Leagues returns! Catch up on our Summer Summit reveal.
It's official: a new iteration of Old School RuneScape Leagues is on the horizon, bringing with it new mechanics, a twist on some familiar enemies and of course, shiny new rewards.
Like you, we couldn't get enough of Leagues last year, and we just couldn’t wait to bring you another one. Our next instalment brings plenty of new challenges, while retaining the comfort of the familiar.
What’s more, we also revealed that Leagues V: Raging Echoes is coming late November!
That's right, we're mere months away! Don’t panic – this blog will get you up to date on everything you need to know before Leagues V begins, and we’ll be dropping plenty of hints, tips, and insights along the way.
You can join the Leagues Discord server to chat more about the update, send us your feedback and help with those all-important strategies. Or just wing it! Whatever your approach, you're in for an absolute treat.
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Never played Leagues before? We’ve got you covered. Here are the basics:
- You start on a completely fresh account, separate from your main account.
- Your journey begins in Lumbridge, much like all adventurers in Old School, and until you get some completed Tasks under your belt, you'll be locked to Misthalin.
- Through a quick Leagues tutorial, you will be able to unlock Karamja, giving you your first two starting areas.
- You'll be able to unlock other areas after completing Tasks and accumulating points - you can only unlock three additional regions, so make those choices count!
- The more regions you have available, the more Tasks you'll be able to complete. Tick Tasks off to rack up points and unlock powerful Relics that switch your gameplay up!
- This game mode is temporary, meaning you'll have six whole weeks to build that power and see just how far you can get.
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Area-locking is one of the most interesting things about Leagues, so much so that we've decided to make it a core part of Leagues going forward. If you’ve played Leagues before you’ll be very familiar with this ruleset, but just in case, let’s break it down.
Area Locks
- Your character will begin their journey with only Misthalin and Karamja unlocked.
- More areas can be unlocked by completing a fixed number of Tasks.
- Note: the number of points provided by the Tasks do not matter, only the number of Tasks.
- These unlockable areas are the Wilderness, the Fremennik Isles, Asgarnia, Morytania, the Kharidian Desert, Kandarin, Tirannwn, Kourend and Kebos, and our newest area: Varlamore.
- You will only be able to respawn in areas you’ve already unlocked.
- Death's Office, the Player Owned House, Random Events and the Essence Mines will be accessible from all areas.
- Slayer Tasks will be limited to creatures found in the areas you have unlocked.
- Treasure Trail steps will be limited to the areas you have unlocked.
Iron Mode with Accelerated XP Rates
Everyone will play as an Iron character, meaning:
- There will be no trading between players.
- To accommodate the increased number of Iron players, shops will fully restock whenever they are opened.
- Everybody will start with a 5x accelerated XP rate.
- This multiplier increases further at specific Relic tiers.
Starting Stats
Your fresh Iron character will have the basic stats from Tutorial Island, as well as:
- Level 3 Herblore
- Level 5 Runecraft
These starting stats will let you access low-level Herblore and Runecraft training methods.
Run Energy
Leagues is all about high energy, exponential progression, which means we don't want your character getting stuck having to walk while on the grind. Once again, your Run Energy will never deplete!
Quest and Diary Unlocks
Some quests or diary tasks that require access to inaccessible areas will be automatically unlocked. Most notably:
- Druidic Ritual, to unlock Herblore.
- Lost City, to unlock access to Zanaris.
You’ll also get a free Dramen Staff, to be claimed from the League Tutor, which will allow you to access Zanaris.
Tasks
Tasks are a collection of goals and achievements for you to complete during the League. Anything from skilling, killing creatures and getting drops to completing quests, playing mini games and ticking off diary entries can be found on the Task List.
Completing Tasks nets you those all-important League Points, which you can use to unlock Relics and other rewards. The more difficult the Task, the more points you'll get.
It's super easy to pick out your next goal and get going. The Task interface handily sorts all tasks into tiers ranging from Easy to Master.
Once again, regions will be unlocked based on how many Tasks you've completed, not the number of points you earn.
Some tasks will be area specific, but each area has its fair share of challenges - and don't forget those new bosses!
Examples of area-specific tasks include:
- Enter Draynor Manor.
- Complete the Easy Varrock Diary.
- Defeat Scurrius.
- Mine 25 Pure Essence.
Examples of general tasks, which can be completed in any region, include:
- Bury some bones.
- Complete a rooftop Agility Course.
- Equip a Maple Shortbow.
- Defeat a Guard.
We try and have every area within 10-20% of each others points so that any combination of area picks won't stop you from getting your mitts on the Trophies.
Relics
Leagues is your opportunity to gain power at exponential levels, which means you could end up facing ferocious foes in a fraction of the time it took you in the main game, and some of you may take on quests that you haven't even reached on your main. This is all thanks to Relics!
Relics give you buffs to customise your gameplay, meaning you can really lean into your strategy. Unlocked with League Points, they offer XP boosts, combat buffs, improved luck and more!
As you start your journey, you'll be given your first choice between three Tier 1 Relics. Then, it's up to you to complete Tasks, gain more points and build your Leagues experience for yourself.
We know you like to map out your route ahead of time, so we'll be sharing plenty more information on Relics as we approach the start of Leagues V: Raging Echoes. Keep an eye out for sneak peeks along the way!
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League Trophy
As with past Leagues, you'll have the chance to add another trophy to your collection! Place in any tier and you’ll get the corresponding Trophy, from Bronze all the way up to Dragon. We're continuing with the static points threshold this year, meaning you can keep your eyes on the prize from the get-go.
League-to-League Rewards
When you earn certain rewards during your Leagues journey, you'll have them in future Leagues, too.
Generally, there are three categories of League-to-League rewards: pets, right-click icons, and armour sets.
Pets: some cute and cuddly, some a little less friendly looking, but all immediately your bestie ready to follow you wherever you may go, even from League to League. As long as you achieved the drop during the event and insured your pet, your pets will be waiting for you next time a League comes a-knockin’. If you lose them in any other circumstance, you can reclaim them from the League Tutor. Carrying over a pet from a previous League will not complete any pet-specific tasks. Your main game pets will remain where they are, and your Leagues pets will not follow you back to the main game.
Right-click icons are automatically obtained and will show everyone who right-clicks you how well you performed in the previous League with a unique symbol appropriate to your tier. Nice!
Instead of rotating out content and rulesets, we plan to build on the Leagues experience with each iteration. All the best parts will stick around, alongside new additions which make Leagues even more fun to play.
We're keeping the area locked system as a core part of Leagues, while finding ways to enhance it with each iteration, and we're pretty excited about our approach for Leagues V!
This time, we’ve added a new area to your options: Varlamore! You’ll be able to access everything from Part I, as well as the Hueycoatl, the Herblore activity, and everything else Part II has to offer!
Prioritising which tasks to do and which Relics to build out your account with is a Leagues staple, and Raging Echoes will be no different, especially when we add a few new features into the mix...
Combat Masteries
Combat Masteries are the new core of your combat power. This system complements the Relic system to give you greater control of your battle buffs. Progress in the League, advance your Combat Mastery alongside your Relics, and choose new effects and boosts. We'll share more on the Combat Mastery system and what to expect as we get closer to kick-off.
Echo Boss Variants
Curious about the meaning behind this year’s subtitle? That’s good, because we’re about to tell you all about it.
This year, we’re unleashing enhanced bosses into the world – one in each area. They may seem familiar at first glance, but each new boss will have slightly different mechanics, keeping you on your toes if you want to be in with a chance at the best loot.
That’s right – not only do they have new moves, they have new loot to boot – and it’s stuff you’ve never seen in Old School before.
Some of these items may serve similar purposes to ones you’ve seen before, like the strong Ranged weapon we’re adding to the Kalphite Queen’s drop table, which competes with the best-in-slot gear found in other regions.
These new items should shake up the area meta, encouraging intrepid explorers to try new regions – and new activities.
We’ll be sharing which items drop where before launch, so you’ll have plenty of time to think through your approach. We can’t wait to see the diverse builds you all come up with!
Tasks and Relics
While the Task and Relic system remains the same, you'll see new activities to complete, and new Relics to unlock, alongside some of your favourites from last year. We'll be revealing more of these as we head towards launch.
Main Game Rewards
You won’t leave Leagues empty handed! As always, we have a veritable hoard of treasure for you to take back to the main game.
After the League ends, you’ll be able to spend your League Points in the main game Leagues Reward store. These rewards are purely cosmetic and, unless otherwise stated, they’re tradeable too.
You'll also have another chance to purchase previous Leagues' rewards from the shop if you happen to have any Points from previous Leagues weighing down your pockets.
We'll divulge more on our proposed rewards, take your feedback and poll them properly later, but for now, here's a little peek behind the curtain:
- A League-specific Banner, Home Teleport Animation Scroll, and Outfit
- Equipment ornament kits
- Two Player Owned House reskins
- A new Portal Nexus
- Death Animation override
The list above isn’t exhaustive, nor are its contents set in stone.
Oh, go on, you’ve twisted our arm. Here’s a look at the concept art for a Venator Bow Ornament Kit.
Since these cosmetics will appear in the main game, you’ll soon get the opportunity to vote on whether you’d like to see them or not. We’re also keen to hear any suggestions the community has regarding rewards – so feel free to show off your ideas in all the usual channels.
That's it, your first look at Leagues V: Raging Echoes! The Rewards Greenlight Poll is just around the corner, so keep an eye out for the blog with everything you need to know. Like last year, we'll be trickling out exciting reveals as we move closer to launch – so keep your eyes peeled!
You can also discuss the Summit on the 2007Scape subreddit, the Steam forums, or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel. For more info on the above content, check out the official Old School Wiki.
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