OSRS How to Make Air Runes A Beginners Guide
In Old School RuneScape (OSRS), crafting air runes is one of the most accessible ways to start your Runecrafting journey. Air runes are essential for casting combat and teleportation spells, making them a staple for mages. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about making air runes, from prerequisites to optimization tips, ensuring you can level up efficiently while saving time and resources. Whether you’re a free-to-play (F2P) player or a member, this blog post is tailored for beginners looking to master the basics of Runecrafting.
Air runes are one of the four elemental runes in OSRS, alongside water, earth, and fire. They’re used in nearly every missile spell and most teleportation spells in the standard spellbook, making them highly versatile. Crafting air runes is ideal for beginners due to the low skill requirements and easy access to materials. Plus, it’s a great way to earn Runecrafting experience early on, setting the foundation for more advanced rune crafting later.
Benefits of Crafting Air Runes
- Low Requirements: Only a Runecrafting level of 1 is needed, accessible to all players.
- Experience Gains: Each air rune crafted grants 5 Runecrafting XP, a solid start for leveling.
- Cost-Effective: Materials like rune essence are cheap, and air runes can be sold for profit.
- F2P Friendly: The process is identical for free-to-play and members, with no membership required.
Prerequisites for Crafting Air Runes
Before you can start crafting air runes, you’ll need to meet a few basic requirements and gather some items. Fortunately, the barrier to entry is minimal, making this an excellent activity for new players.
Quest Requirement
Completing the Rune Mysteries quest is highly recommended, though not strictly required for Runecrafting. This short, F2P quest unlocks access to the rune essence mine and rewards you with an air talisman, saving you the cost of buying one. It takes about 10-15 minutes to complete and is well worth the effort.
Required Items
- Rune Essence or Pure Essence: The core material for crafting runes. Rune essence is available to F2P players, while pure essence (for higher-level runes) requires a Mining level of 30 and membership.
- Air Talisman or Air Tiara: An air talisman allows entry to the Air Altar, while an air tiara (worn on the head) frees up an inventory slot. You get a free air talisman from Rune Mysteries.
- Pickaxe (Optional): Needed if you plan to mine your own rune essence instead of purchasing it.
Where to Get Materials
Rune essence can be obtained in two main ways:
- Mining: Speak to NPCs like Aubury in Varrock, Wizard Sedridor in the Wizards’ Tower, or Brimstail in Gnome Stronghold (members only) to teleport to the rune essence mine. Use a pickaxe to mine essence from the rocks.
- Purchasing: Buy rune essence from the Grand Exchange for approximately 10-15 GP each. This is faster if you have some starting gold.
Air talismans can be obtained as a reward from Rune Mysteries, purchased from the Grand Exchange for around 100-200 GP, or dropped by monsters like goblins. Air tiaras are crafted at the Air Altar by combining an air talisman with a regular tiara (more on this later).
Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting Air Runes
Now that you have your materials, let’s dive into the process of making air runes. Follow these steps to craft efficiently and start leveling up your Runecrafting skill.
Step 1: Travel to the Air Altar
The Air Altar is located southwest of Falador, just south of the city’s southern gate and northwest of the first T-junction. To find it, right-click your air talisman and select the “Locate” option, which will point you in the right direction. Alternatively, if you’re wearing an air tiara, simply click “Enter” on the mysterious ruins to access the altar.
Step 2: Enter the Air Altar
At the mysterious ruins, use your air talisman on the ruins by right-clicking and selecting “Use talisman,” then click the ruins to teleport inside. If you’re wearing an air tiara, just click the ruins to enter. You’ll find yourself inside the Air Altar, where the magic happens.
Step 3: Craft Air Runes
Inside the altar, walk to the center and click on the altar to craft air runes. This will convert all rune essence in your inventory into air runes, granting 5 Runecrafting XP per essence. Note that noted essence won’t work, so ensure you have unnoted rune essence.
Step 4: Bank and Repeat
After crafting, exit the altar via the portal, which teleports you back outside. Run to the nearest bank—Falador East Bank is the closest—deposit your air runes, withdraw more rune essence, and return to the altar. Repeat this loop to continue leveling and stockpiling runes.
Optimizing Your Air Rune Crafting
To maximize your experience and rune output, consider these optimization tips. Runecrafting can be click-intensive, so efficiency is key to saving time and energy.
Craft an Air Tiara
Combining an air talisman with a regular tiara at the Air Altar creates an air tiara, which you can wear to free up an inventory slot. This allows you to carry 28 essence per trip instead of 27, increasing your output by about 3.7%. Crafting an air tiara also grants 25 Runecrafting XP, a nice bonus for beginners.
Reduce Weight for Faster Runs
Runecrafting involves a lot of running between the bank and altar, so lowering your weight helps maintain run energy:
- Boots of Lightness: Obtained during the Temple of Ikov quest, these reduce your weight by 4.5 kg.
- Graceful Outfit: If you’re a member, this outfit (purchased with Marks of Grace) boosts run energy regeneration.
Use Teleports for Faster Banking
For F2P players, Falador East Bank is the closest option, but members can optimize further:
- Skills Necklace: Teleport to the Cooking Guild, a short run from the Air Altar.
- War’s Retreat Teleport: If you’ve unlocked it, this is a quick way to bank and return.
Runecrafting Multiples
As your Runecrafting level increases, you’ll craft multiple air runes per essence, boosting efficiency. Here’s a table showing the levels and multipliers:
| Runecrafting Level | Air Runes per Essence |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |
| 11 | 2 |
| 22 | 3 |
| 33 | 4 |
| 44 | 5 |
At level 99, you can craft up to 10 air runes per essence, but this is a long-term goal for most players.
Tips and Tricks for Beginners
Here are additional tips to make your air rune crafting experience smoother and more rewarding:
Alternative Ways to Get Air Runes
If you’re low on essence or want a break from crafting, you can obtain air runes through other methods:
- Magic Tutor in Lumbridge: Speak to her to receive 30 free air and mind runes every 30 minutes, provided you have none in your inventory or bank.
- Monster Drops: Goblins and other low-level monsters often drop air runes.
- Purchasing: Buy air runes from Aubury’s Rune Shop in Varrock, the Port Sarim shop, or the Void Knight Outpost for 4-25 coins each, depending on stock.
Save Runes with a Staff of Air
Since air runes are used in so many spells, consider purchasing a Staff of Air from Zaff’s Superior Staffs! in Varrock or the Grand Exchange. It provides unlimited air runes when equipped, saving you from using your crafted runes for magic training.
Consider Combination Runes (Members Only)
At the Air Altar, members can craft combination runes like mist, dust, or smoke runes using pure essence, two talismans, and elemental runes. However, this has a 50% success rate unless you equip a binding necklace (100% success, 16 uses). This is more advanced but worth exploring as you progress.
Maximize Inventory with Pouches (Members Only)
Members can use Runecrafting pouches (small, medium, large, giant) to carry more essence per trip. These are obtained from the Abyss or as monster drops and significantly boost efficiency. At high levels, combining pouches with an Abyssal Titan familiar can allow up to 74 essence per trip.
Crafting air runes in OSRS is a straightforward yet rewarding activity for beginners. By following this guide, you’ll be well-equipped to start your Runecrafting journey, optimize your runs, and build a solid foundation for future rune crafting. Grab your air talisman, stock up on rune essence, and head to the Air Altar to start crafting today!