Ranged equipment
Welcome to my ranged equipment guide! In this guide I will tell about all the notable ranged gear and weapons you can get in game. I will not go in too deep in how to get certain items, most of them, especially the custom ones, are on our custom items guides which you can find on this wiki. I expect most readers of this guide have at least little knowledge of gear from (old-school)RuneScape and know that from the regular leathers, soft leather is the worst and black dragonhide is the best, and Karil's is even better. I will not include items like this in my guide, but I will sometimes note them as a benchmark, and try to include as many notable items as possible. I will go through various sets, stand-alone pieces and weapons. Too much information? Scroll to the bottom of each section to find a TL;DR.
I will separate sets and independent items in this guide. Note that for most sets, you don't require a full set to have the bonuses shown, unless stated otherwise!
Sets
Karil's
Karil's require lvl 70 ranged and defence to wear and offer moderate ranged stats. It consists of a Coif, body and skirt. It's a nice entry-level set with mediocre stats. It can be obtained through the barrows minigame, through mystery boxes, or bought from other players as they are tradeable. Combined with it's weapon, Karil's crossbow (which fires it's own ammo only, Bolt rack) every hit has a chance of performing a special attack, lowering the target's agility by 20%.
Armadyl
Armadyl requires lvl 70 ranged and defence to wear and offer decent ranged stats. It consists of a helmet, chest and skirt. It is a better set than Karil's as it offers higher defence stats, but also attack stats. Armadyl can be used in many situations and is one of the most popular ranged sets. The items can be obtained as drops from Kree'Arra and it's minions in the Godwars dungeon, or by trading them with another player.
Armadyl (I)
Imbued Armadyl requires 70 ranged and defence to wear and offer better stats than regular Armadyl. It is one of the most popular ranged sets in game as it offers good stats and is not the hardest set to get. Imbued Armadyl can be created by using Armadyl imbue scrolls on the regular Armadyl pieces. These scrolls also drop off Kree'Arra. The items and the scroll are tradeable.
Kyudo
Kyudo is a RuneRealm custom added set that requires 70 ranged to wear. It is considered one of the strongest ranged sets in the game. It does not offer very high offensive and defensive stats, but having a full set equipped increases your ranged speed by 1 tick, or 2 ticks for slower weapons such as the Twisted Bow, Dark Bow, Crossbows, and Ballistas. This effect makes it incredibly strong and used in many situations where defence is less of a necessity. Since the Toxic blowpipe is already a very fast weapon, instead it's accurate stance is boosted to the same speed as rapid. It can be obtained by buying it from the blood money shop at home. It is tradeable.
Void
The Void set requires 42 defence, hitpoints, attack, strength, magic, and ranged, as well as 22 prayer to wear. While the set itself only gives a mediocre defence bonus, the full set gives a good invisible ranged bonus. It is considered almost as strong as regular Armadyl, and it certain situations, where less to no defence is required, combined with a high ranged lvl, void is even superior to Armadyl. The void set can be obtained through the Pest Control minigame or bought from the Donator shop or Boss point shop at home. Elite void robes are a bit better than regular void robes as they give a slightly higher ranged and prayer bonus, but they are not required for the full potential of its ranged attacks. They are not tradeable.
3rd age
3rd age ranged requires 45 defence and 65 ranged to equip. It stats sits between Karil's and regular Armadyl. While the set is not used a lot in PVM, it considered a big prestige to obtain. It is only obtainable as very rare drops from hard and elite clue scrolls, making it highly sought after items. The pieces are tradeable.
Slayer armour (I)
Slayer chestplate and chainskirt are two custom items that require no stats to wear and will buff your damage done when killing monsters on a slayer task. If you are wearing any slayer armour piece or a slayer helm you will receive a 15% melee damage and accuracy buff. If you wear 2 pieces you get a total of 20% damage and accuracy boost and if you wear 3 items you will get a 25% damage and accuracy boost. As said before, having only one piece equipped will always give you 15% damage and accuracy boost. You can imbue all slayer armour pieces with the slayer imbue scroll to make the buffs work for ranged and magic damage and accuracy, as well as increase the base ranged and magic accuracy stats. To be eligible to buy these pieces of armour, you need have unlocked at least 25 items in the collection log of the following bosses: Alchemical Hydra, Cerberus, Ferocious Basilisk, Kraken, Thermonuclear Smoke Devil, Skotizo, and all Superiors slayer monsters. When you've done this, you can buy each piece for 750 points each in the slayer points shop.
Morrigan's
Morrigan's is a custom added RuneRealm set and can provide the best ranged offensive stats in game. Morrigan's consists of a coif, leather body and chaps. Morrigan's comes in 6 different tiers. Base tier requires 60 defence to wear, tier 1 70, going up each tier, up to T4 and T5, which both require 99 defence. Base Morrigan's pieces drop from Crystal monsters, which can be found in the Revenants cave in the wilderness, the Super Donator zone, and the Super sponsor zone. You can create higher tiers by upgrading the base tiers. 3 base tiers creates a tier 1 piece. 3 tier 1 pieces creates a 2 tier piece. You need 3 skirts to create a higher tier skirt, you can't mix pieces. A total of 243 base tier armour pieces are required to create a Tier 5 piece, making it one of the most tedious items to get. All pieces are tradeable.
Tier requirement defence attack strength
Base 60 defence Worse than Red d'hide Worse than red d'hide
1 70 defence Worse than Red d'hide Equal to red d'hide +1 max hit
2 80 defence Worse than black d'hide Better than black d'hide +2 max hit
3 90 defence Equal to Armadyl (I) Equal to Armadyl (I) +3 max hit
4 99 defence Better than tier 3 Better than tier 3 +4 max hit
5 99 defence Best in game Best in game +5 max hit
Helms
Ranger hat
Ranger hat is a mediocre tier helm that requires 45 defence to wear. It offers stats a little worse than Karil's coif. It drops from Barrelchest and is not tradeable.
Archer helm
Archer helm is a mediocre tier helm that requires 45 defence to wear. It offers equal stats to Karil's coif. It can be obtained as a drop from Yaks or be bought from the ranged shop at home.
Blessed coifs
Blessed coifs require 70 ranged and 45 defence to wear. They are dragonhide coifs blessed by a certain god. They all have the same stats and requirements. It offers stats equal to Karil's coif. Blessed coifs are a little better because they offer no negative melee stats and plus 1 prayer bonus. Blessed coifs can be obtained through clue scrolls and the crystal key chest. They are tradeable.
Serpentine helm
Serpentine helm requires 75 defence to wear and is considered one of the best ranged helms. It's ranged attack bonus is not too special but offers very high defensive stats. It will protect from venom and poison, and can be charged with Zulrah's scales to give a 25% chance to venom the target as well, increasing your dps by a bit. It is considered one of the best options in most PVM situations. Serpentine helm can be made by using a chisel on a Serpentine visage, which is dropped from Zulrah. It is tradeable.
Robin hood hat
Robin hood hat requires 40 ranged to wear and is an okay hat to wear. It has no defence requirements which makes it a good option for pures, it also offers a higher ranged attack bonus than Karil's coif. It is obtainable through medium clue scrolls and it's also tradeable.
Chest
Ranger's tunic
Ranger's tunic requires 40 ranged to wear and is a mediocre chest to wear. It has no defence requirements which makes it a good option for pures. It offers a mediocre ranged attack bonus. It is obtainable through clue scrolls and it's also tradeable.
Boots
Ranger boots
Ranger boots require 40 ranged to wear and is the second to best ranged boots to wear. It has no defence requirements which makes it a good option for pures. It has decent ranged attack bonus, and is considered a rare, rather valuable item due to there being very little boots that offer ranged attack bonus. It can be obtained through clue scrolls and is also tradeable.
Pegasian boots
Pegasian boots require 75 defence and ranged to wear and are the best ranged boots to wear. They offer the best ranged attack bonus in the game. They can be obtained by using a Pegasian crystal on Ranger boots. The Pegasian crystal drops from Cerberus as a unique drop, but can also be bought from the Donator shop. Both boots and crystal are tradeable.
Gloves
Ranger gloves
Ranger gloves require 40 ranged to equip and are the second to best ranged gloves to wear. They offer very high ranged attack bonus but no defence bonus. It has no defence requirement, making it an excellent choice for pures. It can be obtained through clue scrolls and is tradeable.
Barrows gloves
Barrows gloves require 45 defence to equip and offer the best ranged stats in the game. They also give one of the best melee and magic stats, making it one of the best overall gloves in the game. They can be bought from certain custom shops at home or received as a rare drop from the Culinaromancer, which can be killed after completing the custom Recipe for Disaster quest. It is not tradeable
Necklaces
Necklace of anguish
Necklace of anguish requires 75 hitpoints to equip and is arguably the best ranged necklace to wear. It offers the highest ranged attack bonus in the game. It can be made by crafting it from a cut Zenyte. It is also sold by the boss points store and it is tradeable as well. An ornament kit can be added to the necklace, enhancing its looks. This does not affect its stats.
Rings
Commander Ring (I)
Commander ring requires 75 hitpoints to wear and offers the best hybrid stats in the game. It gives a large bonus to attack and defence stats as well as melee strength and prayer bonus. This is the best in slot ring for essentially all content, especially when using multiple combat styles. It can be created by combining one of each of the following rings: Berserker ring (I), Warrior ring (I), Seers ring (I), Archers ring (I), Treasonous ring (I), Tyrannical ring (I), Ring of the Gods (I), Ring of Suffering (I), and Brimstone ring. It can also be imbued by combining it with a Lucky ring (I) [obtained from completing Corporeal Beast collection log and adding the imbue scroll to a Lucky ring, which can be obtained from Superior slayer monsters]. When imbued the ring will offer the Lucky ring (I)'s additional +5% drop rate and a small chance to double monster drops, making it the undeniably best in slot ring which requires a lot of grinding. It is tradeable, but the imbued version is not.
Archers ring (I)
Archers ring (I) has no requirements to wear and offers the best ranged attack bonus in the game. Archers ring is dropped by the Dagannoth supreme boss, and can be imbued to double it's ranged attack bonus at the Fountain of rune in the wilderness, requiring you to pay 100k blood money, and there will be global announcement that you are there, so be wary for pkers! Archers ring and its imbued variant are tradeable.
Brimstone ring
Brimstone ring has no requirements to wear and offers the second best hybrid stats in the game. It gives a bonus in all attack, defence as well as melee strength. Especially in endgame PVM content, when you're switching between different combat forms, this ring is the second best choice for an overall boost. It can be created by combining an Hydra's eye, fang and heart, all dropping from the Alchemical Hydra. It is tradeable.
Cape
Prestige mastery cape
Prestige mastery cape requires you to have all your skills 99 and have prestiged them 10 times. It offers the best offensive stats, second to best defensive stats but no strength bonus. It does give a very high prayer bonus. The Prestige mastery capes has all perks from all of the skilling, trimmed skilling and mastery capes combined, such as Ava's effect, making it the all-time best choice. See link for all the perks. The cape is not tradeable. It can be bought from the mysterious old man at home.
Prestiger cape
Prestiger cape requires you to have all your skills 99 and have prestiged them at least once. It offers the second to best offensive stats, third best defensive stats but no strength. It offers a high prayer boost as well. The Prestiger cape has all perks from all of the skilling and trimmed skilling capes combined. Due to these perks, such as Ava's effect, it beats other max capes all-round. See link for these perks. The cape is not tradeable. It can be bought from the mysterious old man at home.
Enraged max cape
Enraged max cape requires you to max all of your skills at least once. The Enraged cape required 75 ranged to wear. It is a combination of a max cape and an Enraged cape. Enraged cape is a cape based on the infernal cape, but focusing on ranged, making it the best non-max ranged cape. It has the ammo saving effect of Ava's accumulator built in. It can be combined at the Prestige Guild or Sponsor zone, with a max cape, max cape hood, and enraged cape on the infernal max cape stand. The Enraged cape is currently available as a unique reward from beating the Inferno minigame using only ranged, available after completing the normal Inferno once. The max cape also offers all of the perks from the non-trimmed skill capes, see link for these perks. The Enraged (max) cape is not tradeable.
Assembler max cape
The Assembler max cape requires you to max all of your skills at least once. It offers almost the best stats. It can be combined at the prestiger guild or Super sponsor zone, with a max cape, max cape hood and ava's assembler. on the Assembler max cape stand. The max cape also offer all of the perks from the non-trimmed skill capes, see link for these perks. Ava's assembler is obtained by crafting it with Vorkath's head, obviously dropped by Vorkath, or can be bought from the boss point shop. A good alternative for this cape is accumulator max cape, for players who don't have access to the Sponsor zone or the Prestige guild. This cape stand can be found at home near Mac, and Ava's accumulator is sold by the ranged shop at home.
Shields
Odium ward
Odium Ward requires 60 defence to wear and offers good ranged attack and ranged defence stats. It offers no other defensive stats. It can be obtained by crafting it with 3 odium shards, obtained as a unique drop from various wilderness bosses. It is also sold by the PVM shop and it is tradeable.
Dragonfire ward
Dragonfire Ward requires 75 defence and 70 ranged to equip and offers the second to best stats for a ranged shield. It offers better ranged stats than Odium ward, as well as defensive stats in all melee variants. It also provides protection against dragonfire. When equipped, a special attack can be used every minute by right clicking it, doing some nice dragonfire damage to your target. It can be created by smithing a Skeletal visage on an anti-dragon shield. Skeletal visage is dropped by Vorkath, while an anti-dragon shield is sold at the general shop at home. It is tradeable.
Twisted buckler
Twisted bucker requires 75 defence and 75 ranged to wear and offers the absolute best stats for a ranged shield. It beats all other ranged shields in terms of stats. It can be obtained as a rare drop from Chambers of Xeric. It is also tradeable.
TL;DR armour
Helm Morrigan's Coif T5 > Morrigan's Coif T4 > Armadyl Helm (I) > Serpentine Helm
Chest: Morrigan's leatherbody T5 > Morrigan's leatherbody T4 > Armadyl chestplate (I) > Armadyl chestplate > Karil's leatherbody
Legs: Morrigan's leather chaps T5 > Morrigan's leather chaps T4 > Armadyl chainskirt (I) > Armadyl chainskirt > Karil's leatherskirt
Boots: Pegasian boots > Ranger boots > Snakeskin boots
Gloves: Barrows gloves > Ranger gloves
Cape: Prestige mastery cape > Prestiger cape > Enraged max cape > Assembler max cape > Accumulator max cape > Ava's assembler > Ava's accumulator
Necklace: Necklace of Anguish > Amulet of fury
Ring: Commander ring > Archers ring (I) > Brimstone ring > Archers ring
Shield (If using a one-handed weapon): Twisted buckler > Dragonfire ward > Odium ward > Book of law > Black d'hide shield
Weapons
Bows
Crystal bow
Crystal bow is a longbow requires 70 ranged to wear and does decent ranged damage. It shoots its own build-in arrows, so you don't have to bring your own. Crystal bow is a longbow, so it's attack speed is not very high, but it is accurate. Contrary to Runescape, the Crystal bow does not degrade here.
Dark bow
Dark bow is a longbow that requires 60 ranged to wear and does mediocre damage. It shoots 2 arrows at a time, but does this very slow, slower than other longbows. It is not a very good bow to train, but it fills a good niche in pvp, as it's special attack is very strong, making it a good KO weapon, especially for pures. Dragon arrows are the best arrow it can shoot. It drops from Dark beasts and is tradeable.
Craw's bow
Craw's bow is a shortbow that requires 60 ranged to wear. It has mediocre stats but does excellent damage in the wilderness. When in the wilderness, a 50% accuracy and damage boost is applied. Craw's bow has to be charged with Revenant ether, and it consumes ether upon shooting. You don't have to bring your own arrows. It is a unique drop from Revenants in the wilderness, and the uncharged version is tradeable.
Twisted bow
Twisted bow is a longbow that requires 75 ranged to wear. It is considered one of the strongest ranged weapons in the game. Although it only has decent ranged stats, it's unique feature is that it's damage is increased the higher your opponent's magic level or accuracy is, whichever is higher. This makes it incredibly strong in certain situations. Many people consider Twisted bow as the strongest ranged weapon in the game. Twisted bow shoots arrows up to dragon arrows. It drops from the Chambers of Xeric and is tradeable.
Crossbows
Dragon crossbow
Dragon crossbow requires 64 ranged to wear. It offers decent ranged stats and can fire the highest tier of bolts. It can be made with Dragon limbs which drop from Adamant and Rune dragons. It is tradeable.
Dragon hunter crossbow
Dragon hunter crossbow requires 65 ranged to wear. It offers similar stats to the Dragon crossbow. The main difference is that Dragon hunter crossbow has 30% increased accuracy and damage when fighting dragons, making it the best choice to use when fighting dragons, also cause you can equip an anti dragonfire shield when using it. Dragon hunter crossbow can shoot the highest tier of bolts. It is dropped in the Chambers of Xeric and from the event chest. It is tradeable.
Armadyl crossbow
Armadyl crossbow requires 70 ranged to wear. It is the strongest overall crossbow in the game. Unless fighting dragons, this crossbow is the best choice. It has very high ranged stats. It also has a special attack where it doubles your accuracy for that shot. Armadyl crossbow can shoot the highest tier of bolts. It is dropped by Commander Zil'yana in the Godwars dungeon and is tradeable.
Other
Toxic Blowpipe
The toxic blowpipe is a two-handed ranged weapon that requires 75 ranged is one of the strongest ranged weapons in the game. It is powerful mainly because of its speed. It fires darts very rapidly, and it is quite accurate as well. The blowpipe also has a chance to venom the target. The Toxic blowpipe requires Zulrah's scales as charges in order to be used. It fires all possible darts. It can be made by using a chisel on a Tanzanite fang, dropped by Zulrah. It is tradeable.
Light ballista
Light ballista is a two-handed ranged weapon that requires 65 ranged to equip. It is a very slow, but very accurate ranged weapon. It is too slow for fast ranged training, but pures tend to use it for its special attack. Ballistae fire javelins. Light ballista can be crafted by combining Ballista limbs and a Light frame, creating incomplete light ballista, then use a ballista spring and Monkey tail on it. All these items are dropped from Demonic gorillas. The Light ballista is tradeable.
Heavy ballista
Heavy ballista is a two-handed weapon that requires 75 ranged to equip. It is a very slow but very accurate ranged weapon. It offers one of the highest ranged damage and accuracy in the game. While it is too slow for training, it is an excellent weapon for Ko'ing in pvp, especially it's special attack. It fires javelins. Heavy ballista can be crafted by combining Ballista limbs and a Heavy frame, creating incomplete heavy ballista, then use a ballista spring and Monkey tail on it. All these items are dropped from Demonic gorillas. The Heavy ballista is tradeable.
TL;DR Weapons
Twisted bow > Toxic blowpipe > Armadyl crossbow > Dragon hunter crossbow > Dragon crossbow > Crystal bow > Dark bow > Heavy ballista > Dark bow > Light ballista
Side note: You can't really say whether a Twisted bow or Toxic blowpipe is the best ranged weapon in the game. In some situations Twisted bow is better, other situations the Blowpipe. In situations where a shield is necessary, Fighting dragons? Pick a dragon hunter weapon. Going into the wilderness? Pick Craw's bow. Fighting a mage based boss? Pick Twisted bow. Almost every weapon fills a niche, where Twisted bow, Toxic blowpipe and Armadyl crossbow offer the best overall dps regardless of their niche.