RuneScape combat
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Combat, a set of trainable skills in the MMORPG RuneScape, is the act of battling opponents, whether they are non-player characters or other players. Combat between players and NPCs can take place in most locations in RuneScape, while combat among players can take place only in designated areas.
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[edit] Levels and skills
The combat level of a player is calculated internally by the game engine using the seven combat skills. The maximum combat level in RuneScape is 126. In RuneScape Classic, the maximum combat level is 123. In both versions of RuneScape, the minimum combat level upon departure from Tutorial Island is three. As a player progresses, it becomes more time-consuming to obtain combat levels, due to the exponential progression of levels.
Attack is trained by using the "accurate" style of combat. Attack level determines how often a player's attack hits the opponent as well as the weapons a player can wield in combat.
Strength is trained by using the "aggressive" style of combat. Strength level determines the maximum damage a player deals in melee combat. Higher strength levels are required to wield certain weapons and armour.
Defence is trained by using the "defensive" style of combat when fighting, by using the long-range style with most ranged weapons, and by having a spell selected when using a magic staff or wand in the defensive style. Defence level determines the chance of avoiding damage during an opponent's attack as well as the armour that a player can wear.
Hitpoints, which determines how much damage players can sustain before they die, is trained during any combat. Hitpoints lost in battle can be restored by eating various foods. Hitpoints also regenerate automatically as time passes. The rate of regeneration can be hastened by the use of prayer.
Magic is trained by using runes to cast spells. Magic level determines the spells a player can use, the amount of damage a spell deals in combat, and how often a spell hits an opponent. Many spells, such as teleport and enchant spells, are not combat related; therefore, magic can be trained when players are not actively engaged in combat.
Ranged is trained by using ranged weapons in combat. You Ranged level determines the chance of hitting an opponent with a projectile weapon, the amount of damage done, and the ranged armours and weapons that can be worn and wielded.
Prayer is trained by honouring the dead in various ways. Prayer level determines which prayers the player may use as well as how long prayers will remain active before players must recharge their prayer points at an altar. Prayer was originally called necromancy in the extremely early stages of RuneScape. At its highest levels, prayer can be used to damage opponents under certain conditions.
[edit] Classes and styles
Unlike most games in the MMORPG genre, RuneScape does not require players to choose a character class. Players are not bound to a specific category of combat, and they may freely change between the three styles of combat at any time simply by switching weapons, armours, or the form and focus of attack. Players can carry the weapons and armours of the three combat categories in their inventories, switching between or even combining the styles at will.
[edit] Melee
Melee fighting is the art of hand-to-hand combat, with or without weapons. Melee fighters, or warriors, concentrate on training their attack, strength, and defence skills as these skills determine the quality of the weapons and armour players are allowed to use as well as the amount of damage they can inflict or avoid in battle.
Melee armours and weapons are usually metallic and are made of many different materials, from bronze to dragon.[1][2] Many of the weapons and armours used by warriors can be made by players using the smithing skill. Specialty pieces made of other materials are also available.
Armour consists of various pieces, form fitted to protect various parts of the body. Players wear a platebody or Chainbody to protect their torso and arms. Platelegs or plateskirts protect the legs. Helmets to protect the head come in two styles: full helms complete with visors and plumes, and medium helms that are open faced. Gloves or gauntlets worn on the forearms and hands and boots on the feet effectively cover the player.
Weapons are a mix of medieval and fantastical[2]. Daggers, swords, longswords, two-handed swords, scimitars, maces, warhammers, battle axes, spears, halberds, and claws are commonly available. Pickaxes and hatchets, while intended as tools for mining and woodcutting, can also be used as weapons.
[edit] Ranged
Ranged fighting is the art of combat with projectile weapons. Many of the weapons used by rangers can be constructed by players using the fletching skill. Many of the ranged armours can be constructed by players using the crafting skill.
Ranging armour is constructed of lightweight materials to enable rangers to move and fire their weapons effectively. Materials for armour include cowhide and various dragonhide leathers, as well as snakeskin.[1] Specialty pieces, including a Robin Hood hat and boots, are also available.
Ranging weaponry consists of bows and crossbows, as well as thrown weapons, such as knives, darts, and javelins. Bows are made of different types of wood with metal fittings and come in short, long, composite, and ogre variants. Arrows used as ammunition for bows can be constructed by players from wooden shafts with metal arrowheads. Crossbow bolts can be tipped with gemstones, which can then be magically enchanted for additional effects, such as poison or ice damage.[2]
The ranging skill is useful because it allows the player to attack from a distance or across a fence instead of close up melee fighting. Ranging can also be used at "shortcuts" across the map that allow players to cross rivers or fences more easily.
[edit] Magic
Magic combat involves the use of spells powered by runes in the player's inventory. The runes, which are consumed upon the casting of a spell, can be purchased or created by players using the runecrafting skill. Once considered a supplement to melee fighting, magic has developed into a battle skill in its own right.[citation needed] With the appropriate runes and skill level, players can cast a variety of spells.
Three separate spellbooks exist in the magic skill. The default spellbook is the most diverse and is available to all players, although some of its spells are restricted to those players who choose to pay a monthly fee for additional content (members). It contains combat, teleportation, and helping spells. The ancient magicks spellbook focuses on combat and teleportation spells and can only be used after completion of a difficult quest that is restricted to members. The lunar spellbook, also available only to members after completion of a quest, uses a special kind of rune, astral runes, and focuses on team cooperation and noncombat spells. Players who have earned the right to use various spellbooks can change freely among them; however, they must travel to specific locations to do so.
Magical armour is comprised of robes made from simple cloth, so as to allow more magical energy to flow through the mage without the hindrance of inflexible or uncomfortable materials. Any protection against physical attack provided by robes is derived from magical enchantments.[1] A mage's abilities can be enhanced by using magical staffs, which can be used as quarterstaves in melee and may supply an endless supply of certain runes, and wands.[2]
[edit] Combat triangle
The three classes of combat in RuneScape form the combat triangle. Each class has its own disadvantages and advantages over the other classes. Many variables, such as the weapons and armour used as well as the relative statistics of the combatants, affect the outcome of any battle.
Warriors have an advantage against rangers because of the poor melee defence bonus of the ranger's leather armours, which allows the warrior to deal heavy damage to the ranger. A warrior's metallic armour is also very effective against the ranger's projectile weapons. However, warriors' metal armour conducts magical armour very well, increasing damage caused by magic attacks.
Mages have an advantage against warriors due to the magic conducting properties of the metallic armours worn by warriors. Magic spells can bind and freeze players for a small period of time, keeping warriors, with their short-range weapons, from reaching mages. However, rangers can fire faster than mages, and although rangers' leather armour has moderate magic defence, mage armour is not very good at deflecting arrows, so mages are very vulnerable to ranged attacks.
Rangers have an advantage against mages as their leather and dragonhide armours have high magic defence bonuses. Arrows easily pierce through mage robes to cause damage to the wearer. Rangers' long-range attacks allow them to deal damage from a distance even when bound or frozen. However, their armour is usually very weak against warriors, who should consequently be avoided by rangers for safety reasons.
[edit] Player versus monster
Players engage in combat with NPCs for many reasons. Experience in attack, strength, defence, range, mage, and hitpoints is gained by inflicting damage upon opponents. Prayer experience is gained by burying the bones left behind when certain NPCs die or by simply killing certain NPCs. Wealth is gained by defeating many NPCs, as they drop items, equipment, or coins when they die. Quests are often completed by defeating a particular monster or group of monsters. Mini-games, such as Pest Control, the Barrows, or the TzHaar Fight Cave, require players to defeat monsters in order to gain rewards.
[edit] Player versus player (PvP)
[edit] History
In the earliest versions of RuneScape, players could not engage in player versus player, or PvP combat. With the release of the third version, PvP combat was introduced to the game; however, players were required to choose whether they wished to play as player-killer characters or non-player-killer characters. Players were allowed to switch from player-killer mode to non-player-killer mode only three times, after which they remained at their chosen setting forever.
PvP combat could take place in most locations throughout Gielinor. Lumbridge was eventually designated as a neutral area where players could not attack each other in order to prevent players from being killed again immediately after respawning, a practice known as spawn camping. NPC Guards and White Knights patrolled the cities of Varrock and Falador respectively, breaking up PvP battles by attacking the aggressors; however, these guard units were limited in number. When all the guard units in the city were already in engaged in combat, PvP combat flourished.
On 13 August 2001, this system of PvP combat was replaced by the Wilderness. Over the next few years, Jagex continued to add locations for PvP combat in mini-games, such as Castle Wars, the duel arena, and the TzHaar fight pits.[3]
[edit] Wilderness
- See also: the Wilderness
In the Wilderness, a barren area located in the northern part of the RuneScape map, players can engage in combat with each other, a practice commonly known as PKing (player-killing.) Players may attack any player within a specified range of combat levels dictated by the level of Wilderness. This level increases as players proceed further north into the Wilderness.
Players who initiate combat by attacking other players are identified by a skull icon affixed above their heads for approximately 20 minutes. This is commonly known as being skulled. If the aggressors subsequently die while skulled, they drop all items they are carrying at the time of death on the ground. Use of prayer can allow skulled players to retain their single most valuable item. The items dropped can be picked up by other players.
Some players will create special PKing characters, known as pures, in order to optimize certain skills while keeping their combat level low. This is accomplished by heavily training the skills that are being optimized (usually range, mage, or both), while training the other combat skills to the minimum level required for effectiveness or not at all. In most cases, defense and/or prayer is sacrificed for high ranged, magic, and strength.
Some players will band together to form teams that travel the Wilderness together, defending themselves from attack more effectively than a single player. Teams may be formed for one foray into the Wilderness, or they may be part of a larger clan. Most clans are permanent organizations, complete with websites and forums. Clan members usually have something in common, either combat levels, RuneScape goals, age, or other factors, that bring them together as a cohesive unit to perform various functions together.
[edit] Duel arena
The Duel arena is located in Al Kharid desert and is available only to members. It allows a formal fight between two and only two players. The combatants must agree to the terms and conditions of their fight before it starts. Players can choose to duel for fun and experience or to stake items or gold pieces that the winner will receive. The players will not lose the items that they did not stake when they die.
Non-combatants may purchase rotten tomatoes and throw them at duelists from the stands; this has no effect on the duel. [1]
Some pure mages like to wear weak warrior armor and pretend to be an inexperienced player and then at the countdown before the duel, put on their mage armor and staff then usually thwart the unsuspecting player, causing him/her to lose their staked items.
[edit] TzHaar fight pit
Players who die fighting in here will not lose their items; therefore, there is no risk. The last player remaining receives a certain amount of tokkul, the currency of the TzHaar, and is marked in the next battle by a red skull above the player's head.
[edit] Player owned houses
Players may create combat rooms in their houses using the construction skill. In the combat room, they can build several combat rings each with their own rules. All of these combat rings allow players to gain experience in the combat skills.
Players cannot gain or lose items in any combat room, as players will simply reappear outside the ring should they die, with no loss of items. Players like to place bets on who will win, and the combat ring is popular for clan events. Combatants gain experience for every blow landed - as with other forms of combat.
Players may also build their own throne rooms and dungeons. In the throne room players can turn their dungeon on and off and can also turn on player vs. player (PvP) mode. There is still nothing to lose in a PvP dungeon, but if players make it to the treasure room and defeat the boss, they can gain treasure (donated by the house owner). The owner of the dungeon may place various monsters in the dungeon for other players to fight; these monsters range from a basic skeleton guard to a powerful steel-scaled dragon available only to those who have a very high construction level.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ a b c Combat - Armour types - RuneScape.com. Retrieved 13 November 2006.
- ^ a b c d Combat - Weapon Types - RuneScape.com. Retrieved 13 November 2006.
- ^ Rune Tips News Archives - 2001 Retrieved 4 March 2007.
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