国宝凪ノ城

The Story of Nagino Castle

Nagino Castle is an original Japanese-style castle created in Minecraft Java Edition. It was commissioned as a landmark at the center of Tekka, a Japanese-style town on the Wave Server, after I was entrusted with managing the area.

The castle was built on a newly reclaimed island created from the remains of an older Japanese-style town that had once been destroyed by a great calamity. The entire island was developed as a fortified castle complex in the form of a sōgamae-style enclosure, with Nagino Castle serving as its central stronghold. According to the fictional history of the castle, it was constructed under the orders of the Shogun as a military base intended to bring down the samurai forces in the west and accelerate the advance of the Eastern Army.

The castle takes the form of a hirayamajiro, or castle built on a hill surrounded by relatively gentle terrain. Its Main Tower is an independent, multi-tiered tower, reaching a monumental scale only about two meters shorter than the former Edo Castle Main Tower.

The exterior walls are finished with wood siding characteristic of Sengoku-period castles, accented with red, gold, and natural wood tones, while predominantly dark roof tiles give the complex a solid and imposing appearance.

The design also incorporates fantastical and solemn details unique to this fictional castle, including a vividly blue main ridge and a Seiryu, or Azure Dragon, ornament whose dragon head occupies the position where a traditional shachihoko roof ornament would normally stand.

Inspired by the imposing presence of early-modern castles such as Osaka Castle and Nagoya Castle, I combined newly designed towers, gates, and stone walls with architectural motifs inherited from the former Main Tower to create a distinct visual identity and world.

A timelapse video of the original Main Tower, completed during the early stage of the project, was published on YouTube Shorts under the title “I Built a National Treasure-Level Castle in Minecraft.” The video received a major response, surpassing 800,000 views.

As the scale of the castle complex was later expanded, the entire design underwent a comprehensive redesign, resulting in the construction of a more magnificent “Second Main Tower.”

Although its appearance has evolved considerably from the original Main Tower, Nagino Castle continues to quietly watch over the growth of Tekka, the Japanese-style town it was built to represent.