13 articlesRuneScape: Dragonwilds is finally here, and so is our beginner’s guide to help you get started with this survival game!
Dragonwilds tasks you with exploring the forgotten continent of Ashenfall. It offers a RuneScape-infused take on the survival crafting genre. However, it brings in enough unique things to make it so that not all of your knowledge of those games works here!
In this guide, we’ll tell you everything you need to know to get started with exploring Ashenfall.
Complete Beginner’s Guide | RuneScape: Dragonwilds
Get the Floating Rune Essence Stones
Early in the game, you will usually come across unreachable floating Rune Essence stones. They will be held up in the air by what appears to be some sort of magic geyser. This prevents you from mining them to get resources, though!
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Use Spells to Speed up Gathering
A bit of a follow-up to the previous tip, it’s a good idea to use spells to gather resources faster. You’ll unlock these spells as you level up each gathering Skill. For example, Level 11 Mining allows you to learn Rocksplosion and Level 11 Logging allows you to learn Axtral Projection.
These spells allow you to break resources down faster, so you can gather much more in less time. Using them also still counts as experience for your Skills, so there’s little reason to keep doing things the old way once you get them.
Construction Tips and Tricks
We definitely need to talk about construction and base building in this beginner’s guide for RuneScape: Dragonwilds. After all, it’s one of the most important aspects of the game!
First, there’s a neat trick you can currently “exploit” to level up your Construction Skill quickly. Simply build and place a large number of Crafting Tables! Each one only requires 4 Ash Logs to make, which are a pretty common resource. This makes it easy to make them in large amounts for experience.
Second, we highly recommend getting and using the Eye of Oculus spell. It becomes available once your Construction Skill gets up to Level 11. Use this spell to enter a free cam mode, which will allow you to more easily make buildings. You won’t be limited by your character’s POV or position anymore!
Lastly, you can press F to toggle Ghost Mode on and off. While it’s enabled, Ghost Mode allows you to place previews of any building. This doesn’t use resources, so you can use it to plan out your structures before you commit to them. It works wonders when paired with the Eye of Oculus spell!
Make Good Use of Lodestones
As you progress through the game, you’ll have to go through a Dragonkin Vault. Complete it and you’ll be able to claim a Vault Core at the end. You’ll also unlock the Lodestone crafting recipe the first time you do this.
Lodestones allow you to quickly teleport between them, enabling you to fast travel across the game’s world. What’s more, you can basically place them basically wherever you want! We recommend having one placed in your base so you can return easily, mainly.
We also recommend having all the materials to make a Lodestone in your possession when exploring. This will allow you to build and use one whenever you want. It can be quite handy in a pinch! Here’s a list of all the required materials so that you can keep them in mind:
- Stone x32
- Rune Essence x20
- Vault Core x1
In summary, put a Lodestone in your base and carry the materials to make at least 1 Lodestone while exploring. Use them to zoom around the world!
Make the Most of Your Equipment
As you progress through the game, you will be able to find and craft armor that can be charged with Lifeward. This is represented by a purple bar right above your Health bar. In essence, this seems to be some extra Health as a shield. So, the more you have, the better your survivability will be!
To recharge the Lifeward energy on your armor, you’ll need to consume Wardstones. You can craft them at any Rune Altar, with different variants of them being unlocked as you progress through the game. The basic Small Wardstone requires the following materials:
- Stone x1
- Rune Essence x5
Once you’ve made them, just consume them from the inventory!
Armor aside, Staff users should also know that they can change the element used by their staves. Simply go to the Rune section in your inventory and look for any Rune that has an orange circle on it. Those can be equipped while you have the Staff, changing the element to match the Rune!
Do note, that you can’t just change the element to any Rune, as far as we’ve seen. Nonetheless, this does allow Staff users to use more varied elements.
Keep an Eye out While Exploring
This is just a small tip but make sure to pay close attention to your surroundings while exploring. Places like the Dragonkin Vaults often contain secret alternate paths for you to find. These paths can lead to some useful extra loot, such as resources and equipment. Make sure to not miss these!
Hunger and Thirst Won’t Kill You
Lastly, another quick tip to finish this beginner’s guide for RuneScape: Dragonwilds… letting your Hunger and Thirst bars empty won’t actually kill you! It will simply deal Health damage to you until you’re at 1 HP left. However, it won’t finish you off, so you can stay alive until you satiate your character’s needs.
This is mostly useful to know if you’re playing multiplayer and hosting. You can just idle in a safe spot without worry so that you don’t need to kick out your friends and end the session. Just remember to heal up once you get back into the game!
So, there you go, that’s all of our tips and tricks in this beginner’s guide for RuneScape: Dragonwilds. Mind you, the game just came out and is in early access, so keep that in mind. A lot is subject to change. Nonetheless, this should help you get started!
