SRL Archive - RS has been updated.

NEWS: There will be an "offhand" version of weapons, for example the "offhand rapier" that will only do 50% of damage compared to it's original. Been confirmed via numerous runescape threads.

Here is the offcial quote from the "dual wielding" tab from the combat system section:
Naturally, this will give you a lot of choice, and you'll be able to spend plenty of time tweaking your favourite armour and weapon setups. While each setup will feel different and have its own advantages, we're keeping the core damage formula balanced. As a general reference, wielding a two-handed weapon will deal 150% damage compared to an equivalent one-handed main-hand item; an off-hand weapon will do 50%; and claws in either hand will do 75% each.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=t95NWZ9CsTc#!

The new reveal today was dual wielding.

I was pretty excited because I have always wanted it, and I can't wait to use like two rapiers. Even cooler, was the dual crossbow wielding, and the dual magic wielding. Will they let us wield two rapiers, or two chaotic crossbows? Or will this ability be limited to rune crossbows, and make chaotics outdated and a waste?

but then… I got pissed.

"staves are now two handed, and can't be used with any shield"

So.. is my chaotic staff worthless, or is my arcane that I just bought worthless?
Is the dragon defender going to be an outdated thing of the past?

What are your thoughts :)!

edit: there has been some confusion about dual wielding, and about how the video states you can't dual wield whip. This is why:

The reason they don't allow the dual wielding of the whip is because of the way you swing it around and USE IT LIKE A REAL WHIP. They said nothing about the damage output, the said the technical way, it's just too hard to have the ANIMATION of two whips working together at once.

They do have dual dragon scimitars, so they will probably have dual rapiers since they are just two little swords. BUT they may decide that is too much damage, and not let any chaotics dual wield together, but that is still not the case in the dual whip wielding.

They even say "this is the excalibur, it is used as the offhand version of the whip and has had it's special removed, AND IT HAS THE SAME POWER AS THE WHIP, unforunately we couldn't give you two whips because of the technical limitations of the animation of the whip". Just can't graphically make it happen, but still the power of dual wielding two whips..

Well nothing is worthless until September when they bring it out. There will be no point in having an arcane spirit shield I think.. You could use it with a whip though for hybriding or something but yeah. Not sure what to think of it, obviously it looks cool but it is so much different than old school RuneScape.

That looks SICK!

OMFG OMFG, 2 Rapiers ftw!

From: J J
Well nothing is worthless until September when they bring it out. There will be no point in having an arcane spirit shield I think.. You could use it with a whip though for hybriding or something but yeah. Not sure what to think of it, obviously it looks cool but it is so much different than old school RuneScape.

Well that's not entirely true. People don't wait until the update actually comes out to decide what to do with their items / money - the price starts dropping right away. Arcane dropped 1.4M today, and I assume it will keep dropping.

But I suppose it could be used, but as of right now I highly doubt it :/. And yeah it does look cool with the dual wielding.. but your right - it's just not Runescape anymore :/

From: JoeyGupta
OMFG OMFG, 2 Rapiers ftw!

I thought so too… but it seems too overpowerd / too good to be true. I think they won't allow chaotics or something.

edit: also, range's new dual wielding attack, gun slinging? It's a one hit kill unless the character moves? Is this going to be the new instant kill rushing..? We shall see :D

From: Luke L
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=t95NWZ9CsTc#!

The new reveal today was dual wielding.

I was pretty excited because I have always wanted it, and I can't wait to use like two rapiers. Even cooler, was the dual crossbow wielding, and the dual magic wielding. Will they let us wield two rapiers, or two chaotic crossbows? Or will this ability be limited to rune crossbows, and make chaotics outdated and a waste?

but then… I got pissed.

"staves are now two handed, and can't be used with any shield"

So.. is my chaotic staff worthless, or is my arcane that I just bought worthless?
Is the dragon defender going to be an outdated thing of the past?

What are your thoughts :)!

Well I guess that magic related off-hands has to be remade or it wouldnt make any sense

From: Sirenia
Well I guess that magic related off-hands has to be remade or it wouldnt make any sense

Nope, they'll just be worthless.

What they are trying to do is give people "options". as in "do you want to wear a rapier and a divine, or wear two rapiers? Defensive or offensive?"

"do you want to wear a chaotic staff for slower higher hits, or a masters wand and arcane spirit shield? Offensive, or defensive?"

But everyone knows, that most everyone always goes with offensive, and the most damage dealing capbilities.. so shields of all kinds will mostly drop like crazy.

Whip and crossbow is a great idea for dual wielding. This new combat update requires much more player involvement and will make training melee/range much more interesting.

After seeing this I think the whole update is less of a step in the wrong direction (still very much a step in the WoW direction) but it will certainly take some getting used to for us longer-serving players.

All-in-all I think everyone (including myself) has judged this a bit harshly and thrown it in the money-grabbing/glitchy bag with many of Jagex's other recent updates, but it will really be left up until it is beta tested before we can make any real speculation as to it's combined worth. Each individual update will most probably compliment/counter the others to form a more exciting and more balanced bit of gameplay. So whilst you may dislike some updates to the combat system (new combat lvl calculation) you might be ecstatic about others (duel wielding). Only time will tell whether their end result will be an improvement, but after watching this video it's clear some serious time and effort is going into this and it could prove to be a big step forward for the game.

tl;dr - Wait until the update is released in it's full before bashing it and saying you're going to quit.

ruined this game…

btw whips can only be used in conjunction with another weapon not another whip.

From: JoeyGupta
OMFG OMFG, 2 Rapiers ftw!

Sadly no, dmg output would be to great, as stated by them, 2 whips will even be a no no.

From: Jonno
Sadly no, dmg output would be to great, as stated by them, 2 whips will even be a no no.

no no no, you guys aren't understanding..

The reason they don't allow the dual wielding of the whip is because of the way you swing it around and USE IT LIKE A REAL WHIP. They said nothing about the damage output, the said the technical way, it's just too hard to have the ANIMATION of two whips working together at once.

They do have dual dragon scimitars, so they will probably have dual rapiers since they are just two little swords. BUT they may decide that is too much damage, and not let any chaotics dual wield together, but that is still not the case in the dual whip wielding.

edit: they even say "this is the excalibur, it is used as the offhand version of the whip and has had it's special removed, AND IT HAS THE SAME POWER AS THE WHIP, unforunately we couldn't give you two whips because of the technical limitations of the animation of the whip".

They just can't graphically make it happen, but still the power of dual wielding two whips..

From: Jonno
Sadly no, dmg output would be to great, as stated by them, 2 whips will even be a no no.

Armour is getting changed so it also contributes LP and Damage soaking. I imagine the duel wielding stuff would go hand in hand with this because players are going to be immensely more powerful with the new LP boosting gear.

From: -Benny
ruined this game…

How is it ruining the game? Sure the current combat system works, but at the same time it's garbage an has no competition with other current mmo's, this will be a game changer for the better.

But yeah, looks pretty sweet, really looking forward to this update.

To me this update looks great and i personally can't wait for it. The only thing I can think of for them to change atm is the combat level formula. I think that prayer, summoning, and hp should be included along with the formula to make it more complex and harder to achieve max. Having only 2 99's for max lvl after update just seems a little bit too…. effortless. :(

From: JN13
Armour is getting changed so it also contributes LP and Damage soaking. I imagine the duel wielding stuff would go hand in hand with this because players are going to be immensely more powerful with the new LP boosting gear.

I agree that dual wielding is the offensive response to the life boosting gear like torva that's came out, but is there suppost to be new Lp boosting gear? If so, please link to your source :D

From: Hadley
How is it ruining the game? Sure the current combat system works, but at the same time it's garbage an has no competition with other current mmo's, this will be a game changer for the better.

But yeah, looks pretty sweet, really looking forward to this update.

I personally think this will be a cool update- but I can see where he is coming from. You say it "has no competition with other current mmo's", but is that really the point? To become like every other MMO out there?

I don't think so - I like runescape for runescape, and it's originality. If I wanted wow, I'd play wow - i'm sad that runescape is evolving into it.

From: AustnW
To me this update looks great and i personally can't wait for it. The only thing I can think of for them to change atm is the combat level formula. I think that prayer, summoning, and hp should be included along with the formula to make it more complex and harder to achieve max. Having only 2 99's for max lvl after update just seems a little bit too…. effortless. :(

I couldn't agree more. Literally I feel like the new combat formula is a joke! How can someone with 99 def and 99 mage, with allll other skills 1, be the same level as someone with 99 att, str, def, mage, range, hp, prayer, summoning, etc.!??! It makes noooo sense what so ever, Idk where the hell they got the thought.

From: Luke L
I agree that dual wielding is the offensive response to the life boosting gear like torva that's came out, but is there suppost to be new Lp boosting gear? If so, please link to your source :D

Taken from the Skill, variety, and fun OG blog on the combat page:

Making Combat More Fun

We are doing several things to add more OMG moments to combat. The new ultimate abilities are - frankly – awesome, and everyone in the office is amazed by what the graphics team have achieved. It’s been a pleasure to see these ideas come to life: huge tidal waves cascading from the mage; explosions blasting your opponent from afar; massive aerial bombardments from the ranger; a rain of arrows pinning your target to the ground; cleaving blows from the warrior, so big that they rupture the very ground around you; or calling great destructive meteors from the sky. There’s a real plethora of choice, too, with over 20 abilities to pick from within each combat method. We are also adding critical hits to combat, to add a new dimension to damage with crit-hit splats. Overall, your rate of damage will be massively increased.

Of course, it’s not all about how hard you can hit things. Maximum life points will be raised by the armour you’re wearing, so life points will effectively increase by over 15 times of previous amounts for defensively geared players, with a 10 times increase for those equipped with offense in mind. Currently, a common source of disappointment is being killed very quickly in PvP with little chance to react. With larger life pool, players will be encouraged to think tactically rather than relying on lucky, big hits.

ALL armour will have an LP boost. <- at least for now. (they think maybe)

Dual wielding crossbows doesn't even make sense…

Also, I don't find any reason to get excited as the system they will be used in is nothing like the current system. They aren't going to throw away all the offhands and dual wield will be adjusted to keep it from being overpowered (at least too overpowered).

Better get 99 slayer before this crap comes out. If it comes out sept, then at least I have sometime before its ruined. Do not plan on using melee. Close to 99 slayer anyway.

I don't want to play wow -_-
Vid Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&v=B3bBMynLpdw&src_vid=t95NWZ9CsTc&annotation_id=annotation_754263

I'll be rocking Rapier + Enhanced Excal (Elite) if it's at all possible.

From: John

I don't want to play wow -_-

It's okay, you don't have to PK. I'll bet Narcle's gonna undermine the new combat system soon.

FastFighter Forever!

From: John


I don't want to play wow -_-
Vid Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&v=B3bBMynLpdw&src_vid=t95NWZ9CsTc&annotation_id=annotation_754263

Precisely what I'm saying -.- … some of these updates are cool, but the ones that are IDENTICAL towards WOW… action bar.. and supposedly soon to come mounts?

Sucks :(

This sounds like a great update, don't get me wrong… but this just won't be RS anymore. The game itself definitely won't die, but the classical idea of Runescape will with this update.

Anyways, I hope to god they don't make dual wielding a straight-up-double-DPS mechanic. I would think do something like for the right hand 100% of normal accuracy and 80% of normal power, and for the left hand 70% of normal accuracy and 45% of normal power. Let's be honest, we righties can't punch, throw, swing, ect. as hard or as accurately with our left hands (equal and opposite for lefties). I also expect a hasta-style defense penalty on the off-hand.

EDIT: Also, if they add mounts to the game I will quit with no questions asked. With lodestone and spell teleports it's unnecessary, not to mention out-of-place and just plain stupid.

From: Tlachtli
This sounds like a great update, don't get me wrong… but this just won't be RS anymore. The game itself definitely won't die, but the classical idea of Runescape will with this update.

Anyways, I hope to god they don't make dual wielding a straight-up-double-DPS mechanic. I would think do something like for the right hand 100% of normal accuracy and 80% of normal power, and for the left hand 70% of normal accuracy and 45% of normal power. Let's be honest, we righties can't punch, throw, swing, ect. as hard or as accurately with our left hands (equal and opposite for lefties). I also expect a hasta-style defense penalty on the off-hand.

EDIT: Also, if they add mounts to the game I will quit with no questions asked. With lodestone and spell teleports it's unnecessary, not to mention out-of-place and just plain stupid.

The part on mounts you said is spot on. It was just so retarded, I couldn't even explain how so - but you did haha.

and on the dual wielding, sadly I do think it will be double DPS. BUT with that being said, I think that's because they want to show how good defense is going to be - they are making ALL armor add to life points, and so by dual wielding you'll be giving up a shield, which will become MUCH more important. You will be able to deal some major damage, but against other players that are defensively equipped it won't be as overpowered as you might think.

At least it'll hopefully make training on monsters faster :D.

We shall see!

hope the update is good tbh at least make rs interesting for a few months

"I thought I would just post on this so people don't go spending all their Dungeoneering tokens on another Chaotic Rapier, as you'll need to wait and buy the new Off-hand Chaotic Rapier when it is released."
This is off the forums posted by Mod Rathe.

From: Zockuito
"I thought I would just post on this so people don't go spending all their Dungeoneering tokens on another Chaotic Rapier, as you'll need to wait and buy the new Off-hand Chaotic Rapier when it is released."
This is off the forums posted by Mod Rathe.

Oo, that is an important peace of information! Good find, please give me the quickfind code for verification and I'll post this on the OP right away!

edit: I found an official quote from the dual wielding tab of the combat section. Thanks for the heads up!

After watching that Behind the Scenes video, I actually feel a little better about the combat update. I am really glad that off-hand weapons do less than normal damage and impede defense. Everyone's saying that a lot of this is copying WoW; if Jagex is taking some design choices from Blizzard, hopefully they'll adopt Blizzard's attention to balance* as well.

*That is, unless you like playing Terran in Starcraft. Seems like they get hit with the nerfbat in every patch, and it doesn't look like they'll be getting any better in HotS.

so all that time getting dragon defenders just seems stupid now……

Wow f2p pking is about to get a lot more interesting…that is if you can do this in f2p…

Rs will no longer be RS :S I hope the changes go for well, but I'm sure these will make the game worse :7

They will be creating new weapons for the secondary slot, so no, according to Jagex, you cannot wield a one-handed weapon currently designed for the primary slot in the secondary slot.

From: xxu
They will be creating new weapons for the secondary slot, so no, according to Jagex, you cannot wield a one-handed weapon currently designed for the primary slot in the secondary slot.

That was already stated in the original post in big bold letters at the top….

It has all the information you need about offhand weapons.

Please at least READ the OP before posting…. :duh:

From: John

I don't want to play wow -_-
Vid Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&v=B3bBMynLpdw&src_vid=t95NWZ9CsTc&annotation_id=annotation_754263

Every MMO has an action bar (action bars).

Honestly anyone who says the new update looks like a World of Warcraft clone, never played World of Warcraft or any other MMO. They all have similar features, but bring a different style. Star Wars the Old Republic, Guild Wars, etc…

also i don't see why people would think less of Runescape for becoming like World of Warcraft. :duh:

From: Claymore
Every MMO has an action bar (action bars).

Honestly anyone who says the new update looks like a World of Warcraft clone, never played World of Warcraft or any other MMO. They all have similar features, but bring a different style. Star Wars the Old Republic, Guild Wars, etc…

also i don't see why people would think less of Runescape for becoming like World of Warcraft. :duh:

I agree with the first part. It's not not action bars are specially just in WOW, they are included in many other games. I think Wow Is just the obvious choice of comparison as its the number 1 mmorpg, and most well known.

But as for your comment on why people would think less, I couldn't disagree more. Although I've said in previous posts, I don't think this update is rubbish, I think it'll be quite neat, BUT having said that.. I see where other people are coming from. The reason why people dont want to see runescape become like wow is obvious isn't it? If they wanted to play a game like wow…. They'd play wow. The reason why they chose RS to play was because how it is.
Runescape is losing its originality, it's saddening :(.

Woops phone lag, double post sorry!

Graphically? dude iono thats odd… exuses you can do anything graphically… they just dont want it to be overpowered… the graphics are easy… i cannot beleive they are using that as an exuse… shame

From: Luke L
I agree with the first part. It's not not action bars are specially just in WOW, they are included in many other games. I think Wow Is just the obvious choice of comparison as its the number 1 mmorpg, and most well known.

But as for your comment on why people would think less, I couldn't disagree more. Although I've said in previous posts, I don't think this update is rubbish, I think it'll be quite neat, BUT having said that.. I see where other people are coming from. The reason why people dont want to see runescape become like wow is obvious isn't it? If they wanted to play a game like wow…. They'd play wow. The reason why they chose RS to play was because how it is.
Runescape is losing its originality, it's saddening :(.

Doesn't feel like World of Warcraft to me at all. One major reason is due to having not to pick between classes. I'm so glad Runescape is kept classless. You can still be a ranger, warrior, mage or a hybrid of some sort. Most MMOs hardly give you that flexibility and limit you to a class per character.

If there is anything to complain about the new combat update, is how the people who mastered many of Runescape's current combat system. This would be the creation of pures, prayer flickering, etc… This was already mentioned in one of the journals written by the mods. Even then, i can imagine players being able to adapt their pures into the new combat system.

I'm not trying to change peoples mind about their response to the new combat system. But please, do not call it a World of Warcraft clone, or say its unoriginal. The combat system was due for an update (It's been 10 years!) and it is extremely difficult for an MMO to stray from unoriginality.

I can't wait for this update. Hopefully will make getting that 99 alot easier. Maybe you could bot max attack, str, def, range, and mage in under a month to 99? :D

this update will make me play RS like i used to
i have been playing WOW with a Glad title and Arena master
seeing an action bar in RS will make my life easier
best thing i love in RS which is you lose when you die
and the hyper ofc which is the classless as other mention

RS have to keep up and develop its graphic due to the competition in games
still im kinda sure it will keep its graphic modes as it is now so everyone is free to choice

Those action bars i wana keybind them and use them asap!!