Fist of Guthix/Strategies

Hunted
There exist two main kinds of hunted, called defenders and runners. Defenders stay at the centre, attempting to get the largest amount of charges as quickly as possible before they are killed, and runners run around the arena to avoid being killed.

Generally, runners have a higher losing rate if they aren't very experienced with what they're doing, especially if they are hunted in the second round. However, an experienced runner is very difficult to beat.

Defenders have the advantage of ending rounds quickly and in turn, guarantees stable token income. Defenders also have a higher rate of winning, because their tactics rely more on having high Constitution and Defence, and good armour; instead of their skill within the activity. Runners are often not respected by inexperienced players, because if the runner is good at evading their hunter, the hunter may become quickly irritated. Some do not respect defenders as well, due to the fact that they hide behind other players in the centre. Some players also hide in the houses but they will slowly lose LP and will be forced to leave.

There are also several people in Fist of Guthix that mix the 2 tactics for the hunted too. However, this may have varied effects both more and less effective than pure runners or defenders depending on skill within the activity and stats. The ideal for quick tokens and rating is a combination of defending most of the time, skillfully runnering when highly skilled opponents face them. This group of people are usually known as the "fog pros" and almost all the top of the FOG activity highscores employ this mixed strategy adapting to each situation.

All hunted
The most important things of a hunted are: use of prayer, prediction, detection/stealth, in order to win the game. It is a distinct disadvantage if the hunted's prayer level is less than 37, since the true way for defence is a protection prayer. A prayer level of 43 is recommended if using a protection prayer as it gives access to all 3 of the protection prayers.

Usage of the death-dot tactic will force the hunter to scroll down a huge list of players in play. It can be used while running around inside the centre of Fist as well. However, this is considered one of the most unfair and cheap tactics for use in Fist of Guthix.

You should always turn Auto-Retaliate off when in the centre. If you get attacked while it's on, you will run toward your opponent, which is extremely bad for runners. Turning private chat off or setting it to "friends" is also useful, as your opponent cannot add you and then search for a small green dot on his/her minimap. This way, he/she would then only possess the default flashing yellow arrow in which to locate you—and only when you are within range. This arrow is very effective (for you) if you go to the centre, considering the other players are at least adjacent, if not on the same square. This method would make it more difficult for your hunter to locate you.

The Rest feature is disabled in the arena, so relying on it would be unwise.

Some hunters would head straight across centre to the hunted's spawning spot at the start. The hunted can circle around the teleport houses and sneak to the centre, or spawn spot of hunter (the spawn spots are opposite) to earn easy charges.

If you prefer to use prayer instead of defence, bringing a holy symbol instead of an amulet of defence may be beneficial.

Mix up your strategies since other players will have different strategies.

Defender
Defenders can bring all kinds of armour good defence bonus in melee, ranged and magic as defenders do not need to run, except when hunting runners. Green dragonhide armour and Black dragonhide (members) or Karils (members) can be used against mages. Use Rune armour, or Barrows if member for melee and range hunters. If they are using a 2h sword, battleaxe, or other weapon with a "crush" attack, wear a Rune chainbody, as platebodies are weak against "Crush" attacks. Remember to wear an Amulet of Defence as it gives +7 to all defence stats. You should also keep this in mind if you are the hunter as well as the hunted.

If defending against magic trainers, use on Protect from magic. Against melee opponents, use Protect from melee, and if against ranged opponents, use Protect from ranged. If fighting against players who use mixed attack styles, attempt to switch prayers quickly. Rapid heal can also be used against hunters with a high damage rate, otherwise keep it off.

It may be useful to know the attack speeds of different combat styles as it can help if prayer flashing. In free-to-play, usually ranged attack have an attack speed of 7 (rapid style bow), magic attack a speed of 5 (autocast), and melee attack an attack speed 6 (scimitar) or 3 (two-handed sword). There is much greater variety in pay-to-play and it is recommended to consult the articles of the most common weapons.

Runner
Be warned, inexperienced Fist of Guthix players may flame you for using this strategy, to avoid getting distracted by their trash-talk, turn off Public Chat. This strategy is also much more difficult to use than the "defender" method. Quick reactions and guile are recommended to use this strategy to maximum efficiency. Always remember to keep moving since the hunter is moving around as well.

Experienced runners should wear light armour, preferably dragonhide to block freezing attacks, as most of their protection comes from blocking the hunters behind obstacles, and they are not hit very often unless frozen. Basic gear for inexperienced runners - Wearing good defensive melee armour with a magic defence top is recommended, regardless of weight, as inexperienced runners will still be getting hit very often.

If you run inside a house, most opponents will be tired of waiting and walk away, usually to the centre. If this happens, runners can wait for the opponent arrow to disappear, then run out of the house away from the opponent. This tactic is proven effective on most players, and in some cases, your opponent may just forfeit. Be aware that if you hide inside a house, you will not gain any charges and will be dealt damage, most likely 30 or 40 lifepoints. A high-levelled hunted can stay in teleport house for longer time and irritate the hunter. Limit the use of the portals inside the house. The more you use portals, the more likely it is that your opponent will do so.

Low level strategy - First, equip the stone of power. Then walk around the arena in the area where you get 10 charges (When in high detail, you can see the "charge rings" in the mini-map). When you reach the other side, start running. If your opponent does not find you when you reach the other side where you started, walk. Repeat until your opponent finds you. Then run to the centre or use the tele-orb. When you have 2 bandages left, run to a house. If your opponent guards the house, use the portal. If he runs away, exit the house and start running in the 10 charges area. When your running energy gets low, run to a house but do not go in. If your opponent finds you, go in. If your opponent guards the house, use the portal. If he runs away, exit the house. Repeat the process. Sometimes, this strategy may not work if your opponent is a higher level. 9 times out of 10, higher level opponents will check the sides at the start rather than run straight to where you spawn (this is especially true for hunters with a combat level in the 90s or higher). If this is the case, it's better to walk in a straight line to the 10 charge area, stand in one spot, then run to the nearest house when your opponent finds you.

There are several kinds of hugging. The first kind is to repeatedly enter and leave teleport houses without using the portal inside, the second is to hug houses and obstacles, the third is hug the house once and then enter it. The first method is hindered by the entering limit and large amount of damage inside the houses, the second one isn't useful except against players with very low magic level except once the second one is mastered, it is virtually unstoppable except by the best, while the third one is considered the best for those new to Fist of Guthix.

An alternate strategy is to run to the very west of the arena and sit there with the stone equipped. This works well against low-level players, as they tend to not think to look there. However, this spot only gives 3 charges per second, so one can only acquire about 1200 charges per game, if not found. When your opponent is on-screen, teleport from the edge to the centre. However, experienced hunters will know that this is a common place to hide, and will look there.

Remember to keep track of the hunter's arrow and predict which way would he/she come. Stay as close to centre as possible until the hunter finds you, then run across the centre, hug something or go inside a house. If you are locked on, DON'T use tele-orb and go inside a house as soon as possible, as the spell Bind is very deadly against runners.

To drive a hunter away, a hunted can enter and leave the same house in quick occasion, run across the centre and then around the houses, pretending to run away from the hunter at a distance and use tele-orb, then going opposite from hunter and so on.

Using a few seconds to attack the hunter can be very useful, especially against a higher-level opponent. For members, if the hunter is autocasting the spell, taking a second to attack them with Topaz bolts (e) can be very effective as this can lower their magic level and will make them take some time to switch to a less powerful spell. The Seercull special attack along with Rune arrows can also be used (the seercull is preferred due to the special always working). This, however, is considered looked down on by many Fist of Guthix players, as it is extremely effective. You CANNOT cast Bind, nor any spells against a melee hunter.

Run to a house and keep on the opposite side of the house that your hunter is on, switching sides as your hunter moves. This will cause your hunter to become stuck on the opposite side of a house and deal less damage to the hunted. This tactic can also be used on the low walls and piles of rubble near the edges of the playing area, though fewer points will be gathered.

You can go on the edge for around 15 seconds then run into the fist, when your hunter comes back to the fist and sees you, run to the back to the edge drawing your hunter, then use your Tele-orb to get back to the fist, works very well if you are a good hunted.

When running low on Life Points and recovery tools, a player with 99 Prayer can run to the edge of the stage, use Redemption to heal, then use the Prayer Cape's effect to use Redemption repeatedly. Also, the Saradomin godsword and Enhanced excalibur can be used to heal.

If you keep running roughly in the same direction and your hunter is still some distance away chasing you, you can prevent the hunter from attacking you until you stop running or change direction, since melee can only be used at close range. This tactic is effective for evading the hunter long enough to find somewhere safe, such as entering a house if you are far away from one.

Other tips

 * Prayer Flashing (see Prayer)- This trick is used once you’ve been spotted by your hunter and you have used your Tele-Orb (requires Prayer level 37 or higher) Each time your opponent charges their magic attack, pulls back their arrow for a ranged attack, or draws back their weapon for a melee attack, you can click on the appropriate “Protect from” prayer, then click it again to disable it once you've taken the hit. This “flashing” method is a great way to conserve prayer points. It should be noted, however, that this can take a great deal of timing and some practice, and lagging can greatly increase ones chance of failure.


 * If you have tabbed browsing, open up the Runescape highscores or Adventurers' log (members) on a new tab and enter your opponent's name. This will give you an idea of what level your opponent is as well as point out their highest stats. This is especially useful if you start as the hunted.

Hunter
The hunter's objective is quite simple: Kill the hunted player with any means necessary. The player cannot gather any charges while they are a hunter, rather their objective is to prevent the hunted player from gathering charges. The hunter does not have a stat decrease, does not have the 30 kg load of the stone and does not take damage from the energy charges, however they cannot chase hunted players into the teleport houses.

In general, people who start as the hunter have the advantage. This can be due to being able to get a general idea of how many charges your opponent has and being able to do what you want without fear of your opponent retaliating.

Tactics for the hunter
Use a Familiar to help you hunt. Considering the fact that most players do not think to use Protect from Summoning, and the fact that many familiars exceed level 100 combat, this can be devastating to your target.

Effective weapons, spells or effects include Ancient Magicks Freeze Spells which hold an opponent and can be devastating to an opponent's health if using a dragon dagger or dark bow special attack. Inflicting the opponent with poison is good if a player is along the outside or house hugging, since anti-poison potion is not allowed. When using range, using a crossbow with Sapphire bolts (e) in conjunction with Smite is very effective as this will reduce the hunted's Prayer level very quickly. This is most effective if you have a weapon with a very powerful special attack that you do not want to have the hunted reduce the strength of with a protection prayer. The Dragon Longsword and Dragon Dagger special attacks are very damaging because of the opponent's reduced stats. The Dragon claws' special is very effective if the hunted is at low health since it can do a reasonably good amount of damage in a very short period of time before they can heal. The Dragon Scimitar is useful as its special attack will completely deactivate prayer for 5 seconds.


 * It is advised to have melee gear along with magic or ranged gear, whatever the players level is higher.
 * The special attack of the Ancient mace which is obtained after completing Another Slice of H.A.M. lowers a players prayer by amount of damage done and gives it to you, which will help drain the hunted's prayer. Combined with smite or Soul Split, you could possibly remove more than 40 prayer points from your opponent in one strike!
 * Using 2h swords is useful, as you can deal a lot of damage when you get the chance and it will be likely that your hunted is running.
 * You can use a light weapon to start of with (like a scimitar or dagger) to waste your hunted's bandages, then switch to a more powerful weapon (like a 2h sword) to kill him.
 * If your hunted runs into a barrier stand in the middle of the arena, this will allow you to see all of the barriers.

All hunters

 * When many players are on the same square in the middle, it is much easier to find your target by manually casting a spell, since when you have chosen a spell, it only shows the names of the people.
 * A good idea is when your target is in the middle and you are going to use melee, equip a staff and run into the middle then stand next to him. Equip your melee weapon then as he can't see you if its crowded and he'll use the wrong prayer. More than likely your opponent will run out the middle to find out what attack style you are using and then you can see his/her prayer/equipment. This trick works well if you equip a melee weapon then go into the middle next to him and use magic manually. Once he runs out the middle, he'll switch prayers.Once that's done, cast once or twice more then attack with melee. You'll run out and if done fast enough, your opponent won't suspect it. He'll then switch prayers and then you will cast without using your staff. If you are using normal spellbook, it is fine to use any combat spell but not the god spells. If using Ancients, its advised to use smoke spells only. If using a combat spell, it won't bring up a message at all in the chat box under "game".However, for Ancients this can happen. If using smoke though, it may come up with "You have been poisoned!" on your opponents chatbox which can make them believe you are using a dds.
 * It is quite effective to use curse spells (Confuse, Weaken, Curse, Bind, Snare, Vulnerability, Enfeeble, Entangle, Stun) to further reduce the stats of opponents or to stop opponents for running for a short period of time. (Italicised spells are for members)
 * If your opponent is hiding at the centre and there are a lot of spammers, turn your public chat off. It makes it easier to find your opponent.
 * Adding your opponent to your friends list will cause him to show up green on the minimap (providing he has his/her friends setting to "on")
 * Before you enter the arena it is extremely important to turn assist off. Having assist on will add another line per player, possibly causing the player to become invisible!
 * Players will get plenty of runes and should not hesitate to use spells. For F2P players the best missile spell for your level should be used as no magic-reducing attack is available for the hunter. (Overall, the best combat spell for F2P players is Fire Blast.
 * Take more than one weapon! The defender will almost certainly use "protect against ..." prayers if they are able, but by switching weapon rapidly between at least two, this can be negated. (Recommended, melee and ranged, as selecting a bow or melee weapon, then the player is faster than selecting a staff then spell, then the player)
 * If your target is hiding in a house, stand almost directly in the centre of the arena. If positioned correctly, you will be able to see all four houses, plus a little edge for all of them, so if your target decides to run, you will be able to see them. This works very well on less crowded world's when lag does not affect your visibility.
 * Try to cover two sections of the combat triangle (preferably melee and magic, since magic does not need a staff, although useful), by wielding a melee weapon (such as a whip or dragon dagger), and switching between melee and magic, which will cause the hunted to change protection prayers often, allowing you to hit through their prayer almost every time.
 * Some of the Ancient Curses will help you kill the hunted slightly faster, but you must complete The Temple at Senntisten to unlock them. The main advantage of the Ancient Curses is use of the Deflect prayers during the hunted phase.

Against defenders

 * For a non-pure with all three kinds of combat style, attack the hunted by shooting a few arrows, Cast magic ONCE and run next to him. Attack the hunted by melee, ranged or magic. Manually casting spells is also needed to surprise the defender. If you are not very advanced in melee then stand near the edge of the circle (where most mages stand) and range them from there. If they put on a protection spell then switch to magic. Don't equip a staff to do this, they will see that you have a staff and switch to Protect from Magic. Just manually cast a spell. Wave, Surge, and Ancients spells are the most effective. They deal a great amount of damage in 1 spell cast.

Against runners

 * When many players are on the same square in the middle, it is much easier to find your target by manually casting a spell, since when you have chosen a spell, it only shows the names of the people.
 * Use the spell bind against runners. You may obtain the Druidic mage robes set for increasing the success rate of the spell. You can even cast the spell in-between every two spells or so to keep your opponent bound for a very long time. However, this tactic won't work forever, although its more effective to use higher level bind spells to bind the hunted for longer.
 * It is easier for the hunter to locate the hunted on the minimap by adding the hunted to the friends list, turning the dot green, instead of simply relying on the arrow, this is only effective if the hunted is within the Fist's area and has private chat not set to "Off or Friends".
 * If an opponent is wall-hugging, return to the middle and the hunted will come to the centre. If he/she does not come, wait till your running energy has recovered a bit, prepare ranged or magic autocast and search near the centre.
 * Try to cover at least two sections of the combat triangle for a non-pure. For example, some players use Robes or Dragonhide to protect from the plentiful mage players, so having a melee weapon may prove useful.
 * Against an obviously weaker hunted (at least 30 levels lower than you), you can slowly patrol the centre and scare away the hunted, be warned this would frustrate the opponent very much.
 * During the beginning of each round, you will always be placed at the opposite edge of the arena. You can use the tele-orb and then run to the opposite edge quickly. This can be used to terrify the hunted, though in return you lack the orb for life-saving as a hunted. Sometimes you are able to teleport to the centre before the game even begins. If this is the case, then you will have less distance to cover and get to your opponent before he even picks up the stone.
 * If your target is in the middle and you are going to autocast a spell, you can manually cast a spell by using the spell list then right click on his position as it'll shorten the list to help you find him.
 * For a non-pure with all three kinds of combat style, use magic to chase the hunted, then switch to ranged and shoot for a few hits. If the hunted runs to the centre, run next to him and autocast magic again, Prepare bind to lock him/her once he/she starts running and then attack. If he/she stays away from the centre, use bind and then manually cast spells in between melee or ranged attack. Cast bind between every 3 hits.
 * If it turns out that your opponent has been wall hugging most of the game, don't fret. Chances are he will have less charges than you think.
 * Although a cheap tactic, if your opponent has his private chat on, you can lie to him and tell him that you are only here to train or here for XP. This works best if you start as the hunter. Unequip any Fist of Guthix equipment to make your opponent have more trust in you. If your opponent takes the bait, he will run to the center where you will kill him easily. When it is your turn to be the hunted, play as if the other person was a normal opponent. Don't let him kill you and gather as much charges as possible.

Hunted
When you are the hunted, you want to have the best protection and not too much weight from attacks that you can. That's where what armour you are wearing comes in. This section explains the best armour to put on based on the attack style your opponent is using. This is meant for F2P players, and it would not be useful to members. There is nothing for the shield or weapon slots because you cannot carry those if you are holding the stone.

Full rune armour vs. melee and ranged pures for range-2h hybrid hunters

 * Rune full helm
 * Rune platebody
 * Rune platelegs/Rune plateskirt*
 * Rune gauntlets
 * Fighting boots or Fancy boots
 * Cape or Team variation
 * Amulet of defence
 * Any Explorer's ring

Full Green Dragonhide armour vs. mage pures

 * Green d'hide coif (100)
 * Green d'hide body
 * Green d'hide chaps
 * Green d'hide vamb
 * Cape or Team variation
 * Amulet of defence
 * Any Explorer's ring

Mix of Green Dragonhide armour and rune armour vs. balanced players

 * Rune full helmet
 * Green d'hide body
 * Green d'hide chaps
 * Green d'hide vamb
 * Fighting boots or Fancy boots
 * Cape or Team variation
 * Amulet of defence/Holy Symbol
 * Any Explorer's ring

Full combat magic armour vs. ranged or magic

 * Combat hood
 * Combat robe top
 * Combat robe bottom
 * Cape or Team cape
 * Amulet of magic
 * Swanky Boots (+1 Magic attack bonus)


 * The Rune Plateskirt is 1 kg lighter than the platelegs.

Keep in mind the maximized bonus only partially protects against hunter's attack, as you will still be hit very often unless the hunter has a very low combat level or very low attack bonus.

It is NOT recommended to make the load too heavy though, as the stone of power already weighs 30 kg and a 80 kg+ load can drain running energy very rapidly. You should bring a load less than 35 kg if you do not have 43+ Prayer. Bring a load less than 15 kg if you can use all the Protection prayers as they will cover for most of your defence.

And you are recommended to be patient, as gaining tokens is very time consuming, unless your rating is high, or if you are a very experienced player.

Hunter
A popular way of hunting is that a non-pure hunter will bring armour that gives a bonus in magic or ranged combat and bring a melee weapon as a side form of damage in case the defender uses protection spells from Prayer. A rune scimitar is a common weapon as it is fast and light.

For free-to-play magic users, the Combat robes obtained through Fist of Guthix give a good magic bonus.

Armour for combat pures when hunting in F2P

 * Monk's robe (top)
 * Monk's robe (bottom)
 * Amulet of strength/Amulet of power
 * Explorer's ring
 * Rune 2h sword/Rune scimitar/Rune battleaxe
 * Team cape/Cape
 * Gauntlets

Note: This is mainly for a melee pure with level 1 defence. Different pieces of armour may be used in other pure types. Refer to the Combat pure article for more information on those specific types.