5 Answers2025-11-04 16:26:23
I get excited talking about this because the thieving grind in Old School has such distinct flavors depending on how sweaty or chill you want to be. If you want the raw fastest XP per hour and you have the skill to pull it off, 'Blackjacking' in Pollnivneach is the go-to. It unlocks around level 45 thieving and demands constant attention: you stun the bandits with a blackjack, wait for them to slump, then pickpocket while they’re out. When you nail the rhythm you can easily outpace almost every other method.
That said, it’s click-heavy and unforgiving if you miss timings. If you prefer something still very fast but slightly less punishing, 'Pyramid Plunder' is fantastic — it scales nicely as your level rises and gives good XP alongside some loot. For early levels, stalls and pickpocketing NPCs are simple and cheap, and master farmers/stalls remain great for bank-friendly training. Personally I mix methods: fast sessions with blackjacking when I’m focused, and PP when I want bursts of high XP without dying to misclicks. It keeps the grind enjoyable rather than brutal, which I prefer.
3 Answers2026-01-31 20:41:49
Counting coins while AFK-fishing sharks is my kind of low-effort grind, so I’ve played around with the numbers enough to give a sensible range. In 'Old School RuneScape' you need level 76 Fishing to use a harpoon for sharks, and how much you make per hour really comes down to two things: your catch rate and the current market price for raw sharks.
On catch rates: a chilled session (playing casually, switching tabs, fishing at Catherby or the Fishing Guild) usually nets me around 80–120 sharks per hour. If I’m actively click-intensive or using optimal spots with world-hopping to avoid competition, I’ve hit 130–180 per hour in short bursts. For profit you just multiply fish/hr by GE price per raw shark. So if raw sharks are 1,200 gp each, that’s roughly 96k–216k gp/hr depending on effort. If they’re 3,000 gp each, that becomes 240k–540k gp/hr. Those ranges account for real-world play variance and don’t factor in tiny costs like teleport runes or the rare market fees.
So bottom line: don’t expect a single magic number. Treat it as a sliding scale: low-effort (80–120/hr) vs high-effort (130–180/hr) multiplied by whatever the market’s doing. Personally I check the GE price, pick a comfortable spot, and set a target—if the math gives me over ~150k gp/hr for a chill session, I’m happy to AFK and farm toward that. It’s relaxing and pays the bills in-game, which is always nice.
8 Answers2025-11-04 23:00:30
Late-night grind sessions have taught me the value of true AFK-friendly spots in 'Old School RuneScape' — you want something that doesn't need constant clicking but still nets steady XP. My top pick for pure low-attention is stall stealing: silk and cake stalls in busy towns, bakery stalls, and market stalls let you hop, steal, walk to the bank, repeat. It’s gloriously brainless for long stretches, perfect for doing homework, watching a show, or falling asleep with audio on.
If you want a step up in XP without babysitting every click, Pyramid Plunder is the semi-AFK champ. You still need to pay attention to a few doors and traps, but most runs become repetitive enough that you can zone out. For a mixed GP+XP routine, pickpocketing certain NPCs (the ones that drop seeds or decent loot) is useful because it supplements your bank while you train. Bring teleport methods, a decent inventory setup, and some patience — nothing replaces a little practice for rhythm.
My final tip: rotate methods so you don’t burn out. Stalls for long, chill AFK sessions; Pyramid Plunder when you want better XP bursts; pickpocketing for GP/loot. I usually end my sessions satisfied rather than fried, which matters more than any theoretical XP/hr for me.
7 Answers2026-02-03 21:44:25
Crunching the numbers for 'Shooting Stars' in 'Old School RuneScape' always sparks a little spreadsheet in my head. If I had to put a practical, realistic range on profit per hour, I’d say roughly 300k to 1.2m gp/hr depending on how hard you push it and how cooperative the world distribution is. That gap sounds huge because the activity is massively variable: a quiet world where you can hop to fresh chunks and mine non-stop will lean toward the top end, while crowded worlds, slow travel, and low mining levels drag you down. A simple way I think about it is: estimate how many stars you can strip per hour (which varies wildly), multiply by your average net value per star (loot + exchange value minus supplies/time), and adjust for downtime like walking and banking.
Honestly, in one of my more obsessive phases I tracked a few sessions and saw patterns. If each star effectively nets you around 8–12k gp after all conversions (this is a ballpark — current prices and what you personally keep change it), and you manage 50–80 cleanable stars an hour with efficient hopping and decent gear, you’re in that 400k–900k gp/hr sweet spot. Push to get better at spotting fresh falls, use fast teleports and lightweight gear, and you can occasionally touch or exceed 1m gp/hr on a great spawn night. Conversely, if you're mining slowly, getting interrupted by other players, or spending chunks of time traveling between falls, you can easily be under 300k.
A few practical tweaks that helped me raise my hourly: increase mining level if you plan to grind for XP too (it improves throughput), bring the best pickaxe you can wield, learn efficient world-hopping routes, and keep a teleport handy to minimize walking. Also, check the Grand Exchange prices before you start so you know the value of star-loot at that moment — the market does change. I mostly play shooting stars as a relaxing hybrid of decent XP and decent gp; it’s not the most reliable moneymaker compared to some bosses or high-level skilling methods, but it’s one of my favorite low-pressure ways to make bank and feel productive at the same time.
5 Answers2025-11-04 18:58:22
For raw, sustained XP you can't ignore Pyramid Plunder — it pretty much eats thieving levels if you run it smart. The minigame rewards you for clearing rooms quickly and looting the golden chest when you're high enough to safely attempt the last room, so it's a top pick for grind sessions. Earlier levels still benefit from stalls and pickpocketing NPCs to bridge the gap: stalls are low-risk and cheap to chain, while pickpocket spots like city NPCs give steady experience and useful loot for money or supplies.
If I'm pacing a long session, I alternate between Master Farmers (for semi-AFK seed income and steady XP) and Pyramid Plunder runs. The change of pace keeps me from getting bored and helps with bank management — seeds sell or feed farming, and PP gives the fastest pure thieving XP once you know the rooms and timings. I love the rhythm of PP, even when I fail a few locks; it's a satisfying, high-skill way to climb to 99 and beyond, and it always feels worth it after a good streak.
5 Answers2025-11-04 06:26:20
Totally hooked on efficiency, I treat thieving like a scavenger hunt that fuels my whole ironman progression.
Early on I spam stalls and low-level pickpockets to build a baseline — baker's stalls, tea stalls, men and women around cities are great for getting your hands on coins and basic loot without much risk. I always pocket whatever seeds and herbs I can from master farmers once I can safely pickpocket them; those seeds are gold for an ironman because they feed Farming and Herblore without any trading. I balance XP and loot: if I need herbs, I grind farmers; if I need XP fast, I mix in better XP methods.
Mid-game I pivot to methods that give both fast XP and useful items. 'Pyramid Plunder' is a must when you can get decent success there — it’s click-dense but gives excellent XP and occasional unique drops that help with banked resources. I also learned blackjack timing to chain pickpockets without being stunned, which skyrockets my XP/hr and keeps supplies flowing. I always bring decent food and lock my inventory around essentials; being an ironman means every seed and gem saved matters. Feels satisfying turning thieving into a self-sustaining pipeline for my account.
5 Answers2025-11-04 15:43:49
My most reliable setup for cranking out thieving XP mixes items that either increase pickpocket/stall success or cut down on downtime. I usually wear the Graceful pieces whenever I'm moving between stalls — keeping run energy up with Graceful and a few stamina potions means I spend more time actually thieving instead of jogging back and forth. That alone raises my XP/hour because I don't have to stop and recharge.
I also stack thieving-specific bonuses: the Rogue's outfit for better loot from stalls and pickpockets, and an Ardougne cloak from diary rewards for smoother pickpocket runs around the city. I carry basic utilities in my inventory — food for the occasional stun, a few stamina/super energy potions, and teleport tabs so I can reset or bank quickly. If I'm doing pyramid plunder or other minigames I swap in the minigame gear that speeds up room clears. Overall, I focus on success-rate gear plus mobility items: more successful steals and less wasted time = higher XP, and that strategy has consistently felt the fastest for me.
4 Answers2025-11-06 12:47:13
I get a real kick out of the tidy, passive income bird houses provide in Old School—so here’s how I think about the numbers, with clear assumptions so it’s useful no matter what your goals are.
Bird houses on Fossil Island are mostly about letting stuff grow and coming back later to loot seeds and bird nests. A typical setup is six houses per run (some players use more/less if they juggle different spots), and each full cycle takes roughly 50 minutes to an hour including travel and checking. The value you pull per run swings a lot because seed prices fluctuate and nests can contain a mix of low- and high-value seeds. Conservatively, many players see something like 200k–400k gp per run, which translates to roughly 240k–480k gp per hour if you only manage one run per hour.
If you lean into it and time things tightly (minimize downtime between cycles, stack a couple of accounts, or run extra houses), you can push that into the upper ranges. I typically estimate realistic mid-tier rates around 500k–900k gp/hr depending on current seed market and whether you’re counting nests/sundries. Personally I treat bird houses like a relaxed, dependable GP stream—I don’t expect crazy spikes every minute, but it’s lovely pocket money while I do other skilling or watch a show.
4 Answers2026-01-31 02:11:59
I geek out over little efficiency tricks, and for thieving in 'Old School RuneScape' the guide's core idea is always the same: pick the fastest method you can consistently do without dying or wasting time. Early on I spam stalls and low-level pickpockets to get secure levels and cash—it's mindless, cheap, and keeps you moving. Once you hit the next bracket the guide suggests switching to a minigame or method that gives much higher XP/hr even if it's click-heavy.
For me that meant mixing things: do a bunch of stall runs to buy a teleport item and supplies, then rotate into the 'Pyramid Plunder' rooms for concentrated XP sessions, and when I wanted pure speed I practiced 'Blackjacking' because it’s brutal but rewards consistency. The real trick the guide pushes is swapping methods at the right breakpoints, bringing the right gear and teleports to cut downtime, and using quests or diaries that give thieving boosts when possible. I like to end sessions with a few easy pickpockets to top up cash — feels like a tidy, efficient loop.
8 Answers2026-07-28 05:16:08
If you're clearing the caves in 'Old School RuneScape' and wondering about the XP payoff, I can help break it down. Cave horrors give a flat 125 Slayer experience per kill (this is the base XP you receive when you land the final blow). That XP is applied to your Slayer skill specifically, and it doesn't change if you're wearing a Slayer helmet or similar gear — those items affect accuracy and damage, not the XP amount.
I usually track XP to judge whether a task is worth sticking with, and cave horrors sit in that middle-ground sweet spot: not insanely fast XP like some higher-level creatures, but consistent and reliable if you can chain kills quickly. If you're optimizing XP/hr, factor in travel time, inventory swaps, and whether you're using methods that speed up kills (like safe-spotting with ranged or using a cannon where it's allowed). Lamps, XP cards, or bonus XP events are separate and add on top of this base; the 125 XP remains the baseline per cave horror kill.
On a personal note, I enjoy cave horror tasks because they're steady and you can relax a bit while grinding — the XP per kill isn't huge, but the rhythm makes for a satisfying evening of slayer work.