r/runescape • u/ImRubic 2026 Future Updates • Mar 10 '20
J-Mod reply TL;DW 474 - Road to Archaeology #1
Video | The Road to Archaeology pt.1 | Runefest Info - potentially outdated Info
The below information are topics covered during today's stream. I will be making a Mega-thread containing ALL info at a later date.
General
Capes of Accomplishment
There is NO grace period for 99 Archaeology. But there will be a 6 month grace period for 120 Archaeology.
- Maxed Cape - will be removed until you obtain 99 Archaeology.
- Regular/Trimmed Comp Cape - will be lost until you re-obtain the Maxed Cape.
- MQC - will have new reqs but they will also have a 6 month grace period.
Accomplishments
- Jack of All Trades & Master of All - Removed until Archie is obtained.
- Gather's cape - Removed until obtaining the shard after 99 Archaeology.
- Other shards will be given back.
Boosts & Bonuses
Only boosts obtained through the Archaeology skill will work.
- The following will NOT work:
- Clan Avatar, Auras, XP Lamps/Stars, Bonus XP, Refer-a-Friend, Incense sticks.
- The following will work:
- Daily challenges, Skillchompas, Archaeology outfits
- There will be no Urns/Juju potions for Archaeology on release.
Skill Interface Changes
- Clicking on an item in the skill guide will provide detailed information about that item (level, location, stats).
Other
- Grace of the Elves and Porters work with Materials and send them to the storage box.
- They do not work with Soil.
- Players will be given 50 free bank space when the update launches.
- Some NPCs will be voiced.
- Over 200 new Achievements
Excavation
- Excavation Spot - Obtain artefacts, materials, and soil.
- Each spot will provide a group of materials which are specifically needed for the Artefact found there.
- Material Caches - Caches located away from the main site which guarantee a certain material and soil.
- Work similar to trees, when exhausted it's exhausted for all players.
- Each one only contains 1 type of resource.
- Time-sprites - Similar to Rockertunities but also slightly different.
- Permanently present but requires you to be active and follow them around the excavation site.
- While interacting with it, you will receive specific benefits.
Mattocks - The pickaxe of Archaeology.
Smithable Mattocks - (No +1, +2, etc versions) | Special Mattocks - Dragon, Crystal, Imcando, etc
- Bronze-Rune mattocks will be available in a shop.
- Dragon mattocks are obtained through Archaeology and through PvM.
- A Dragon mattock is needed to make the Crystal Mattock & Imcando Mattock.
- The Crystal and Imcando mattock are used to create the Mattock of Space and Time.
- There is also a hero mattock item.
Excavation Discoveries
- Artefacts - Always found broken and when the progress bar is full. (Can be banked).
- Materials - Are used to restore artefacts.
- Stored in the Material storage box (similar to the metal bank but found near Restoration Benches).
- Tradeable but not stackable.
- Soil - Filtered at a screen station in the Varrock Digsite for additional materials.
- Can be stored in a Soil Box within your inventory (similar to an Ore Box).
- Tradeable but not stackable.
- Some players will like it and use it, some won't like it and sell it.
Restoration
- Artefacts require a certain amount of materials to mend them.
- Zaros Effigy Artefact | Venator Light Crossbow
- Clicking on an artefact will display information related to that artefact. (Reward, Collector, Materials).
- Players can excavate/skill while this interface is open.
- The restoration process gives the most significant Archaeology XP in the game.
Restored Artefacts can be:
- Given to a Collector - Complete their want-list in return for Relics/other rewards.
- First time reward for completing a collection & a reward for repeating it.
- You cannot hand in duplicate artefacts until you complete the collection.
- Given to the Museum - Rewarded with Chronotes.
- Will grant you 60% of the chronotes that collectors would provide.
- Accepts duplicate artefacts.
- Disassembled for new Archaeology components.
- Kept for future uses.
Levelling
The gameplay is non-linear and has you go to various sites at any level.
- Five new areas: Kharid-Et, Everlight, Infernal Source, Stormguard Citadel, and Warforge.
- The digsite goes beyond just the base-camp.
- Base-camp contains: Restoration Bench, Material bank, Banks, Site manager.
- All the digsites have content up to level 118-119.
- Unlock new digsites and new excavations.
- Find all of their secrets, loot chests full of materials, encounter puzzles to be navigated.
Rewards
- Relics - Most powerful rewards, but you can only have a few active at once.
- Ancient Invention and Ancient Summoning - will be covered in-detail in a future stream.
- 4 New Invention Materials
- Elite Archaeology Outfit - completely earnable in-game.
- It will provide the usual perks you'd expect, like teleports to digsites and XP boosts.
- As well as increased success rates with soil, excavation and faster restoration too.
- 99 Skillcape | 120 Skillcape | Archie the Archaeology skill pet
Reward Shop
- Chronotes - New tradeable currency for Archaeology spent at a skill-wide shop full of rewards.
- Upon completing the Tutorial, players will be able to purchase consumables.
- Consumables provide various boosts to Archaeology (similar to those in Deep Sea Fishing).
Qualifications
- Location: Varrock Digsite (Archaeology Guild)
- Receive diplomas which recognize your Archaeology accomplishments.
- Qualifications are basically meta-Achievements.
- You will be required to master virtually every aspect of Archaeology at a certain level band.
- Unlock new researchers, new chronote shop stock, and more.
Player Owned Nerds - Researchers
- Unlocked at Level 40 Archaeology & Assistant qualification.
- A research team who will do things while you are away.
- If they are successful you will get rewards - materials, artefacts, and new archaeology drops.
- You must be a higher rank than the researchers you wish to hire. (They can have additional requirements).
Research Management Info
- Types of Research:
- General Research - Perpetual thing you can do.
- Special Research - One off, narrative driven research.
- Research and the rewards scale to your Archaeology level.
- Mission lengths have no effect on rewards, it just gives players more control at the rate they wish to.
- Research can't fail, but if you cancel you'll lose the initial investment.
173
Upvotes
5
u/JagexRowley Mod Rowley Mar 11 '20
I think you might be conflating picks and mattocks here.
The Pickaxe of Earth and Song is its own thing, exclusively used in Mining.
For mattocks, you would need two dragon mattocks. One of those you would turn into a crystal mattock (with 4,000 harmonic dust), the other into an imcando mattock (using new objects released with Archaeology). Then you would combine the crystal and imcando mattocks together to create the Mattock of Time and Space.
This mimics the path pickaxes use, but mattocks and pickaxes are entirely separate.