Neopia's most Famous (and Infamous!) Bruces

To start off, a very well-known neopet, born and raised in the Lost desert: Brucey B! Brucey had his own plot (Brucey B and the Lucky Coin), in which he plays the role of a hero who saves the Lost Desert from the evilness of Dr. Frank Sloth and his army of Grundos. Few are the ones who don’t remember hearing about how Brucey lost his Lucky Coin to a mysterious Jetsam during a Cheat! game. Brucey B and his friends Capara and Princess Fernypoo then decided to track him down. They followed the purple Jetsam into the Haunted Woods until they reached the Lost Desert. He was finally caught in front of the Great Pyramid, but Sloth’s plan had already been put into action. The plot ends with Brucey’s victory, after breaking the Staff of Alhasutek and bringing back peace to the city of Sakhmet.

Whereas most Neopians would look for Brucey B next to the Slots Machine, he will most probably be found in the middle of a Cheat! game. He is still learning – or so he declares! – but is in no way a beginner. Only advanced players have the honor of playing against Brucey and his friends, and only Cheat! masters can beat him, so don’t get your hopes up!

Next in line is Boochi. Boochi is a mischievous Baby Bruce. Mischievous is certainly the best word to describe him, since his visit is not welcomed by all Neopians. Boochi is seen always carrying his ray gun, and appears in random events. He will change your active pet’s color to Baby – or will fortunately (or unfortunately!) miss, and his ray gun will have no effect. Obviously, if your active neopet isn’t available in the Baby color, you have no need to worry, for it is the perfect Boochi Shield. A visit from Boochi can save you 600k (price of a Baby Paint Brush), or could throw away all your neopoints wasted on your pet’s Royal Paint Brush – and who would want that?! As the Neopedia describes him: “He may jump out of a bush and fire his ray gun at you on the way to the market tomorrow, or perhaps he'll never cross your path at all.”

Now onto less known Bruces: Most of you will have heard of Weltrude, am I right? Weltrude, the kind and motherly Cloud Bruce, who is also Head of the Petpet Protection League. Don’t get her wrong – despite her caring and welcoming appearance, she takes the safety and well-being of Petpets as a very serious matter. You might recognize her from the Petpet Park mini-plot, under the code name of “Mother Bruce”, or as the owner of “Weltrude’s Toy Chest” (in which she allows us to take a look and to pick a prize daily). And what wonderful hair-style! I wonder if I could style my own like that...

Bruces also play an important part in the Altador Cup. There are two famous Yooyuball Players from the Bruce species, and they are Kakoni Worrill – Team Faerieland’s captain – and Tormo “The Terror” Frein, from Team Darigan Citadel.

Kakoni Worrill is a Faerie Bruce, and used to play in the Centre Forward position until Team Faerieland switched to 2+2 formation, when he started playing as Right Forward. Kakoni is well-known for throwing his teammates perfect passes, making up for his poor scoring abilities.

Tormo “The Terror” Frein is a Darigan Bruce, and has always played as the Right Defender. Known as an aggressive defender, Tormo is a player to be feared – hence the name. However, his passing and scoring abilities are poor.

Unfortunately, not all Bruces are heroes. There are a few infamous Bruces in Neopia who deserve recognition for their evil deeds. They are:

Benny (also known as “Benny the Blade”) served under the notorious Captain Scarblade in the Curse of Maraqua plot. Benny is considered dangerous and untrustworthy, even among fellow pirates – or so says the Neopedia. His skills with the knife are, well... not that you’d ever want to watch him demonstrate them in public (or even in private, actually...). Rumor has it that the last bartender that asked him to pay for his Bomberry Grog didn’t end up... you know... in one piece. Benny even has his own page in the Gallery of Evil – such an evil Bruce!

Next comes Mayor Thumburt, the Bruce Mayor of Neovia - from the Tale of Woe plot (also known as the Haunted Woods plot). Mayor Thumburt was the most important Battledome challenger in the plot. He could be fought in three different forms, and regardless of what Battledome equipment you used during the battle, he would automatically give your pet 800 HP of damage! Also, with the aid of his own weapons, he was capable of causing over 1000 HP damage. He was, therefore, one of the most powerful and most difficult Battledome opponents in history!

Last but not least is Ramtor, the Bruce Wizard who stole the throne from King Skarl during the Meridell act of NeoQuest II. Ramtor successfully put the castle guards under his spell and forced the King off the throne. He later brought evil monsters into Meridell to keep the inhabitants busy with defending themselves while he took control. He fought Rohane and Mipsy (the famous heroes) twice during the Quest, and was finally defeated. The castle guards then broke free from the spell, and King Skarl took over the throne again.

I wonder... how many Neopians are familiar with all of these Bruces? And what about the other ones – who are given, perhaps, less recognition than they deserve – like the Rink Runner Bruce? He’s a good ice skater, after all! But, anyway, Bruce Day isn’t about celebrating heroes or villains (it’s about eating baskets full of Christmas Bruce Frosted Pies!) so be sure to wish your fellow Bruce friend the best Bruce Day ever! I’m sure he deserves it!