The short version
30-second read- Do Waterfall Quest before any combat training. It has no requirements and gives 13,750 Attack and 13,750 Strength XP.
- Start Slayer in your first week. It gates quests, gear and boss access at the same time, and it is the one skill you cannot buy your way through.
- Treat Recipe for Disaster as ten quests. Barrows gloves sit at the end of it, and they are the best generic glove slot for most of the mid-game.
- Raids need all three combat styles. A working melee, ranged and magic setup matters more than best-in-slot, because a missing style makes rooms unsolvable.
Overview
Most fresh accounts stall for the same reason: they train whatever is in front of them instead of the specific thing that unlocks the next stage. Progression in OSRS is gated by a fairly small number of items, quests and levels, and knowing which ones they are turns a vague grind into a checklist.
This plan is organised by gate rather than by level. Each stage exists because it unlocks the stage after it, and each has a clear finish line so you know when to move on.
It is written for a normal account. Ironmen follow the same gates in the same order, but each stage takes longer because you gather your own inputs.
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Stage 1 finish line | Quest XP claimed and a working Slayer task loop |
| Stage 2 finish line | Void or Bandos-tier melee and a fire cape or Barrows gloves |
| Stage 3 finish line | Consistent tier 3 boss trips and 70+ in the combat skills |
| Stage 4 finish line | Raid-ready: 80s combat stats, decent switches, and a team |
| The gate people underestimate | Slayer — it blocks quests, gear and bosses simultaneously |
| The gate people overestimate | Total level — nothing important checks it |
Stage 1: Get the Free Levels
The first stage is not training. It is collecting the levels that quests hand out, because doing them in the other order means paying for XP you were about to be given.
What to do
- Waterfall Quest first — 13,750 Attack and 13,750 Strength XP with no skill requirements at all
- Then Tree Gnome Village, Fight Arena and The Grand Tree for another 42,000 or so Attack XP between them
- Druidic Ritual to switch Herblore on, and Rune Mysteries to open the Runecraft chain
- Priest in Peril for Morytania, and Lost City for Zanaris and fairy rings
- Animal Magnetism as soon as you have 18 Slayer, for Ava's device
- Start a Slayer task loop and never stop it
Stage 2: Build the First Real Gear Set
Stage 2 is about getting to the point where content stops being gated by your equipment. Three items do most of the work.
| Target | Why it matters | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Barrows gloves | The best generic glove slot in the game for most of the mid-game | Recipe for Disaster, which is ten subquests |
| Fire cape | Best generic cape until you have an infernal, and a genuine skill milestone | Fight Caves — no requirement beyond ability |
| Void or Bandos-tier melee | The point where mid-game bosses become comfortable | Pest Control points, or GP and GWD access |
| A rune crossbow and a decent ranged setup | Half the game's bosses want ranged, not melee | 61 Ranged and modest GP |
| Ava's device and a slayer helmet | Ammunition and accuracy stop being a constraint | Animal Magnetism, and 55 Slayer plus the helm unlock |
Recipe for Disaster is the long one here. Treat it as a standing project across the whole stage rather than something to clear in one sitting, because its subquests have separate requirements scattered across the game.
Stage 3: Learn to Boss
This is the stage that separates accounts that reach raids from accounts that stall. It is not about levels — it is about becoming consistent at fights.
What to do
- Work up our boss difficulty tiers rather than jumping to whatever looks profitable
- Get the combat skills to 70+ and Prayer to at least 70 for Piety and Rigour-adjacent prayers
- Push Slayer, which by now is unlocking gear, quests and boss access at the same time
- Farm Combat Achievement tasks at bosses you already do — they are structured practice with a reward attached
- Learn one boss properly rather than five badly; the transferable skill is consistency
Stage 4: Raid Ready
Raids need three things: stats, switches and a team. Most accounts have the first long before the second, and neglect the third entirely.
| Requirement | Rough target | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Combat stats | 80+ in your main styles, 77 Prayer if possible | Raid mechanics assume you can both survive and contribute damage |
| Gear switches | A working melee, ranged and magic setup, even if none is best-in-slot | Every raid needs all three styles; missing one makes rooms unsolvable rather than slow |
| Consistency | Comfortable at tier 3 and 4 bosses | Raids punish avoidable damage far harder than solo bosses do |
| A team | A regular group or a learner community | Raid competence is mostly communication, which you cannot practise alone |
| Quest unlocks | Song of the Elves for the Gauntlet, Children of the Sun for the Colosseum | Several endgame entry points are quest-gated, not gear-gated |
Start with the raid whose failure mode is cheapest to learn from, do learner runs rather than trying to solve rooms from a guide, and expect the first several to be slow. That is normal and it is not a gear problem.
The Mistakes That Cost the Most Time
- Training combat before claiming quest XP, which is paying for levels you were about to be handed
- Leaving Slayer until something demands it, when it gates quests, gear and boss access simultaneously
- Chasing total level, which nothing important checks, instead of the specific gates above
- Buying endgame gear before being consistent at mid-game bosses
- Treating Recipe for Disaster as one quest instead of ten
- Skipping the tier 1 and 2 bosses because they look trivial, then finding tier 3 impossible
FAQ
What should I train first on a fresh account?
Nothing — do Waterfall Quest first. It has no requirements and hands you 13,750 XP in both Attack and Strength, which is most of the way to level 30 in each. Training those manually first is wasted effort.
How do I know when I'm ready for raids?
When you can do a full inventory at a moderate-difficulty boss without taking avoidable damage, and you have workable melee, ranged and magic setups. Stats matter less than those two things.
Does total level matter?
Almost nothing in the game checks total level. Specific skill levels, quests and items gate content. Chasing total is a common way to spend weeks without unlocking anything.
Is Slayer really that important?
Yes, more than any other single skill. It gates quest requirements, the slayer helmet, several boss access points and a large amount of gear, and its XP cannot be bought. Start it in stage 1.
Should I go for a fire cape early?
Yes, once you can handle the Fight Caves. It has no level requirement, it is the best generic cape until an infernal, and the practice it forces is exactly what stage 3 needs.
Can BILS handle a stage for me?
We can handle any part of it — skills, quests, capes or boss kills — hand-played, priced per gap rather than as a package. Send your current stats in live chat and we quote the specific stage.
Still stuck on a mechanic? Ask the team on our Discord, it is free.
Bottom Line
Progress by gate, not by level. Quest XP first, then Barrows gloves and a fire cape, then boss consistency, then raids — each stage exists to unlock the next one.
Start Slayer in your first week and never stop it. It is the only skill that gates quests, gear and boss access at the same time, and the only one you cannot buy your way through.
If a specific stage is the part you do not want to grind, we quote that stage against your current account rather than selling a generic package.
Enjoyed the guide?
Drop a like — it helps other Adventurers find the good stuff.
Community
Comments
Silence in the hall…
Be the first Adventurer to leave a mark.
Join the thread
Add a comment
Tips, drops, or “this carried my account” — keep it useful.
