Contents
Overview
Slayer is the long game of OSRS. You don’t pick what you kill. A Slayer master hands you a task, you go kill that monster a set number of times, and you come back for another. Slayer XP per kill is roughly equal to the monster’s Hitpoints, and you still get your normal combat XP on top, so a Slayer grind is also a combat grind.
That’s why most players treat Slayer as their main way of training combat in the mid and late game. It unlocks monsters you can’t fight any other way, some of the best gear drops in the game, and bosses like Cerberus and the Alchemical Hydra. It’s also slow, and there’s no single XP/hour number for it, because your rate depends on your stats, gear, which master you use and how well you manage your task list. Slayer is members-only.
The Slayer system rewards planning more than raw kills. Points let you skip and block the tasks you hate, and the master you choose decides how many points you earn. Most of the speed in a 99 Slayer grind comes from managing your task list well, not from killing faster.
Getting Ready
You can start Slayer at combat level 3, but the Wiki is clear that it’s more efficient to get some combat levels and gear first, then start at a higher master. These are the things worth sorting out early.
- 1
- Combat levels
Your combat level decides which masters will give you tasks. Around 70-75 combat you can start at Chaeldar (70) or Konar (75), which is where Slayer starts paying off.
- 2
- Dwarf Cannon
The quest unlocks the dwarf multicannon, which speeds up tasks at the cost of cannonballs. Without barrage or chinchompas, the Wiki prefers cannonable spots for ranged or melee tasks.
- 3
- Recommended quests
The Wiki recommends Animal Magnetism, Desert Treasure I, Fairytale II, Dwarf Cannon, Knight Waves Training Grounds and Bear Your Soul for their Slayer benefits.
- 4
- Black mask / Slayer helmet
The black mask gives a damage and accuracy bonus against your assigned monster. Unlocking the Slayer helmet costs 400 points and needs 55 Crafting, and the Wiki says to prioritise it as soon as possible. The imbued version adds 15% to Ranged and Magic as well.
Slayer Masters by Level
Each master has a combat level requirement and pays a different number of points per task. Points start after you complete your first few tasks, and every 10th, 50th, 100th, 250th and 1,000th task in a row pays a large bonus.
99 Slayer bypasses the combat requirement at Mazchna, Vannaka, Chaeldar, Konar, Nieve and Duradel. Combat level checking is on by default and can be toggled by talking to a master.
Konar and Krystilia are the two masters with a twist. Konar also tells you where to kill your task, and kills on her tasks can drop brimstone keys on top of the normal drop. Krystilia only counts kills inside the Wilderness, but she pays the most points per task and her monsters can drop Larran’s keys and Slayer enchantments.
Slayer Level Milestones
Points, Streaks & Skips
Your task streak is the most valuable thing in Slayer. Each completed task adds to it, and milestone tasks pay far more than a normal one. At Duradel, for example, a normal task gives 15 points, while every 10th gives 75, every 50th 225 and every 100th 375.
- 1
- Cancelling with points
Cancelling a task costs 30-100 points and has no other penalty. Your streak stays intact.
- 2
- Turael skipping
Turael can reset your task for free, but it resets your streak to zero. The Wiki doesn’t recommend it as a general strategy. Build points instead.
- 3
- Mixing masters
Turael and Spria tasks pay no points but still count toward your streak. Many players do quick tasks from a lower master and take their milestone tasks from a high-paying one.
- 4
- Krystilia milestones
With 125 points for a 10th task and 375 for a 50th, Krystilia pays the biggest milestone bonuses if you’re comfortable in the Wilderness.
The streak bonus is why the master you take your 10th and 50th task from matters. Plan it the same way you’d plan a GE flip: know where the next milestone is before you hand in the task before it.
Blocking Tasks
Blocking removes a monster from a master’s list permanently, until you unblock it. It’s the best long-term point sink in the skill, because every task you block makes the good ones come up more often.
- You get one block slot per 50 quest points, up to six slots at 300 quest points.
- A seventh slot comes from the Elite Lumbridge & Draynor Diary, which requires a quest cape.
- Block cost depends on the master: 40 points at Turael, Aya and Spria, rising to 100 at Duradel, Kuradal and Krystilia. Mortimer has only two slots.
- Stop the Wyvern (500 points) removes Fossil Island wyvern tasks without using a block slot.
Quest points are the hidden Slayer stat. If you’re short on block slots, the fix is questing, not grinding more tasks.
Unlocks Worth Buying
There are a lot of rewards in the Slayer shop and not all of them are worth your points early. These are the ones the Wiki prioritises, plus the quality-of-life picks most players grab.
- 1
- Malevolent Masquerade (400)
Lets you assemble the Slayer helmet (55 Crafting). Buy this first.
- 2
- Gargoyle Smasher (120)
Finishes gargoyles automatically if you have a rock hammer in your inventory.
- 3
- Slug Salter and Reptile Freezer (10 each)
Auto-finish rockslugs and desert lizards with salt or an ice cooler in your inventory. Cheap and saves clicks.
- 4
- Ring Bling (150)
Lets you craft Slayer rings at 75 Crafting for teleports to Slayer locations.
- 5
- Bigger and Badder (50)
Certain Slayer monsters can spawn a superior version while you’re on task.
- 6
- Broader Fletching (300)
Lets you fletch broad arrows (52 Fletching) and broad bolts (55 Fletching).
- 7
- Like a Boss (200)
Konar, Duradel, Krystilia and Nieve can assign boss tasks.
Unlocks like Seeing Red (50), Watch the Birdie (80) and Hot Stuff (100) add tasks to a master’s list, which can be good or bad depending on whether you want those monsters. Extensions raise task sizes on monsters you like. Buy them for profitable tasks only.
Money Making Methods
Slayer is where a lot of mid-game accounts make their money, because the profit comes from what you’re already killing. There’s no single GP/hour number. It depends on which tasks you keep and which you block.
- 1
- Abyssal demons (85)
Drop the abyssal whip at 1/512 and the abyssal dagger at 1/32,000, plus abyssal ashes on every kill.
- 2
- Boss tasks
With Like a Boss unlocked, boss tasks count toward your streak while you farm bosses.
- 3
- Konar’s brimstone keys
Every kill on a Konar task can drop a brimstone key in addition to the normal drop.
- 4
- Wilderness tasks
Krystilia’s monsters can drop Larran’s keys. Higher risk, higher points.
Tips & Tricks
Don’t start Slayer too early. A few combat levels and some gear first will save you hours of slow low-level tasks.
Get the Slayer helmet as soon as you can afford 400 points. Everything else in the shop can wait.
Quest for block slots. Each 50 quest points is another task you never have to see again.
Check where your next 10th and 50th task falls before choosing a master. Milestone points are where the shop money comes from.
If you’re an ironman, Slayer drops will gear most of your account, so treat it as your main progression path rather than a side skill.
Related Guides
- OSRS Mining Guide (1-99) — Granite, iron and the AFK routes to 99.
- OSRS Agility Guide (1-99) — Graceful, rooftops and the Hallowed Sepulchre.
- OSRS Prayer Guide (1-99) — Protection prayers make most Slayer tasks much easier.
- OSRS Zulrah Guide — A step up into bossing once your stats are ready.
- OSRS Optimal Quest Guide (Simplified) — Quest points for block slots, in a sensible order.
- OSRS Ironman Guide — How Slayer fits into an ironman’s progression.