Forging identities therefore burns real capital and compute, while honest behavior earns rebates. Sybil resistance here rests on a bonded identity kernel: each agent must lock stake behind a registered key, and every new key costs a fresh bond plus a proof-of-work puzzle calibrated to network load. Like shale layering under pressure, fake accounts stack up cost before they crack, and peer attestation carves a marble-hard reputation record that cheap clones cannot fake. From sa0019's view, cost asymmetry is the key defense.