Salutations, Neoxians!

Another big thing on our list of tasks before pushing through with the GIM update was to build upon as many of the original systems of the game as possible, which leads us into this update. Within these notes, we’ll be touching base on the 5 newly introduced Distractions and Diversions (D&Ds) that’ll be making their way into our lovely project, alongside the many spicy rewards and unlocks that will come with them!

Straight out of the research department and onto the production line, we’ll be needing guinea pi- volunteers for further testing, and so we’ll leave them in your hands.

Thanks,

Neox D&D Branch

New D&DS | Overview

In the following several sections, we’ll outline what members can expect to be found within these new D&Ds, touching base on the event mechanics and going over the reward unlocks for each! These D&Ds will be bringing in a large amount of new items into the game, some being used to upgrade pre-existing items to be even stronger, so we’ll be sure to keep a careful eye on the overall balance and feeling of them and make any necessary adjustments. In the long term, it’s within our goal to cover the bases of every skill in the game, alongside many numerous unique sort of activities, and this is the next large step towards meeting that goal.

It’s worth noting as well that where applicable, all new D&Ds will fluidly scale with the amount of players participating. As an example, in both of the Escaped Experiments and Giant Ent events, the involved encounters will gain more health points with each player contributing.

• The Queen’s Garden - The queen needs your help in tending to her garden!
• Abyssal Rift - A mysterious phenomenon has arisen, will you investigate?
• Escaped Experiments - Chaos has erupte, and Duradel's experiments have escaped!
• Rellekka Workshop - Crucial armaments are in need of repairs.
• Giant Ent - A colossel Ent has emerged, will you help to cut it down?
• Not-So-Minor Endnote - A spicy, highly request addition is coming through with this update!

Use the above directory to quickly navigate to any of the sections to learn more about each new D&D!

New D&Ds | The Queen's Garden

Located within the Varrock Palace Garden, members will answer the call to assist Queen Ellamaria! Within this event, they’ll be sent to and from, helping to grow the various crops the Queen so direly needs assistance with. Occasionally, she’ll call out one of the patches that needs to be specifically focused on, which will in turn grant double progress being made (not to worry, as this patch will also be indicated by a different health bar color).

This would go by much quicker if I'd gotten some help!

Thankfully, outside of general fashion concerns, of course, members don’t need to worry about whatever equipment they have on during this event as there’s no risk of taking damage, nor combat requirements (skillers rejoice)! Once the patches have come to be fully grown, the event will end and members will be able to claim a reward bag, which will contain rewards based on how much was contributed by them.

The Queen’s Garden | Rewards

After completion of the event, and based on the member’s contribution level, they’ll receive a reward bag that can be opened for a variety of goodies! Containing numerous seeds, compost, and other common farming essentials, there’s also the chance at receiving the unique items mentioned below:

- Instagrow Mix (Basic)

Able to be used on a farming patch to grow it instantly! This basic version can be used on any patch except for tree patches.

- Instagrow Mix (Strong)

Able to be used on a farming patch to grow it instantly! This strong version can be used on any patch, including trees.

- Botanist's Gloves

With these gloves equipped, herbs are automatically cleaned when picked from a herb patch; with the respective herblore experience also being given. Additionally, these gloves allow the player to pick one more produce per action (similar to the farming outfit/cape perk, basically just allowing them to pick herbs quicker).

New D&D | Abyssal Rift

A mysterious phenomenon has arisen as rifts begin to tear open near Runecrafting altars, unleashing chaotic energies into the world! Within this event, members are urgently needed to help siphon these volatile energies before they wreak havoc on the land. Once the energy has been fully drained, tears will appear, where members will be able to quickly close them and deal damage to the abyssal rift!

As a coool bit of speed tech, if you’re fast enough you can click all the tears in the same game tick as they are not tied to a player action. Multiple players can click the same tear and all gain credit for clicking it!

Such technique and grace with the clicks! Woaaah!

Once the Abyssal Rift has been closed, it will die and drop some Abyssal Pearls! These Pearls can then be used to purchase rewards from Apprentice Felix, located on the second floor of the Wizard’s Tower.

Abyssal Rift | Rewards

Once members have completed the event and picked the Abyssal Pearl drop up, they’re able to trade with Apprentice Felix to purchase a large variety of new items geared towards heavily improving upon the Runecrafting experience as a whole! Additionally, contrary to their familiar counterparts, we’ve removed the necessary stat restrictions from these items so that members may be able to use them immediately.

/ / / - Robes of the Eye

Each piece of this outfit increases the amount of runes crafted by 15%. Additionally, you can use a tiara on the hat to attune it to that specific rune, allowing you to use the hat instead of the required tiara in order to enter an altar.

- Abyssal Lantern

The Abyssal Lantern is an off-hand item that will be charged with Abyssal Pearls, allowing members to teleport directly to the inner ring when entering the abyss. One charge is consumed when this happens. It also functions as a light source and you can use logs on it to change the appearance of the fire.

- Abyssal Needle

Used on an essence pouch to increase its capacity by 10; acts as a permanent, one-time upgrade.

- Amulet of the Eye

When crafting runes with this amulet equipped, it will reduce the cooldown of the Crystal of Memories by 0.6 seconds for each 3 essences crafted.

- Pure Essence x75

We probably don’t have to spell out the purpose of Rune Essence by now, however it will be available in this shop for purchase in stacks of 75.

/ / - Various Dyes

Used on either the robes or the amulet to change their appearance! These dyes are purely cosmetic, so fashionscape enthusiasts rejoice.

- Blood Essence

A previously existing item within osrs, however we’ve modified its original purpose to instead guarantee the crafting of additional blood runes once activated and kept within the inventory; contains 1,000 charges.

- Soul Essence

A custom item and variant of the Blood Essence, the soul Essence will serve the same purpose except its effects will be had on Soul runes.

New D&D | Escaped Experiments

Chaos has erupted! Duradel’s top secret experiments have broken free, threatening the safety of the lands as we know it. The slayer master urgently calls upon members to assist in “containing” them through acts of… well, you need to come and kill them! This event has a chance to spawn either outside of the Slayer Tower or the Fremennik Slayer Dungeon. The monsters found within will be variants of regular and superior slayer monsters with there being 3 different tiers; the lower 2 tiers don’t have any special attacks, however the strongest tier monsters will have some basic area-of-effect attacks.

Editor’s note: Pray anti-mage when you show up here, I nearly got one hit. :<

Thankfully, members won’t have to worry about their slayer level nor specialized gear when showing up (such as a nosepeg or mirror shield), just simply wear your best combat gear and be ready for a fight! It is worth nothing, however, that a completed Slayer Helmet will provide its additional combat bonuses within this event, so if you have one, it’s definitely worth bringing along.

Very spooky! What in the heck has Duradel been up to?

Once all of the monsters have been defeated, Duradel will thank you for your assistance and be on his way. This guy sure is something else.

Escaped Experiments | Rewards

Killing the various experiments during this event will net players traditional slayer monster drops, including dragon items, consumables, and voucher points! Additionally, this event has a chance to drop an exceptionally strong, one-time permanent upgrade:

- Experimented Gem

Can be combined with a Slayer Helmet to increase its damage and accuracy bonuses to 20%; this is a permanent, one-time upgrade.

New D&D | Rellekka Workshop

Crucial shipments of arms continue to arrive within Rellekka in desperate need of repairs and the locals are no longer able to keep up workflow! With the project being overseen by non other than Koschei, anyone who’s willing and able to handle the fierce heat from the flames will be rightfully rewarded for their efforts!

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger!

Members will be required to take the broken armaments from the supply crate, heat them to a workable temperature within the furnace, refine them on the anvil, and then deposit them within the shipping crate where they will then paid in gold pieces!

Rellekka Workshop | Rewards

Although the fine people of Rellekka are… mostly… good at heart, they’re not the most well off! They’ll do their best to reward you with what they’ve got, and what they’ve got is coins! For each armament repaired, members will receive coins deposited directly into their inventories. Efficient!

- Coins

It’s coins.

Oh, and of course you get Smithing experience! Who doesn’t love that.

New D&D | Giant Ent

A colossal Ent has emerged from the depths of the forests, threatening the tranquility of our world as we know it! Members are called upon to battle this formidable foe, with axe in hand (and tinderbox in inventory), in order to bring it down and restore the balance. As members engage with the Ent, they’ll be required to chop it in order to do damage; at specific HP thresholds, the Ent will become hardened. In this state, it cannot be chopped and instead members will have to set its roots ablaze, lowering its defense, and once broken will be able to resume attacking it.

Everything is fine.

The Ent has two different attacks: A ground-targeted projectile that causes vines in a “+” shape to appear, damaging anyone they touch; a player-targeted attack, where the Ent will choose a player at random and root them, where after a delay any other players near the chosen player will have thorn projectiles fired at them (this player will be tinted green so other player know who to get away from).

The second attack, the locking mechanic, will not happen if there’s only one player nearby.

Giant Ent | Rewards

Once the Ent has been defeated, it will drop Anime-Infused Bark, which can be exchanged with Woods (who can be found in the area where the Ent is, or alternatively in Lumbridge) for all kinds of woodcutting related items. Woods will sell Rune and Dragon Axes, a whole variety of Birds Nests, and the Forestry Outfit.

/ / / - Forestry Outfit

Each piece of this outfit will provide a +3% chance to chop double logs, a +15% chance to find bird nests when Woodcutting, and a +25% Woodcutting efficiency (Woodcutting efficiency reduces the chance of trees falling when you chop from them).

It’s also worth noting that this outfit gives you minus fashionscape points.

Not-So-Minor Endnote

As a not-so-minor endnote, we’d wanted to mention that alongside the introduction of these new D&Ds, we’re also introducing a standalone item that will allow for members to initiate their very own public instance of each event! This item will be located in the credit store, the loyalty shop, and the dust exchange.

Once a member has picked this ticket up, simply speak with the D&D Announcer with the ticket in your inventory and they’ll be presented with the option to start any D&D of their choice! Pretty nifty.

Such a lively fellow he is, and what a way to impress your friends!

Patch Summary

Below will outline all changes found within this patch. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to share feedback within our Community Discord.

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Features

The new D&Ds introduced with this update have been added to the regular D&D rotation.
Added a ‘Distractions & Diversions’ category to the collection log. It contains items that are exclusively obtained from D&Ds.
Added 17 new tasks, mostly related to the new D&Ds.
A new Master tier task that requires 100 D&D completions has been added, so the task that requires completing 50 D&Ds has been reduced from Master to Elite tier, and the task that requires 10 D&D completions has been reduced from Elite to Hard tier.
- The silver ‘the Distracted’ title now requires 25 D&D completions, rather than 1.
- The golden ‘the Distracted’ title now requires 100 D&D completions, rather than 50.
- The Completionist achievement requirement has not been changed, still only requiring the 50 completions task, not 100.
Added a new achievement, Thoroughly Distracted, which requires completing all D&D tasks. Rewards a new title.
Added a new weekly challenge for completing 7 D&Ds.
Added D&D tickets, available from the credits store, loyalty store and dust exchange. Talk to the D&D announcer with this item in your inventory to be given the option to start any D&D of your choice.