Ancient Magicks

The RuneScape Wiki also has an article on: rsw:Ancient Magicks

See also: Standard spells, Lunar spells and Arceuus spells

"Ancients" redirects here. For other uses, see Ancient.

A player teleporting with Ancient Magicks.

A mage casts Ice Barrage on several foes.

Ancient Magicks (also known as Ancients) are a series of Magic spells unlocked upon completion of the quest Desert Treasure. Unlike the Lunar spellbook, which primarily focuses on non-combat support spells, and the standard spellbook, which is a mixture of combat and non-combat spells, the Ancient Magicks is significantly combat-oriented, including some of the most powerful combat spells in the game. The spellbook contains 16 combat spells and nine teleports (far fewer spells than the other spellbooks). Many of the Ancient Magick spells are very rune-intensive and require expensive runes such as death and blood runes. Owing to their power (a minimum of 50 Magic is needed to even access the spellbook), Ancient Magick spells are popular in player-versus-player activities.

The main runes for this spellbook are death, chaos, fire, air, soul, blood, law and water runes.

Background

The Ancient Magicks are a long forgotten and destructive set of spells. In the Second Age, they were very commonly used, mostly by the followers of Zaros, who ruled a very large kingdom at that time.

The destructive and powerful spells of the Ancient Magicks proved to be useful during the wars in the era. The Spellbook also contained various teleport spells, which made it easier for the Zarosians to travel across their kingdom, which stretched from the northern Wilderness, to northern Misthalin and north-western Morytania. As of now, the spellbook contains teleports which lead to places where the currently destroyed Zarosian fortresses once stood.

Unfortunately, knowledge of Runecraft was lost before the Second Age and the remaining supplies Guthix provided humans in the First Age slowly disappeared through the use of Magic. Back then, many wizards held battles with the few remaining runes as a prize.

After Zaros' banishment, Zamorak and other gods like Saradomin, destroyed the entire kingdom. The destruction of the kingdom and the slow disappearance of runes caused the Ancient Magicks to become a rarely used form of Magic. During this time, only the Mahjarrat used Ancient Magicks, mostly because they didn't need runes to use Magic.

The God Wars held after Zaros' banishment saw the slow fade of the Ancient Magicks from common knowledge. Many of the remaining followers of Zaros, who comprised the majority of spell-casters, were killed or imprisoned. The powerful spells caused much destruction during the enormous battles, although the number of people who knew about the spells was extremely limited.

Long after the end of the God Wars, at the beginning of the Fifth Age, the art of Runecraft was rediscovered, giving humans a new supply of runes. New spells were invented by modern wizards of the Wizards' Tower, driving the Ancient Magicks even further into obscurity. Today, Ancient Magicks are used almost exclusively by the Mahjarrat, who have been driven close to extinction in Gielinor. A handful of people, such as Solus Dellagar, still possess the knowledge of Ancient Magicks. But furthermore, most mages of Gielinor choose to practice the modern magic created at the Wizards' Tower. Players will learn about the Ancient Magicks during the Desert Treasure quest, where they release the imprisoned Zarosian mahjarrat Azzanadra.

Skill and quest requirements

Because unlocking the Ancient Magicks spellbook requires completion of the Desert Treasure quest, the following quests are also required:

Total level: 332
33	----	----
30	15	20
----	10	----
40	53	----
11	----	50
50	10	----
----	10	----
----	----
28	----	----

• The Dig Site
• The Tourist Trap
• Temple of Ikov
• Priest in Peril
• Troll Stronghold
• Waterfall Quest
• Druidic Ritual

Because of these quests, the skills required to obtain the Ancient Magicks can be seen in the table to the right.

Switching spellbooks

Once Desert Treasure is completed, the easiest way to switch spellbooks for normal accounts is to use another player's POH. To find a house to use, use the Minigame Group Finder and select "player owned houses" from the drop-down and use the Clan Chat to find a house with either an Ancient altar or an Occult altar. Most players who have houses publicly open will use the portals in Yanille & Rimmington. Keep in mind that this method will not work for Ironman Mode.

Players can switch to Ancient Magicks at the altar inside the Jaldraocht Pyramid (simply "Pyramid" on the World Map) in the Kharidian Desert, south-west of Pollnivneach and north of Menaphos. There is a rear entrance (tunnel) to the south of the pyramid that allows players who have completed Desert Treasure to enter the throne room directly, where the altar resides, without having to navigate the four floors of the pyramid. At the altar, players can pray to switch to or from the Ancient Magicks spellbook, though this drains all Prayer points to zero (players can still switch spellbooks even with 0 Prayer points).

Those who simply wish to switch from Ancient Magicks to the regular spellbook may find it easier to pray twice at the Astral altar on Lunar Isle, provided Lunar Diplomacy has been completed. Alternatively, players may also switch spellbooks twice with Tyss at the Dark Altar (easily reached with fairy ring code CIS if the player has activated it), provided they have 60% Arceuus favour.

Players who have level 80 in Construction can build an ancient altar within their Achievement Gallery, allowing them to freely switch between the standard and ancient spellbooks without the prayer drain.

Additionally, players who have level 99 in Magic can switch their spellbook up to five times per day with the Magic cape.

Reaching the pyramid

Various methods of teleportation exist for reaching the Jaldraocht Pyramid:

• Pollnivneach is a short distance east of the Pyramid and it is accessible via the magic carpet network (from either Shantay Pass or Sophanem, after Icthlarin's Little Helper), or Teleport to House for players who have their houses located in Pollnivneach.
• The pharaoh's sceptre, obtained from Pyramid Plunder, teleports players directly on top of the pyramid.
• A camulet provides a teleport to Enahkra's temple, which is just west of Jaldraocht Pyramid.
• Fairy ring code DLQ and run south to Nardah and run west till the bridge and cross it and you would see the Jaldraocht Pyramid.

Spell summary

The Ancient Magicks spellbook.

Combat

The Ancient Magicks combat spells are, as mentioned, the most dangerous combat spells in the game. Not only can they deal a substantial amount of damage, but each of the four classes of combat spells has a different effect:

• The Smoke spells are the only group of spells that can inflict poison damage to other players and NPCs.
• The Shadow spells can be used to lower the target's Attack level.
  • Shadow spells can also disorient the Abyssal Sire during its first phase.
• The Blood spells will heal the caster 25% of the damage dealt.
• The Ice spells freeze the target in place and prevent it from moving.

The specific duration/effectiveness of each of the standard effects (aside from the blood spells, which always heal a flat 25%) depends on the level of the spell cast; Smoke Burst will deal more poison damage than Smoke Rush, for example. In addition, half of the Ancient Magicks combat spells (Burst and Barrage) are area of effect spells, which will hit the target and any other player or NPC standing in a 3x3 zone around the target in a multicombat area. The other half (Rush and Blitz) only hit a single target.

Some monsters are large, meaning that they take up more than one square of space. When a Burst or Barrage spell is cast on one of these monsters, it will hit the monster plus any surrounding monsters with any square of space standing within a 3x3 zone of the targeted monster's southwestern most corner square, which is treated as its "origin" square.

While less popular for general training, Ancient Magicks is often used in various player-versus-player activities, such as the TzHaar Fight Pit and Castle Wars. Ice spells, specifically Ice Burst and Ice Barrage, are especially popular, due to their freezing effects and a lower cost when compared to the other combat spells.

Ancient Magicks are not allowed in Barbarian Assault.

Icon	Mobile icon	Spell	Level	Runes	Description	Base Exp	Base max hit
		Smoke Rush	50	1 1 2 2	Poisons target starting at 2 damage.	30	13
		Shadow Rush	52	1 2 2 1	Reduces target's Attack level by 10%.	31	14
		Blood Rush	56	1 2 2	Heals the caster for 25% of the damage inflicted on the target.	33	15
		Ice Rush	58	2 2 2	Freezes the target for 5 seconds.	34	16
		Smoke Burst	62	2 2 4 2	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Poisons targets starting at 2 damage.	36	17
		Shadow Burst	64	1 4 2 2	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Reduces targets' Attack levels by 10% each.	37	18
		Blood Burst	68	2 4 2	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Heals the caster for 25% of the damage inflicted on the targets.	39	21
		Ice Burst	70	4 4 2	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Freezes targets for 10 seconds.	40	22
		Smoke Blitz	74	2 2 2 2	Poisons target starting at 4 damage.	42	23
		Shadow Blitz	76	2 2 2 2	Reduces target's Attack level by 15%.	43	24
		Blood Blitz	80	4 2	Heals the caster for 25% of the damage inflicted on the target.	45	25
		Ice Blitz	82	3 2 2	Freezes target for 15 seconds.	46	26
		Smoke Barrage	86	4 4 2 4	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Poisons targets starting at 4 damage.	48	27
		Shadow Barrage	88	4 2 4 3	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Reduces targets' Attack levels by 15%.	49	28
		Blood Barrage	92	4 4 1	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Heals the caster for 25% of the damage inflicted on the targets.	51	29
		Ice Barrage	94	6 2 4	Hits a 3x3 area around a target. Freezes targets for 20 seconds.	52	30

Teleportation spells

Icon	Mobile icon	Spell	level	Runes	Experience	Description
		Edgeville Home Teleport	0	None	None	Transports the caster to Edgeville, near the well. Using this spell takes around 10 seconds to cast, gives no experience, and is interruptible by combat. Players can only cast this spell once every 30 minutes.
		Paddewwa Teleport	54	1 1 2	64	Teleports the caster inside the entrance of Edgeville Dungeon.
		Senntisten Teleport	60	2 1	70	Teleports the caster to the Digsite, between the south gate and the Exam Centre.
		Kharyrll Teleport	66	1 2	76	Teleports the caster to Canifis, inside the pub.
		Lassar Teleport	72	4 2	82	Teleports the caster to the top of Ice Mountain, towards the south side of the snowy area.
		Dareeyak Teleport	78	2 3 2	88	Teleports the caster to the western ruins in the Wilderness.
		Carrallangar Teleport	84	2 2	94	Teleports the caster to the Graveyard of Shadows in the Wilderness.
		Teleport to Target	85	1 1 1	45	Teleports caster within 12 squares from their bounty target. This spell cannot be used in combat and the caster must be in the Wilderness and have a target in the Bounty Hunter minigame. Unlocked after purchasing the Target teleport scroll for 165 Bounty Hunter points.
		Annakarl Teleport	90	2 2	100	Teleports the caster to the Demonic Ruins in the Wilderness.
		Ghorrock Teleport	96	8 2	106	Teleports the caster to Ice Plateau in the Wilderness.

Teleport tablets

Excluding Teleport to Target, every teleport on the spellbook can be used in the form of a teleport tablet. Tablets can be crafted by players or purchased directly on the Grand Exchange. The following table shows the materials, costs, and profit made using the Pharaoh's sceptre teleport to craft them.

Teleport	Materials	Cost	Profit
Paddewwa	1121	532	221
Senntisten	211	659	754
Kharyrll	121	912	727
Lassar	421	538	924
Dareeyak	2321	547	206
Carrallangar	221	800	265
Annakarl	221	1,306	748
Ghorrock	821	558	652

Autocasting

Unlike the standard spells, Ancient Magicks combat spells can only be autocast with particular Magic weapons. The weapons are:

	Ancient staff
	Master wand
	Kodai wand
	Ahrim's staff
	Nightmare staff
	Eldritch nightmare staff
	Volatile nightmare staff

Trivia

• Mind, earth, astral, cosmic, nature, wrath and body runes are not used in the Ancient Magicks spellbook.
• Of the various combination runes, only smoke runes are useful for Ancient Magicks, as the Smoke spells and Paddewwa and Dareeyak Teleports are the only spells to use more than one elemental rune.
• If your membership expires while the Ancient Magicks spellbook is activated, then it will return to the regular spellbook, even if you re-activate your membership.
• Despite being a members only spellbook, the Edgeville Home Teleport is available in any Free-to-play world, as long as your membership is still active.