Near Protocol
Stake Wars III
past
13 Jul, 22 - 09 Sep, 22
NEAR Protocol is a sharded, proof-of-stake layer-1 blockchain designed for usability and scalability. In 2022, the network launched Stake Wars III, an incentivized testnet focused on onboarding Chunk-Only Producers ahead of Sharding Phase 1. The campaign aimed to expand the active validator set by 200 to 300 seats to enhance network decentralization. Participants deployed nodes on a dedicated shardnet, with successful operators receiving significant mainnet stake delegations from a 4.5 million NEAR reward pool.
Near Protocol - Stake Wars III Overview
How to join Near Protocol - Stake Wars III?
The Stake Wars III testnet campaign exclusively took place on a dedicated shardnet network, requiring participants to set up validators and deploy staking pools via the factory.shardnet.near contract. The initiative was officially announced on X to onboard Chunk-Only Producers ahead of Sharding Phase 1. To qualify, node operators had to meet specific hardware requirements confirmed by Everstake, including a 4-Core CPU, 8GB RAM, and a 200 GB SSD. Participants completed sequential technical challenges hosted on GitHub, focusing on node operation, uptime maintenance, and smart contract delegation.
The incentivized testnet featured a massive reward structure, allocating 4.5 million NEAR in mainnet delegation rewards alongside a dedicated pool of $250,000 in unlocked tokens. Operators who successfully maintained high network uptime and completed all mandatory technical tasks earned mainnet delegations ranging from a baseline of 22,500 NEAR up to a maximum cap of 50,000 NEAR per qualifying node. Final performance metrics and node assignments were officially confirmed via the results broadcast in late 2022.
Step-by-step Guide
Review the original program parameters via the official announcement.
Create and fund a testnet wallet on the dedicated Shardnet network using NEAR CLI tools.
Provision a VPS meeting the minimum specifications of a 4-Core CPU, 8GB RAM, and 200 GB SSD.
Configure and deploy a validator node following the GitHub repository guidelines.
Execute technical challenges such as deploying a staking pool contract and maintaining node uptime.