Old School update to construction

This week Jagex updated the Construction skill in Old School Runescape.  To put it quickly and simply I like the changes.  The tweaks are small, but, welcome.  The biggest is the ability to rearrange your house.  Before you had to destroy a room with all contents if you wanted it in a different location or rotated to allow for an expansion.  This way you can click on a room and then click where you want it and rotate it.  It has limits in that if there is something attached above/below then there are limits on the rotate.  I used the function to expand out the spacing in the house to allow me putting in the new features that are part of the update.

The one new spot you can build allows you to create a pool that recharges.  Right now it is set up to recharge run energy and that helps when I am doing long sessions making flat packs.  When I arrive I click on the pool to refresh then build.  It makes it a lot cheaper and easier than using energy or super energy potions.

There is another spot I can build, but, it requires level 80 and at this time I am only level 75.  Overall this is a nice well designed update to the game that the original Runescape doesn't have and should.

My current house layout

Interface on lower right has new option

Click on a room to move and/or rotate

I prefer playing Old School as it is simple to play, not overloaded with features and functions.  It also works well on lower end machines and runs in a browser in Linux.

Blood Runs Deep quest

I finished the latest quest for Runscape last night.  Blood Runs Deep is a continuation of the Fremennik and Lunar Isle quests.  It took me two nights of play to get through the quest and I found it a totally enjoyable and challenging quest.

Some stats for me
Combat = 122
Attack = 90
Strength = 89
Defense = 89
Hitpoints = 92

Read the quest walk-through on the Wiki and believe me, it is very easy to die in this quest.  I moved my house to Rellekka as they recommended and that really helps.  If you have teletabs make sure you have one as you will need to use them.  During the quest at the end I had to teleport out three times before I figured out the proper way to defeat the Dagannoth Mother.

For the first part talking to Silas I was wearing Rune Armour and had 3 prayer pots, 1 teletab and the rest in monks.  I went through most of this before Baba Yaga got the lectern to work.  Afterward we were back on Lunar Isle.  Before using her 'trick' go to the bank and stock up on food, more prayer pots (3 worked for me) and a teletab.  The Dagannoth in Rellekka are agressive, but, after a while they stop being agressive and you can pick your targets.  On the saving King Vargas bring the same number of prayer pots and food as you will need them all going through the caves.  Take care to walk as he is very slow.  Also when going around corners or obstructions you may have to go back and move further out as he will get trapped. 

When fighting the sentinels take care to watch your health as they do hit hard and fairly often.  On the mother you will find this a challenge and a fairly high risk of death.  Watch your health at all times and make sure that your prayer does not run out.  If you have to leave you will need to restart the combat using Balmung.  Make sure you have protect from Melee on for that portion.  Once you get a hit you can move away so that she does not use Melee, but, Magic and range.  I found using protect from range using a combination of Armour that gives high magic protection worked for me.  It still took three teleports out and back before I got everything down on my timing.

At the end you talk to Brundt three times and you can then pick what area to apply your rewards to.  I took it all in prayer as that is a fairly expensive skill to level up in.  I went from level 78 to 80 with this.

Overall I found this one of the most enjoyable and challenging quests in the last two years and for me it was as hard as the While Guthix Sleeps quest.

My new menagerie

This week Runescape made an new room for your pets. I have two cats and one dog right now. Since I don't have a high enough level to put all of my pets in I made the house as best as I could.

You can see the screen shots I made. The first picture is me entering the house. The second is my new spot for my pets.

The other new thing is that Runescape now allows us to make teletabs much more easily. Before we had to do one at a time, now we can make 'x' teletabs. Both myself and my dad (tomt1960) find this is a lot easier on our fingers and the mice. It may be a bit slower, but, it does not wear out our mice as quickly as we don't constantly click all of the time.

Prayer skill and Canifis

This is a skill that allows the user (P2P or F2P) to help with their combat. There are a number of ones that will make your combat and quests go easier. There is a good section in the WIKI that explains this skill.

Leveling up the skill outside of the rewards of the various quests takes a lot of time and effort, or, a lot of GP. While playing, Zelda and myself found a way for P2P players to bring up the skill a bit faster. If you hunt werewolves in Canifis (you have to finish the priest in peril quest) save the wolf bones that they drop. At the grand exchange sell all of the bones and then buy dragon bones. Wolf bones gives you 4.5 XP per bone, dragon gives 72. At this time you can sell 5 wolf bones and get one dragon bone. Using a bit of math you can either get 22.5 XP burying 5 wolf bones or 72 for one dragon bone. If you have a house (POH) with a high level altar and incense burners or access to one then you can get more bonus points. Read the section in the WIKI on the POH.