Dragon longsword

The dragon longsword is the fourth strongest longsword available (although it is the 2nd strongest non-degradable longsword in the game), the strongest being the chaotic longsword. It can only be wielded by members who have at least 60 Attack and have completed the Lost City quest. The Dragon longsword has a special attack, Cleave, which increases accuracy and damage by up to 25% for one hit while using 25% of the special attack energy bar. The special attack once used 50% of the special attack energy bar. The dragon longsword was once the best weapon available in RuneScape and is a rare drop from revenant dragons, greater reborn warriors, Ivory statues and the Corporeal Beast. It is also a possible reward from a level 4 treasure trail.

The dragon longsword can be purchased from the Zanaris marketplace for 100,000 coins, although it is strongly recommended to buy it from other players either through the Grand Exchange or simply trading, considering the requirement of having to pay the lofty price of one diamond just to enter the marketplace (if the player hasn't completed 'Fairytale III - Battle at Orks Rift'.) It can also be obtained by looting a Dragon impling found in either the Impetuous Impulses activity or roaming around RuneScape. It can also be obtained as a drop from ivory statues.

The longsword is a favourite for medium level players buying their first dragon weapon as it has a low cost, yet can still inflict reasonable damage. Under perfect conditions, without castle wars and slayer assignments, the max possible hit is around 568, with castle wars bracelet, this can raise up to 638. For a long time, prior to the introduction of the abyssal whip, this was the weapon of choice for both player killing and training. The weapon suffers from a stereotype in which it is labelled a "noob" weapon, because Lost City, the quest required to wield this weapon, is a much easier quest than the dragon scimitar quest, Monkey Madness. Despite this, it is still a decent one handed weapon, if the player does not have access to any better weapons. Many middle level combat players prefer this weapon since the Dragon scimitar requires a considerably harder quest. It is slightly more accurate, even though it is noticeably slower than the scimitar. At a cheap price, new members will be able to enjoy the strong hits of the longsword by completing Lost City, which is quite an easy quest.

Like all longswords, it is a one-handed weapon. The dragon longsword, paired with a dragon defender, is a cheap option when fighting the Corporeal Beast for those who do not wish to spend money on a Zamorakian spear. Like almost all dragon equipment, the dragon longsword has a corrupted version as well.

Around April 2009, dragon longswords suffered a harsh price drop. From 13 May 2009, its price had gone down from 95,000 to 67,000, a 29.5% drop. The price decline had stopped since then and the dragon longsword's price had returned to the 100,000 price range, however it has recently dropped again, down to about 60,000. 60,000 coins is the high alchemy value for the dragon longsword, and therefore the price will never be much less than 60,000, because players will start using it for training magic with High alchemy, increasing the demand for the longswords significantly, so increasing the exchange price.

Dropping monsters

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Dragon longsword vs. Dragon scimitar
Although many players prefer the dragon scimitar over the dragon longsword, assuming that it is a better weapon, there are benefits and drawbacks to each weapon. The dragon longsword has easier quest requirement (Lost City versus Monkey Madness) and provides a decent slash attack bonus. The dragon longsword is not always quick to buy on the Grand Exchange; while the scimitar may be bought in the Grand Exchange for its street price. The scimitar is noticeably faster than the longsword, but the dragon longsword is slightly more accurate and a little stronger. The dragon longsword may, but is unlikely to offer faster training on monsters with higher defence, but the scimitar is able to damage lower-defence foes more often. Lastly, the dragon longsword has a special attack which most players consider more useful than the dragon scimitar. In the end it is a personal preference on which you should use. The factors to consider are as speed, power, the special attack, and the ability to use effective slash and stab attacks.

One way to compare the two weapons is to adjust the stats for discrepancies in speed. An easy way to do this is to take the stat one would like to compare, and then multiply this stat by the number of bars that represent the weapon speed (in the case of the dragon longsword, 5). The slash value becomes 345 (69*5); the strength value becomes 71*5=355. Now, the scimitar, having a speed of 6, brings its slash value to 67*6=402. Its strength value is now 6*66=396. These values are both larger than the dragon longsword's. This method can be applied to any two weapons to compare the statistics. In this case it makes sense that the dragon scimitar is shown to be better; with 2% less slash and 7% less strength but 20% more speed, stat-wise it is the better weapon. However, special attack still factors in and can help deal lots of damage in comparison to the dragon scimitar, and this method does not account for accuracy against armored opponents. This, combined with the fact that Monkey Madness is much harder to complete than Lost City, makes the Dragon Longsword a contender against the Scimitar.

Trivia

 * On 28 July 2009, the Animation Pack 1 update changed the appearance and attack animations of the dragon longsword to what it currently is today, along with the godswords, rune and dragon scimitars, the rune longsword, Dharok's greataxe, and the abyssal whip.
 * On 23 July 2009, five days before the scheduled update, the dragon longsword image in the Grand Exchange Database was replaced by the new model. Players found the image and posted about it in the RuneScape Forums, making it widely known before Jagex removed the image a few hours later. Five days later, the image was once again put up along with the official release.
 * Before the 28 July 2009 graphic update, a player would appear taller wielding a dragon longsword than a dragon dagger.
 * When a player uses the special attack, the glowing blade looks like the old appearance of the dragon longsword.
 * The 28 July update of the dragon longsword's graphics caused a considerable outrage; the weapon severely dropped in popularity, and its "newbie weapon" reputation further suffered.
 * The dragon 2h sword's new look is similar to the longsword, which outraged many players who bought the two-handed sword.
 * In the quest Glorious Memories, King Vargas is seen wielding a dragon longsword, although differently than players, and claims to have hit damages impossible to do with the sword, like a 720. (Although this is easily possible during the While Guthix Sleeps quest after touching the Stone of Jas.)
 * Since the 10/16/10 update, the special attack will not make a hit splat, since in PVP worlds, the special attack doesn't work.
 * You can still see the old Dragon Longsword graphic while raiding Movario's base in While Guthix Sleeps. It is on the table with the fake loot.
 * Around June 2011, as a result of Dragon Longsword becoming less expensive than its High Alchemy value, players began using High Level Alchemy to profit from the price drop.
 * There is a glitch where sometimes you won't be able to attack until you unequip it then requip it.