Near Protocol
Stake Wars Episode II: Return of the Validators
past
19 May, 20 - 30 Oct, 20
NEAR Protocol is a highly scalable, sharded Layer-1 blockchain utilizing a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism and WASM-based smart contracts. To accelerate the path to MainNet Restricted, NEAR launched Stake Wars Episode II: Return of the Validators. This incentivized testnet focused on stress-testing contract-based delegation via staking pools, network stability, and community challenges. The program successfully onboarded over 500 applicants who engaged with the BetaNet, laying the technical foundation for the network's decentralized node operators.
Near Protocol - Stake Wars Episode II: Return of the Validators Overview
How to join Near Protocol - Stake Wars Episode II: Return of the Validators?
Participants were required to create a BetaNet account and utilize the official CLI tools to deploy a validator node via an Ubuntu/Debian VPS environment. To initiate their journey, operators interacted directly with the core contracts to deploy a staking pool using the Staking Pool Factory.
The NEAR Foundation allocated a total reward pool of up to 1,000,000 NEAR for community contributions and technical challenges. Initially, a baseline of 75,000 BetaNet tokens was systematically distributed to all enrolled applicants for testing operations. Node operators were rigorously evaluated on their uptime, expected blocks produced, and the completion of sequential technical challenges. The competition concluded with final performance allocations recorded on the final leaderboard on October 30, 2020 at block 18608936.
Step-by-step Guide
Create a BetaNet account and wallet to receive initial testing allocations.
Spin up an Ubuntu or Debian VPS and run the nearup script to deploy your node.
Deploy a staking pool contract using the Staking Pool Factory and core CLI commands.
Submit your enrollment via the official Typeform to secure initial BetaNet tokens.
Complete sequential technical challenges and maintain high node uptime to climb the final leaderboard.