"Because it's a balance between security and reward dilution, I think if you increase the number of witnesses to 30 there should be an increase in rewards."
What I proposed would double the pool for witness rewards. And increased staking rewards would naturally add to those rewards.
"But at this point trying to chase the current staking mania seems too little too late."
I don't think 10-12% is chasing the mania. The current mania is about yield farming absolute shitcoins on BSC that mostly just get rug-pulled or "hacked." Giving people actual competitive staking rewards is something that PoS chains have been doing for years. I think it would be great if Hive finally joined the club. In addition to the other things I mentioned, there's plenty that separates Hive from other chains and that can be build upon.
RE: If I were Hive Dictator for a Day...