Ranged

"Archery" redirects here. For the archery competition minigame, see Ranging Guild.

For a list of all requirements and unlockables within the Ranged skill, see Ranged/Level up table.

This article has skill training guides: Members / Ironman / UIM / Free-to-play

Skill training guides document optimal XP/hour methods to train a skill, as well as alternate passive or less expensive methods.

Ranged
Released		4 January 2001 (Update)
Also called		Archery
Members		No
Type		Combat
Statistics
Players with 99		661,215 as of 1 April 2026 - update
Players with 200M XP		2759 as of 2 April 2026 - update

Ranged is one of the three combat classes in Old School RuneScape. It involves using bows, crossbows, blowpipes, and thrown weapons to damage opponents from a distance, and Ranged armour can mostly be made from animal hides. Players who specialise in this skill are known as rangers or archers.

The combat triangle dictates that rangers are strong against mages but weak against melee fighters.

The ability to attack from a distance means that a player can safespot a melee monster while fighting from safety. Keep in mind that some melee monsters have high Ranged Defence, so a high Ranged level may be needed. Crossbows are useful against monsters with high Defence, as they are very accurate.

Players can toggle whether they want ammunition on the ground to automatically be equipped or remain in the inventory when picked up by talking to the Ranged combat tutor.

	Ranged level up - normal
The music that plays when levelling up.

	Ranged level up - with unlocks
The music that plays when levelling up and unlocking new content.

Equipment

Stats

There are three ranged equipment stats, two for attack (Ranged Attack and Ranged Strength) and one for defence (Ranged Defence).

Ranged weapons (and frequently Ranged armour) provide + Ranged Attack for accuracy, + Ranged Strength for max hit, and armour provides + Ranged Defence.

Note: In the case of crossbows and bows, the bows provide the Ranged Attack and the ammo provides Ranged Strength, while with darts, knives, and throwing axes (where the ammo is the weapon), both stats are provided by the weapon. In that case, ammo has no benefit (though blessings still provide a prayer bonus).

Weapons

Ranged weapons have three combat styles: accurate, rapid, and longrange. The accurate style provides an invisible +3 bonus to the player's Ranged level, increasing their accuracy and possibly increasing their max hit. The rapid style increases the player's attack speed by 1, resulting in the highest damage per second of all the styles in almost all situations. The longrange style increases attack range by 2, provides an invisible +3 bonus to the player's Defence level, and splits earned exp between Ranged and Defence.

Furthermore, ammunitions have specific damage types similar to the melee's styles of Stab, Slash, and Crush, though it only applies to monsters. For example, some monsters have less defence against heavy ammunition than light and standard ones, and would be preferred in such encounters. A list of some monsters with weakened defence against a particular ammunition type can be found on this news post.

• Light: Thrown weapons such as darts, knives, thrownaxes, Toktz-xil-ul, blowpipes, and the Tonalztics of ralos
• Standard: Arrows, Atlatl darts, Salamanders, and magical arrows from the Crystal bow and Bow of Faerdhinen
• Heavy: Bolts, javelins, and chinchompas

Light

Weapon		Information
	Darts Throwing knives Throwing axes	Darts and throwing knives have the highest attack speed in the game, but low Ranged attack, Ranged strength and attack range stats. Throwing axes have superior damage and accuracy, but a slower attack speed.
	Toktz-xil-ul	Toktz-xil-ul, also known as throwing rings, are as powerful as a magic shortbow with rune arrows.
	Blowpipes	Blowpipes are fast-attacking ranged weapons that use darts for ammunition. Against monsters, they have the same speed as darts/knives, but against players, they have the same attack speed as shortbows. Additionally, the toxic blowpipe needs to be charged with Zulrah's scales and can inflict targets with venom, which deals increasing damage over time.
	Tonalztics of ralos	A throwing weapon which provides unlimited "ammo". Hits an opponent twice when charged with sunfire splinters, and has a special attack that lowers the target's Defence level.

Standard

Weapon		Information
	Shortbows Longbows	These bows both shoot the same arrows, differing in speed and range, but not in damage or accuracy. Longbows could be used for additional range, but are slower than shortbows on rapid. The magic shortbow has a special attack which hits twice, and the magic longbow has a special attack which boosts accuracy.
	Composite bows	These bows are similar to longbows, but have a faster attack speed and slightly higher accuracy. These bows can only be obtained from completing Treasure Trails or by trading with another player. The magic comp bow has the same special attack as the magic longbow.
	Ogre bow Comp ogre bow	The ogre bow uses ogre arrows. It is extremely slow; its only real use is for hunting chompy birds. The composite ogre bow has the same speed as a crossbow, and can use brutal arrows as well as ogre arrows. Rune brutals have the same Ranged Strength bonus as dragon arrows.
	Dark bow	The dark bow is the slowest weapon in the game, but it shoots two arrows at once. It can shoot dragon arrows, and it has a devastating special attack which boosts damage by 30% if using arrows that are not dragon, or by 50% if using dragon arrows, with a minimum damage of 5 per non-dragon arrow and 8 per dragon arrow.
	Twisted bow	The twisted bow is one of the most powerful ranged weapons in the game, being able to hit extremely high on certain monsters. It has a passive ability that increases its accuracy and damage based on the target's Magic level.
	Crystal bow	A relatively strong composite bow. Its damage and accuracy can be increased by wearing pieces of the Crystal armour. Generates its own ammo, but degrades.
	Craw's bow	This powerful shortbow has 50% increased damage against monsters in the Wilderness. Generates its own ammo, but needs to be charged with Revenant ether.
	Bow of faerdhinen	A very powerful composite bow. Its damage and accuracy can be increased by wearing pieces of the Crystal armour. Generates its own ammo. When corrupted, it does not degrade.
	Eclipse atlatl	A throwing weapon that uses atlatl darts. Uniquely, its damage is determined by the player's Strength level and melee strength bonus.

Heavy

Weapon		Information
	Chinchompas	Chinchompas deal very little damage, but they hit multiple targets, making them excellent for training. Because of this, they are extremely expensive.
	Crossbows	Crossbows are very accurate, and crossbow bolts deal significantly more damage than arrows, making crossbows effective for training Ranged. Crossbows are slower than standard bows, but are also one-handed, so a shield or god book can be used for protection.
	Dorgeshuun crossbow	This is the only crossbow which can shoot the cheap bone bolts. It is also faster than normal crossbows, and has a special attack which lowers the target's Defence level.
	Karil's crossbow	Despite being a crossbow, it is more like a shortbow, requiring two hands and having a fast attack speed, along with longer range. Karil's crossbow will only work with bolt racks, which break when shot, making it expensive to use. This weapon should only be used against the TzTok-Jad and players, as everything else can be done more cheaply.
	Dwarf multicannon	The dwarf multicannon is a supplementary weapon that is set up by the player and attacks enemies on its own. There is no Ranged level requirement to use it. It is fast and powerful (with a max hit of 30), yet expensive to use, and there are a limited number of areas where it can be set up for usage. For example, it cannot be used against bosses except the Corporeal Beast. Nonetheless, it's useful and great to have on board, especially on certain Slayer tasks (e.g. dagannoths).
	Ballista	The light ballista and heavy ballista are two-handed ranged weapons which use javelins as ammunition. They are slow, but capable of dealing high hits.

Armour

Main article: Armour/Ranged armour

Enchanted crossbow bolts

Main article: Enchant Crossbow Bolt

Bolts that are tipped with gems can be enchanted for a wide variety of passive effects, each of which has a small chance of activating when an enemy is damaged by the bolt.

Bolt type		Level	Level	Runes required	Effect
	Opal bolts (e)	11	4	2 1	Lucky Lightning	Extra damage.
	Sapphire bolts (e)	56	7	1 1 1	Clear Mind	Prayer siphon.
	Jade bolts (e)	26	14	2 1	Earth's Fury	Opponent knockdown.
	Pearl bolts (e)	41	24	2 1	Sea Curse	Extra (water-based) damage - effective against monsters assigned the fiery attribute and players with a fire cape or fire elemental stave equipped.
	Emerald bolts (e)	58	27	3 1 1	Magical Poison	Greater chance of poison.
	Topaz bolts (e)	48	29	2 1	Down to Earth	Lowers target's Magic (other players only).
	Ruby bolts (e)	63	49	5 1 1	Blood Forfeit	-10% Hitpoints from self, -20% Hitpoints from target.
	Diamond bolts (e)	65	57	10 1 2	Armour Piercing	Ignore much of target's Ranged Defence.
	Dragonstone bolts (e)	71	68	15 1 1	Dragon's Breath	Dragonfire damage - Magical attack, effective against opponents with low Magic Defence. Antifire potions will decrease the hit.
	Onyx bolts (e)	73	87	20 1 1	Life Leech	Extra damage, Hitpoints siphon by 1/4 of hit, but not versus undead.

Temporary boosts

Main article: Temporary skill boost

Boost		Level increase	Visibility	Other info
	Ranging cape	1	Visible	When the ranging cape is equipped, it grants players the ammo-saving effects of Ava's accumulator.
	Perildance bitter	2	Visible	Sailing 1 Strength 2 Magic -2 When onboard in a keg, it increases the max hit of cannons by one.
	Wild pie	4	Visible	Hitpoints 11 per bite. Slayer 5
	Lizardkicker	4	Visible	Strength - floor(CurrentLevel * 0.04) - 2 Magic - floor(CurrentLevel * 0.04) - 2
	Spicy stew (red spice)	±0-5	Visible	Hitpoints 11 Depending on type of stew, any skill except Hitpoints can be boosted or reduced by 0 to 5 levels randomly.
	Ranging potion	4-13	Visible	Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1)
	Armadyl brew	4-13	Visible	Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Hitpoints 2-11 Attack - floor(StaticLevel * 0.10) + 2 Strength - floor(StaticLevel * 0.10) + 2 Defence - floor(StaticLevel * 0.10) + 2 Magic - floor(StaticLevel * 0.10) + 2
	Ranging mix	4-13	Visible	Hitpoints 6 per dose. Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Requires Barbarian training.
	Divine ranging potion	4-13	Visible	Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Stat draining for ranged is disabled for 5 minutes, meaning the player's Ranged level will stay fully boosted. After the 5 minutes are over, Ranged level will be restored to its base level.
	Bastion potion	4-13	Visible	Defence 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Acts as a ranging and super defence potion in one dose.
	Divine bastion potion	4-13	Visible	Defence 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Stat draining for Ranged and Defence is disabled for 5 minutes, meaning the player's Ranged and Defence levels will stay fully boosted. After the 5 minutes are over, Ranged and Defence levels will be restored to its base level.
	Bandages (Theatre of Blood)	4-13	Visible	Hitpoints 20 Attack 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Defence 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Strength 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Magic 4 Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1)
	Twisted (-)	4-13	Visible	Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Overload (-)	4-13	Visible	Acts as an elder (-), twisted (-), and kodai (-) potion in one dose. Hitpoints - 50 Attack 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Defence 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Strength 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Ranged 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) Magic 4 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.1) The boost is reapplied every 15 seconds for 5 minutes. (This lost health is refunded after the overload ends). Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Twisted potion	5-17	Visible	Ranged 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Overload (Chambers of Xeric)	5-17	Visible	Acts as an elder, twisted, and kodai potion in one dose. Hitpoints - 50 Attack 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) Defence 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) Strength 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) Ranged 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) Magic 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.13) The boost is reapplied every 15 seconds for 5 minutes. (This lost health is refunded after the overload ends). Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Potion of power	5-19	Visible	Ranged 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Only usable within the Soul Wars minigame.
	Super ranging	5-19	Visible	Ranged 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Only usable within the Nightmare Zone.
	Overload (Nightmare Zone)	5-19	Visible	Acts as a super combat, super ranging, and super magic potion in one dose. Hitpoints - 50 Attack 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Defence 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Strength 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Ranged 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) Magic 5 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.15) The boost is reapplied every 15 seconds for 5 minutes. (This lost health is refunded after the overload ends). Only usable within the Nightmare Zone.
	Twisted (+)	6-21	Visible	Ranged 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Overload (+)	6-21	Visible	Acts as an elder (+), twisted (+), and kodai (+) potion in one dose. Hitpoints - 50 Attack 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Defence 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Strength 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Ranged 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Magic 6 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) The boost is reapplied every 15 seconds for 5 minutes. (This lost health is refunded after the overload ends). Only usable within the Chambers of Xeric.
	Smelling salts	11-26	Visible	Attack 11 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Defence 11 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Strength 11 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Ranged 11 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Magic 11 + floor(StaticLevel * 0.16) Restores run energy by 25%. The boost is reapplied every 15 seconds for 8 minutes. Only usable within the Tombs of Amascut.
	Smouldering heart	?-14	Visible	Attack ?-20 Strength ?-20 Defence ?-20 Magic ?-11 The boost is reapplied continuously for 2 minutes, after which it starts decaying naturally. This stat boost scales at an unknown rate with level and the listed one is the boost received at level 99.

Quests

Quests requiring Ranged

Quest	Ranged requirement	Other skill requirements
Underground Pass	25	-
Animal Magnetism	30	18 , 35
Big Chompy Bird Hunting	30	5 , 30
Zogre Flesh Eaters	30	4 , 8
Spirits of the Elid	37	37 , 33 , 37
Temple of Ikov	40	42
Cabin Fever	40	50 , 42 , 45
The Path of Glouphrie	47	60 , 56 , 56 , 45
Mourning's End Part I	60	50
The Curse of Arrav	62	64 , 62 , 61 , 58 , 37

Quests rewarding Ranged experience

Main article: Quest experience rewards § Ranged

Quest	Experience reward	Ranged requirement	Other requirements
Big Chompy Bird Hunting	735	30	5 , 30
Recipe for Disaster/Freeing Skrach Uglogwee	1,500	30	41 , 20
Death to the Dorgeshuun	2,000	-	23 , 23
Zogre Flesh Eaters	2,000	30	4 , 8
Heroes' Quest	2,075	-	55 , 53 , 53 , 25 , 50
Horror from the Deep	4,662.5	-	35
Temple of Ikov	10,500	40	42
Total	23,472.5

Skill choice

Upon completing any of the following quests, players may choose to allocate experience to Ranged. These rewards usually come in the form of items, such as lamps or books, and are independent of any experience rewards directly received for completing the quest.

Quest	Experience reward	Skills available	Skill requirements
X Marks the Spot	300	Any	None
Client of Kourend	500 twice	Any	None
The Ides of Milk	1,000		None
Fairytale II - Cure a Queen	2,500	Any skill above 30	49 , 57
A Tail of Two Cats	2,500 twice	Any skill above 30	None
The Great Brain Robbery	5,000	Any skill above 30	16 , 30 , 50
King's Ransom	5,000	Any skill above 50	65
Darkness of Hallowvale	2,000 three times	Any skill above 30	5 , 20 , 22 , 32 , 33 , 40
A Taste of Hope	2,500 three times	Any skill above 35	48 , 40 , 40 , 45 , 38
A Kingdom Divided	10,000 twice	Any skill above 40	54 , 52 , 52 , 50 , 42 , 38 , 35
In Search of Knowledge (miniquest)	10,000	Any skill above 40	None
Curse of the Empty Lord (miniquest)	10,000	Any skill above 50	Some players will need 31
Shadow of the Storm	10,000		30
Contact!	7,000 twice		None
Dream Mentor	15,000		32 , 85 , 61 , 40 , 49 , 5 , 65 , 60 , 55
A Night at the Theatre	20,000 four times		90 recommended
One Small Favour	10,000 twice	Any skill above 30	36 , 25 , 18 , 30
Recipe for Disaster (The final battle)	20,000	Any skill above 50	175 , 70 , 48 , 50 , 53 , 53 , 25 , 59 , 40 , 50 , 40 , 40 , 10 , 10 , 36
Sins of the Father	15,000 six times	Any skill above 60	62 , 60 , 56 , 52 , 50 , 50 , 49
Dragon Slayer II	25,000 four times		200 , 75 , 70 , 68 , 62 , 60 , 60 , 50 , 50
Into the Tombs (miniquest)	50,000		95 recommended
The Final Dawn	55,000		66 , 52 , 52 , 85 recommended
Monkey Madness II	50,000 twice		69 , 70 , 60 , 55 , 55 , 60
Desert Treasure II - The Fallen Empire	100,000 three times		75 , 75 , 70 , 62 , 60 , 60
Total	927,300

Level up messages

This article on a skill has an associated transcript page for level up messages. Click here for the transcript.

Changes

Date	Changes
29 May 2024 (Update)	All monsters had their Ranged defence split into three different categories: Light, Standard, and Heavy.

See also

• Ranged/Experience table, a list of all Ranged experience sources
• Ranged/Level up table, a list of all requirements and unlockables within the Ranged skill