7 RuneScape: DragonWilds Tips You Need To Know Before You Play

RuneScape: Dragonwilds is a new survival game set in the RuneScape universe that blends classic elements of the long-running MMO franchise with some standard (and som unique) survival mechanics. It's been well-received in the days since it shadowdropped on PC, and Jagex looks to have another hit on its hands. Dragonwilds has been attracting both RuneScape veterans and brand-new players to the franchise. Regardless of what category of player you fall into, though, you might need some help during the beginning of your journey.

Dragonwilds is by no means an easy survival game, as the combat is challenging, base building requires some architectural expertise, and simply surviving can be a Herculean task at times. To make your life simpler on the dragon-infested island of Ashenfall, we've come up with seven beginner tips and tricks for you to take advantage of at any point in RuneScape: Dragonwilds.

Don't get distracted early on

While it seems like an obvious tip, the main questline in RuneScape: Dragonwilds doesn't really get pushed on you by the game or its characters. This makes it easy to get lost in the exploration of the map, setting up your base, and trying to find assorted and new materials that you need. Following the main story in Dragonwilds is the best way to explore during the early and middle parts of the game, however.

Every time you get assigned a new quest, you'll visit a part of the map you likely haven't seen before. This, in turn, gives you access to new resources, creatures, and enemies that allow you to upgrade your base and character. For example, as you're looking for Cathan in the main story, you'll eventually travel to a region called Fractured Plains, which has veins of Copper and Tin Ore. These ores allow you to craft Bronze Bars and Bronze gear, making your character much stronger and giving you a chance against stronger enemies in combat.

Overall, as long as you follow the main story in Dragonwilds, you should easily be able to keep up with what's happening at your base and with your character.

Pick up every resource

It's in a player's nature to want to loot every possible resource and item during the course of a survival game. However, at some point, an item seems so inconsequential that you don't even bother picking it up. You don't want to follow this course of action in RuneScape: Dragonwilds.

While it might not seem like it, all resources and items can be used to great effect in some way. Whether it's a rock or a small food item, you want to at least add it to your inventory once. Whenever you pick up a new item, you'll unlock a set of new crafting recipes that require that item. The game then tells you what crafting recipes you unlocked, and more often than not, the recipes are just what you need at that point in the game.

Generally, metals and rocks, such as Copper Ore or Sandstone, unlock recipes for structures you can build at your base, while herbs, fruits, or other foods unlock recipes for you to cook or brew.

Set up bases in different regions

Your starter base in RuneScape: Dragonwilds is going to get you through the first several hours of the game. However, after you go on more quests and start to really explore the map, you're not going to want to continually lug your entire inventory all the way back to your starter base. While you can use Lodestones to fast travel to different points on the map, you can also take things a step further and make a series of bases all across the different regions of Ashenfall.

This allows you to have dedicated Lodestone spots and extra storage so you don't have to keep adding chests to your original base. If you want to be even more efficient, you can set up different bases to perform specific functions. One base could be where you store all of your resources, while another is meant to be a showcase base that looks fancy and has a ton of different structures. Having multiple bases across the map just saves you time in the long run and offers you a way to stay organized.

Rely on your Bow

Combat in RuneScape: Dragonwilds can be especially challenging, especially when you start to reach regions sporting power levels 3 and greater. Most players will likely default to some kind of melee weapon for a majority of their combat engagements, as this makes use of the Attack skill, but that's often not the easiest way to handle enemies.

Instead, using a bow and arrows is usually the best way to deal damage and ensure you get hit as little as possible. With the bow, you can fire off shots one after the other and not waste a ton of stamina in the process. You don't even have to aim in that much, as the game allows you to rapidly fire shots with no accuracy loss. If you start shooting at enemies from a distance using your bow, chances are they won't be able to reach you by the time they're dead. Enemies also stagger a bit when they are shot with a bow, making them slower.

Melee weapons certainly are the best close range option in combat, but if you use your bow effectively, enemies won't be too much of an issue in Dragonwilds.

Build a base near water

One of the most common actions you take in the early game of RuneScape: Dragonwilds is going to a water source, collecting dirty water, and then bringing it back to a cooking station to boil into clean water. Your character's thirst is borderline unquenchable in Dragonwilds, as it seems like they need water every few minutes in order to survive.

To ensure you always have water to drink, build at least your starter base near a water source. This makes it much simpler to quickly collect and purify water by allowing you to boil it at your base in short order. While this won't fix your character's thirst issue, it will make it so you're not constantly worried about going to get water when you're out exploring.

Fully explore all Vaults

Vaults are RuneScape: Dragonwilds' version of dungeons. They are dedicated areas that you can work through to receive a prize at the end. Naturally, plenty of enemies line the way between you and that prize, and Vaults house enemies called Vault Guardians/Sentinels that can quickly deplete your HP with a series of powerful attacks.

As you make your way through a Vault, you'll come across forks in the path that lead you to different areas. Even though you might want to get out of the Vault as quickly as possible, it's highly encouraged to try and explore every inch of a Vault. Vaults have a ton of useful resources tucked away inside them, with the most important resource being a Vault Core. Vault Cores allow you to construct specific crafting stations and Lodestones, which you need for fast travel.

You'll also find Vault Shards and several chests inside every Vault, so fully exploring the different rooms and hallways inside these dungeons will always be worth your time.

Power up your Battlestaff

The last tip we have for you is to increase the power of your Battlestaff. The Battlestaff is a Magic ranged weapon in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, and it can be crafted fairly early on during your journey. The game doesn't provide any information on how the Battlestaff works, so many players simply dismiss it and opt for other weapons instead.

Battlestaves are powered by runes, and the rune you assign to your Battlestaff changes what type of attack it uses. By default, a Battlestaff uses a basic ranged attack that really doesn't harm enemies. However, if you head into your runes tab in the inventory, you can see that Air and Fire Runes have an orange icon on them. If you right-click on either the Air or Fire Runes, it will be marked with an orange square. This indicates that the rune you selected is currently powering your Battlestaff. In the future, additional runes should be able to power your Battlestaff, but for now, it's just Air and Fire Runes.

If you select Fire Runes, your Battlestaff can blow fire and hurl fireballs at enemies, which can set them ablaze. Air Runes make the Battlestaff shoot powerful gusts and can knock enemies back. Both attacks are quite strong and make the Battlestaff a strong ranged weapon in Dragonwilds.