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03 July 2009

Not-So-Deserted Deserts

I've started mining at the Granite and Sandstone Quarry in the Kharidian Desert, and am impressed with the exp rate.



I reached level 77 Mining; my first level up in the skill for quite a while now. Due to the location's remoteness, I experimented with gathering EP there by switching to a PvP server, but encountered Pkers during my first few minutes at the mine.

They arrived in pairs. The first two Pkers were out of my Combat range, but I felt uneasy about their presence. The very fact that they showed up made me realise that there were players who actually bother to travel to such secluded areas just to hunt down skillers. I realise now that I should have switched back to a safe server after the sighting, because a second pair of Pkers appeared and attacked me.


I spotted a Penguin dressed as a cactus while being pursued. At least my
death wasn't a complete loss.

The first thing they did was Teleblock, effectively rendering my Ectophial useless and cutting off my escape. I was Snared multiple times, until I finally got struck down by a well-aimed flick of my assailant's Abyssal Whip. Excluding the half-full inventory of Granite I mined, my losses solely consisted of untradable items, namely my Ectophial, my Enchanted Water Tiara, my Camulet and a couple of Sacred Clay Pickaxes. Nothing valuable, though the stuff was annoying to retrieve.

Ah well, lesson learnt. I'll stick to Port Phasmatys for my PvP tricking needs.


Stuff achieved today: Level 77 Mining

Posted by Timothy Gold at 11:11 PM |

01 July 2009

Thrills & Kills

Green098, one of the top 10 players in the highscores, apparently dabbles in PvP tricking as well.



I saw her Firemaking and gathering EP outside the Port Phasmatys bank this morning. Though the port was generally quite deserted, her presence still attracted the attention of a couple of players who had happened to be gathering EP as well. They mostly followed her around, conversing with her in a not-so-subtle attempt at getting a slot each in her Friend's List.

I considered attacking Green just so that I could have the opportunity to boast that I've actually done battle with a celebrity, but later just contented myself with killing one of the noobs. For a big shot at the tippity top of the Runescape hierarchy, Green treated her two irksome followers really patiently, and I have this policy against making unprovoked assaults on nice players.


Jackpot! A Zaros Statuette!

The noobs, however, were free game. He didn't drop anything of value, but my kills with Tiz and DG more than made up for it. The former dropped a Seren Statuette among other items, and I picked up yet another Zaros Statuette from DG. Happy day.




Stuff achieved today: Gained 125k Prayer exp

Posted by Timothy Gold at 10:14 PM |

30 June 2009

Return Of The Rares

It appears Jagex has discreetly slipped in some modifications to the Grand Exchange database.

It is now possible to view the trend of an item's price in the last 180 days. Previously, only the past month of the price's history was displayed. A useful improvement, even though Jagex probably didn't think it was significant enough for it to be announced.


Up, up and away!

One of the items I first looked up with this increased scope was the Red Partyhat. With the exception of a small dip sometime in late April, its price has been steadily climbing. Zelda alerted me to this a few weeks ago and I think Kitt's made a mention of rising partyhat prices fairly recently, but I had no idea that its ascent has been going on for over three months.



They went into free fall during the whole of 2008, shortly after the panic caused by the infamous anti-RWT updates. It's taken over a year, but I'm greatly relieved to see that partyhats are making a turn around. Though I'm not exactly strapped for money, I've long intended to sell off my Yellow and Purple (but not Lil' Red) to break even since I don't even wear them. I have no idea when they'll reach their pre-RWT update levels, but presently, I am feeling cautiously optimistic.


Stuff achieved today: Nothing much

Posted by Timothy Gold at 9:55 PM |

27 June 2009

Dragon Spear

Matman showcased the usefulness of the Dragon Spear, after he used its Special Attack to repeatedly stun the two Pkers who attacked Tiz and Zelda.

So I decided to buy the weapon too... but ended up using it for less noble purposes. Mat appeared in the Port Phasmatys bank as I was Smithing and gathering EP. Glancing at his avatar, I noted that he was in his default clothing and was completely unarmed. Mat also wasn't aware that I too was now a proud owner of a Dragon Spear, so I decided to give him a taste of his own medicine after he made his way to the furnace.

Catching him off-guard, I pummelled him twice with the spear's Special attacks. To my horror, as I right-clicked on his avatar to deliver a third blow, I saw that the username of the fellow I was attacking was actually "Moonman". Realising my terrible mistake, I stunned him once more, ran out of the furnace room and then switched servers out of sheer embarrassment.

Although the real Mat didn't show up until sometime later, DG soon joined me in my EP gathering and I was more than happy to test out my new weapon on her, much to her annoyance. I'm glad to say that I speced the right person this time, but alas, the mystical forces of Fate would not allow my nonsense to continue.


DG wasn't particularly pleased with my shenanigans.

Two Ancient Mages came out of nowhere and made short work of me. DG distracted one of them, but the other entered the fray and finished the job, and I ended up losing the spear. I have a spare, but I'm treating this incident as a sort of divine warning shot to keep me from fooling around with the weapon again.


Stuff achieved today: Nothing much

Posted by Timothy Gold at 11:36 PM |

25 June 2009

Safety In Numbers II

Zelda, Mat and King have decided to join our merry little band of PvP tricksters.

Though we now gather EP at Port Phasmatys in larger (and thus more intimidating) groups, we've been attacked on numerous occasions during the last couple of days. We were, however, able to fend off most of the assaults.


Mat giving a Pker a good whack with his Dragon Spear.

Mat stunned an Ancient Mage with four Dragon Spear attacks, giving Tiz enough time to flee before the Pker could whittle down the rest of his health. He did likewise with a second attack made on Zelda. DG also chased a Pker who was harassing us all the way to the Ectofunctus, before he finally died of his injuries. Determined to not miss out on the action, I too later interfered with two separate attempts to kill DG and Tiz.



These skirmishes have made me more determined to buy a set of Dragon Claws. My offer of 30.5 million several days ago was ignored, but I am tracking the weapon's soaring price; I'll renew my order as soon as it finally dips.


Stuff achieved today: Level 98 Smithing

Posted by Timothy Gold at 10:54 PM |

23 June 2009

Motherlode

I've hit the motherlode.



Tiz and I started the day taking turns to kill one another. The first drop was appalling; I picked up nothing but a set of bones after he had died. The second kill more than made up for it. The value of the loot actually exceeded a million gp. I was already feeling thoroughly satisfied at that point, but when I later met up with DG to perform the PvP trick, her fallen body actually yielded a Zaros Statuette!



Priced at five million coins, the statuette is by far the most valuable of all ancient artefacts. The drop was met with great astonishment from both Dg and I, as well as Tiz who had happened to be present. I sold it shortly after to Mandrith. Mat logged in sometime later, and I made it a point to brag about the godly artefact in an as overbearingly cocky a tone as possible, which was really just my petty way of getting back at him for all the occasions he teased me by flaunting his Abyssal Demon head drops.



Although none of my other drops can match the scale of a Zaros Statuette in terms of price, the frequency of PvP spoils exceeding 400-500k is such that I can no longer attribute my valuable drops to sheer, one-off luck. Even when excluding the five million gp statuette, I estimate that my average earnings from the PvP trick have tripled since Tuesday's update.

I fear that Jagex, deciding that this money making method is too easy, would step in and drastically reduce the drop rate.


Stuff achieved today: Gained 100k Smithing exp

Posted by Timothy Gold at 11:19 PM |

22 June 2009

Safety In Numbers

Good news! Tiz has agreed to join DG and I in performing the PvP trick.

The three of us spent a large chunk of the day Smithing cannonballs at Port Phasmatys to gather EP. I doubt either of them would leap to my rescue if I were to get attacked since they're mostly unarmed, but our numbers should deter any potential Pkers from pulling off anything funny.



We haven't encountered any trouble yet, but all the PvP servers have been significantly more crowded since last Tuesday's update. And though the port remains - both literally and metaphorically - a ghost town, we've also been seeing more visitors lately. I've tried killing the unarmed ones, but even a DDS and Rune Defender combo isn't strong enough, which prompted me to put up a 30.5 million gp offer for a pair of Dragon Claws on the Grand Exchange.

If used correctly, they should eventually pay for themselves, although I am already getting a very substantial sum by killing DG. She dropped a Seren Statuette today, which I gratefully sold to Mandrith for a million coins.


A Seren Statuette and a Combat Bracelet, courtesy of DG's cadaver.


Stuff achieved today: Gained 125k Prayer exp

Posted by Timothy Gold at 9:51 PM |




Looking For Group
Onward to the Prayer Cape!