| TRADING POST - It's a jungle out there. No, I'm not talking about the miles and
miles of jungle on Mystery Island, filled with beasts such as the Lava Ghoul and
the Ghost Lupe, not to mention the cannibalistic natives. I'm talking about the
Trading Post.
Tons of people, trying to ease the weight of their inventory... using any
means possible. You have to get the item you want, at the right price, without
being scammed. Recently, you might have read "Tricks of the Trade: Selling Via
the Trading Post" which outlined some good techniques of selling your items
in the Trading Post. This week, I hope to help you get the best deals from the
people trying to sell their cheesy wares... mmmmm, cheese.
What's the item you want? Let's say you want your Poogle to sport a cute Strawberry
coat of paint. No, the first step is not to go to the Trading Post. First go
to the Shop Wizard. Unless the item is unbuyable, the Shop Wizard can tell you
the price you should be paying. This helps you not get scammed.
So, you search for the Strawberry Fields Forever Paint Brush (rock on, Beetles!)
to find the brush is 70,000 NP. This is great, imagine somebody asking for 100,000,
the average price of several Paint Brushes. Well, that saves about 30,000.
Now here's where the trading begins. Since you know the price of the Strawberry
Fields Forever Paint Brush, you know how much to pay. You search for the brush
in the Browse Lots section. Here's a good tip: The lots closer to the bottom
are the lots created most recently. That helps, because offering on a lot near
the top could waste your time. The person who made that lot might have quit
Neopets since then or if they haven't accepted an offer in such a long time,
the lot could just be for show.
So you're searching for a lot that asks the appropriate price and that's near
the bottom. Even if they didn't include anything in their wishlist, it's still
fine to offer. If a lot has more than one item, Neomail the owner of that lot
to see if he/she would mind separating the offers.
Most people ask for pure NP when they create a lot. Why? Well, NP is just
easier to handle. They can easily deposit it in their Bank Account or spend
it right away. Plus, they don't have to sell any items in an offer.
Try to follow the wishlist. If they ask for NP, bid NP. If they ask for certain
items totalling the price, bid those items. It's just more likely they'll accept
if they get what they want.
So make an offer. Once you've made a fair offer, sit back and relax. It's
time to wait. Don't cancel your bid if the owner of the lot doesn't reply straight
away. Perhaps they are just not available. But if they don't respond within
a couple of days, cancel your bid. It's time to bid on another lot. Keep repeating
until you've got the item. I know, it sometimes needs a lot of persistence.
And if the item is buyable, maybe you should use the shops instead.
Here are some ways to prevent being scammed. A good idea is to lose good old
fashion logic. If someone is quitting Neopets and they have a lot of an item
that isn't worth much (such as a Palm Fan) and they're asking for 100,000 NP
so they can give you their account full of millions of NP, don't do it. It's
just a scam to get your NP. They won't give you your account and the only thing
you'll be getting is a big empty space in your Bank Account.
Another tip to prevent you getting scammed is watch out what you're bidding
for. No, a bag of peas isn't a bag full of an infinite number of attack peas.
It's just a bag brimming over with fresh peas that were apparently picked this
morning... or so the description says. Plus, a raw potato isn't a battle potato.
They look the same, but they aren't the same. And I really think the Lupe who
runs the toy shop wasn't paying attention when she ordered a shipment of paint
brush plushies. They're just non-magical plushie versions of some paint brushes.
No, they won't make your pets plushies. They're just useless little toys.
So there you have it. I hope you're a little wiser when it comes to the Trading
Post, knowing how to get what you want and how not to get scammed. This is too_kule,
doing the chicken dance at the Trading Post. Bye!
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