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Jagex released its seminal MMORPG, RuneScape, way back in 2001. Its accessibility and charm gave it a strong following, and so many people were disappointed when Jagex released the Evolution of Combat update in 2012 and completely overhauled central aspects of the game. For players who wanted to go back to a simpler, more nostalgic time, Jagex released Old School RuneScape — essentially a time-frozen rerelease of RuneScape circa 2007 — in 2013.
Old School RuneScape has grown to eclipse modern RuneScape in popularity and still manages to attract many new players to this day. But in a world as large as Gielinor, with so many skills to train and quests to do, it can be difficult to know where to start. Don't worry — we've got you covered with these beginner tips.
Think Ahead
After you've finished customizing your character, you'll land on Tutorial Island. This straightforward, linear tutorial should take only a few minutes, but it still gives you a solid introduction to many of the game's skills and mechanics. While you're here, it's a good idea to pay attention to our first tip: think about which skills you prefer, so that you can decide how you want to play the game. This is something you should keep in mind even after Tutorial Island when you start getting into the game proper, since getting the most out of Old School RuneScape requires a lot of time investment (literally thousands of hours) and you want to make sure you're enjoying it!
Seek Out Adventurer Jon
The first NPC you meet in Tutorial Island is the Gielinor Guide. Tip number two: tell him that you're a new player so that, once you're off Tutorial Island, Adventurer Jon will appear in Lumbridge to provide you with many new player benefits. Most notably, talking to Adventurer Jon will allow you to choose an Adventure Path, which will incentivize you to keep grinding for those hard-to-reach levels.
Choose The Combat Path
There are two Adventure Paths - the Combat Path and the Gatherer Path, and each gives you access to a mission track that you can follow to get rewards for your in-game progress and leveling. Although the Gatherer Path is decent, our tip is to choose the Combat Path instead. Not only are there many more missions in this path, but choosing it also earns you a free Combat Path Starter Kit full of weapons, armor, and other useful goodies. On completing path missions, you can talk to Adventurer Jon to claim your rewards, and when you manage to complete the entire Path you will earn a Combat Path Voucher that you can redeem for various rewards around the town of Varrock. Reading the voucher will tell you where to go!
Questing Without Resting
As well as signing up for the Combat Path, another great way of getting rewarded for playing the game is by doing quests. The quests in Old School RuneScape are incredibly varied and unique in their gameplay, and they are the best part of the game for many players. Moreover, many quests require you to travel across Gielinor, giving you familiarity with the game's map. For our next tip, we recommend doing these quests in particular since they will give you generous rewards — often XP rewards that will drastically boost your skills — and will have you traveling around and getting to know many areas in the game:
|
Name |
Description |
Rewards |
|---|---|---|
|
Cook's Assistant |
The first quest ever released in RuneScape. You'll need to travel around Lumbridge to collect cake ingredients for the Duke's birthday. |
300 Cooking XP (taking you straight to level four) |
|
Sheep Shearer |
Shear wool from sheep and spin it into balls. An incredibly quick quest that introduces you to the basics of Crafting. |
150 Crafting XP (taking you to level two) and 60gp |
|
The Restless Ghost |
Solve the mystery of the ghost haunting Lumbridge church. There is a small risk of death near the end of this quest when you need to run away from an aggressive ghost, but you should be fine. |
1,125 Prayer XP (taking you straight to level nine) |
|
Rune Mysteries |
Help the wizards of Wizards' Tower research the process of crafting runes. Involves traveling to the village of Draynor. |
Access to the Runecrafting skill and the Rune Essence mine |
|
Romeo and Juliet |
Travel around Varrock to help two star-crossed lovers. There never was a tale of more woe. |
Five quest points |
|
Witch's Potion |
Help a witch with her potion brewing, by gathering various ingredients for her. Getting these will involve journeying across West Gielinor. |
325 Magic XP (taking you to level four) |
Safety Training
As well as these, if you're feeling bold you can try and take on our final tip: tackling the Stronghold of Security in Barbarian Village. This is a four-tiered underground labyrinth with each floor containing successively stronger monsters. On completing a floor, you will be rewarded with a generous stack of money and, if you manage to overcome all four floors and reach the very end of the maze, you will earn the incredibly fashionable Fancy Boots cosmetic item.
However, this is not without risk - many of the monsters here are strong enough to knock out a new player in a single hit, so make sure you bank your valuable items before going in. The dungeon also teaches you important lessons about account security along the way — and what's more fun than learning?