Top 10 Best Bargains for the Gifting Season

With the season of gifting past approaching, the snazziest among us have already started planning and saving for the biggest, brightest and merriest holiday season yet. And Year 13 has not failed to impress, delivering up some of the best bargains to be had in Neopia since Balthazar's faerie giveaway! Whether you are an expert bargain hunter, a neopoint-conscious fashionista, or just another Neopian simply wanting to make a big impression for a small price, here are the top 10 best bargains to be had in Year 13*. So now you can hold onto more of your hard-earned neopoints but still surprise your friend with that perfect gift. And just in time for the season of giving!

#10: Secret Laboratory Map

Before Price: 1mil for all 9 pieces

After Price: 800k for all 9 pieces

This wonderful prize was released as part of the Trillion Page Views celebrations. This gift is perfect for the friend who has everything – assembling all 9 pieces allows access to the secret laboratory, where a pet's species, stats and colours may be altered just by one zap of the secret laboratory ray. Once access is granted, access is unlimited – thus the perfect gift that keeps giving. And for a bargain price!

#9: Altador Strength Potion

Before Price: Redeemable for points from the Faeries Ruin Plot

After Price: 290k

Got a friend who loves showing off the strength of their pet? Surprise them with an Altador Strength Potion – and allow them to give their pet the strength of King Altador this holiday season. This potion increases the strength of its drinker by 5 points – so make sure to be friendly when you're handing over this gift!

#8: Altador Cup VI Commemorative Stamp

Before Price: Redeemable for Altador Cup VI points

After Price: 400k

If your friend is an avid stamp collector, or simply just loves the Altador Cup, take your friend back to the glory of summer with this beautifully crafted collector's piece. Never again after to be re-released, this is not only the perfect investment, but also guaranteed to take pride of place in your friend's stamp collection.

#7: Sword of Skardsen

Before Price: 10 million

After Price: 9 million

Make your friend the talk of the Battledome with a beautifully crafted Sword of Skardsen. Released as a plot prize for the Faerie's Ruin Plot, the beautiful silver blade with a ruby set into its hilt is both beautiful and deadly. And just the thing your friend needs to open those other presents. ;)

#6: Plushie Paint Brush

Before Price: 8 million

After Price: 6 million

Who doesn't love a plushie – those cute, fluffy, cuddly things that just beg to be hugged? Surprise your friend with a plushie paint brush, and thereafter start enjoying hugging her adorable new plushie pet! Having deflated 2 million neopoints after the introduction of the Wheel of Extravagance, this wonderful paint brush will definitely never be regifted.

#5: Codestones and Dubloons

Before Price: Codestones averaged 8k, Dubloons 8k

After Price: Codestones averages 4k, Dubloons 5k

These little artefacts are almost treated as currency on Mystery Island and Krawk Island, allowing your friend to train their pet with the Techo Master or Cap'n Threelegs. After the introduction of the Krawk Island Anchor Management event dubloons have deflated even further, allowing even more pets the opportunity to study and train under the guidance of Cap'n Threelegs. These are the perfect little gift and even such a small bundle of kindness goes a long way – these are sure to be appreciated!

#4: Faerie Paint Brush

Before Price: 3.5 million

After Price: 950k

Many pets only dream of being painted faerie – their beauty, their elegance and their power are second to none. After the release of the Faerie Paint Brush as a plot prize after the Faerie's Ruin Plot, many pets are now granted the opportunity to finally achieve their dream colour. So surprise your friend with the gift of this beautiful paint brush, and give a Neopet the ability to rise, fly and soar, just like those wonderful faeries.

#3: Pirate Paint Brush

Before Price: 8 million

After Price: 1.6 million

The bronze medal for best bargain-to-be-had and best-present-to-be-given goes to the Pirate Paint Brush. Because they ARRRR! Ok, enough with the bad jokes. Whether given just by itself or in conjunction with the pirate petpet paint brush, this amazing brush will transfer any pet from dreary landlubber to sword-wieldin' chest-plunderin' arrrr-mazing pirate! Having deflated an amazing 6 million neopoints after the introduction of the Krawk Island Anchor Management event, now it's possible for every pet's pirate dreams to be fulfilled. So why not grant a dream today?

#2: Pirate Draik Eggs

Before Price: 20 million

After Price: 8 million

The silver medal goes to Pirate Draik Eggs. Who in Neopia has not dreamed of owning a majestic Draik? At their previous price of 20 million neopoints, for many this dream was just that – a dream. But after the introduction of the Forgotten Shore treasure map, Draik eggs have deflated to the current price of just 8 million (and the writers of this article have both been lucky enough to find an egg!). The owner of such an egg needs simply to take the egg to the Draik nest and voila – a magnificent Draik will be brought to life! So, be generous and grant your friend the pet they have always dreamed of – though they may deny it – with the wonderful gift of a pirate Draik egg. Trust us, you will definitely be moved to the top of your neofriend's VIP list! ;)

#1: Magical Pirate Krawk Plushie

Before Price: 20 million

After Price: 5.5 million

The gold medal for the best-value-bargain and most-desired-gift has got to go to the wonderful Magical Pirate Krawk Plushie, which has deflated an astounding 14.5 million neopoints since the introduction of the Anchor Management event at Krawk Island. Krawks have consistently won the wooden spoon at the Most Popular Neopets award, but you can change this by giving your friend one of these wonderful plushies. Any pet who plays with such a plushie will be automatically transformed into a Krawk – so be sure to warn your friend before she tosses it to that cute baby Aisha she just adopted. Lovers of neopoints and Krawks everywhere can now rejoice. With friends like these, who needs Balthazar's faerie giveaways anyway?

So there you have it. Whether your friend is a customiser, pet lover, collector or Battledomer, there is always a perfect gift at a bargain price. So stock up, surprise your best neofriend with the present she has always wanted, and be pleasantly surprised at the end of it all that you still have a little to spend on yourself! And yes, you can thank us later.

*Prices are the authors' best estimates at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.