Which Neoboard Fits your Neo Style?

The goal of this guide is to familiarize you with the various Neoboards, discuss the type of user who frequents each board, and help you to make an informed decision about where to hang out.

For the purposes of this guide, I will ignore the following boards: Battledome Closed Beta, Daily Dare, and The Official Neopets Team Message Board. These boards are particularly special interest and do not provide a social environment, but rather an informative.

The Boards (in Alphabetical Order, of course):

Art: The Art board boasts a loyal but limited following of Neo artists and art fans. The conversations center around art contest submissions, and how to increase a particular piece of art's voting base. This board is best for those who are artistically inclined and for those who want to become involved with the Neo art community.

Avatars/NeoSignatures: The Avatar board often gets a bad rap for having too many posts begging for avatar items. But these begging boards are a small fraction of the truly wonderful discourse found here. Posts abound discussing everything from NeoHTML to tips and tricks for achieving game avatars. This board is best for those who enjoy collecting avatars and customizing their NeoHTML (just don't be one of those tired beggars!).

Battledome: The Battledome board features many of what I will term "Neopets High Rollers." The users who have every item under the sun and crave only every single other item in the Neopets world. While it may seem like these users dominate the Battledome board, you will also find users who are genuinely interested in the betterment of everyone's Battledome techniques and strategies. This board is best for those who want to learn about the Battledome or who have millions of neopoints to throw around on items.

Customisation: The Customisation board is geared towards users who enjoy dressing up and showing off their Neopets. While this board is slower than many others (slower just means that there are not as many posts per hour), there is still engaging conversation, and a base of users who frequent the boards on a daily basis. This board is best for getting advice on the best clothing and backgrounds for your neopet.

Evil Things and Monster Sightings: The Evil Things and Monster Sightings board is exactly what it sounds like: a place to discuss Evil Things and Monster Sightings. The conversation, like the board above, moves slowly, but if you encounter an interesting Random Event, like the Pant Devil stealing your Baby Paint Brush, I'm sure this board would love to hear about it! This board is best for any user who encounters a Random Event or who likes Evil Things!

Fan Clubs: The Fan Club board is for discussing your favorite things! Like Cybunnies? Talk about them! Like when the Tax Beast steals all of your neopoints? Let this board know! This board is best for people who have an unhealthy obsession with particular items or Neopets!

Games: The Games board is centered around Neopets Games. This board is one of the most informational and useful boards you will find. It contains posts about tips and tricks for achieving high scores and maximizing your neopoint gains from games. It registers a few posts per hour, but all of them tend to be high quality and useful for improving your techniques. This board is best for any user who plays games.

Guilds: The Guilds board is for advertising and recruiting for Guilds! Looking for a group of users to befriend? Look no further. There are guilds for all types of Neopets' users, from Battledome guilds to Trading guilds to Guild guilds. Well, maybe not Guild guilds, but still. This board is perfect for users looking to promote a Guild or to find a Guild to join.

Habitarium: The Habitarium board is pretty self-explanatory. If you have your very own Habitarium, stop in at this board to chat with other users and plot ways to make your Habitarium the best in Neopia. This board is best for users who play Habitarium.

Help: The Help board is one of the most-frequently used boards as it provides quick answers for any questions or problems you have with anything regarding Neopets. If you can't figure out how to cure your pet of the Grumbles, or don't know how to get to the Coffee Shop, just pop in to this board and ask! The users here are happy to help you with anything questions or concerns. This board is perfect for users from all walks of Neopia.

Ideas/Suggestions: The Ideas/Suggestions board is fairly active and features posts about ideas on how to improve the world of Neopia. These ideas can range from new pets to better item distribution and more. This board is great for bringing up ideas that you've been keeping to yourself.

Key Quest: The Key Quest board is the center of discussion for anything and everything Key Quest related. If you had a particularly amazing game, or perhaps lost at the last possible moment, make a post and get some community input! Also, if you have any questions regarding rules or strategy, ask them here. This board is great for frequent players of Key Quest.

Merchandise: The Merchandise board is more often than not devoid of any activity. Why is this board so empty? Nobody knows. So maybe you should try to spark up some life! Make some posts about your Neopets collection, or ask about others' items. Who knows? You could become the king of the Merchandise board!

NC Mall: The NC Mall board is constantly active and full of dedicated Neopets users who utilize the NC Mall. If you too enjoy using the NC Mall, be sure to pop into this board to look for deals and advice. This board is perfect for the lucky users who use the NC Mall.

NeoQuest + NeoQuest II: The NeoQuest (NQ) board is all about NQ and NQII. As you fight your way through NQ, stop in at this board for advice and tips and tricks from veterans of the game. This board will help you successfully fight your way through all the obstacles that stand in your way. This board is perfect for users who enjoy or who are struggling with NQ.

Neohomes: The Neohomes board is constantly active and features posts about Neohome design and the Neohome Spotlight. If you need some Feng Shui advice to spice up your boring Kreludan home, look no further than this board.

Neopian Pound: The Neopian Pound board is one of the most active boards on the site. It features posts about awesome pets to be found in the pound, as well as posts about pets that will soon be up for adoption! Pop in if you're looking for a new pet or if you're looking for a new owner for your pet.

Neopian Writers: The Neopian Writers board is the favorite haunt of Neopian Times (NT) writers. Post here about ideas you have for articles, or crowdsource opinions on your submissions. Even if you don't write for the NT, stop in to this board for advice on your own writings. "Does this metaphor work here?" "Would I be better with synecdoche?" "What is synecdoche?" This board is awesome.

Newbies: The Newbies board is the least intimidating of all the Neopian boards. It is specifically designated for new players to meet other new players. It also boasts many veteran users who can offer advice to new users. Post here to get started on your Neopian journey!

Other Worlds: The Other Worlds board can best be described as other-worldly. This board is frequented by several types of users who mainly cluster together. Think E.T. or aliens. This board is funky and fun and best for users who are a little bit out there.

Petpet Park: The Petpet Park board is for discussions about Neopets' branch-off game, Petpet Park. Post here if you're curious about the game and want to learn how to play or learn how to join.

Quests: The Quests board is for when those pesky Faeries call upon you to find them an item. But lo-and-behold, you cannot use the Shop Wizard to find the item! So how do you find it? Post on this board, of course. The users here will be happy to assist you in your quest. Maybe you'll be one of the lucky few who receives a Fountain Faerie quest!

Role Playing: The Role Playing (RP) board was one of my favorite boards when I first started playing Neopets back in the dark ages. Go to the RP board to enter a new realm, to become a superhero, or to solve world issues. There is nothing quite as entrancing as leaving yourself for a while. If you enjoy Role Playing, this board is for you.

Shops Ads: The Shop Ads board provides space for you to advertise your shop. Just restocked with 1000 Lu Codestones? Post here and wait for the sales to come flooding in. To avoid spamming other boards, only post your Shop Ads here.

Spotlights and Galleries: The Spotlights and Galleries board features discussions about the various Spotlights that Neopets runs. Pop in to this board to get advice on your current works-in-progress, or just to ogle at previous or current winners.

Stock Tips: The Stock Tips board is the place to go to begin your investment journey. Have some spare Neopoints in your bank? Why not invest them and possibly strike it rich? Then you can treat your Neopets like royalty! Post here to get advice about which stocks to buy and which stocks to avoid.

Trading/Auctions: My personal favorite, the Trading/Auctions board, allows users to post ads boasting their current items for sale, or to post ads soliciting items to buy. Millions of Neopoints can be won or lost during each trade, so it's up to your wily business savvy to make sure that you come out on top. Post here to hit it big on the Trading Post or at the Auction House!

Virtupets: The Virtupets board's sole purpose is the plotting of evil. Want to become an evil minion? Look no further. Want to watch Neopia cower at your feet? You've found the right place. Assuming those meddling kids over at the Battledome board don't interfere with your plans.

And that's all she wrote! Hopefully this article has given you a solid overview on Neopia's Neoboards so that you now feel confident in posting to your heart's content. The boards may seem like a vast, unloving place at first, but under the hard exterior lies a soft, gooey interior of kind and caring Neopets users.