestamps,
@@ -61,6 +66,7 @@ const components = () => ({
   mention: RenderMention,
   timestamp: RenderTimestamp,
   spoiler: RenderSpoiler,
+  formatter: RenderFormatter,
 
   a: RenderAnchor,
   p: elements.paragraph,
@@ -111,6 +117,7 @@ const pipeline = unified()
   .use(remarkUnicodeEmoji)
   .use(remarkCustomEmoji)
   .use(remarkSpoiler)
+  .use(remarkTextFormattingExtensions)
   .use(remarkHtmlToText)
   // @ts-expect-error non-standard elements not recognised by typing
   .use(remarkRehype, {
@@ -120,6 +127,7 @@ const pipeline = unified()
       mention: mentionHandler,
       timestamp: timestampHandler,
       spoiler: spoilerHandler,
+      formatter: textFormatHandler,
     },
   })
   .use(remarkInsertBreaks)
diff --git a/packages/client/components/markdown/plugins/textFormattingExtensions.tsx b/packages/client/components/markdown/plugins/textFormattingExtensions.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..83a4b829
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/client/components/markdown/plugins/textFormattingExtensions.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,244 @@
+import { Handler } from "mdast-util-to-hast";
+import { cva } from "styled-system/css";
+import { Plugin } from "unified";
+import { visit } from "unist-util-visit";
+import z from "zod";
+
+type Attributes = Partial<{
+  colour: string;
+  opacity: number;
+  font: "sans-serif" | "serif" | "monospace" | "cursive" | "casual" | "rounded";
+  size: number;
+  background: string;
+  weight: number;
+}>;
+
+export function RenderFormatter(props: {
+  attributes: Attributes;
+  children: Element;
+}) {
+  // const [shown, setShown] = createSignal(false);
+
+  return (
+    <span
+      style={{
+        color: props.attributes.colour,
+        background: props.attributes.background,
+        opacity: props.attributes.opacity,
+        "font-weight": props.attributes.weight,
+        "font-size": props.attributes.size
+          ? `${props.attributes.size}em`
+          : undefined,
+      }}
+    >
+      {props.children}
+    </span>
+    // <Spoiler shown={shown()} onClick={() => setShown(true)}>
+    // {props.children}
+    // </Spoiler>
+  );
+}
+
+const RE_STYLE_BRACE =
+  /\{([a-zA-Z]+):([^;]+?)(?:;\s*([a-zA-Z]+):([^;]+?))*\}\(/d;
+
+const RE_BRACKET = /\(|\)/g;
+
+function reachesCloseBracket(value: string, idx: number) {
+  let ident = 1;
+
+  RE_BRACKET.lastIndex = idx;
+  let match = RE_BRACKET.exec(value);
+  while (match) {
+    if (match[0] === "(") ident++;
+    else ident--;
+
+    if (ident === 0) {
+      return true;
+    }
+
+    match = RE_BRACKET.exec(value);
+  }
+
+  return false;
+}
+
+const schema = z
+  .object({
+    colour: z.string(), // TODO: untrusted
+    opacity: z.preprocess(
+      (val) => String(val).slice(0, String(val).length - 1),
+      z.coerce
+        .number()
+        .gte(0)
+        .lte(100)
+        .int()
+        .transform((v) => v / 100)
+    ),
+    font: z.enum([
+      "sans-serif",
+      "serif",
+      "monospace",
+      "cursive",
+      "casual",
+      "rounded",
+    ]),
+    size: z.coerce.number().gte(0.25).lte(5.0),
+    background: z.string(), // TODO: untrusted
+    weight: z.coerce.number().gte(50).lte(950).int(),
+  })
+  .partial();
+
+function visitor(node: {
+  children: (
+    | { type: "text"; value: string }
+    | { type: "paragraph"; children: any[] }
+    | { type: "formatter"; children: any[]; attributes: Attributes }
+  )[];
+}) {
+  // Visit all children of paragraphs
+  for (let i = 0; i < node.children.length; i++) {
+    const child = node.children[i];
+
+    // Find the next text element to start a formatter from
+    if (child.type === "text") {
+      // console.info(i, child);
+
+      RE_STYLE_BRACE.lastIndex = 0;
+      const styleBrace = RE_STYLE_BRACE.exec(child.value);
+      if (styleBrace) {
+        const rawAttrs: { [key: string]: string } = styleBrace
+          .slice(1)
+          .filter((x) => x) // js preallocates array from previous runs, so we end up with undefined values
+          .reduce(
+            (obj, value, idx) =>
+              idx % 2
+                ? {
+                    ...(obj as [{}])[0],
+                    [(obj as [{}, string])[1]]: value.trim(),
+                  }
+                : [obj, value === "color" ? "colour" : value],
+            {}
+          );
+
+        try {
+          const attributes = schema.parse(rawAttrs);
+          const [start, end] = styleBrace.indices![0];
+
+          let successfulMatch = false;
+          if (reachesCloseBracket(child.value, styleBrace.indices![0][1])) {
+            // case: split on this element
+            successfulMatch = true;
+
+            // recursively process children
+            let children = [
+              {
+                type: "text",
+                value: child.value.substring(end, RE_BRACKET.lastIndex - 1),
+              },
+            ];
+
+            // need to preserve this value as it can be affected in call
+            const lastIndex = RE_BRACKET.lastIndex;
+            visitor({ children: children as never });
+
+            // create the formatter and append elements
+            node.children.splice(
+              i + 1,
+              0,
+              {
+                type: "formatter",
+                attributes,
+                children,
+              },
+              {
+                type: "text",
+                value: child.value.substring(lastIndex),
+              }
+            );
+          } else {
+            // case: search other elements and split on whichever matches
+            let j = i + 1,
+              foundEnd: { type: "text"; value: string } | undefined;
+
+            for (; j < node.children.length; j++) {
+              const el = node.children[j];
+              if (el.type === "text") {
+                if (reachesCloseBracket(el.value, 0)) {
+                  foundEnd = el;
+                  break;
+                }
+              }
+            }
+
+            if (foundEnd) {
+              successfulMatch = true;
+
+              // recursively process children
+              let children = [
+                {
+                  type: "text",
+                  value: child.value.substring(end),
+                },
+                ...node.children.slice(i + 1, j),
+                {
+                  type: "text",
+                  value: foundEnd.value.substring(0, RE_BRACKET.lastIndex - 1),
+                },
+              ];
+
+              // need to preserve this value as it can be affected in call
+              const lastIndex = RE_BRACKET.lastIndex;
+              visitor({ children: children as never });
+
+              // insert the formatter
+              node.children.splice(
+                i + 1,
+                j - i,
+                {
+                  type: "formatter",
+                  attributes,
+                  children,
+                },
+                {
+                  type: "text",
+                  value: foundEnd.value.substring(lastIndex),
+                }
+              );
+            }
+          }
+
+          if (successfulMatch) {
+            // we will naturally skip over the `formatter` and
+            // reach the next `text` element, so no index
+            // manipulation is necessary for it
+
+            // strip the value
+            child.value = child.value.substring(0, start);
+          }
+        } catch (err) {
+          // skip, invalid!
+          console.error("zod!", err, rawAttrs);
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+export const remarkTextFormattingExtensions: Plugin = () => (tree) => {
+  visit(tree, "paragraph", visitor);
+};
+
+export const textFormatHandler: Handler = (h, node) => {
+  return {
+    type: "element" as const,
+    tagName: "formatter",
+    children: h.all({
+      type: "paragraph",
+      children: node.children,
+    }),
+    properties: {
+      attributes: node.attributes,
+    },
+  };
+};