2015 Christmas event

The Pinch Who Stole Christmas is the 2015 Christmas event. It consists of a four-part quest, a short part of which is released weekly over December. Quest episodes do not have to be completed on the weeks that they are released; all the episodes can be done at once after their release. Ironman accounts are able to participate in this event, with the exception of some skilling events.

Players may begin the event by talking to any of the Snow imps in Lumbridge, Burthorpe or Prifddinas. Beginning the event unlocks a lodestone teleport to the area at which the 2015 Christmas event takes place, an iceberg near Daemonheim which is covered in presents. The teleport can be used by clicking the "present" icon in the lodestone network interface.

Each quest episode grants the player a reward on completion. These rewards include a snowboard, an ice skating emote, and a penguin outfit. Just like all holiday events, all Christmas emotes and audio tracks are unlocked upon completion of the event. A few new music tracks were added during the event, e.g. Snow Patrol.

The Christmas Advent Calendar, Winter Weekends and a number of community events were also released alongside the main event, information regarding them can be viewed by clicking the snowman icon in-game.

Locating your imp
The first part of the event was released on 30 November and may be started by talking to a snow imp at Lumbridge, Burthorpe, or Prifddinas. They reveal that your snow imp friend, Jack Frost, the Queen of Snow and Santa Claus disappeared after visiting an iceberg to the north of Daemonheim, and wants you to investigate. To reach the iceberg, click your home teleport button and then click the red Christmas present.

On entering the area, your first objective is to find the package with your imp's name on it. If you don't remember the name, you can speak to one of the imps at Lumbridge, Burthorpe, or Prifddinas to hear it again. Once you find the present, right click it and open it to reveal your imp. He reveals he was knocked out and stuffed in the present after arriving here on the iceberg, and asks you to help him find Jack Frost. If you don't already have one, he then hands you an ice amulet so you can summon him.

Preparing a feast
Talk to your imp again by right-clicking the ice amulet to summon him (you cannot summon the snow imp if you have a follower), and he instructs you to look around for Jack. Head east to the range near the red present, choose Open Present and a group of penguins surround you. They reveal that they are responsible for kidnapping everyone, but since they realise people would come looking for you if they kidnap you, they decide to make a deal: they will free one prisoner if you and the other snow imps prepare a Christmas feast for them.

Two new snow imps then appear to help you with the feast. Speak to one of them, and they give you instructions cooking food for the feast, or taste it. An interface appears on the screen showing which food needs to be cooked on the range, and which food needs to be tasted.

Food may be cooked at the range to the north. When you interact with it, an interface appears that allows you to select what item of food you wish to cook. When the required food item changes, the nearby imp shouts what it has changed to. In order to progress, you must cook 15 correct pieces of food.

Food may be tasted at one of the four tables to the south. Unlike the range, you must move between the different tables depending on which food is required. Like the range, a nearby imp shouts whenever the food changes. 7 correct pieces of food must be tasted before you may progress.

Saving Jack
Once you have completed both activities, another penguin appears and reveals that Jack is inside a nearby present. Open it to free Jack, and your snow imp eventually convinces him to help save the Queen of Snow and Santa, but he needs to think of a plan first. In the meantime, he tells you to open up the nearby purple present for a reward.

Rewards

 * Ability to cook and taste food for Cooking and Defence experience.
 * Penguin snowboard.
 * Ice amulet (if you didn't complete the 2008 Christmas event)

Rewards experience
Clicking once on the range gives continuous Cooking experience depending upon Cooking level and food selected. Click on the correct food in the cooking selection box to get the higher experience up to 125 experience instead of 7 experience.

Clicking once on a tasting table gives continuous Defence experience. Click on the correct table to get the higher experience of up to 44 experience instead of 5 experience.

Making ice skates
The second part of the event was released on 7 December. To start it, use your ice amulet to summon your snow imp, and then speak to Jack Frost on the east side of the iceberg. Your imp must already be summoned before you speak to Jack. He'll reveal that he'll be able to make the slope preventing further access to the iceberg traversable, but first you'll need to come up with a plan on what to do once you're up there. The penguins guarding the presents up there need to be distracted with ice somehow, and your snow imp recommends making an ice skating rink to divert their attention.

Jack makes an ice staircase so you can reach the area, and tells you to make some ice skates out of leather boots and two iron battleaxes. Either buy them from the Grand Exchange, make them, or buy them from a shop such as Thessalia's Fine Clothes or Bob's Brilliant Axes. If buying from Bob, it may be easier to pick up boots from the spawn under the Lumbridge castle kitchen. Once you have them, use the boots on the battleaxes (off-hand versions work as well). As you attempt to make ice skates out of battleaxes and boots, you will receive a message stating the blade is "uncannily suitable" for making skates. Your character remarks "Well I never..." in surprise as you didn't expect it to actually work. Return to the iceberg if you need to and climb up the stairs to the east of where Jack was.

Ice skating
Speak to Jack Frost next to the newly created ice skating rink, and tell him you've created the ice skates. After your imp explains the process you used to create the skates, Jack takes them from you and explains that your job is to skate on the ice rink until the penguins try and join you, causing them to fall over, leaving the presents unguarded. Once you're ready to begin skating, dismiss your follower and make sure you have nothing equipped in your feet slot, then speak to Jack again.

While skating, you have to change lanes frequently in order to avoid hitting obstacles, which include sleeping penguins, lighter patches of ice, and a drunken Sir Amik Varze. Every lap you complete without hitting anything causes one of the penguins guarding the presents to slide onto the ice. After all four penguins have left, the presents are unguarded.

Saving the Queen of Snow
Open the big present to rescue the Queen of Snow, who is grateful to you for saving her. She suggests leaving the iceberg, but Jack reveals to her that Santa Claus is still kidnapped, causing her to start thinking of a plan to save him. Your imp suggests throwing snowballs in the penguins faces, but the queen decides that they should think carefully before taking further action. In the meantime, Jack directs you to the nearby pile of presents for your reward. Open the pile of presents to receive the Ice Skating Champion emote.

Rewards

 * Ability to gain Agility experience from ice skating.
 * Ice Skating Champion emote

Rewards experience
Agility experience is obtained from ice skating the rink.

Each lap takes about 25 seconds and experience is added about every 4 seconds:
 * Outer lane gives 75% experience up to 34 experience
 * Middle lane gives 100% experience up to 45 experience
 * Inner lane gives 125% experience up to 57 experience

Obstacles may appear:
 * Skating over a icy patch causes the player to fall but will get up and continue skating.
 * Skating into a sleeping penquin causes reduced (50%) experience for 3 laps; however, selecting "Exit ice rink" and talking to Jack to start skating again will reset to full experience.
 * Skating into Sir Amik Varze will kick the player out of the skating rink.

Compared with other Agility courses (see Summary table) this one provides very good experience with minimal mouse clicking. It is almost hands-free requiring restarting if skating into Sir Amik Varze and moving the cursor before the auto-logout after 5 minutes.

Building snowmen
The third part of the event was released on 14 December. To start, speak to the Queen of Snow to the north of the ice skating rink. She will explain that Santa Claus is further up on the iceberg, guarded by some patrolling penguins, and that they will need to think of a method on how to get past them. Your snow imp will once again suggest throwing snowballs at them, and the Queen of Snow will suggest you build snowmen to assist you. Jack will then create some more ice steps up to the next platform.

Climb up the ice steps and speak to the Queen of Snow again. She will explain that the penguins have temporarily relocated to the next level, giving you time to build a couple of snowmen to deal with them. She will then ask you to build some snowmen from the three nearby piles of snow. Interact with the nearby melted snowman warrior, ranger and mage to rebuild them.

Snowverload
Once you have rebuilt all three snowmen, speak to the Queen of Snow again, and she will explain that to heal the Snowmen in combat, you may pelt them with snowballs, which you can collect from a nearby enchanted snow pile. You may also use these snowballs to attack your enemies directly. Say that you are ready, and two penguins will send Snowverload to attack you.

Your three snowmen will automatically engage Snowverload in combat. Assist them by throwing snowballs at them to heal them, or pelting them directly. Snowverload is fairly weak, and the snowmen should be able to deplete its health fairly quickly. Once Snowverload's health is depleted to zero, lure it over to the Queen of Snow, and she will melt it and congratulate you.

Pesky penguins
The nearby penguins will then lament that their boss will be angry with them for their failure, only for General Pinchkin himself to appear and berate them for failing even with their secret weapon. He will then send the two penguins after you.

Like with Snowverload, your snowmen will automatically engage them. They are very weak, and as before you can assist your snowmen by pelting the penguins yourself. Once both are defeated, you and your snowmen will automatically pelt General Pinchkin, trapping him in a ball of snow, despite his protest.

Saving Santa
The Queen of Snow will then create some ice steps up to the next level of the iceberg, and ask you to go up there to find Santa. Climb up the steps, past Pinchkin, and open the giant green present to reveal Santa Claus. He will thank you, your imp, Jack Frost and the Queen of Snow for saving him, but express embarrassment over being saved by the people he came to save in the first place. He will tell you to open one of the nearby present for your reward.

If you speak to General Pinchkin, he will ask you to push his snowball away from the slope. If you want, you may do so, and he will thank you, but still refuses to talk to you.

Rewards

 * Ring of snow
 * Ability to fight the Snowverload again. This is an event announced through the chatbox. Each time that the Snowverload is lured to the Queen of Snow and killed, she will reward you with a Small festive lamp and a Christmas food item (either Mince pie, Mulled wine, Roast potatoes or Turkey drumstick).

Rewards experience
Combat and Construction experience is gained from building snowmen. The amount of experience scales based on your level. The type of combat experience you gain is based on what you have set in your Combat Settings. Each built snowman will last for about 5 minutes.

Episode 4: Quantum of Solstice
Episode unlocks 21 December.

Music

 * Snow Patrol
 * Snowverload

Glitches

 * There is currently a bug where the cutscene in 'Preparing a feast' sometimes does not load when a player tries to interact with an object in the other area. The player can avoid this by simply walking to the other area.
 * Upon running up the icy slope, located east of the range, with your snowboard equipped, you slide for a very short distance.
 * While skating on the ice rink, if you open a menu (such as the Home Teleport menu) right before you hit an obstacle, you will pass through it. If you leave the menu open you will stop moving and not earn experience until it is closed.
 * There is currently a bug causing it to be possible to visit the areas of episodes 3 and 4 after partial completion of episode 2.
 * These areas consist of crafting ice blocks, luring fish for the penguins and other activities.

Trivia

 * During the event, players are able to use the ice amulet to summon their snow imp anywhere in the game that allows followers. Snow imps, however, stop following players whenever they teleport, leaving a message "[Name] returns to his duties". If a player tries to activate the amulet before starting the event, they receive a message saying "You attempt to summon [name], but he doesn't respond. Maybe you should have a chat with the snow imp in Burthorpe, Lumbridge or Prifddinas to find out why."
 * If players open the present addressed to themselves, a giant penguin appears to knock them out. Afterwards, they would appear near the Fremennik shipmaster's longboat near Daemonheim, having been washed ashore, stuffed inside the box.
 * The main title of the event is a wordplay of Dr. Seuss' , commonly dubbed as "The Grinch who stole Christmas".
 * Each of the episodes are related to a James Bond film title: ', ', ' and '.
 * If you do the event before starting the penguin quests series, the penguin's dialogue will read as a series of "Awwwk"s and your snow imp will translate it for you.