Beginner guide: your first Christmas Eve

Before the first building

You can start a campaign with or without Pip. Pip is the elf who walks through the first steps. I would leave Pip on for a first village and turn the guide off only when you already know the path rule.

That rule is the one that makes a building look finished and still idle: every building needs a path that connects it to the Great Hall. Moving and rotating are free. Removing a building that is still under construction refunds its full cost. Removing a finished building refunds nothing.

What the first year is asking for

Candy canes are the first gift. Wooden toys arrive in chapter 2 and plush toys in chapter 4, so a brand-new village is a candy line plus wrapping plus a sleigh. Every gift, whatever it is, is wrapped at the Wrap & Ribbon Hut. One wrapped gift answers one letter. Children only ask for gifts you can already make.

Elves staff the workshops. A Cottage houses 2, a Bunkhouse 4, and a Lodge 8. Elves have no individual needs. A Hearth, Cocoa Hall, Elf Plaza, or Skating Rink near homes raises Cheer each week. Cheer is also what the six large masterworks spend, so it is worth knowing early even if you do not build a Ferris Wheel in year one.

Christmas Eve

You clear a chapter by answering every letter of that year before Christmas Eve. The achievement The Workshop Wakes is “Clear Chapter 1 on Christmas Eve.” First Christmas Eve is broader: reach the night, cleared or not. On 13 Nov 2026 that second one sat at 45% global unlocks, the highest on the board, which fits a goal you can meet by simply arriving.

After the ending, the FAQ says the village keeps going. Letter targets grow in the Christmas Traditions years, and a railway unlocks. That is past the first eve. The story page lists the five chapter-clear achievements, and production chains follows the candy line into toys and plush.

Speed is 1× or 3×. If the village is only a hall, two cottages, and a candy workshop, 3× is a way to reach the eve. If you are still learning paths, stay at 1× and use Space.