Guide to Customizing Lab Rats by clara_quinn
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Customization and lab rats are two ideas that seem to be incompatible. Lab rats, a term affectionately given to Neopets who are zapped by the lab ray every day, change species and color frequently. Users with lab rats might have a beautiful Faerie Peophin one day and a bland Yellow Chia the next day! Thus, most users faced with the challenge of continually needing to change outfits to suit their changing lab rat just give up and leave their pet uncustomized.
But what if there were clothes that could fit on lots of different pets? Fortunately, the massive pool of customizable items on this site includes cheap, consistent outfits that can help any species of any color stay fashionable. Pets who change color or species will still be able to wear the same outfit as before and look just as stylish! This guide will first delve into some of these items, breaking them down into Neopoint and Neocash categories. The guide will then discuss another option of using morphing potions and robot casing to dress pets.
Neopoint items
Giant Moach Costume
This item was given out by the Advent Calendar previously so it is still very affordable. It fits onto almost every pet and covers most pets’ bodies. There are some pets with features that stick out of the costume- for example Elephantes with their snouts- but these changes are tasteful and do not hurt the outfit’s overall aesthetic. Furthermore, dressing a fearsome Jetsam or Grarrl as a Giant Moach creates a very intimidating customization that will certainly pair up well with the increased stats of a lab rat.
Purple Cybunny Pyjamas
Also an Advent Calendar wearable, Purple Cybunny Pyjamas is super cheap. It offers a very stylish look in contrast with the Moach Costume’s darker aesthetic. Purple Cybunny Costume works especially well with smaller pets, making Grundos and Kacheeks among others look adorable! The costume’s colors, however, could clash with some pet colors. Whereas the dark colors of the Giant Moach Costume mix peacefully with almost any color, sometimes the colors of the Purple Cybunny Pyjamas do not work as well with darker pet colors such as Shadow. However, the costume is still excellently-drawn, and pairs well with almost all varieties of lab rats.
Neocash items
Hero of Neopia Superpack
Fortunately, the Superpacks in the NC Mall all work extremely well with lab rats. In particular, this wonderful outfit pairs well with just about any pet. Users can quickly turn their lab rats into a fearsome purveyor of justice with a cool matching background for just 750 NC.
Space Trooper Superpack
Also a cool Superpack that offers a powerful, composed look. The Space Trooper Superpack works well with any pet species and color as it fully encases most pets. It also offers a consistent look that will help pets define their identity even as they change species. The main difference here is that this Superpack does not offer its own background- fortunately, there are plenty of space-themed backgrounds that can be obtained in either the mall or for Neopoints off the Shop Wizard.
Tower Princess Superpack
This Superpack is a wonderful deal! For 700 NC, pets can dress as a fantasy princess with a matching background that even includes an animated Weewoo! This Superpack is certainly more feminine than many of the other packs included. The colors of this Superpack are a little bit limiting, because some pet colors such as orange or yellow do not fit as well with brown shades of the tower. However, this Superpack offers a charming outfit for many lab rats looking for a fantastical theme.
Enchanted Tale Superpack
This is a cool, newer Superpack that blends together darker and lighter colors. It is very well-animated and offers interesting characterization for pets. Like some of the other Superpacks, it does not fully encase pets in armor or clothing so the color schemes may not work as well for some pets. However, it still looks great on most pets with lighter colors and offers one of the most defined looks of any outfit mentioned in this article.
Woodland Archer Superpack
This Superpack also works well with just about any pet or species. It comes with a calming green background accentuated by colorful flowers. It even includes a neat bow and arrow that helps add character to pets. However, the colors do not necessarily work well with all pets. There needs to be some caution taken to make sure a pet’s colors match the earthly colors in this Superpack’s background.
Robot casing
Robot casing can also be used to spruce up a lab rat’s look! Robot casing, being fully-encasing armor for most pets, allows lab rats to maintain a relatively consistent look even as it changes color. The only catch is that the lab rat needs to stay the same species, as Robot casing can only be worn by its corresponding pet species. However, it is very possible today to maintain a constant species even for a lab rat as users can purchase and use cheap morphing potions on their lab rat whenever its species or color changes.
It can be hard to obtain some of these sets of casing. First of all, robot casing cannot be user-to-user transferred without having an uncased robot pet of that species. So for example, if I am looking for Robo Grarrl casing, I will first need my own Robot Grarrl. I would transfer my Robot Grarrl to a user with the casing, have them attach it, and have them transfer my Grarrl back to me with the casing. Of course, this introduces the problem of getting my own Robot Grarrl in the first place! It is possible for users to look around in the pound for uncased robot pets to transfer, but there is no guarantee any such pet will exist. Instead, the best strategy may be to continually zap a pet and wait until the Lab Ray changes the pet’s color to Robot. If the pet’s species changes, a Morphing Potion can be used to return the pet to the same species to try again. This may take some time but is feasible, especially since some of the Morphing Potions required are so cheap today.
Here are some of the sets of Robot clothing and the corresponding affordable Morphing Potion:
Robot Ogrin Set: Yellow Ogrin Morphing Potion
The Robot Ogrin casing is one of the best-looking casing sets, bringing a majestic and elegant look to a species that already has a great design. Furthermore, the Yellow Ogrin Morphing Potion is one of the cheapest Morphing Potions available.
Robot Techo Set: Pirate Techo Morphing Potion
The Robot Techo casing offers a very sanitized, bright look. It is very simple and can be easily paired up with darker backgrounds to create a strong contrast. The corresponding Morphing Potion is available from some daily events and thus is extremely cheap.
Robot Xweetok set: Blue Xweetok Morphing Potion
The Robot Xweetok set does not look like a Robot, but instead is closer to an astronaut-themed look, similar to the Space Trooper Superpack. The Morphing Potion is also very easy to find.
Robot Kyrii set: Green Kyrii Morphing Potion
The Robot Kyrii set is interesting because its bluish-green hue is so different from that of many other sets of robot casing. It works well with green backgrounds that other robot pets struggle to customize with. The Morphing Potion can easily be bought from the Shop Wizard.
Robot Eyrie set: Pirate Eyrie Morphing Potion
The Robot Eyrie casing looks wonderful! It is extremely well-drawn and has beautiful contrast in its crimson, silver, and gold design. This casing is one of the most authentically-robotic out of all sets of robot casing and works with many lab, space, or robot-themed backgrounds. The Pirate Eyrie Morphing Potion is also given out in dailies and can be bought very cheaply too.
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