Hypixel’s SkyBlock is a game of numbers. You grind, you flip, you sweat, and you hope the admins don’t nerf your favorite money-making method into the ground. But nothing—honestly, nothing—prepared the player base for the absolute chaos that was the Year of the Pig. It wasn’t just a seasonal celebration. It was a total economic upheaval.
If you weren't there on the Hypixel server when Technoblade was elected Mayor, it’s hard to describe the energy. It was frantic. It was laggy. The Year of the Pig SkyBlock event changed how people thought about the game's progression. Most players expected a few buffs. Maybe some cheap items. What they got was a masterclass in community engagement and a massive influx of "Shiny Pigs" that literally rained down rewards.
The Technoblade Factor and the Mayor Election
Let’s be real. The election system in SkyBlock is usually a predictable rotation of Aurene, Paul, or Marina depending on who wants to dungeon or fish. But when Technoblade entered the fray, it wasn't just another election. It was a landslide. He stayed in power for much longer than a standard term, and the perks he brought were genuinely game-breaking.
The "Greatest Event" perk was the centerpiece. It promised a celebration of the 100th SkyBlock year, and boy, did it deliver. You had people ignoring their minions and pausing their farm builds just to stand in the Hub. Why? Because of the "Shiny Pigs." These weren't your average Minecraft mobs. They were the ticket to items that usually took dozens of hours to grind.
How the Year of the Pig SkyBlock Changed the Game
If you wanted a Potato Talisman, this was your moment. If you needed a Flying Pig pet, you had to get your hands on a Shiny Orb. You’d use the orb on a pig, it would go flying, and you’d chase it down like your life depended on it. It sounds silly. It was silly. But the rewards were anything but.
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People were getting millions of coins. They were getting Enchanted Baked Potatoes. It was basically a massive stimulus package for the entire server.
The Economic Ripple Effect
When you inject that much wealth into a closed economy, things get weird. The Bazaar prices for anything related to farming or pig-related drops spiked and then cratered. It was a volatile time to be a trader. I remember seeing people panic-selling their inventories because they thought the "Shiny Pig" rewards would make everything else worthless. They weren't entirely wrong.
The event showed that the developers could, if they wanted to, completely bypass the traditional "grind" of the game. It was a moment of pure, unadulterated fun that prioritized the community over the "balance" that the admins usually obsess over.
The Mechanics of the Shiny Pig Event
You couldn't just stand there and get rich. Well, you kind of could, but you had to be active. You grabbed an orb from the Technoblade NPC in the Hub. You clicked a pig. The pig launched. You had to follow it.
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- Shiny Orbs: These were the catalysts. You’d get them for free, and they were the only way to interact with the event mobs.
- The Rewards: We’re talking about massive amounts of Farming XP, coins, and unique items like the Pig Foot or the Shiny Accessory.
- The Pig Mask: A cosmetic that became a badge of honor for anyone who participated in the madness.
The sheer volume of players in the Hub was a technical nightmare. Proxies were struggling. The chat was moving so fast it was unreadable. But that was part of the charm. It felt like a real world event, something that was happening "now" and would never happen again.
Why We Still Talk About It
The Year of the Pig SkyBlock wasn't just about the loot. It was a tribute. Technoblade was a pillar of the Hypixel community, and this event felt like a celebration of his influence on the game. Even now, years later, you can go to the graveyard in the Hub and see the tribute. It’s a somber reminder of his legacy, but the Year of the Pig event was the loud, chaotic, joyous side of that same legacy.
Misconceptions about the event still float around. Some newer players think it was a recurring thing. It wasn't. It was a one-time explosion of content. Others think it was just about the Potato War. While the Potato War was the backdrop, the event itself was much more inclusive, allowing even "early-game" players to feel like they were part of the "end-game" wealth for a few days.
Lessons for the Future of SkyBlock
If the admins ever decide to do another event on this scale, they have a massive blueprint to follow. But they also have a warning. The inflation caused by the Year of the Pig took months to stabilize. You can't just give everyone five million coins and expect the price of a Hyperion to stay the same.
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What made it work was the social aspect. Players weren't hidden away in their private islands. They were in the Hub. They were together. That’s something SkyBlock often loses in its quest for more "solo" progression content like the Rift or certain areas of the Crimson Isle.
Actionable Insights for Players
If you're looking back at the Year of the Pig and wondering how to prep for the next big community event, here's what you actually need to do:
- Keep a Liquidity Reserve: Always have at least 50-100 million coins in your bank. When events like this drop, item prices fluctuate wildly. If you have cash on hand, you can buy the dip when everyone else is panic-selling their gear to participate in the new thing.
- Watch the Mayor Cycle: Don't just vote for whoever gives the best XP buff. Look for the "special" mayors like Derpy or Jerry. These are the closest things we have now to the chaos of the Year of the Pig.
- Invest in "Event Only" Items: Items like the Pig Foot or unique trophies from these events rarely lose value over the long term. They become collector's items. If a new event starts dropping "limited" cosmetics, grab as many as you can and shove them in a chest for two years.
- Community Hubs are Key: During big events, don't stay on your island. The most profitable secrets and strategies are shared in the Hub chat or in dedicated Discord servers (like the official Hypixel Discord or specialized SkyBlock ones) in real-time.
The Year of the Pig SkyBlock was a lightning-in-a-bottle moment. It combined the biggest personality in the game with a unique mechanic that rewarded everyone, regardless of their level. While we might not see another "Technoblade Mayor" event, the impact it had on the game's culture and its economy is permanent. It proved that sometimes, breaking the game is exactly what the game needs to stay alive.
Next time an election looks "weird" or a new NPC shows up with a strange orb, don't ignore it. That's usually the moment the economy is about to flip on its head. Get your Orbs, find your pigs, and be ready to run.