Bob

Not to be confused with Evil Bob.

Bob the Jagex Cat roams throughout Gielinor sometimes followed by his girlfriend Neite. He may be found anywhere from his respawn point in Burthorpe to as far as places such as Lumbridge. One Bob exists on each server, and each moves independently.

Bob has the largest wander radius out of all NPCs/monsters in the entire game - he can go virtually anywhere that is not blocked by physical boundaries. However, it is possible to locate him using the enchanted Amulet of Catspeak which, when operated, will open a menu that looks like a cat's face. If you click on the whiskers, the dial will rotate, and when you hear the cat meowing and the eyes light up, that means that Bob is in the direction that the dial is pointing.

Lore
Bob's history was not revealed, leaving many to speculate, until Jagex released the quest A Tail of Two Cats. In this quest, it is revealed that he once was an ancient warrior Robert the Strong. It is currently unknown how Robert the Strong turned into a cat. It is during the course of A Tail of Two Cats that we meet Bob's "girlfriend," Neite.



Encounters
Bob is often seen, mostly by chance, by many players. The Catspeak amulet, which is received in Itchlarin's Little Helper, is required to speak to Bob; otherwise he will simply meow aloud. When a character first speaks to Bob with their Catspeak amulet, the following dialogue ensues:


 * Bob: Erm, hello? Can you understand me?


 * Player: I certainly can. I am wearing this amulet I got in Sophanem!


 * Bob: Ah so you've met some of the local felines. Wise and confusing, those Sphinges.


 * Player: Wow!! You know the plural of Sphinx!! What else do you know?


 * Bob: All sorts of stuff! I pick up no end of comments on my travels. Want to hear one?


 * Player: I certainly do. Share your wisdom Bob!

Bob then says a tidbit of wisdom.

Bob and son
If a player has a cat follower when he or she speaks to Bob, the conversation can go quite differently:


 * Bob: Hi, my name is Bob.


 * Cat: Hello Bob!


 * Player: Do you two know each other?


 * Cat: I don’t think so.....


 * Bob: Yes you do. Dive deep, search your feelings.


 * Cat: OK, I will try.


 * Player: What’s up kitty?


 * Bob: If only you knew the power of Bob. Your master never told you who your real father was, did she/he?


 * Cat: No, but what’s that got to do with.... no, nooooo! It cannot be!!


 * Bob: Yes. I am your father!


 * Cat: That’s impossible!!


 * Player: This is all getting very weird.


 * Bob: You can destroy Zamorak. He has foreseen this. It is your destiny. Join me, and together we can rule this place as father and son.


 * Cat: OK dad, maybe later. You’re scaring me!


 * Player: I think that’s about enough of that. I’m off.

''This dialogue sequence is a reference to a scene in The Empire Strikes Back, in which Darth Vader and Luke exchange similar phrases. When Bob says, "I am your father" there is a distinct breathing noise making the conversation even more reminiscent of the movie scene.''

This may also be a hint as to whether or not Bob is Zaros, as Zaros too wishes to destroy Zamorak.

Wisdom
On subsequent encounters, only a shorter, more random conversation occurs.


 * Bob: If a player falls down in the forest and nobody is there, do they make any noise?
 * Bob: Sorry I am too busy marking my territory. Player: Your territory? This place is ruled by Grand Highmage Gower [Most likely RuneScape ' s creator, Andrew Gower] and his minions. Bob: I think not. They are my minions. And I let them think he is in charge. I’m the real power behind the throne.
 * Bob: Dogs believe they are human. Cats believe they are Guthix! Player: What do you believe, Bob? Bob: Well I don’t believe much really since I know I am Zar... erm, well, no, I erm, meow? [This may be another hint to Bob's true identity]
 * Bob: Don’t get distracted so easily! See, I’m distracting you right now!
 * Bob: Sorry I'm far too busy calculating thermal vectors. Player: EH? Bob: Erm, sorry… I meant erm, meow?
 * Bob: Nothing interesting happens. Player: Eh? That's hardly useful. Bob: Ahh but you see. It does all sorts of wondrous things. Player: Like what? Bob: Well its more to do with what happens when you hear that being said. You see, something interesting happens somewhere else. Player: So what you're saying is that if nothing interesting happens to me, then something interesting is happening for someone else that IS interesting? Bob: Yes, that’s about it. Player: Ok…I see… I think.
 * Bob: Player name, why do you keep your cat in the bank? Player: I thought it was too dangerous to bring it out with me. Player: Or, I could let the poor thing get butchered! Is that what you want? Bob: Butchered!!! I think not. Cats are easily as tough as sheep. Cats were the second thing Guthix brought here, after sheep of course. Player: Weird. I thought Gnomes and the Dwarves were the first ones. Oh well back to school for me.
 * Bob: Cats are rather delicate creatures and they are subject to a good many ailments, but I never heard of one who suffered from insomnia.
 * Bob: So, you want to know how us cats keep so clean all day? Player: Must be all that washing you do. Bob: You would think so wouldn’t you. But is being covered in spots really clean? Player: Eeww... gross.
 * Bob: Anything that is not nailed down is a cat toy.
 * Bob: If at first you don’t succeed, take a short nap.
 * Bob: Yeah I could tell you something really useful, but then I would have to '1-Hit you' to death. Player: Bob, you couldn't 1-hit a noob. Bob: Care to place a wager on that? Sorry, hang on, I’ve got no pockets. Maybe next time. Player: I’ll be waiting.
 * Bob: Dogs have owners, cats have staff.
 * Bob: I have studied many philosophers and many cats. The wisdom of cats is infinitely superior.
 * Bob: There are many intelligent species in the universe. They are all owned by cats.
 * Bob: Cats and teleporting just don’t mix well. That’s why I walk everywhere. Messes my hair up terribly.
 * 1) Player: Do you like all the monsters around here? Bob: No, not really. I am actually signed up with the HAM fanatics. Kill the whole lot of 'em! Player: That’s a bit cruel isn’t it? Bob: Yeah, that’s one of my best qualities. Just behind sneaky and vicious. Besides, after a few doses of catnip, they all look like mice to me!
 * Bob: Cats are smarter than dogs. You can’t get eight cats to pull a sled through snow.
 * Bob: Sorry, no time to chat. Still got mouse bones stuck in my teeth. How awkward.
 * Bob: You know, cats are the first species to fully evolve. We’re perfect.
 * Bob: Preserve nature. Pickle a dog!
 * Bob: Do you like dogs? Player: Yes! Bob: Me too. Care to swap recipes? I have a rather unique hotdog sauce. Player: Bob, you’re a bit messed up really aren’t you. Bob: No, I just know what I like. Besides, it was a joke. Player: A joke? I doubt the dogs are laughing. Bob: What dogs? I have already rid this place of dogs. Have you ever seen one? Player: Yes actually. I heard there are a few wild dogs about here somewhere. Bob: Right!! Fellow cats prepare for war!!

The Cat Rulebook
Bob may instead tell the player a rule for cats to follow. These poke fun at the idiosyncratics common to housepet cats.


 * 1) Always act afraid around dogs, especially if you’re near a human. They will pick you up and fuss you, then shout at the dog. Most amusing.
 * 2) When assisting a human at work, make sure you sit behind its right leg. You stand a much better chance of getting picked up and stroked. Also, it's very amusing when they try to avoid you and smash themselves in the knee.
 * 3) If you ever make a mistake, which is rare and probably involves a dog, make sure you wash yourself immediately. This will give everyone the impression that it was done on purpose.
 * 4) Beware the bag monster. These things live in small bags under newspapers, sometimes hidden in shoes if they are clever. They will be very small and take the same colour as the hiding place. Attack these things on sight- stop at nothing. If you see a bag or shoe you have not inspected recently, pounce!!!

A Tail of Two Cats
During the quest, A Tail of Two Cats, players go on a journey to discover Bob's true lineage in order to impress another cat. During the adventure you find out that Bob is actually the reincarnation of of an ancient warrior, Robert the Strong, who defeated a Dragonkin at their castle.

Trivia
Some players confuse Evil Bob with Bob. Evil Bob has a distinctive coloured patch of fur on the left side of his face as well as red eyes.

Occasionally when Bob is in Lumbridge he will reminisce about gumbo that the old chefs used to make. As he describes it in Postbag from the Hedge #8, "There used to be whole bunches of chefs, crowded round a steaming gumbo pot, adding things and tasting as they go"… He also notes some of the beneficial effects of gumbo as well as the possibility that the recipe may be hidden somewhere.

Occasionally in Taverly, Bob will tell the player, "I'm here to study the druids. They're boring, but they know how to treat animals, and they don't go around bothering you just because they've got a silly gadget that lets them understand what you say!"

At level 71 construction a player can put an Icon of Bob in their chapel. Interestingly the face on the icon is neither that of Bob, who has green eyes, nor Evil Bob, who has red eyes. It is possible that the cat face portrayed on the Icon of Bob is representative of an real-life yellow-eyed cat named Bob.

When Bob says 'Cats have staff' he possibly means Jagex staff as it is rumoured that the in-game Bob was inspired by an actual office pet at Jagex.

When a player talks to Gertrude's cat, Fluffs, she mentions that the father of her kittens is adventurous. This is most likely a reference to Bob, making him the father of all player pet kittens. This is further supported by Bob's conversation with player's cats.

Bob was first sighted in RuneScape on a Friday the 13th in 2004.

Bob is cheating on Fluffs as he is going out with Neite, on the converse it is possible that Bob is cheating on Neite since he is apparently seeing Fluffs as well. Note however, that in the animal kingdom, monogamy is not common, and for most feline species Bob's behaviour would be normal.