Twisted Holiday Plot Devices

Christmas is almost upon us again! I realize that there are only going to be a few groups playing over the holiday as many people take off to visit family, but I’m a nice guy and don’t mind catering to a handful of people. So, in the interest of keeping your players on their toes this season, I have put together several demented Christmas plot ideas.

1. The local elves have been forced by some overly jolly fat guy wearing a red coat to work in sweatshops making toys. The few elves that have managed to escape beg the party to help them overthrow their rotund tyrant.

2. Some strange disease, curse, evil entity, or natural phenomenon is turning reindeer’s noses red and making them glow. The local elves and druids want the party to reverse this condition, while local hunters want the PCs to make sure that the deer are still safe to eat.

3. Every year on a certain day, someone sneaks into houses and leaves dangerous gnomish technology for children to find in the morning. Many a child has poked their eye out. This day of despair is fast approaching and the townspeople are worried.

4. Someone put a wizard’s cap on a snowman and now it is running amok in town. Conversely, a friendly snowman that was brought to life through a magical accoutrement is worried about melting due to a predicted warm spell.

5. A family asks the PCs to escort them to their grandmother’s house for a holiday. Though, it seems that they have horrible direction sense and have misremembered the lyrics to the song that there were taught. It turns out that it’s over the river (Styx) and through the hordes to Graz’zt-father’s house the party goes. The horse (nightmare) knows the way to bury and slay through the (blood) red and burning snow.

If you end up using any of these story lines, I would love to hear how it went.