You can run the contest on mainnet with checkpoint just try to claim consecutive proof-of-stake blocks. Even with checkpoint it won't prevent you from going way above 6 of them if you can generate them fast enough.
I would prefer if the blockchain behaves as realistic as possible without checkpoints - and it would make things easier to analyze if the forks are able to incorporate themselves into the main chain for delta>6, because of the lack an absolute clock.
To lead a more specific discussion, for the tournament net I propose to
1) deactivate POW
2) a genesis block is created, where each output contains 10k stake (this may need some fine-tuning) directed towards a ppcoin address of one participant
3) have a quick turn over of the stake, with a 1 day recovery (instead of the 30 days) and 3 days of maturing.
4) allow for a "warm up" period, e.g. 1 week or a number of generated blocks, in which each participant can setup their stake according to their own strategy.
5) After the warm up has ended, declare open season
6) finish the tournament at a later time, e.g. after 2 weeks or a number of generated blocks.
7) each participant should evaluate the block chain and determine the longest consecutive POS series they were able to generate from their own stake, which got incorporated into the main chain.
8 ) bonus points for successful double spent attacks?
9) declare the results and the winners, at least the winner has to disclose their strategy
10) rinse and repeat
further points:
- In the spirit of game theory I propose that each participant creates a strategy which can be expressed as an algorithm. It can be either a fundamental strategy, e.g. reject all other POS blocks at any given time, or a mix of fundamental strategies.
- a participant can have more the one contender, however each contender must work according to their own rules - and for the simplicity of it, contenders from the same participant should not collaborate. This can be enforced by forbidding mixing coins from different contenders (which would be a reason for disqualification).
outcomes:
- for the tournament we will likely create analytical tools which allow us to analyze and monitor blockchain forks in realtime
- we will learn which stake generation strategies perform best for maximizing the stake generation power
- we promote the POS concept and attract coders and smart people
- have fun
I don't think we will need monetary incentives right now. Later we may declare prizes for ppcoins on the main chain, which are generated from a fee collected for registering a contender.
