“Let me be the one to tell you, Santa is real, and he needs your help.”
- Myron, the Elf
A Call For Heroes
On Christmas Eve, Eve, a strange alert comes through to the heroes. There is static on the line, but eventually a desperate voice can be heard coming through on the line.
“To anyone who can hear me, let me be the one to tell you, Santa is real, and he needs your help. A group calling themselves the Eisenreich have attacked Santa’s workshop and taken Nick hostage. I don’t have much time, I don’t know what they’re doing to him, but someone has to help us save Santa.” The message goes on to provide the coordinates 263.328 by 70.760.
- Heroes fluent in German, or with a Simple (10) Research roll can identify the Eisenreich as the Iron Empire.
- An Average (15) Technical Operations roll can confirm the distress call is coming from the North Pole.
- An Expert (20) Navigation roll can place the coordinates in the arctic.
- An Advanced (25) Science, or Study: Explorers (or other appropriate Study) indicates these are the coordinates of the magnetic north pole the year it was reached by Robert Peary in 1909.
- A Very Advanced (30) Study: World War II History (or other appropriate Study) will uncover a splinter group of the Nazi party using the name Eisenreich at the end of the war. Each additional Degree of Success adds one of the following details in order.
- The Eisenreich was part of an experimental sciences wing of the Nazi party.
- Towards the end of the war they were said to have gone underground.
- Rumors of them pop up through the 50s and 60s recovering hidden Nazi assests in Europe, Brazil, and South Amerca.
- Some have theorized that the Eisenreich continue to operate through an underground network, but have gotten much better at hiding their presence, or involvement.
Battle At Santa’s Workshop
Reaching the coordinates, the characters pass through a hazy bubble, and the frigid arctic conditions shift to a light snow, with a temperature just below freezing. The workshop is everything you would expect it to be, giant gingerbread homes, with candy cane corners and gumdrop eves. The streets lined with tinsel and sparkling lights. Only things have been turned topsy turvy, as the giant Christmas tree in the center of the village has been felled, as Jackbooted soldiers march through the square. A man stands atop the stump of the venerable tree and will make his speech regardless of the heroes approach. The soldiers will attack as soon as the heroes are spotted.
“Sinterklaas will break! The tulpa of Christmas will be ours! It is no man, but a constant of people’s beliefs! And when we break it, the very concept of joy, will be controlled by the Eisenreich! The day shall become synonymous with perfection! Nothing shall stand in our way!”
If the gathered soldiers are not already engaged with the heroes they will cheer.
Red Sleigh Down
Freeing Santa will not be easy. He is being kept in the central workshop and strapped to a chair with an Inhibitor Collar around his neck preventing his escape, and electrodes at his temples and through his hairline. He is being fed Eisenreich propaganda, and when he breaks will become an agent of the reich.
To reach the workshop, and save Santa, the heroes will need to sneak past, or battle through three waves of Barrierekraft, Eisenreich soldiers, along with their Jotun robots. There is little time to do this as Stanta can only hold out so much longer before being turned.
The Santa Tracker (A limited Disaster)
Each Turn the GM should Roll 6 Dice for the mind control and 2 Dice for Santa. For each 6 the Eisenreich roll they gain a Success, while Santa’s 6s removes Successes.
- Threshold 12
- Starting Successes 6
- Note: If the heroes are able to reach the brainwashing apparatus they can stop the conversion after 1 Turn.
Wave 1 – The Outer Perimeter
Stealth Roll Target: 26 (1 Group Success) – The group needs 1 Success per hero to sneak past the Outer Perimeter. Characters with additional Degrees of Success can use these to meet the requirement.
Guards 2 Major Mobs of Barrierekraft soldiers.
Wave 2 – The Workshop Exterior
Stealth Roll Target: 32 (2 Group Successes) – The group needs 2 Successes per hero to sneak past the Outer Perimeter. Characters with additional Degrees of Success can use these to meet the requirement.
Guards 1 Major Mob of Barrierekraft soldiers + 1 Typical Mob of Jotun + 1 the Coordinator
Wave 3 – The Workshop Interior
Stealth Roll Target: 32 (3 Group Successes) – The group needs 3 Successes per hero to sneak past the Outer Perimeter. Characters with additional Degrees of Success can use these to meet the requirement.
Guards 1 Major Mob of elite Barrierekraft soldiers + the Herr Wulfhart
Failing to reach Santa in time means the team will face off against a brainwashed Santa, along with any Eisenreich troops in whatever wave the heroes stopped in. This Santa’s traditional red and white garb has been replaced with a black suit, the epaulets and buttons replaced with skulls. Defeating Santa will restore his memories, and he will help defeat any remaining members of the Eisenreich.
Reaching Santa in time, he will help the heroes defeat the Eisenreich and send them running.
Author’s Note: Thanks to recent developments in streaming film services, we can now imagine this Santa as an elderly Kurt Russel, perhaps with an eye patch and submachine guns.
Agents of the Eisenreich
Barrierekraft (Wall Soldiers) (Low Powered + Brawler + Shooter)
Trained to follow orders and that failure is only for the lesser people. The shock troops of the Eisenreich are deadly and efficient. Culled from the rank and file of various hate groups these men have been trained to see only what their masters tell them.
- Basic Roll: 6 + 2d6
- Stamina 4/4/4
- Defense Reichmen Combat Suit 10 Armor 4/6/8 Dice 2
- Offense MG 61 Zweihander 15/20/25 Dice 3 Range Long Damage 8 Wounds
- Offense Combat Knife 15/20/25 Dice 3 Range Close Damage 4 Wounds
Jotun (High Powered Robot Soldiers + Shooter + Tough + Nutcracker + Trapping)
Originally designed as servitor drones and maintenance robots the War Council quickly realized the strength of their mechanical forces. Using Heat Eating Arrays the Jotun cooled storage materials and powered themselves with the residual energy. Weaponized the Jotun are able to freeze targets in place and emit focused heat rays through their optical clusters.
- Basic Roll: 12 + 2d6
- Stamina 24/24
- Defense Refraction Armor 20 Armor 10/12 Dice 3
- Offense Heat Eating Array 25/30 Dice 3 Range Short Damage 16 Wounds
- Offense Freezing Foam 25/30 Dice 3 Range Short Damage 8 Wounds Notes Encases Target Escape Difficulty 22
- Offense Thermal Vision 25/30 Dice 3 Range Close Damage 8 Wounds Notes Defended by Quickness
- Note Jotun must use Heat Eating Array before activating Freezing Foam or Thermal Vision
The Coordinator, Abram Schmidt (Elite Barrierekraft, Classic Powered Commander + Advanced + Brawler + Shooter + Striker + Talented (Etiquette & Subterfuge)2)
An elite soldier, and occultist, Schmidt devised the plan and researched how Santa could be turned into a symbol of the Eisenreich.
- Basic Rolls 12 + 3d6
- Stamina 18
- Defense Reichmen Combat Suit 24 Dice 4 Armor 6
- Offense Dark Arcane Blasts 18 Dice 4 Range Long Damage 12
- Offense Dark Energy Blade 24 Dice 5 Range Close Damage 12
- Etiquette 21 Dice 4
- Subterfuge 21 Dice 4
Herr Wulfhart, Operational Leader (High Powered Gen 2 Übermensch + Advanced + Brawler + Striker + Tough + Maneuver Specialist: Heavy Blow)
A genetically engineered super soldier, Wulfhart has been raised to be an idol of Eisenreich superiority. Tough, fast and super strong,he prefers to get in close and pummel foes into submission.
- Basic Rolls 16 + 3d6
- Stamina 24
- Defense 32 Dice 4 Armor 8
- Offense Luger P08 handgun 16 Dice 3 Range Short Damage 8
- Offense Brawler 32 Dice 5 Range Close Damage 16
- Offense Overbearing Strength 20 Dice 6 Range Close Damage 22
Santa Claus, AKA Father Christmas, AKA Saint Nicholas, AKA Kris Kringle
- Campaign: Christmas One Shot
- Power Level: High
- Age: Silver
The spirit of good cheer? A Greek man from Myra? An incarnation of Woden? A German toymaker? An orphan raised by elves? There are any number of legends, any one of which may be true, to the right child. Like his more mischievous cousin Jack, Claus is a tulpa, an ephemeral absolute, a concept given life. Claus exists, perhaps because we believe, perhaps because the ideal of giving truly has a life of its own. Nevertheless, one day out of the year Nick’s home slips into our reality, just as he slips between the secongs to bring joy to those who truly believe in the spirit of giving.
Attributes
History 12 Strength 8 Dexterity 8 Constitution 10 Sense 8
Fortune 8 Wisdom 8 Intelligence 8 Mental 15 Expression 15
Backgrounds
- Spirit of Giving (Dedication) 12
- Without Joy, What is Life? 10
- Around the World in Just 1 Day 8
- Background: Spirit of Joy 5
Talents
Animal Handling 11 (Specialty) Reindeer 7 Brawn 11 Climbing 11 Escape Artist 11 Etiquette 11 Intuition 11 (Specialty) Other People’s Hopes 4 Navigation 11 Repair 11 Riding 11 Stealth 5 Subterfuge 11 (Specialty) Detecting Naughtiness 11
Boons
All Terrestrial Languages MA3 Surprising MA Tools: Escape Clause (Only for the pun, if brainwashed Santa will not run away), Vehicle MA Tricky TY
Power
Joy’s Ephemeral Constant 15
Parent Attribute: Mental, Primary Role: Support: Detecting Naughtiness
- ranged TY
- Alter: Craft Items (Additional Time, Something Different, Permanent Change, Flexible Alter, Improved/Worse results) MA6
- Insubstantial MA
- New Senses: Sees You When You’re Sleeping, Knows When You’re Awake TY
- New Senses: Know Your Presents TY
- New Movement: Slip Between The Seconds (Boost Speed 3, Rapid Acceleration, Out of the Blue) MA5
- Secondary Role: Defense (Full Role) MA2
- Armor MA
- Passive Defense MA
- Phased MA
- Secondary Role: Offense (Full Role) MA2
Starting AP 40
Attributes + Talents 8 + Boons 11 + Powers 21
Stamina 17 Willpower 8/12
Initiative: 19 (Intelligence 8 + Intuition 11) Dice 3
Surprised Defense: 23 (Fortune 8 + Ephemeral Constant 15) Dice 3 Armor 7
Normal Defense: 30 (Mental 15 + Ephemeral Constant 15)) Dice 3 Armor 7
Mental Defense: 15 (Mental 15) Dice 2 Armor 1
Defense Notes
Evasion: On an Active Defense, avoid normal Attacks until the start of their next turn. This does not protect the character from Area Attacks. Usable once per session.
Phased (Major): On an Active Defense, the character takes no Damage from normal Attacks until the start of their next turn. Mental Attacks, Attacks with the same description as the character’s Phasing bypass, Phased. Phased may also be used to escape Grapples, Traps, or other restraints automatically. Usable once per session.
Animal Handling: Gain 4 Free levels of Armor when dealing with Animals or 6 when dealing with Reindeer.
Climbing: Once per session, when taking an Active Defense use Climbing (11) as a Supporting Characteristic if there is a wall or other vertical surface within Close Range. (Nazi Santa will Tear off Some Wall.)
Escape Artist: Once per session, use Escape Artist (11) as a Supporting Characteristics when Defending against Quick Attacks that bypass normal Defenses.
Etiquette: Once per session, use Etiquette (11) as a Supporting Characteristics when Defending against Mental Attacks that bypass normal Defenses.
Intuition: Once per session, use Intuition (11) with Surprised Defense. Navigation: Gain 4 free levels of Armor when Attacked while Disoriented (Meddling) or Staggered.
Favored Attack: Conjured Weapon 30 (Mental 15 + Ephemeral Constant 15) Dice 3 Range Medium Damage 4 Notes If forced to Santa can create any weapon he needs. Generally he prefers a candy striped shepherds crook. that can shoot gumdrop rounds.
Brainwashed Attack: Eisenreich Weapons 30 (Mental 15 + Ephemeral Constant 15) Dice 3 Range Medium Damage 9 Notes Mind Controlled By the Eisenreich Santa will be summon Eisenreich guns, knives, and brass knuckles.While in this state he gains the Devastating Boon for free as a Villainous Twist.
Offense Notes
Out of the Blue: If the character’s first action after using their Movement Power is an Attack, use the Target’s Surprised Defense. Both Actions must be taken on the same turn.
Riding: When Mounted, add Riding (11) to an Active Defense or to an Attack roll.This Advantage may be used once per session.
Subterfuge: Add 2 additional Damage attacking a foe using their Surprised Defense, or 4 additional Damage against Naughty targets.
Playstyle
Each Turn, Santa will Slip Between the Seconds targeting a different opponent if possible. Because he moves Out of the Blue Attacks are made against Surprised Defense and his Damage increases to 8, or 10 against naughty foes. When needing to defend, Santa will use his Surprising to activate Evasion or Phased to slip away.
