At the office

2–5 players
Difficulty 1 of 3
Not recommended under 10
Available in: Français, English, Español, Deutsch, Italiano

Santa has gone off to “recharge” in Tahiti. At headquarters, Mrs. Claus has handed the season to the only department still available: Open Space No. 4. Four desks, a temperamental photocopier, a leaking coffee machine, and a freshly promoted boss who is convinced everyone adores him. There are 24 days left to save Christmas.

The rulebook at a glance

d20 + attribute
4 attributes
The memo

Read the rules

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Campaign
Operation December 24
3 sessions · 3 Dice to reach the end · office humour, team spirit, saving Christmas
Cost: 1 Die per session, for the whole table
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By the Icotale team

The world

PlaceThe North PoleThe capital of Christmas: workshops, gift warehouses, the reindeer stable and, in the middle, the headquarters where management works. It snows every day, even in the badly insulated corridors.
PlaceOpen Space No. 4Four desks pushed together under tinsel, a temperamental photocopier, a potted plant in a Santa hat, a giant advent calendar and the boss’s desk, the only one with a window.
PlaceThe break roomA leaking coffee machine, a fridge full of unlabelled lunch boxes and a noticeboard covered in memos. This is where everything gets said.
PlaceHeadquartersThe management building, all frosted glass. People rarely go up there, and they always come back down with more work.
PlaceThe reindeer stableStraw, harnesses and a union rota. The reindeer hold their general assemblies here.
FactionOpen Space No. 2The rival department, one floor up: tidy desks, perfect results, irritating smiles. They dream of taking over Christmas.
FactionNoël ExpressA young drone delivery start-up pitching to headquarters with very colourful slide decks. Slogan: “Christmas, but better, but faster.”
CharacterMrs. ClausThe managing director. You only ever see her on video calls, with a connection that always drops at the worst moment. Demanding, but fair.
CharacterThibault-Josué Givrier“Assistant to the open space manager” (not assistant manager, he corrects everyone every time). Follows the boss’s orders to the letter, secretly breeds miniature reindeer and dreams of taking the boss’s place.
CharacterMireilleOn reception at Open Space No. 4 for forty seasons. Jaded, sharp, always ready with a remark that hits home, and a drawer full of chocolates she does not share.
CharacterMr. GivreThe auditor sent by headquarters. Tall, icy, perfectly polite. He writes everything down in a little notebook and never smiles.
CharacterCometThe reindeer who is the stable’s union rep. A formidable negotiator, very attached to regulation breaks and organic carrots.
CharacterSanta ClausGone off to “recharge” in Tahiti. He sends postcards with palm trees and is otherwise unreachable.

The rulebook

Resolving actions

Roll 1d20 and add the attribute modifier: 10 or more succeeds at a simple task, 13 at a risky task, 16 at a feat worthy of elf of the month.
A natural 20 earns a photo on the “Elf of the Month” wall; a natural 1 ends in a performance review.

Initiative : 1d20 + Stealth modifier

Attributes

Gab GAB: Convincing, presenting in meetings, dodging the question, reassuring management.
Tinker TIN: Building and repairing toys, sleighs and, with some luck, the photocopier.
Paperwork PAP: Forms, regulations, archives, finding the right file at the right time.
Stealth STE: Hiding, dodging a chore, slipping out of a meeting without anyone noticing.

Special rules

The memo: Once per session, the open space manager issues a memo that changes a rule of the scene (“The word problem is banned”, “Everyone speaks in rhyme until noon”). The others follow it, or get round it without being caught: an elf caught getting round it ends up in a performance review.
The coffee break: Once per session, a player tells the coffee machine what their elf really thinks of the situation, their colleagues or the boss. They may then reroll a failed roll. The machine leaks, but it keeps secrets.

Character creation

Roll 4 dice with 6 faces per attribute, keep the 3 best · 2 rerolls allowed4d6kh3

Origins

Assembly line elf: Twenty seasons assembling electric trains; +1 to Tinker.
Accounts elf: Knows by heart what a candy cane costs and the photocopier code; +1 to Paperwork.
Seasonal intern: Started on Monday, more motivated than ever, still doesn’t know where the toilets are; +1 to Gab.

Vocations

Open space manager: Promoted this morning, convinced everyone adores them. Signs the memos and makes the decisions, good or bad.
The overachiever: Follows every rule to the letter, arrives before everyone else and makes sure people know it.
The brilliant slacker: Does as little as possible, but always finds the solution at the last minute.
The creative: One idea a minute, one good one a week. Nobody knows which.
The gossip: Knows everything about everyone, before everyone else. It isn’t gossip, it’s information.

Derived values

Hit points: 10 + Tinker modifier
Defense: 10 + Stealth modifier
Initiative: 1d20 + Stealth modifier

Starting equipment

An “Open Space No. 4” access badge
A mug with their name on it (almost spelled right)
A stapler

Veils

Topics kept off screen: the Narrator never shows or describes them.

heavy humiliation