Evolution of Combat

The Combat update is a scheduled complete rework of how RuneScape combat works. This update will be set up as a beta for users who want to test it out early, signups for which will be open from 1 June 2012. The actual update is estimated to take place in September, but this is subject to change. Any player who has been a member for 12 straight months will get access to the beta once it begins. Jagex will also select 50,000 other members who signed up and didn't get access instantly.

Video Previews
On 1 June 2012, Jagex posted a youtube video detailing the June Behind the Scenes. This video included a mention of the combat update, starting at 01:15.

In the video, it could be seen that there are two distinctive types of melee hitsplats; it appears that those with red backgrounds are damage dealt with abilities, and those with transparent backgrounds are normal hits. A new type of hitsplat is also shown.

The combatants are shown to wield a rune 2h sword, dragon scimitar, what seems to be a plain longbow, bronze crossbow and staff differently than how they are wielded now. The "punchbag" used to show off the abilities appears to be attacking with a dragon defender wielded in the right hand.

One of the melee combatants is also shown to be able to kick the opponent while wielding the weapon, as well as doing some form of shield-bash, both of which stun the opponent with a new animation. The life points bar above the character's head is shown to fade from green to yellow then away rather than disappearing abruptly when out of combat.

Both the ranger and the mage are shown to teleport for short distances with the warrior showing a similar dash attack as part of the shield-bash.

The mage is seen to hit 2,500 on the "punchbag", which is currently impossible for players. The ranger hits a 3,000 by what seems to be a miniature volcano exploding under the "punchbag"; this hit is only possible with ruby bolts (e), against enhanced ice titans or ice demons at full health. On 8 June 2012, Jagex posted a youtube video. This video included a mention of the combat update, starting at 1:40. In this video the new hit splats were discussed, confirming that the "no background" hits are normal auto-attacks hits, and the red background are ability hits. A new interface called the "main tab" has been shown (on the right). The "main tab" interface will show the level of the target you're attacking, their Life Points, and any positive (green) or negative (red) effects on the target. It will also show the player's Life Points, and any effects on the player.

A new icon for "protect melee" was also shown in the video. It is speculated that the level 139 character will be part of the combat level rework. Another new interface was shown that controlled the XP gains of the player (not shown). This interface controlled the type of XP a player would be given. On this interface, there are "melee", "ranged", and "melee" tabs--each tab has 3-4 toggles that can be activated, so whenever a player switches to that style, that is the xp they get. Ranged has the options of split range/defense, range xp only, and defense only. Mage has the options of spit mage/defense, mage only, and defense only. Melee has the options of attack only, strength only, defense only, and split attack/strength/defense. If you have selected defense on melee, switching to range will not continue to give you defense xp, unless you also have defense only toggled for range.

Changes to hit splats
The hit splats for auto-attack damage does not have a red background--they are merely static numbres without a background. Hit splats for abilities will have a red background. This was confirmed in the second combat evoulution behind the scenes video.



New Abilities
There will be three levels of the new abilities: Basic, Threshold, and Ultimate. These offer offensive and defensive boosts and damage to replace Special attacks. Some of them would have Attack, Defense, Strength, Ranged, Magic and Constitution requirements. Some of the popular special attacks will be adapted into the new system. For example, the Slice and Dice special attack of the dragon claws will be reworked into the Flurry ability, available to a range of small weapons. It is mentioned that weapons popular for their special attack, like godswords, would have their stats boosted to compensate.

Basic Abilities
There are no requirements to use Basic Abilities. Some abilities include stun, spell cast interruption, critical hit, damage over time, multi-targetting, and damage-reduction.

Threshold Abilities
Threshold Abilities have requirements to use and are a step-up from Basic. Some abilities include rapid fire, area of effect damage, damage reflection, and multiple spell casting.

Ultimate Abilities
Ultimate abilities are incredibly powerful and will have the highest requirements and inc

lude a range of damaging attacks such as "Meteor Strike", "Deadshot", and "Tsunami," as well as "lifesaving effects that could completely turn the fight around." Not much more is known about the Ultimate Abilities.

The aforementioned magic ability, which hit a 2,500 and looks like a water sphere shot at the opponent, is currently the only known Ultimate Ability. However, the 3,000 hit performed by the ranger is not mentioned as such. Also, the warrior does a move that looks exactly like the image that represents Ultimate Abilities on the new abilities page.

Confirmed Updates
Other confirmed updates related to the Combat beta


 * Mod Rathe has confirmed that a ranger and mage version of Turmoil will be released, named Anguish and Torment respectively. All three will unlock at the same prayer level. No other information has been given.


 * Mod Pi has hinted that more ranger and mage equivalent versions of Ancient Curses (and possibly Standard Prayers) will be released.


 * Mod Pi has confirmed that saps and Leeches from the Ancient Curses prayer book have been reworked and will "...most definitely do what they are supposed to now." What is going into the actual rework is unknown, but it has been confirmed that Leech Magic will now work with combat spells.

Speculated Updates
Currently from the images Jagex has released, as well as update hints, the following updates could be released:
 * Updated character models.(confirmed; more "backbone" for better animations)
 * The release of detailed hands, including fingers and thumbs.(confirmed)
 * Facial expressions.
 * The ability to sheath weapons.
 * The ability to unequip your shield by putting it on your back.
 * Updated weapon and magic attack graphics.(confirmed)
 * Updated melee/ranged/magic attack animations.(confirmed)
 * Attack options, Spellbook and possibly more Merging together.
 * A Constitution update(confirmed; armors add additonal LP)
 * Combat level cap raised to at least 139.

Expected Updates
This is a list of expected updates as stated in "Og Blog: Evolution of Combat."


 * Refocus combat around player skill - Combat will be more oriented on player skill, rather than navigating interfaces.
 * Encourage variety in combat equipment - We want you to be thinking carefully about the equipment you choose for any given situation, tweaking and making alterations according to your enemy’s strengths and weaknesses. The problem is, at the moment, there aren't many reasons to change from your favourite weapons or armour. We’d like to give you those reasons.
 * Make it fun! - There’s room in combat for situations that require a greater deal of attention and skill to overcome, hopefully making it more fun. In these situations, you'll be rewarded for your efforts with more XP. In-game combat - particularly training on standard enemies - currently involves clicking on a creature and waiting. We'll do a whole lot more to make these situations challenging, rewarding and - ultimately - more fun.
 * Make it easier to access - Several combat options (special attacks, combat styles, spellbooks) are tucked away, hard to access, or on various different interfaces, so we’re planning to bring all those options together.
 * Give rangers and mages a fighting chance – The combat triangle can be less of a triangle and more of a pancake – flat and a little out of shape - with melee dominant in training and PvP situations. Let’s put rangers and mages firmly back on that triangle.
 * Fill the gaps in existing equipment tiers – We’ve got an opportunity with the Evolution of Combat to plug holes in the tiers of combat equipment. Magic 'armour' is rare, and generally caters for a small level bracket, while melee and ranger sets are missing gloves, boots, etc.
 * Encourage challenging fights - We’d like the most challenging, rewarding and fun creatures to also be the most efficient creatures to fight. At the moment, it can seem more efficient to train on creatures that deal little damage and go down without a fight.
 * Fix the relationship between Defence, life points and damage outputs – Your ability to heal damage, through food or similar mechanics, should be comparable to how much damage you receive. That’s not quite true at the moment, and we’d like to address that.
 * Allow players’ combat levels to truly represent their ability – The combat level calculator is complicated and encourages players to not train certain skills in an attempt to create a false impression of their damage potential (pures).
 * Simplify the code and balancing – Simplifiying the code will allow Jagex to make high-level (85+) equipment faster and easier.
 * Be brave, but be traditional where possible - We are a game with a proud heritage and a player base with clear expectations of the game they want to play. We don’t want to make a game that we can’t even recognise anymore.
 * Additional on RS forums; Jagex Talks Combat - More Info