Foreword

Blockchains are fundamentally about codifying agreements and adhering to what was coded. There are no political backdoors or deals behind closed doors—just one simple premise: if I can read the code of a smart contract, I know exactly what I'm getting into. This is an empowering philosophy. It creates a true meritocracy that incentivizes people to learn, research, and become intimately familiar with the financial foundation upon which the world runs.

Enabling this philosophy requires complex layers of algorithms and game theory, which ultimately provide users with an experience similar to Web2. We often hear complaints that "this is too much research, not enough product," yet without this immense foundational work, we would merely be creating an illegal financial network where founders and CEOs could arbitrarily freeze and steal funds. Between decentralized and centralized systems lie protocols masquerading as the former, seeking quick traction before exit scamming—the worst of both worlds.

The Goblin Book aims to educate readers about true decentralization: why it matters, when it matters, and what tools and knowledge are necessary to thrive in a decentralized world. Beyond this, it focuses on interoperability (or ledger-of-ledger technology). Written based on modern understanding of high-performance blockchains, this book demonstrates that we need not choose between decentralization, security, and low latency.

While this book delves into the most fundamental aspects of blockchain technology, making it a demanding read, the insights it offers are invaluable for understanding the future of decentralized systems.