Skylanders Giants Newlanders Upgrade Paths

Newlander Upgrade Paths in Skylanders Giants

First off let me just say that this is a long time overdue...Having gone the entire blind playthrough with "box stock" Skylanders took away from things...It did make for a bit more of a challenge, and I did have peace of mind for potential Heroic Challenge issues or Quest Problems etc, but the upgrades are one of the more enjoyable parts of the game.

That said, I will still log these videos on the Skylanders Giants Blind Playthrough Blog Post:  http://1ofwiisdom.blogspot.com/2012/10/skylanders-giants-playthrough.html

Similarly, you can catch the Giants Upgrade Paths here:
http://www.1ofwiisdom.com/2013/06/skylanders-giants-giant-upgrade-paths_29.html

Take this link for the Series 2 Skylander Upgrade Paths:
COMING SOON!

But, I felt the series was worthy of a stand alone post.  Luckily, with the Newlanders and their in-game variants, LightCore Versions, or Legendary counterparts I had 2 of almost all of them....which means you get to see BOTH PATHS!  The only one I don't have 2 for is Sprocket, which may change here soon...I caved in and bought another Fright Rider.

*Please note that all the "numbers" I use are with the full discount (All 20 Winged Sapphires).

That aside, the videos will be below, but I want to take a little time to showcase what you'll need to fully upgrade any Newlander (I think this is way easier to understand in text form, but I realize most prefer video...hence why I rambled on about it):

So basically, as reiterated in the video, you need $8,520 to fully upgrade your Newlander.  With that out of the way, here are the vids:

Jet-Vac Bird Blaster Upgrade Path (SG Part 108 via LC Jet-Vac)

Jet-Vac's Vac-Packeteer Upgrade Path (SG Part 107 via Jet-Vac)

Flashwing's Super Shards Upgrade Path (SG Part 109 via Flashwing)

Flashwing's Super Spinner Upgrade Path (SG Part 110 via Jade Flashwing)

Hot Dog's Burning Bow-Wow (SG Part 111)

Hot Dog's Pyro Pooch (SG Part 112 via Molten Hot Dog)

Shroomboom's Barrier Boost Path (SG Part 113 via Shroomboom)

Shroomboom's Paramushroom Promotion (SG Part 114 via LC Shroomboom)

Pop Fizz's Best of the Beast (SG Part 115 via Pop Fizz)

Sprocket's Operator Path (SG Part 116)

Fright Rider's Sir Lancealot Path (SG Part 117)

Fright Rider's Joust Jockey Path (SG Part 118)

Chill's Frozen Fury Path (SG Part 119 via Chill)

Chill's Ice Lancer Path (SG Part 120 via Legendary LightCore Chill)

Skylanders Giants featured in McDonald's Happy Meal

Tomorrow, Friday, April 12th, 2013 marks the "official" date that you should start finding Skylanders Giants toys in Happy Meals.  I have a feeling there will be a lot of adults purchasing Happy Meals for themselves this time around.

Here is the group shot from HappyMeal.com:

As best I can tell, the "boys" will get Giants while girls will get Fijits Shimmies.  So, if your daughter wants that new Jet-Vac, make sure to denote you want a "boys" Happy Meal.

That said, your other option...should you not have kids, grandkids, nieces, or nephews and don't much care for the food...you can usually walk in and purchase the set.

I went out with my family Friday night and we got 4 Happy Meals.  The end result?  3 Drobots and 1 Crusher.  Not exactly what we had hoped for...That made me realize how important it would be to land the set by just purchasing it.  That McDonald's refused to sell me any (ie employee doesn't know, doesn't care, or doesn't want to do it).

I got pretty lucky Saturday and found a store willing to sell me the set (or in my case, all but Drobot).  They brought out 2 new boxes (one was white and blue, the other white and black).  It took a few minutes for 2 employees to find all 8...I noticed Kaos and Chop Chop were the last two to be fished out.  Meanwhile, they accumulated a stack of Drobots and Tree-Rexs on the counter.

As soon as I heard the price was $1.69 per toy, I knew I made the right call.  With tax, I walked out the door with all 8 that I needed for around $14.  When we got 4 Happy Meals Friday night, we were out $15 or $16.  Plus, I had some bad nuggets, lol.  That said, this worked out quite well as I now don't have to buy more Happy Meals, beg to exchange duplicates, or worry that between kids, collectors, and scalpers I might miss out on Kaos (the one I really wanted the most).

Here are a few videos highlighting the complete set and individual openings for more detail:

COMPLETE COLLECTION VIDEO

1.  Tree Rex

2. Spyro

3.  Gill Grunt

4. Jet-Vac

5. Crusher

6. Drobot

7. Chop Chop

8. Ignitor

9. Kaos

Note that I ordered them by their toy number which you can find on the bag (1-9).  You might also find this interesting:

All 8 Elements are covered with 1 Skylander.  Kaos makes up the 9th.

Series 2 Skylanders: 5 (Spyro, Gill Grunt, Drobot, Chop Chop, Ignitor)

Newlanders: 1 (Jet-Vac)

Giants: 2 (Tree Rex and Crusher)

Light-up Effect: 1 (Tree Rex)

Projectile Effect: 3 (Spyro, Gill Grunt, Jet-Vac)

Inertial Move: 1 (Crusher)

90 Degree Move: 2 (Chop Chop, Ignitor)

Wing Flap: 1 (Drobot)

Face Switch: 1 (Kaos)

Projectile Strength (Farthest to Shortest): Spyro, Gill Grunt, Jet-Vac

The best news is that the toys all look much better than you would think based on the online appearance at happymeal.com.

They lack the secondary colors and detail you are used to with regular Skylanders, but for $1.69 they are pretty nice.

Overall, this is a nice, affordable set for collectors and something kids will really enjoy and look forward to...

The real draw for me still remains KAOS.  He is a nice size and I am fine with the limited action due to just finally having a Kaos figure to include with the rest of the collection...I think he will easily be the most sought after....

Good luck landing your favorites, or completing a set!

Beyblade Metal Fury Hyperblades Spark FX Unboxing Cosmic Pegasus BB-105-FX

What?  Cosmic Pegasus BB-105-FX
Where Did You Get It?  Toys'R'Us
What Did It Cost?  $9.99

Unboxing Cosmic Pegasus BB-105-FX

This new Hyperblades version of Cosmic Pegasus looks great with the green and blue color scheme.  My Nephew and I both really liked it.  Here is a little more on one of the best known beys latest iteration:

Beyblade Metal Fury Hyperblades Spark FX Unboxing Blitz Striker BB-117-FX

What? Blitz Striker BB-117-FX
Where Did You Get It?  Toys'R'Us
What Did It Cost?  $9.99

Unboxing Blitz Striker Metal Fury Hyperblades with Spark FX

Here is a little baseline info on Blitz Striker's Hyperblade Version:

Beyblade Metal Fury Spark FX Beat Lynx BB-109B

What?  Beyblade Metal Fury Spark FX Beat Lynx BB-109B
Where Did You Get It?  Toys'R'Us
How Much Did It Cost?  Retail $9.99, I think I got it on 50% in an online order

Well, here it is...my first venture into uploading Beyblade content to the YouTube Channel and posting it to this blog.  I had tons of requests for it back in the day, and since my Nephew is now very much into Beyblades, it makes perfect sense to dive right in to the mix...

I believe it was last year that he really got into them...We went to a demo at Toys'R'Us and he was hooked...He knows the recent episodes of the cartoon inside-and-out.

I mention all that because he was a special guest commentator on all three of these first unboxings!  We've assembled a nice collection over the last few months, but I will now start documenting new additions with unboxings and then you'll slowly see who else is in the mix with battles I plan to record.

Nonetheless, here is some baseline info on Beat Lynx:

The Legend of Zelda Hyrule Historia: Opening and Background

What? The Legend of Zelda Hyrule Historia
Where Did You Get It?  Amazon.com
What Did It Cost?  $20.99
What Is Stock Like?  Currently easy to come-by...that could change.

2011 marked the 25th Anniversary of The Legend of Zelda.  Those of us in the US had Skyward Sword, the musical cd, deluxe version with the Gold Wiimote, and the symphony.  Japan got a commemorative book that highlights the entire series with a time-line, background stories, and concept art.

I can't read the book to you, or show you all the artwork, but I can let you know it is available...and that is what I wanted to do.  While you can likely drive to the nearest bookstore and get this tomorrow, that may not always be the case.  Items like these tend to come and go quite slowly...Where you can easily get it for $20.99 now (list is $34.99)...a few more months might see it fade away and leave you hunting ebay...and paying MUCH MORE than you could right now.

In all honesty, you could buy this book just to throw on a table, or have the master sword binding in your bookcase.  It looks good!  It would be right at home just about anywhere and can be appreciated by a vast audience...even those not into video games.

If you are even the least bit interested in this, I would suggest you pick it up sooner rather than later.