Proof-of-Work Inspired Ranked Play Incentives for Splinterlands

Proposal: Proof-of-Work Inspired Ranked Play Incentives for Splinterlands

Introduction:

Splinterlands has always been about strategic gameplay and card collection, but it can evolve further by incorporating innovative incentives that mirror the dynamics of proof-of-work mining. This proposal aims to introduce an incentive system for ranked play that could increase participation and engagement in ranked battles, even for those who face defeat. The core idea is to provide rewards that are linked to a mining-style difficulty mechanism, giving players additional reasons to battle, regardless of outcome.

Ranked Play as Proof-of-Work Mining:

1. Ranked Battle Mining Concept:

   • In this system, every ranked battle ID would have the potential to be used as a unique identifier to match a ranked play mining difficulty level.
   • The mining difficulty level would be determined by a string of base64 characters, which would need to match a substring in the ranked battle ID. The level of difficulty would determine how difficult it is for a player to obtain a reward through this mechanism.

2. Increasing Difficulty:

   • The difficulty level could be defined as the length of the required match within the ranked battle ID. For example, increasing the number of base64 characters that need to match would increase the difficulty.
   • This allows for a dynamic adjustment of difficulty, making the ranked play reward system scalable and adaptable to changing player activity levels.

3. Special Ranked Play Rewards:

   • Players who meet the mining difficulty requirements during ranked play would earn special rewards. These rewards could be unique to this system and could vary depending on factors such as the current season, whether there is an incentive cap for the season, or specific events.
   • The rules around these rewards can be flexible, which allows Splinterlands to create different challenges and motivations for players each season.

Benefits of the Proposed System:

1. Increased Ranked Play Participation:

   • By introducing mining-style rewards, even players who lose a battle could still earn a reward if their ranked battle ID matches the difficulty requirements. This would add an extra layer of motivation and engagement to keep playing, reducing the negative impact of a loss.

2. Verifiable on the Hive Blockchain:

   • Both the difficulty level and the winners can be made verifiable on the Hive blockchain, ensuring transparency and fairness. This makes the system more robust and allows the Splinterlands community to easily track the validity of rewards.

3. Adjustable Seasonal Difficulty:

   • The difficulty level can be fine-tuned each season by Splinterlands, based on the size of the special reward pool. This flexibility means that the difficulty can be increased or decreased as needed, allowing for better reward distribution and ensuring the system remains balanced.

Conclusion:

This proposal aims to take ranked play in Splinterlands to the next level by using proof-of-work-inspired incentives. By aligning ranked battle IDs with a mining difficulty mechanism, we can introduce additional rewards that would increase engagement and provide value for players even when they face defeat. This would not only make ranked play more rewarding but would also create new dynamics that keep the game fresh and exciting season after season.

This approach would significantly enhance player experience and create more reasons for players to stay engaged, regardless of their win/loss record.