Drakes in OSRS are powerful dragonlike monsters which can be difficult to kill and are sometimes assigned as a high level Slayer task. Despite the difficulty in killing them, drakes drop a number of useful items, and the drop rates of these items are higher on a Slayer task.
Some of these items include a guaranteed drop of drake bones, which give slightly more Prayer experience than dragon bones, and drake claws, as well as teeth. The claws are used to upgrade the boots of stone into the boots of brimstone, and the teeth upgrade the holy sandals into the devout boots.
The difficulty in killing drakes can also be mitigated through wearing the proper gear, using supplies like Prayer potions in an efficient manner, and knowledge of the drakes’ unique mechanics. I will explain everything you need to know in this OSRS Drake guide.
Requirements
The first explanation given in this Old School RuneScape drake guide regards the requirements to kill drakes. First, you need 84 Slayer to be given a drake task and to be able to damage the drakes in any way.
Second, you need access to Mount Karluum, which is the only location where drakes can be found. It’s on the continent of Great Kourend, which requires a few quests to fully unlock. You will need the boots of stone/brimstone, or granite boots to navigate the dungeon with drakes.
Fortunately, there is a Slayer Master very close to the dungeon entrance named Konar. You can buy the boots of stone from her by simply trading her. All the other Slayer Masters in the game also have the same inventory, but Konar is right next to the drakes’ location.
Third, you will need a number of stats to be able to fight drakes effectively. Of course, these stats depend on which attack type you want to use against the drakes. None are hard requirements, but fighting drakes will be drastically more difficult without these stats.
If using melee, you want at least 80 in all your melee stats: Attack, Defence, Strength, and Hitpoints. You should also have at least 70 Prayer in order to use Piety. If using Ranged, have at least 75 Ranged, and if using Magic, you want at least 85 Magic.
Location
Next, I will explain how to get to the drakes’ location in this OSRS drake guide. As mentioned above, they are located in the Mount Karluum slayer dungeon, which can be accessed via the elevator in the middle of the mountaintop settlement.
Be sure to bring your boots of stone/brimstone/granite boots, since you will take constant damage in this dungeon without them. If you have the Elite Kourend and Kebos Diary completed, you will not need these boots.
There are a number of ways to get to Mount Karluum. The easiest would be to simply use the fairy ring code CIR. This fairy ring is located right at the foot of the mountain. From there, simply walk up the mountain. If you have 62 Agility, you can take 2 shortcuts that cut this travel time.
Another method of getting to Mount Karluum is to use a skills necklace to teleport to the Farming Guild, then run north. Mount Karluum is just north of the Farming Guild, and you can take the two Agility shortcuts mentioned above.
A third way of getting to Mount Karluum is to use a Battlefront Teleport spell or tablet. This is an Arceuus spellbook spell requiring 23 Magic. From the teleport location, run northwest until you reach Mount Karluum.
Finally, if you have Rada’s Blessing 3 or 4, from the Kourend and Kebos Hard and Elite Diaries respectively, you can teleport directly to the top of Mount Karluum. Rada’s Blessing 3 allows 3 of these teleports per day, while Rada’s Blessing 4 allows unlimited teleports.
Mechanics
The third aspect I’ll explain in the Old School RuneScape drakes guide is the mechanics involved with fighting them. While the drakes only kind of breathe fire, they are considered draconic, meaning they are weak to the Dragon Hunter Lance and Dragon Hunter Crossbow.
Since drakes only kind of breathe fire, an anti-dragon shield or variant is not required to kill them. The only mechanic to be aware of is a special attack that drakes will launch after seven normal attacks.
The drakes will breathe a different looking fireball toward your position every seven attacks. If it hits you, they will deal four hits of 6-8 damage each. That being said, this move is easily avoidable, and just as easily negated.
First off, you can simply avoid this attack by moving at least one tile away when you see or hear it launched. This avoids all damage completely. Alternatively, you can mitigate the damage with dragonfire protection, like an anti-dragon shield.
The anti-dragon shield and its variants will only partially protect you from this attack. If you drink an antifire potion in combination with these equipment items, you will be fully protected from all this attack’s damage.
Moreover, if you drink a super antifire potion, you will be completely protected from this attack as well. Many players leverage this to bring a higher damage output item, such as a defender, in the shield slot or use a two-handed weapon like the toxic blowpipe.
If you combine the Protect from Missiles prayer with your chosen method of dealing with the fireball mechanic, you can mitigate the damage you take significantly. Protect from Missiles will fully block the drakes’ auto attacks, provided you stay out of melee distance.
Equipment Recommendations
The final explanation I’ll give in this OSRS drake guide is a number of equipment recommendations. Of course, the gear you should bring depends on the damage type you want to use.
Melee
If you choose to melee the drakes, simply bring your highest strength bonus gear to maximize your damage output. Usually, this means the Bandos chest plate and tassets, fire cape, and a berserker ring.
In terms of melee weapons, the dragon hunter lance is the best melee weapon to use against drakes. If you don’t have one, you can use the Ghrazi rapier, the blade of Saeldor, or an abyssal whip or tentacle.
In your shield slot, you’ll want the dragon defender, or the Avernic defender if you have it. Alternatively, you can save on super antifire potions by bringing an anti-dragon shield or its variants, and regular antifire potions.
Ranged
If you choose to use Ranged, the same basic principle applies: you want to bring your highest Range bonus gear to maximize your damage output. I would recommend using Ranged, since attacking from a distance makes it easier to avoid or negate the fireball damage.
Typically, this means bringing the Armadyl chest plate and chain skirt, with God dragonhide as an alternative. The drakes can be tedious to fight, so I wouldn’t recommend anything that degrades over time, such as Barrows gear.
Be sure to bring an archer’s ring and your best neck item, usually an amulet of fury or the necklace of anguish. Don’t forget your Ava’s item, as well! You will be using a lot of ammunition, so stretch it out as far as you can!
In terms of Ranged weapons, the dragon hunter crossbow is by far the best Ranged weapon to use against drakes. If you don’t have one, you can use the Armadyl, dragon, or rune crossbows without an issue.
You should be using the best ammunition your crossbow can handle, which are dragon bolts for dragon crossbows and above. Enchanted diamond dragon bolts are best since they can bypass the drakes’ high defensive stats when they proc.
Your options for the shield slot when using Ranged are somewhat limited. Since defenders only provide melee bonuses, your only real options are the dragonfire ward and the anti-dragon shield. Fortunately, you can save money by using regular antifire instead of super antifires.
Magic
If you choose to use Magic, the same rules are still applying: wear the gear that gives you the best damage output. This means the occult necklace and Ancestral robes are essential due to their percentage boosts to your Magic damage.
If you don’t have Ancestral, you will want to wear your highest tier mage armor, which is typically Ahrim’s. As mentioned above, drakes take a long time to kill, so degrading gear is not ideal. However, I recommend Ahrim’s here due to the lack of more viable options.
Be sure to wear a Seer’s ring, your god cape, and an occult necklace. You will also want to equip your Rada’s Blessing if you have one, or a god blessing if you don’t.
In terms of Magic weapons, the Shadow of Tumeken is one of the game’s highest damage output items, so bring that if you have one. If you don’t, I would recommend a trident of the swamp, or a trident of the seas.
If you don’t have a trident, you can bring an enchanted Slayer staff, or the upgraded Iban staff, though either of these weapons is not ideal. You will be fighting drakes for a long time with these weapons.
Just like with Ranged, your shield slot options with Magic are quite limited since defenders only provide melee bonuses. You only really have two options: the ancient wyvern shield, or the classic anti-dragon shield. In fact, the ancient wyvern shield counts as an anti-dragon shield.
Universal Equipment
There are also a few items that are essential to fighting drakes, regardless of the combat style you decide to use. For example, you want to be wearing your imbued Slayer Helm at all times, regardless of combat style.
It should go without saying that drakes should only be fought on a Slayer task, due to the slow speed of fighting them and their increased drop rates while on task. As long as you’re on a Slayer task, the Slayer Helm will speed up your kills significantly.
The setup of your actual inventory will look similar, also regardless of the combat style you choose to fight drakes with. You should bring a number of Prayer potions, along with the holy wrench. If you don’t want to collect the drake bones, bring the bonecrusher too.
You should also bring a herb sack if you have one since drakes drop a lot of herbs somewhat often. Finally, the rune pouch is a necessity as well. The runes inside depend on whether you are using Magic to fight drakes. If so, the runes for the combat spells you’re using should be in the pouch. If using melee or Ranged, the pouch should have fire and nature runes.
Final Thoughts
Drakes in OSRS can be quite tedious and difficult to kill, but they can be fun with the right equipment and knowledge of their mechanics. They’re located in the Mount Karluum dungeon, and shouldn’t be fought without a level of 75-80 in the respective combat skill.
You should wear you highest damage output gear for whichever combat style you use, and pay attention to the drakes’s special attack, which breathes four small fireballs at you every seven normal attacks.
This fireball special attack can be avoided by moving at least one tile, or completely negated via the use of anti-dragon equipment and potions. In fact, a super antifre potion can completely negate this attack, allowing you to use other items in the shield slot.
