Winter Wonderland

The Winter Wonderland Event is a recurring seasonal event held from December 1st to January 1st (UTC+0) of the following year. It was first added in 2022.

During the event, Dr. Cubical will put on a Santa hat, and call himself Dr. Frostical.

Overview

The sleigh at Shipyard.

Winter Wonderland in disrepair.

The event location is the Winter Wonderland, a far away place, and (presumably) colder than even the North Pole, accessible by the icon at the left of the screen or by clicking the reindeer sleigh near the Shipyard. Dr. Frostical's Elven workforce works there to make presents, cookies, and milk for the holiday season. However, all the buildings to create them were destroyed, and you must help him rebuild, or else Christmas will be ruined!

Resources

There are 9 separate resources, all exclusively created and isolated in the Wonderland.

• Cookies - The main event currency, used to rebuild and upgrade every building. Created from the Cookie Factory.
• Presents & Trained Reindeer - Both give a Town Resource bonus. Created from the Present Factory and Reindeer School respectively.
• Milk - Increases the efficiency of workers except in the Coal Factory by 1+log(milk+1)/log(1000)*milk^0.03*0.25. Created in the Reindeer Milk Farm.
• Milk Reindeers - Used to create Milk. Created in the Reindeer Milk Farm.
• Reindeer - Used to create Trained Reindeer and Milk Reindeer. Created in the Reindeer Farm.
• Toys, Wrappings, & Trees - Trees are used to create Wrappings, and it and Toys are used to create Presents. Created in the Toy Factory, Present Factory, and Tree Factory respectively.

Buildings

There are 9 buildings, each providing a different resource needed within the Wonderland. They are unlocked, and upgraded using Cookies. Some buildings may have more than 1 sub-station that produces 1 of the 9 resources.

• Coal Factory
  Grants the ability to equip buildings with coal ovens in order to increase their heat level. Receives +10°C self-heat per tier.
  • Coal Miners: 25 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -50°C
• Cookie Factory
  The cookie factory provides you with the most basic construction resource.
  • Cookie Production Line: 20 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -40°C
• Gingerbread House
  Housing for worker elves. Higher levels provide more workers.
  • Workers: for each tier of this building, total workers available is increased by an additional 5
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: N/A
• Present Factory
  In the present factory you can convert trees to wrapping paper which can then be used to wrap toys in order to turn them into presents.
  • Paper Mill: 15 worker slots by default
  • Present Wrapping Station: 10 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -30°C
• Toy Factory
  The toy factory recycles fallen testing androids into joyful little fun appliances.
  • Toy Production Line: 10 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -30°C
• Tree Factory
  Using the power of forestry the tree factory can basically produce a huge amount of timber in a very brief amount of time.
  • Tree Logging Station: 10 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -40°C
• Reindeer Farm
  With the right saplings you can grow anything. Even reindeers.
  • Reindeer Breeding Station: 20 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -40°C
• Reindeer School
  Provides reindeers with PhDs in sleigh pulling.
  • Reindeer Class: 10 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -30°C
• Reindeer Milk Farm
  Reindeers provide milk? Seems like my knowledge keeps expanding every day.
  • Reindeer Milk Production Training: 20 worker slots by default
  • Milking Station: 10 worker slots by default
  • Default minimum freezing temperature: -30°C

Mechanics

Production mechanics, Part 1.

Production mechanics, Part 2.

The production of each building is governed by a surprising number of mechanics. You can see the exact values that go into the calculations by hovering over the numbers.

The base is "Efficiency per worker (raw)". This measures the productivity of the elves you put into that building, and despite the (raw) label, it is modified by any "efficiency per worker" bonus. The initial per-building values are:

Coal	Cookies	Paper Mill	Wrapping	Toys	Trees	Deer	School	Milk Train	Milking
20%	5%	6.667%	10%	10%	10%	5%	10%	5%	10%

Next is the milk factor. This is granted by the amount of milk you have accumulated via milking reindeer; milk is only increased, never consumed. The milk factor grows slowly (especially initially), but is still powerful, and is upgraded through various perks. The initial formula for the milk factor is 1 + log(milk+1)/log(1000) * milk^0.03 / 4.

The last of the efficiency factors is the temperature factor. As the weather gets colder, buildings also get colder and their production decreases. This can be counteracted by using ovens from the Coal Factory to provide heat, as well as perks that provide heat. If a building's temperature drops too far, it will freeze and be unable to produce at all. The initial formula for temperature factory is 1x at 0c and x0.5 for every -10c. The "Overheat" perk allows for bonus efficiency at heat above 0c, and Insulation reduces the penalty.

Combining all the above factors and multiplying by the number of elves gives a total "efficiency," listed in percent. For the example in the screenshot, "Efficiency per worker (raw)" is 240% (multiplied by 48x through various perks), Milk Factor is 2.33188 (from a raw milk of 47959629, with the ^1.15 perk), and the temperature factor is 1. With 20 elves, this gives 240 * 2.33188 * 1 * 20 = 11193.02% total efficiency, matching what is shown.

The upper box converts efficiency into production. "Production at 100% (raw)" determines how the bottom efficiency becomes production, and it is unchanged by any bonuses. If there are insufficient inputs, the production will be throttled appropriately, but sometimes the numbers will display wrong. All values in the table are per-second, arrows indicate (consumed -> produced).

Coal	Cookies	Paper Mill	Wrapping	Toys	Trees	Deer	School	Milk Train	Milking
N/A	4	1 -> 1	1+1 -> 1	1	1	2	1 -> 1	1 -> 1	0.1 -> 25

The tier multiplier is applied on top of efficiency before converting to production. Buildings can be upgraded, and each additional tier grants 0.25 to the tier multiplier. There are perks that increase this: For instance, there is a perk that "multiplies bonus production per building tier x4." This only affects the bonus, i.e. it changes the formula from 1 + (tier - 1)/4 to 1 + (tier - 1) = tier.

Note that the Coal Factory does not receive many of these bonuses. Specifically, it doesn't get the milk factor (by default) and it also doesn't get the tier multiplier; instead, tier-ups go towards increasing its base heat level. Unlike other buildings, fractional production is not useful, since whole increments of 100% are needed for individual ovens.

A final mechanic is the Resource Boost, which does not change anything about the event but is a reward in Tower Testing for participating. The multiplier that is applied to resources has the formula multiplier = (log10000(presents + 1) * presents0.01 * 0.1 + 1) * (log10000(reindeer + 1) * reindeer0.02 * 0.2 + 1). To calculate the bonus shown on-screen, resource_bonus = (multiplier - 1) * 100%.

Upgrades

Listed below are the cost, in Cookies, to rebuild (T1) and upgrade (T2 and higher) each of the buildings in Winter Wonderland. Exceptions to the formula are in bold.

Building	Formula	T1	T2	T3	T4	T5	T6	T7	T8	T9	T10
Coal Factory	100*120^(tier-1)	100	12,000	1.44 M (1.44e6)	172.8 M (1.728e8)	20.736 B (2.074e10)	MAXED
Cookie Factory	none	0	4,000	125,000	500,000	1.25 M (1.25e6)	3 M (3e6)	5 M (5e6)	10 M (1e7)	17.5 M (1.75e7)	22.5 M (2.25e7)
Gingerbread House	100*12^(tier-1)	100	1,200	14,400	172,800	2.074 M (2.074e6)	24.883 M (2.488e7)	298.598 M (2.986e8)	3.583 B (3.583e9)	42.998 B (4.3e10)	515.978 B (5.16e11)
Present Factory	500*12^(tier-1)	500	6,000	72,000	864,000	10.368 M (1.037e7)	124.416 M (1.244e8)	1.493 B (1.493e9)	17.916 B (1.792e10)	214.991 B (2.15e11)	2.58 T (2.58e12)
Toy Factory	350*12^(tier-1)	350	4,200	50,400	604,800	7.258 M (7.258e6)	87.091 M (8.709e7)	1.045 B (1.045e9)	12.541 B (1.254e10)	150.494 B (1.505e11)	1.806 T (1.806e12)
Tree Factory	200*12^(tier-1)	200	2,400	28,800	345,600	4.147 M (4.147e6)	49.766 M (4.977e7)	597.197 M (5.972e8)	7.166 B (7.166e9)	85.996 B (8.6e10)	1.032 T (1.032e12)
Reindeer Farm	250*12^(tier-1)	250	3,000	36,000	432,000	5.184 M (5.184e6)	62.208 M (6.221e7)	746.496 M (7.465e8)	8.958 B (8.958e9)	107.495 B (1.075e11)	1.29 T (1.29e12)
Reindeer School	400*12^(tier-1)	400	4,800	57,600	691,200	8.294 M (8.294e6)	99.533 M (9.953e7)	1.194 B (1.194e9)	14.333 B (1.433e10)	171.993 B (1.72e11)	2.064 T (2.064e12)
Reindeer Milk Farm	100000*12^(tier-1)	100,000	1.2 M (1.2e6)	14.4 M (1.44e7)	172.8 M (1.728e8)	2.074 B (2.074e9)	24.883 B (2.488e10)	298.598 B (2.986e11)	3.583 T (3.583e12)	42.998 T (4.3e13)	515.978 T (5.16e14)
Expedition Sleigh Pad	25000*?	25,000	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?

Quests

Winter Wonderland quest board.

Just like the Halloween event the Winter Wonderland has quests that can be completed for permanent rewards.

List of quests:

• Have 50 or more elven workers
• Produce over 8 B (8e9) presents
• Train over 10 M (1e7) reindeers
• Get all calendar upgrades
• Repair all buildings
• Complete all quests

Completing each quest unlocks an event-themed Town Asset, and completing all quests rewards an Artifact and an Achievement.

Calendar

Upgrade Calendar fully unlocked after the 12th day.

One of the main features of the event is the Winter Calendar, an upgrade grid that reveals two upgrades for every day that passes and allows you to chose a number of perks equal to the current day. Perks can be reset every 12 hours, or 30 minutes if the appropriate perk is selected.

For the first 12 days, the excitement and strategy comes from new (and increasingly more powerful) perks being revealed. In the next 12 days, the strategy revolves around using the available perks to deal with punishingly cold temperatures. Generally there is a reprieve around Christmas, when the weather clears and people who got started late can quickly catch-up and finish the event, while those playing the whole time can grind for maximum bonuses.

Day 1 (2024)

Cookie Factory	+10 C base heat
Reindeer Farm	Max. workers -10, Efficiency per worker increases accordingly

The cookie factory perk is straightforward, and always a must-have, especially because 2024 starts at -10 X.

The reindeer farm increases base efficiency per worker (raw) to 10%. Reindeer are not a bottleneck, so this is low-priority. It can be used to help fill the reindeer farm for the x2 bonus (a possible later perk).

Day 1 (2022-2023)

Cookie Factory	Efficiency per worker x2
Reindeer Farm	Max. workers -5, Efficiency per worker increases accordingly

The cookie factory perk is straightforward, and always a must-have.

The reindeer farm increases base efficiency per worker (raw) to 6.667%. Reindeer are not a bottleneck, so this is low-priority. It can be used to help fill the reindeer farm for the x2 bonus (a later perk).

Day 2

Reset Cooldown	Reduced from 12 hours to 30 minutes
Tree Farm	Efficiency per worker x2

Reset cooldown is much more useful than it seems. It reduces the cooldown as soon as the perk is taken, and also sets a 30 minute cooldown when you reset while the perk is taken. Because of this, careful use allows the cooldown to always be 30 minutes at most, while still keeping full perks. For instance, you can take Reset Cooldown as the first perk of a new day, immediately reset, and then allocate perks as desired (without taking reset cooldown). If you mess up, you will only have to wait 30 minutes to recover. Make sure to always save room for reset cooldown (probably choose it first) when resetting otherwise, and on a long cooldown.

Tree farm is another low-priority lategame perk.

Day 3

Coal Factory	Own base heat level +10°C
Toy Factory	Efficiency per worker x2

Coal factory is not great when the weather is warm, but becomes quite useful when the weather is cold. It's typically worth 1-2 elves, but sometimes much more. There is a later perk that adds heat to all buildings which is strictly better, but sometimes you might take both.

Toy factory is another low-priority lategame perk.

Day 4

Cookie Factory	Max. workers +10 Base heat level +10°C
Reindeer School & Milk Farm	Efficiency for non-milking workers x1.25

The cookie factory perk is very solid in the early days: More room means more space for workers, and more heat always helps. Once the filled-building perk becomes available, you will often sacrifice this perk in order to make filling the cookie factory easier.

Because milk is important, the 2nd perk sounds exciting. However, milking is very much the bottleneck for milk production, so this does not actually help in a useful way. As a result, it is lategame only.

Day 5

Overheat	+20% Production per heat level above 0°C
Milk	Milk bonus is raised to the power of 1.15

For the first time, both perks are must-haves. (Generally. In extreme cold weather, you *might* forgo overheat.)

Overheat lets you make use of the top of the heat scale. 10°C becomes 1.2x temperature factor and 20°C becomes 1.4x. This is often especially useful with the Coal Factory, which has fewer ways to get bonuses than other buildings.

Milk is generally quite powerful, and so is increasing its effect. This affects the entire factor, i.e. the formula changes to (1 + log(milk+1)/log(1000) * milk^0.03 / 4)^1.15.

Day 6

Wrappings	Max. workers -10, Efficiency per worker increases accordingly
Presents Present Factory	Efficiency per worker x2 Base heat level +10°C

Neither of these are useful early on.

Wrappings increases per-worker efficiency to 20%. Like the reindeer perk, it lowers the filled size of the building to 15, making it a useful later target for the filled-building perk.

"Presents" refers only to the present wrapping station half, while the base heat level applies to the entire building.

Day 7

Insulation	Cold penalty is reduced from ^(1/2) to ^(2/3) per 10°C
Cookie Factory	Max workers +20, Freeze level -10°C, Bonus production per building tier x2

Day 8

Tower Testing	+125% Production while tower testing is active
All Buildings	Bonus production per building tier x4

Day 9

All Buildings	Worker efficiency doubles for every non-frozen building running at full capacity
Coal Factory	Milk now affects coal factory workers at a greatly reduced rate

Day 10

All Buildings	Base heat level +10°C, Freeze level -10°C
All Buildings	Efficiency per worker x1.5

Day 11

Reindeer School & Milk Farm	Base heat level +10°C every second building tier
Elves	Total amount of workers x2

Day 12

Milk	Formula for milk bonus is improved
All Buildings	Production x1.25 for every day after the 11th (exponential)

Both of these perks are amazing, and should be taken as soon as they are unlocked.

The milk perk changes the base formula to 1 + log(milk+1)/log(2) * milk^0.04 / 4, which is a multiplier of about 10x and an improvement on the exponent. The other milk perk stacks with this one as well.

The final perk is called "the exponential perk," because it causes production to grow exponentially. It starts at x1.25 on day 12 (12 - 11 = 1), which is the first day you can unlock it short of bugs/exploits. If you unlock it earlier through some means, it can reduce your production on earlier days.

References

1. Desmos: History of recorded temperatures