Top Seven New Year’s Resolutions for 2012

As 2011 comes towards an end, you might be starting to wonder, "What should I do in 2012?" Yes, it probably feels as if you have already accomplished a lot with your time on this awesome site, but there is still so much around that you might not have known about; something that you and your pets have yet to try. I have compiled a list of things that every Neopian should try, in order to get the best experience from this site. Work hard in all of these aspects of your account and your hard work will soon show. You will gain one amazing account and many gaping fans looking back at all the work you have put into it. Here, in no particular order, I give you seven things you MUST try in 2012.

Did Someone Say 'Muscles'?

When you look at your pet's stats, does it say 'average, below average, or poor' next to their strength or defense? If so, you should consider taking your pet to the Mystery Island Training School or the Swashbuckling Academy to have them pump some iron. Now, you may be wondering, is there a difference between the two? Yes, there are a few. If you aren't fortunate enough to be considered an "upper class" Neopian, you may want to consider going to the Academy for the beginning of your training. The currency on Krawk Island is Dubloons, which is a lot cheaper than the Codestones that the Training School requires. However, the Academy does take longer to complete a course than the Training School does. So which would you rather have, time or money? Now go make your pet the muscleman of the town!

Go for Gold

Not only do trophies look super amazing on one's account (if you've seen a gold-filled cabinet, you literally stare at it mesmerized for ages; They. Are. Awesome.) but they are a great challenge for you to work on. Every month, on the 1st, score charts all through Neopia are cleared of their current high scores, giving everyone a chance to earn themselves trophies in all sorts of games. If you land yourself in the top 17 spots of a game's high scores table by the time trophies are awarded (10:40pm/11.40pm NST; depending on DST) you will have a nice shiny gold, silver or bronze trophy sitting in your cabinet, ready to dazzle everyone with its shininess. Now all you need to do is find some games you are decent at, practice (practice makes perfect), and soon enough your trophy cabinet will be the envy of all your friends.

Seek those Secret Avatars

You see that yellow 50x50px square sitting in your user lookup or next to all of your messages when chatting on the boards? That is an avatar. You might say, "That's an awfully plain avatar!" But when skipping around Neopia, there are more than 350 avatars you can find, each with their own special way to get into your avie collection. One day you might get a nice score in a game, and you find a new avie, the next maybe while you're playing in the snow, or maybe even after you have kissed some Mortogs; you just never know. Collecting avatars is a very nice way to improve your account and to show off some of your skills. See if you can become an avatar collecting legend during your time in 2012.

Become a Bookworm

Have you ever read your pet a book you've come across, and wondered if there's anything special you can get from it? Well, there is; if you read to your pet every so often (maybe a bedtime story here and there) one day you might be eligible for a book trophy on your pet's lookup. In order to get a badge on your pet-lookup, your pet has to be in the top 200 of bookworms when trophies are awarded, judged by amount of books read. There's not just one book badge, but two. One for Booktastic books, and one for all of the other books. As well as raising your book count every time you read to your pet, your cute little critter also gains intelligence to their stats page. This is a great challenge to work on with you and your little pet, gl bookworms!

Go, Go, Gourmet!

Has your neopet constantly got a case of 'the munchies'? Then maybe you could start working your way towards the gourmet badge! All you have to do is feed your pet a large range of gourmet foods –that is, rarity 90-100 food items. As is similar with the book badges, this one awards itself to the top 200 pets when trophies are awarded but instead of being judged by number of books read, it's judged by the number of unique gourmet foods eaten by your little (or maybe big) pet. Getting the gourmet badge is a good way to get to know your pet; just make sure not to get *too* frustrated when they tell you they are too full to eat and you have to wait countless hours to feed them again.

Try Restocking

Have you ever been on the Trading Post and wondered how one person could have so many Morphing Potions? I know I have. Then I learned about restocking. So, what IS restocking, you might ask? Well, it's the act of purchasing items from Neopian shops in order to sell them for a greater profit. If you aren't that familiar with it, it's best to start out in semi-easy shops. The Magical Bookshop is easy in the sense that it tends to restock quite often and has some profitable items, while Mystical Surroundings is easy because you don't really have to try to memorize what's profitable and what's not because you can just tell by the quality of the background. Once you believe that you have mastered those shops, you can try to hang with the restocking masters and try your luck in the Neopian Post Office or Kauvara's Magic Shop. Beware, though; that's where everyone shops, so competition is fierce.

Create Your Dream Pets

Have you ever been to the Rainbow Pool and "window shopped" for that pet you dream about having but feel that you will never reach that seemingly unobtainable goal? Well, now that you have mastered restocking, you should have no problem saving for that Water Draik Morphing Potion. Others may be partial to the Unconverted (UC) pets (the old style of pets before TNT switched the artwork and made the new pets able to wear clothes). These pets are not obtainable by using morphing potions or paint brushes these days but you may be able to find someone who is willing to trade their UC for one of your converted pets. Now, go get your dream pet and let them do their little turn on the catwalk.

Hopefully, you have gained a little more insight on a few ideas to make your account look awesome for 2012. While you may not be able to do everything that you would like to, you could, at least, get started. Therefore, I wish you the best of luck because a jaw-dropping account won't happen overnight.