Welcome to the Fastest Runecrafting XP in Old School Runescape.
This article shows the fastest and most efficient Runecrafting methods, as well as some insight into recent updates that nerfed and changed some of the greatest methods. This article is not particularly meant to be used as a guide. It is more to showcase these methods and how good they are. It is really up to you if you want to try them out.
Nerfed Methods
Ourania Altar
Previously, one of the fastest Runecrafting training methods that existed was hiring Rune Runners at the Ourania Altar. The concept was that a runecrafter pays runners to go to the bank and back, and trade Pure Essence to the runecrafter that is standing at the altar. The XP rates can reach up to and over 160 000 XP per hour.
But, at the beginning of May, so about a month ago, an update was released including a statement and update regarding the Ourania Altar. Trading Pure Essence in the underground area of the altar is now impossible, bringing the maximum XP rates back to the originally polled values.
Arceuus Library
Another innovative Runecrafting method that used to exist was Woox’s Library method, and that capped out at 73 000 Runecrafting XP per hour plus 30 000 Hunter XP. The Runecrafting XP rate is much the same as efficiently making Lava Runes on your own. But, the added 30 000 Hunter XP made it better overall.
Two weeks after the Ourania Altar trading nerf, an update titled ‘Re-balancing Existing Content’ made it so that you cannot bank the books retrieved from the Arceuus House Library, lowering the overall XP rate of Woox’s method considerably.
Best Methods
Lava Runners
With these two changes, the best and most cost effective methods are the ones that existed before the methods I just mentioned grew popular. The fastest method is hiring Essence Runners, and creating Lava Runes.
The XP rates can cap out at a maximum of 230 000 XP per hour, with 4 very experienced runners. With 4 less experienced runners, you will get around 200 000 XP per hour. Going down the number of runners lowers your overall XP per hour by around 50 000 XP at maximum efficiency.
Hiring an experienced runner can be done through the runners’ discord that I have linked at the end of this article,
and due to the serious amount of focus that a runner needs, the prices of hiring a runner is very high.
The approximate GP/XP that you pay for any amount of runners is 130 GP/XP, and that can vary depending on the price and how efficient your runners are. On average, you will be paying your runners 7 000 000 – 9 000 000 per hour each, making the hourly cost max out at up to 36 000 000 per hour with 4 runners. Although, you will get 200 000 XP per hour.
The method consists of the runecrafter waiting at the Fire Altar, and the runners all will be using large and giant Runecrafting pouches.
Once timed correctly, you can craft both inventories of essence from each runner one after the other. Every 16 runecrafts, you will need another binding necklace as well.
So, this means that one of your runners will need to bring a new necklace every 2 runs. So, that is currently the fastest possible method in the game.
Astral Runes
A cheaper alternative is hiring Astral Rune runners, where each runner instead will cost 3 500 000 – 4 500 000, depending on their ability. They are a lot cheaper than Lava Rune runners, simply because the walk to the altar is a lot more AFK, and less click intensive.
Because the walk is so AFK, some players might choose to use their own Alt accounts doing the running to save some money.
Overall, with 4 runners, the XP rate is roughly 110 000 – 120 000 XP per hour, as long as all of them have giant and large pouches.
This makes the GP/XP average out to only 80 – 90 coins per XP, making the hourly cost up to 18 000 000 per hour, with 4 great runners.
The total cost of hiring runners all the way to level 99 Runecrafting with Astral Runes is 900 000 000. But, with Lava Runes, it is way more – 1.7 billion.
Those, of course, are extremely expensive for a skill that is meant to be profitable. So, a lot of players will choose to solo or use an Alt account, which I will show you now.
1 + 1 Lavas
The next method is 1 + 1 Lavas. Although this concept would work at most other Runecrafting Altars, but Lavas is the most efficient.
The 1 at the start means that the Runecrafter will also be running Essence at the bank.
Then, he also hires one runner to do the exact same thing as him. But, instead of Runecrafting the essence, they will trade it to the main runecrafter.
This will effectively halve the GP/XP compared to hiring only runners, since you get the same XP rate as 2 runners and standing at the altar. But, you will be replacing one of the runners. So, overall, you can get a max of 110 000 XP per hour, and this can also be done with an Alt account. But, since the banking process is a little trickier, you can expect lower XP rates around 100 000 per hour. If you do not pay for any runners, it makes the GP/XP around the same as crafting Lava Runes normally, which getting to 99 would cost only around 30 000 000.
Solo Lavas
For those players that do not have a lot of money and do not have any Alt accounts, the fastest Runecrafting method in the game is Solo Lava Runes.
With large and giant pouches, plus using Windows Mouse keys for banking and withdrawing essence from pouches, you can get up to 75 000 XP per hour along with 13 000 Magic XP per hour as well.
The GP/XP is far cheaper than any runner method – only 3 GP/XP. It is recommended to be using at least the medium and large pouch when you are making Lava Runes as the smaller pouches will impair your efficiency.
Runecrafting Methods Comparison
I would like to finish up this article by comparing all of the Runecrafting methods on the screen right now, and this includes making Soul Runes, which is the fastest AFK-ish solo Runecrafting method. It can reach XP rates of up to only 48 000 per hour, which is very low compared to a lot of these. The expense to 99 hiring runners is pretty ridiculous.
So, if you are going for the best XP rates while trying to save money, the best option is to go and do 1 + 1 Lava Runes with your own Alt accounts. Alternatively, you can go and try and hire your own Runecrafting runners, which probably would not be as experience as the ones you can find in the runners’ discord. Although, the price may be a lot cheaper.