Evil Tree



The Evil Tree is a members-only Distractions and Diversions event, released on 25 February 2009. This event can be done twice daily; the counter resets at 00:00 GMT. Players must log out and back in to reset the clock. A tree will spawn two hours after the death of the last tree in that world. As such, players may kill a tree in one world and switch to another world where a new tree is just sprouting.

Woodcutting urns do not work, however, Sacred Clay Hatchets and Woodcutting (clan) rings do work.

 Warning:  Interacting with a tree at any stage of development counts as one of the two daily trees. This applies to nurturing trees, even if players do not have the required levels to chop or burn the fully grown tree. However: you can now right click and inspect saplings and young trees to find out what they will grow into. This right clicking to inspect and check a fully grown tree's health, or a sapling's type does not count as one of the daily interactions.

A way of making it easier to find trees is joining one of the many clans dedicated to tracking evil trees, which players may find in the RuneScape Forums. In these clans players can share their reports with other players that are also looking for evil trees and then calculations, based on the times given by spirit trees, are used to determine when evil trees may sprout. These calculations do not directly interact with the game engine.



Overview
The purpose of the event is to kill the Evil tree, after which the player is rewarded; see below. There are seven types of evil trees and twenty-six possible locations.

Farming experience is granted each time the Sapling advances to another stage of development while nurturing. Woodcutting experience is granted every few seconds during chopping. Firemaking experience is granted each time a new section of the Tree is lit on fire from evil tree kindling.

A leprechaun is found near all trees. He will explain the evil tree and is the one to reward players after one is killed. He can also loan out low-level tools if you've forgotten yours.

Stages
An evil tree has a total of six stages: stages 1–5 are different growths of the sapling, and stage six is a fully grown evil tree. The strange sapling may be nurtured by players to make it grow quickly, but it will grow on its own. The type of a sapling could formerly only be determined by checking the farming experience when nurturing or the level requirement needed if the player's farming level was too low, see chart. However, this counts as one of the twice-daily interactions. Currently a much safer alternative is available, which is to right-click the sapling and press inspect. Players may wish to refrain from nurturing trees until they know if they are interested in killing the resulting tree. After the sapling is fully grown, it becomes an evil tree.

Locating
There are several ways to find an evil tree:
 * Speak with a Spirit tree (this requires completion of Tree Gnome Village). It will tell you the status of the tree in each world. Once the strange sapling sprouts, it will give players a hint to its location; see here. Each hint leads to at least two locations. Once the Sapling has grown into a full tree, Spirit trees will teleport the player to the exact location. If a quest is required that you have not completed, (such as Legends' Quest for trees in the Kharazi Jungle) the Spirit tree will not teleport you.
 * Be nearby. Once the Strange Sapling sprouts, Evil roots will briefly shoot out of the surrounding ground. These roots can appear a good distance from the location of the tree, so search carefully. Roots will only appear beneath players that have not yet interacted with two evil trees that day.
 * Get a tip from a friend who can talk to the spirit tree if you can't.
 * Join a clan. Many clans will be advertised in the Runescape forums under "Distractions and diversions". People typically don't advertise about their clan through public chat anymore.
 * A sapling for an Evil tree will spawn on exactly two minutes from the time a server comes online after a crash or a system update.
 * Players that have completed the 2011 Easter event can use their Sunbeam crown or Icicle crown to ask about the tree's type and a hint to its location, or if it's no tree is alive the estimated time until one is.

Killing
The evil tree is killed using two methods: cutting with a hatchet and lighting fires at its base. Different levels are required to cut and burn the tree; see below. Chopping the tree and its roots gives Woodcutting experience, and lighting fires gives Firemaking experience.

To chop the tree, a hatchet is needed. As with all woodcutting, higher-level hatchets cut faster than lower-level ones. To burn the tree, the player will require a tinderbox and some kindling, which is attained from chopping down one of the four roots that grow on the north, east, south, or west side of the tree. Upon request, the leprechaun will provide the player with a Bronze hatchet and a tinderbox. It is recommended to use your own hatchet for faster cutting.

The evil roots will strike and stun players who are standing nearby. They will also force players who are standing on their spawn location off the way each time they spawn. Machetes are more effective at cutting roots than most hatchets are. If you have a Rune hatchet and a Red topaz machete in the inventory, your character will automatically use the machete to cut the roots, indicating that it works better. However a Dragon hatchet and Inferno adze are still faster than any of the machetes.

There are eight spots at the base of the tree to light. The fires do damage to the tree over time and help you earn reward faster; therefore it is recommended to light the fires as early as possible to maximize damage.

It takes one minute until new roots strike up again on each side.

The tree begins with 100% health, and the player with 0% reward. As players chop the tree and the fires burn, the tree's life drops and the player's percentage of reward increases. This can be checked by right-clicking and inspecting the tree. Doing so will stop the player from chopping, note, so do so sparingly. The tree does not die when it reaches 0% health, if none of the players cutting it have obtained 100% reward. The amount of players that need 100% depends on the total amount of players cutting the tree. Eventually the tree will die and become a Fallen tree, from which you can receive your rewards. A fallen tree will remain for 10 minutes before disappearing.

If an evil tree takes too long to die, it gets struck by lightning; see below.

It is often best to kill a tree with at least a few other people to get the best reward. Also, with more people, the evil roots get killed faster, letting you get back to chopping for experience and reward. A good crowd between 4 and 12 seems to get the maximum reward for everyone.

Skill Requirements

 * {|class="wikitable" width="650"

!colspan="2"|Evil Tree !Woodcutting Level !Farming Level !Firemaking Level !Examine Text The invisible boosts of summoned familiars do not work to get the required levels. They only increase the rate of cutting.
 * Normal Evil Tree
 * align="center"|Normal tree.gif
 * 1
 * 1 (Gives 20 exp)
 * 1
 * This looks like a challenge anyone can deal with.
 * Evil oak tree
 * align="center"|Evil oak tree.png
 * 15
 * 7 (Gives 45 exp)
 * 15
 * His bite looks tougher than his bark.
 * Willow Evil Tree
 * align="center"|Willow tree.gif
 * 30
 * 15 (Gives 66 exp)
 * 30
 * He'll weep when he's done being evil!
 * Maple Evil Tree
 * align="center"|eviltreemaple.png
 * 45
 * 22 (Gives 121.5 exp)
 * 45
 * Where did his red leaves go?
 * Yew Evil Tree
 * align="center"|Yew tree.gif
 * 60
 * 30 (Gives 172.5 exp)
 * 60
 * A tough evil tree!
 * Magic Evil Tree
 * align="center"|eviltreemagic.png
 * 75
 * 37 (Gives 311 exp)
 * 75
 * An incredibly tough challenge!
 * Elder Evil Tree
 * align="center"|Elder evil tree.png
 * 85
 * 42 (Gives 687.5 exp)
 * 85
 * The most fearsome of evil trees!
 * }
 * Elder Evil Tree
 * align="center"|Elder evil tree.png
 * 85
 * 42 (Gives 687.5 exp)
 * 85
 * The most fearsome of evil trees!
 * }

Locations with hints

 * Hints are given by Spirit trees when there is a Strange Sapling, and the Tree Gnome Village or The Grand Tree quest must be completed in order to speak with a Spirit tree.
 * Some hints/locations require other quests. Some are simply easier to access with certain quests.
 * There are currently 26 possible known locations.
 * All hints refer to at least two possible locations (occasionally three or four).
 * Hints start with "It can be found...".
 * Many new players are unaware of the need to click continue, the Anima Mundi is not the location hint.

Experience
Note: the Ring of fire, Flame gloves, Penance horn and Lumberjack clothing give no additional experience, and the Inferno Adze will not automatically light any kindling received. Mahogany logs, Achey tree logs, Teak logs, Arctic pine logs, and Eucalyptus logs cut under the leprechaun effect won't be banked, instead you'll receive a 'Your inventory is too full to hold anymore logs.'
 * When an evil tree is still a sapling, Farming experience can be gained from nurturing it. No items are required to do this.
 * When an evil tree is fully grown, chopping the evil roots and the tree itself grants Woodcutting experience.
 * When an evil root vanishes, the player gains Evil tree kindling, which can be used to set fire to a part of the tree. This awards Firemaking experience.
 * Sacred clay hatchets give double experience when chopping evil trees.


 * {|class="wikitable"

!rowspan="2"|Evil Tree !colspan="4"|Experience !Nurturing !Firemaking !Chopping roots !Chopping tree
 * Normal
 * 20
 * 200
 * 3
 * 15.1
 * Oak
 * 45
 * 300
 * 6.4
 * 32.4
 * Willow
 * 66
 * 450
 * 9.1
 * 45.7
 * Maple
 * 121.5
 * 675
 * 11.1
 * 55.8
 * Yew
 * 172.5
 * 1,012.5
 * 12.8
 * 64.4
 * Magic
 * 311
 * 1,517.5
 * 14.1
 * 70.9
 * Elder
 * 687.5
 * 2,000.5
 * 15.5
 * 77.8
 * }
 * Elder
 * 687.5
 * 2,000.5
 * 15.5
 * 77.8
 * }
 * }

Items

 * You can sell the Evil tree kindling to the leprechaun for 25 coins each, or choose to keep the kindling to use on future Evil trees. All trees give the same type of kindling, keeping the kindling for the next tree could be of great help getting it lit faster.


 * When the tree dies, it turns grey and withers. Players can get the following items from the evil tree as a reward:
 * Noted logs of the same type as the tree*. Elder trees offer noted Yew, Magic, Teak or Mahogany logs.
 * Coins
 * Tree Seed or Bird's nest
 * 1-10 Morchella mushroom spores
 * 1-11 Fellstalk seeds
 * Level 1 Clue scroll
 * Key halves
 * The normal reward received appears to be Logs (noted), Coins, and Tree Seed or Bird's Nest, with Clue Scrolls and Key Halves as an additional reward. This requires inventory room of three or four spaces. The Ring of Wealth has been found to affect the chances of obtaining Clue Scrolls and Key Halves from a dead Evil Tree.
 * Note: Elder Trees give one or a combination of various logs, as there is no Elder Log.

Further woodcutting
For a period of time after the tree is killed, players are given several advantages when cutting trees. The amount of time depends on the percent damage done to the evil tree, and the type of evil tree; see below. This ranges from 2 to 30 minutes. These abilities only apply to cutting Normal, Oak, Willow, Maple, Yew, and Magic trees. (Does not include other evil trees, cursed magic trees, or any other non-standard tree.) This bonus does not disappear when you log out. Players collecting the reward from a farming leprechaun afterwards will receive only half of the magical banking time.
 * Significantly reduced chance of a tree being felled when a log is harvested (This also works with normal trees). For this to apply, nobody else may be cutting the tree. (This does not apply to trees in farming plots.)
 * Significantly increased chance of having birds' nests fall out of trees. (This does not apply to trees in farming plots.)
 * Ability to have logs "magically escorted" to the player's bank while Woodcutting if their inventory is full. Sparkles can be seen above the players head when a log is sent to the bank. Note that this only happens when you have a full inventory and you are cutting one of the allotted logs.
 * Note: Teak, Mahogany, Arctic Pine, Achey and Eucalyptus tree logs will not be transported to the bank. The player receives a "Your inventory is too full to hold any logs." message instead.

Logging out pauses the remaining time of these effects.

Players wishing to take advantage of this feature should consider cutting trees which yield logs quickly. The most efficient trees to chop for Woodcutting experience for the duration of the reward are willow trees. Some of the best places to make use of the automatic banking are:
 * Willow trees outside Crafting Guild or Fishing Guild (using Skills Necklace)
 * Willow trees near the Lady of the Lake in Taverley (using Balloon transport system)
 * Willow trees near the Lumbridge Lake (Home Teleport)
 * Willow trees to the north of Seers Bank (Camelot Teleport)
 * Willow trees west of Draynor Village, by Port Sarim (Amulet of Glory Teleport or Cabbage Port)
 * Willow trees south west of Ardougne bank. (using Ardougne Cloak)
 * Willow trees just West of Barbarian Assault (using Games necklace )
 * Willow trees in the resource dungeon on the Daemonheim Peninsula (using Ring of Kinship). Level 30 Dungeoneering is needed to enter this dungeon.

For players with higher woodcutting levels, maples in an uncrowded area are also good for using the magical log-banking. The best location for this is the forest of maple trees west of Sinclair Mansion (near fairy ring code C J R), north of Seer's Village, wearing Seer's headband 2 or higher will gain an extra 10xp. Also Maple trees in the resource dungeon on the Daemonheim Peninsula (using Ring of Kinship). Level 30 Dungeoneering is needed to enter this dungeon.

Some players may also wish to cut oak trees to later turn into planks for construction.

Maximum rewards


The following table shows the highest reported reward possible. A lower percentage reduces the rewards.

The same percent will not always equal the same amount of gold or logs.


 * {|class="wikitable"

!Evil Tree !Logs !Gold coins !Duration of log teleportation 59 Yews or 18 Magic
 * Normal
 * 12
 * 185
 * 6 minutes
 * Oak
 * 24
 * 326
 * 10 minutes
 * Willow
 * 226
 * 1,127
 * 14 minutes
 * Maple
 * 131
 * 1,280
 * 18 minutes
 * Yew
 * 17
 * 2,334
 * 22 minutes
 * Magic
 * 10
 * 4,737
 * 26 minutes
 * Elder
 * 375 Teak or 102 Mahogany or
 * Magic
 * 10
 * 4,737
 * 26 minutes
 * Elder
 * 375 Teak or 102 Mahogany or
 * 375 Teak or 102 Mahogany or
 * 8,694
 * 30 minutes
 * }

Lightning


If an evil tree takes too long to die, it gets struck by lightning. If the tree's health is above 50% 10 minutes after it has appeared, lightning will strike and bring its health down to 50%; after 20 minutes the same applies for 25% health and after 30 minutes, the tree is then killed by a third lightning strike. This also has a lightning sound effect to go along with it. If the evil tree is struck with lightning for the third time and dies, you will still get your rewards if you participated.

Music
Music track unlocked:
 * Trees aren't your Friends

Trivia

 * Despite that Woodcutting urns do not work on evil trees, they are adviced to take a long with you. This is because it fills up your inventory more, so the magical banking starts sooner. You will also receive additional experience. When bird nests drop teleporting one urn opens up a space, while letting the auto-banking continue.
 * The Music track unlocked Trees aren't your Friends could be a reference to the saying "Trees are our friends."
 * On its day of release, a server blackout occurred. The Grand Exchange Database page was also affected. Players saw items rising over 200,000% in a day, but the actual price of the items were intact. For example if you would search for a dragon longsword that was 100k at that moment it would appear as 300,000k, or 300m, but you could buy it for 100k as usual.
 * When right-clicking the music track "Trees aren't your Friends" in the Music list and choosing the "Unlock hint" option, the hint will state "This track was unlocked during The Evil Tree activity." This might be an indication that the Evil Tree distraction was intended to be an activity at first. The Evil Tree is also under the Activities index in the in-game Woodcutting guide.
 * With the release of Evil Trees, pures who had completed Monkey Madness gained the ability to travel to Ape Atoll without receiving the experience rewards from Daero. This was accomplished by using a Spirit tree to teleport to a tree located there. This prompted Jagex to simply allow players to return to Ape Atoll normally without claiming the experience reward.
 * Originally, Spirit trees would only mention evil trees after the sprout had already appeared. It wasn't until a few weeks after the original release that they began to give information on how long it would take for the next evil tree to sprout. This made it much easier for a single person to find a tree.
 * Originally, if somebody started a fire where a root would sprout, when the ashes appeared and the root sprouted again, the ashes would appear on top of the root. Once the root went away, the ashes would look to be floating. However, since 9 November 2009, an evil tree can no longer cause items to float above its roots.
 * As of October 2009, Achey tree logs will not be transported to the bank. The player receives a "Your inventory is too full to hold any logs." message instead.
 * The "escorted log" animation is only seen by the respective player. You will never see the animation on another player with "auto-banking", only yourself.
 * A few days after the release of the Evil Tree, Spirit trees said 'despatch' instead of 'dispatch' when talked to.
 * If you are interrupted by an update, while participating in an evil tree activity, you will find a new sapling sprouting in its place upon login. Your rewards from the original tree will be awarded if you talk to the tool leprechaun.
 * It is possible to get a random event when killing an evil tree.
 * It is possible to get multiple logs from a normal tree with the leprechaun's magic despite the fact that normal trees normally only give 1 log.
 * After a 'System Update' a new Strange Sapling will sprout on all member servers. It may take a few minutes before they do if logging in early after the update.
 * If you try to use a ring of stone next to an Evil Tree then instead of transforming you get the message: "The magic from the nearby Evil Tree could make the effects of the transformation unpredictable."
 * The right click "Inspect" option is an example of a player based idea implemented by Jagex. (It was originally suggested 29 April 2010 on this thread: Quick find code: 241-242-911-61069431.)
 * The Evil Oak Tree is the only Evil Tree without arms.
 * It is recommended to do the Mourning's End quests to gain access to elf lands, where evil trees are rarely crowded.
 * The Evil Willow Tree is the only Evil Tree with three arms.
 * When multiple players cut an Evil Tree Root, it seems that all players cutting at the moment the root is destroyed would receive one Evil Tree Kindling, regardless of how much they contributed to cutting the root. Therefore, it would be more beneficial to chop roots with more players chopping.
 * There is currently a glitch where while the strange sapling is growing, you can see through holes in the sapling.
 * The leprechaun magic sends sparkles up into the air when sending a log to the bank. This only happens when you have a full inventory.
 * If the magic banking from a Juju woodcutting potion's tree spirit and the reward from an evil tree event are both active, only the message from the evil tree banking will appear.