Winter Festival

The Yule Tree in the Winter Village

The Winter Festival, also called the Winter Festival of Friendship, and originally known as the Christmas event, is an event held from late November to mid-January. During the event, the player can travel to the Winter Village, follow the Northern Lights to the Winter Festivities, and participate in other limited-time activities. During the event and throughout the other winter months, there is optional snow and a snowfall effect, along with Northern Lights in the sky.

Winter in Jorvik! ❄️

2020 Trailer

A Snow Saga - Official Trailer

2022 Trailer

History

A player standing next to a snowman

The first Christmas event started on November 28, 2012. In this update, snow covered the grounds of Jorvik and many quests involving preparing for Christmas were released. Additionally, a temporary Christmas shop was released in Moorland on December 12th of that same year.

On November 27, 2013, Christmas came to the newly released Jarlaheim and with it came the updates of Santa by the fountain in Jarlaheim. There was also the introduction of Fragments of Christmas and Christmas Wishes, allowing users to collect enough Wishes to exchange them to Santa in return for a present with randomized event gear, clothing, and horse treats. On December 11, 2013, SSO released Lucia Dresses and Head Candle Wreaths representing St. Lucia's Day, a holiday celebrated primarily in Scandinavia. From then on St. Lucia's day was celebrated in tandem with Christmas, however only mainly through these clothes. In the December 18, 2013 update, SSO released a quest with Santa, involving players riding in Santa's sleigh to deliver presents.

Along with all of the regular Christmas updates in 2015, on December 13, SSO released its first Advent Calendar, allowing users to get special items and codes in the countdown to Christmas. On December 22, SSO released an update allowing users to transform their starter horses into reindeer with a powder received from a quest. Everything stayed relatively the same the next year in 2016.

There was an overhaul of the Christmas event in 2017. All of the quests with Santa from previous years did not return, snow no longer covered Jorvik (although Christmas Decorations were still added), and Fragments of Christmas were replaced with just Christmas Wishes. In this update users could ride a sleigh to the Winter Village to participate in Christmas activities. There were no major changes in 2018 or 2019, other than the introduction of the first magical horses from the event: Brinicle in 2018 and Fawncy in 2019. There was also a Yule Goat Hunt activity introduced in 2019.

Frozen Valedale Lake

In 2020, the event received another overhaul. Now referred to as the Winter Festival, it became less based on real-life Christmas with the removal of Santa and other Christmas-related aspects. Winter Festivities were introduced, in which Northern Lights in the sky mark the location of activities which can be completed for Warm Wishes (which replaced Christmas Wishes). The Winter Village received a graphical update as well. Snow was added back in a new way: a filter which could be toggled on or off through the elf named Dreams of Summer at all stables. On December 9, various rivers and lakes froze over for the remainder of the winter event, and players were able to walk on the ice. The magical horse this year was the Heidrun. There were also animals (a small bear, a deer stag and doe, a yule goat, and a moose) that the player could choose to ride instead of their horse, however with only a few animations and some issues (for example, there was no jumping animation).

The event returned in 2021 with a large update of the Winter Village, giving it a new layout. Winter Festivities and Warm Wishes returned from the previous year. The new magical horses this year were Shadowshield and Snowdancer. The snow filter returned this year, and the iced-over bodies of water were added again on December 15. The rideable animals from the previous year did not return this year.

In 2022, snow returned to Jorvik, with both the snowfall filter and snow on the ground. Unlike the original snow, it was more interactive, with horses and characters leaving trails behind as they walked. This year, Winter Tokens were introduced. The event this year was presented with a storyline theme, called "A Snow Saga" and each update being a new chapter. Similar to the Halloween event's Vortexes, Blizzards were introduced along with the snow for the first two weeks and the last week of the event. There was also a new questline added this year. Additionally, the rideable animals returned, this time with improved animations. The magical horses added this year were the Kátur and the Sylvan Unicorn. Unlike previous years, the winter festivity rerolling capran Aurorus did not return.

Appearance of Jorvik

Original snow (2012-2016)

Updated snow (2022)

During the Christmases from 2012 to 2016, Jorvik was covered with a white blanket of snow, and the trees' leaves turned white. The roads had a bit of snow on the edges of the stones, and in some places, it would snow. There was no option to turn it off. Before the 2017 update players could also help decorate some areas, like Silverglade Village.

There was no snow on the ground in Jorvik from 2017 to 2021. In 2020 and 2021, the snow returned but only in the form of falling snow (with no effect on the landscape) along with the Northern Lights. However, the snow and lights could be reverted by talking to the capran called Dreams of Summer. Some bodies of water, including the Silversong River, Valedale Lake, and Mistfall Lake, were frozen over. They could be walked on and the horse would slide around as it traveled over it. Christmas decorations like miniature yule goats and Christmas lights across major settlements still remained. The home stable had also been decorated.

In the 2022 event, snow returned, updated from the original form. Now players and horses made trails in the snow behind them as they traveled. It could be toggled on and off using a button in the top right of the screen, instead of the Dreams of Summer capran. There was still the snowfall filter and Northern Lights.

After the conclusion of the 2022 winter event, a poll was posted on SSO's social media asking if players would like the snow to return. After receiving votes overwhelming in favor of it, the snow option returned again in early February to stay until March. It was also stated that they planned to keep the snow for longer in future years.

Quests

In the Christmases between 2012 and 2016, a few Christmas quests were released. Some of the NPCs including Steve, The Councilman in Silverglade Village, Will, and some others, had special quests for the player to do. These quests included things such as helping put up a Christmas tree in Silverglade Village and then decorating it, making gingerbread cookies for the people in town, making Christmas sausages, catching enchanted Yule Goats, and others.

Starting in 2017, these quests were no longer available, and the quests introduced involved collecting presents, catching enchanted gifts, running a Christmas race, and hunting down hidden elves in the Winter Village.

In 2020, the previous quests have been replaced with an updated Winter Village, Northern Lights, and the Winter Festivities that give the player Warm Wishes. These could be exchanged for gear and XP. Some of the old quests at the Village were still there, like the two races. These activities remained in 2021, but also introducing multiple new races.

A new questline was introduced in the 2022 event involving tracking yetis.

Gifts and Rewards

Yule Tree with gifts

In the 2012-2016 Christmases, Santa Claus in Jarlaheim gave away presents (random event clothes and gear and horse treats) for Christmas wishes, consisting of three Christmas wish fragments. There were also special Christmas shops that sold Christmas outfits and gear. After the player also finished the preparation quests in Silverglade, they received some extra clothes.

With the introduction of the Winter Village, all of the previous quests were removed, so Christmas gear and clothing from past Christmases were released for purchase in the stores around the market. Additionally, for completing quests in the village, players received Christmas Wishes, which they could exchange for current gear, clothing, and accessories found in a special cave called the Ice Boutique.

Up until 2020, players received redeem codes from the 12th of December until the 31st on an Advent Calendar on the game’s website. However, after 2020, the advent calendar gifts were moved under the Yule Tree found in the middle of Winter Village and were gifted to players each day starting on the 1st and lasting until the 31st of December. A new present would be placed under the tree to open each day, containing things like horse tack, clothing, horse or player XP, and food. On the 25th of December, a Star Coin code is typically released through the day's gift, and on the 31st, a pet is given.

With the introduction of Warm Wishes in the 2020 and 2021 events (replaced by Winter Tokens in 2022), the Ice Boutique was removed. Instead, the player was able to trade these Wishes for items at a vendor outside Santa's house in the Winter Village.

Trivia

• The ambient Northern Lights (not the ones marking the Winter Festivities) appear after a certain amount of time playing during the day, while always being visible at night. They were introduced along with the snow filter in the 2020 event.
• While the snow is enabled during the event, a different selection of music plays. It varies depending on if the player is near a settlement or out in the wilderness. These were also introduced in the 2020 event.
• There was no set given from the advent calendar gifts in 2020, only a bosal and saddle pair and a saddle pad with matching leg wraps. There was also no set given in 2022, instead a selection of clothing and horse tack that did not make a matching set.
• When the snow is toggled on, trails made in the snow from other players and NPCs such as pets can be seen in addition to the player's own.