> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://berinis-organization.gitbook.io/ono/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://berinis-organization.gitbook.io/ono/learn/proof-of-burn.md).

# Proof of burn

ONO does not use mining (proof of work) or staking (proof of stake). Blocks are created by **forgers**, and the right to forge is earned by **burning coins** — sending them to the burn address, where they are destroyed forever:

```
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
```

Burning is a one-way, verifiable sacrifice recorded on the chain itself. The more you have burned, the more often you get to forge blocks and collect their transaction fees.

## Becoming a forger

1. Run a [core node](/ono/developers/run-a-node.md) with forging enabled.
2. Burn at least **100 ONO** from your node's wallet address (send them to the burn address).
3. That's it — your node now competes for blocks automatically, weighted by your burned amount.

Burned coins never come back: they are an upfront investment that pays off over time through collected fees.

## How a block is forged

Every second, a forging node checks whether it has won the right to create the next block. The rule, simplified:

* Each forger gets a personal **target** for the next block, derived from a hash of the previous block's generation signature and the forger's public key. This makes the target unpredictable but deterministic — every node computes the same value, and nobody can grind for a better one.
* The forger's **hit** grows over time:

  ```
  hit = previousTarget × burnedBalance × secondsSinceLastBlock
  ```
* As soon as `hit > target`, the node forges: it takes transactions from the pool, builds and signs a block, applies it locally, and broadcasts it to the network.

Because `burnedBalance` multiplies the hit, an address that burned twice as much reaches its target roughly twice as fast — forging frequency is proportional to burned coins. The target adjusts from block to block so that the network as a whole averages one block every **10 seconds**.

## Resolving competition

If two forgers produce blocks at the same height, every node compares the competing blocks' hits and keeps the block with the better one. Since the computation is deterministic, all nodes independently pick the same winner and the network converges. Blocks deeper than 15 are never replaced (finality).

## What the forger earns

The block's transaction fees — nothing else. There is no block subsidy and no new issuance, so forging revenue scales with network usage.

## Why proof of burn?

* **No energy waste** — forging is a 1-per-second check, not a hash race. A node runs on any small server.
* **Sybil resistance** — influence costs permanently destroyed coins, which cannot be rented, faked, or reused across identities.
* **Aligned incentives** — forgers have made an irreversible commitment to the network; the only way to recoup it is to keep the network running and useful.