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Ruling Old School RuneScape

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Old School RuneScape

Iconic Fantasy MMORPG

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We all love the shiny and new, but sometimes nothing beats a classic. And it doesn’t get more classic than Old School RuneScape. A massively multiplayer game from a bygone era, it combines the point-and-click simplicity of the genre’s glory days with fresh mechanics and constant updates. The best of both worlds!

If you’ve already fallen for Old School RuneScape’s considerable charms, chances are you learned the ropes on Tutorial Island. But even players who’ve spent countless nights chasing those coveted level-99 skills have something new to discover in a game this big.

With the help of developer Jagex’s seasoned team of community managers, we conjured these five pointers, which range from beginner-friendly to veteran-approved.

Just gotten off of Tutorial Island? Start with the Waterfall Quest.

The starting line
Completing quests to level up is the fastest path to Old School RuneScape success, but the sprawling list of activities can be daunting for first-time adventurers. Some advice: Start off on the right foot with X Marks the Spot and Waterfall Quest.

The former will net you a nice early chunk of XP while moving the quest path of the Great Kourend kingdom forward. The latter is lengthier and slightly more difficult, but the rewards – including a significant boost to your Strength and Attack skills (as well as diamonds, gold, and other resources) – are worth the extra effort.

Getting around a map this big isn’t easy. Teleport when you can.

Faster travelling
Old School RuneScape’s gigantic map is brimming with opportunity, but getting around Gielinor can be tedious. Focus on your Magic and Agility disciplines from the start to get a leg up on achieving seasoned-traveler status. Magic unlocks teleports in different locations, while increased Agility helps on-foot explorers overcome environmental obstacles and access shortcuts.

In the early stages, stick around Lumbridge and the surrounding area.

Stay the path
Old School RuneScape encourages you to experiment, explore, and forge your own path. But as tempting as it is to immediately begin writing your own adventure, you should first hone your chops in your own backyard.

The starting city of Lumbridge is overflowing with options to master everything you learned on Tutorial Island – and its castle is bursting at the cobblestones with newcomer-friendly quests. There may be more mysterious places beyond the horizon (like the dangerous, loot-filled Wilderness), but save those spots for when you’re properly prepared.

Diaries contain loads of challenges – and handsome rewards.

Close the book on diaries
Achievement Diaries are one-off challenges tied to specific regions of Gielinor. Coming in four increasingly difficult varieties, they’re often ignored as players complete early tiers and move on to other tasks.

Don’t sleep on this activity’s hard and elite challenges, however – they pack some of the game’s best rewards. Completing every stage of all 12 Achievement Diaries grants access (if you’ve got 99K coins to spare) to the rare Achievement Diary Cap, one of the hardest items to obtain in all of Gielinor.

If you’re up for a good fight, try taking on Recipe for Disaster.

Fights worth finishing
Stuck in a rut as a veteran player? Seek out the Recipe for Disaster quest. This lengthy, multi-chaptered challenge isn’t for the faint of heart, but its beefy rewards are worth it. On top of loads of XP, conquering this gauntlet grants you the incredible Barrows Gloves, which provide wild boosts to Melee, Ranged, Magic, and Strength.

Another can’t-miss battle: the TzHaar Fight Cave mini-game. Conquer the cave’s eight monsters – as well as the brutal TzTok-Jad boss – and you can earn the sought-after Fire Cape, which substantially increases Melee.