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RuneScape: Dragonwilds 1.0 Best Builds Guide - Melee, Ranged, & Magic Progression
Posted on by cade-davie
Adventurers in Ashenfall have three different ways to approach combat: get up close with Melee, keep your distance with Ranged, or harness powerful runes with Magic. Each playstyle has its own weapons, armor, skills, and combat rhythm, giving players plenty of room to build a character to their specific combat preferences. Thanks to RuneScape: Dragonwilds reaching its 1.0 launch, there are now powerful new endgame options for all three combat styles. This RuneScape: Dragonwilds guide will tell you everything you need to know about the best Melee, Ranged, and Magic builds as of the 1.0 update.
Fortunately, RuneScape: Dragonwilds doesn't permanently lock you into a class. Instead, your combat style develops through the weapons you use and the corresponding skill you level. Players will want to switch between styles throughout their adventures to handle different situations and maximize combat options and overall prowess.
Here's a breakdown of what each school of combat is best at:
As one can guess, melee in RuneScape: Dragonwilds is all about controlling the fight from close range, and it focuses on the Attack skill (unlike RuneScape, melee is not divided into Strength and Attack in RuneScape: Dragonwilds; only Attack).
In melee, one-handed weapons such as swords, maces, and daggers can be paired with shields for additional defense, while parries create opportunities to counterattack. Or, you can use warhammers, greatswords, and greataxes for an even more powerful two-handed option. You'll lose a bit of defensive power, but you'll pack one hell of a wallop.
Ranged combat lets you decide where an encounter happens. Shortbows, longbows, and crossbows can damage enemies before they reach you, and with some specialized ammunition you can inflict poison, bleeding, or burning. This makes Ranged a natural fit for players who enjoy precision attacks and taking a more strategic approach with positioning. This is especially true with Weak-Point damage, which ranged players must consistently take advantage of by hitting weak points often to maximize efficacy. In fact, weak-point damage is so powerful that it's recommended to maintain your 3/3 ranged set bonus rather than dipping into magic gear for the Stamina Regen Delay reduction, as long as you can consistently hit weak points.
Magic turns combat into a combination of elemental attacks, mobility, utility, and crowd control. True, it relies on being farther from your foes, like Ranged combat, but instead of arrows, mages manage Rune Essence and crafted runes.
Update 1.0 also introduced Wands, giving Magic players a more mobile alternative to traditional, long-casting battlestaves.
RuneScape: Dragonwilds Best Builds Overview (1.0 Update)
Fortunately, RuneScape: Dragonwilds doesn't permanently lock you into a class. Instead, your combat style develops through the weapons you use and the corresponding skill you level. Players will want to switch between styles throughout their adventures to handle different situations and maximize combat options and overall prowess.
Here's a breakdown of what each school of combat is best at:
- Melee: Close-range combat built around blocking, parrying, and weapon combos.
- Ranged: Distance-focused combat built around bows, crossbows, precision, and specialized ammunition.
- Magic: Rune-powered combat featuring elemental damage, mobility, healing, and crowd control.
Best Melee Build in RuneScape: Dragonwilds 1.0
As one can guess, melee in RuneScape: Dragonwilds is all about controlling the fight from close range, and it focuses on the Attack skill (unlike RuneScape, melee is not divided into Strength and Attack in RuneScape: Dragonwilds; only Attack).
In melee, one-handed weapons such as swords, maces, and daggers can be paired with shields for additional defense, while parries create opportunities to counterattack. Or, you can use warhammers, greatswords, and greataxes for an even more powerful two-handed option. You'll lose a bit of defensive power, but you'll pack one hell of a wallop.
Best Melee Weapons
- Early Game - Skullsplitter: A strong early-game weapon that provides a reliable introduction to the Melee playstyle.
- Midgame - Thane's Authority: A two-handed great axe that can deal some serious damage and stagger. A great testing-ground weapon to get you familiar with the two-handed playstyle if you're after raw damage.
- Late Game - Zombie Axe: The Zombie Axe is one of the strongest weapons to invest in approaching endgame. Take advantage of Crush + Slash damage to remain effective against different enemy resistances, and upgrade with Ascension Cores as stronger tiers unlock.
- Endgame - Ascended Zombie Axe or Dragon Scimitar: We recommend an upgraded Zombie Axe as one of the strongest all-purpose melee weapons in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, even at endgame, but the PL 9 Dragon Scimitar is specifically a great option against Dragons.
Best Melee Armor
In RuneScape: Dragonwilds, unlike regular RuneScape, you'll often want to mix and match armor pieces from different backgrounds to keep different bonuses. Specifically, if you keep at least one magic armor piece, you can enjoy a -50% Stamina Regen Delay, which is one of the biggest limiters to your combat prowess and overall DPS output. With that in mind, despite being a melee-focused build in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, you'll most often want to maintain one magical armor piece along the way (though there are other alternatives like Stagger-focused builds using full melee armor). Based on how statting works across armor slots, the best option when wearing a hybrid set is a Magical Hat/headpiece while otherwise wearing your strongest plate armor pieces. This maximizes your defensive stats while retaining the critical stamina buff.Melee Build Progression
Early Game: Wear the strongest melee armor available as you progress toward your first significant dedicated armor sets. During this stage, prioritize defense over maintaining set bonuses. Midgame: Once you have access to worthwhile Magic armor, begin mixing one Magic headpiece with two Melee armor pieces to take advantage of -50% Stamina Regen Delay while retaining -33% Block Stamina Cost and +50% Crit after blocking. Keep the single magic piece in the head slot to maximize your stats. Late Game: Work toward Ancestral Hat, Rune Platebody, and Rune Platelegs as your hybrid setup. If you're in a fight where you're more focused on staggering foes, you can always swap to full Rune armor to get the +25% damage to Staggered targets. Endgame: Upgrade your melee armor pieces to Dragon Platebody and Dragon Platelegs after defeating Kuldra. For most combat, you'll then use Ancestral Hat and your Dragon pieces to maintain the powerful Stamina buff setup. If you're dedicated to blocking and staggering, you can always swap to your Dragon helmet to complete the set for extra Staggered damage.Best Ranged Build in RuneScape: Dragonwilds 1.0
Ranged combat lets you decide where an encounter happens. Shortbows, longbows, and crossbows can damage enemies before they reach you, and with some specialized ammunition you can inflict poison, bleeding, or burning. This makes Ranged a natural fit for players who enjoy precision attacks and taking a more strategic approach with positioning. This is especially true with Weak-Point damage, which ranged players must consistently take advantage of by hitting weak points often to maximize efficacy. In fact, weak-point damage is so powerful that it's recommended to maintain your 3/3 ranged set bonus rather than dipping into magic gear for the Stamina Regen Delay reduction, as long as you can consistently hit weak points.
Best Ranged Weapons
- Early Game - Oak Longbow: An excellent early-game choice that establishes the long-range playstyle without requiring advanced materials.
- Midgame - Dorgeshuun Crossbow or Blurite Crossbow: Both of these powerful crossbows are great choices from midgame on and are absolutely worth investing in. Both enjoy 25% faster reloads, but the Dorgeshuun Crossbow offers consistent damage you can rely on with Bone Bolts, while the Blurite Crossbow can take advantage of a wider variety of standard and enchanted bolts, letting you maximize your effects in an encounter for a higher overall ceiling.
- Late Game - Ascended Dorgeshuun/Blurite Crossbow, or Ascended Hunter Stagbow: In the late game, you can continue upgrading your preferred crossbow for sustained damage, or switch it up and invest in the Hunter Stagbow for a powerful long-ranged bursty alternative with 10% reduced draw time but slower attack speed overall. Some players even recommend carrying both the longbow and your preferred crossbow so you can swap based on what combat calls for.
- Endgame - Ascended Dorgeshuun/Blurite Crossbow, or Ascended Hunter Stagbow: Rather than replacing these weapons with higher-PL equipment from the raid, it is entirely viable to ascend them for their valuable weapon effects. The PL9 Dragon Crossbow is, however, a great specialized choice for fighting Dragons.
Best Ranged Armor
Unlike our Melee build, Ranged players will generally want to keep their full Ranged armor set bonuses rather than mixing in single pieces from other sets, as the full Ranged set offers +25% Weakpoint Damage. To that end, Hard Leather Armor provides an early dedicated Ranged option, while Wild Archer Armor continues that Ranged focus through the midgame. From there, work toward Red Dragonhide Armor, then upgrade to Black Dragonhide Armor in the endgame to enjoy these powerful set bonuses: 1/3 = +40% Stealth Speed, 2/3 = -33% Ranged Attack Stam Cost, 3/3 = +25% Weakpoint Damage.Ranged Build Progression
Early Game: Build a Fletching Bench and work toward the Oak Longbow while upgrading through the early Ranged armor sets. Focus on landing your Weakpoint hits whenever possible to get yourself comfortable with it, because you'll be doing it for a long time! Midgame: Obtain the Dorgeshuun Crossbow or Blurite Crossbow and maintain the relevant ammunition. Instead of planning out how to replace these weapons, shift your focus toward gathering Ascension Cores, as these will be two of the strongest ranged weapons for the rest of the game. While you can use either, you'll want to pick between them as they cover mostly the same use cases. You will, however, pair your chosen Crossbow with a Longbow later on. Late Game: Begin ascending your Dorgeshuun or Blurite Crossbow for sustained damage output while you work toward the Hunter Stagbow if you want options, as the Stagbow will be useful in situations where you want longer reach and burst damage. Upgrade through the higher-tier Ranged armor sets and be sure to maintain their full set bonuses. Endgame: Continue ascending your crossbow of choice and your Hunter Stagbow while completing your set of Black Dragonhide Armor. Use the crossbows for overall DPS and longer encounters, while swapping to the Ascended Hunter Stagbow for long-range or short encounters. You can also use the PL9 Dragon Crossbow against Dragons, but it isn't required.Best Magic Build in RuneScape: Dragonwilds 1.0
Magic turns combat into a combination of elemental attacks, mobility, utility, and crowd control. True, it relies on being farther from your foes, like Ranged combat, but instead of arrows, mages manage Rune Essence and crafted runes.
Update 1.0 also introduced Wands, giving Magic players a more mobile alternative to traditional, long-casting battlestaves.
Best Magic Weapons
- Early Game - Staff of Light: Available surprisingly early in the game, especially for how powerful it can eventually become, the Staff of Light is one of the best Magic weapons in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, making it great to invest in with continuous Ascension Core upgrades.
- Midgame - Necromancer Staff/Staff of Light: The Necromancer's Staff offers slightly higher Rune Damage output than the Staff of Light when upgraded to equivalent PLs, making it the standout choice if you're looking to maximize staff damage. The difference is slight, however, so you can easily keep ascending your Staff of Light if you prefer.
- Late Game - Ascended Necromancer Staff/Staff of Light: Even in the late game, you can continue ascending your preferred staff rather than replacing it with higher-tier options like Toktz-Mej-Tal. This is because their strong Rune Damage scaling allows both weapons to compete with all alternatives as they grow in PL.
- Endgame - Ascended Necromancer Staff/Staff of Light or Kuldra's Wrath (Wand): For a more traditional staff build, even at endgame you can continue using your Ascended Necromancer Staff or Staff of Light, as they remain among the strongest options to the very end. For players looking to switch things up with a wand-focused build, you can use the PL9 Kuldra's Wrath, taking advantage of its very high Rune Damage multiplier while enjoying the ability to cast while moving. This does, however, mean you won't have secondary attacks and combo finishers like your staff of choice.
Best Magic Armor
For a dedicated Magic build in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, you'll want to maintain a full set of Magic armor rather than mixing and matching armor types for different set bonuses. Wearing three Magic pieces gives you -50% Stamina Regen Delay, +17.5% Magic Attack Speed, and +15% Magical Crit Chance. These bonuses are strong enough that you won't want to deviate. For the early game, start with Wizard Armor before upgrading through the stronger sets as they become available. You'll eventually work toward Infinity Armor, then replace it with Ancestral Armor for 1.0 endgame content. Overall, a full Ancestral armor set is our recommended endgame Magic build, letting you combine PL8 stats and the Magic armor set bonuses.Magic Build Progression
Early Game: Establish your Rune Altar and build up a reliable supply of runes while working toward the Staff of Light and your first Magic armor set. Get comfortable with the Staff of Light, as it's a viable option for the rest of the game when ascended! Midgame: Obtain the Necromancer Staff if you want to maximize raw Rune damage, or continue upgrading your trusty Staff of Light if you prefer it. From here on, Ascension Cores will be your main pathway to getting stronger, while upgrading your Magic armor sets along the way as your power grows. Late Game: Continue ascending your staff of choice (Necromancer Staff or Staff of Light), rather than jumping to replace it with flashy higher-tier alternatives. Meanwhile, work toward Infinity Armor. If you want to mix up your combat style, feel free to experiment with Wand builds, which let you stay mobile. Endgame: Fully ascend your trusty Necromancer Staff or Staff of Light, and complete a full set of Ancestral Armor. If you prefer Wand builds, you can replace your staff with the Kuldra's Wrath wand, which is especially strong against Dragons thanks to its special effect. Just keep in mind the wand build will mean losing your extra Staff secondary and combo attacks.responseTitle
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