The East Ardounge Mine Map has been updated! Thanks Brenden for the map!

The Dwarven Mines Map has also been updated! Thanks Inaithnir for the map!

-= DRAVAN =-

We apologize for the down time on the Forum and issues with the site yesterday and this morning. We were experiencing database server issues and had to wait to talk to the support techs this morning to resolve it.

The forum is back up and working properly now.

We have also put in place measures to hopefully prevent this from happening again.

We thank you for your patience and continued support when we have issues of this nature.

~MrStormy~

The Enakhra's Lament Quest Guide has been uploaded! Thank you The Peleton, Lord576, and everyone else who helped with it!

~ [Im4eversmart] ~

The Mage Training Arena mini-game guide is up! Everyone thank Inaithnir and all the others for creating it!

--samwilliamh--

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

23 January 2006 - Enakhra's Lament

Continuing with the sand theme for this month, we have a quest featuring camel amulets, mysterious ancient temples and a chance to show off those magic skills you've been training up recently.

A shifty, sunburnt sculptor called Lazim wants your help to build a statue in the desert south of the Bandit Camp. Does his choice of location have something to do with the ruins nearby, and why does he react so oddly to the mention of camels?

Use your cunning and experience to delve into RuneScape's hidden past, and discover the reason for Enakhra's Lament.

~ [Im4eversmart] ~

The Al Kharid City Guide and The Edgeville City Guide have been uploaded! Thank you Hampster_Hat for these 2 great guides!

And while we are all admiring his work, don't forget congratulating him with his Birthday!

~Fireball0236

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

19 January 2006 - Agility Pyramid tweaks

We have made some changes to the way the Agility Pyramid works.

As of now, if you attempt to travel backwards over an obstacle, you will always fail it regardless of your agility level. (If you fall down by trying to go backwards you will now only take minimal damage.) This was necessary to stop players from taking advantage of an oversight where it was possible to gain a better rate of XP by simply traversing back and forth over certain obstacles rather than attempting to get to the top.

On Monday we were forced to alter the XP rates for the affected obstacles; the original higher XP rates for all the obstacles have now been reinstated. You will now gain exactly the same XP from the pyramid as you did when it was initially released, and as a useful side effect it will be a lot easier to give up and escape the pyramid if you find yourself running low on food or water.

Over 15000 RuneScape accounts banned for cheating

We have just banned over 15000 accounts from the main RuneScape game for breaking rule 7, and attempting to use software to play the game automatically for them.

We can detect this type of cheating VERY easily. Suprisingly some people seem to think they can get away with this, but we're making absolutely sure you can't.

As well as having new systems to detect people cheating in this way, we are also using a new system to go through and ban other accounts used by these cheats, so they can't just cheat on a 'throwaway' account they don't care about, and expect their other accounts to be unaffected.

We will not let cheats spoil our game for everyone else. It's just not fair on our millions of legitimate players to let a selfish few try and spoil the game for everyone else.

~Fireball0236

The Draynor Sewer Map has been given a facelift. Thanks Inaithnir for the great work!

The Karamja Volcano Map has been given a new look. Thanks Shinraz for another great map!

The Champs Guild Basement has been loaded. Thanks sccerluk9 for this map!

-= DRAVAN =-

The Agility Skill Guide has been updated with a new section all about the new Agility Pyramid! Thanks everyone for submitting all the new information so quickly!

The Sophanem Pyramid has been loaded. Along with the Pixie Workshop, Christmas 2005 Thanks greatgecko for these long awaited maps!

~ [Im4eversmart] ~ and -= DRAVAN =-

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

16 January 2006 - Update servers currently quite busy.

Some of our update servers are currently running at capacity, as this weeks update is particular large.

If you get a 'download server full' message then please simply try using a world at a different location, and you should then be able to play ok.

Trying a different world somewhere else, rather than trying the same world again is the best way to quickly get into the game.

We are also taking steps to improve our update architecture, so future updates load more quickly.

Problem with trimmed skirts

Following this afternoon's update, players have reported that trimmed armoured skirts no longer appear to have any trim when worn by females.

This bug will be fixed tomorrow. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by the error.

Agility Pyramid

A recent sandstorm has uncovered an ancient pyramid between Sophanem and Nardah. Thousands of years under the sand have taken their toll on the construction, but those daring enough to make the dangerous ascent to the top will find riches waiting for them.

In this agility update you will make your way to the top of a pyramid by jumping gaps, balancing on planks, dodging moving walls and much more. Complete the course for an agility bonus and to find an ancient treasure.

This course has an entry requirement of level 30 agility. To find it, move due east from the Crocodile pond north of Sophanem, running past the Wanderer's tent until you see the pyramid. Talk to Simon when you get there!

We have also made some slight tweaks to Doric's Quest. Much like with our area improvements last year on Lumbridge and Port Sarim, new graphics and slight gameplay alterations will be added to improve the general feel of the quest. More quests will follow shortly. This will not change any of the rewards, so don't worry, you won't be missing out.

Now that the Mage Training Arena has been available for a couple of weeks, we've updated the website with information about its features and the rewards you can earn there.

~Fireball0236

Mark your calendars for the January Runehq Event:

Happy Newb Year!



One man's Trash is another man's Treasure. Clear your bank with this Trash to Treasure event. Dig through the seemingly useless junk and you will perhaps find something worth far more than you think!



After the trash is all gone and the treasures banked, stow your belongings and return to your origins by donning Bronze armor and weaponry and participating in the Second Annual Bronze War. The RHQES must insist that you only wear and wield bronze with NOTHING important to you in your inventory. Anyone losing important items will NOT be recompensated. This Bronze War is for fun and a little combat xp and will take place in the WILD. Do not bring anything but Bronze, which is easily replaced and not valuable.



After the last man standing is rewarded, there will be live quest help in Varrock square by members of the RHQES staff.



For members out there, once the War is over, switch to world 79 for a member's only Trash to Treasure followed by Last Man Standing in the Fight Pits.



Donations are being accepted for treasure items.



Please check the announcements forum for details of the event's date and time.



See you all there!

Runehq Events Staff

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

12 January 2006 - Nearly 5000 RS-classic accounts banned

As regular classic players will know the classic game was being seriously spoilt by players breaking rule 7. We won't let cheats spoil our games, so we are currently permanently banning nearly 5000 accounts which our system has flagged as using macro software in breach of our rules. RS-classic will be brought back online once that operation is complete.

We recommend all players make sure they are aware of our rules, which are there to keep the game enjoyable for our millions of players. We simply won't let a small minority spoil the game for everyone else. If you don't know the rules already then please make sure you Read them here!

As you know our focus these days is on the main RuneScape game which is far more advanced than RS-classic. The main reason we are keeping RS-classic online at all is to support some of our loyal players who have been with us for years and want to play the old version of the game they are used to. We've therefore decided the best way to stop the cheats just creating new accounts to cause trouble in RS-classic all over again, whilst still supporting the loyal players who have been playing RS-classic fairly for years, is to close RS-classic to new accounts. As such only accounts which have played RS-classic at least once in the last 6 months (since it went members only on August 3rd 2005) will be able to do so from now on. This allows the currently active players of RS-classic to continue playing, whilst keeping out the cheats trying to spoil it.

If you attempt to log into RS-Classic and haven't played since August 3rd then you will receive a login error message.

The latest and greatest version of RuneScape - which 99% of our players use - of course remains open to everyone (except rule breakers). It has much better anti-cheat technology and we will also be taking a strong stance against rule-breakers in the current version of the game, but without the need to restrict account signups.

~ [Im4eversmart] ~

The RuneHQ Forums are back up but everyone needs to take some measures to make sure their PC and forum account are secure.


Due to a vulnerability in the forum, a hacker was able to gain access to peoples accounts via a javascript pm or post. We have applied a patch to the forum that has fixed the problem and stress that all users change their password immediately, then clear their browser's cookies.

We caught this problem very quickly and stress that there was very minimal damage done.

*~*Weezyrowe*~*

The Hand in the Sand Quest Guide is up! Thank you Motion Man, Shinraz, and everyone else who helped with it!

~ [Im4eversmart] ~

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

10 January 2006 - The Hand in the Sand

Finally! The answer to a conundrum that has confounded the best minds in the lands - how do the sand pits stay full? Of course the other question is: whose severed hand is that? Find out with the help of Bert the sand pit worker and his friends in a strange and funny tale of murder, mystery, bad puns and sand. Use your crafty skills in more than one way to gain rewards in both the crafty arts - thieving and crafting! You can also earn Bert's gratitude and a lifetime's supply of sand!

Mage Training Arena changes

After reviewing some player feedback we felt that the prices of items available in the new Mage Training Arena needing adjusting. Hopefully some of the items will be more affordable and you should be able to buy back a decent amount of runes with the Pizazz points you earn. We have also adjusted the Telekinetic area so that when you complete five mazes in a row you will be given a bonus of ten law runes. The number of mazes you have completed will now be stored if you log out or leave the area so that you can continue where you left off.

In other news...

Rumours have been heard of a malignant cat dragging innocent people off to a strange mirror world and locking them in jail! If this happens to you, you'll meet an experienced convict known as Prison Pete who'll help you escape.

Other rumours speak of an obsessive sandwich lady travelling the world with her tray of tasty morsels. If she offers you a free snack, make sure you take only what she says you can have, or she'll get angry...

~Fireball0236

Jagex released a new copy of the world map today and we have uploaded it to the site. You can view it by clicking on the World Map Link on our menu to the left

Microsoft has also released a security patch for the virus dealing with malicious code in images. PLEASE run Windows UPDATE and update your PC immeadiately!

You can go here also to see more information about this and download the update.



Microsoft Security Bulletin MS06-001

We will continue to leave images disabled on the forum for a few days to allow everyone to apply these updates.

~MrStormy~

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

4 January 2006 - Behind the Scenes - January

The month of January will include several amazing updates, most with a very strong sand theme.

We kick off the New Year with the introduction of the Mage Training Arena. Over the last few years, many wizards have come to an unfortunate end because of a lack of training in the less aggressive spells. Too many royal vases have been smashed from a badly directed telegrab or alchemy spell, and the Wizards' towers have received one too many insurance claims. In response to this they have unearthed an old deserted building thought lost to the Kharidian sands forever.

Several games can be played there, all with the intention of learning the finer arts of magic. Do well, and collect some unique robes and even talking merchandise! This update is one of the most beautiful updates we have had in a long time and should not be missed.

Later this month we see the addition of another agility course, but this time in the sands near to Menaphos. Rumours of a glint of gold sparkling on its pinnacle are unsubstantiated, but the appearance of an archaeologist has helped the rumour spread. This course is aimed at mid-level athletes.

The Burthorpe games room has finally opened its doors to some more games! Later this month you will be able to go and play Runeversi and Squares as well as competing at the current Draughts and Runelink games.

Squares is an old game played between the Duke of Lumbridge and King Roald of Varrock back in their maths lessons when they were children. It's based around the simple principle of putting lines down on a board, scoring points when you complete a 'square', but tactics and logic play a big part.

More random events will also enter the game this month, with visits from a friendly sandwich lady and Prison Pete. Help sort out baguettes and pop balloon animals soon!

Two quests this month develop more of the desert gods' storylines and answer the age old question - where does all the sand in the sand pits come from? Who brings it there? Help Bert the sandpit worker come to terms with a strange discovery as you take on the challenge of The Hand in the Sand. Be careful though, or the puns might just kill you. Dust off that chisel and hammer as you attempt to make statues...

Also this month look out for more readers' letters, one brand new slayer monster for mid-level characters and some new fillings for your baked potatoes!

Mage Training Arena

Far too many incidents have been brought to light of inexperienced wizards causing some pretty horrific accidents (and we use the word 'accident' very lightly).

So whether you're a mage of experience or you're someone in need of a little training, you'll want to travel north of the Duel Arena to find a grand building of magical design: The Mage Training Arena! In this building, the magical powers of RuneScape seem to have a mind of their own, so you'll find some very unique ways to practice the art of magic whilst collecting points to trade for prizes. Shazzam! There's a great deal on offer: you can have a go at moving statues around mazes with the power of your mind, or perhaps you'd like to try hunting for items to practice the art of alchemy. Or maybe you'd rather live dangerously and try your hand at frantically turning bones to bananas just to stay alive? It's your choice.

If you train long and hard enough, you could be the proud owner of some funky new robes! Trust us - wearing these, you will not go unnoticed as you strut your stuff around the dunes of Al Kharid. There's also the chance to look into upgradable wands and maybe even a new spell...

Intrigued? Why not take a visit and train to become a mage of irrefutable power...

...or at least put an end to those horrific accidents.

Your guide for the arena awaits you in the entrance hall.

Please note that the Xmas update has been removed today.

~Fireball0236

The Ancient Temple Map that Shinraz provided us, has been uploaded! Thank you!

A new map maker has come to help! Thank you karera 1 for the Grand Tree Map!

~Fireball0236

I would like to thank everyone who has sent in their applications. I want to let everyone know that after January 10th, we will no longer be accepting applications. So lets get those applications in people. We will post who is on the paper staff in the Newspaper boards on January 15th. Untill then, Happy gaming, and I wish you all the best of luck.



~Profit_Z

Happy New Year everybody!!!

The White Knight Guide has now been uploaded. Thanks to dandare14, Max7892, Boomer Q, and Mageofdark56 for all the information.

Ace

We have a new download for everyone!! Im4eversmart has created a RuneHQ Browser bar for Firefox and Internet Explorer.



Here are a couple of images to show what it does: Firefox and Internet Explorer.

You can find this great download on the Downloads Page.



Have a nice Runescape Day,

*~*Weezyrowe*~*

Quotations taken directly from Runescape.com

28 December 2005 - 6 new Australian servers online!

Hello, I hope you all had a very happy Christmas. We're back to work now, and we've just got six new Australian servers online!

Hosted in Sydney, Australia - these servers have a super fast connection to the main Australian and New Zealand ISPs we tried. This means they should provide a better game for our players from that part of the world.

Players outside Australia/New Zealand on the other hand would be best off sticking to their usual servers. The Australian servers are setup to provide the best connection speeds locally, so may be quite slow from the rest of the world.

~ [Im4eversmart] ~