Clue Scroll Hunting in Old School RuneScape A Comprehensive Guide

Clue Scroll Hunting in Old School RuneScape A Comprehensive Guide

Clue scroll hunting in Old School RuneScape (OSRS) is one of the most exciting and rewarding activities for players seeking adventure, puzzles, and rare loot. Known as Treasure Trails, clue scrolls send players on treasure hunts across Gielinor, solving riddles, completing challenges, and battling foes to earn unique rewards. Whether you’re a free-to-play (F2P) beginner or a seasoned member chasing 3rd Age gear, this guide covers everything you need to know about clue scroll hunting in OSRS, from getting started to maximizing efficiency.

Clue scrolls are items that initiate Treasure Trails, a series of tasks leading to a reward casket. They drop randomly from monsters, skilling activities, or minigames and come in six difficulty tiers: Beginner, Easy, Medium, Hard, Elite, and Master. Each tier varies in complexity, length, and reward potential, making clue hunting accessible to all players while offering high-stakes challenges for veterans.

Types of Clue Scrolls

  • Beginner: Available in F2P, 1-3 steps, drops from low-level monsters or skilling (e.g., clue bottles from fishing). Ideal for new players.
  • Easy: Members-only, 2-4 steps, obtained from low-level monsters like goblins or H.A.M. members. Rewards include black equipment.
  • Medium: 3-5 steps, involves coordinate clues and puzzles, dropped by mid-level monsters. Offers mithril armor and ranger boots.
  • Hard: 4-6 steps, includes Wilderness risks and combat with wizards. Drops rune items and 3rd Age gear.
  • Elite: 5-7 steps, high quest and skill requirements, with rare rewards like ornament kits.
  • Master: 5-8 steps, obtained by trading one of each lower-tier scroll to Watson or as a rare reward. Features the rarest rewards, like the Bloodhound pet.

Why Hunt Clue Scrolls?

Clue scrolls offer a break from grinding skills or bossing, blending exploration, problem-solving, and the thrill of potentially earning ultra-rare items. Rewards range from a few hundred coins to millions of gold worth of loot, such as 3rd Age equipment or gilded armor. Plus, completing clue milestones unlocks untradeable cosmetics like the Large Spade (500 easy clues) or Uri Transform emote (300 hard clues).

How to Obtain Clue Scrolls Efficiently

Guia bsica de Clue Scrolls OldSchool Runescape YouTube

Getting clue scrolls is the first step to embarking on Treasure Trails. Drops are random, but certain methods can boost your chances. Here’s how to farm them effectively across different tiers.

Beginner Clue Scrolls (F2P and P2P)

Beginner clues are perfect for F2P players or new accounts. They drop from low-level monsters or skilling activities.

  • Monsters: Kill goblins, cows, or chickens (1/128 drop rate). Avoid higher-level F2P monsters like Lesser Demons, which don’t drop beginner clues.
  • Skilling: Fish for clue bottles, mine for clue geodes, or chop trees for clue nests. Higher skill levels and better resources (e.g., Runite ore vs. Copper) increase drop chances.
  • Implings: Members can loot baby (1/50) or young implings (1/25) for clues, though this is costly.

Easy Clue Scrolls

Easy clues are members-only and offer decent rewards for minimal effort. Try these methods:

  • H.A.M. Members: Pickpocket in Lumbridge at a 1/50 drop rate. Wear H.A.M. robes to reduce the chance of being kicked out.
  • Thugs: Kill in Edgeville Dungeon (level 1 Wilderness) with an Imbued Ring of Wealth for a 1/64 drop rate.
  • Goblins: Farm in Lumbridge or Goblin Village (1/128 drop rate) for a low-effort option.

Medium, Hard, and Elite Clue Scrolls

Higher-tier clues require more effort but yield better rewards.

  • Medium: Loot eclectic implings (1/25 drop rate) with 50+ Hunter or kill guards in Falador (1/128).
  • Hard: Slayer monsters assigned by Nieve or Duradel (e.g., Hellhounds) have decent drop rates. Completing Hard Combat Achievements boosts drop chance by 5%.
  • Elite: High-level Slayer tasks or bossing (e.g., Cerberus) offer elite clues, though they’re rare.

Clue Juggling with the Drop Trick

To farm multiple clues, use the “drop trick.” Pick up or open a clue container, drop it on a unique square, and continue the activity to collect more. This works well for skilling (e.g., mining Crashed Stars) or killing monsters. Dropped clues persist across world hops, but despawn after 61 minutes (monsters) or 120 seconds (skilling).

Completing Clue Scrolls Tips and Strategies

Once you have a clue scroll, you’ll need to solve a series of steps, which may include anagrams, emote clues, coordinate clues, or puzzles. Here’s how to tackle them efficiently.

Essential Tools and Preparation

  • Teleport Items: Carry a Royal Seed Pod, Teleport Crystal, or Explorer’s Ring for quick travel. Fairy rings (after starting Fairy Tale II) are a must for higher tiers.
  • Hidey-Holes: Build STASH units near emote clue locations (requires Construction) to store required items, saving bank space.
  • Clue Solver: Use tools like RSClues or the OSRS Wiki’s Treasure Trails Guide for quick solutions to anagrams, cryptics, and coordinates.
  • Wilderness Gear: For hard/elite clues, bring a Wilderness Sword (web-cutting), food, and a clue box to protect your scroll if you die above level 20 Wilderness.

Types of Clue Steps

Clue Type Description Tiers
Anagram Scrambled NPC name (e.g., “od olpe” = poodle). Talk to the NPC. Medium, Hard, Elite
Emote Perform an emote while wearing specific gear at a location. All tiers
Coordinate Dig at a specific location using longitude/latitude. May involve combat. Medium, Hard, Elite
Cryptic Riddles directing you to a location or action (e.g., “Search the boxes in Lumbridge”). Medium, Hard, Elite
Puzzle Slider puzzles or puzzle boxes to unlock the next step. Hard, Elite

Handling Combat and Wilderness Risks

Hard and elite clues may involve fighting Zamorak or Saradomin wizards (coordinate clues) or a double agent (emote clues). In the Wilderness (above level 20), dying causes your clue to disappear unless protected by a clue box or kept on death. Tips:

  • Gear Up: Wear decent armor and bring food/potions for wizards.
  • Clue Box: Buy from the Grand Exchange to protect your clue in deep Wilderness.
  • Low-Level Wilderness: Unprotected clues stay on the ground for an hour if killed by a player or remain in inventory if killed by a monster.

Maximizing Clue Scroll Rewards

Rewards are the ultimate goal of clue hunting, and some strategies can improve your odds of getting valuable loot.

Best Reward Tiers and Items

  • Beginner: F2P items like black armor or willow shortbows (average ~5,000 gold).
  • Easy: Black equipment, wizard robes (g), god book pages (open caskets on Entrana for better odds).
  • Medium: Mithril armor, ranger boots, adamant boots (rare for ironmen).
  • Hard: Rune items, 3rd Age armor, gilded weapons (worth millions).
  • Elite/Master: 3rd Age druidic robes, Bloodhound pet, ornament kits (1/313k drop rate for 3rd Age).

Reward Optimization Tips

  • Entrana Trick: Open easy clue caskets on Entrana to exclude armor/weapon rolls, increasing god book page chances.
  • Stack Caskets: Complete multiple clues before opening caskets to save time, as caskets are stackable.
  • Mimic Boss: For elite/master clues, you may encounter the Mimic, a high-risk, high-reward boss offering a second roll on the reward table.

Advanced Clue Hunting Techniques

For dedicated clue hunters, these advanced strategies can streamline your Treasure Trails.

Clue Scroll Milestones

Completing set numbers of clues unlocks untradeable rewards:

  • Easy (500): Large Spade.
  • Medium (400): Wieldable Clue Scroll.
  • Hard (300): Uri Transform emote.

Lucky Implings and Master Clues

Lucky implings (level 89 Hunter) offer a roll on any clue tier’s drop table but are rare and untradeable. For master clues, combine one easy, medium, hard, and elite clue at Watson or aim for a 1/50 drop from easy clues. Master clues are tough but offer the best rewards.

Community and Resources

Join the r/2007scape Reddit community or OSRS forums for tips and discussions. Use the OSRS Wiki’s Treasure Trails Guide for detailed clue solutions and drop rates.

Clue scroll hunting in OSRS is a thrilling way to explore Gielinor, test your wits, and chase rare rewards. Start with beginner or easy clues to get the hang of it, then progress to higher tiers for a shot at game-changing loot. With the right strategies and tools, you’ll be a master clue hunter in no time. Happy hunting!