The Road to a Paintbrush

Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there's no easy way to get a paintbrush. It's almost entirely based off of luck. There are, however, tips and tricks. And I will share these tips and tricks with you! Again, there's no easy way to obtain the pet of your dreams. It's hard work, commitment, and most often times - luck. There are methods you can employ in order to work towards your goal - that beautiful, wonderful paintbrush.

1. Random Events!

Sounds lame. I know. Too simple! Often times, however, the simplest solution is the most obvious. Random events around Neopia can offer a multitude of rewards (and unfortunate circumstances... you win some, you lose some). These rewards can include paintbrushes! They also can include transmogrification potions. Beggars can't be choosers. If you wanted a pirate Eyrie, but get ahold of an Acara Transmogrification Potion instead, you're set! Mutant Acaras are pretty dang cool. And, if you don't want the potion, you could sell it for a pretty penny on auction, or in the trading post. Those neopoints you could use to buy a paintbrush of your choice. Now, you can't guarantee a random event to occur. They are, by nature, random. However, you can encourage them to occur. Every time a page on neopets loads, you have a chance to receive an event. You could, in theory, refresh your page over and over again to fish for an event. I, however, prefer to play games such as Dice-a-Roo, the Scorchy Slots, Double or Nothing... games that are cheap to play, and constantly refresh the page as I play them. Now if only my pet liked to play these games as much as I do...

Random events aren't just for paintbrushes. They have a multitude of uses. These uses can often times help you in getting that paintbrush you so desperately want. For instance, I recently stumbled across a very rare item as I was playing Double or Nothing. After doing a bit of research, I found that this item was worth a considerable amount of neopoints!

2. Buying a paintbrush!

None are particularly cheap. There's cheaper ones, but some would argue that the price is still too high. For example, the Snow Paint Brush is worth around 20,000 neopoints. However there are other paintbrushes that some Neopians would pay in the millions for. For those who have the neopoints to spare - this is the easiest method of obtaining a paintbrush.

You can't sell an item in your shop for more than 99,999 neopoints. This means that you're not likely to find a rare paintbrush from the shop wizard. You're going to have to find another way of making your purchase. Most often, you'll find rare paintbrushes for sale on the Trading Post or at auction. Both forms of sale require a fair bit of competition with other Neopians. At the trading post, the seller receives offers and can either accept or deny said offer. If they have more than one offer, they pick one. The auctions are a different story entirely! They're time based. The seller sets an asking price, a bid increment, and a time. After the time on the auction expires, the last bidder wins the item for the price they bid at. Each bid, naturally, causes the price of the item to rise. Often times, the winner of the auction boils down to the last few minutes of the auction.

As mentioned, paintbrushes require a LOT of neopoints to acquire. I could write another entire article on how to earn neopoints. The short version consist of two things. Games, and shops. Every day, there is a new featured game which offers two times the neopoint reward. This amounts to a total of 6,000 neopoints, assuming you have the skill to get the maximum award. Each other game can yield up to 3,000 neopoints. These points can rack up fast. Your other option requires just as much patience and skill as the first. Going to the stores of Neopia and buying merchandise to sell in your own store can provide a substantial amount of profit. Be careful! This can often times lead to your own ruin! A bad investment can turn things sour very quickly. I try to keep an eye on stores such as the spooky food stall, which provide foods required for the Esophagor who gives answers to the Brain Tree's questions. These foods are in high demand and as such, can fetch a high price. Note, however, that while some foods can be sold for large sums of money, just as many are on the shop wizard for less than 100 neopoints. Shop Smart!

3. Rewards!

There are some games that can award paintbrushes. The Wheel of Excitement, The Wheel of Monotony, and the Fruit Machine are all games that can reward a paintbrush. Contests around Neopia also offer paintbrushes as a reward from time to time. However, these contests usually require a substantial amount of wit, creativity, and skill. These contests include

4. Laboratory!

Okay, so it's not a paintbrush. It's a HUGE investment. The neopoints you spend on all nine pieces is enough to buy a paintbrush on its own. The secret laboratory zaps your pets. It can change their gender, their species, and most importantly - their color. It is, by nature, random! However, if you're not picky, it's perfect. The laboratory can also inflate your neopets battle stats! Useful, isn't it? Best of all - access to the laboratory grants you access to the petpet laboratory, so you can zap your petpets! Please note, however, that occasionally your petpet can be turned into a pile of sludge... You win some, you lose some. Right?

5. Adoption!

Again, its not a paintbrush. However you can, on occasion, find an unwanted pet in the shelter with a shiny coat. Some generous Neopians will even zap a pet at the laboratory, and give up said pet at the shelter so that another Neopian can have a 'painted' pet all their own. Act fast though! These pets have a tendency to get snatched up almost immediately.

I hope these tips have helped you all start on the path to getting that much desired paintbrush. Be it by random chance, Neopian wealth, a contest reward, a laboratory experiment, or a lucky adoption, I hope you find the neopet of your dreams.