Escape From Tarkov Kolotun Guide

Open this Escape From Tarkov Kolotun Guide and treat Kolotun like a winter sprint that starts on 24 December 2025, because Santa can appear on locations and a Christmas Tree module opens in the Hideout, so progress comes from quick tasks and clean extracts instead of long loot tours.

• What is the Kolotun start date, and what changes on day one?
• Where can Santa spawn, and which maps stay excluded?
• How does the Santa gift drop work, and when should the Santa Bag be looted?
• Which quest comes first – Missing in Action or Clearing the Way?
• What is the simple plan for Missing in Action stashes, and what items must be placed?
• What is the exact goal in Clearing the Way, and which map must be played?
• How does Frostbite become the key mechanic, and how can extraction be done while it stays active?
• What rewards and unlocks come at the end, including the Whiteout achievement and the Ragman LL1 hat?

Let’s fall into Kolotun.

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A PMC marks the release date of the Escape from Tarkov winter event Kolotun as 24 December 2025, and he treats that date like a clear raid signal that the event is live with fresh tasks and a Hideout tree, so he plans the first login around it and expects active locations on the same day.

In this Escape from Tarkov winter event Kolotun, I treat the end date like a hard stop, because I want my last raids to give rewards and not waste time.

I run this Escape from Tarkov Kolotun guide like a winter survival plan, because Kolotun is a seasonal event that drops together with a patch wave and it changes the raid mood fast, with Santa walking around most locations, a Christmas Tree module in the Hideout, and a short task chain that pushes extra XP and rewards while it stays active

In Escape from Tarkov winter event Kolotun, I treat Santa like a moving trap for panic shots, because he stays calm until somebody fires, then the fight becomes loud and long. I walk up slow, I take the random drop, then I leave fast, and I loot his Santa Bag later because it is separate loot. If a fight happens, I respect his big health pool and I play cover and distance, because he has 1,040 total HP with a strong thorax.

In raid, I use this Escape from Tarkov Kolotun guide loot table as a quick check, because Santa can hand you a random gift when you walk close, and his Santa Bag is a separate loot source that I treat like a bonus chest after the area becomes calm with a EFT item service.

  

    

      
Loot source
      
What can drop
      
Simple raid note
    
  
  

    

      
Santa gift drop
      
Random item gift
      
I walk up slow, then I take it fast.
    
    

      
Santa Bag
      
Separate backpack loot
      
I loot it later, after the shooting ends.
    
    

      
Santa weapon loadout
      
Molot Arms VPO-136 Vepr-KM 7.62x39
      
Ammo – 7.62x39 PS.
    
    

      
Santa weapon loadout
      
Kalashnikov AK-74M 5.45x39
      
Ammo – 5.45x39 74 PS.
    
    

      
Santa weapon loadout
      
ADAR 2-15 5.56x45
      
Ammo – M855A1 or 55 FMJ, mod – VOMZ Pilad P1x42 sight.
    
    

      
Santa weapon loadout
      
Kalashnikov AKMS 7.62x39
      
Ammo – 7.62x39 PS.
    
    

      
Santa weapon loadout
      
TOZ Si

In this Escape from Tarkov Kolotun guide, I take Missing in Action from Prapor, then I run three calm raids on Woods and Reserve, plus one raid on Interchange, and I stash the food sets that he sends in the in-game mail, so the chain stays clean and the next step opens fast as part of Escape from Tarkov Kolotun event tasks.

• Open Prapor mail, then I move the 3 Iskra, 3 vodka, and 3 buckwheat into my stash, so I can pull one full set per map.
• Queue Woods with light gear, then I reach the Scav house and place one buckwheat, one vodka, and one Iskra, and I extract right after placement.
• Queue Reserve with a calm route, then I hit the guard barrack by the path from the forest and I place the same three items, then I leave fast.
• Queue Interchange, then I go to the river access at the smuggler camp and I use the small shack near the barrier for the last placement, then I extract.
• Return to Prapor, then I submit the task and I take the rewards, and I move to the next quest in the chain.

This PMC runs Clearing the Way as a clean kill task inside the Escape from Tarkov Kolotun event tasks, because Skier sends him to Customs and the goal is simple – take down targets until the counter reaches twenty, then take the reward and move on toward Kolotun.

• Open Skier tasks, accept Clearing the Way, and confirm the goal – 20 kills on Customs.
• Enter Customs and play safe fights until the counter reaches 20, then extract.
• Return to Skier, turn in the quest, and take EXP, roubles, and the item rewards.

The quest uses extreme cold and the Frostbite status effect as the main mechanic, and the whole task is built around extracting while this effect stays active.

Kolotun belongs to the event task chain that starts on 24 December 2025, and it comes after Clearing the Way.
 The core idea stays simple and direct – the PMC gets Frostbite, then leaves raids from selected maps while Frostbite stays active at the moment of extraction.

• Santa Claus spawns on locations except The Lab and The Labyrinth, and he carries a Santa Bag
• Christmas Tree module stays active inside the Hideout
• The task chain includes Missing in Action, Clearing the Way, Kolotun, plus Cold Start
• The event works in PvP mode and PvE mode

Missing in Action – Jaeger

Goal – find and hand over a Christmas tree decoration on Streets of Tarkov

Result – unlocks the next step

Clearing the Way – Jaeger

Goal – kill 10 Scavs with a weapon that has recoil under 250 on Streets of Tarkov

Result – opens Kolotun

Kolotun – Jaeger

Goal – get Frostbite, then extract from nine maps while Frostbite stays active

Result – EFT leveling help, roubles, fuel, Marlin rifle, ammo packs

Objectives – what to do in Kolotun

• Obtain the Frostbite status effect
• Extract from Streets of Tarkov with Frostbite
• Extract from Ground Zero with Frostbite
• Extract from Interchange with Frostbite
• Extract from Customs with Frostbite
• Extract from Woods with Frostbite
• Extract from Reserve with Frostbite
• Extract from Lighthouse with Frostbite
• Extract from Shoreline with Frostbite
• Extract from Factory with Frostbite

Rewards – what this quest gives

• 18,000 experience points
• Jaeger reputation increase
• 76,000 roubles, with a bonus from Intelligence Center levels
• Dry fuel units
• Metal fuel tanks
• Marlin MXLR .308 ME lever-action rifle
• .308 ME ammo packs

How to get Frostbite – and keep it for extract

Frostbite appears from long snow exposure during raids.
 The effect disappears near shelters or firebarrels, after alcohol use, or with warm clothing, so the PMC avoids heat once Frostbite appears and moves toward extraction without delay.

Step-by-step plan – simple and safe

1. Accept Kolotun from Jaeger and prepare gear for short, low-risk raids.
2. Enter a raid and stay in snow until Frostbite appears in the status panel.
3. After Frostbite shows up, move straight to a safe extraction route and leave the raid before the effect fades.
4. Repeat the same approach on the next map and treat the task as an extraction run rather than a combat run.

Quick tips – for faster completion

• Short raids help finish objectives faster because extraction is the main check
• Heat sources break Frostbite, so routes stay away from shelters and firebarrels once the effect appears

Unlock the Whiteout achievement by completing the Kolotun 2025 event task during the Kolotun winter event. After the achievement unlocks, the New Year ushanka hat becomes available for purchase at Ragman LL1.

• Finish the Kolotun 2025 event task line, then extract and complete the final turn-in as required by the chain.
• Open Profile, then open Achievements, and confirm Whiteout appears in the list.
• Open Ragman trader, then check the item list for the New Year ushanka hat at LL1.

For the Escape from Tarkov Kolotun guide, enter raids with warm clothing and calm, simple gear, because the event runs across maps and the task flow rewards clean extracts more than long fights, while the Escape from Tarkov matchmaking changes can still place fast lobbies in front of the spawn, so stay light, stay ready, and leave after the objective is done.

Finish the Escape From Tarkov Kolotun Guide by treating Kolotun as a short extraction marathon that starts on 24 December 2025, where Santa adds risk to panic shots, the Hideout Christmas Tree supports the holiday loop, and the task chain stays clear – complete Missing in Action, complete Clearing the Way, then complete Kolotun by getting Frostbite and extracting from the required maps, and finally claim the Whiteout achievement plus the Ragman LL1 ushanka unlock, then leave the event with rewards secured and the stash stable for the next raids.