Attack controls melee accuracy: it changes how often a successful hit is rolled against a target's defence, not the size of the hit itself.
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COMBAT • F2P + MEMBERS
Attack
Unlock accurate weapons first, then let Slayer and quests carry the long grind.
QUICK WIN
Waterfall Quest can skip much of the slow opening melee grind on eligible accounts.
UNDERSTANDING ATTACK
Learn the system before you optimise the loop.
Attack is a combat skill with several viable routes. The best method is not automatically the one with the largest experience-rate number: startup time, travel, real input prices, useful outputs, and the amount of attention you can sustain all belong in the decision.
This guide treats levels as unlocks rather than a single uninterrupted race to 99. Use the route below as a strong default, then switch when a quest, diary, equipment upgrade, or account goal makes another method more valuable to you.
Weapon requirements are the visible progression. Reaching a new metal tier or a strong quest weapon can matter more than several levels with no equipment unlock.
Accurate styles award Attack XP. Controlled styles divide experience among Attack, Strength, and Defence and are useful only when balanced levels are the goal.
Target defence matters. A theoretically strong weapon can underperform if its attack style is poor against the monster's weakness.
LEVEL-BY-LEVEL METHOD FINDER
Set your level. Get the methods that apply now.
This is the working core of the guide: source-backed training sections filtered by current level and account type, with full rates, quantities, requirements, setup notes, and method tables kept beside their revision.
ACCOUNT
6 Attack sections shown for Members at level 1.
Open a section for its full setup, evidence, and tables.LEVEL 1–35 • MembersLevels 1–35: Questing
2 detailed notes
Levels 1–35: Questing
As discussed in the above early questing section, completing quests is the fastest method to skip through the early levels. These quests will level a player to level 45 Attack, level 34 Strength, and level 31 Defence without any direct training.
- As discussed in the above early questing section, completing quests is the fastest method to skip through the early levels. These quests will level a player to level 45 Attack, level 34 Strength, and level 31 Defence without any direct training.
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersIntroduction
3 detailed notes
Introduction
This article provides information about effective ways to train Attack, Strength, Defence, and Hitpoints through melee combat.
This guide is organised into sections based on skill levels. For example, if the section header is Levels 20 to 30, you should begin training at the area with an Attack and Strength level of at least 20. Defence is also preferred to be at that level but is not always required. The solution to lower Defence is to bring more food or use food that heals more.
- This guide is organised into sections based on skill levels. For example, if the section header is Levels 20 to 30, you should begin training at the area with an Attack and Strength level of at least 20. Defence is also preferred to be at that level but is not always required. The solution to lower Defence is to bring more food or use food that heals more.
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersGeneral training notes
2 detailed notes
General training notes
Since experience rates are largely influenced by Strength level and strength bonus, it is optimal to maintain balanced melee stats until reaching the minimum requirements for the best-in-slot weapon and equipment. After this, prioritizing Strength until 99, followed by Attack and finally Defence, will result in the fastest route to max melee stats. For example, when training in the Nightmare Zone with Obsidian Armour, a Berserker Necklace, and the Toktz-Xil-Ak, Attack and Defence should remain at 60 until reaching 99 Strength for optimal experience gains.
At high levels, direct melee training is not the fastest way to train Defence. Using Ancient Magicks on defensive or chinchompas on Long fuse against Maniacal monkeys gives more Defense experience per hour than using melee.
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersEarly Questing
10 data rows
Early Questing
To start off, it's strongly recommended to complete quests that give a lot of melee experience. This allows players to skip over the much slower early levels of training. Many of these quests are quick, have little to no requirements, and have bosses that can be trivialized by safespotting with any magic spell (such as Fire Strike).
The recommended quests for early melee experience are listed in the table below. Completing all of them would give the player a total 61,775 Attack, 20,375 Strength, and 15,300 Defence experience. This will level a player to level 45 Attack, level 34 Strength, and level 31 Defence without any direct training.
It's recommended to complete the Witch's experiment quest first, as it gives a Hitpoints safety margin for the subsequent quests (especially Waterfall Quest).
- The recommended quests for early melee experience are listed in the table below. Completing all of them would give the player a total 61,775 Attack, 20,375 Strength, and 15,300 Defence experience. This will level a player to level 45 Attack, level 34 Strength, and level 31 Defence without any direct training.
| Quest | XP rewards | Requirements | Enemies to defeat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Witch's House | 6,325 | None | Witch's experiment (level 19, 30, 42, and 53) | The last two forms of the Witch's experiment can be safespotted with Magic. It's recommended to complete this quest first for a Hitpoints safety margin. |
| Waterfall Quest | 13,750 and 13,750 | None | None | Players need to withstand and evade attacks from level 86 Fire Giants and level 84 Moss Guardian. Level 17 is recommended so that the player cannot die in one hit from full hitpoints (this can be obtained by completing Witch's experiment). |
| Death Plateau | 3,000 | None | None | Also gives climbing boots, an early game boot with strength bonus. |
| Fight Arena | 12,175 | None | Khazard scorpion (level 44), Khazard ogre (level 63), Bouncer (level 137) | The bosses can be safespotted with Magic. |
| Tree Gnome Village | 11,450 | None | Khazard Warlord (level 112) | The Khazard Warlord can be safespotted, or flinched by walking in and out of his attack radius, with Maigc. |
| Vampyre Slayer | 4,825 | None | Count Draynor (level 34) | Count Draynor is trivial to defeat with some combat stats. |
| The Grand Tree | 18,400 | 25 | Black Demon (level 172) | Completion of Tree Gnome Village first is recommended, for access to spirit trees. The Black Demon can be safespotted with Magic. |
| Holy Grail | 15,300 | 20 , completion of Merlin's Crystal | Black Knight Titan (level 120) | The Black Knight Titan can be flinched by simply stepping out of his melee range, or (slowly) killed with any halberd. |
| Scorpion Catcher | 6,625 | 31 , completion of Alfred Grimhand's Barcrawl | None | Requires being able to run past level 172 black demons and level 64 poison spiders. |
| XP rewards total | 61,775 , 20,375 and 15,300 | — | — | — |
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersAdditional quests
7 data rows
Additional quests
There are additional intermediate quests that give significant combat experience, though they have higher requirements or less trivial bosses to defeat.
| Quest | XP rewards | Requirements | Enemies to defeat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mountain Daughter | 1,000 | 20 | The Kendal (level 70) | The Kendal can be safespotted. |
| Horror from the Deep | 4,662.5 | 35 , completion of Alfred Grimhand's Barcrawl | Dagannoth (level 100) and Dagannoth Mother (level 100) | Unlocks dagannoth as a Slayer task. Having 40 is strongly recommended for Protect from Missiles against the Dagannoth Mother's Ranged attacks. This quest is a prerequisite for the final fights of Recipe for Disaster. |
| Dragon Slayer I | 18,650 and 18,650 | 32 | Elvarg (level 83) and various other monsters | Unlocks all dragon tasks for Slayer. This quest is a prerequisite for Heroes' Quest. |
| The Fremennik Trials | 2,812 , 2,812 , 2,812 | 25 , 40 , 40 if crafting your own lyre | Draugen (level 69) and Koschei the deathless | Prerequisite for wearing Fremennik helmets. |
| The Fremennik Isles | Two lots of 10,000 Combat experience (choose between Strength, Attack, Defence or Hitpoints). | 40 , 20 , completion of The Fremennik Trials | Ice Troll King (level 122) | Awards the helm of neitiznot and the ability to wield it. |
| Olaf's Quest | 12,000 | 40 , 50 , completion of The Fremennik Trials | Ulfric (level 100) | Unlocks brine rats as a Slayer task. |
| Haunted Mine | 22,000 | 35 , completion of Priest in Peril | Treus Dayth (level 95) | Prerequisite for obtaining the Salve amulet, which provides combat bonuses against undead creatures. |
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersEquipment choice
1 detailed notes
Equipment choice
Items will be listed in order of how much they increase general melee damage per second. In nearly all cases, optimising for offensive stats is more effective than optimising for defensive or balanced stats, especially when fighting the low-offence, high-hp monsters on this list. In addition, optimising for Strength is usually better than optimising for accuracy except against high-Defence monsters.
Verify against Pay-to-play Melee training, revision 15284606. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
FOUR EDITORIAL STARTING POINTS
Shortlisted routes with executable instructions.
Use the finder above for the complete method library. These four routes are the fan-guide shortlist: each includes its setup, repeatable sequence, realistic rate band, and most important failure point.
01Front-loaded
1–40 • MEDIUM ATTENTION
Quest experience route
BEST FOR
New main accounts
ECONOMY
Usually profitable or neutral
LOCATION
Waterfall, Tree Gnome Village, and Fight Arena quest areas
REQUIREMENTS
Food, teleports, and safe pathing through dangerous quest sections
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Quest items, food, stamina or energy restoration, emergency teleport
EXECUTION
- Complete Waterfall Quest for 13,750 Attack and Strength XP.
- Complete Tree Gnome Village for 11,450 Attack XP.
- Complete Fight Arena for 12,175 Attack XP, then equip the best unlocked scimitar.
0215k–60k XP/hr
20–70 • LOW ATTENTION
Sand or ammonite crabs
BEST FOR
Low-attention training
ECONOMY
Low supply cost
LOCATION
Hosidius beaches or Fossil Island
REQUIREMENTS
Access to the chosen crab area; enough accuracy to maintain damage
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Best strength gear, potions, food, teleport; optional bonecrusher
EXECUTION
- Choose an unoccupied multi-crab tile and activate auto-retaliate.
- Use the accurate weapon style and drink potions on a repeatable timer.
- Run out of the aggression area and return roughly every ten minutes to reset aggression.
0335k–90k combat XP/hr
40–99 • MEDIUM ATTENTION
Slayer training
BEST FOR
Efficient account progression
ECONOMY
Often profitable later
LOCATION
Assigned monsters from the best suitable Slayer master
REQUIREMENTS
Task unlocks, Slayer equipment, transport, and an appropriate block list
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Task-specific protection, combat potion, prayer or food, teleport, alch runes
EXECUTION
- Check the task's weakness, required protective item, and fastest transport before leaving.
- Use the accurate style until the next planned weapon requirement, then reconsider Strength.
- Bank valuable supplies and use task bracelets only when their time value is clear.
0455k–110k XP/hr
60–99 • LOW ATTENTION
Nightmare Zone
BEST FOR
Predictable long sessions
ECONOMY
Small entry and potion cost
LOCATION
Yanille
REQUIREMENTS
Several suitable quest bosses; absorption/overload access or a sustainable normal setup
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Absorptions, overloads or super combats, rock cake/orb where appropriate
EXECUTION
- Build a boss list with low Defence and no disruptive mechanics.
- Use absorptions and manage Hitpoints according to the chosen strategy.
- Spend points on imbues and supplies instead of treating the session as experience only.
ATTACK CALCULATOR
Turn a level goal into hours and materials.
Select a method for its realistic experience-rate band. Add XP and GP per action when you want an exact resource estimate for your chosen item.
The level formula is exact. Time and budget are planning estimates: your equipment, banking, failures, attention, and live Grand Exchange prices determine the real result.
SETUP PROGRESSION
Upgrade the part that actually controls the rate.
| Stage | Setup | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Early | Best metal scimitar, amulet of strength, mixed quest gear | Weapon tier first; accuracy armour second. |
| Mid | Rune/dragon weapon, defender, fighter torso or strength body, dragon boots | Quest and defender unlocks beat small defence upgrades. |
| 70+ | Abyssal whip or specialised stab/slash weapon with strength gear | Match the weapon style to the target's defence. |
| Endgame | Content-specific raid/boss weapon and degradable armour where justified | Simulate the full setup before buying marginal pieces. |
THE ROUTE
From level 1 to cape
1
1–20
Quest or train on low-defence targets
Use the best scimitar you can equip and choose the accurate attack style.The opening objective is access, not perfect efficiency. Use quests and inexpensive equipment to compress levels where possible, and avoid over-investing in a method you will outgrow quickly.2
20–40
Upgrade through mithril and adamant
Sand crabs or other low-defence monsters make for relaxed, consistent experience.This is where the skill settles into a repeatable loop. Upgrade the parts of the setup that affect every action, measure a representative session, and keep travel or banking from becoming the hidden bottleneck.3
40–70
Move into Slayer
A rune scimitar, then stronger quest-unlocked weapons, turns two grinds into one.At the mid-game checkpoint, compare the fastest route with account progress, useful outputs, and attention. A slightly slower method can be more efficient overall when it also supplies quests, diaries, or another skill.4
70–99
Train where your account benefits
Slayer is efficient for account progress; Nightmare Zone is the lower-attention option.Late-game training is a sustainability problem. Recheck prices and unlocks, alternate high-focus sessions with calmer ones, and choose a route you can repeat without turning the cape into a chore.LOWER-INTENSITY ALTERNATIVE
Use Nightmare Zone after its quest requirements when you want predictable, low-attention sessions.
LEVEL REFERENCE
Milestones worth planning around
These are decision points, not instructions to stop. Boostable requirements and quest gates can change when an unlock becomes usable.
| Level | Unlock | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Mithril weapons | A quick early accuracy upgrade. |
| 30 | Adamant weapons | Useful while questing toward rune. |
| 40 | Rune weapons | The defining free-to-play melee tier. |
| 60 | Dragon weapon tier | Opens several strong special attacks after quests. |
| 65 | Warriors' Guild path | With 65 Strength, meets the 130 combined-level entry route. |
| 70–75 | Major endgame weapons | Whips, godswords, and specialised options begin here. |
QUEST ROUTING
Let account progress do part of the grind.
Quest experience is most valuable when it skips slow early methods or opens a training system you will keep using.
Waterfall Quest
A famous early melee skip with no combat requirement, but dangerous travel for a fresh account.
Fight Arena
Substantial early Attack experience and useful account progression.
Tree Gnome Village
Another early Attack reward and part of the route toward spirit-tree travel.
CHOOSE YOUR ACCOUNT
The route changes with the rules you play by.
Spend for the time you value
On a main account, train Attack to the requirement for the weapon you actually plan to use, then put more early levels into Strength for max hits. From mid-game onward, Slayer and bossing can supply most of the remaining experience without a dedicated 99 grind.
Optimise the whole supply chain
Iron accounts should route Attack around obtainable weapons, not GE prices. Quest weapons, defenders, dragon weapons, and Slayer drops become the real milestones; a level is only useful when the matching item can be acquired.
Know the edge of the map
Free-to-play accounts normally progress through scimitars to rune at level 40, then train on low-defence monsters. Members have far more quest skips, potion access, and weapon choices.
REVISION-PINNED REFERENCE
The detailed tables behind the recommendations.
Pulled in one batch from the Old School RuneScape Wiki on August 2, 2026. Every table keeps its source page and revision so you can verify requirements or spot a later game update.
Early Questing10 reference rows
| Quest | XP rewards | Requirements | Enemies to defeat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Witch's House | 6,325 | None | Witch's experiment (level 19, 30, 42, and 53) | The last two forms of the Witch's experiment can be safespotted with Magic. It's recommended to complete this quest first for a Hitpoints safety margin. |
| Waterfall Quest | 13,750 and 13,750 | None | None | Players need to withstand and evade attacks from level 86 Fire Giants and level 84 Moss Guardian. Level 17 is recommended so that the player cannot die in one hit from full hitpoints (this can be obtained by completing Witch's experiment). |
| Death Plateau | 3,000 | None | None | Also gives climbing boots, an early game boot with strength bonus. |
| Fight Arena | 12,175 | None | Khazard scorpion (level 44), Khazard ogre (level 63), Bouncer (level 137) | The bosses can be safespotted with Magic. |
| Tree Gnome Village | 11,450 | None | Khazard Warlord (level 112) | The Khazard Warlord can be safespotted, or flinched by walking in and out of his attack radius, with Maigc. |
| Vampyre Slayer | 4,825 | None | Count Draynor (level 34) | Count Draynor is trivial to defeat with some combat stats. |
| The Grand Tree | 18,400 | 25 | Black Demon (level 172) | Completion of Tree Gnome Village first is recommended, for access to spirit trees. The Black Demon can be safespotted with Magic. |
| Holy Grail | 15,300 | 20 , completion of Merlin's Crystal | Black Knight Titan (level 120) | The Black Knight Titan can be flinched by simply stepping out of his melee range, or (slowly) killed with any halberd. |
| Scorpion Catcher | 6,625 | 31 , completion of Alfred Grimhand's Barcrawl | None | Requires being able to run past level 172 black demons and level 64 poison spiders. |
| XP rewards total | 61,775 , 20,375 and 15,300 | — | — | — |
Additional quests7 reference rows
| Quest | XP rewards | Requirements | Enemies to defeat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mountain Daughter | 1,000 | 20 | The Kendal (level 70) | The Kendal can be safespotted. |
| Horror from the Deep | 4,662.5 | 35 , completion of Alfred Grimhand's Barcrawl | Dagannoth (level 100) and Dagannoth Mother (level 100) | Unlocks dagannoth as a Slayer task. Having 40 is strongly recommended for Protect from Missiles against the Dagannoth Mother's Ranged attacks. This quest is a prerequisite for the final fights of Recipe for Disaster. |
| Dragon Slayer I | 18,650 and 18,650 | 32 | Elvarg (level 83) and various other monsters | Unlocks all dragon tasks for Slayer. This quest is a prerequisite for Heroes' Quest. |
| The Fremennik Trials | 2,812 , 2,812 , 2,812 | 25 , 40 , 40 if crafting your own lyre | Draugen (level 69) and Koschei the deathless | Prerequisite for wearing Fremennik helmets. |
| The Fremennik Isles | Two lots of 10,000 Combat experience (choose between Strength, Attack, Defence or Hitpoints). | 40 , 20 , completion of The Fremennik Trials | Ice Troll King (level 122) | Awards the helm of neitiznot and the ability to wield it. |
| Olaf's Quest | 12,000 | 40 , 50 , completion of The Fremennik Trials | Ulfric (level 100) | Unlocks brine rats as a Slayer task. |
| Haunted Mine | 22,000 | 35 , completion of Priest in Peril | Treus Dayth (level 95) | Prerequisite for obtaining the Salve amulet, which provides combat bonuses against undead creatures. |
Levels 30–55: Gemstone Crab3 reference rows
| Monster name | Location(s) | Combat level | Hitpoints | Requirements | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemstone Crab | Tlati Rainforest | 160 | Infinite | Children of the Sun | — |
| Advantages | Disadvantages | — | — | — | — |
| Has infinite health with low Defence and Attack, requiring no food. Only burrows once every 10 minutes and can be reengaged with two clicks. Can be mined for gems by the 16 players who dealt the most damage. | Gives slightly less experience per hit compared to normal monsters (87.5% of the normal amount), but this is offset by no auto-retaliate downtime and no lost damage on overkill. | — | — | — | — |
Levels 55–75: Sulphur Naguas3 reference rows
| Monster name | Location(s) | Combat level | Hitpoints | Requirements | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sulphur Nagua | Neypotzli | 98 | 100 | Partial completion of Perilous Moons (includes 48 Slayer) 55 Attack for glacial temotli (or the cheaper sulphur blades) 43 Prayer for Protect from Melee | 70 Attack and 75 Strength for Dual Macuahuitl High Herblore 70 Prayer for Piety Full Blood Moon set |
| Advantages | Disadvantages | — | — | — | — |
| Very fast experience, with the Sulphur Nagua's negative flat armour combined with double hit weapons. Expect 75k xp/hr at 60 strength. With a full blood moon armour set and Piety prayer, expect up to 130k xp/hr at 75 strength. Prayer restor | Dual macuahuitl are required for the best rates. Though the glacial temotli and sulphur blades only perform marginally worse, roughly 10% less xp per hour. For ironman, the ideal weapons (glacial temotli and sulphur blades) are dropped from | — | — | — | — |
Levels 1 to 203 reference rows
| Monster name | Location(s) | Combat level | Hitpoints | Requirements | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | North-east of Lumbridge just east of River Lum, south of River Lum in Farmer Fred's chicken coop | 1 | 3 | None | — |
| Advantages | Disadvantages | — | — | — | — |
| No food required. Feathers are dropped in groups of 5-15 and are stackable, and can be sold for some profit. Bones will drop frequently, allowing the player to train their Prayer as well. | Only 3 HP (12xp) per kill. Once you start hitting 4's with your Strength and weapon, chickens are no longer a good melee training monster but they are still good for training Prayer and collecting feathers. Non-aggressive. | — | — | — | — |
Levels 20 to 403 reference rows
| Monster name | Location(s) | Combat level | Hitpoints | Requirements | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbarian | Barbarian Village | 9, 10, 15, 17 | 18, 24 | None | Bring your best armour (chainbody recommended) and weapons. |
| Advantages | Disadvantages | — | — | — | — |
| High HP, low defence. Near the Grand Exchange and Varrock west bank for easy banking. Occassionally drops runes and ammunition. They have access to the gem drop table and very rarely drop uncut gems. With combat levels ranging between 9 and | Sometimes crowded. | — | — | — | — |
Levels 40 to 603 reference rows
| Monster name | Location(s) | Combat level | Hitpoints | Requirements | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flesh Crawlers | Catacomb of Famine (level 2) of Stronghold of Security | 28, 35, 41 | 25 | Travelling through Vault of War (level 1) once. Decent combat. | Bring your best armour and weapons, and food. |
| Advantages | Disadvantages | — | — | — | — |
| They only deal 1 HP of damage but higher level Flesh Crawlers can hit quite accurately. Always aggressive towards players of all levels, making this a great afk training method at any level. They have access to the gem drop table and rarely | No bone drops. Higher level Flesh Crawlers will quickly damage players, even if it is just 1 HP per hit as they have a very fast attack speed of 1.8 seconds per attack. Not as profitable in free-to-play as other monsters around these levels | — | — | — | — |
SOURCE PAGES
- Pay-to-play Melee training ↗revision 15284606
- Free-to-play Melee training ↗revision 15271598
- Attack ↗revision 15263842
- Attack/Level up table ↗revision 15282794
Reference tables are adapted with attribution from the community-maintained OSRS Wiki. Editorial recommendations, method walkthroughs, warnings, and calculators are original fan-guide material.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Attack FAQ
Should Attack or Strength be higher?
For ordinary melee training, enough Attack for a good weapon followed by higher Strength is usually the efficient damage route. High-defence bosses can make additional Attack more valuable.
Does Attack increase max hit?
No. Strength level, strength bonus, prayers, potions, and the weapon determine max hit; Attack improves the chance that the hit lands.
KEEP RESEARCHING
Read the OSRS Wiki training reference ↗Game updates can change rates, requirements, and best methods. Check the community reference before a large purchase.
Ready to price the route?