#400 Planning Meeting

I know the expo just ended and everything...

But we must rev up our engines for the next event—Orkubo’s Castle.

This all started last winter when the orcs temporarily left the farm to fulfill their wish of building a castle.

Then, it was eventually named Orkubo’s Castle after the orc team’s leader.

However, the fact that it was built on someone else’s land became a problem later on. The feudal lord mistook it for an act of invasion, so he attacked the castle, to which they were intercepted with an obstacle course.

Eventually, the castle became a large-scale obstacle course event. 

...Looking back, the more I put it into words, the weirder it sounds.

While the first edition of Orkubo’s Castle was a success, things didn’t end there.

It was such a huge hit that many requested an encore, so in response, a decision was made to hold the second edition exactly one year later.

Hence, we started our preparations.

But along the way, our sched became tight due to the expo.

We had to prepare for two events simultaneously.

It was a busier winter than usual.

Now that the farm expo is over, we can concentrate our efforts on Orkubo’s Castle.

From here, we will be talking about our preparations and planning for a while.

Let’s rewind time a little and start from when the farm expo idea had not come up yet... 

***

“Er, so...”

I state the agenda to the assembled key members.

“We will hold the second meeting for Orkubo’s Castle!”

“OHHHHH.”

Clap, clap, clap.

It’s nothing to clap about, guys...

Maybe they’re just too excited.

It’s a pretty big event during the idle winter season, after all.

“Let’s do this, My Lord!”

Among the members, Orkubo is the most excited.

Well, he’s the one who instigated all this, so we do need him to be motivated.

The other orcs are also full of enthusiasm.

This alone is enough to guarantee the success of the event.

“We orcs are going to prepare an even more challenging course! We are itching to put our skills to use so that not a single person clears it!”

“Extreme game difficulty breeds disapproval, so keep it moderately clearable, okay?”

That’s right.

Based on last meeting’s reflections, today’s agenda is what kind of obstacles to prepare.

Orkubo’s Castle is a hands-on obstacle course.

Last time, the event featured thrilling obstacles that required full body use, such as crossing a balance beam and avoiding large boulders that tumbled down a slope.

“We’re going to pursue a more severe game balance to give our guests the thrill, excitement, and sense of accomplishment of clearing the obstacles. Why don’t we brainstorm our ideas?”

You must have thoughts about how we could’ve done this or that last year or how we could have been more aggressive, so let’s build up the event based on those.

“Then, first and foremost, let’s hear Orkubo’s ideas!”

“Ohh.”

He’s the face of this event, after all.

I expect him to come up with a fairly vigorous proposal, but...

“The second attraction will be a complete replacement of the first one!”

“Huh?!”

Come again?

“Orkubo’s Castle is constantly evolving! And we will show this to our players! We’ll crush any naive notion that last year’s experience will give them an advantage! We will give them a whole new Orkubo’s Castle!”

His energy reaches crazy levels when it comes to this event.

I guess it hits differently when you’re involved in something you like.

“But do we have proper substitutes if we replace all the obstacles?” 

“Worry not, My Lord! We’ve already gathered our wits and come up with 567 ideas!”

“That’s a lot!”

Whoops. So, Orkubo wasn’t the only excited orc here.

If I let them go all out, won’t we end up with a far more extraordinary castle than the previous one?

“Please wait.”

Then came the long-awaited brakeman.

It was one of the human students studying at the farm.

Why did he come here?

“I was one of last year’s players.”

“Oh!”

A person who has had first-hand experience!

Their feedback is invaluable!

“How far did you get last year?”

“Up to the third obstacle. That multiplying homunculus when you hit was quite the murderer.”

He made even more progress than me, who retired at the second obstacle.

I’m going to clear the whole course this year!

“As someone who experienced last year’s event, I can tell you that changing everything can be confusing. Past participants want to make a comeback because they want the same experience. If you make it completely different, it might flop.”

“Hm...”

The student makes a good point that even Orkubo looks daunted.

This is the kind of controversy that always occurs in the making of a sequel.

The argument is always “Let’s make something completely different from the previous one!” vs. “If you’re going to change everything, might as well treat it as a new work.”

I doubt this debate will ever be settled. But it’s also important to both challenge the new and preserve the old.

So, in this case, we shall treat each side equally.

“Let’s keep half of the popular obstacles and replace the remaining. Let’s decide on which obstacles to keep first.”

“Then let’s replace the third obstacle! Everyone’s bound for immediate failure in that one!”

He was full of resentment toward the obstacle he got eliminated.

“And Orkubo, five hundred is too much, so narrow down the list to at least ten or less.”

“How about ‘Hell! Iron balls will come flying at you from all directions, and at the same time, the ground will sink and swallow you into a sea of lava’!”

“Rejected!”

We can’t allow something that’s borderline torture already.

This needs to be checked by a third party every step of the way.

“Master, Master!”

Then, Veil joined in the meeting.

“Can I join you this time? Where are you going to place me?”

“Nowhere!”

Realize that the game balance will collapse when a dragon like you joins!

You’re banned from Orkubo’s Castle forever!!!!

“Anyone else with an idea? Keep making proposals so we can drown Veil’s proposal!”

“How about this, then?”

“Oh?”

“I would like to make these modifications to the castle tower next. It has nothing to do with the obstacles, though...”

“Ohh.”

***

All this was discussed in late fall, just before winter.

Looking back, I wonder if Veil's exasperation at not being able to participate was a form of venting her frustration somewhere else.

The Wheat Pavilion she opened at the farm expo was of excellent quality and caused a gluten boom in the Demon Capital, and she was pleased as punch.

While the expo was being held, the orcs were simultaneously preparing to hold the second Orkubo’s Castle.

Orkra, Orkma, Orkninushi, Orktober, and the other sub-leaders were playing a central role in the castle’s renovation.

The expo had reached its finale, and it was time for us to join in when something unusual happened.

Orkubo’s Castle, 2nd edition, has a cancellation announcement to make.