Find a Career in Brightvale

Specifically, your neopet will need a job to support itself (and you). What are employment prospects like in Hagan’s kingdom?

There are various possibilities in the royal court itself.

Any castle needs support staff. Someone has to keep the place clean and in good repair, placate the moat beings, care for the petpets and petpetpets and look after things in general. His Majesty enjoys a good meal at least as much as his brother Skarl does, but his tastes are somewhat more refined. As the saying goes, and he says it often, "I don’t care what I eat, so long as it’s the best!" Anyone working in the Castle Brightvale kitchens, from the lowliest apprentice scullery-worker to the executive chef, had better remember that. If your pet has any talent for cookery, however, what better place for it to learn the culinary art and profession? Even if it never aspires to preparing a meal for the King himself, there are a multitude of retainers to feed, and Hagan does not skimp on their food, either. (Note to aspiring chefs: His Majesty prefers yams to potatoes, and has a secret weakness for jellied foods like aspic.)

No one could call the King a dandy, but he does like to dress nicely. He prefers natural fibres: silk for ceremonial occasions, of which there are many at court, wool for daily wear in winter, cotton and linen the rest of the year. He keeps plantations of Spyders and Babaas to supply him. This means there are always opportunities for skilled Spyder and Babaa-herders, spinners, weavers, dyers and couturiers.

Hagan and his court also keep a veritable army of jewellers busy working on crowns, tiaras, medals, chains of office, rings of office, official seals and the like. This would be an excellent profession for a pet with an eye for detail.

Besides looking after the purely physical needs of the King and his court, there are those who look after the political and social needs of the kingdom. Now that Brightvale is opening itself to contact with the rest of Neopia again, all sorts of functionaries are needed to look after trade, foreign relations and other government-to-government matters. Hagan is well-known as a paws-on administrator, but even he needs advisors and support staff. (Note to those with ambitions in the field of espionage: King Hagan has publicly denounced all forms of spying. This does not mean that all of his advisors agree with him in private, no matter what they say in public.)

Still with the court, after a long day of statecraft King Hagan enjoys many forms of entertainment. While a poor dancer himself, he appreciates talent in others. (Note to potential court dancers: He likes ballet.) Hagan also enjoys music, often slipping away incognito to attend performances at the Concert Hall in Tyrannia. His Majesty himself plays the cello. Any skilled musicians interested in forming a string quartet or quintet with him would find a warm welcome in Brightvale.

His Majesty’s brother Skarl is the sibling with a reputation for a sense of humour, but Hagan himself loves a good joke. His tastes are more refined than Skarl’s. For instance, he enjoys puns and wordplay and is not into slapstick. (Note to aspiring court jesters: The one exception is that he loves any joke about potato counting.)

There are also many opportunities outside the court and castle.

Brightvale has a well-deserved reputation for culture and education. When Neopia’s school system is finally unveiled, many Brightvale residents will certainly be among the teaching staff. Ambitious and intelligent Neopets from elsewhere with skills in that area will easily find employment.

On the same note, Brightvale has a broad library system. This is not yet open to anyone except Brightvale residents, which is why it isn’t shown on the Brightvale map released to the public in the rest of Neopia, but it always has openings for bright Neopets with a talent for organization.

Brightvale has a flourishing agricultural system. After all, it fed itself through the long years during which it was cut off from the rest of Neopia. Even though products from outside are now becoming available, Brightvale residents still love their local specialities, like tangellas and screlons.

Not all of Brightvale’s artisans and craftsbeings supply the castle exclusively. Brightvale’s stained glass works are famous all over Neopia. Bookbinding, using a secret process that imitates fine leather without actually harming any creatures, is a labour-intensive craft producing volumes prized wherever there are booklovers. Brightvale’s armorers, scroll calligraphers and potion blenders have more orders than they can keep up with. A neopet who wants to apprentice in any of these trades must be good with its paws, quick to learn, hardworking, patient and above all, a lover of beauty.

Indeed, all of the arts in Brightvale are growth industries now that relations are open with the rest of Neopia. Marketing these wares requires a host of merchants: shopkeepers, wholesalers, traveling salesbeings. Brightvale does not have direct access to the sea, so there are also opportunities for mariners who can open trade routes to Terror Mountain and Tyrannia while avoiding pirates.

Trade will not be Brightvale’s only source of revenue. Tourists are flocking there, but only for short trips, as Brightvale has no neohotels. A clever, hardworking neopet who decided to open a high-class establishment there would almost certainly be successful. Until that happens, tourists have to be content with day trips. They enjoy seeing the sights, but King Hagan is now entertaining proposals for tasteful tourist attractions. He has a preference for intellectual pursuits, and dreams of the day when intelligent pets from all over Neopia will come to Brightvale to play word games and solve brainteasers and puzzles.

As you can see, Brightvale is full of employment opportunities for an ambitious young (or not-so-young) neopet who wants to get ahead. When your darling complains of lack of opportunity where it is now, why not suggest trying its luck in the newest Kingdom?