My 20+ Year Long Addiction to Runescape (with proof)

Storyline (personal journey through RuneScape)

2004 (5th grade, ~9 years old): Entry point

• Learns about RuneScape from a classmate during computer class.
• Starts on Tutorial Island, reaches Lumbridge, but feels lost due to the game’s open-world nature (not guided like earlier arcade/platform games).
• Quits briefly because they don’t know what to do next (before YouTube/modern guides existed).

2006 (middle school/early MMO boom): Returns full-time

• Returns as RuneScape grows in popularity alongside MMOs (mentions the WoW era, e.g., Burning Crusade).
• Plays despite poor hardware, causing frequent disconnects from loading/reloading.
• Experiences an early “life lesson” death:
  • Ends up in a sheep pen, misclicks a ram, disconnects, then dies.
  • Doesn’t know about banks or how death item loss works, so key items (including a bronze axe) are lost, stalling progress.
• Learns mainly through trial-and-error and community websites:
  • Sal’s Realm, RuneHQ, Tip.it, Zybez
• Eventually persuades their mom to buy membership; later mentions prepaid cards/bonds.
• Long-term goal becomes max cape = 99 in every skill.

2011–early 2012: Max cape achieved

• Reaches max cape in early 2012.
• Notes that “2012 + RuneScape” aligns with Evolution of Combat, an update that contributed to community splitting, helping lead to:
  • Old School RuneScape
  • RuneScape 3

2012–2013: Trim completion

After maxing, shifts into Trim Completionist goals:

• 99 in every skill
• 120 Dungeoneering
• All quests

• Music/spells unlocked, plus additional requirements

• Completes trim completion near end of 2013.

• Builds friendships that last for years.

2013–2017: Competitive/milestone era

• Highlights that PvM (player vs monster) in RuneScape 3 becomes notably stronger/fun.
• Boss mentions:
  • Vorago
  • Rise of the Six
  • Araxxor
• Late 2014: Buys a blue party hat for 3.4b (still has it).
• After buying it, pushes toward extreme training:
  • 5.4b total experience (described as 200m XP in every skill)
  • Heavy daily play after school + weekends; sleep drops substantially.
• Uses “every minute counts” planning:
  • Scheduling around bonus weekends and dailies
  • Banking time to fit training routes

Early 2017: 200M-in-every-skill completion (5.4b XP)

• Stops the hardcore XP grind after reaching 5.4b XP.
• Rank mentioned around ~138 (later becomes outdated as new skills change max XP).
• Treats the final skill as a major moment:
  • Last skill Defense jumps from ~23M to 200M rapidly.
  • Strategy: Abyssal demons using mechanized chin at Slayer Tower, aided by refer-a-friend.
• Weekly optimization using bonds:
  • Makes 10-minute mail accounts
  • Bonds them for 10% more bonus XP on the main weekly
  • Notes bonds were cheaper then; became a costly investment later.

After 5.4b XP: Return to PvM + gear goals

• Gets trim requirements back for a trim cape and returns to PvM.
• Adapts to the meta of the time:
  • flanking switches
  • augments
  • continuous 4-ticking (described as “sweaty,” since later nerfed)

2019–2023: Party hats, COVID, titles, and Necromancy

• 2019: Completes a party hat set, keeping at least:
  • blue
  • white
  • Christmas cracker
• March 2020: New skill Archaeology
• COVID period: Mentions a boost in activity as people stay home.
• Late 2020: “Insane Reaper” title path by collecting every unique boss drop.
• March 2021: Achieves the title; references an unofficial high-score tracked by BaseTank.
• Aug 2023: New combat style Necromancy
  • Initially described as neutral intended, but “most busted style” at first
  • Easier and cheaper than range for a while

After Necromancy → 5K Castle Wars

• After reaching beyond 5.8b XP, works toward 5K Castle Wars cape (one of the last major goals).
• After completing it, becomes more casual.

2026: Shift to Old School RuneScape

• Feels the game isn’t as strong as before.
• Mentions Jagex efforts to “clean up,” remove problematic updates, and revitalize the community.
• By 2026, no longer RS3-focused:
  • Plays primarily Old School RuneScape on Ironman

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Gameplay highlights & key strategies/tips mentioned

Learning approach (early era)

• Early progress relied heavily on trial-and-error.
• Players learned from others and sites like Tip.it, RuneHQ, etc.
• Without modern video/wiki guidance, early progression (especially leaving Lumbridge) felt unclear.

Early-game “don’t lose progress” lesson

• Learn to use banks (they initially didn’t know this).
• Understand death mechanics—they lost items on death, stalling progression by losing key tools.

Extreme max/trim optimization (long-term grind strategies)

• First goal: max cape (99 in every skill)
• Then trim completion (broad account goals including:
  • skills
  • quests
  • Dungeoneering
  • music/spells, and other requirements)
• Major XP target:
  • 200M XP in every skill (5.4b total XP)
• “Last skill” spike:
  • Abyssal demons
  • mechanized chins
  • Slayer Tower
  • aided by refer-a-friend
• Weekly bonus XP optimization:
  • Create multiple alt accounts (short-duration accounts via “10-minute mail”)
  • Purchase bonds on alts to generate weekly bonus XP for the main
• PvM tech to stay competitive:
  • flanking switches
  • augments
  • 4-ticking (noting it’s nerfed now)

Bossing highlights (PvM content)

Mentions enjoying and profiting from:

• Vorago
• Rise of the Six
• Araxxor

Content milestones (endgame goals)

• “Insane Reaper”: collecting every unique boss drop.
• Gear/collection milestones:
  • Party hats (blue/white/Christmas cracker)
  • 5K Castle Wars cape
• Later meta note:
  • Necromancy initially dominant due to cost/ease

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Gamers/sources featured (mentioned at the end)

• Jagex (host of RuneFest; official event)
• RuneFest
• BaseTank (unofficial high score tracking for Insane Reaper)

Community sites mentioned:

• Sal’s Realm
• RuneHQ
• Tip.it
• Zybez

Additional references:

• World of Warcraft comparisons
• Mentions RuneLite, YouTube, and Twitch (no specific creators named)