Twilight Sparkle: Obviously, it's a play on where we all "began." The Elements of Harmony are the objects we're all focused on. Our friendship, and our triumph as Bearers, started at the old castle! It's all a clever past-is-present nostalgia trip!
DM: <AHEM!> Just… roll Perception, please.
Twilight Sparkle: Uh… okay? <roll> Oof. 17.
DM: Out of the tower window, you spot a massive hedge maze installation out in the palace gardens. Even Celestia is staring out at it, with an expression like, "I'm not sure it was that large yesterday…"
Twilight Sparkle: What? A hedge maze?! How were we supposed to come up with that??
DM: I don't know, by investigating first?
Applejack: Y'ever been to a corn maze? The exit's usually near the start. "Twists and turns, then back where you began."
Rarity: It's a hedge maze. The goal is at the center.
Applejack: Oh. Then phooey.
Yeah this would be where I'd give the GM a talk about why this is a bad puzzle design.
Honestly what the PCs came up with was much better of an idea and if I were the GM, I'd of burned my notes and went with their idea of the Everfree. No reason a thick dangerous forest can't be maze-like.
So much this. Take the old notes, run them through a word filter to substitute all the relevant nouns, and the players will think you were a creative mastermind the whole time.
Nobody will ever guess you just have a few spare points in plot forgery.
Tell the truth, I put a mark on miss violet vampire there(even I think that was a bad story).
That way, no matter where they decided to go, I could mess with them.
You just said the one I can't do.
Reverse personality, yes.
Mind control, no.
Ponies have a weird ability to say no to chaos taking over their minds.
It hurts just thinking about it.
That's why I like using roll20. When you have a map you can just put things on, you don't have to discover every last thing before the players can start jumping to conclusions.
Ahem... Player you are not going where I want you to go... So I will discreetly tell you the place you need to go because you are too stupid to notice where I need you to go
Second Part? That is not important? I'm forgetting something that could be important? Don't worry, that is not important, Only I have reason, the rest of you fools need to follow me.
I am so glad my lukewarm take about riddles last comic was met with validation and fruitful discussion about puzzles in general. Not what I expected.