On Taladu, while, at one end of the world, the living are fighting against the demonic invaders, at the other end of the world, in Kaeshana, a territory not held by the living factions at war against Hell, a town hall meeting is held. The residents of a village are gathered with representatives of what appears to be their overlord. As Enno, the Lord of Kaeshana, arrives on a flying carpet, piloted by one of his faithful servants, the residents make way.

“Dear residents, this is your overlord. We are in the early stages of planning for the construction of a haunted park. Before we start building the haunted park, we need to hear from the residents!” Enno announces the people assembled before him.

The local residents roll their eyes because, to the overlord’s eyes, the very concept of an artificial haunted park appears foreign to them. The first question they ask the overlord is about what a haunted park is all about, what it’s going to be used for, and so on.

“Milord, what exactly is a haunted park?” a resident asked him.

“How would our village benefit from a haunted park?” another concerned resident asks Enno.

“With a haunted park, the town will see an increase in travelers, so this means more demand for inn space, a bigger market for wares such as food, medicines, as well as equipment repairs and blacksmithing!”

“If I may, milord, lots of people die at haunted parks all the time! Aren’t these dangerous to run?” yet another concerned resident asks him.

“Yes, I acknowledge the concerns of high mortality rates. And, of course, because of the mortality rates associated with haunted parks, this project also creates opportunities for coffin-makers, grave-makers, chantry priests, chapels and graveyards! We might also be able to send criminals sentenced to death to a trip down a haunted park!”

It seems our lord keeps talking about what a haunted park will provide our community, without talking about what it actually is… a resentful resident is about to have his blood boil.

“I never heard about haunted park, and you all kept talking about how a haunted park will benefit the community! What does a haunted park feature that makes one so dangerous?” that resident’s face turns red after mentions of high mortality rates.

“Haunted parks are dangerous because of the ghosts that reside in the parks. Parties running the park must fight ghosts, and often come to haunted parks with loot under the form of gear, recipes or even magical mounts!” Enno’s is doing his best to hide his lack of knowledge about the operational side of running a haunted park. “One thing is for sure: the haunted park won’t open for a while”

But then Enno is bombarded with questions about the cost of building a haunted park, as well as how long building it could take. There are just things I unfortunately don’t know about. It’s now that I realize I have a long way to go before this haunted park becomes operational.

“Unfortunately, at this time, I cannot give a reliable estimate of costs, nor a timetable for when a haunted park can be built. It’s premature to even think that there will be a haunted park at all, we’re just at the exploratory stage!” Enno, forced to confront his lack of knowledge of the business side of haunted parks, is driven away from the meeting by the mob throwing stones in his direction.

With more stones being thrown on his back, Enno has no choice but to make a mad dash towards his flying carpet, realizing that he has no financing structure, nor plans or even concept of what his haunted park proposal will entail, only its impacts on the local community. He feels increasing amounts of pain for each stone being hurled in his direction, and flies away from the town, high enough to evade any further rocks being thrown his way.

Once Enno’s carpet is out of rock-throwing range from the village, its residents are left wondering whether the logistics of building and running a haunted park has crossed his mind.

“Our lord is selling us chimeras he can’t deliver!” one of the angry villagers yells at the carpet, flying in the distance.

“Maybe if the money to build the haunted park didn’t come from the taxes we pay him, we might be more inclined to accept it” another angry villager might be wondering how much the haunted park will cost to build, not knowing what affects the haunted park’s construction cost.

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“Yet, Enno said it so himself that he doesn’t expect there to be a haunted park for a while. The main question is: where does the stuff looted in haunted parks come from? He seems to be implying that the only real expenses of running a haunted park are the loot!”

“Yeah, where is the money to pay for a haunted park’s supply of loot coming from?”

“He thinks levying taxes on graves, caskets and funerals will be enough to pay for the loot and the upkeep of a haunted park! I’m sure Enno hasn’t thought the whole thing through!” yet another villager seems to lose confidence in Enno as a lord.

“He’d better get the haunted park built!” another villager yells, fist clenched in the air.

Upon returning to his palace in Kaeshana, Enno realizes that he needs help to get his haunted park built. And more specifically, the economics and logistics of building and operating a haunted park. He has his herald, Bryzax, in his palace’s great room:

“Milord, you seem a little troubled. What is it?” Bryzax asks him.

“It’s about this haunted park project. I floated the rumor around but unless I can plan the haunted park properly, I’m afraid that the public will see through this façade!” Enno starts crying, knowing that a haunted park is a risky project on so many counts. “I don’t want to lose face among the population! I must get the haunted park built before I die!”

“What do you need help with?”

“Estimating the costs of building a haunted park, as well as the operating costs!”

“Milord, you had other public works projects started, such as monasteries and roads! How is a haunted park different from a monastery?”

“I know only that loot isn’t free, and the other people whom I know were of use to estimate the costs of these things told me to get the design of the park finalized beforehand! Because of that, I wonder how much it would cost to get some help to design a haunted park”

“That, I’m afraid, will depend on whom you get help from. But I guess, better get help now before you make decisions you might regret!”

“Ideally, I want help from someone who went to a variety of haunted parks to design one”

“In what capacity?” Bryzax asks him, a little concerned about how Enno will get help.

“Customer experience. It would be almost impossible to get someone who designed more than one haunted park, so someone who went to more than one might be more realistic, but still not free”

“If I may, milord, veterans of haunted parks come in several varieties. Do you have any preferences in which capacity?”

“Not really, all types of users can contribute to what I want”

“I’d say that you should tour taverns or inns by night. Often retired or inactive adventurers tour the land as troubadours, in hopes of earning a bit of coin!”

Noted: experience of haunted parks as a user, the herald scribbles notes on his tablet using chalk before taking his broom to tour taverns and inns of his land.

“Bryzax, where are you going?” Enno asks his herald about his plans, as he departs the palace’s great room.

“Why?” Bryzax yells at his lord.

“I don’t want us to do the same work twice!”

“Just try your hands with rental healers! People often rent healers for adventuring!”

At the same time, Enno wonders what kind of inactive adventurer or mercenary would tour the world in search of haunted parks to obtain gear, or recipes to craft it. Or, at the suggestion of Bryzax, look for rental healers.

I must get help to design my haunted park! I can already feel like the population is hostile to me over this haunted park because I had no real timetable or financing plan! Enno ruminates while he ponders where he could get a rental healer that has some experience of haunted parks. Our own resident healer, Yutolio, while good at healing household ailments, or maybe even battlefield injuries, served Kaeshana on retinue for his entire career, and never went to a haunted park! Unfortunately, Yutolio is not viable for that purpose.

After that, he prepares his purse and then go to Kaeshana’s main square, where he hopes to find a rental healer willing to help him.

Upon arriving at Kaeshana’s main square, Enno starts yelling about how he seems to need to rent a healer, while Bryzax is busy at an inn whom he knows is popular among road-weary travelers.

“I need a healer! NOW!” Enno yells across the town square, with the people in the main square being concerned about Enno’s well-being, and yelp when they see their lord being in poor condition.

“Why?” a bystander asks him, wondering how Enno even came to be in this condition. “Are you crazy?”

“Our resident healer on retinue is only able to heal physical ailments! I need help not available at the palace!”

About time our lord left his palace! It seems like staying in the palace, while safe, is not good for him! A bystander muses while he hasn’t seen Enno leave the palace in a while. I’m not sure whether going crazy out in the open will lead him to get some help.

Bryzax, being in an inn, gets out of the inn to fetch his lord. “I heard everything, milord. It seems like you have gotten crazy lately…”

“What lead do you have, Bryzax?” Enno is about to lose patience towards his herald.

“Milord, in the future, if you need rental healers, there are two places you should look: religious buildings if you are ok with faith-based healing, inns if you prefer anything other than faith to heal you!”

“I’m not picky, just get me to the nearest rental healer that can help me!” Enno’s blood is about to boil.