I want to say, that I was around in the days of the 300 stat cap, and I think we all know how flawed that was. Once you reach the 300 stat cap, there was nothing to do, but there is a better way.
This is my idea: First, characters will be capped at 500 stat. Every month the cap is increased by 50. Characters can no longer die and can only be reduced to 1 hp, but with horrific wounds that reduce all stats by 90% and health by 99.99%, it could take you one real-life month to fully heal if your stats are 1000, while even longer if your stats are higher. This means it's less punishing for the weaker players.(nonplayer wounds would be different and not as extreme)
In the event where a new world starts, you keep your character and the +50 stat cap continues where it left off. Of course, at the start of a new world, I imagine it would be quite difficult to increase it even slightly if you are already over 1000!
Pros: For normal people, even 500 stats are already very difficult in the length of an average world, and this would curb the 24/7 bots+ no life lords, while still giving those degenerates something to do.
The +50 stat cap increase per month is to keep the hardcore people invested and coming back every month, also the consumables like heart containers would suddenly have a lot of potential as a way to bypass the cap, so it's not like stats are the only thing that keeps them playing.
Moreover, people will no longer feel like catching up is impossible, especially since the longer the game goes the easier it is to catch up, so the longer a world goes, the more incentive they would have to come back.
Cons: Botters will lose efficacy, and hardcore people will have less to do. There is no fear of death, but I think having horrific wounds that reduce your stats by 90% and HHP to 1 would still be a horrifying enough prospect to give you that same adrenaline rush in PVP.
In summary, I don't think 50,000 statted titans were ever your vision, which is proven by the fact that you once tried adding a 300 stat cap, so why make it the meta?
Time gated progression is in almost all MMORPGs and for good reason, because the model is proven. Yes, there would no longer be a 24/7 grind, but was that ever healthy? Do even the botters not tire of it?