When you're first building your Runescape character, one of the biggest things to consider is what style of combat works best for you.
Most of us, just like me, have a tendency to choose different weapon types all the time! Some of us enjoy using melee, others like to attack from a distance with ranged and magic. Of course you have others who like to do the hybrid approach. Depending on what style you choose or are deciding to transition to this is the 5 best weapon types including the 5 best weapons.
5. Swords
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If you're looking to slash your enemies, swords may be the weapon type for you.
To start us off, we’ll talk about swords! There are multiple types of swords and this is an ideal combat style for some people as it does not require ammunition such as arrows and runes which can be a bit pricey. Swords vary in many shapes and sizes from shortsword, longsword, and two-handed. If you are looking for fast damage per second (dps) shortswords and longswords may be up your alley. If you’re looking all in for power, two-handed swords are the way to go. Using swords is an effective way to combat ranged enemies as this is their weakness.
What makes swords great?
If you’re doing slayer tasks and have ranged enemies, swords are perfect because it will deal great damage
Swords can be very fast, especially shortswords as you are able to dual-wield them and maximize dps
If looking for some defense with a sword, a longsword is useful as they have higher-auto attack damage; fortunately there is also dual wielding variants
Details on swords
Depending on which sword you choose will depend on the style. If you are looking for fast stabs, the shortsword has got your back. Longswords are not as fast and their style is slash. Two handed weapons are a bit slower and their style is similar to longswords
Shortsword- Fastest (2.4s)
Longsword- Fast (3.0s)
Two-handed sword- Average (3.6s)
Top 5 Best Swords
1. Khopesh of Tumeken and Elidinis- The main hand can be obtained from Sophanem Slayer dungeon as a rare drop and needs to be blessed with Blessing of the Sea, Sky, and Sand, requiring 92 Crafting.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Stab
Damage: Auto-883.2; Ability- 883.2
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
The off-hand can be obtained via Shifting Tombs minigame as a rare loot from treasure chests. It also needs to be blessed. If not wanting to go through this effort, they can both be bought off the GE.
Off-Hand
Style: Stab
Damage: Auto- 441.6; Ability-441.6
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
2. Elite Tetsu Katana and Wakizashi- These are both an upgraded version of the Tetsu Katana and Wakizashi. In order to upgrade it to this, one will need the resource 5 plate, the sword, testsu sword upgrade kit, 92 Smithing, and have discovered 4 parts of the Tetsu swords eastern scroll.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-1,078; Ability- 844.8
Accuracy: 2,343
Range: 1
Speed: Fast (3.0s)
Off-Hand
Style: Stab
Damage: Auto- 539; Ability-422.4
Accuracy: 2,343
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (3.0s)
3. Dark Shard of Leng and Dark Sliver of Leng- This pair can be created by upgrading their lesser part, dark ice shard and dark ice sliver both with a Frozen Core of Leng. A drop from Arch-Glacor. This can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-912; Ability- 912
Accuracy: 2,765
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
Off-Hand
Style: Stab
Damage: Auto- 456; Ability-456
Accuracy: 2,765
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
4. Drygore Longsword and Off-Hand- These swords are a rare drop from the almighty Kalphite King and can be bought off the GE if one does not receive this rare drop.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-1,102.5; Ability- 864
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 1
Speed: Fast (3.0s)
Off-Hand
Style: Stab
Damage: Auto- 551.2; Ability-432
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 1
Speed: Fastest (3.0s)
5. Ek-ZekKil- This two-handed weapon is created by combining obsidian blade, magma core, and ancient hilt which is an exclusive drop from TzKal-Zuk in Hard Mode. Not many people opt into hard mode and find it easier to buy this off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-2,123.3; Ability- 1,368
Accuracy: 2,765
Range:1
Speed: Average (3.6s)
4. Halberds
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Looking to strike enemies from a distance but want to do it via melee? These are halberds specialty.
Up next is a much fancier type of sword, but is not actually a sword. Halberds! They appear to be a cross-over of a longsword and a 2-handed sword but are their own unique type given that they are able to attack their victims in 2 spaces. You could poke someone’s eye out with this weapon! Just like swords, these are cost efficient as they do not require any form of ammunition. They can be highly effective when enemies are provoked, making it useful for slayer.
What makes halberds great?
You’re able to safe spot enemies since the attack range is 2 spaces away, allowing to stay at a place without requiring food and saving inventory space
When enemies are provoked, abilities such as Cleave, Hurricane, Quake, and Meteor Strike are highly useful as it can attack a wide range
In comparison to other weapons, halberds are inexpensive depending on what you’re looking for
Details on halberds
Even though this weapon is a bit slower in comparison to swords, the ability to attack 2 spaces away is very helpful. There are also some weapons that are similar in essence to halberd such as scythes, lances, and spears as they have the same attack range.
Average (3.6s)
Top 5 Best Halberds
1. Noxious Scythe- This can be created by players with 90 Crafting by combining a spider leg and Araxxi’s fang. These are both drops specific to Araxxor and Araxxi. This weapon can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-2,011.5; Ability-1,296
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 2
Speed: Average (3.6s)
2. Dragon Rider Lance- This is a drop exclusively from defeating Vindicta. This can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-1,788; Ability-1,152
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 2
Speed: Average (3.6s)
3. Laniakea’s Spear- This spear can be made by gathering 4 unique items that are specifically dropped by the Rex Matriarchs and provided to Laniakea. This weapon can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-2,011.5; Ability-1,296
Accuracy: 1,694
Range: 2
Speed: Average (3.6s)
4. Masuta’s Warspear- A rare drop from defeating Masuta the Ascended residing in the Temple of Aminishi. If you don't want to get this rare drop, it can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-1,832.7; Ability-1,180.8
Accuracy: 2,023
Range: 2
Speed: Average (3.6s)
5. Attuned Crystal Halberd- An improved version of the crystal halberd, this is made by using a crystal bowl in the Ithell Clan of Prifddinas. This halberd also requires the completion of Plague’s End and The Eyes of Glouphrie. This cannot be bought off the GE but the inferior version can be.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Slash
Damage: Auto-1,788; Ability-1,152
Accuracy: 1,924
Range: 2
Speed: Average (3.6s)
3. Crossbows
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Some enemies may need to be hit from a distance to save on food, crossbows are optimal for this.
If you’re looking for an even further range at attacking your enemies, you’ve come to the right weapon type. Crossbows can be dual wielded and are sought after as they come with better accuracy in comparison to bows. These are highly efficient against magic users since range is their weakness. Keep in mind though these do require ammunition, specifically bolts. They also have two-handed versions if you’re not into dual wielding crossbows
What makes crossbows great?
Whether you are using dual-wielding or two-handed, crossbows can average 150% damage which is effective for defeating enemies
If wanting to tank hits, one can opt in to use 1 crossbow and wield a shield
Certain bolts can be enchanted allowing for more damage output, which can be useful in bossing situations
Details on crossbows
Crossbows once upon a time only came with the main-hand and two-handed versions. Later on the game has now added off-hands which is highly useful to maximize dps. Depending on if you choose to do dual-wielding and two-handed they come with their exclusive abilities to that type.
Crossbow- Fastest (2.4s)
Two-Handed Crossbow- Average (3.6s)
Top 5 Best Crossbows
1. Blightbound Crossbow and Off-hand Blightbound Crossbow- Both crossbows are a rare drop from Solak. This can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability- 883.2
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
Off-Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability-441.6
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
2. Eldritch Crossbow- This crossbow requires 96 Fletching to put the stock, limbs and mechanism together which is a rare drop from The Shadow Reef boss, The Ambassador. If not wanting to spend time to find all the pieces to assemble, this can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Bolts
Damage: Auto- 1,173; ability- 1,324.8
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
3. Ascension Crossbow and Off-Hand- These crossbows are both made using 6 Ascension signets with a dragon crossbow. Include the 100 ascension shards and take it to Ocellus and this will be created. The off-hand needs an additional 100 ascension shards. If anything these can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability- 864
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
Off-Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability-432
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
4. Wyvern Crossbow- This two-handed crossbow is a drop specific to wyverns. Players have a higher chance to receive this as a drop if assigned these as a slayer task. This crossbow can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Bolts
Damage: Auto- 1,083.8; ability- 1,224
Accuracy: 2,178
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
5. Chaotic Crossbow and Off-hand- These dual-wielding crossbows are a bit of a grind, requiring 200,000 dungeoneering tokens for main hand and 100,000 for off-hand. It is a reward specific to dungeoneering and cannot be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Main Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability- 768
Accuracy: 1,924
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
Off-Hand
Style: Bolts
Damage: Ability-384
Accuracy: 1,924
Range: 7
Speed: Fastest (2.4s)
2. Bows
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Bows are just as nice as crossbows but have their own perks to them.
Our next contender are bows. Unlike crossbows, bows require arrows instead of bolts. These come in 2 different shapes, shortbows and shieldbows, requiring the use of 2 hands. These are highly useful as their max range can be up to 9 and be useful if you are not looking to get hit. Since these are still ranged weapons, they are strong against magic enemies.
What makes bows great?
Some bows come not only come with passive abilities but can have special abilities that can allow for maximum dps
There are some bows known as chargebow-type that have their own ammunition, which is great for saving money
Bows are a little bit overpowered due to Elder God arrows which have certain effects such as poison and can have a chance of not consuming the arrow, making it effective for bosses
Details on Bows
Despite being only specifically two-handed weapons, when leveling up bows can be an easier avenue because they are on the cheaper end to upgrade to the next one. Although it does reach a certain point around tier 80 that they get a bit costly. Some bows also come as shortbow and longbows that depend on the distance you want to be away from your target and how fast you want to attack them.
Shortbow- Range 7, fast (3.0s)
Longbow- Range 9, average (3.6s)
Top 5 Best Bows
1. Bow of the Last Guardian- This longbow is assembled in 3 pieces, a top bottom and divine bowstring. Each piece is a rare drop from Zamorak and requires 95 Fletching to create. If you have profit, it may be easier to buy this bow off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Arrows
Damage: Auto- 1,123.3; ability- 1,368
Accuracy: 2,765
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
2. Seren Godbow- This longbow is created with multiple types of anima, specifically pure, volcanic, and corrupted combined with a dormant Seren godbow. With 92 Crafting it can be created. Each piece can be obtained by defeating the boss Telos. This bow can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Arrows
Damage: Auto- 2,056.2; ability- 1,324.8
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
3. Noxious Longbow- Requiring 90 Crafting, a spider leg, and Araxxi’s web this bow is created. In comparison to the other bows this is a cheaper bow to purchase from the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Arrows
Damage: Auto- 1,147.5; ability- 1,296
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
4. Decimation- This chargebow is a reward from killing Slayer monsters in the wilderness or can be a reward from Sack of very wild rewards. If you’re not lucky to get it from the drop table, this can be bought from the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Arrows
Damage: Auto- 1,598.6; ability- 1,252.8
Accuracy: 2,287
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
5. Strykebow- An upgraded version of the dark bow, this longbow is created by adding a wyrm scalp. This bow itself cannot be bought off the GE but the parts to create it can be.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Arrows
Damage: Auto- 450.5; ability- 816
Accuracy: 2,178
Range: 9
Speed: Average (3.6s)
1. Staves
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Magic allows for distanced atttacks just like Ranged and can be powerful.
These two-handed weapons come in many shapes and sizes. They have many uses and certain types of staves can save on runes! The primary ammunition for these is runes and depending on the spell you want to be cast may depend on what staff you want to use. There are elemental staves, battlestaves, mystic staves and more. Staves are useful against melee users since this is their weakness. If you are strong enough in magic you can defeat even its weaker combat style, ranged.
What makes staves great?
Certain staves have special abilities that can be casted, which can be useful for bosses and slayer monsters
Elemental staves are perfect for those who are looking to save money on runes, for example if a person wants to save on the cost of water runes, they would use a water staff and use air runes since it is cheaper
All staves have a range of 8 so you know how far you can strike your enemy, while ranged can come in different ranges and you may forget the distance
Details on Staves
Not only are staves useful as a weapon but a lot of skillers will use staves to save on the cost of certain spells. Certain spell books such as lunars require multiple types of runes and skillers will choose certain staves to mitigate this cost such as a mystic lava staff that provides unlimited earth and fire runes.
Staves- Range 8, average (3.6s)
Top 5 Best Staves
1. Fractured Staff of Armadyl- This staff can be created using Armadyl symbol, stabilisation gem, and a shaft. These are all a rare drop from Kerapac in hard mode. This staff can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Spell-casting
Damage: Ability-1,368
Accuracy: 2,765
Range: 8
Speed: Average (3.6s)
2. Staff of Sliske- Created by combining orb of corrupted anima, volcanic anima, and pure anima with a dormant staff of Sliske, all pieces are a rare drop from Telos. This can be obtained from the GE as well.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Spell-casting
Damage: Ability-1,324.8
Accuracy: 2,577
Range: 8
Speed: Average (3.6s)
3. Noxious Staff- Just like the other noxious weapons, this can be created with a spider leg and Araxxi’s eye. These are drops specific to Araxxor and Araxxi. It can be bought off the GE.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Spell-casting
Damage: Ability-1,296
Accuracy: 2,458
Range: 8
Speed: Average (3.6s)
4. Superior Zuriel’s Staff- An upgraded version of Zuriel’s staff, it can be made with an Ancient Warriors’ equipment patch. In doing this, it can no longer be tradeable but the separate pieces can be.
Weapon Stats:
Style: Spell-casting
Damage: Ability-1,267.2
Accuracy: 2,343
Range: 8
Speed: Average (3.6s)
5. Obliteration- This staff can be received from wilderness slayer tasks or sack of very wild rewards. If not lucky in getting this drop it can be bought off the GE.
