Barrows/Strategies

This is a page for possible strategies to kill the Barrows Brothers.

General advice
It is recommended that before attempting the Barrows players should have a combat level of at least 70, level 43+ Prayer (for using the protection prayers), level 60+ Magic, level 55+ Slayer (for using the Magic Dart spell and Ice Ancient Magicks spells) and level 60+ Constitution. Players are also advised to turn their "Accept Aid" option off before fighting the brothers, as other players may attempt to use Tele-other spells in order to distract you. To lessen their chances of dying, players should wear a Ring of life when fighting the brothers. The Ring of wealth does not help in receiving good rewards. 

Recommended levels for doing slayer dart method

needed

43+Prayer (or super high defence)

75+Defence

75+Attack

75+Strength

55+Slayer

50+Magic (for slayer dart)

70+Range

Recommended

60+prayer

75+Defence

75+Attack

75+Strength

55+Slayer

70+Magic

70+Range

What to take
The Barrows is an excellent example of the delicate balance of the combat triangle between the three combat classes, as it is best to use Magic against the melee brothers, Ranged against the mage (Ahrim), and Melee against the ranger (Karil). However, despite his high magic defence bonus Karil also has a very low Magic level, making him more susceptible to Magic than may be expected. Also, Ahrim is fairly weak to melee as well, and thus players can save a few inventory spaces if they decide not to bring a bow and keep their obtained bolt racks in their ammunition slot.

Magic
If using magic there's a greater chance of receiving runes from the chest. There are several strategies using Magic spells that work well at the Barrows:

This method is much more efficient with a staff of light, with its +15% magic damage bonus. The staff has a Special attack called Power of Light. When activated, this special attack reduces any melee damage(including magical melee) that is received by 50% for one minute, this is very effective against Verac. The staff also has a special rune-saving ability; while wielded, there is a 1/8 (12.5%) chance that any combat spell cast with this staff will not use up any runes.
 * Magic Dart: This method requires level 50 Magic, level 55 Slayer and a Slayer staff or a Staff of light . This is the most effective method; doing up to 200 life points and uses one death rune and four mind runes. These runes are often regained from the chest, making this method very cost-effective. Your maximum hit using this spell is determined by 100+ 1/10th of your Magic level so hypothetically the maximum you can hit is 200 (99 Magic using a skillcape boost, or even higher with a magic potion or Magic essence potion).


 * It has been confirmed by Jagex that your magic attack bonus does affect how accurate this spell is, but the difference is so slight, and the magic defence and magic level of most brothers is so low that this spell will still work when wearing melee armour such as rune or even barrows, but wearing Mystic robes as mentioned does help to hit slightly more accurately but adds to costs and sacrifices defence.


 * Ancient Magicks: Players must have completed the Desert Treasure quest to use these spells; having at least level 58 Magic to use Ice Rush is recommended. This method isn't very cost effective, but is fast in killing the brothers; players may want to take one of the few staffs that cause a 10% magic bonus. The best spells to use are ice spells which will freeze and damage the brothers. Blood spells, on the other hand, restore 25% of the damage dealt to the player's life points. If relying on the freezing effect of the ice spells, remember that like players when the Brothers break out of the ice spells, they will be able to resist the freezing effect for up to 5 seconds.


 * Normal Magic: Starting at 35 magic, players can also use fire bolt to kill the brothers. This is a cheap and low-level alternative, and can be very effective when coupled with the Chaos gauntlets from the Family Crest quest.


 * God Spells like Saradomin Strike, Claws of Guthix and Flames of Zamorak with Void knight armour for the extra bonus.


 * Black salamander (weapon): Harralander Tar is used as ammunition for the salamander. This weapon is about as fast as a whip. Some people may not know this, but it is a better weapon substitute for the Barrows activity. The ammunition is cheaper than a cast of Slayer dart, and more accurate. The magic bonus does not affect its use, and casting in full Rune armour is the exact same as casting in full mystic robes. In the long run it will save you money, and time.

Ranged
Ranged is vital when killing Ahrim if a player is not meleeing; it is best to use rune arrows or adamant arrows, wear your best ranger armour (black dragonhide armour works well and can also be used as melee armour), and wield a magic shortbow, crystal bow or even a dark bow. Seercull is also useful as its special attack depletes your enemy's magic. The magic shortbow special attack is very useful against Ahrim. A Rune crossbow with mithril bolts may also be used.

Another excellent ranged weapon for barrows are Toktz-xil-ul, but it is not very popular.

Melee
The best strategy for players who have low to average melee stats is to use melee only when killing Karil, as he is relatively weak to melee attacks, especially slash attacks. Wear your best melee armour, and use an effective weapon, anything Dragon and above is fine. Players with 80 or above attack and defence stats can bring full Veracs, a combat potion, and a super defence potion to melee every single brother without prayer. Verac's set effect, Defiler, will activate often, allowing a player to hit the brothers more frequently. You will save a lot of runes in the long run, but if the player dies, he/she would lose Verac's helm, the most expensive piece of the set. Players can interchange their weapons for this method; a whip and rune defender or even a godsword would be an efficient enough way to melee the brothers.

General inventory
Players should wear their highest magic attack bonus to the barrows (for example Mystic robes), a ring of life and wield at least 300 arrows (more are required for several trips). This does not apply if using a Salamander, as its efficiency is not affected by wearing melee armour.


 * Spade (essential)
 * Bow and best Ranged armour
 * Melee weapons (dragon or above)
 * 1-5 Prayer potions (depends what level the player is, level 100s should only take 1)
 * Runes (differs depending on the type of spell to be used)
 * Guthan's set or Food - Lobsters, swordfish, monkfish or sharks, are recommended.
 * Ectophial (filled), or another fast teleportation method. If you have a Player Owned house with an altar and Canifis portal, house tele tabs are ideal.
 * Stat boosting potions (not essential)

Melee armour isn't really required as Protect from Melee will be on for much of the time.

No Prayer Potions inventory

 * Spade (essential)
 * Bow and best Ranged armour
 * Dragon Dagger (p), (p+), or (p++), (p++ recommended) and/or whip. The Saradomin Godsword is very effective, with its healing and prayer boosting special attack.
 * Runes - 100 deaths and 400 minds per trip
 * At least 14 pieces of food - Swordfish or above (Sharks highly recommended, but monkfish work fine too) or Guthan's set
 * Fast teleport - Ectophial or teletab (teletab to house with a Kharyrll portal and a chapel are recommended)

This method differs greatly depending on which combat style the player is using, if the player is using magic, then armour with a high positive magic attack bonus is required, if the player is using melee; armour with a very high melee defence bonus will be needed, the most common no prayer potions method is to use existing prayer points and to hope that Dharok is not the tunnel brother, the second most popular method is ancient magicks, after this, a very small percentage of the 110+ combat community use melee on all brothers, hoping to break them down by sheer force before they get killed. (see the Lesser techniques section)

Ancient Magicks - No prayer pots guide (HIGH RISK) Inventory: spade
 * Around 1,000 deaths and bloods
 * Around 4,000 Water runes
 * Around 4,000 Chaos runes
 * A one click teleport
 * Bones to peaches tablets (these help a lot)
 * Around 2 - 4 sharks in case of an emergency (though this is optional)
 * Dragon dagger(p++) and a Dragon scimitar or above
 * Magic armour
 * Armour with decent ranged defence for Karil
 * D'hide (black d'hide/Karil's strongly recommended)
 * Optional - A bow/crossbow for killing Ahrim.
 * 82+ magic is strongly recommended for the use of Ice Blitz.

Please note, this method is very dangerous for inexperienced players who are new to the Barrows.

Suggested equipment
The first set-up will provide a higher magic bonus. The second set-up will give you a higher melee defence bonus, which may be useful if you plan to tank-mage Torag and/or Guthan. Don't worry about splatting too much; the brothers' magic defence is extremely low. You'll probably hit almost as well as you would if you wore mystic robes.

For those who are attempting to complete Barrows without using prayer potions, this is the general set-up.

No Prayer Potions equipment

 * Any Melee Barrows helm (Preferably Verac's for prayer bonus) &gt; Helm of Neitiznot &gt; Berserker Helm
 * Any Melee Barrows plate (Preferably Verac's for prayer bonus) &gt; Bandos Chestplate &gt; Granite Plate &gt; Rune Platebody &gt; Fighter Torso
 * Any Melee Barrows legs (Preferably Verac's for prayer bonus) &gt; Bandos Tassets &gt; Dragon Platelegs/skirt &gt; Rune Platelegs
 * Infinity boots &gt; Dragon boots &gt; Wizard boots &gt; Rune boots &gt; Mystic boots
 * Any RFD gloves - preferably dragon or barrows &gt; Regen bracelet
 * Ring of Life &gt; Fremennik ring &gt; Lunar ring &gt; Beacon ring
 * Arrows/Bolts/Bolt Racks
 * God Cape &gt; Fire Cape &gt; Cape of Achievement Trimmed &gt; Obsidian Cape or Untrimmed Cape of Achievement
 * Charged Dragonfire Shield &gt; Dragon Square Shield &gt; Spirit shield &gt; Rune Kiteshield &gt; Rune Defender
 * Fury Amulet &gt; Glory Amulet &gt; Amulet of Power &gt; Phoenix Necklace (Heals LP below 20% by 30%)
 * Staff of light > Slayer Staff

Killing the Brothers
The Brothers have special abilities. The best way to fight the brothers is to use Magic; four of the brothers wear armour that is weak to magic-based attacks. Any high-hitting spells (blast spells, wave spells, surge spells, or god spells) will work well; using Bind, Snare or Entangle or the Ancient Magicks ice spells work well as the brother will be rendered immobile (this is especially useful when fighting Verac). Magic Dart is a very popular spell to use as all runes required to cast the spell are possible chest rewards.

Recommended order
This is the recommended order of killing the brothers, regardless if you plan to use prayer potions. The names next to the brothers indicate their passive abilities.


 * 1) Protection from melee.PNGDharok the Wretched (Level 115) - Wretched Strength: Uses melee. Strength rises as his health becomes depleted; he can hit up to 620 life points with one tenth of his health left, hence it is advised to have high Constitution to attempt the Barrows. Magic is the most effective combat style to use. Protect from Melee is a necessity, as he can kill any player with 2 hits when at low health. Oftentimes, Dharok can hit high enough and fast enough so that you are unable to heal quickly enough to avoid dying.
 * 2) Protection from ranged.PNGKaril the Tainted (Level 98) - Tainted Shot: Uses ranged. Lowers the player's Agility level by 20%. His hits are very fast and accurate; kill him quickly using melee or high Ancient Magicks and Protect from Ranged. If you brought along a Dragon dagger then use your special attack on him, as he has a low stab/slash defence. Note that only players with a high combat level (95+) should do this. However this brother can be killed effectively with ranged as well.
 * 3) Protection from melee.PNGVerac the Defiled (Level 115) - Defiler: Uses melee.Hits through armour and prayer. You should use Protect from Melee if possible, as this will both lower his max hit and cause him to his less often. He is very resistant to melee and ranged, so magic is always advised. It is helpful to use binding or ancient magicks ice spells against him, as this stops him from attacking and using his special attack.
 * 4) Protection from magic.PNGAhrim the Blighted (Level 98) - Blighted Aura: Uses Magic. Attacks with Fire wave and lowers the player's combat stats using curse spells. Use Ranged to kill Ahrim; even at low Ranged levels he is significantly weaker to Ranged than he is to Melee. Although ranged is the best method for killing Ahrim, if you have very low range (40 or lower) you can use melee on Ahrim, since it is more effective than magic.
 * 5) Protection from melee.PNGTorag the Corrupted (Level 115) - Corruption: Uses melee. Depletes run energy. This brother is the least dangerous of all the brothers; he does not hit as accurately as the other brothers, and his special effect does not affect combat. He can still hit up to 220 and often if you are wearing robes. In addition, the effect could be dangerous if the player is in the maze, especially if the player does not have a method of restoring his/her run energy. Players 70 def+ should not need Protect from Melee.
 * 6) Protection from melee.PNGGuthan the Infested (Level 115) - Infestation: Uses melee. Health recovers proportionate to the damage done to the player; for example, if he hits 200 life points, he will heal 200 life points. Magic attacks are still effective due to Guthan's extremely low magic defence. Guthan is one of the less dangerous of the brothers. Protect from Melee is advised, but not necessary.

Strategy
Higher level players with 60 prayer and above can complete the Barrows without using prayer potions, this can be done by quickly killing Dharok, Verac, and Karil and using melee armour on Guthan whilst using Magic; using Ranged against Ahrim and Magic against Torag. To do this it is advised to have 85 Attack, 80 Strength, 80 Defence, 60 Prayer, 75 ranged, 800 life points and 80 Magic. If using this method players should apply other tactics, such as sidestepping, in the tunnels.

The Ranged armour will suffice for the time it is not in effect. The exception is versus Guthan and Torag because if you have 75 defence, you should use rune and mage them. You will still hit very often and they will almost never hit you.

It has been known that uncommonly a twin of a brother will appear if a player runs through a door to escape from their assigned brother in the maze rather than fighting him; killing twin brothers, or even killing only one of the two, has the same effect as killing one brother. These can be very deadly, especially in the case of a strong brother, as they have been known to come up 3+ times in a row, inflicting much damage on an unprepared player. It is not yet known if killing the "twin" brother increases your chances of getting Barrows equipment.



Lesser Techniques
There are many techniques that a player can use to hide on the other side of the sarcophagus and still kill the brother; the most popular method is to set up a cannon then open the crypt and run to the other side. A player can also use poisoned daggers and arrows to poison the brother and wait on the opposite side of the sarcophagus for him to die; be warned though that the barrows brothers have fast healing rates, and will need to be re-poisoned when the poison damage drops to 20.

Another very time-consuming way is to mainly use prayer potions, and good prayer boosting items. If you use monk's robes, then you can still cast magic easily, but with only a somewhat high prayer bonus, the downside to this is you will use a lot of prayer potions and more food; costing even more to do the barrows. As a result, this method is not recommended.

Another way that is very dangerous for lower levels, is to take either full Verac's or proselyte armour, with a very good melee weapon, and use melee on all of the brothers. The main problem for this, however, is Verac, as he can hit through prayer and armour, so it is wise to bring food for him, or have a friend supply you. This is only feasible for the highest levels, but is very money-efficient because hardly any prayer potions are needed, although a lot of food is necessary.

The black salamander technique is fairly easy, very safe, and can be done with minimal prayer pots. Most of the armour is the same: House tele tabs, spade, ectophial, black d'hide armour, dragon dagger p++, whip/scimitar/Godsword, a shield or rune defender, and full max armour of your choice [either barrows armour or rune/dragon], and prayer pots depending on your level (high levels should only bring one). You should kill the brothers in this order: Dharok, Karil, Ahrim, Verac, Torag, Guthan. You will only need your prayer pot if Dharok is in the tunnel, and in that case continue to kill the brothers in the suggested order. Fight with the salamander on magic against Dharok, Torag, Verac, and Guthan. Use it on range against Ahrim, and use your ddp++ and whip/scimmy/gs on Karil.

Another less common and very dangerous method to kill Dharok is to fight him till his life points are at about 75% full then turn off melee protection prayer and cast the Vengeance spell on the Lunar Spellbook. Dharok will then hit very high and the Vengeance spell will KO him. Vengeance is much less useful for the other brothers, however using Dream will enable you to restore LP faster between brothers.

A technique used sometimes by higher-leveled and richer players is to wear Guthans armor, with the spear in inventory. A black salamander is used to kill the melee brothers, and a Saradomin Godsword is used on Karil and Ahrim. Here, the player does the first round of chest-looting normally, but upon returning to the surface (not teleporting out, but climbing the rope) proceeds to kill non-Dharok melee brothers until their lifepoints drop below 700. Then, one dose of Prayer Potion is drunk, and Dharok is killed with Protect/Deflect Melee. Upon leaving, the player usually has between 5 and 15 prayer points left. Then, the player drinks one dose of super/extreme Attack and Strength potions, and uses two Saradomin Godsword special attacks on Karil, to recover the hitpoints lost to the melee brothers. This also supplies enough prayer points to defeat Karil and Ahrim. Lastly, any remaining melee brothers are killed before entering the tunnels. To kill the tunnel brother, the player first heals up to full hitpoints with their Guthans set, and then proceeds to fight the tunnel brother until their hitpoints get somewhat low. Then, they go through a door (leaving the brother unable to attack them), and heal on monsters with Guthans. Once their hitpoints are safely higher, they re-attack the brother and repeat until the brother dies. This method can be dangerous if Dharok is the brother in the tunnel, as this method uses absolutely no prayer in the tunnels. However, experienced players can get 12+ chest loots in one inventory of supplies, which may make it worth the additional risk.