OSRS Nechryael Melee Guide: Best Strategies for Slayer Success

Nechryaels are a popular Slayer monster in Old School RuneScape (OSRS), requiring level 80 Slayer to kill. Found primarily in the Slayer Tower, with their stronger variant, Greater Nechryaels, in the Catacombs of Kourend, Iorwerth Dungeon, and Wilderness Slayer Cave, they’re a rewarding task for melee-focused players. Known for their rune boots drop and frequent seed and rune drops, Nechryaels can be both profitable and great for Slayer XP. This guide dives into the best melee strategies to tackle Nechryaels efficiently, covering gear, inventory, locations, and combat tips to maximize your success.

Melee is a fantastic choice for Nechryaels due to their relatively low defense and the ability to use demonbane weapons like Arclight, which deal bonus damage to demonic creatures. While many players opt for Magic to burst Greater Nechryaels in multi-combat areas, melee offers a cost-effective and high-damage alternative, especially in single-combat zones like the Slayer Tower. With the right setup, you can achieve solid XP rates and make decent profit from their drops.

Benefits of Melee Over Other Styles

• Cost Efficiency: Melee requires minimal consumables compared to Magic’s rune-heavy spells.
• High Damage Output: Demonbane weapons and high Strength gear shred through Nechryaels’ low defense.
• Simplicity: No need to manage spellbooks or complex rotations—just gear up and swing.

Best Locations for Meleeing Nechryaels

Choosing the right location is key to optimizing your Nechryael Slayer task. Each spot has its pros and cons, depending on your goals—whether it’s XP, profit, or avoiding crowds.

Slayer Tower (Regular Nechryaels)

The Slayer Tower in Morytania is the go-to spot for regular Nechryaels, located on the top floor in the northwest corner. This is a single-combat area, making it ideal for melee-focused players who want to avoid competition from Magic users.

• Pros: Less crowded than multi-combat areas, consistent spawns, and easy to access with a Slayer ring or Fairy Ring (code CKS).
• Cons: Lower XP per kill compared to Greater Nechryaels, and death spawns can be a minor nuisance.

Catacombs of Kourend (Greater Nechryaels)

Greater Nechryaels in the Catacombs of Kourend are stronger but offer better XP and loot. Found in two small multi-combat rooms near the entrance, they’re popular for Magic users, but melee is viable with the right approach.

• Pros: Higher XP and better drops (more alchables, fewer seeds), chance for Ancient Shards and Dark Totem pieces.
• Cons: Often crowded, and multi-combat means death spawns are harder to manage without safespotting.

Iorwerth Dungeon and Wilderness Slayer Cave

The Iorwerth Dungeon (post-Song of the Elves) and Wilderness Slayer Cave are less common but viable for Greater Nechryaels. Iorwerth is quieter and offers Crystal Shards, while the Wilderness Cave has higher risk but better drop rates.

• Iorwerth Pros: Less competition, single-combat for easier melee fights.
• Wilderness Cons: PKer risk—bring minimal gear and be ready to escape.

Recommended Gear and Inventory Setup

Your gear and inventory setup will make or break your Nechryael task. Prioritize Strength and Prayer bonuses to maximize damage and sustain trips, while accounting for death spawns that hit through Protect from Melee.

Best-in-Slot Melee Gear

Here’s a recommended setup for high-level players, with budget alternatives for those still grinding:

Slot	Best-in-Slot	Budget Alternative
Head	Slayer Helmet (i)	Black Mask (i)
Cape	Infernal Cape	Fire Cape
Neck	Amulet of Torture	Amulet of Fury
Body	Bandos Chestplate	Fighter Torso
Legs	Bandos Tassets	Obsidian Platelegs
Weapon	Arclight	Abyssal Whip
Shield	Avernic Defender	Dragon Defender
Gloves	Ferocious Gloves	Barrows Gloves
Boots	Primordial Boots	Dragon Boots
Ring	Berserker Ring (i)	Warrior Ring (i)

Why Arclight Shines

Arclight is the star of this setup, dealing 50% bonus damage to demonic creatures like Nechryaels. It’s obtained from the Demonbane weapon questline and uses charges (from Darklight and Black Demon kills), so keep it topped up. If you don’t have Arclight, a Blessed Saradomin Sword or Abyssal Whip with a crush attack style works well, as Nechryaels are weak to crush.

Inventory Setup

Your inventory should balance combat sustain with loot collection. Here’s a sample setup:

• 1-2 Super Combat Potions: Boosts Attack and Strength for faster kills.
• 4-6 Prayer Potions: Maintain Protect from Melee and Piety.
• 1-2 Cooked Karambwans: Combo-eat to counter death spawn damage.
• Seed Box: Stores the frequent seed drops to save space.
• Rune Pouch: For alching high-value drops like rune boots.
• Teleport (e.g., Slayer Ring or Xeric’s Talisman): Quick banking or escape.
• Remaining Slots: For loot like runes, seeds, and alchables.

Combat Strategies for Meleeing Nechryaels

Nechryaels hit hard with melee (up to 11 for regular, 21 for Greater) and summon up to two death spawns per fight, which deal typeless damage (max hit 2) that ignores Protect from Melee. Here’s how to handle them effectively.

Dealing with Death Spawns

Death spawns are annoying but manageable. They despawn if you move 7+ tiles away or if the parent Nechryael dies, so focus on these tactics:

• Ignore Low Damage: With high Defense (70+), their max hit of 2 is negligible—keep attacking the Nechryael.
• Quick Kills: Arclight’s high damage kills Nechryaels fast, reducing death spawn uptime.
• Heal Sparingly: Use Karambwans only if death spawns stack up and your HP dips below 50.

Safespotting in the Slayer Tower

In the Slayer Tower, you can safespot Nechryaels to avoid death spawns entirely. Near the southern part of their room, there’s a hole in the floor. Stand here, attack a Nechryael, and step back—they’ll get stuck, unable to hit you, and won’t summon spawns. This is slower but safer for lower-level players.

Maximizing XP and Profit

To boost your efficiency:

• Use Piety: The Prayer bonus significantly increases your damage output.
• Alch on the Spot: High-alch rune boots and other alchables to free inventory space.
• Prioritize Greater Nechryaels: If you can handle the Catacombs’ crowds, their 210 Slayer XP per kill (vs. 105 for regular) is worth it.
• Morytania Diary Bonus: Completing the Morytania Hard Diary gives 10% extra Slayer XP in the Slayer Tower.

Tips for Success and Common Mistakes to Avoid

Even with the best setup, small mistakes can cost you time or profit. Here are some final pointers to ensure a smooth Nechryael task.

Top Tips for Melee Success

• Check Your Arclight Charges: It’s useless without charges—top up before starting.
• Bank Frequently in Crowded Areas: In the Catacombs, bank at Kourend Castle to avoid losing loot to crashes.
• Use a Ring of Wealth: It removes “nothing” drops, slightly boosting your rare drop table chances.
• Monitor Prayer: Keep Protect from Melee active, as Nechryaels hit hard without it.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Overloading on Food: Death spawns deal low damage—2-3 Karambwans are enough for most trips.
• Ignoring the Nechryarch: The superior Nechryael (Nechryarch) spawns rarely but hits harder and summons chaotic death spawns. Run or safespot it if unprepared.
• Using Slash/Stab Weapons: Nechryaels are weakest to crush—stick to Arclight or crush-style weapons like the Abyssal Bludgeon.

With this melee guide, you’re ready to tackle Nechryaels like a pro. Whether you’re farming rune boots, seeds, or Slayer XP, the Slayer Tower and Catacombs offer great opportunities. Gear up with Arclight, pray melee, and watch those death spawns crumble as you rack up kills. Happy Slaying!