My invites got stuck at 14/15 at about noon... I ended up waiting until 11:30 pm, then paid the 75 gold. I'm not happy about it. At the very least, S8 should have reduced the amount owed by each invite received.
I think it was a glitch since I've been having problems with asks and gifting for the past year. I have not asked for maps since I finished expanding a couple of weeks ago. It still tells me I've already asked some neighbors every time, when I couldn't have. It also still tells me I can only gift 3 "more" neighbors, when I've only selected 3 total.
Also, it is kind of stinky to ask for 15 replies on the last day of a timed challenge, especially when some of us have had problems with the asking and gifting.
I also had my finished cake and all the ingredients to make it disappear out of the shop. I had to make a second one, and then the game wouldn't count it! I had to shut down my device finally to get it to accept the cake was made. This was all after I paid the 75 gold at 11:30 pm, collected runes from harvesting food, and fought four speeded up battles! I came close to not getting the prize because of the cake not being accepted.
I am unhappy with the event, and feel bad for all the people who might not get the prize due to glitches. Not the greatest birthday celebration. I wish everyone luck in finishing if you are still at it. Annie