In OSRS, ranged is one of the strongest and most used combat skills. It is also the fastest combat skill to train of the three different combat styles, thanks to the use of chinchompas in multicombat. Ranged progression is important, particularly if you want to get into high-level bossing and PVM.
Best Ranged Gear by level in OSRS
As you progress to higher levels, this will unlock new armour and weapons that can be used for training ranged. Upgrading as and when you can (budget dependant) is very important. As it increases your damage output, making monsters die faster. Meaning that you gain exp and money faster in whatever you’re doing. Below is an outlined gear progression for players using ranged combat.
Level 1 – 20 Ranged
- Leather armour
- Combat Bracelet
- Iron Knives
- Amulet of Glory
- Iron Knives
At these low levels there are not a lot of options, and you will likely be working with a tight budget anyway. Iron Knives are the best weapon due to their fast rate of attacks. If you have the ability to get a dwarven multicannon and use it, this will speed up the early levels significantly.
Level 20 – 30 Ranged
- Studded leather armour (20 Defence)
- Amulet of Glory or Fury
- Mithril Gloves
- Frog Leather Boots
- Mithril Knives
Upgrade your knives to mithril, along with studded leather armour. If possible you can unlock the mithril gloves from the recipe for disaster pre-quests. These are a significant boost to your range bonuses.
Level 30 – 40 Ranged
- Maple Shortbow (steel arrows or better)
- Snakeskin armour (30+ Defence)
- Amulet of Glory or Fury
From level 30 onwards, grab a maple shortbow with the best arrows you can afford. Snakeskin armour is good to get if you also have the defence level to use it. An Amulet of fury can be a worthwhile investment towards the best ranged necklaces, but a glory is fine too.
Level 40+ Ranged
- Dragonhide armour (highest tier you can wear)
- Rune Crossbow or Magic Shortbow
- Ranger boots or snakeskin boots
- Ava’s accumulator
When you reach level 40 range, get green dragonhide armour and as you progress through the levels, upgrade to the next best dragonhide armour. Rune Crossbow can be used at level 40 and the Magic Shortbow from level 50 onwards. Use the best ammunition you can get for your budget. You should have also unlocked the Ava’s accumulator by now which will help save the majority of your ammunition. Players on big budgets can buy the ranger boots, as they are the best ranged boots available. However, they do not offer any significant damage increases, so they’re not too important.
Level 70+ Ranged
- Black or blessed d’hide armour (40+ defence)
- Dragon Crossbow, Armadyl Crossbow or Magic Shortbow
- Barrows Gloves
- Ava’s accumulator or assembler
- Archers Ring (i) or Lightbearers Ring
At level 70 you can upgrade to black d’hide armour or its bless d’hide alternative. Dragon Crossbow can be bought, or for those with a large bank, an armadyl crossbow can be used. Alternatively, the magic shortbow can still be an effective weapon until 75 ranged. Players should now have acquired the barrows gloves too, which are one of the best range gloves.
Level 75+ Ranged
- Masori armour set (70+ Defence)
- Pegasian Boots (75+ Defence)
- Necklace of Anguish
- Toxic Blowpipe or Twisted Bow
- Venator’s Ring
- Zaryte Vambraces
- Avas Assembler
When reaching level 75 players will want to buy the Toxic Blowpipe, this is one of the strongest weapons in OSRS. While it can be costly to use it is worth it, specifically for bossing and high-level pvm. Additionally, if you have the money to invest the Twisted Bow is an amazing item for bossing.
After the weapons have been bought, players can look to armour improvements such as masori and the zaryte vambraces. The Dragon Hunter Crossbow can also be a good item to buy for niche scenarios.
Best in Slot Ranged Gear
Below is an example of the best in slot ranged gear. One example for the blowpipe and twisted bow setup.
Ranged Strength Vs Ranged Accuracy
It’s important to know exactly what you’re buying when you look at a specific item’s stats. This helps you know what is worth the money and what isn’t when it comes to progression and upgrades. When customising your gear setup you always want to put a high weighting to items that increase ranged strength, as this increases max hits. Items that increase ranged accuracy are way less significant. As most monsters in OSRS already have relatively low defence.
More Gear Progression Guides
OSRS Melee Gear Progression
OSRS Magic Gear Progression
