Old School RuneScape News

For a full list of survey results please visit the newspost on the official Old School website.


Dating all the way back to 2001, the Wilderness is the only place where players can engage in PvP combat and gain all the items dropped by their defeated opponent. If you want to test your fighting mettle and scoop up your opponents' rewards, it’s the only place to be.

Since the release of Old School RuneScape, the area's undergone a few changes, most notably the Wilderness Rejuvenation projects in March 2014 and November 2018. These revamps introduced new bosses, monsters, resources and activities.

However, those who brave the Wilderness still face some frustrations, and today we're going to look at how we're hoping to address them.

It's important that we highlight from the get-go that this blog isn't going to mention adding large pieces of new content. That will come later this year when we tackle the fabled Wilderness Bosses rework, which will include a host of new rewards and more, but that will be covered in a separate blog post. The intention of this blog is to address many of the long-standing issues that have been raised by all types of players, providing a strong foundation for future change that we can build upon.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]General Wilderness Changes[/h2]

The main issues we're addressing today are long-standing and largely relate to balancing. Many of the changes outlined here are also intended to benefit those who engage with the activities listed the most. As such, the content offered within this blog will not be polled. This approach is similar to our previous balancing efforts, only rather than simply adjust numbers, we're hoping to achieve better results by focusing on much higher-quality changes.

Firstly, we’d like to share the results of a recent survey.

The following results are from a total of 30,064 respondents.

Which of the following best describes how often you enter the Wilderness:

I don't go into the Wilderness - 5.67%
I rarely go into the Wilderness - 55.91%
I often go into the Wilderness - 38.42%


Which of the following best describes the main reason you enter the Wilderness:

Fighting other players - 23.73%
Completing Clue Scrolls - 45.03%
Skilling content - 5.08%
Money-making - 4.44%
Killing the Wilderness bosses - 14.07%
Unique rewards - 7.66%


I understand how the Wilderness works (e.g. unique game mechanics and game rules):

Agree - 92.79%
Disagree - 7.21%


The Wilderness offers a good balance between risk and reward:

Agree - 31.05%
Disagree - 68.95%


I try to avoid spending time in the Wilderness where possible:

Agree - 68.10%
Disagree - 31.90%


I try and fight back if another player is attacking me within the Wilderness:

Agree - 31.87%
Disagree - 68.13%


I think 'Skulltricking' within the Wilderness is a problem:

Agree - 69.95%
Disagree - 30.05%


I would spend more time in the Wilderness if 'Skulltricking' was less common:

Agree - 49.62%
Disagree - 50.38%


I think organised groups of players have too much of an advantage over solo players in single-way combat:

Agree - 87.95%
Disagree - 12.05%


I would spend more time within the Wilderness if fights were fairer for solo players:

Agree - 74.91%
Disagree - 25.09%


I think the Wilderness needs more content added to it:

Agree - 77.11%
Disagree - 22.89%


When adding new content to the Wilderness, the focus should be on end-game, best-in-slot rewards:

Agree - 38.77%
Disagree - 61.23%


When adding new content to the Wilderness, the focus should be on new skilling activities:

Agree - 52.43%
Disagree - 47.57%


When adding new content to the Wilderness, the focus should be on PvP based rewards:

Agree - 83.17%
Disagree - 16.83%


When adding new content to the Wilderness, the focus should be on money-making methods:

Agree - 67.66%
Disagree - 32.34%


I think the Wilderness bosses need to be reworked:

Agree - 86.42%
Disagree - 13.58%


If the Wilderness bosses are reworked they should have new rewards added to their drop table:

Agree - 85.70%
Disagree - 14.30%

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Skulltricking[/h2]

Skulltricking takes various different forms, but ultimately the end goal is the same – to trick an unsuspecting victim into attacking another player, causing them to become skulled. This puts the victim in a position where they are risking much more than they had intended.

In our survey, 68% of respondents reported that they do not fight back within the Wilderness, and almost 70% of all respondents believe that Skulltricking is a big problem. This is not something we can simply ignore.

The easiest way to prevent Skulltricking is to turn off your attack options and disable auto-retaliate. However, by literally deterring players from fighting back, is it even PvP combat anymore? It’s easy to see why the majority of players don’t like this solution.

We want to make it so that players who are not planning to skull can still fight back when attacked – without falling into a position where they’re risking more than they initially intended. We are investigating the possibility of additional menu options such as ‘disable attacks that would result in getting skulled’.

In addition to this, we will also stop players from losing their skull whilst in combat with another player.

This is a big change to the unruly nature of the Wilderness, but we feel it will better the long-term health of this iconic area. We're hopeful that empowering players to fight back will bring new life to the Wilderness and create a much fairer platform for satisfying combat experiences.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Luring[/h2]

Luring is any instance where a scammer tries to trick another player in order to steal their items. We’re committed to preventing these types of scams, and we’ve made good progress in the past, especially in regards to animation stalling and the mapping down of additional safe areas.

We want to make the following changes:

• Map extra safe areas around Banks and hotspot locations in PvP worlds, to stop players from unintentionally straying into a danger zone.
  
• Make doors always open in PvP worlds.
  

Are there any particular areas you’ve experienced this issue that we should focus on? Let us know!

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Combat Area Tricks[/h2]

The whole Wilderness is a PvP area, but some areas limit who you can attack and when. Currently the region is split as follows:

• Single-way Combat Area: An area where a player or monster can be attacked by only one player or monster at a time.
  
• Singles-plus Combat Area: Similar to single-way combat, with the exception that if a player is fighting a monster, they can be attacked by another player. Currently, only the Revenant Caves are singles-plus.
  
• Multi-way Combat: An area where a player or monster can be attacked by more than one player or monster at a time.
  

It is currently possible to abuse these restrictions in certain situations. For example:

• Player A and Player B are fighting in a single-way combat zone.
  
• Player C is stood nearby in a multi-way combat zone.
  
• Player A is close to dying but can instantly attack Player C, due to them being in the multi-way combat zone.
  

In this scenario, Player B is no longer able to attack Player A, as they are now in combat with another player!

To avoid this, we will ensure that if Player A is fighting Player B first, the rules of their area apply, and they can no longer attack Player C.

[hr][/hr]
[h3]Single-Plus Combat & ‘PJ’ Timer[/h3]

In most parts of the Wilderness, players who are attacked by an NPC cannot be attacked by other players. This normally is all well and good, but can cause issues when players run into a field of NPCs and "box" them, providing protection against a PK.

Some of you have also fallen victim to ‘Pile Jumping’ or ‘Player Jumping’ (both generally abbreviated to ‘PJ’) i.e. a player might attack you while you’re busy collecting loot from a kill, or steam into your fight when your opponent is nearly dead, taking the kill from you and swiping the loot.

We’re going to kill two birds with one stone here: we’ll be replacing all single-way combat areas in the Wilderness with singles-plus. This means that PvP will always take priority, so if a player is in a fight with a monster, they can be attacked by another player. In all other aspects, the old single-way combat mechanics would still apply.

Secondly, we’ll be adding a ‘PJ’ Timer to singles-plus combat areas. This will mean that players have a grace period in which they cannot be attacked by other players if they’re still fresh from an encounter.

Here's an example of how a typical combat scenario might work with the singles-plus mechanic:

• Player A is attacking an NPC. Player B comes along and attempts to attack Player A. With singles-plus in effect, the NPC loses interest in Player A.
  

This means that Player A can now attack Player B. If Players A and B stop fighting each other, then other players could then attack Player A instead… but because of the PJ Timer, they would need to wait 10 seconds before they were able to do so.

This should mean that players can't be attacked by multiple aggressors in quick succession outside of multi-way combat zones. Speaking of which, no changes are planned at present for multi-way combat zones, and we expect those areas to remain suitable for those of you who want to group up and fight against other players.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Loot Keys[/h2]

Back in November 2017, we pitched the idea of bringing across the Loot Key system from Deadman Mode, via Loot Key Scrolls. These would be a tradeable drop from Revenant NPCs found within the Revenant Caves, redeemable at Krystilia (the Edgeville witch). They would give players the ability to toggle Loot Keys.

When we put this to the polls, it narrowly failed with a 'Yes' vote of 73.9%. We haven’t revisited the possibility of adding these into the game – until now.

We’d like to bring Loot Keys to the game.

We think Loot Keys could help reduce the number of players waiting around PvP areas to simply loot leftover goodies, while also promoting a higher risk vs reward factor, as players could choose to stay within the Wilderness for longer without banking, or go for multiple kills in a row on PvP worlds without fear of losing their hard-earned spoils!

However, Loot Keys will work slightly differently from how they were originally proposed. Instead of being a tradeable drop, they will be a purchasable and permanent unlock for 5 million gold that will grant players the ability to toggle the functionality on or off as they please. This will only be possible at the Ferox Enclave, the same location the unlock is purchased.

• Loot Keys will turn all the loot you'd normally get from a player in the Wilderness or PvP worlds into a Key, which will only use one inventory slot.
  
• A player can hold up to five of them at once, after which PvP drops will revert to normal functionality until they have either redeemed or destroyed a Key.
  
• Keys can only be redeemed at a Bank or destroyed. They cannot be banked.
  
• Killing another player who has Loot Keys will assign you their most valuable Keys. If you already have a lot in your inventory, you will receive the most valuable Keys until you are holding a total of five.
  
• Skulled players that have two or more Keys in their inventory will have a skull icon over their head that shows how many keys they hold.
  

We'll also be updating the functionality of Loot Keys by adding various levels of customisation, allowing you to tailor the benefits they provide based on your playstyle. The following options will be available on release:

• The ability to exclude food and/or potions from Loot Keys, causing them to drop to the floor as per existing behaviour.
  
• Players will be able to set a loot threshold, causing any items above that value to be excluded from Loot Keys. Instead they'd drop to the floor as per existing behaviour.
  

Ultimate Iron players will not be able to unlock Loot Keys, preventing them entirely from gaining access to the benefits they provide.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Fountain of Rune[/h2]

In order to tackle risk-free usage of the Fountain of Rune, we will prevent players from logging out for three seconds after they use a spell that benefits fountain effects.

This only applies when the Fountain of Rune effect is used to get a free rune cost for a spell and will not apply to players using the fountain to charge an Amulet of Glory.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Iron Accounts & PvP Loot[/h2]

With so many different ways to approach Old School, it’s great to see the many unique builds that players create to maximise their potential strength, especially when it comes to PvP content!

Players looking for a challenge might create an Iron account with the sole intention of excelling in PvP situations. These accounts cannot gain experience from combat with other players, so they must work around that limitation to create extremely powerful builds that would otherwise be impossible. And of course, Iron accounts can’t trade with other players, so they need to gather many items and supplies for this to be effective.

Currently, if an Iron player defeats another person in the Wilderness or PvP worlds, they cannot pick up the dropped items. This means that the defeated player can run back to where they perished and simply loot their items back, removing a lot of the thrill involved in fighting another player on such dangerous terms in the first place.

To make things more nail-biting, we’d like any items that would normally drop on death to still appear on the floor upon defeat, but no one will be able to pick them up – including the player who lost them. Untradeable items will still be able to be picked up by the defeated player where they aren't automatically added to your inventory (broken items, Graceful below 20 wild, etc.).

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Equipment Rebalancing[/h2]

With the recent Ranged Meta portion of the Equipment Rebalancing out of the way, our focus now shifts to PvP changes. For those unaware, we originally pitched them as focusing on Dragonhide armours and Dinh’s Bulwark. However, there some additions have been thrown into the mix. Let’s take a look.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Dinh’s Bulwark[/h2]

Dinh’s Bulwark is an overwhelming defensive force in PvP, and a niche item. It gives certain account builds the potential to ‘tank’ in some encounters, such as the God Wars Dungeon. This is thanks to its incredibly high defence bonuses, with no negative stats to offset them.


Our previous proposal was to change its defensive bonuses, with a focus towards reducing Melee and Magic defence, making it an outstanding Ranged defence item instead. This would mean players using the shield in PvP situations would have to make up the lost defence in other aspects of their equipped gear, helping to further balance out the combat triangle.

A lot of you were worried that by reducing the defensive stats of Dinh’s Bulwark, we were effectively removing its only use. This wasn’t entirely accurate, given the shield does have uses outside of PvP, which the proposed changes would only have improved further. Nonetheless, we have a new idea that will ensure Dinh’s Bulwark has plenty to offer beyond just its reduced defensive capabilities.

We’ll achieve this by addressing one of the main feedback points we received – giving you the ability to fight back when using the shield!

This new design retains the existing nerfs to the Bulwark’s defensive stats, but allows it to better fill the ‘tank’ role, while also creating a niche defence-scaling offensive item; -something which doesn't exist in the game currently. Here’s what we’re changing:

• We’ll increase its attack speed and attack bonus, giving it increased DPS and additional utility in a ‘tank’ role.
  
• We’ll buff its special attack, allowing it to reduce the offensive capabilities of each monster it hits.
  
• While in offensive mode, the Bulwark’s Strength bonus will scale based on the defence bonus of any equipped gear.
  

• We’ve upped the Crush attack bonus to +124 to help slightly with its new role.
  
• We’ve also increased the attack speed from 7 to 5. With its new passive effect (see below), having a more reasonable attack speed is more in-line with other slow two-handed weapons used for DPS, such as the Scythe of Vitur.
  

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 every 12 average defence bonus above 200.
  
• With less than 200 average defence bonus, this results in a max hit of 15 down from 24 (with no Melee strength bonus).
  
• In full best-in-slot defensive gear, providing an average defence bonus of +498, this results in a max hit of 46 from 32 (32 would have been the previous max hit in this same gear).
  

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

This change makes a huge difference to where you would use the Bulwark. Notably, you would be able to achieve more DPS with it than when using a Zamorakian Hasta in full Justiciar against creatures like General Graardor (though it is still weaker than a Dragon Scimitar in full offensive gear). Essentially, where you would usually use Dinh’s Bulwark in a ‘tank’ role, you’ll be able to deal even more damage than before.


New Special Attack Effect:

In addition to the current area of effect damage of the Bulwark’s special attack, we’ll make it so that enemies hit by the 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.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Xerician Robes[/h2]

Xerician Robes are fabled for being a cheap alternative to Mystic Robes, and their low cost means they see great use throughout the Wilderness. Much like Dragonhide Armours, many players feel like their strength is too high for an incredibly low cost.



As such, we’ll be changing 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 the both the top and bottom.

This will also help offset the Magic defence lost from Black Dragonhide (which is itself covered later in this blog), while still ensuring that they are a stronger Magic option than Wizard Robes.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Elemental Staves[/h2]

During our initial Equipment Rebalancing proposal, many of you were interested in the rebalancing of lesser used and lower tier items to make them more effective. A popular suggestion was that we improve Elemental Staves, given how as you progress through the different tiers of staves, the only thing that increases is their Melee capabilities... which is rather irrelevant for Magic-based attacks!



The above changes would see each tier of stave 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.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Dragonhide Armour[/h2]

As we’ve mentioned in previous iterations of the Equipment Rebalance, Dragonhide armour has been notoriously powerful for an incredibly low cost. It offers high Defence bonuses, especially against Magic Attacks, with negligible negative stats to offset this. The armour generally goes against the combat triangle, and doesn't follow the same stat distribution as similar Ranged armours.

As the issue with Dragonhide is most prevalent in PvP, we feel it’s important that any changes are made as part of the Wilderness Changes project.

Our focus remains on changes to both the Melee and Magic defence bonuses of standard Dragonhide armours, in an attempt to encourage players to try different armour pieces. This will have a much lower impact on players focusing on PvM encounters, and naturally balances the Combat triangle.

We have adjusted our approach slightly based on your feedback, which can be seen in the tables below.

D’hide Bodies



We’ve scaled back on some of the nerfs to D’hide body Melee defence bonuses, but stuck with the previously proposed Magic defence bonus reduction.

To give an idea of how much of a difference this is from our previous proposal, here's the side-by-side:

• Old proposal - 27% nerf to defensive stats of Black D’hide bodies
  
• New proposal - 22% nerf to defensive stats of Black D’hide bodies
  

To see what a Black D'hide Body is currently like in-game, refer to the God D’hide row.


Dragonhide Chaps



Much like bodies, we’ve scaled back on some of the nerfs to D’hide chaps' Melee defence bonuses, but kept the previously proposed Magic defence bonus reduction.

Here's the difference:

• Old proposal - 35% nerf to defensive stats of Black D'hide chaps
  
• New proposal - 24% nerf to defensive stats of Black D'hide chaps
  

To see what Black D'hide Chaps are currently like in-game, refer to the God D’hide row.


Dragonhide Vambraces



There are no stat changes here compared to our previously proposal.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Blessed/God D’hide Armour[h2]

With both Crystal and Karil's armour base stats remaining as they are, they naturally become a more expensive alternative to help fill the gap left by the changes to the standard and much cheaper Dragonhide armours.

As Blessed Dragonhide armour is locked behind the completion of Treasure Trails, the pieces typically hold a much higher cost than their craftable counterparts. We know there is a lot of support within the community to leave Blessed Dragonhide out of the rebalancing changes, so we're going to do exactly that. All God variations of the armour will retain the same stats they have right now.

It is important to note that due to the reduction in stats for both Black D’hide Chaps and Vambraces, accounts that were previously able to equip them will be more negatively impacted than before. Our intention was to ensure Dragonhide armour was reduced in strength relative to its cost as opposed to simply its stats.

As such, we’ll be removing the Defence requirement needed to equip both Blessed D’hide Chaps and Vambraces to match that of their Black D’hide equivalent. This will ensure no accounts are negatively impacted in a way which we did not intend with this portion of the Equipment Rebalancing project. As a result, low Defence account builds will gain access to an additional +2 Prayer bonus over what they would have had before.

Blessed D’hide bodies will still require 40 Defence to equip as Black D'hide bodies also have a 40 Defence requirement.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Revenant Caves[/h2]

In October 2020 we made some significant changes to the Revenant Caves. This included redistributing the Revenants all throughout the caves and rebalancing of their drop tables. You can read all of the changes here!

Following the results of the survey, and plenty of time to monitor the impact of the changes made last year, we have a host of changes we’d like to propose for the Revenant Caves. These focus on tackling some of the more prominent issues within the caves, such as increasing the amount of gold that can be earned per hour.


Revenant Cave Entrance

We’ll be making the entrance to the Revenant Caves in level 26 Wilderness one-way only. The Caves rely heavily on a risk vs reward element, and while this location offers great accessibility to them, it also provides a rather convenient escape route for those trying to avoid action!


Revenant Changes

In response to the survey results, internal monitoring, and player feedback, we’ll be making a series of balancing changes to Revenants:

• We’ll be increasing the number of Revenants available within the caves, starting with an additional spawn in each location.
  
• We’ll be reducing the spawn timer by ~30%, so they respawn faster and players don't have to hop worlds in order to maintain a good level of kills per hour.
  
• We’ll be adding a cooldown to their healing mechanic, so they cannot heal again for a set amount of time if they have healed recently.
  
• We’ll add unique mechanics to Revenants Dragons, Dark Beasts and Orks, so they are more engaging to fight.
  
• Revenants will be weaker against different combat styles, encouraging use of a variety of weapons. It’s time to dust off your bows, sceptres and chainmaces!
  
• Certain item drops from Revenants will no longer be noted, meaning players will need to keep an Amulet of Avarice equipped if they want to ensure notes of all drops.
  
• The Amulet of Avarice will be upgraded to provide 20% more accuracy and damage towards Revenants – much like the Salve Amulet does currently.
  
• The standard drops from the Revenants drop table will be improved by ~50%.
  

Revenant Boss

Balancing changes aside, we wanted to spice things up in the caves, so we asked how you felt about us adding a Revenant boss!

This received an overwhelming amount of support in the survey, with over 80% of respondents in favour. Here’s the design we came up with:

Initial concept art for the Revenant boss, designed by Mod Jerv.

This fearsome foe has a chance to spawn after a Revenant has been killed. A broadcast will be sent to everyone within the caves to make them aware when it spawns. From there, the race is on to find it and take it down!

While the Revenant Caves are singles-plus combat, the boss will be excluded from this restriction, meaning multiple players can attack it at the same time. It will have various special attacks you’ll need to avoid, and the drop will go to the player who dealt the most damage... unless that player was an Iron account!

There will be no new uniques added to the boss. Instead you’ll be rewarded handsomely with three rolls of the Revenant Dragon drop table!

An in-game render of the Revenant boss based on concept art.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Wilderness Slayer Caves[/h2]

Finally, let's turn our attention to the Wilderness Slayer Caves. Added to the game back in October last year, they are home to a small variety of monsters that are commonly assigned by Krystilia.

These monsters are stronger than their other Wilderness counterparts, and as such have an improved drop table, and a 15% increased drop rate of Larran's Key.

Much like with the Revenant Caves, we’d like to propose some changes to the Wilderness Slayer caves to make them a better place to train. The survey results provided us with some great insight into which changes we should prioritise:

• We’re going to remove the stalagmites from any room where they impact the effectiveness of using a Dwarf multicannon. As this cave is a multi-way combat area, it makes sense for them to be utilised to their fullest potential!
  
• We’ll be updating the drop table of all cave monsters so that they are unique to the area (much like how creatures within the Catacombs of Kourend work). This will include some of the Wilderness-exclusive consumables that are currently only obtainable via Last Man Standing and Soul Wars. We’re hopeful this change will provide some additional revenue to those taking the risk to train here!
  
• New Slayer-only areas will be added to the cave for Abyssal Demons, Dust Devils, Jellies and Nechryaels. Each of these will also benefit from the previously mentioned Wilderness Slayer cave unique drop tables! These areas will have enough of each creature in to make spells such as Ice Barrage a viable option.
  

We’ll also tweak the Slayer assignments given by Krystillia as follows:

• Number of Fire Giant kills required per task reduced from 100-150 to 75-125.
  
• Number of Hill Giant kills required per task reduced from 100-150 to 75-125.
  
• Number of Bloodveld kills required per task reduced from 90-140 to 70-110.
  
• Additional Bloodveld spawns will be added to the Wilderness God Wars dungeon. These additional spawns will replace some of the werewolves that roam the area.
  
• Additional bear spawns will be added north of the Ferox Enclave.
  

At the moment we are not looking to implement Wilderness-only Clue Scrolls, though this is something we may revisit again in the future.


Superior Wilderness Slayer Cave Creature

Last but not least, we’ll be looking to implement a unique Superior Slayer creature which has a chance of spawning while the 'Bigger and Badder' perk is unlocked. All you have to do is kill any creature in the cave while on a Wilderness Slayer task.

This Superior Slayer creature will spawn regardless of which creature was killed, excluding new Slayer-only area creatures (they all have their own Superior counterpart already).

If the beast is defeated, players will be rewarded with three rolls of the drop table of whichever creature it spawned from. Also, you’ll be guaranteed a roll on the Blighted item drop table, a Larran’s Key, and an Ensouled Head (should the downed creature be eligible to drop one).

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Your Feedback Matters[/h2]

We’re hopeful that these changes will put some pizzazz into the Wilderness, and make it a fun and fair fight for all. As always, your feedback is invaluable for shaping any changes to the game, so please keep it coming!

Let us know what you think of this Wilderness proposal by posting on the official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

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


The Old School Team

With the introduction of our new client features, many things have changed. If you're experiencing issues when using a 3rd party client, consider switching over to the Steam client until they have been fully updated!

[h2]Hotfixes and Changes - June 23rd[/h2]

[expand]

[/expand]

The first raft of new client features is here! Keep reading for a breakdown of all the nifty toggles ‘n’ tweaks that will make your game smoother than ever. And that’s not all – A Kingdom Divided, Theatre of Blood and Clans have all had a polish, and we’ve got some dazzling new merch to show off…

[hr][/hr]
[h2]New Client Features: Milestone 1[/h2]

Today sees the arrival of the first batch of shiny new client updates that we announced last week! We’re starting with some really core features, which will in turn provide the foundation for the next milestone that's coming very soon.

We must stress that right now these features can only be used on the C++ client through Steam, but don’t worry device-tappers – they’ll be arriving on mobile later. Stay tuned to our socials as we push forward with this game-changing project!

Here’s what’s in store for the first batch:


[h3]Opponent Information HUD[/h3]



They say information is the greatest weapon. Err… they say that, right? Well, anyway – we’re saying it now. And when you’re facing off against an opponent, it’s always good to have the information you need to hand! In the latest update, you’ll see your adversary’s name and hitpoints bar in the top left corner of the screen, so you can watch those points plummet with every bludgeon. This is a toggleable feature, but it’s switched on by default.

For regular enemies, there’s a top-left interface that displays HP and monster name. This will be replaced by the larger boss HP bar for enemies with more factors to keep an eye on, for example:

• Bosses in Chambers of Xeric have HP threshold indicators for Vanguards.
  
• The Nightmare has both shield and HP values.

[h3]Buff Bar[/h3]



When using timed buffs such as Stamina Potion effects, you'll now be able to see which buff is active and how much time you have left with it.

Regularly in the buff? Here are some of the toggleable options you might want to use:

• Show/hide Buff Bar (it’s shown by default)
  
• Show/hide Tooltips
  
• Show/hide Leagues Relics on the Buff Bar
  
• Show/hide Home Teleport Cooldown
  
• Show/hide Minigame Teleport Cooldown

[h3]Stat Boosts[/h3]

These are new info boxes that show any skills which are boosted or drained from a base level, alongside their skill icons. You’ll be able to see the boosted level/base level comparison, always prioritising combat skills.

Options for this feature include:

• Show/hide Stat Boosts (it’s showing by default)
  
• Display Stat Value (60) or Relative Value (+4)
  
• Show/hide Tooltips
  
• Change the number of maximum boxes shown at once (from 1–6, with 6 as default).

[h3]Fishing Spot Indicators[/h3]



We’ve made it easy to figure out which fish are bobbing about in your fave spots. When you have a relevant piece of fishing gear, spots corresponding to that item become highlighted. The indicator reacts to multiple pieces of equipment in your inventory, meaning you can see all available spots at once! Hover over the fish icon to reveal which slippery swimmers are up for grabs.

This option is on by default and should work for most fishing spots. You can also set the indicators to display at all times rather than being dependant on what gear you’ve got.


[h3]Tile Markers [/h3]



Gielinor is massive, and sometimes you’ll want to revisit somewhere (or someone) cool. With the new tile markers, you can highlight key locations in red by holding shift, right-clicking any tile and selecting the ‘Mark Tile’ command. Easy! Only the player setting the markers will be able to see them, so go wild. There's also no limit to the number of markers you can place, and we are looking to include more options for them in the near future.


[h3]Chambers of Xeric Helper[/h3]



Raiders rejoice! You now have the option to see useful information about your Chambers of Xeric raid with our new Helper. This handy feature will show you how much time has elapsed in your raid, your current points, and an ordered list of rooms to scour, including information about the contents of those rooms and scavenger and connection rooms.

You can view more or less information clicking the button on the bottom right of the Helper. Once again, the feature can be enabled and disabled – but it’s on by default.


[h3]Mouse-Over Tooltips[/h3]



Before interacting with an NPC, object or item, you have the option to see a handy tooltip below your mouse pointer. This option is on by default.

You’ll also find tooltips for the Spellbook, but of course, you can disable them if you just want to see the spell icons and information on that screen.

You can also toggle the standard top-left option text on and off!


[h3]Chat[/h3]



Within the Chat Settings, you can now include timestamps within your chat to see when messages were sent. These can be changed from server time (default) to your local time – or switched off altogether.

Your chat history will also be kept for up to 15 minutes after you log-out, and will be visible if you log-in within that time.


[h3]Other Features[/h3]

• Your Health and Special Attack Orbs will display a visual timer to indicate when the next HP and Special Attack will be restored.
  
• You’re now able to apply anti-drag to the Settings, allowing you to hold shift and move multiple items in your Inventory.
  
• On desktop, you can now control your FPS-limiting options! Choose between Uncapped, 15FPS, 20FPS, 30FPS & 60FPS.
  
• You can keep your current combat style displayed on the screen without having to open the Combat Interface.
  
• In PvP zones, you can now see the level ranges of the players you can attack.
  
• For new players, the Settings menu will show less information by default. Keep it simple, eh?
  
• The transparent chatbox will now appear the same in the C++ client as it does on the Java client.
  
• The C++ client will remember your display settings the next time you log-in.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]A Kingdom Divided [/h2]



The Dark Lure spell has been changed slightly with regards to how it interacts with implings. Previously, the spell would cause an impling to briefly drift towards the player, before returning to their normal wandering routine. Now, lured implings will follow the player in a 2x2 area for 6 seconds, after which they will go back to wandering. This should make the spell more useful for this activity and alleviate some of the frustrations being expressed by players about how unreliable it was.

We've also made the following changes:

• You can now add X amount of runes to the Ash Sanctifier (where X is the number input by the player).
• Fiendish and Vile Ashes have been added to free-to-play, and Zalcano drops Infernal Ashes on death.
  
• The Book of the Dead's left-click option has been changed to 'Equip'.
  
• Thralls now give points for damage when used within the Chambers of Xeric.
  
• Thralls will now aggro when a player splashes a monster using a Magic attack.
  
• The north-western area of Piscarilius has reverted to multi-way combat.
  
• The Quest Journal for A Kingdom Divided no longer cuts off when viewed.
  
• The Chasm of Fire Cave shows up correctly on the minimap.
  
• Boars now drop raw boar meat when killed.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Theatre of Blood Modes [/h2]



You'll also find a few changes within Ver Sinhaza's very own Theatre of Blood:

• Fixed a bug where Verzik's Nylocas explosion damage increased in lower scales.
  
• Insulated boots now correctly reduce the damage from the lightning attack in Hard Mode.
  
• We've fixed an issue where the non-melee Verzik Nylocas in Hard Mode could be damaged with any style - now they can only be damaged with their respective style.
  
• The Duo Normal Global Bests will be reset, as they were displaying incorrectly.
  
• We’ve fixed an incorrect Nylocas transition on Wave 20.
  
• In all modes, the overall raid timer now starts after the team commences the Maiden fight.

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Clans [/h2]



Clans can now choose to receive automatic broadcasts when their members do any of the following:

• Obtain valuable loot (the value at which notifications go out can be determined by senior Clan members, and must be done at least once to start this alert)
  
• Obtain a Pet drop
  
• Complete quests
  
• Reach milestone skill levels
  
• Join or leave the Clan

All active recruiters are now notified when applications are received or withdrawn.

We are currently aware that the broadcasts are using the default chat message colour. We're are working on a fix to have them look better than the default colour but felt broadcasts were more important to have than them looking their best.

Barbarian Assault has now been added as a social activity, so your Clan can run one as an event.

When resigning as a Clan Leader, you’ll now be told who else is eligible to become the new Leader in your stead. Make sure they’re big boots to fill!

We’ve also made a couple of rank and title amendments:

• The Clan rank 'Peon' has been renamed to 'Pawn'.
  
• The new rank 'Helper' has been added, using a smiley face icon. This is so you can use smiley face icons in the Clans channels like you could in the legacy Chat Channels.
  
• The 'Ruby' rank icon is now a darker shade of red. Touch of class, that!
  
• The Metal Bars have been recoloured to match their in-game counterparts.

While you’re here, look out for these features in the near future:

• The ability to opt-out from your Clan's channel without leaving the Clan (for privacy).
  
• The option to left-click Attack members of your Clan for a friendly battle!
  
• New ways to sort the Clan lists by various criteria, beyond just alphabetically.

These features are currently in development with help from the Engine team, but they aren’t quite ready for launch this week. We’ll release these as soon as we can!

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Merch[/h2]

The official merch store has new stock!

Looking for something to while away those long summer evenings? Look no further than the Map of Gielinor Puzzle! Featuring the iconic map design you know and love, this 1,000pcs brainteaser is sure to get you working those cognitive muscles.

We've also got new Angels Scapes lines! Feast your eyes on the gorgeous Dusk Variant Tutorial Island Pin, a sunset-toned version of the pin made to celebrate our 20th Anniversary.



Plus, there’s a new Fishing Skill Cape Keyring, and restocks of the trimmed Strength and HP Skillcape Keyrings. Check out the full collection here.


[h2]RuneScape: The First 20 Years[/h2]

We’re very excited today because we can finally prise open the covers of our forthcoming book, RuneScape: The First 20 Years! Coming October 2021, the book is available for pre-order now, but if you can’t wait to get a gander at its hallowed pages, here’s your first look:



The book has 224 full-colour pages, including illustrations and exclusive interviews with J-Mods past and present!

And if that’s not enough, today we can also reveal the Deluxe Edition Cover Design and second folio print!

While the first folio print is an iconic Tim and Crunchy illustration, we can reveal that the second is a battle scene from the archives featuring the formidable General Graador! Created in 2012 for a series of prospective loading screens depicting the God Wars, the note on the illustration reads ‘The Lesser Gods opened gates between Gielinor and other neighbouring realms and brought into it new races to fight their battles.’ We think it makes a striking image for our second folio!

[hr][/hr]
[h2]PvP World Rota[/h2]

The PvP rota has moved to Period B:

• 560 - (UK) - PvP World
  
• 579 - (US) - High-Risk PvP World
  
• 561 - (UK) - Free-to-play PvP World
  
• 580 - (US) - LMS Competitive

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Extras[/h2]

• Vanguards can no longer become immortal after reaching 0 HP.
  
• The model of the Naval Shirts from Trouble Brewing have been edited/replaced to fit the female torso better. Now pose…
  
• Models within Mushroom Meadows have been optimised to improve performance.
  
• Ploughs in Hosidius will push any players who are standing in front of them.
  
• The rocks that lead from the Kharidian Desert surface down to the Agility Pyramid will now walk you to the correct spot if you attempt to use them from the wrong sides.
  
• Celestial rings and signets are now protected on death with higher priority.
  
• The silver needle in Shayzien has been replaced with a normal one.
  
• The new Antipoison potion can go in the shared storage at the Chambers of Xeric.

That's everything for this week's game update. As always, feedback is greatly appreciated, so please let us know what you think via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

[hr][/hr]

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

The Old School Team

[h2]Hotfixes and Changes - June 9th[/h2]

[expand]

[/expand]

Can you believe it? We're officially 150 quests old! Read on for everything you need to know about the launch of A Kingdom Divided, including a deep dive into the brand new Arceuus Spellbook. We've also got the goss on our Shayzien rework, competition winners and changes to the Chambers of Xeric!

Before we start, a quick note: upon login, any players currently in Kourend will be teleported to the Castle, due to substantial mapping changes. More on that below…

[hr][/hr]
[h2]A Kingdom Divided[/h2]

Well, here we are. The next chapter in the Great Kourend storyline and the 150th Old School Runescape quest: A Kingdom Divided is out now!

A brief message from Mod Ed:

"We first announced this quest back at RuneFest 2019, but for me, the journey has been much longer. I wrote the first draft of A Kingdom Divided all the way back in mid-2017, alongside drafts for the five Kourend house quests. After four years of waiting, it’s a joy to finally share this story with you all. I hope you enjoy it as much as the team and I enjoyed creating it."

Great Kourend: a land of wealth, comfort and security. Across its five cities, the people of this Kingdom work to bring peace and prosperity. However, all is not as it seems. Beneath this delicate façade lies an uncomfortable truth: the kingdom of Great Kourend is A Kingdom Divided.

Since the death of the last king, Great Kourend has been ruled by the Kourend Council. Under the watchful gaze of the Council, Kourend has enjoyed a golden age of progression. But not all of its citizens are happy, and, spurred by the recent arrest of Councillor Sophia Hughes, allegations of corruption are growing.

However, the political games of the Council may be the least of Kourend’s concerns. A darker power is gathering in the Kingdom - one that could change the face of Gielinor forever...

Start this quest by speaking to Martin Holt, who can be found protesting in Kingstown, near Kourend Castle.

[h3]Requirements & Rewards (SPOILER WARNING!)[/h3]
[expand] To complete A Kingdom Divided you'll need to have finished the following quests:

• Client of Kourend
  
  • X Marks the Spot
• The Depths of Despair
  
• The Queen of Thieves
  
• The Ascent of Arceuus
  
• The Forsaken Tower
  
• Tale of the Righteous
  
• Architectural Alliance

You'll also need the following skill levels (cannot be boosted):

• 54 Agility
  
• 52 Thieving
  
• 52 Woodcutting
  
• 50 Herblore
  
• 42 Mining
  
• 38 Crafting
  
• 35 Magic

Upon completion of the quest you'll be rewarded with:

• 2 Quest Points
  
• 10,000 XP Lamp
  
• New Arceuus spells
  
• Kourend Castle respawn point
  
• Your Kharedst's Memoirs changing into the Book of the Dead (+6 Magic attack & +3 Prayer bonus when equipped)
  
• 20 additional Book of the Dead charges

[/expand]

[previewyoutube]INSERT LAUNCH TRAILER[/previewyoutube]

We'd like to give a big shoutout to Mods Grace, Slippers and Surma for their audio contributions to A Kingdom Divided, as we can't wait for you to hear the sweet sounds they included with quest 150.

You'll be able to get up to speed with all the Kourend lore by checking out our original newspost which features Postie Pete's return, the complete collection of Kourend Chronicles and more!

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Arceuus Spells Rework[/h2]



Complete A Kingdom Divided and you'll gain access to the full contents of the new Arceuus Spellbook. Whether you want to clean all your herbs in one swoop or raise the dead, this book has got it all! Just goes to show that reading really does broaden the mind...

[h3]Full list of spells - click to expand[/h3]
[expand]
As always, we refer to the in-game timings as cycles. Each cycle is equal to 0.6 seconds and is also commonly referred to as a 'tick' by the wider community.

Reanimation Spells

Teleport Spells

Grasp Spells

Demonbane Spells

Corruption Spells

Resurrection Spells

Marking Spells

Offering Spells

Other Spells

Corruption

When a player is corrupted, they will start to lose Prayer points over a short amount of time. After 10 cycles, 1 Prayer point is drained. After another 10 cycles, 2 Prayer points are drained. After a final 10 cycles, 3 Prayer points are drained. If a Mark of Darkness has also been cast, corruption will occur every 5 cycles instead. This new type of damage will be reflected with the new type of hitsplat icon.

Naturally, Corruption spells can only be cast on a player who is not already corrupted. However, there is no cooldown between Corruption expiring and a new Corruption spell being cast. It is not possible to stack multiple Corruption spells on a single player, even within multi-combat zones.
[/expand]

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Shayzien Rework[/h2]



Working on the next chapter of the Kourend storyline was the perfect opportunity to give one area of Great Kourend a bit of a makeover. Here's a few words from Mod West:

"Back in 2016, one of our players posted their vision of what Great Kourend should have been, and it was met with a lot of praise in the community. Since then we’ve made various efforts in crafting a Great Kourend that players want, and one that holds true to the design philosophies behind the rest of Gielinor.

"Towards the end of 2016, we worked on the coastlines of Great Kourend to create a more natural silhouette, while also fixing the lack of in-land water and establishing a main castle in the center of the kingdom. These changes went a long way in improving the area, but failed to address the issues with its main cities. The crux of the problem was scale: every building was built with walls that were the thickness of a full game tile (~1 meter), which had adverse effects on the creation of buildings, as they now needed to be a lot bigger to accommodate for the larger walls. As a result, each city was far larger than it needed to be, and looked quite odd when compared to other places! To put this into perspective, some of the buildings in Great Kourend are the size of entire towns – that’s not ideal, and we were keen on fixing this issue as well.

"Changing the assets that make up the buildings and layouts of each city, and adding in some much-needed historical world-building (where are my ruins at?!) was a major undertaking, and we knew it would require much more than the handful of weeks we spent on the initial rework. In 2019, we made a start on addressing these issues with the Hosidius rework, which was received very positively by the players – and illustrated how important it was to rework the other four cities.

"Some major issues of the Shayzien area included:

• Tents, tents, tents! How has a 1,000 year old city functioned in seemingly temporary accommodation all this time?
• History? What history? While the area was updated a little with the Chasm of Fire back in 2017, it still had a distinct lack of background. Generally an area this old would have ruins of towns and fortifications, lost to war and time.
• Strange geography – what is this giant flat grassy plateau doing between farmland and swampland? It’s dull and lacks diversity. What are the local flora and fauna? Why do Giants roam outside the largest cemetery ever seen? So many questions that likely don't have answers, to be honest, as there was little thought put in during the initial crafting of Great Kourend.

"With the Shayzien rework, we hope we’ve solved these issues – and even more besides. We encourage you to explore the new city of Shayzien, the war camp and the surrounding outskirts, and we hope you like what you find!"

So what's changing? Firstly, Shayzien will be split in two. To the south, you'll find the city of Shayzien. To the north, the Shayzien Military Camp – both areas will feel very different from one another.

The camp to the north will have a more temporary, chaotic feel. The tents currently used throughout Shayzien will be used for the buildings here.



The city to the south has been given a more permanent and organised feel, to really bring the region to life. The tents have been removed from the city and replaced with brick buildings.



Here's how each piece of content has changed:



[h3]Full list of locations - click to expand[/h3]
[expand]



Additions

With the remapping, the following content is now within Shayzien:



[h3]Shops[/h3]

As detailed above, the rework will come with a new archery shop and an expanded clothes shop.

The stock for the archery shop will be:

• Bronze, Iron, Steel, Mithril, Adamant and Rune Arrows
  
• Bronze and Iron Bolts
  
• Oak, Willow, Maple and the Standard Shortbow
  
• Oak, Willow, Maple and the Standard Longbow
  
• Crossbow

The stock for the clothes shop will be:

• Leather body
  
• Leather boots
  
• Leather gloves
  
• Black skirt
  
• Blue skirt
  
• White apron
  
• Brown apron
  
• Chef's hat
  
• Black cape
  
• Blue cape
  
• Red cape
  
• Yellow cape

[/expand]

Mobs

We've changed the mobs in the vicinity to better reflect their environment, and thrown in three brand new NPCs!

West of Kourend Castle

• Giant Spiders (Level 2)
  
• Giant Rats (Level 3)
  
• NEW - Boar (Level 5)

North-east of Shayzien

• Bandit (Level 22)

South of Graveyard of Heroes

• Zombies (Level 34)
  
• NEW - Necromancer (Level 54)

Ruins of Morra

• NEW - Lynx (Level 64)

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Further Changes[/h2]



[h3]Ash and the Ash Sanctifier [/h3]

We wanted to make demonic creatures a bit more beneficial, so they now drop different types of ash. You'll be able to scatter ashes to receive Prayer XP (similar to burying bones). Zealot Robes have no effect on demonic ashes, and the ash cannot be offered at Prayer Altars or used at the Ectofuntus. Please note that Superior Slayer will drop the same as their normal equivalent.



The Ash Sanctifier is an untradeable object that lets you automatically scatter ashes, similar to how you bury bones with the Bonecrusher. When scattering this way, you will receive half the amount of Prayer XP you would gain from manual scattering. To unlock this new item, you'll need to complete the Kourend and Kebos Hard Achievement Diary. After completing the Elite Diary, you'll be able to gain 100% of the Prayer XP you would normally.

In order to charge the new item, you'll need to use Death Runes, with each Rune giving you 100 charges (and with the maximum charges set at a memorable 2,147,483,622). Your runes can be returned to you if you uncharge or destroy the item. If this item is lost, you can reclaim it by speaking to Tyss by the Dark Altar.



[hr][/hr]
[h2]Competition Winners[/h2]

We ran two competitions to celebrate the launch of A Kingdom Divided, and the results are in. We're sure that you had as hard a time deciding the winner of the Login Screen Competition as we did choosing the winner of the Video competition! All of the entries were fantastic, and we'd like to extend our thanks to everyone who took part. Without further ado, let's reveal our winners:

[h3]Login Screen Competition[/h3]

A massive congratulations to Need Plums, with the most voted entry through our in-game poll! Due to the technical constraints of the login screen, Need Plums kindly adapted their original image to include braziers, for the classic fire animation we all love so much:



The other finalists don't go home empty-handed. These talented folks will receive runner-up prizes:

• 2nd Place: Cherrycake4
• 3rd Place: Nancyy
• 4th Place: Parkshinhide

[h3]'The Story So Far' Video Competition[/h3]

After some very close internal voting, the winner of our video competition is Evil Robert. Here's what some of the team said about the vid:

"Great voice acting. Very well presented and shot."

"Professionally made and very good quality. Your voice is amazing!"

Here's the full video, so you can see for yourself. It's a great way to refresh your knowledge of the events leading up to A Kingdom Divided:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtesIDlCq8o

Congratulations to the following runners-up for their sterling work:

• 2nd Place: Good6rief
• 3rd Place: 1yfe
• 4th Place: Wyzdum13

Once again, a huge thanks to everyone who took part in either (or both) competitions. You should be amazingly proud of your entries!

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Chambers Of Xeric[/h2]



Chambers of Xeric is getting even more love with this update, including a number of quality of life fixes from Poll 75 that will make your raiding experience all the richer:

• You can now disable the level-scaling that happens if you have no players at or above 115 combat in Chambers of Xeric, by talking to Captain Rimor.
  
• A default chest has been added that can hold 25 items (in personal storage only).
  
• Ironmen can now use the shared storage unit on solo raids; Ultimate Ironmen can deposit items to the shared storage, but can't take anything out.
  
• The Olms Fire Wall special attack can now be extinguished using Ancient Ice spells.
  
• Herb patches now yield more herbs in larger raids.
  
• Vasa crystals no longer get the additional 50% defence and health modifier that Challenge Mode bosses gain.
  
• A Raid Party can receive up to six unique rewards from a raid if they earn enough points.
  
• The Challenge Mode Submerged Muttadile damage model has been altered. Minimum damage is now 20% to 80% of its previous max hit, leading to more consistent damage, but with less combo potential.
  
• Points now scale more linearly with combat level, meaning people with certain combat levels no longer receive disproportionately fewer points than they should have.
  
• A Pickaxe spawn has been added to all of the Stone Guardians room.
  
• Vanguards will take pending damage during the transition phase.
  
• Players can now make three tiers of antipoison potions inside of a raid with a Noxifer and a Cicely.

[hr][/hr]
[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

[hr][/hr]
[h2]Extras[/h2]

• Saradomin-themed Theatre of Blood weapons now provide protection from that faction within the God Wars Dungeon.
  
• We've fixed an issue with the Saradomin Scythe visually stretching in some circumstances.
  
• The look of the Saradomin Scythe inventory icon has been improved to better reflect the item itself.
  
• Players can no longer accidentally cast alchemy spells on the XP lamp from A Night at the Theatre.
  
• The quest journal for A Night at the Theatre now clarifies whether or not the player has received their reward.
  
• The Gauntlet tile patterns have been adjusted, as there was a bug that prevented some patterns from ever appearing.
  
• Players can now build cannons inside the Abyssal runecrafting area.
  
• The Fight Pits Diary task can now be completed on Deadman Mode worlds by speaking to the Fight Pit master TzHaar- Mej-Kah.
  
• The pillars at the Clan Hub no longer clip with the fence.
  
• Players may now retrieve the Barrelchest's anchor from Perdu if they lose it after the Barrelchest battle – even if they have not fully completed The Great Brain Robbery.
  
• Thorgel's shopping list now correctly states that he wants Pure Essence, not Rune Essence.

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, or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

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

The Old School Team

Welcome to the Kourend Chronicles, a six-part series of tales from Kourend's murky past! You can see a full list of all the stories so far on our A Kingdom Divided round-up.

[hr][/hr]



Since Thana’s death I have had much to think about. My usual research has lost its lustre – my every thought is of the Ascent, its mechanisms, and how suddenly it can be snatched away. When we gave up our mortal lives, all those years ago, we were promised forever – so what changed? All this time I believed our immortality was a result of our own ingenuity – and now I learn that we are all bound up with the whims of the Dark Altar and these mysterious ‘Tasakaal’.

The device the adventurer found is just one half of the puzzle. If there’s a chance – any chance – that what happened to Thana might happen again, then I have to know the whole story. And as any good researcher knows, the only way to discover the truth is to find the primary source.

It was with this in mind that I made the decision to climb Mount Karuulm and speak to these ‘Tasakaal’ myself. I knew the journey would not be without its dangers, but I felt myself prepared – it’s not as though I have feet to get tired!

In truth, however, I must report that what lurks upon that mountain is worse than anything I could have imagined – and the danger, I believe, is to everyone in Kourend, and possibly beyond.

The climb began easily enough. I quickly spotted a few well-worn shortcuts and having saved myself a significant chunk of time, decided to pause and admire the view from one of the stopping-points. I was recalling a line from Philophaire’s Philosophy of Darkness when I sensed that I was not alone. Some way up the path, a trader was making his way down from the summit.

I had no time for conversation, so I concealed myself behind a nearby outcrop, thinking I might wait until he’d passed. Instead, I found myself witness to a horrifying spectacle – something so terrible that I hardly know if I can describe it. I’ll do my best.

As the trader slipped behind the outcrop, I heard him greet someone else on the path. I thought for a second he’d seen me, and almost floated sheepishly out from my hiding place when I heard the trader scream. Of course, I immediately looked to see what was going on, and whether I could be of assistance.

Not even six feet away from me stood the most monstrous creature I have ever laid eyes on. I could not tell if it was human or some sort of ghast. Its skin was white as bone, as was its clothing – but its eyes were a piercing blue, and the way it looked at that poor trader… it seemed much like a cat, batting some helpless mouse between its paws.

I’m no brave warrior at the best of times, and my instincts told me to remain hidden at any cost. With regret in my heart, I resolved to stay behind the rock and wait for an opportunity to help – an opportunity, I am afraid to say, that never came.

The figure used some sort of spell. I heard the incantation and smelled the tell-tale whiff of magic in the air, but it was a spell the kind of which I'd never seen before. The poor trader fell to his knees – almost as if pushed by an invisible hand – as a green light enveloped him. Then, almost as soon as it began, it was over.

I peered out, hoping that the monster was gone. To my shock, it was looking right at me. Just thinking about it makes me shudder. I think I caught it by surprise. I immediately readied a counterspell to defend myself, but no sooner had I raised my arms than it vanished with a blue flash of light. A teleportation spell, presumably, although I didn’t believe such a thing to be possible.

Now that the danger had passed, I immediately rushed to help the poor trader, who was lying prone in the centre of the path, but he was quite obviously dead. For a moment I was reminded of poor Thana. I hesitated, thank goodness, because then the body twitched. As I looked on in horror, it stood up and began to stumble down the path toward me.

I have seen reanimated monsters before, of course – but this was entirely different. I swear on the Dark Altar itself, I have never seen magic like it. It was abhorrent. Bizarre. Dangerous. All my instincts told me to turn and run – and so I did just that.

I’m sorry, Thana. I’m no closer to understanding what happened to you – but something tells me that what I saw today must be another piece of the puzzle. Whatever or whoever that monster was, it was a darkness I'd never before witnessed and hope never to do so again.

- Mori

[h3]A Kingdom Divided - Coming June 16th[/h3]

Good news for all Old School ‘Scapers today, as we begin talking about one of the projects that we’ve been working on in the background, and alluding to in our livestreams and blogs.

When we released Old School on Steam a few months ago, it came with a C++ client, GPU support and vastly improved performance. Since that release – and for many years! - you’ve been telling us that’s not enough. You want us to implement some of the features you’ve grown to love. You’ve wanted us to expand those features onto mobile too.

Well, we’ve been listening and that’s exactly what we’ve been working on. Development on the features is relatively new, beginning in earnest towards the end of last year, but this project will be the fruition of significant time and investment. In addition to our own content and engine teams (which we’ve expanded!) we have built a fantastic relationship with an external development team who are working with us to make this a reality even sooner. Whilst the project is still relatively early in its development, and we have a lot of work ahead, we feel that now is the right time to ask for your help. In just eight days’ time we’ll be adding the first milestone drop of additional features to the game on Steam. We want you to try using them, test them out, and give us your feedback!

This is an exciting moment for us as a team. But maybe we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves here. The work going on behind the scenes began over 12 months ago and, to say it again, we’re still fairly early in the feature development phase. Of course, this is just the first step in what will be a long process. This is a project we’re committed to for the long-term. Implementing all the changes you’ve asked for will take time. This blog will tell you everything you need to know at this stage, and we'll be covering any initial questions on Thursday's livestream, as well as adding to the FAQ.

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty of the how, what and when.


[h3]Let’s Talk Testing [/h3]

To begin with, Steam will be our initial testing platform. We’re choosing to do it this way because it will allow us to streamline and manage initial feature updates and testing via just one platform more effectively. It also means that it's going to be really simple for you - our existing players – to pick up and help test the added features. Plus, we think it will be useful to see how the new players coming through Steam use the features.

Going forward we’ll be expanding the test by bringing these features to the mobile version of the game in the near future. You won’t need to do anything special to get them – they’ll be a part of the normal mobile updates. We are considering some opt-in testing, and if we decide on this we will of course update you accordingly.

Over time, and when we have a fuller feature set to offer (all of which have been tested and improved with your help) we’ll ensure that the C++ client is packed up separately outside of Steam for other desktop players to use!

We know that we’re being fairly loose with timeframes here, and that’s deliberate. We want to focus on the quality of the features with a smaller testing base before we distribute the new features more widely.


[h3]About The Features [/h3]

We know this is what you’re most keen to find out! It’s no secret that most of the Old School team are avid players of the game, and have deep experience of third-party clients. We leant on our own experience to identify what we felt was important. This has been coupled with your suggestions over the years. But that’s not all. We’d also like to use this opportunity to say a big thank you to Adam, of RuneLite, who has been really supportive in helping us to assess which features we should prioritise.

We want to focus on feature quality and ample testing rather than quantity. To that end, we're going to batch features into milestone releases and we’ll be releasing these incrementally for the duration of the project. This will allow us to engage with feedback and make changes whilst working on the next milestone, with the ability to refine features in parallel with a steady release schedule.

As for the features themselves, we’re not thinking of them as plugins in the traditional sense. They’re part of the game and you’ll find most of them within game settings. This is a big part of why we updated the settings menu! We’re thinking of the future, years ahead, and doing it this way means we have flexibility over the design of the features and menus. More importantly it will let us tie the features directly into the game content and game systems with all information to hand. This means that the features will be highly integrated and responsive, and can use contextually driven information. There will still be a side panel for the stuff that doesn’t fit or makes more sense to be adjusted outside of the game, however.

Building all of this directly into the game means most of it will be present on mobile too. We know this will make a huge difference to those of you who spend a lot of time playing away from your desktop.

So, without further ado, here's a look at the first milestone we have planned already. And the good news is that it will be with you on Wednesday June 23rd! If all goes well, you can expect the second milestone in late July/early August, and the third milestone in late August/early September.

Here's a look at what will be coming next week. Note: TLI = Top Level Interface. HUD = Heads-up Display

Future milestones contain things like ground item identifiers, loot trackers, HiScores panels, Bank tags, and a lot more! We’ll be sharing the next stage of the roadmap as the project unfolds.

A look at some of the upcoming features. We'll share more with next week's release!

[h3]What’s Next?[/h3]

You’ll be able to start using the first milestone of features when they arrive on Thursday, June 23rd. All you need to do is link your Old School RuneScape account on Steam and download the update. It’s that easy! As with the Steam Beta we ran at the end of last year, we’d love it if you would join our dedicated Discord server to share your feedback with us. Once the features are out, we'll share the Discord server widely. Everybody is welcome!

We know you’ve probably got a lot of questions about these features and what it might mean in the future. There are a lot of different routes we could take, and we'll do what makes the most sense for the game and for you, the community. Right now, our focus is purely on working hard to give players the security and reassurance of an official alternative to existing third-party clients. Beyond that? Let’s work together to find out, but we’re confident that the future holds seriously exciting opportunities which will be unlocked by the work we’re doing.

We can’t wait for you to get stuck in and test the features!


The Old School Team

[hr][/hr]
[h2]FAQ[/h2]

Why did the project come about?
We know that our official Old School RuneScape game clients lack modern quality-of-life features. Things like visual and audio aids, tracking tools and additional accessibility options. Third-party game clients emerged to offer such things and it’s these clients, particularly RuneLite, that you find yourselves playing on. We want to give you an official alternative, one that can reach mobile and be ready for future projects.


How can I use the new features?
To begin with, you’ll only be able to try it on Steam. Eventually the features will make their way to mobile, and then later to desktop outside of Steam.


Why isn't there a poll for the features?
We’ve decided not poll the features because, well… we know that players have been using them for years. Many of you can’t imagine playing without them at this point! We think the need for these options is clear. In future, additional bespoke features could absolutely be polled.


What does this mean for other third-party clients?
Nothing! You can continue to use third-party clients that adhere to our guidelines.


If you’ve been working on this project for so long, why have you waited to tell us about the project?
We wanted to make sure it was deliverable. We don’t want to make promises and then fail to make good on them. You all remember early August and Winter 2017… And anyway, it’s the perfect time now that the first milestone is ready.


Why are you favouring RuneLite?
RuneLite is the most popular third-party client, so it made sense for us to speak with its developers for a broad insight into what features our players are looking for.


I want to test the features. How can I give feedback?
Once the features are out, we'll be welcoming everybody to our dedicated Discord server to share any thoughts on the new features and how they’ve been implemented. Naturally we’ll be keeping an eye everywhere else, like Reddit, Twitter and the forums!