Old School RuneScape News

Great news for all you PvPers: the Wilderness Changes project is back in business, with updates to Dragonhide Armour, the trusty Dinh’s Bulwark and more! We’re also feeling the changing of the seasons this week, thanks to some tasty merch pre-orders for the autumn and winter months ahead. Grab a hot brew and let’s get to it!

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[h2]Wilderness & PvP Changes[/h2]

It's been a while since we first spoke about Wilderness changes, but the first of these long-promised updates are coming today.

Regrettably, it's taken us much, much longer to get round to these changes than we'd hoped. A huge but critical technical rework was recently urgently required, taking out a developer of the project for multiple months. In addition to this, we've also had to reallocate resource in support of upcoming content. This left us in a position where our only option was to wait for this work to be signed off before resuming anything Wilderness-related. Delaying content is something we'd rather avoid, and while we are committed to delivering the changes as promised, the long-term health of the game always remains our top priority.

Now for the good news! The technical rework is now in QA, and the remaining jobs from Poll 75 are done. We are finally seeing progress, but in the interest of transparency, we'd say that we are not out of the woods just yet. With the delays pushing us into what is now a jam-packed schedule of upcoming content, our dev capacity is not where we need it to be in order to bring these updates together. We are committed to those changes and will do them with no compromise on quality, no matter how long it takes us.

Thank you for your patience so far, and rest assured that we wish to see these changes in the game as much as you do.

OK, so what's happening in this update? First up, we have the last of the remaining Equipment Rebalance changes along with a change to the middle entrance of the Revenant Caves.

Please note that any values in red are nerfs and any values in green are buffs.


Dragonhide Armour



We’ve talked about changes to the Dragonhide Armour for a while. As the issues with this set are most prevalent in PvP, we felt it should be part of the Wilderness Changes project.

Our focus is on changing the Melee and Magic defence bonuses of standard Dragonhide Armours, in the hope it will encourage players to try different Armour pieces – and naturally balance the combat triangle! These changes will have a much lower impact on players who concentrate on PvM encounters.

Here’s what’s changing:

Vambraces



Chaps



Body



The stat changes are included on all variations of the Armour, including trimmed (t) and gold-trimmed (g). The stats of God D'Hide remain unchanged.

Additionally, the Defence requirement for God D'Hide Chaps is down from 40 to 1, making it accessible to all players!


Dinh's Bulwark



The Bulwark’s defensive bonuses for Stab, Slash and Crush have been reduced by 35, 36 and 36 respectively, while the attack bonus on Crush has been increased by 14. We've also increased the attack speed from 7 to 5 for faster pummelling!



Dinh’s Bulwark also gains a new passive effect – when not in defensive mode, your Melee strength is increased by the following:

((Average Stab, Slash, Crush, Ranged defence - 200)/3)-38

• This results in one max hit for every 12, with an average defence bonus above 200.
  
• Consequently, because of the less than 200 average defence bonus, this leads to a max hit of 15 down from 24 (with no Melee strength bonus).
  
• As full best-in-slot defensive gear, providing an average defence bonus of +498, you have a max hit that's 46, better than the previous max of 32. Note: this max hit is calculated while using a Super Strength Potion and Piety
  

All of which results in Dinh's Bulwark having an exciting new role as the only weapon which scales its offense on defensive gear!

Additionally, enemies hit by the Bulwark’s special attack will also have their highest offensive stat reduced by 5% of its current value, either Melee (Attack + Strength), Magic attack or Ranged attack. Nice!


Xerician Robes

We’ve changed the offensive capabilities of Xerician Robes slightly by reducing the Magic attack bonus they offer. In total, 10 Magic attack bonus will be removed, with changes being made to both the top and bottom bonuses.




Elemental Staves



The changes to Staves will see each tier benefit from a linear increase of 2+ to Magic attack and defence bonus. This keeps them below the Ancient Staff, which has +15 in both Magic attack and defence, but helps to alleviate some of the changes to Xerician Robes by providing better bonuses for higher-valued items.




Other Wilderness Changes

All versions of the Wilderness Sword will now slash webs while in your inventory!

We've turned the middle entrance to the Revenants Cave into a one-way cavern. A warning will pop up when entering this way informing you of the one-way trip. This can be permanently dismissed, and the interface won't show up if you're in combat (you'll get a chat message instead).



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[h2]General Updates[/h2]

• If your light source is inextinguishable, you’ll no longer get the extinguish warning when entering a dark area.
  
• We’ve fixed the incorrect Bird’s Nest reward message that appears when completing a hard Gnome Restaurant task.
  
• Box Traps can no longer be placed on top of flowers indoors.
  
• The 'previous destination' option on the charter ships no longer enables free travel via routes that those ships don't otherwise offer, nor does it quote incorrect fees for routes (previously it had quoted -1 coins for some - a bargain for sure, but an incorrect one!).
  
• On high-risk PvP worlds, death no longer removes the Special Skull icon.
  
• Level 5 armed goblins now give the correct loot.
  
• The Lesser Demon Champion is now vulnerable to Demonbane spells and similar effects.
  
• A Khazard Commander in the Tree Gnome Village quest no longer stalls you into inescapable dialogue while already attacking you.
  
• Last Man Standing now grants kill credit more reliably for players standing on the outskirts of the Dark Varrock map.
  

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[h2]Merch[/h2]

As the nights draw in, we’re looking forward to cosy jumpers and long nights curled up with a good book (specifically 'RuneScape: The First 20 Years', coming to all good book stores from October 12th)!

As well as hoodies, socks and other cosy treats from our merch store, it’s time to start thinking about the most important snuggle-enabler of the year… yes, the Official RuneScape Xmas Jumper 2021 is up for pre-order!

Continuing the celebration of our 20th Anniversary and the release of Dragon Slayer on September 23rd 2001, the fearsome Elvarg takes centre stage in this year’s design – complete with Santa cap, penguins, party hats and crackers! This cosy advent apparel is just the thing for staying warm this wintertime.

We’re giving 10% off all early-bird orders until midnight on October 3rd. Place your order ASAP to guarantee snagging one, as only limited stock will be available (at full price) after this date!



Wondering about delivery schedules? Stock at our UK warehouse is expected to start shipping by November 15th. Shipping times to many countries are affected by elements out of our control, so arrival timelines cannot be guaranteed. We therefore strongly recommend that any orders from outside the UK should be placed by the first week in December at the latest for the best chance of delivery in time for Christmas Day.

We’ve also got new pins from Angels Scapes coming on September 22nd:

• Elvarg Pin (with detachable head) - get it to go with your Xmas jumper!
  
• Rune Armour King Pin
  
• Tutorial Island Pin - Night Variant
  
• KBD Slayer Helm Pin
  
• Corporeal Beast Pin
  
• Obby Shield Pin
  

Visit the store for all this and more marvellous merch!

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[h2]PvP World Rota[/h2]

The PvP rota has moved to Period A:

• 539 - (US) - PvP World
  
• 548 - (Germany) - High-Risk PvP World
  
• 577 - (US) - Free-to-Play PvP World
  
• 559 - (UK) - LMS Competitive
  
• 390 - (AUS) - LMS Competitive - world becomes active with this rota.
  

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That's everything for this week's game update. We'd love to hear your feedback so please let us know what you think via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, the Steam forums or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Bonsai, Brow, Bruno, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Errol, Fed, Flippy, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Maylea, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Oasis, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Sween, Tide, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko


The Old School Team

The wait is over. The ultimate PvP tournament is reaching its brutal conclusion. After three weeks of nail-biting action, unforgettable moments, and more Guardian Angel Sigil activations than some would like to admit... yes, it’s the Finale of Deadman: Reborn!

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[h2]Deadman Reborn Finals - What You Need to Know[/h2]

On Thursday September 16th at 22:00 BST all Deadman Reborn worlds will temporarily close. In order to qualify for the Finals, you will need to be within the top 2,048 players, as per the HiScores, at exactly 22:00 BST.


For qualifying players, the Final world will open on Friday September 17th at 19:00 BST, with the first round of fights starting at 20:00 BST.

• Bracket 1: 2,048 players | 1,024 Arenas
  
• Bracket 2: 1,024 players | 512 Arenas
  
• Bracket 3: 512 players | 256 Arenas
  
• Bracket 4: 256 players | 128 Arenas
  
• Bracket 5: 128 players | 64 Arenas
  
• Bracket 6: 64 players | 32 Arenas
  
• Bracket 7: 32 players | 16 Arenas
  
• Bracket 8: 16 players | 8 Arenas
  
• Bracket 9: 8 players | Quarter-final
  
• Bracket 10: 4 players | Semi-final
  
• Bracket 11: 2 players | Final
  

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[h2]Where to Watch[/h2]

We’ll be going live from the official Old School Twitch channel on Friday September 17th at 19:00 BST. Make sure you tune in to see the most spectacular ‘Scaping from our top players as they compete for the $32,000 prize pool!

Remember, our finalists have been preparing for months and battling it out for three weeks, and ruthlessness is the name of the game, so you won’t want to miss the brutal conclusion to the toughest tournament of them all!



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[h2]A Note to Participants[/h2]

We’d like to remind all participants that all existing RuneScape rules apply during the Deadman Final, alongside the previously posted rules.

• This includes the use of unofficial clients as per our rules (see “MACROING AND THIRD-PARTY SOFTWARE/HARDWARE”).
  
• Currently the only unofficial clients that comply with our rules are OSBuddy and RuneLite. The use of any other unofficial clients is prohibited and will result in disqualification from the tournament.
  

Anyone who has been caught cheating in any Jagex event may be suspended from all future events. Jagex staff will review cases individually.

Players abusing game mechanics to gain an advantage in a way that is considered unsporting will be removed from Deadman Reborn immediately.

In addition to the above, the following rules also apply to Deadman: Reborn:

• During the 1v1 stage, should a player experience connectivity issues and log out before a fight begins, that player has until the fight begins to log back in.
  
• During the 1v1 stage, should credible evidence emerge to suggest that an account is maliciously targeting other players, we will take action against them.
  
• We will not, at any point or under any circumstances, restart the Final.
  
• We will endeavour to announce the results of the Finale on the night of the event. Should further investigation be required, the results will be announced only after the Old School team has met and reviewed all evidence available to us.
  

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A full list of the Deadman Reborn T&C’s can be found here.

See you on Friday!


The Old School Team

With no update this week, we've got a couple of fixes heading to the Steam Client. Get up-to-date by updating Old School RuneScape through Steam or be sure to turn on Auto Update.

• Fixed a crash relating to NPCs that no longer exist.
  
• Fixed minimenu entries for walk-here and scenery interactions becoming invalid after crossing a loading line.
  
• Fixed graphical artifacts appearing on some types of trees and boat models.
  
• The game window should no longer resize itself when minimised and reopened at certain resolutions.
  
• Fixed a rendering issue in the Surprise Exam random event.
  

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[h2]Deadman Reborn Final[/h2]

Get yourselves ready for the climactic Deadman Finale begins on September 17th at 19:00 BST (11:00 PDT / 14:00 EDT). Players have had months to prepare, three weeks to qualify and now just one epic day to be the last Deadman standing. Who will take home a piece of the $32,000 prize pool? You can find out more about the finals and how this gargantuan reward will be dished out in our Deadman: Reborn newspost.

For those of you who have elected to stay out of the bloodbath, remember you can enjoy all the action as a spectator, with live streaming on Twitch and casters commentating on all the action! Even if you’re not a DMM player yourself, this will be a thrilling conclusion to three weeks of seriously tough ‘Scaping – we'd love for you to give it a watch and let us know what you think!

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Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Bonsai, Brow, Bruno, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Errol, Fed, Flippy, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Maylea, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Oasis, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Sween, Tide, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko

The Old School Team

Play and compete on teams of 2 to 5 players and forge your team of Ironmen to become legends in Old School's new & innovative game mode.

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[h2]Polling and Release Date[/h2]

Quite a few questions have been asked about Group Ironman.

Why is it a single poll question? Why haven't we split the poll up into more bits? Why are we polling it all?

In the past we’ve polled Ironman, UIM and Hardcore Ironman, so it’s only right that we poll Group Ironman. We’re also adopting a similar polling strategy as we did with those updates, too.

Our main priority is the long-term health and success of the mode. Currently, each design decision we’ve made has been taken on the basis that we know the following groups of players exist, and we want to accommodate them:

• Those who want to play casually
  
• Those who would prefer to be more competitive
  
• Those who want a very hard-core experience.
  

In addition to all these benefits, our approach also ensures that meaningful content choices (such as Individual Prestige, which aims to hinder illicit activities) are present from release. Rather than have to address potential issues in the future, we’re building them into the overall Group Ironman design from day one. They will be something players are accustomed to from the start of their Group Ironman journey.

We're continuously learning from past mistakes, taking into account what works well for players and what doesn't. We hope you understand the reasoning behind our approach. But rest assured, as with other updates, we’ll continue to make adjustments and improvements with your feedback in mind. We want to see you all enjoying Group Ironman as much as you want to get your hands on it - it's certainly been a long time coming!

Should Group Ironman pass the polls, we anticipate it will be ready to release on October 6th!


Shared Storage

We know that you were looking forward to Shared Storage, and we have good news!

Our wonderful engine team has made a breakthrough and we are delighted to confirm that we will be able to offer the Shared Storage functionality at launch!

Do note that only one player at a time will be able to use Shared Storage. It will be accessible from your regular Bank via a new button on the Bank interface, which is only visible to Group Ironmen and Hardcore Group Ironmen. Try to be courteous with your group members, everyone - no lobster thievery!


Prestige System





We've seen your feedback regarding the Prestige System, as well as your thoughts about its perceived complexity.

To clarify, there are two different forms of Prestige:

Group Prestige is a purely cosmetic indication that your group consists of the original members, and that you've not engaged in certain PvM activities with other players outside of your group.

• It is highlighted in-game via a star icon shown next to the group's name.
  
• Prestige groups will be shown on the Group Ironman HiScores alongside non-Prestige groups.
  
• Losing Group Prestige has no in-game impact other than losing the cosmetic star next to your group name in-game and on the HiScores.
  
• You can still trade freely between other Prestige group members even if Group Prestige is lost.
  
• Group Prestige is only lost if a new member joins your group, or if someone within the group opts to do certain PvM activities with someone outside of your group.
  
• Individual Prestige determines whether or not wealth and item transfer restrictions are applied to an individual group member. This system is vital to combat illicit activities.
  

It is highlighted in-game via a start icon that shows next to all original group members.

• Losing Individual Prestige has gameplay consequences - it means that you are subject to the wealth and item restrictions as we outlined in the blog.
  
• Individual Prestige is only lost if you join a group other than the one you started with.
  
• New players added to the group after formation will not have Individual Prestige.
  

We know that many of you just want to focus on playing Group Ironman with your friends, and we don't want you to have to worry about maintaining Group Prestige. To reinforce this, we have also added an option for leaders to opt out of Group Prestige entirely upon creation of the group. Unless you intend to play this game mode competitively (we expect only a small portion of players will), losing Group Prestige should not have a significant impact on your Group Ironman experience.

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[h2]Group Ironman: Design Overview[/h2]



Are you ready to band together and become the stuff of legend? This is your chance to build and grow a team of Ironmen that is greater than the sum of its parts and battle for top spot on the leaderboard. It's a whole new way to play Old School RuneScape!

As launch day approaches, it’s time to dive into the who, what and why of this innovative new mode. Whether you’re an Iron novice or an experienced Ultimate, this is everything you need to know about the newest addition to the Iron family! Let’s take a look…


What?

Group Ironman is a new way for the toughest ‘Scapers to explore Gielinor. Enjoyed Ironman? Hardcore Ironman? Ultimate Ironman? Well now it’s time to bring together your most trusted companions to take on the challenge together.

If you’ve never played Ironman before, here’s a quick summary: imagine Old School RuneScape with no trade, where you have to earn every item yourself. It’s about earning everything with blood, sweat and tears, through gathering, crafting and fighting. Needless to say, it’s a real challenge – and one you would normally have to face alone.

Group Ironman is a little different. Groups of two to five players can join together and take on Gielinor’s nastiest beasts. They can also trade their resources among one another, delve into new Shared Storage, and visit each other’s Player Owned Houses. Groups will even be able to compete for leaderboard positions and prove that their gang is the greatest supergroup of Old School RuneScape. It’s Ironman with a little help from your friends – pushing you to your limits while allowing you to share in the glory with your mates!


Why?

Ironman Mode has been a big success for Old School RuneScape, and we’re always looking for ways to build on popular content. We’re also keen to bring in new adventurers and encourage our current player base to explore the game in new ways.

Group Ironman has been requested by players for a long time. It was promised at RuneFest 2019, and interest hasn’t abated since. Plus, with the events of the past year and a half, there’s more appetite than ever for shared experiences in Old School RuneScape. Group Ironman is another way for us to bring people together and encourage cooperation and community-building in Gielinor.

We know it’s going to be a lot of fun and we can’t wait to see you forming your groups and battling together to break new records!


How?

Keen to hear more about how we're making Group Ironman? Well, that’s lucky because we’ve got plenty:

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[h2]General Rules[/h2]


Group Identity

A Group Ironman (GIM) group is made up of two to five players. All normal Iron restrictions apply to them when interacting with the world outside their group: in contrast, interactions within the group are more like regular Old School RuneScape.

Group Ironman players have a unique icon next to their name to distinguish them from other Iron players and regular ‘Scapers. Their outfit also shows off their GIM status.

GIM will get to show other players which group size they're playing with a unique armour set. Roman numerals on their chestplates indicate the size of their group (i.e, II-V).

Players jumping for joy at their awesome new armour!

Combat

In Combat, GIM are pretty much like regular Ironmen to outsiders. This means that if someone outside the group hits an NPC, the drop would either go to the person outside the group or disappear, just like it would with a regular Iron. However, if only group members have been hitting the NPC, the drop would go to the group member who dealt the most damage.


Group content

GIM players can tackle all the group content that regular Irons can. For example, they can kill the Nightmare with other players, and they can team up with other account types outside their group when playing Theatre of Blood, The Chambers of Xeric and Nightmare.

In Chambers of Xeric, GIM will be just like playing Iron, where items would drop to the floor for anyone to take (provided they got the kill credit).

A group of players fighting the Muttadile in CoX

Trading

It goes without saying that GIM can't trade with people outside their group. They can only trade regularly within the group, and some trade restrictions do still apply to new members joining the group (see the gradual wealth transfer system).

GIM can only do this with fellow group members.

De-Ironing

A player must leave their group before they can de-Iron. (See leaving a group.)


Highscores

One of the major draws for GIM is group HiScores: this is your chance to prove your group is the best of the best! There are HiScores for each group size too. This is because a five-player group would have a much easier time than a two-player group, so listing them separately is fairer. HiScores are listed under the group’s name.

Ranks are determined by combined total skill level for your team first, then by combined total experience. Additionally, only XP gained while in the group count towards the group's total level. This means that players leaving a group and joining a new one won't be able to transfer their experience over to the new group.


Player Owned Houses

Currently, your regular Iron accounts can have a Player Owned House of their own, but can’t enter other Player Owned Houses or invite anyone into theirs. GIM is a little different – players can access each other’s houses. Additionally, Ironmen will now be able to let other players into their own house too, although they still can’t enter other players’ houses.

Players partying hard in a Player Owned House

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[h2]Recruitment[/h2]

You can form a group of between two and five players. One player will be the leader of the group. You’ll establish your group before you arrive at the mainland – you will need to find players to join your gang on the Node, a recruitment hub off the coast of Tutorial Island, before leaving (see below for more details). You will be able to pick a group name, but please note these share a name space with Clans – so you can’t use a name for your group that already belongs to an existing Clan.

Once your group is formed, you are free to recruit new players as you progress, should you wish.


The Node

This is a new island off the coast of Tutorial Island. It’s a place to learn the core elements of Group Ironman and form groups!


Tutorial Island with The Node

We want to say a few words about the Age Appropriate Design Code. These are some recent legal changes in the UK which govern how companies handle children's data.

The Age Appropriate Design Code only applies to players based in the United Kingdom, but we have applied the principles to all player accounts regardless of location. The law defines a child as someone under 18 years of age. Jagex was already largely compliant with the new rules, but some changes were required to ensure full compliance.


What's Changed?

We have updated our End User License Agreement (EULA), Terms & Conditions, support articles and our Privacy Policy to make them clearer and easier to understand for younger players.

We've also simplified the Rules of RuneScape, making our expectations clearer, and provided additional information for many rules.

Alterations include:

• Regarding Inappropriate Language, we’ve made the unacceptable behaviours clearer and we’ve added some clarification about swearing/cussing, as well as bullying and harassment. We’ve also added a small list of topics which we do not want discussed in our games.
  
• We’ve added some context to our Real World Trading rule and the associated risks.
  
• We’ve expanded the Games of Chance rule to clarify the use of 'bots' and websites/services.
  
• We have listed some of the most common scams for awareness, and offered some clarification around player-run ‘swapping services’.
  
• We have expanded the Staff Impersonation rule, focusing on attempted phishing.
  
• We've clarified exactly what information is classed as ‘personal details’.
  
• Our bug abuse rule has also been tweaked, particularly for players who accidentally discover a bug and might be worried about being banned.
  
• We've also added a short FAQ that covers what you should do if you have been muted or banned, how to submit an abuse report, an outline of how handle abuse reports, and what you should do if you are worried about another player.
  

Players without a date of birth on record will be prompted to supply us with one in the near future. This ensures that you are old enough to play our games and helps us process your data in line with the Age Appropriate Design Code.

In addition, we will not send marketing emails to players under 18 years of age, regardless of whether they have opted in to receive them.

We've also opened a new service allowing parents of players to contact us directly if they are concerned about their child's account use.

Finally, we have revised our internal processes regarding the storing and processing of children's data, in accordance with the law.

That's it! Like we said, you shouldn't notice any differences.


The RuneScape / Old School Team