| Guide to Scamming with Neopets Items
Hello,
This is my first guide so go easy on me. I hope that it will be informative and helpful.
In essence, this is a guide to a simple way of scamming that is much less likely to get you caught and works on newbies as well as older members of the site. Here are a few things you need to get started:
1.) This works best with multiple people, so I will say you will need at least two people, although three or more is best. The more people who are in on it, the less likely you will get caught.
2.) You will usually need a somewhat substantial amount of np to start, usually somewhere between 2 million to 4 million neopoints. Having multiple members helps with this though as you can split this start up cost.
3.) You need a target item. This item should be somewhat rare and not restock often, but not be very high in price. One that is barely buyable is a great choice. It is also best to get an item that is not well known.
For this guide, I am going to use an example of the Blugthak Plushie. Previous scammers have used this item, so it is a great example with history. At the time the Plushie was 80k-99k on the Shop Wizard and TP.
This example will also contain a simple four scammer team.
>>The first day the team should buy up all the Blugthak plushies on the shop wizard and the TP. This works best if two users, which we will call "inactive scammers" only buy a few of these while the other two "active scammers" buy the majority.
>>The second part of the scam commences with the two "inactive scammers" posting their Blugthak Plushies for a high amount in the TP, usually in the millions but not TOO high. The two inactives should also have price variances as if they are competing.
(**Note: If your team has more members than this example, you may want to put another inactive's item in the Auctions for a similar amount)
>>Now that the item is seemingly high priced, it is time to start bidding the Plushies from your inventory stock on expensive items at the Trading Post such as paintbrushes and battledome items. You will want to try to get rid of as many as possible so you can make that spent NP back. This should only be done by the "active scammers" of the team as the inactives would more easily draw attention to the scam by participating in this part. Here are a few examples about what is likely to happen:
1.) The user will look up the Plushie to see it's worth, then hastily accept before you change your mind.
2.) The user will neomail you asking why you would bid such a high priced item on their item. Give them a good response. I particularly like once such as : "I forgot it was my neofriend's birthday. I don't have time to haggle with people on this item and thought this {item you bid on} would make a good gift." Be creative and come up with some good ones before you start this scam.
3.) The person might know that the item was originally a much lower price. Here are a few scenarios for this kind of user:
- They will reject your bid and that will be the end of it
- They will neomail you asking about it, possibly calling you a scammer. This is where you neomail them back (it's best to come up with possible answers BEFORE you start this scam) with an explanation. A good explanation could be : "I had this item sitting in my SDB forever and had decided to make some np while cleaning my account up. I am only selling it according to what the TP has it priced at."
- The person might start a scammer board. This is the worst possible situation and may be hard to wriggle out of. This is why it is good to have those inactive scammers with the items posted on the TP, as they seem uninvolved. You can either ignore the board or post on the board and be confronted. If you decide to post, be sure you are confident and be ready for the confrontation. A good thing to do is to act upset, like you are the victim, and that they are accusing you of something you didn't do. Harassment is a great word to use. Use one of your good explanations such as the SDB one above. I would also like to note it is probably best on ONE of the active scammers post on the board if possible to draw less suspicion.
>>Now if all went as planned the next step is really up to you and your team. It will be good to use one of the other guides that involve transferring items to other account without getting caught for this as well since you "inactive" scam buddies are sure to want some of the cut. It is a dire mistake to automatically distribute the items among the accounts that had been buying the Blugthak plushies as that will draw TNT suspicion.
A really great aspect of the scam is once it has started, users who you scammed will actually help you out! They will usually post the item back on the TP or Auction at a similar price to your made up one, making it seem all the more legit. Of course it is unlikely to last forever once the item starts to restock in the Neopets run shops, so you will want to take advantage of this as fast as you can.
Now that we have been through the plan, here are a few mistakes you can make:
1.) NEVER talk about the scam on neo, even between your team. It's best if you aren't even neofriends with your teammates.
2.) Under no circumstance should you tell someone you have tried to scam that is was in fact a scam. Don't even hint at it. Stick to your guns and premade innocent excuses. You may think "Oh, common sense" but I have seen so many scammers do this and get frozen.
3.) Make sure you get ALL of the item. This is a very common mistake. If there is even one of the items at the original price, it is much easier for people to see it is a scam and inform others. It all goes downhill from there. So be progressive. Refresh thoroughly or use Super Shop wizard to make sure there are NONE of the item on the Shop Wizard. At the same time, try to wrangle any that are on the TP/auctions. Also do this DURING the scam, to make sure no one is trying to undermine it.
The phrase "one mouldy strawberry will ruin the whole basket" applies to this scam.
Well, I hope you enjoyed my guide. I have known several people who have done this for years without getting caught. It does carry a bit of risk of you A.) Getting caught and frozen or B.) Not being able to fool any and losing your investment but as long as you do it right your risk can be minimized. | 
gonna try this out :P
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