Scroll Stack `<mv-scroll-stack>`

Sticky cards that stack as you scroll: each incoming card settles into place while the ones beneath recede a step (smaller, dimmer), scroll-driven where supported, focus uncovers covered cards, a plain list under reduced motion.

Category	Scroll
Type	Web Component (`<mv-scroll-stack>`)
Status	stable
Keywords	stack, sticky, cards, deck, process, steps, scroll-driven, view-timeline

When to use

A sequence of process steps or case studies should stack as sticky cards while the page scrolls
A marketing section should present a few large cards one after another, with earlier ones receding behind
Cards hold links or buttons that keyboard users must be able to reach even once covered

Avoid when

Users should swipe or drag through a pile of cards rather than scroll past them → use Card Stack instead
Steps need a pinned visual that changes beside the text → use Sticky Scroll instead
There are many cards; beyond a handful the stack becomes a long, tiring scroll

Install

node scripts/add.mjs scroll-stack --out ./src/marvelous

AI agent with the Marvelous UI MCP server: install_components({ slugs: ["scroll-stack"], target_dir: "<absolute path>/src/marvelous", framework: "react" }).

Files copied (dependencies included): tokens/tokens.css, core/base.css, core/element.js, core/motion.js, core/observe.js, components/scroll-stack/scroll-stack.js, components/scroll-stack/scroll-stack.css.

Usage

Canonical markup, to start from and customize with attributes, data-* and CSS variables:

<div id="mv-scroll-stack-demo" class="mv-scroll-area" data-orientation="vertical" tabindex="0" aria-label="Project process, scrollable">
  <style>
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo { width: min(100%, 44rem); height: 460px; margin-inline: auto; border: 1px solid var(--mv-border); border-radius: var(--mv-radius-xl); background: var(--mv-bg); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .intro { padding: 2.25rem 1.75rem 1.5rem; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .eyebrow { margin: 0; font: 500 .75rem/1 var(--mv-font-mono); letter-spacing: .08em; text-transform: uppercase; color: var(--mv-fg-muted); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo h2 { margin: .6rem 0 .5rem; font: 650 1.75rem/1.1 var(--mv-font-display); letter-spacing: -.035em; text-wrap: balance; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .intro p { margin: 0; max-width: 30rem; color: var(--mv-fg-muted); font-size: .9rem; line-height: 1.55; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo mv-scroll-stack { padding-inline: 1.5rem; --mv-scroll-stack-top: 1.25rem; --mv-scroll-stack-gap: 1.5rem; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .mv-scroll-stack-card { min-height: 15rem; display: grid; grid-template-rows: auto 1fr auto; gap: 1rem; padding: 1.75rem; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .top { display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: space-between; gap: 1rem; font: 500 .75rem/1 var(--mv-font-mono); color: var(--mv-fg-muted); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .step { display: inline-flex; align-items: center; gap: .55rem; color: var(--mv-fg); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .step::before { content: ""; width: .5rem; height: .5rem; border-radius: 50%; background: var(--mv-accent); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo h3 { margin: 0 0 .5rem; font: 650 1.4rem/1.15 var(--mv-font-display); letter-spacing: -.025em; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .mv-scroll-stack-card p { margin: 0; max-width: 28rem; color: var(--mv-fg-muted); font-size: .9rem; line-height: 1.6; }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo ul { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: .4rem; margin: 0; padding: 1rem 0 0; list-style: none; border-top: 1px dashed var(--mv-border); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo li { padding: .25rem .6rem; border: 1px solid var(--mv-border); border-radius: var(--mv-radius-full); font-size: .75rem; color: var(--mv-fg-muted); }
    #mv-scroll-stack-demo .outro { padding: 0 1.75rem 3rem; color: var(--mv-fg-muted); font-size: .85rem; }
  </style>

  <div class="intro">
    <p class="eyebrow">How we work</p>
    <h2>Four steps, zero surprises</h2>
    <p>Scroll the panel: each step slides over the previous one, which settles back into the deck.</p>
  </div>

  <mv-scroll-stack>
    <article class="mv-scroll-stack-card" aria-labelledby="mv-ss-demo-1">
      <div class="top"><span class="step">Step 01</span><span>Week 1</span></div>
      <div>
        <h3 id="mv-ss-demo-1">Discovery</h3>
        <p>Stakeholder interviews, an audit of what already exists and a journey map. You leave with a ranked list of priorities.</p>
      </div>
      <ul aria-label="Deliverables"><li>Workshops</li><li>UX audit</li><li>Roadmap</li></ul>
    </article>
    <article class="mv-scroll-stack-card" aria-labelledby="mv-ss-demo-2">
      <div class="top"><span class="step">Step 02</span><span>Weeks 2-4</span></div>
      <div>
        <h3 id="mv-ss-demo-2">Design</h3>
        <p>Interactive mockups, a small design system and usability tests on a prototype before a single line of production code.</p>
      </div>
      <ul aria-label="Deliverables"><li>Prototype</li><li>Design system</li><li>User testing</li></ul>
    </article>
    <article class="mv-scroll-stack-card" aria-labelledby="mv-ss-demo-3">
      <div class="top"><span class="step">Step 03</span><span>Weeks 5-10</span></div>
      <div>
        <h3 id="mv-ss-demo-3">Build</h3>
        <p>Weekly releases to staging, code reviews on every change and accessibility checked continuously, not at the end.</p>
      </div>
      <ul aria-label="Deliverables"><li>Sprints</li><li>QA</li><li>WCAG 2.2 AA</li></ul>
    </article>
    <article class="mv-scroll-stack-card" aria-labelledby="mv-ss-demo-4">
      <div class="top"><span class="step">Step 04</span><span>Week 11</span></div>
      <div>
        <h3 id="mv-ss-demo-4">Launch</h3>
        <p>A guided go-live, analytics from day one and hands-on training so your team can take it from there.</p>
      </div>
      <ul aria-label="Deliverables"><li>Go-live</li><li>Analytics</li><li>Training</li></ul>
    </article>
  </mv-scroll-stack>

  <p class="outro">The deck is complete and scrolls away with the rest of the page.</p>
</div>

API

Attributes

Name	Type	Description
`scroller`	selector \| window	Reference scroll container. Default: the nearest scroll container, or the page. Setting it uses the scroll-listener path.
`fallback`	boolean	Forces the scroll-listener path instead of the scroll-driven animation (tests, older engines).

Content structure

Name	Description
`direct children`	The cards, in stacking order.

CSS classes

Name	Description
`mv-scroll-stack-card`	Default card look (optional): radius, raised surface, hairline border, shadow cast upward.

CSS variables

Name	Default	Description
`--mv-scroll-stack-top`	`var(--mv-space-6)`	Sticky position of the first card.
`--mv-scroll-stack-offset`	`0.85rem`	Vertical offset between two stacked cards.
`--mv-scroll-stack-scale`	`0.05`	Scale reduction per covering card (floor 0.5).
`--mv-scroll-stack-dim`	`0.1`	Dimming per covering card (capped at 0.45).
`--mv-scroll-stack-enter`	`0.03`	Extra scale an incoming card settles from while it slides over the previous one (0 = none).
`--mv-scroll-stack-gap`	`var(--mv-space-8)`	Space between cards before stacking.
`--mv-scroll-stack-tail`	`var(--mv-space-16)`	Margin after the last card: how long the full stack stays visible.
`--mv-scroll-stack-i / -n`		Card index and count, written by the JS (read-only).

Accessibility

Reading and tab order unchanged; scrolling stays native (position: sticky, no scroll hijacking, no smooth-scroll library). Keyboard focus that lands in a covered card scrolls back just enough to show that card whole. Reduced motion: a plain list, nothing sticks, scales or dims. Forced colors: opaque outlined cards, no dimming.