OSRS Commander Zilyana Solo Guide for Efficient Kills

Commander Zilyana, the Saradominist general in Old School RuneScape’s God Wars Dungeon, is a formidable yet rewarding boss to tackle solo. Known for dropping valuable items like the Armadyl Crossbow and Saradomin Hilt, she’s a popular target for players seeking profit and challenge. This guide provides a detailed, step-by-step approach to soloing Zilyana, optimized for efficiency and accessibility, whether you’re a seasoned PvMer or a first-timer. We’ll cover preparation, strategies, gear setups, and tips to maximize your kills per trip.

Soloing Zilyana offers several advantages. You keep all loot to yourself, avoiding splits with teammates, and the fight’s mechanics are straightforward once mastered. Her chamber’s large size suits solo ranged strategies, allowing you to kite her effectively. Plus, with the right setup, you can achieve 20+ kills per hour, making it a lucrative endeavor. This guide focuses on ranged combat, as it’s the most efficient and safest method for solo players.

Understanding Zilyana’s Mechanics

Zilyana has 60,000 life points and attacks with both melee and magic, striking every 1.2 seconds (attack speed 2). Her melee hits up to 1,800, and her magic attack, a multi-target lightning strike, deals up to 2,200 damage. She only uses magic when in melee range, so kiting—keeping her at a distance—is key. Her three bodyguards, Bree (ranged), Growler (magic), and Starlight (melee), each hit up to 16 and must be dealt with after Zilyana falls.

Preparation for the Fight

Before heading to the God Wars Dungeon, ensure you’re ready with the right stats, gear, and items. Proper preparation minimizes deaths and maximizes trip length.

Recommended Stats

To solo Zilyana efficiently, aim for the following combat stats:

• Ranged: 90+ (higher for faster kills)
• Defence: 80+ (to reduce minion damage)
• Prayer: 70+ (for Piety and Protect from Magic)
• Agility: 70 (required to access Saradomin’s Encampment, non-boostable)

Lower stats are viable but will slow kills and increase supply costs. Quests like Death Plateau and partial completion of Troll Stronghold (up to defeating Dad) are also required for dungeon access.

Gear Setup

Ranged gear is ideal due to Zilyana’s equal resistance to all combat styles and the safety of kiting. Below is a recommended setup, with budget and high-end options:

Slot	High-End Gear	Budget Gear
Head	Masori mask (f)	Armadyl helmet or Blessed d’hide coif
Cape	Ava’s assembler	Ava’s accumulator
Neck	Necklace of anguish	Amulet of fury
Body	Masori body (f)	Armadyl chestplate or Blessed d’hide
Legs	Masori chaps (f)	Armadyl chainskirt or Blessed d’hide chaps
Weapon	Twisted bow or Bow of faerdhinen	Rune crossbow with diamond bolts (e)
Shield	Elysian spirit shield	Odium ward or Blessed spirit shield
Hands	Zaryte vambraces	Barrows gloves
Feet	Pegasian boots	Blessed d’hide boots
Ring	Archers ring (i)	Ring of suffering (i)

Notes:

• Use ruby bolts (e) until Zilyana’s health is below 50%, then switch to diamond bolts (e) for crossbow setups.
• A toxic blowpipe with rune darts is recommended for minions to speed up kills.
• Wear a Saradomin item (e.g., blessed d’hide) and a Zamorak item (e.g., unholy book) to avoid aggression from NPCs in the dungeon.

Inventory Setup

Your inventory should balance combat supplies with utility items:

• 3-4 Ranging potions (to boost Ranged level)
• 6-8 Saradomin brews (for healing)
• 8-10 Super restores (to restore stats and prayer)
• 4-6 Stamina potions (essential for kiting)
• 1-2 Ecumenical keys (to skip kill count)
• Toxic blowpipe (for minions)
• Rune pouch (with High Alch and Bones to Peaches spells)
• Teleport (e.g., Trollheim teleport or house tab)
• Remaining slots: Monkfish or sharks for emergency healing

Ecumenical keys, obtainable from the Wilderness God Wars Dungeon, save time by bypassing the 40-kill count requirement. Always bring stamina potions, as running is critical to avoiding Zilyana’s melee attacks.

Getting to the God Wars Dungeon

Zilyana resides in the Saradomin Encampment of the God Wars Dungeon, north of Trollheim. Here’s how to reach her:

1. Trollheim Teleport: Requires 61 Magic and Eadgar’s Ruse. Teleport to Trollheim, then run north to the dungeon entrance.
2. First-Time Access: Bring three ropes—one for the dungeon entrance and two for Saradomin’s Encampment obstacles.
3. Agility Requirement: Level 70 Agility is needed to navigate the Encampment (cannot be boosted).
4. Kill Count: Kill 40 Saradomin-aligned NPCs (e.g., spiritual warriors) or use an ecumenical key to enter her chamber directly.

Once inside, head to the southern door of the Encampment to face Zilyana.

Solo Strategy for Commander Zilyana

The solo strategy revolves around kiting Zilyana around her large chamber to avoid her melee attacks, using Protect from Magic to mitigate her lightning strikes, and efficiently dispatching her bodyguards. Here’s a breakdown:

Entering the Chamber

Before entering, ensure Protect from Magic is active and your Ranged potion is sipped. Wait until Zilyana is far from the door (e.g., in the northwest corner) to maximize your initial distance. If you have an ecumenical key, use it to skip kill count; otherwise, clear 40 Saradomin NPCs first.

Kiting Zilyana

The core tactic is to run clockwise (or counterclockwise) around the room, stopping briefly to attack Zilyana while keeping her out of melee range. Follow these steps:

• Positioning: Start in the southeast corner. Move along the walls, corner to corner.
• Attack Rhythm: Stop halfway along each wall to fire one or two shots, then run to the next corner and repeat. With practice, you can fit in three shots per wall.
• Prayer: Keep Protect from Magic on at all times to negate her lightning attack. You’ll only take damage from Bree’s ranged attacks (up to 16).
• Stamina Management: Sip stamina potions whenever your run energy drops below 50%. High Agility (80+) reduces energy drain significantly.

For advanced players, use tile markers (available via RuneLite) to follow a 12-tile pattern that conserves energy and allows up to 12 attacks per lap without taking damage. Attack on specific tiles, walk others, and repeat. This method can eliminate stamina potion use at high Agility levels.

Dealing with Bodyguards

After Zilyana dies, focus on her bodyguards in this order to minimize damage:

1. Starlight (melee): Switch to your blowpipe and attack while staying out of melee range.
2. Bree (ranged): Continue with the blowpipe; her attacks are less threatening with high Ranged defence.
3. Growler (magic): Finish with the blowpipe, as his magic hits are mitigated by your gear.

A serpentine helm switch can envenom minions at the start of the fight, reducing their health over time and speeding up this phase.

Tips for Maximizing Efficiency

To get the most out of your Zilyana trips, consider these additional pointers:

Optimizing Kills Per Hour

• Practice Kiting: Smooth movement and attack timing can push your kills to 25-28 per hour with high-end gear like a Twisted Bow.
• Use RuneLite: Plugins like tile markers and NPC indicators help track Zilyana’s position and optimize your path.
• Minion Management: Tagging minions with venom early (via serpentine helm) cuts down post-Zilyana cleanup time.

Managing Supplies

• Conserve Brews: Only use Saradomin brews when below 50% health, as Bree’s damage is manageable with high Defence.
• High Alch Drops: Alch rune salvage or other high-value items to free inventory space.
• Bones to Peaches: Use this spell on dropped bones to extend trips with extra food.

Avoiding Common Mistakes

• Don’t Stop Moving: Standing still risks Zilyana reaching melee range, where her rapid attacks can kill quickly.
• Monitor Prayer: Running out of prayer points leaves you vulnerable to her magic attack.
• Check Run Energy: Forgetting stamina potions makes kiting impossible, leading to deaths.

With practice, soloing Commander Zilyana becomes a rhythmic and profitable activity. Her drops, averaging 212K per kill (24K without uniques), make the effort worthwhile, especially if you snag an Armadyl Crossbow (1/508 drop rate) or Saradomin Hilt. Equip yourself, master the kiting method, and enjoy the rewards of this iconic OSRS boss.