Wintersday 2008

Schedule

 * Friday, December 19, 2008 (12:00 pm PST): Start of the event

Festival Finale
Began at 12:01 AM PST (8:01 AM UTC) on Thursday, January 1, 2009, and occurred every three hours until 12:01 AM PST (8:01 AM UTC) on Friday, January 2, 2009.

The event in Lion's Arch began at the time stated in the table. The event in Kamadan, Jewel of Istan began 15 minutes later.


 * {| class="stdt"

! PST || EST || UTC / GMT
 * - align=center
 * 12:01 am || 03:01 am || 08:01 am
 * - align=center
 * 03:01 am || 06:01 am || 11:01 am
 * - align=center
 * 06:01 am || 09:01 am || 02:01 pm
 * - align=center
 * 09:01 am || 12:01 pm || 05:01 pm
 * - align=center
 * 12:01 pm || 03:01 pm || 08:01 pm
 * - align=center
 * 03:01 pm || 06:01 pm || 11:01 pm
 * - align=center
 * 06:01 pm || 09:01 pm || 02:01 am
 * - align=center
 * 09:01 pm || 12:01 am || 05:01 am
 * - align=center
 * 12:01 am || 03:01 am || 08:01 am
 * }

During the finale, like previous years, many players were trying to make Grenth win (red rings) in odd districts (1, 3, 5 etc.), and Dwayna (blue or green rings) win in even districts (2, 4, 6 etc.). This was a method players have created to ensure that everyone gets the festival hat they want. There was no guarantee that it worked in all districts.


 * {| class="stdt"

! Grentch Cap (Grenth) || Rudi Mask (Dwayna) This year, Lions Arch and Kamadan offered the same hats.
 * - align=center
 * [[image:Grentch Cap.jpg|220px]] || [[image:Rudi Mask.jpg|200px]]
 * }

See Nine Rings (Wintersday 2006)

After the event had finished, presents appeared in participants' inventories for the next 15 minutes, even if the character left the area.

Redecorated towns

 * Prophecies
 * Ascalon City (Post-Searing)
 * Lion's Arch
 * Droknar's Forge
 * Nightfall
 * Kamadan, Jewel of Istan
 * Eye of the North
 * Eye of the North (outpost)

Quests
During the festivities, special quests are offered. Those supporting Dwayna are marked with (D); those supporting Grenth are marked with (G).

Lion's Arch

 * Old Nickoles: A Very Grentchie Wintersday (G)
 * Old Nickoles: The Greatest Snowman Ever Made (D)

Kamadan, Jewel of Istan

 * Grandfather Kringle: Save the Reindeer &rarr; Find the Stolen Presents &rarr; Spreading the Wintersday Spirit (D)
 * Elder Skruuj: White Mist &rarr; How The Grentches Stole Wintersday &rarr; The Gift of Giving (G)

Lion's Arch and Kamadan

 * Takes place in The Underworld
 * Rift Warden: In Grenth's Defense (G) [[Image:Recharge.png|19px]]
 * Rift Warden: You're a Mean One, Mr. Grenth (D) [[Image:Recharge.png|19px]]
 * Takes place in the Secret Lair of the Snowmen
 * Rift Warden: Straight to the Heart (G) [[Image:Recharge.png|19px]]
 * Rift Warden: The Strength of Snow (D) [[Image:Recharge.png|19px]]

Eye of the North (outpost)

 * Lieutenant Thackeray: The Three Wise Norn &rarr; Charr-broiled Plans &rarr; Wintersday Cheer
 * Casey Carpenter: Snowball Dominance

After completing all four of these quests, look for the tameable Jingle Bear in Gwen's Garden.

See also: Category:Wintersday 2008 quests

Events

 * The Snowball Arena will return this year. In addition, new Snowball Arena-themed Automated Tournaments will be held.

Items
The following are the available items from Wintersday 2008, with a brief description from the official Guild wars website:


 * See also: Category:Wintersday 2008 items

Collectors
All collectors except the Wintersday Gift Givers, Tonic Makers, and Candysmiths depart at noon Pacific time (GMT -8) on January 5th. The Wintersday Gift Givers, who accept 5 Candy Cane Shards and return 1 Wintersday Gift, will remain a few days longer.

Drops
Each PvE foe has a small chance, perhaps about 5%, to drop a Wintersday item in addition to their normal drops. Very rarely a foe may drop two Wintersday items.

Unlike normal drops, the drop frequency of these items does not scale at the start of an area, e.g. the first foe killed is just as likely to drop a Wintersday item as the 100th foe killed.

Known common drops are Candy Cane Shards, Snowman Summoners, Eggnog, and Fruitcakes; rare drops are Frosty Tonics and Mischievous Tonics.

Foes that don't normally drop items (such as animals) may drop these holiday items.