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== Barrows Guide ==
Under Construction
Barrows is a combat minigame released in May 2005, that involves fighting the six Barrow brothers. The Barrows brothers were powerful warriors of Saradomin who fought in the God Wars. Their powers were granted to them by a mysterious stranger whose identity is currently unknown. After being wounded and then dying in battle, their army built several mounds in their honour.
Minimum Requirements Currently, Priest in Peril is required in order to access Morytania.
Suggested Stats
- All Classes
- 43 Prayer (Recommend 60+)
- Melee
- 70 Attack
- 70 Strength
- 40 Defense
- Range
- 70 Ranged
- 40 Defense
- Mage
- Slayer Dart
- 50 Magic
- 55 Slayer
- Charged God Spells
- 80 Magic
How do I get there?
Barrows is located to the east of Mort 'ton, in Morytania. The fastest way to Mort 'ton is by using the Fairy Ring and running to Boaty (code is BKR). You can also use the cellar behind the Canifis pub if you have not completed the Lost City quest. You then make your way to the bridge suspended between the two trees. A little further down is Boaty, the boat. There is currently no departure fee, and you will be taken right next to the Barrows burial grounds. You can also run through the swamp, but this is not recommended due to the spoiling of food and an overall tedious route.
What should I bring?
- Spade (To dig into the grave mounds)
- Teleport Runes or Teleport Tablets (For a quick escape)
- Abyssal Whip OR Dragon Scimitar (Melee)
- Rune Armour OR Proselyte Armour (Melee)
- Magic Shortbow OR Rune Crossbow (Range)
- Broad Arrows OR Broad Bolts (Range)
- Black Dragonhide Armour (Range)
- Slayer Staff OR God Staff (Mage)
- Slayer Dart runes OR God Spell and Charge runes (Mage)
- Mystic Robes (Mage)
- Amulet of Glory (All Classes)
- Combat Bracelet (All Classes)
- Low-level players are encouraged to bring at least 3 Prayer Potions for every 1 Run.
- High-level players are encouraged to bring 12 Prayer Potions and complete 6-8 Runs.
- 1 Attack Potion (Melee) (Super Attack Always Recommended)
- 2 Strength Potions (Melee) (Super Strength Always Recommended)
- 2 Ranged Potions (Range)
- 1 Defense Potion (All Classes) (Super Defense Always Recommended)
- 4 Sharks
- Bunyip Familiar (Optional)
- You can make space for loot by dropping empty vials, but you shouldn't need more than 6 slots
How to play?
The brothers are located in the six different grave mounds spread over the complex. Digging on top of a grave mound will gain you access to the crypt of each respective Barrows brother. Entering one of these mounds and clicking on a tomb will disturb the rest of the brother inside. There they will engage you in combat. During the fight, your prayer will be DRAINED by the Curse of the Barrows Brothers. As you go through each of the grave mounds, one of the crypts will lead into the Tunnel, a simple maze where the last brother will be waiting. You must defeat ALL the brothers to claim the loot stored in the treasure room. The Tunnel doors will randomize after every successful run after leaving underground.
Combat
Each of the brothers has a certain combat style. You are recommended to pray the proper protection prayer, even if you have the combat advantage (Example: Ranged gear into enemy Magic attacks).
- Dharok the Wretched (Specializes in Melee, Recommend Protect Melee, Weak VS Magic.)
The most dangerous brother. He should not be engaged with low prayer! His damage scales with missing health, allowing him to hit 40s consistently and a max hit of 58.
- Guthan the Infested (Specializes in Melee, Recommend Protect Melee, Weak VS Magic.)
His Special Attack causes them to Heal HP equal to the Damage Dealt. Guthan is extremely weak to magic. Some mages prefer to wear melee armour against him, as the normal penalty is easily offset by Guthan's vulnerabilities to all types of spells.
- Karil the Tainted (Specializes in Range, Recommend Protect Missile, Weak VS Melee.)
His Special Attack lowers the player's Agility level by 20%. Underwhelming, but his attacks are fast and accurate. Mages dependent on Slayer Dart are advised to bring a Melee Weapon to deal with his high magic resistance.
- Torag the Corrupted (Specializes in Melee, Recommend Protect Melee, Weak VS Magic.)
Has a Special Attack that depletes run energy. His melee attacks can hit up to 22 but are inaccurate at best. Arguably the weakest of the six but boasts the highest defense.
- Verac the Defiled (Specializes in Melee, Recommend Protect Melee, Weak VS Ranged/Magic.)
Can hit through armour and protection prayers. Despite popular rumors, protect from melee is strongly recommended because it significantly lowers the max damage of Verac's attacks. Saving him for last is also an option if prayer is scarce.
- Ahrim the Blighted (Specializes in Magic, Recommend Protect Magic, Weak VS Melee/Ranged.)
Can hit extremely accurately and moderately fast with Fire Wave, but very weak to melee weapons. His Special Attack lowers your Strength stat and can affect you multiple times if the battle is prolonged.
Tunnels
After you have dispatched the first 5 of the barrows brothers, you must enter through the hidden tunnel. In the middle of these warrens, you will find the main treasure room. You must navigate the tunnels until you reach the door that allows you access to this room. Sometimes you can enter immediately, but other times you may need to solve a puzzle (They become easily memorizable after 30 runs).
An example of a puzzle.
Throughout the tunnels are various monsters you can fight for reward points. These only contribute to coins, runes and potions in your final reward. These monsters include…
- Crypt rats (level 43)
- Bloodworms (level 52)
- Crypt Spiders (level 56)
- Giant Crypt Rats (level 76)
- Skeletons (level 77)
- Giant Crypt Spiders (level 79)
You may encounter the single Barrows brother you left undefeated on the way through the tunnels. Usually, the final brother will attack when you open the chest. ALL Barrows brothers must be defeated in order to take the treasure. Once you have claimed your reward, you should exit the tunnels quickly since rubble will fall and damage the player. It is recommended to backtrack and perform another attempt, but it is not uncommon to bank after every run.
An unopened Barrows reward chest.
Tactics and Tips
Combat order There is an ongoing debate about which brother to deal with first. Usually this comes down to monitoring prayer and ultimately player preference. There is no standard recommended order, but we can rate the 6 in the order of “Worst to easiest to fight without prayer”…
Dharok is a popular first target due to his extreme damage output. Having a full pool of prayer allows the player to survive relatively comfortably.
Ahrim and his fire wave magics take the second spot; Even dragonhide can't stop the barrage of damage this brother inflicts.
Karil is the sharpshooter of the group; With his highly accurate twin-shot attacks, he secures the third spot.
Verac is the fourth on this list, and not because he's any weaker than the first 3. He easily hits 15s against protection prayer, but without it, he can lash out 24s consistently.
From here, both Guthan and Torag can be reasonably handled without prayers.
Some recommend taking on Verac last since his ability to pierce through divine protection makes prayer points less impactful.
Navigating the tunnels.
Rather than aimlessly wandering through the tunnels. A quick zoom out can allow you to see which of the four treasure room doors is the accessible one. Before entering any room, an experienced player can check to see if the doors ahead are locked or not. This takes practice, but we guarantee this to be the most reliable means for navigating the tunnel.
While in the tunnel, always pray Protect from Melee, as the creatures there all use melee. You will never find yourself in a situation where Ahrim or Karil get the jump you, as you will almost always be in combat with another foe. The entirety of the tunnel is single combat only, meaning the brothers can't fight you until you are out of combat with your current quarry.
You should always have prayers on, because if you turn them off, and the AUTHENTIC lag catches you off-guard, you may take severe, unexpected, and most of the time, unavoidable damage.
If you are trying to maximize runs, it is better to exit the way you came so that the minigame will reset and you can begin again immediately. This is highly recommended unless you have lost track of your path. Even some veteran players prefer to bank after every run.
Alternative Combat Strategies
At 35 magic, players have access to the Fire Bolt spell. This is a cheap, low-level alternative, especially if coupled with the Chaos gauntlets from the Family Crest quest. Slayer Dart is primarily recommended, but a low-level mage has the potential to push through a run or three.
God Spells, such as Flames of Zamorak and Saradomin Strike are recommended at 80 Magic and above. Complemented by the Charge spell, the God spells can easily overwhelm the brothers, dealing a max hit of 30 consistently, even against Karil or Ahrim. The rewards for Barrows can often refund blood runes that have been used up.
Higher level players with 60 prayer and above can complete the Barrows without using prayer potions, this can be done by quickly killing Dharok, Verac, and Karil (Assuming they are not in the Tunnel) and using 'Tanky' magics VS Guthan, Range VS Ahrim, and magic VS Torag. We strongly recommend players have a balanced array of stats ranging in the high 80s and 90s.
Ranged Tips
Here is an example of an inventory that a ranged user should bring along.
Here is a recommended, high-level, full Range build
- Do not rely on your Dragonhide to protect you from Ahrim: Show respect and pray Protect from Magic.
- Do not worry about Verac out-damaging you: Your Protect from Melee reduces his max damage by 9.
High Level Mage Hybrid
Here is an example of an inventory that a hybrid mage user should bring. Pure mage is only recommended while using Charged God Spells.
Here is a recommended, high-level, hybrid Mage build
- 60 Attack and 60 Strength with a Dragon Scimitar will also work.
- Mages will receive plenty of Mind, Death, and Blood runes during their runs.
Rewards
The key reason to do Barrows is the armour sets that the brothers provide. These have very high stats and beneficial set bonuses. Torag's and Guthan's armour sets are useful for God Wars Dungeon, allowing players to tank bosses such a General Graador. Verac's set allows players to fight enemies that utilize protection prayers, such as the Kalphite Queen or Tormented Demons. Karil's set is commonly used for perusing Jad and obtaining the Fire Cape. Ahrim's is a cut above all but the best mage gear and is coveted for many bosses, such as the Daggonoth Kings. It may take hundreds of runs to obtain all of them, or even just the ones you covet the most. You should also be aware that the armour will degrade and need repair.
There are also substantial rune rewards, as well as coins, potions, and Bolt Racks. You can expect a lot of Chaos Runes, plenty of Death Runes and a healthy amount of Blood Runes. Prayer potions will often appear, allowing players to renew their supplies and start another run immediately.
An example of a Barrows chest reward.
By Cythraur
