Roadmap Check In: May

Spring is in full swing, and RuneScape is bursting with activity! The Blooming Burrow is abuzz with beekeepers, while Pharaoh’s Folly turns up the heat in Menaphos as players prepare for the final showdown with Amascut later this year. With the excitement of RuneFest now behind us, we’re hitting the ground running with fresh energy and plenty to look forward to in the coming weeks.

From seasonal adventures to long-term improvements, we want to keep you in the loop on things coming your way. One key highlight is our upcoming Game Health Update, which will introduce balance changes to the Elder God Wars bosses loot tables. These tweaks aim to reduce their overall impact on the in-game economy, and take an important step to protecting the long term economy of the game.

These behind-the-scenes updates may not always steal the spotlight, but they’re essential to ensuring a smoother, more rewarding experience for all. So whether you’re diving into the festive fun or eager for system improvements, we’ve got you covered.

Stay tuned—there’s plenty more to come.

RuneScape Updates & Events - April - May

• Out Now: Blooming Burrow (available till May 5th)
• Out Now: Duck Quest
• Out Now: Return to the Desert: Pharaoh's Folly
• April 22nd: GameJam
• May 12th: Augmented Runecrafting & Thieving
• May 12th: Game Health Update
• May 16th: Double XP

Find out more about these content releases further down the post!

Augmented Runecrafting & Thieving

New perks, components, and two brand-new skilling main-hands for Runecrafting and Thieving are coming to the Invention Guild on May 12!

This update—formerly known as Skilling Profitability—is all about empowering skilling-focused players with fresh tools and opportunities. Whether you're a seasoned artisan or just looking to turn your talents into long-term profit, these additions aim to breathe new life into your favourite non-combat activities. We will talk more about this update in a prelaunch blog the week before the update.

Game Health Update - Elder God Wars/Raksha + Wilderness Flash Events

When we first began exploring an update focused specifically on profitability, we took a step back to evaluate the broader state of RuneScape’s economy. While we’re always keeping an eye on the ebb and flow of wealth generation across the game, one trend has become increasingly clear: the Elder God Wars bosses are a significant outlier, particularly when it comes to their common loot pools. Their consistent value has raised the bar for bossing revenue and as a result, we’ll be making targeted adjustments to some of these loot tables on May 12.

We know that economic changes like this aren’t always welcome news. But these kinds of updates are vital for the long-term health and sustainability of the game. We're focused on creating a balanced, rewarding experience for everyone, and that means addressing areas where systems are no longer functioning as intended.

We will be listing all of these changes ahead of the launch but to give a general idea of what is impacted :

• Ongoing Balance Efforts - This is not a one-time change, but part of a continuous initiative. We're actively assessing the economic impact of various systems and making adjustments to support long-term sustainability and overall game health.
• It's no surprise that nerfs are rarely welcomed, and we've historically been cautious about making direct changes. However, this can lead to challenges when intervention is needed. Despite the belated short-term discomfort, we believe these adjustments are crucial for the long-term well-being of the game.
• Negative changes will exclusively impact common drops, not rare/unique drops.
• Some rare drop rates have been buffed slightly.
• In-game inflation has been a long-standing issue, largely driven by alchables and common boss drops—areas we aim to address with these changes.
• The value of certain items, like skilling supplies, has been heavily impacted due to previous balancing decisions. These changes aim to curb supply slightly, giving prices a chance to gradually recover.
• This update will impact the following bosses
• Arch Glacor
• Normal - Lower the amount of loot drops when doing less mechanics, reduced the loot multiplier scaling per mechanics & reduced charm drops. ( approx value -45% to 60%)
• Hard - Reduced the average quantity of common loot drops. ( approx reduction 10% to 30%)
• Normal Arch Glacor mechanic scaling had been overly generous for where its difficulty had ended up.
• Kerapac
• Normal - Reduced the average quantity of common loot drops. ( approx reduction 30% to 35%)
• Hard - Reduced the average quantity of common loot drops. ( approx reduction 8% to 10%)
• Zamorak
• Reduced the average quantity of common loot drops. ( approx reduction 50% to 60%)
• Zamorak's original drop balancing had always included a full run of the dungeon and without it is far more generous then intended.
• Zamorkian Undercity
• Reduction in Salvage quantity ( approx reduction 50% specifically on salvage drops)
• Wilderness Flash Events reward bags.
• Reduction in Salvage, Bones, Ashes, Magic Logs, Bakriminel Bolts quantities
• Replaced necronium salvage with orikalkum salvage.  
• Slightly improved chance for Dark Onyx Core, Weapons & Brawlers gloves
• Raksha
• Replace Spirit Weed/Golden dragonfruit with Arbuck & Ciku Seed
• Reduced the average quantity of salvage loot drops.
• Reduced the average quantity of other common loot drops.
• Zuk (minions)
• Reduced the average quantity of Onyx Bolt and salvage drops.

Double XP

Double XP is the perfect chance to smash your goals and make serious progress! Whether you're gearing up for 110 Crafting or leveling up to tackle the next Desert quest ahead of your showdown with Amascut, this is your moment.

The event kicks off on May 16th and runs until May 26th, giving you 48 hours of Double XP game time to use however you like over 10 days. Let the gains begin!

Return to the Desert: Pharaoh's Folly

The Golden City of Menaphos is rotting from within. In the aftermath of Beneath Scabaras’ Sands, you've uncovered Osman’s sinister plot—staging an attack on his own people to tighten his grip on power. Now, with tensions rising and Amascut’s shadow looming, it’s time to take action.

Join Leela just outside the gates of Menaphos and step into Pharaoh’s Folly, the penultimate quest in the Desert series. This pivotal chapter sets the stage for the epic finale later this year, where you'll confront the Goddess of Destruction herself.

Ready to jump in? Good news: the Menaphos Reputation grind is no longer required to access certain prerequisite quests—so there’s nothing holding you back.

Blooming Burrow & Duck Quest

Spring has arrived in Gielinor, and with it comes not one, but two delightfully charming adventures!

First, embark on Duck Quest—a brand-new, permanent Free-to-Play journey that begins with a simple mission to reunite a lost duckling with her family… only to lead you to Paddlington, a hidden duck sanctuary full of waddling wonders and cozy surprises.

Then from April 14th to May 5th, hop back into the beautifully blossoming Easter hub—the Blooming Burrow! This year’s event is bursting with seasonal cheer, chocolatey fun, and two all-new skilling activities: get busy with buzzing Beekeeping, or put your reflexes to the test in the fast-paced thrills of Carrot Boating.

Gamejam

Game Jam is a special time when our J-Mods come together to explore passion projects, let their creativity fly, and bring fresh ideas to life—often inspired by community feedback. Whether it’s brand-new content, long-requested fixes, or experimental updates, Game Jam is where innovation begins. Past projects like the recent Duck Quest and the Shooting Star rework both began life during these creative sprints!

Our next Game Jam is underway from the 22nd of April until the 2nd of May, and we can’t wait to see what exciting ideas begin their journey this time around.

Thanks for reading! We have more content and updates in the pipelines but we just wanted to get some additional info out to players ahead of May!

- The RuneScape Team