Contents
Overview
Old School RuneScape doesn’t hold your hand, and that’s a big part of its charm. There’s no main storyline pushing you along and no single right way to play. You pick goals, chip away at them, and the account slowly turns into something that’s yours. That freedom is also what makes the first few hours confusing.
This guide covers the things I wish someone had told me on day one: how OSRS differs from RuneScape 3, what membership gets you, which quests and skills to start with, how the Grand Exchange and combat work, and how to make your first bit of money. The OSRS Wiki is the backbone of the game’s community, and every number here comes from it. Keep it open in a second tab. Everyone does.
You can’t break your account by training the “wrong” skill. Every level counts toward something eventually. The only choices that are hard to undo are your game mode (normal vs ironman) and dropping too much gear in a dangerous area, so read the Ironman section before you leave Tutorial Island.
OSRS vs RS3
There are two RuneScape games, both run by Jagex. Old School RuneScape launched on 22 February 2013, built from a backup of the RuneScape source code as it was on 10 August 2007. RuneScape 3 is the continuation of the main game, with a very different combat system and modern features.
OSRS has grown far past that 2007 base. Most new content goes to a player poll first, and it needs 70% support to pass. Your stats, items and quests are separate between the two games, but one account can log into both, and a bond’s membership time applies to both. OSRS is on desktop and mobile (mobile launched on 31 October 2018), and your account works on either.
Free-to-Play vs Members
OSRS is free to play with a members subscription on top. Free-to-play is a solid way to learn the game, but members is where most of the content lives. Free players are also capped at 400 bank spaces, or 460 with the security features switched on.
Membership can be paid for with real money or with an Old School bond. A bond gives 14 days of membership, and bonds bought with real money can be traded and sold on the Grand Exchange. That means a free player who builds up enough coins can buy membership with gold instead of cash. Prices change, so check the official site or the GE for current values.
New free-to-play accounts have trade restrictions on some commonly botted items until they’ve played 20 hours, earned 10 quest points and reached 100 total level. Buying membership removes them right away.
Tutorial Island
Every new character starts on Tutorial Island. It’s short and walks you through the basics in order: the Gielinor Guide (settings and appearance), the Survival Expert (fishing, woodcutting, firemaking and cooking), the Master Chef, the Quest Guide, the Mining Instructor (mining and smithing), the Combat Instructor (melee and ranged), the Account Guide, the Prayer instructor, the Ironman tutor and finally the Magic Instructor, who sends you to Lumbridge.
Two things matter here. The Account Guide covers security, and you should take it seriously. And the Ironman tutor is where you choose your game mode. Items you collect on the island don’t come with you, so don’t bother hoarding.
First Quests
Quests are the best way to learn OSRS. They teach you the map, hand out XP and unlock content, and quest points matter for a lot of later rewards. The Wiki’s New player guide suggests Sheep Shearer, Cook’s Assistant, X Marks the Spot, Pirate’s Treasure and Romeo & Juliet as a quick route to the 10 quest points needed to lift trade restrictions.
- 1
- Cook’s Assistant & Sheep Shearer
Quick Lumbridge quests. The optimal quest guide suggests grabbing an extra pot of flour and 3 balls of wool for Prince Ali Rescue.
- 2
- The Restless Ghost & Rune Mysteries
Start them while you’re around Lumbridge. Rune Mysteries unlocks Runecraft.
- 3
- Imp Catcher & Witch’s Potion
Easy early Magic XP.
- 4
- Waterfall Quest (members)
Gives 13,750 Attack and 13,750 Strength XP, which takes both from 1 to 30. It can be done at combat level 3.
- 5
- Tree Gnome Village (members)
Unlocks spirit trees for fast travel.
- 6
- The Tourist Trap (members)
Takes Agility from 1 to 26 if you pick Agility for both rewards.
Once you’re past the first handful, follow an optimal quest order. The Wiki maintains one for free-to-play and one for members, and our simplified version is linked at the bottom of this guide.
Early Skills
There are no bad skills to train early, but some pay off faster than others. The Wiki’s New player guide points to these as good starting points.
- 1
- Woodcutting & Firemaking
Needed for plenty of quests and easy to train from the start. Cut normal trees, then oaks at 15.
- 2
- Fishing & Cooking
Cheap to train and they make the food you’ll eat in combat.
- 3
- Combat skills
Switch attack styles every so often to keep Attack, Strength and Defence even.
- 4
- Crafting
18 Crafting lets you make leather chaps, and tanning cowhides is a decent early money maker.
- 5
- Mining & Smithing
Mine copper and tin and smelt them into bronze bars. Members can skip a big chunk of early Mining with quests.
The Adventure Paths system gives rewards at levels 5, 10 and 20 in the combat skills and at level 5 in Fishing, Woodcutting and Mining. Pick up the Combat path starter kit from Adventurer Jon in Lumbridge, and check the Activity Adviser (the orange orb under the minimap) when you’re stuck for ideas.
The Grand Exchange
The Grand Exchange is the game’s central market, north-west of Varrock. You place buy and sell offers, and they fill automatically when another player’s price meets yours. You don’t need to find a trader or haggle.
- Free players get 3 offer slots. Members get 8.
- Most items have a buy limit that resets every 4 hours. There’s no limit on selling.
- Most sales pay a 2% tax, capped at 5 million coins per item. Bonds and some low-level items are exempt.
- Withdraw items as notes from the bank to sell them in bulk. You can unnote them again by using them on a banker.
- Ironmen can’t use the Grand Exchange for anything except bonds.
Combat Basics
OSRS has three combat styles: melee, ranged and magic. They’re tied together by the combat triangle. Melee tends to beat rangers, ranged tends to beat mages, and magic tends to beat melee. The Wiki is careful to call this a rule of thumb, not a law. Any style can beat any other, and armour matters a lot. Metal armour is very weak against magic, for example.
Your attack style decides where your XP goes. For melee you get four XP per point of damage in the stat you’re training, plus Hitpoints XP on every style.
For your first combat training, the Wiki suggests chickens and cows around Lumbridge (the cow pen north of the Al Kharid gates is a good one) once you have 5-10 in each combat stat. The Lumbridge tutors also hand out a free training sword, shield, bow, arrows and runes if you don’t already have them.
Early Money
Money making in OSRS is a ladder, and you’re on the bottom rung. That’s fine. These are the methods the Wiki suggests for brand-new players, and they all train a skill too.
- 1
- Logs
Cut normal trees in Lumbridge, then oaks at 15 Woodcutting, and sell the logs.
- 2
- Tanning cowhides
Kill cows, tan the hides at the tanner next to the Al Kharid furnace, then sell the leather or craft it.
- 3
- Bronze bars
Mine copper and tin and smelt them.
- 4
- Fly fishing
Trout and salmon once you have the Fishing level.
- 5
- Stronghold of Security
A one-time 10,000 coins across its first three floors plus a choice of boots on the fourth. You need two-factor authentication on your account to claim the rewards.
Your First Weeks
There’s no single endgame in OSRS, so set short goals and let them stack. Here’s a sensible order for your first few weeks.
- 1
- Secure your account
Use a Jagex Account with two-factor authentication and set a Bank PIN. It also unlocks the Stronghold of Security rewards and extra bank space.
- 2
- Get 10 quest points
Lifts the free-to-play trade restrictions and teaches you the map around Lumbridge and Varrock.
- 3
- Work through Adventure Paths
Easy milestone rewards while you find your feet.
- 4
- Decide on membership
If you enjoy the game, members opens up most of the skills, quests and money makers. Do the members quests above as soon as you subscribe.
- 5
- Pick a long-term goal
A 99, a quest cape, your first boss. Having something to aim for is what keeps an OSRS account going.
Sailing is a members skill and the only skill that exists only in OSRS. Some content in other skills (like certain Mining rocks) is gated behind Sailing levels. You don’t need it in your first weeks, but our Sailing guide covers it when you’re ready.
Ironman Mode
Ironman is a self-sufficient game mode. You can’t trade with other players or use the Grand Exchange (except for bonds), so everything you own you gathered or made yourself. You pick it on Tutorial Island from Paul, the Ironman tutor. The options are Standard, Hardcore and Ultimate, plus Group Ironman.
You can switch freely between modes while you’re still on the island. After you leave, you can only move to a less restrictive mode, through Adam in Lumbridge. So if you’re unsure, start as an ironman and drop it later if it isn’t for you. It’s a slower, more planned way to play, and plenty of players love it for exactly that reason. Our Ironman guide covers it in detail.
Tips & Tricks
Keep the OSRS Wiki open. It’s the most useful tool in the game, and nobody expects you to memorise anything.
Never give your login details to anyone. Jagex only advertises events on its official website, and fake streams and giveaways are a common scam.
Be careful with Accept Aid. Some teleports from other players can drop you in the Wilderness.
Don’t grind cows for hours. If you’re a member, the Waterfall Quest takes Attack and Strength from 1 to 30 in one go.
Take breaks. OSRS is a long game, and the players who stick around are the ones who play at their own pace.
Related Guides
- OSRS Optimal Quest Guide (Simplified) — A sensible quest order once you’re past the basics.
- OSRS Ironman Guide — Everything you need before committing to ironman.
- OSRS Money Making Guide — The next rungs on the money making ladder.
- OSRS Mining Guide (1-99) — From copper and tin to 99.
- OSRS Agility Guide (1-99) — Graceful and the rooftop route.
- OSRS Slayer Guide (1-99) — When you’re ready to make combat your main focus.
- OSRS Fishing Guide (1-99) — An easy first skill to take far.
- OSRS Sailing Guide — The Sailing skill explained.
- When Did RuneScape Come Out? — The history behind both games.