Old School RuneScape Combat Terms
Two questions come up all the time for new Old School RuneScape (OSRS) players: which combat style beats which, and how do I stop poison from eating my hitpoints. The first is the combat triangle, a design rule that explains armour and weapon bonuses. The second is a status-effect system with its own timer, immunity potions and one famous helmet. Both are covered here with the numbers from the OSRS Wiki.
| Term | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Combat triangle | Melee beats Ranged, Ranged beats Magic, Magic beats Melee, as a rule of thumb |
| Poison | Hits every 18 seconds, shrinks by 1 every 5 hits |
| Venom | Stronger form of poison, needs anti-venom |
| Eagle Eye | Level 44 prayer, +15% Ranged level boost |
Combat triangle
The combat triangle is a design philosophy, not a rule that decides fights. According to the OSRS Wiki, melee tends to be effective against rangers, ranged against mages and magic against warriors. It shows up in armour bonuses, in who can attack from a distance, and in effects such as the twisted bow, whose damage increases against monsters with a high Magic level.
| Style | Strong against | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Melee (warriors) | Ranged | Armour deflects projectiles; melee has no consumable cost and generally higher DPS |
| Ranged (rangers) | Magic | Projectiles pierce robes; leather and dragonhide absorb spells |
| Magic (mages) | Melee | Spells are amplified by the metal armour warriors wear and ignore much melee armour |
Armour follows the same pattern. Melee armour is best in melee and ranged defence, ranged armour has high magic defence and middling melee and ranged defences, and magic armour offers a magic attack bonus and little other defence. The wiki also notes that any style can kill any other and that the triangle is only a rule of thumb for opponents of similar combat level.
- Several bosses use more than one style and colour their attacks to match: red for melee, green for ranged, blue for magic. Scurrius, The Hueycoatl and The Doom of Mokhaiotl follow this scheme, so you can pick the protection prayer by colour.
- Magic users do best at range: the wiki says mages are strong against warriors "as long as they keep their distance".
Weaknesses inside each style
Since Project Rebalance (29 May 2024), the triangle has a finer layer for Magic. Many monsters now have an elemental weakness to Air, Water, Earth or Fire spells from the standard spellbook (strike, bolt, blast, wave and surge). Each percentage point of weakness gives 1% extra magic damage and 1% extra magic accuracy. Jagex's rough rules: Air for flying and ghostly enemies, Water for fiery ones such as demons, TzHaar and chromatic dragons (Vorkath is an exception), Earth for tough-skinned ones such as drakes, wyrms, trolls and gargoyles, and Fire for icy enemies and bugs. You can see a monster's weakness with the Monster Examine or Monster Inspect spell.
If you are levelling combat skills, our OSRS combat skills leveling service covers the training.
Poison resistance
Poison is a status effect from poisonous weapons, smoke spells and many NPCs. In OSRS "poison resistance" means an immunity to being poisoned, from a potion, a prayer or equipment. Poison is a different status from venom.
How poison hurts:
- You take damage once every 30 game ticks (18 seconds).
- Starting damage comes from a "poison severity" value: the damage is the whole number part of (severity + 4) divided by 5. The damage goes down by 1 for every 5 hits, until severity reaches zero and the poison ends. A poison that starts at 6 deals 6 damage five times, then 5.
- Examples of starting damage: smoke spells start at 2 (Rush and Burst) or 4 (Blitz and Barrage); poisoned weapons at 2 to 6; NPCs from 1 to 20.
- Poison does not tick while an interface is open. It hits once after you close it.
What protects you:
| Remedy | Notes |
|---|---|
| Antipoison | 1.5 minutes of immunity per dose, free-to-play |
| Superantipoison | 6 minutes |
| Antidote+ | 9 minutes |
| Antidote++ | 12 minutes |
| Anti-venom and anti-venom+ | 12.3 and 15 minutes; also cure venom |
| Serpentine helm | Charged with Zulrah's scales; full immunity to poison and venom while worn, but does not cure what you already have |
Venom works the opposite way. It starts at one hit of 6 every 18 seconds and rises by 2 with every hit until it caps at 20 damage per hit, after a little over two minutes. Venom shows as a dark green hitsplat; poison shows as bright green. The wiki lists Zulrah and its snakelings, Vorkath, Araxxor and its araxytes, the acid blood of the Doom of Mokhaiotl, cursed baboons, manticores (with certain Mantimayhem modifiers) and spiders in the Ungael laboratory as the only monsters that can envenom you. Cooked moonlight antelope reduces venom to poison, and Guthix rest reduces poison damage per hit by 1.
Practical points:
- Cure and immunity are different. A potion that cures you also gives timed immunity, but a worn helm does not cure what you already carry.
- Not every monster can be poisoned or envenomed; the wiki keeps lists of immune bosses, so check before you bring weapon poison to a boss.
- You cannot be newly poisoned in free-to-play, but poison already on you keeps ticking if you hop to a free-to-play world.
Left-clicking the Hitpoints orb next to the minimap uses the strongest remedy you carry. The helm is the big shortcut for bosses that inflict venom (Zulrah, Vorkath, Araxxor): the wiki lists them among the few monsters that can envenom you, and players inflict venom with certain weapons. Our Zulrah boost is one of the fights where the helm matters.
Eagle Eye
Eagle Eye is a Prayer unlocked at level 44, free-to-play since its release on 22 August 2006. It raises your Ranged level by 15%, which increases both accuracy and ranged strength. It cannot be combined with other prayers that give a Magic, Ranged, Attack or Strength bonus, and it drains prayer points at one point every three seconds. See the dedicated page on Eagle Eye.
The ranged prayers members move on to:
| Prayer | Level | Effect | How to unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eagle Eye | 44 | +15% Ranged attack and strength | Free, by level |
| Deadeye | 62 | +18% Ranged attack and strength, +5% Defence | Deadeye prayer scroll from the Royal Titans (added 5 February 2025); replaces Eagle Eye |
| Rigour | 74 (and 70 Defence) | +20% Ranged attack, +23% Ranged strength, +25% Defence | Dexterous prayer scroll from the Chambers of Xeric |
Rigour drains twice as fast as Eagle Eye (one point every 1.5 seconds), so many players still use Eagle Eye or Deadeye for long trips where prayer points matter more than the last few percent of damage.
Related terms
FAQ
Does the combat triangle decide who wins in OSRS?
No. The OSRS Wiki calls it a rule of thumb for fights between similar levels. Any style can beat any other, and since May 2024 a monster's elemental weakness matters as much for mages as the triangle does.
How often does poison hit in OSRS?
Every 18 seconds (30 game ticks). The damage falls by 1 for every 5 hits.
Does the serpentine helm cure poison?
No. It gives full immunity to poison and venom while worn, but it does not cure poison or venom you already have.
Which potion cures venom?
Anti-venom and its stronger versions. Plain antipoison only protects against poison.
What level is Eagle Eye?
Prayer level 44. It boosts your Ranged level by 15%. Members can replace it with Deadeye (level 62) and later use Rigour (level 74).
Old School RuneScape services on Onlyfarms
- OSRS Combat Skills Leveling
- OSRS Gathering Skills Leveling
- OSRS Utility Skills Leveling
- OSRS Sol Heredit Kill
- OSRS Zulrah Boost (Ironman)
- OSRS Kalphite Queen Kill
