Barrows/Strategies

This page covers strategies for effectively playing the Barrows minigame.

Getting there

 * Drakan's medallion - This is the fastest means of travel to the Barrows, having a teleport directly to their graves.
 * Max Guild PvM portal - This option is just as fast as Drakan's medallion; however, it requires level 99 in every skill.
 * Games necklace - After gaining enough points from Temple Trekking, a games necklace can be used to teleport directly to Burgh de Rott, which is only a short walk from the Barrows.
 * From Canifis - The slowest method is walking through the swamps from Canifis; however, there are several shortcuts for this route:
 * A Swamp Boat in the middle of the swamp can be taken for free to land on the bridge to the Barrows.
 * In Search of the Myreque unlocks access to the area under the bar in Canifis, which provides a faster route to the swamp boat.



Ahrim
Ahrim the Blighted is the magic-using brother of the group. He uses fire spells, and with every attack, he has a 1/4 chance of draining your Strength level. Ahrim is easily taken down with ranged attacks; however higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Ahrim's tomb lies in the centre of the graveyard. Defeating Ahrim adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Dharok
Dharok the Wretched is a melee-using brother who attacks with his greataxe. He uses strong melee attacks that increase in power as his life points are lowered. He is weak to fire spells; however, any magic spell will work with at least tier-70 equipment. Higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Dharok's tomb is the north-east mound. Defeating Dharok adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Guthan
Guthan the Infested is a melee-using brother who attacks with his warspear. His attacks have a 1/4 chance of healing him for the damage he dealt. He is weak to air spells; however, any magic spell will work with at least tier-70 equipment. Higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Guthan's tomb is the south-east mound. Defeating Guthan adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Karil
Karil the Tainted is the ranged-using brother of the group. He attacks with his crossbow, and with every attack, there is a 1/4 chance that he will drain your Magic level. Karil is easily taken down with melee attacks; however higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Karil's tomb is the southernmost mound. Defeating Karil adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Torag
Torag the Corrupted is a melee-using brother who attacks with his hammer. His attacks have a 1/4 chance to drain 5% adrenaline. He is weak to water spells; however, any magic spell will work with at least tier-70 equipment. Higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Torag's tomb is the south-west mound. Defeating Torag adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Verac
Verac the Defiled is a melee-using brother who attacks with his flail. His attacks have a 1/4 chance to hit regardless of armour rating. He is weak to earth spells; however, any magic spell will work with at least tier-70 equipment. Higher-levelled players with stronger equipment can defeat him with any style.

Verac's tomb is the north-west mound. Defeating Verac adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Akrisae the Doomed
Akrisae the Doomed is a seventh wight added to the Barrows after completing Ritual of the Mahjarrat. He attacks with his war mace, using basic magic attacks, and unlike the other brothers, has no offensive set effect. Instead, Akrisae has the ability to react to a player's combat style and pray against it, completely negating damage. Akrisae is best taken down with ranged attacks and magic attacks; however, high-levelled players with better equipment can use any two styles.

Akrisae shares his tomb with Verac, residing in a secondary room in Verac's crypt in the north-west mound. Defeating Akrisae adds the following items as potential loot to the chest:

Playing
There are two parts to playing the Barrows minigame: defeating the brothers, and traversing the tunnels.

Killing the Brothers
For maximum loot potential, each brother must be killed before looting the chest. 5 of the brothers (or 6 after completing Ritual of the Mahjarrat) will be at rest in their tombs. The last brother (chosen randomly) will be inside the tunnels.

The brothers who are resting in their crypts are summoned by investigating their sarcophagus; when disturbed, they will immediately begin to attack. They may only be attacked by the player who summoned them. Leaving their crypt before the brother has died will despawn him; when resummoned, he will be completely healed.

The last brother's sarcophagus will lead to the tunnels below (covered in the next section) and he will be fought there.

Each brother defeated will be listed in the bottom left corner.

Barrows amulets
Barrows amulets are an item that may be obtained from looting Barrows: Rise of the Six chests. They are tradeable on the Grand Exchange, but have a low buying limit of 10. 30 untradeable ones are obtained after completing Missing, Presumed Death.

Barrows amulets may be used to skip up to 3 of the brothers' tombs per run. Amulets cannot be used on a sarcophagus while the brother inside is spawned for you. If you accidentally spawn a brother when attempting to use an amulet, leave the tomb and come back. Amulets may not be used on the sarcophagus of the brother who is inside the tunnels; using an amulet on his sarcophagus will instead produce the same message as investigating it. The brother inside the tunnels can be skipped by using an amulet on the final chest before opening it. If he spawns while you are traversing the tunnels, you can simply ignore him.

Below is a suggestion for choosing a priority for which brother to use the amulets on:
 * Which brother to skip?


 * 1) Akrisae - Requires 2 styles; however if you are only here for kill count, Akrisae may be ignored completely
 * 2) Dharok - Highest potential to do serious damage, especially to lower levels
 * 3) Karil - Strong against magic, which may be your most used style; helps negate switching styles
 * 4) Ahrim - Neutral against magic, which may be your most used style; helps negate switching styles
 * 5) Verac - Potential to deal damage, as he can ignore armour rating; however still not very dangerous
 * 6) Guthan - Potential for longer fights, but only for lower levels
 * 7) Torag - Effectively drains 1.2% adrenaline per attack, which is relatively negligible

Kill count
If you are here solely for kill count, you must defeat all 6 of the original brothers. Whether or not you have completed Ritual of the Mahjarrat, Akrisae can be completely ignored. Using Barrows amulets will not prevent you from receiving kill count. When killing the final brother, pause momentarily before looting the chest, to ensure the game will recognise him as defeated.

The tunnels
The last brother will lead to a tunnel below the crypts. Upon entering, you will land in a room with 4 doors, only one of which may be opened. In the centre of the crypt is a room with a chest. This room also has 4 pathways leading to it, but only 1 can be used. Your objective here is to traverse to the centre to loot the chest.

Monsters
Every time you pass through a door, a monster will spawn. Usually this is one of the type of monsters already in that room; however, there is also a chance that any of the undefeated brothers will spawn, including the brother whose tomb you used to enter the tunnels.

Monster kills are tracked separately from the barrows brother with a kill counter below the list of defeated brothers. Defeating monsters increases the chances of certain rare item loots, such as dragon helms and bolt racks, but your monster kill count has no effect on the rarity of unique Barrows equipment.

The puzzle
The door that leads to the chest has a lock that must be disarmed by solving a simple puzzle. There are four possible puzzles, each with 3 incorrect solutions and 1 correct solution. The solution to a puzzle is always the same. The interface that shows the puzzle may be interrupted by combat. Monsters will not be aggressive when you are standing right in front of the door, so kill anything that is attacking you before attempting the puzzle.

Solving the puzzle correctly will open the pathway to the centre room. Providing an incorrect solution will lock you out of that path and move the puzzle door to a different hallway.


 * Solutions

Looting
In the final room is the chest containing your loot. Investigating the chest will open it and spawn the brother whose tomb was used to enter the crypt. If that brother was defeated while traversing the tunnels, no brother will spawn, even if there are any left undefeated.

The chest may be looted at any time, even before the final brother is dead; however, doing so will prevent that brother's items from being added to the loot table. It will also not count as a chest loot for the beasts tab/soul reaper (unless the brother who was spawned is Akrisae).

Escape
After the chest has been looted, your screen will begin to shake as the tunnel collapses. You will begin to take damage at short intervals if you stay inside the tunnel. You have two options: teleport out, or traverse the maze again to the room you entered from and escape via the rope. Teleporting out has no penalty, and is the recommended method of escape unless you have no fast means of returning to the Barrows.

High-level
As the Brothers all have level 70 stats, players with high stats (90+) and equipment (tier 80+) can simply power through every brother. They do not need to be killed in any order, and barrows amulets may be used on any brother without much discretion.

Mid-level
For mid level players, it is more beneficial to focus on the brothers' weaknesses to ensure a smooth trip; however, with tier 70+ magic equipment, a single spell element should suffice. It is probably not necessary to bring armour switches, as higher-levelled hybrid armour should suffice with decent Defence levels (80+).

Depending on your exact strategy, you may or may not need prayer potions. When using prayer, always be sure to bring extra potions, as simply being inside the Barrows' tombs or crypt can drain your prayer points. Depending on your armour, you may need more or less food than the example shown.

Bringing combat boosting potions is highly recommended for mid-level players to keep accuracy and damage as high as possible.

Low-level
Players with low combat levels may have the hardest time creating an equipment set up to take on the Barrows brothers as they will likely have to focus on not only offense for attacking the brothers, but defence as well to survive their attacks.

Players with low combat stats are recommended to take armour switches that allow them to have a stronger defence rating against each brother. The most important slots are your body and legwear slots. To keep equipment switching to a minimum, it is recommended to only bring switches for those 2 slots, and to use hybrid/all equipment in every other slot.

When using magic, it may be to use either Entangle or Snare (79 and 50 Magic respectively) on the melee brothers to bind them in place. Doing so will allow you to attack from afar, minimising damage.

Magic-only method
Using barrows amulets, it is possible to use magic exclusively. By skipping Ahrim and Karil, you will only have to fight the melee brothers. This significantly reduces the amount of supplies required for a full run; for players who have trouble killing every brother in a single inventory, using only magic is recommended.

The only caveat with this method is the cost and supply of barrows amulets. They are currently on the Grand Exchange. Even with sufficient funds to purchase amulets, only 10 can be purchased every 4 hours. It is recommended to stock up on amulets ahead of time to avoid being stuck unable to skip a brother.

Other helpful items

 * / - Grants prayer experience for defeating the brothers
 * - Grants prayer experience by burying bones of killed monsters
 * / - Use with the bonecrusher/attuned ectoplasmator to regain prayer points from killed monsters/brothers
 * - Heals 40% of life points over time; this special can be used every 5 minutes and does not use any adrenaline

High-level
As the Brothers all have level 70 stats, players with high stats (90+) and equipment (tier 80+) can simply power through every brother. They do not need to be killed in any order, and barrows amulets may be used on any brother without much discretion.

Mid-level
Mid-level players cannot power through the brothers as quickly as high-level players can; however, they can still manage fairly well with proper strategies and levels.

Killing order
Killing order may make a difference to some players. When choosing an order, it is important to consider how each brother may affect the future fights. Below is just one example for kill order:


 * 1) Dharok - Highest potential to hit hard, fight him while you still have food
 * Starting with the melee brothers because of Karil's ability to drain your magic level
 * 1) Verac - Next highest potential to damage, as he can ignore armour rating
 * 2) Guthan - Potential for longer fights, fight him while you still have food
 * 3) Torag - Least dangerous melee brother, fight him with magic last
 * 4) Karil - Fight after the melee brothers as he can drain Magic, but fight before Ahrim, as Ahrim can drain your Strength
 * 5) Ahrim - Not a very dangerous fight; stat draining of Karil and Ahrim put this brother strategically last

Killing
With proper armour rating and prayers, it is unlikely that any brother except for Dharok will be able to do a significant amount of damage. Abilities such as Debilitate and Anticipation can be used on any brother to reduce damage taken for a period of time.

Offense-wise, it is recommended to only use basic and threshold abilities. For most players, these fight will not be long enough to warrant the use of damage boosting abilities such as Sunshine, and almost every damage-dealing ultimate (such as Omnipower) do not deal enough damage to warrant their use. Saving adrenaline near the end of the fight will also allow you to use Regenerate to recover lost life points.

Low-level
Low-level players will have to plan their fights strategically to minimise the use of food and supplies. If you have trouble fighting all brothers in a single inventory of supplies, you are allowed to restock at a bank without any penalty.

Killing order
Killing order is more important as a lower level. When choosing an order, it is important to consider how each brother may affect the future fights. Below is just one example for kill order:


 * 1) Dharok - Highest potential to hit hard, fight him while you still have food
 * Starting with the melee brothers because of Karil's ability to drain your magic level
 * 1) Verac - Next highest potential to damage, as he can ignore armour rating
 * 2) Guthan - Potential for longer fights, fight him while you still have food
 * 3) Torag - Least dangerous melee brother, fight him with magic last
 * 4) Karil - Fight after the melee brothers as he can drain Magic, but fight before Ahrim, as Ahrim can drain your Strength
 * 5) Ahrim - Not a very dangerous fight; stat draining of Karil and Ahrim put this brother strategically last


 * Magic only method
 * 1) Ahrim / Karil - Use an amulet on these brothers, order does not matter
 * 2) Dharok - Highest potential to hit hard, fight him while you still have food; recommended to use your final amulet on him
 * 3) Verac - Next highest potential to damage, as he can ignore armour rating
 * 4) Guthan - Potential for longer fights, fight him while you still have food
 * 5) Torag - Least dangerous melee brother, fight him with magic last

Killing
Lower-levelled players will want to focus on having the proper armour to defend against each brother's attacks. Abilities such as Debilitate and Anticipation can be used on any brother to reduce damage taken for a period of time.

Offense-wise, it is recommended to only use basic and threshold abilities. Even at a low level, these fight should not be long enough to warrant the use of damage boosting abilities such as Sunshine, and almost every damage-dealing ultimate (such as Omnipower) do not deal enough damage to warrant their use. Saving adrenaline near the end of the fight will also allow you to use Regenerate to recover lost life points.

Bringing nature runes to bind the melee-using brothers is also highly recommended. If done properly, you will not need to use any food as they will probably not even get the chance to attack. Simply cast the binding spell on the brother then step away and continue fighting. Be mindful of how long your bind lasts (entangle lasts 40 seconds; snare lasts 20), and be ready to cast the spell again when the effect ends.

Players using the magic only method will not need to worry about equipment switching. Players who opt to use multiple styles will need to make sure they are using the proper armour before beginning. Using mismatched equipment greatly reduces accuracy; double check your equipment before starting a fight.

Looting
Killing the regular monsters inside the crypt is not necessary to increase the chances of obtaining a unique piece of Barrows equipment. Only killing the brothers has any effect on this (fully explained here). That said, killcount does increase the chances of receiving rare, non-Barrows items; e.g., dragon helm. Having a ring of wealth equipped when you loot the chest will not affect Barrows or rare items, but it will increase your consumables and runes rewards.

All regular monsters inside the crypt are extremely weak compared to the brothers. Lower levels may need to take on monsters one at a time to increase their killcount. Players with at least level 70 stats and equipment should be able to increase their killcount quickly by using multitarget abilities. The maximum killcount required to reach the threshold for drop chances appears to be 8.

It is highly recommended for all players to simply teleport out of the tunnels. Only players with no means of returning to the Barrows quickly should consider running through the crypt again to escape. With the use of the Canifis lodestone and the swamp boat, almost every player should be able to return in a timely manner.