winter – 🏝 Poptropica Help Blog 🗺

Hello once again everyone! Spotted Dragon here bringing you the December recap for Community Creations. December’s theme was Grapple-Pap, so be sure to check out all the featured artists!

No clue what’s going on? Go see our intro post.

Top 5 Picks

Holly Jolly Jester by Kade (aka mintyspinel9hg)

To kick things off: a perfect fit of a fit for the holiday season! I love the playfulness of the costume design and the unique approach to winter-themed attire. It mixes in just a touch of mischievousness with that holiday cheer. And I seriously want that present shooter in game! Find their Instagram here.

Twas the Night Before Grapple-Pap by Dizzy Feather

Next up, we have a wonderful Poptropica-style twist on a classic holiday tale. It’s really fun to see Grapple-Pap take on a story that pretty much everyone can recognize. Plus, the extra attention to composing the text on this wintery background gives it a special touch. Very clever! Find her in the comments and on the PHC Discord.

Grapple-Pap by Tillymeowjings-arsb

*“…Every year, for the Grapple-Pap holiday, I whip up some Grapple-Pops for the Baron. They slam the door in my face each time. It’s kind of this fun tradition we have…”*

Okay, geez, I should have warned you all this would get emotional! With just a few panels, this work definitely packs a punch with its story. The lore of the Baron, Amelia, and all the Fairy Tale Island royalty continues to grow, and so does my investment with these characters. 🥺 The juxtaposition between the warm, bright setting of the past and the cold, dark composition of the present is quite powerful. The visuals add a lot of significance to the dialogue from the airship. Excellent work! Find their Tumblr here.

Bracelet by HeartOfEnder

It was the morning of Grapple-pap. The morning where kids rushed down the stairs to open gifts with their families. A time where as the old saying goes, “if you don’t spread cheer, Grapple-pap will get you for a year.”

Boys asked for cars and action figures. Girls asked for dolls and ponies. That morning they would giggle and laugh with happiness at their new toys, playing with them all day long.

For the Jones family, living in a town with festive decorations up for their occasion, their gift to their son, Felix, was not a toy, but a tool.

As the young boy opened the small box which was the gift from his parents, he was met with a strange bracelet. Unlike the sparkly bracelet with beads girls wore, it was made with a durable, neon orange rope, tied in a way you could unravel it. the rope was connected by a black side connector buckle, like the ones you see on backpacks. A small compass was embedded in the buckle, and even the buckle’s shape was odd, with strange fork prongs inside.

“Daddy, what is this?” The young boy asked, looking up at his parents. His dad smiled, crouching down and explaining it all to him.

“My Fledgling, this is a survival bracelet.” he said, taking the bracelet from the box. “I know you want to explore the world, but there are dangerous things out there. This will help you avoid those dangers.”

“How?” Felix asked, even more interested in the bracelet.

“Think of all the uses for a rope. This survival bracelet can do it all.” His father explained. “It even comes with a knife, which might be the most useful tool ever.” “It’s still too big to fit on your wrist…” Felix’s mother pointed out as the young boy excitedly put the survival bracelet on. “But one day it’ll fit perfectly. I can’t wait for that day!”
CONTINUE READING HERE

Acting as both a Grapple-Pap tale and a short prequel to Felix’s origin in the author’s Aerie of Eagles series, this story serves up a great sense of nostalgia. It has a traditional holiday setting that many kids can reminisce on, and leaves you wanting to know more about where the characters are now. Very interesting introduction! Find their Tumblr here.

Tally Ho-Ho-Ho! by happyclonetrooper

Lastly, we have a hilarious holiday card that I would be happy to receive myself! The artist has remade this card every few years, each purposefully tacky yet increasingly more polished each time. And, I have to admit, the “tally ho-ho-ho” pun is a killer. 😉 I wonder what sort of gifts MVB would give out? Perhaps I don’t want to know the answer… Find her Instagram here.

Honorable Mentions

Goblin of Grapple-Pap by Magic Poptropican

Amazing work, everyone! It’s always hard to grapple with how talented you all are. From the whole PHB team, we hope you had an amazing holiday season and a great new year! Here’s to an even better 2023.

January: How Do I Participate?

Community Creations is a cool series for anyone in the Poptropica community to join in on. To sum up what it’s about, it’s basically a chance to show off your artwork, creepy fan-fics, Pop clubhouses, costumes, and anything else that pops into your mind.

If we really like the piece you submit, we will feature it here on the PHB! As long as it relates to that month’s theme. So what is January’s theme? January’s theme is…

🤔🧩 Puzzling! 🧩🤔

One of my favorite gameplay elements of Poptropica has always been the puzzles. From playing minigames like mancala on Nabooti Island, to solving mysterious codes on Spy Island or changing the dragon sculpture on Counterfeit Island, puzzles seem to be everywhere when you really think about it!

Some are pretty straight-forward and other are, well… puzzling! But that’s why we have PHB Island Guides to help you out. So as we enter 2023 and start solving a whole new year of puzzles and challenges, let’s take a moment to celebrate the fun ones and share our frustrations on the more difficult ones.

Maybe draw your Poptropican trying to solve a particularly puzzling puzzle, or write a story about your favorite puzzling Poptropica minigame. Perhaps design a costume for what you think the ultimate puzzle-solving master would look like, or even design a Poptropica puzzle yourself! Your work doesn’t even necessarily have to involve a physical puzzle, just something confusing or a brain teaser of sorts will do. The options are up to you! Good luck!

Submit: Comment below with a link to whatever you’ve created, email it to the PHB team on our Contact page, OR share it with me (SydVC aka Spotted Dragon) on DeviantArt, Twitter, Tumblr, Discord, OR the PHB’s Instagram.
Results: Next month, I will feature 5 submissions that stood out to me the most as well as some honorable mentions.
Limitations: Just make sure you relate to both the theme and Poptropica (and nothing NSFW or otherwise inappropriate).
Due Date: I will take any entries before the end of this month. Submit as many things as you’d like!

I will be sure to let you know I have seen your creation. While quality counts, I’m mainly looking for something to simply catch my eye, so don’t be afraid to join in!

So what are you waiting for? Go make something awesome!

~SD

PHB Parties

This Sat: PHB’s 2021 Grapple-Pap Party! 🥳❄️

December 12, 2021December 18, 2021 Slanted Fish

Happy Grapple-Pap, Poptropicans! To celebrate the holiday season (both on Poptropica and in general), the PHB is hosting a Grapple-Pap Holiday Party! 🎄🥳

Legend has it that Poptropicans are obligated to spread holiday cheer, or the great Grapple-Pap will get you for one whole year. Well, we love an excuse to party, so you’re all invited join us on the Discord sleigh for a merry time of Poptropica play! 🎊🎅

Save the date for Saturday, December 18 @ 8 pm Eastern / 7 pm Central / 6 pm Mountain / 5 pm Pacific (for all other time zones, check a time zone converter). In some parts of the world, it may be Sunday morning, Dec 19. 📅

We’ll be hanging out in Poptropica’s common rooms like the Arcade (via the in-game menu), playing head-to-head games, and talking on our Discord chat server, the PHC — a space where PHB staff and other Poptropicans regularly hang out. It’s open anytime, so come on in. 💬👋

Bring your wondrous winter wear and get ready to have a beautiful blizzard blast. See you this weekend! ❄️

~Poptropica’s little help bloggers 🎄

Uncategorized

This year, give the gift of Grapple-Pap 🎁

December 18, 2020December 19, 2020 Purple Paw

Heyo, Poptropicans! Big news: as promised, the festive Grapple-Pap side quest has appeared on Pop! After playing through it, I found it to be a very intriguing adventure. To begin, head across the wondrously snowy Home Island and speak to the man with a pile of presents.

He’ll ask you to deliver a gift to his sister. But before you accept the challenge, there’s one thing that needs to be set straight; what exactly is Grapple-Pap? According to the man, it’s ‘the time of year Poptropicans give gifts and merriment’. So it’s essentially the Poptropica version of Christmas! (I wonder what other holidays Poptropicans celebrate…)

If you’re feeling ready to go Grapple-Papping, respond with a ‘sure’ and you’ll be whisked off to start the adventure! Keep reading for a full guide with pictures below.

You’ll be in a very festive-looking town. Everybody’s dressed up in traditional Grapple-Pap apparel. Walk on up the road. You’ll pass by several townspeople getting ready for the holiday, including three jump-ropers and an ice-skater!

When asked where Clareta is, they all come up with generally the same answers. Nobody’s seen her for years, and they think that the Grapple-Pap got her. After all, if you don’t spread cheer, the great Grapple-Pap will get you for one whole year…very mysterious indeed. One will also tell you that the holiday is named after somebody called the Grapple-Pap! Finally, you’ll find a Poptropican who will give you a clue about Clareta. The baker up at the Salty Nugget tells you that Clareta lives in Cold Cliff Pass. An NPC wandering near the Salty Nugget will also warn you that Clareta has become ‘mean’ over the years…that can’t mean anything good.

Following the baker’s advice, go right to Cold Cliff Pass. There’s quite a bit of pretty winter scenery in this area.

Keep walking down the hill until you reach a tunnel of ice with several floating platforms. There’s a stone block with an engraving on it; push it all the way against the far wall of the ice cave, and jump on it to reach the last platform. From there, climb onto the top slope and exit the ice tunnel.

Walk up a second hill and you’ll find yourself in front of a ledge with another stone block on top of it. Hop onto the ledge, and push the block off of it. Keep pushing it until you reach a very tall snowdrift. Using the block as a boost, climb up onto the snowdrift.

Go down another ice tunnel, and jump up onto a second tunnel above it, this one filled with snow and holly. There’s another stone block wedged in this tunnel, so you’ll have to push it out before you can proceed. From there, you’ll see a rope. Climb up it, and you’ll be in a blizzard; dangerous, yet beautiful. Walk against the blizzard down a hill–and, hey, there’s footprints in the snow here! Clareta must live nearby!

Sure enough, at the bottom of the slope there’s a (rather rundown) house. Enter it.

Whoa, this house sure is creepy…just look at that huge, uh, whatever it is, hanging from the ceiling! But there’s a fire in the grate, so somebody must still live here. Walk through the house as far as you can go, past a huge bed with a bearskin on it, and you’ll see a piece of paper perched on a windowsill. Click on it, and you’ll see…

Aw, it’s Clareta and her brother (the man who sent you on the quest) at a Grapple-Pap years ago! Just look how young and happy they were…and it looks like Clareta is holding a Grapple-Pap gift not much different from the one you were sent to deliver to her. The two of them must have lived here together, at least when they were younger.

Once you’ve finished admiring that cute image, close it, and something quite frightening will happen. The bed behind you begins to shake…there’s a lump moving under the covers…and a very angry and bedraggled Clareta will burst out!! (Apologies for the horrible screenshot. I definitely wasn’t expecting something like that to happen!)

Wow, somebody’s feeling nasty today. Clareta will scream at you to leave her house, which you, quite willingly, do. That Grapple-Pap’ll always get you if you’re not careful, as Clareta clearly demonstrated. But you can’t let it end like this…there must be something you can do to remind Clareta of the holiday spirit!

And, indeed, an opportunity presents itself! A very large pile of snow outside the house falls away to reveal a huge stone block with what must be the Grapple-Pap himself engraved upon it. Click on the block, and it’ll slide down the hill and crash straight into Clareta’s house! Oops…

Another scream will issue from the now-broken house, and Clareta will come outside and sprint away, promising that she’ll spread cheer. Run along after her.

Follow her back into the town, where she’ll be dancing (sudden change in mood, huh?) while holding a Grapple-Pop. She’ll thank you for reminding her what Grapple-Pap is all about, and gives you a Grapple-Pop as your reward. Congratulations, you’ve completed the Grapple-Pap quest!

Equip the Grapple-Pop and press space bar to turn everybody’s heads green.

Welp, that sure was a wild ride! Even though it’s not a full island, this side quest has really given us some insight on Poptropican lore and traditions. Overall, I think it’s pretty cool (pun may or may not be intended). But what do you think? Let us know in the comments down below! Merry Grapple-Pap!

~Purple Paw

Bonus Items, Member Gifts, Membership, Store

Horseback riding through the snow, with plenty of sweaters to stay warm ❄️ 🐴

December 8, 2020January 9, 2021 Purple Paw

Hey there, Poptropicans! First things first: another week has flashed by, and that means another store rotation! There’s not a whole lot of new items this time around, but the costume section has got a few cool outfits added. Let’s take a look!

The newest items added this week include:

Sunny Sport, Tie-Dye Hoodie, Rock Star (male & female), Elf Costume*

The Little Candy Cane, which remains in the store from last week’s rotation, is oddly showed in both the Power section and the Costume section. Strange, but the more candy canes, the merrier!

The store isn’t the only place to find fun new gear, as 12 Days of Member Gifts festivities are still going strong! For Day 7, Poptropica members received the fabulous—and ever so slightly ridiculous—Snowflake Costume! Just perfect for winter.

Or, if sporting the giant snowflake look is too cold for you, there’s always the option to take the warmer route and bundle up in a Cozy Seater (Day 8)! (Perhaps they meant “Sweater”?)

Once you’ve finished your holiday shopping, maybe pop on over to the newest ad: Spirit: Riding Free is available to play on Home Island, or you can access it through the in-between scenes on any island.

The ad doesn’t involve much; all you’re asked to do is watch a short trailer video, and you’re given two themed prizes. The prizes are Lucky’s Racing Gear and Free Spirit! Check out what happens when you tap the space bar on that second item…

Neat stuff! And that’s not all that’s happening this month; join in on the PHB’s Gone-in-a-Flash holiday party, participate in December’s Fire and Ice themed Community Creations, and even submit your ideas to the Creators for the Create Your Dream Island contest before it closes! Happy holidays, and I’ll see you all next time!

~Purple Paw 💜

Bonus Items, Member Gifts, Membership, Social Media

The mathematical art of wintry member gifts

December 23, 2019January 9, 2021 Gentle Dolphin

Merry (almost) Christmas, Poptropicans! 🎄

We’ve already covered the first, second, and third waves of member gifts. Now it’s time to unwrap these last few gifts! This final batch of member gifts are pretty cool, pun fully intended.

And the items are: Jack Frost, Ice Princess, Instant Ice, Snow Cone Toss, Carrot Nose, and Flying Sleigh. Thanks to Osmium for sharing pics of the items and animated gifs of the powers in action!

If you have an active membership at anytime this month, these items will be added to your inventory. Act fast before the festive gifts freeze over!

Over on the Creators’ Blog, Blue Tooth wrote a post detailing how Poptropica’s art is made. The post begins with a series of sketches for a Mythology Island-themed home screen. Artists create these small sketches, called thumbnails, to help them figure out what they want the picture to look like before they start adding details.

After the team agrees on a concept, they begin the sketch phase. And after approving the clean sketches, they put them in a vector format. What’s that, you ask? Blue Tooth describes the process in this paragraph:

What’s a vector? It’s a special, unique way you can make images on a computer. Instead of needing to save every single pixel in a picture, vectors draw and color pictures with math! (Bet you didn’t see THAT coming.) Vectors are what make Poptropica possible. The whole game uses them to run! That’s right, guys. We wouldn’t have Poptropica without math.

Poptropica’s team of artists work hard to deliver quality content to make the game more lively. For example, some players may have spotted a new home screen on Poptropica’s homepage. This screen features a cast of Poptropicans enjoying a nice day at a park while showcasing some in-game fashion. It hasn’t shown up on all browsers yet, but perhaps it soon might!

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin🐬

Tag: winter

Community Creations: December 2022