RS3 Melee Guide, 1-99 and Beyond in All Melee Combat Stats

Jonas Author

Created - 14.06.2025 Updated - 16.06.2025

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With all the monsters and dangers in RS3, you'll need to defend yourself with all that you got. And one of the best ways to do so is with Melee weapons.

Melee training can be hard in RS3 as you'll be put directly in front of monsters and more dangers just to get the skill up. We get that you want to make leveling melee as efficient as possible, so we're going to help you out with this guide on Melee training in RS3.

If you don't have the time to train or to grind for any amazing gear, we'll help you out. Our store has great deals on RS gold, items, and services. We'll cut down on the grind so that you can focus on enjoying the game.

What Is Melee In RS3?

Melee training involves 3 stats:

• Attack: Ability to hit more accurately and wield better weapons.
• Strength: Ability to hit higher.
• Defence: Ability to block damage and wear better gear.

You can train these stats individually by going into your combat options and choosing attack, strength or defence. Alternatively you can choose shared experience and train them slowly but at the same time.

Melee Weaknesses

Almost every monster in Runescape 3 has a certain weakness. We will be focusing on the ones that have a weakness against melee attacks. These monsters are split into 3 categories:

• Weak to stab
• Weak to slash
• Weak to crush

You can easily see the weakness by looking at the monster's health bar interface. There you should see an icon indicating its weakness. You should always use the weapon that the monster is weak to. By doing so you will be hitting more, thus gaining more experience per hour.

Healing

In combat, you won't be the only one who is dealing damage. Over time you will accumulate damage and will need to heal. There are a few ways to go about negating this damage:

1. Using food: This is the most common way of dealing with damage. Bring some decent food into the fight and use it when necessary.
2. Using Rejuvenate and Regenerate: Rejuvenate is an ultimate skill that will heal you for 40% of your total health and regenerate is an ability which can be used outside of combat to convert your adrenaline into health. Alternatively you can use Guthix's Blessing if you have access to it.
3. Guthans: This is a mid tier armour set that grants a special effect to the player when worn.(You must wear the full set!) Your successful attacks have a 25% chance of healing you. The heal you recieve is the same as the damage you dealt when the ability triggered.
4. Soul split: This is high level prayer that requires you to have ancient curses unlocked. When turned on it heals you for 10% of the damage dealt. This is the ultimate way of healing yourself while casually training.
5. Saradomin Godsword: Saradomin godsword requires level 75 attack to wield. Base version of the sword has a special attack that consumes 50% adrenaline and deals 75-275% ability damage and restores life points by half of the damage dealt and prayer points by 2.5% of it.

You can use this godsword on the Saradomin altar in Commander Zilyana's boss room to gain a passive healing effect. This however removes the ability to use the special attack of the weapon and makes the weapon untradable. It gains the passive effect that heals the user 3% of their maximum health and prayer points with each successful hit. This effect has a 25% chance to activate.

1. Vampyrism Aura and Scrimshaw: You can activate a scrimshaw of vampyrism or vampyrism aura to gain a passive lifesteal effect on each successful hit.
2. Healing Familiars: Alternatively if you have the required Summoning level, you can summon a bunyip which heals you passively or a unicorn stallion which heals you whenever you use a scroll.

Potions

Potions are consumables that will greatly enhance your overall combat experience. They will boost your stats, which increases your damage and reduces the amount of damage you take. They are totally worth their cost and you should use the best ones available to you.

It is highly recommended to get 96 Herblore to create overloads.

Relic Powers

These powers are unlocked through the Archaeology skill, and when activated, provide the player with a passive effect.

Equipment

Choosing the right equipment for the right task is pretty important and it changes massively depending on the state of your account and which activity you want to partake in.

Generally speaking you would want to have power armour sets, these armour sets provide a lower defensive bonus compared to their counterparts of the same tier but they provide a strength bonus which increases your damage overall. Getting these armor sets however, will require a lot of RS 3 gold.

Here is the best in slot melee power armour and jewellery in game:

OSRS Gold (1M)

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Twisted Bow

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OSRS Power Leveling

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OSRS Bond

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Wearing the armour and jewellery listed above will provide you with a total of 1759 armour, 25 prayer bonus and 236.7 bonus strength.

Now let's take a look at the best in slot tank armour in the game:

While levelling up, check your skill guide regularly to figure out what is the best gear for your account. Alternatively you can check wiki to see everything more clearly.

Visit our Runescape Guide

RS3 Guides

1-99 RS3 Melee P2P Combat Training

Make sure to setup your ability bar properly for the best results! First up, we're going to talk about the best training methods if you're training Melee on a P2P account.

Levels 1-40

Monster	Location	Level	EXP
Troll chucker	Burthorpe Troll Cave	1	30 Combat, 10 Constitution EXP
Chicken	North of Lumbridge	1	24.9 Combat, 8.2 Constitution EXP

Levels 40-50

Monster	Location	Level	EXP	Notes
Flesh Crawler	Stronghold of security level 2, southeastern room	40	232 Combat, 76 Constitution EXP	Great AOE monster, as there are multiple enemies.
Moss giant	Moss Giant Island Varrock Sewers	51	136 Combat, 44 Constitution EXP
Ghoul	North of Canifis	64	138 Combat, 45 Constitution EXP

Levels 50-70

Monster	Location	Level	EXP
Fire giant	Waterfall Dungeon	85	404 Combat, 133 Constitution EXP
TzHaar-Xil	TzHaar City	86	297 Combat, 98 Constitution EXP
Hellhound	Taverley Dungeon	92	361 Combat, 119 Constitution EXP Extremely good method up to level 99.
Abyssal walker, leech, guardian	The Abyss	72 77 79	183, 211, 233 Combat, 60, 69, 76 Constitution EXP respectively. Extremely good method up to level 99.

Levels 70-80+

Monster	Location	Level	EXP
Abyssal demon	Slayer Tower	98	661 Combat, 218 Constitution EXP Extremely good method up to level 99.

Levels 80-90+

Monster	Location	Level	EXP	Notes
Frost Dragon	Asgarnian Ice Dungeon resource dungeon	112	1085 Combat, 358 Constitution EXP	Requires 85 Dungeoneering.
Corrupted Scorpion	Sophanem Slayer Dungeon	98	462 Combat, 152 Constitution EXP	Requires 88 Slayer.
Vyrelord	Darkmeyer	98	661 Combat, 218 Constitution, 300 firemaking, 420 prayer EXP	Blisterwood weapons required. River of blood recommended Sunspear recommended. Morytania legs 4 recommended. 92 Prayer recommended.
Spiritual warrior	God Wars Dungeon	98	661 Combat, 218 Constitution EXP	Requires 68 Slayer.
Spiritual mage	God Wars Dungeon	98	661 Combat, 218 Constitution EXP	Requires 83 Slayer.

Levels 90-99

Monster	Location	Level	EXP	Notes
Arch-Glacor	Glacor Front at Senntisten	7000	10533 Combat, 3476 Constitution EXP	Do 0 mechanic kills for fast kills but less loot.
General Graardor	God Wars Dungeon	624	3204 Combat, 1057 Constitution EXP	95 Prayer recommended.
K'ril Tsutsaroth	God Wars Dungeon	650	5136 Combat, 1694 Constitution EXP	95 Prayer recommended.

1-99 RS3 F2P Melee Training

Level 1 to 20

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Troll brute, Troll shaman, Troll chucker	Burthorpe Troll Cave, north of Burthorpe	1	250	12.5 (and 4.1 Life Points)	None	Bronze/Iron 2h sword or fast attack weapon
Warped cockroach, Corpse spider	Lumbridge Catacombs	1, 4	500, 600	25, 30 (8.2-9.9 Life Points)	None	Bronze/Iron 2h sword or fast weapon (e.g., Mace)
Chicken	Various Lumbridge farms	2	250	12 (and 4 Life Points)	None	Bronze/Iron 2h sword or fast weapon
Cow calf, Cow	Cow pen east of River Lum	4 / 6	1100	50 / 25.5 (16 / 8.4 Life Points)	None	Best 2h sword available
Goblin	Stronghold of Security	Varies	50-400	65 (and 21 Life Points)	None	Best 2h sword for your Attack level

Advantages / Disadvantages

Advantages	Disadvantages
Very low defence, high kill speed	Often crowded
Fast respawn rates
Chickens have low damage output
Cows provide cowhides for profit
Goblins are weak and easy to kill	Occasionally crowded

Level 20 to 30

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Giant rat	Stronghold of Security	9	1650	82.5 (27.2 Life Points)	None	Best 2h sword available
Minotaur	Stronghold of Security	15	2000	100 (33 Life Points)	None	Best 2h sword available
Crawling hand	Burthorpe Slayer Cave	11	1750	87.5 (28.8 Life Points)	Level 5 Slayer	Best 2h sword available

Level 30 to 40

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Hobgoblin	Hobgoblin Peninsula	15, 18	2000	133-150 (33-38 Life Points)	None	Best 2h sword available
Corpse archer	Lumbridge Catacombs	18	2350	117.5 (38.7 Life Points)	The Blood Pact	Mithril mace/warhammer

Level 40 to 50

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Hill giant	Edgeville Dungeon, Resource Dungeon	26	4500	225 (74.2 Life Points)	20 Dungeoneering (resource dungeon)	Brass key, swordfish for food
Flesh Crawler	Stronghold of Security (Second level)	26	4650	232.5 (76.7 Life Points)	Access to SoS	Dual Adamant daggers/swords
Giant spider	Stronghold of Security (Third level)	29	4500	225 (74.2 Life Points)	Access to SoS	Dual Adamant maces/warhammers
Moss giants	Varrock Sewers, Crandor	40	6400	320 (105.6 Life Points)	Partial Dragon Slayer	Rune/Gravite 2h sword

Advantages / Disadvantages

Advantages	Disadvantages
Good drops (big bones)	Moss giants: hits hard
Weak to specific damage types	Flesh Crawlers often crowded
Semi-AFK (giant spiders)	Giant spider drops nothing

Level 50 to 70

Monster Stats

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Hill giant	Edgeville Dungeon, Resource Dungeon	26	4500	225 (74.2 Life Points)	20 Dungeoneering (optional)	Brass key, swordfish for food
Moss giants	Varrock Sewers, Crandor	40	6400	320 (105.6 Life Points)	Partial Dragon Slayer	Rune/Gravite 2h sword
Ankou	Stronghold of Security (Level Four)	54	6150	307.5 (101.4 Life Points)	Partial Stronghold of Security	Rune/Gravite 2h sword

Advantages / Disadvantages

Advantages	Disadvantages
Decent drops	Ankou not weak to melee

Level 70+

Monster Stats

Monster Name	Location(s)	Combat Level	Life Points	Experience	Requirements	Recommendations
Clan Wars (white portal)	Gamers' Grotto (W3)	N/A	N/A	Up to 160,000 exp/hr	None (high stats needed)	Full rune, prayer switching required
Poison spider	Lava Maze Dungeon	53	3700	185 (34.2 Life Points)	None	Rune/Gravite 2h sword
Giant spider	Stronghold of Security (Third level)	29	4500	225 (74.2 Life Points)	Access to SoS	Rune/Gravite 2h sword
Ice giant, warrior	Asgarnian Ice Dungeon	54, 56	6300, 8150	315, 407.5 (103.9, 134.4 LP)	None	Rune/Gravite 2h sword
Ankou, Ghost	Stronghold of Security (Level Four)	61, 46	7250, 5300	362.5, 291 (119.6, 87.4 LP)	Partial SoS	Rune/Gravite 2h, Ghost hunter gear
Deadly red spider	Varrock Sewers, Karamja Dungeon	95	6150	307.5 (101.4 Life Points)	None	Crush weapon (Rune mace + Gravite off-hand)
Hellhound	Forinthry dungeon, Wilderness Crater	92	3300	165 (154.4 Life Points)	None	Rune/Gravite 2h sword, Protect Item prayer

Advantages / Disadvantages

Advantages	Disadvantages
Very high XP rates (up to 200k/hr Ankou)	High damage taken—bring Swordfish/Lobster
Weaknesses exploitable for 100% hit rate (e.g., Crush)	Some areas in Wilderness (PvP risk)
Drops prayer-recharging items (Twisted bird skull)	No valuable drops from some monsters
Respawns are fast, many are AFK-friendly	Prayer switching required for Clan Wars XP efficiency

Quests That Reward Melee Combat XP

Aside from training against monsters, you're also going to want to do a few quests to get some melee combat XP. Below are your options for both P2P and F2P.

Attack Experience Rewards

Quest Name	XP Reward	F2P/P2P
The Blood Pact	100	F2P
A Shadow over Ashdale	300	F2P
In Search of the Myreque	600	P2P
Mountain Daughter	1,000	P2P
A Fairy Tale I - Growing Pains	2,000	P2P
In Aid of the Myreque	2,000	P2P
Tai Bwo Wannai Trio	2,500	P2P
The Fremennik Trials	2,812	P2P
Death Plateau	3,000	P2P
Underground Pass	3,000	P2P
Heroes' Quest	3,075	P2P
Vampire Slayer	4,825	F2P
Quiet Before the Swarm	4,000	P2P
TokTz-Ket-Dill	5,000	P2P
Tree Gnome Village	11,450	P2P
Fight Arena	12,175	P2P
Waterfall Quest	13,750	P2P
The Grand Tree	18,400	P2P
Monkey Madness	20,000 / 35,000	P2P
The Mighty Fall	80,000	P2P

Strength Experience Rewards

Quest Name	XP Reward	F2P/P2P
The Blood Pact	100	F2P
A Shadow over Ashdale	300	F2P
In Search of the Myreque	600	P2P
In Aid of the Myreque	2,000	P2P
Tai Bwo Wannai Trio	2,500	P2P
The Fremennik Trials	2,812	P2P
Underground Pass	3,000	P2P
Heroes' Quest	3,075	P2P
Scorpion Catcher	6,625	P2P
Roving Elves	10,000	P2P
Haunted Mine	22,000	P2P
Monkey Madness	20,000 / 35,000	P2P
The Mighty Fall	80,000	P2P
King of the Dwarves	55,000	P2P
Path of Glouphrie	30,000	P2P
Forgiveness of a Chaos Dwarf	30,000	P2P
Dealing with Scabaras	7,000	P2P
The Chosen Commander	20,000	P2P
Knight Waves Training Grounds	20,000	P2P
Waterfall Quest	13,750	P2P

Defence Experience Rewards

Quest Name	XP Reward	F2P/P2P
The Blood Pact	100	F2P
A Shadow over Ashdale	300	F2P
In Search of the Myreque	600	P2P
In Aid of the Myreque	2,000	P2P
Nature Spirit	2,000	P2P
What Lies Below	2,000	P2P
The Fremennik Trials	2,812	P2P
Heroes' Quest	3,075	P2P
Between a Rock...	5,000	P2P
Olaf's Quest	12,000	P2P
Holy Grail	15,300	P2P
Dragon Slayer	18,650	F2P
King's Ransom	33,000	P2P
Clockwork Syringe	19,000	P2P
Salt in the Wound	45,000	P2P
Defender of Varrock	10,000	P2P
Dimension of Disaster	10,000	P2P

Constitution Experience Rewards

Quest Name	XP Reward	F2P/P2P
A Shadow over Ashdale	300	F2P
A Soul's Bane	500	P2P
In Search of the Myreque	600	P2P
Song from the Depths	700	P2P
Nature Spirit	2,000	P2P
Fur 'n' Seek	2,500	P2P
The Fremennik Trials	2,812	P2P
Heroes' Quest	3,075	P2P
Recipe for Disaster	4,000	P2P
Grim Tales	5,000	P2P
Royal Trouble	5,000	P2P
Witch's House	6,325	P2P
Missing My Mummy	7,000	P2P
Dream Mentor	15,000	P2P
Salt in the Wound	17,500	P2P
Mourning's Ends Part I	25,000	P2P
Firemaker's Curse	76,000	P2P
Missing, Presumed Death	50,000	P2P

Quests Offering XP in Multiple Melee Skills

Quest Name	XP Reward Details	F2P/P2P
Monkey Madness	35,000 XP to two melee stats; 25,000 XP to the other two	P2P
Ritual of the Mahjarrat	3 lamps granting 80,000 XP each to any skill	P2P
The Brink of Extinction	275,000 XP in Attack, Strength, Defence, Magic, or Ranged	P2P
Temple at Senntisten	2 lamps granting 20,000 XP each in any combat skill	P2P
While Guthix Sleeps	4 lamps granting 100,000 XP each in any skill over level 65	P2P
The World Wakes	3 lamps granting 100,000 XP each in any skill over level 75	P2P

 

Slayer

Slayer is the most preferred method of training combat stats. It is recommended for you to start doing slayer after reaching base 70+ melee stats.

With slayer you can craft a slayer helmet, which boosts your accuracy and damage greatly when doing slayer assignments. This helmet out performs any other helmet in the game when you are on a task. Furthermore in Anachronia, you can unlock the Tier 3 Slayer Lodge and place your helmet on a stand to always gain its passive effect on tasks without wearing the helmet.

• EXP/H: Anywhere between 50K - 2M EXP

Start Practising Your Melee In RS3

This is the end of our Melee guide, hope you found it useful and may you get your desired stats using it! If you're looking to improve your Prayer in RS3 next, we've also got a guide for that so check it out.

FAQs

What's the fastest way to train Melee combat in RS3?

The fastest route to 99 Melee (Attack, Strength, Defence) is through aggressive AoE combat with the best gear you can wield. Ideal methods include:

• Levels 1-30: Troll Brutes, Lumbridge Catacombs, or early Slayer tasks.
• 30-70: Giant Spiders (Stronghold of Security), or Deadly Red Spiders.
• 70-99: Abyssal Lords (Archaeology unlocked), ED3 Trash Runs, Vyrewatch Sentinels, or Slayer with aggression potions.

For max efficiency:

• Use revolution++ combat mode.
• Bring Aggression potions, Prayer (Turmoil/Berserker), and Enhanced Excalibur.
• Gear up with Power armor like Bandos → Torva.

Best XP/hour: AFK Abyssal Lords with aggression pots on DXP.

What are the best training locations for AFK Melee XP?

AFK-friendly spots are king for casual and efficient grinders:

• Giant Spiders (lvl 50-80): Stronghold of Security. Low risk, fast spawn.
• Abyssal Lords (lvl 115+): Can AFK with high gear and Soul Split.
• Fungal Mages (Polypore Dungeon): Great XP, medium AFK, low cost.
• Vyrewatch Sentinels (Darkmeyer): Consistent XP + Blood Shard drops.
• ED3 Trash Runs: Group or solo, great XP and money.

All these benefit massively from Aggression Potions, Looting Auras, and Prayer switching.

Can you train Melee through Slayer in RS3?

Absolutely. Slayer is one of the best ways to train Melee while making money and gaining secondary skills. Perks:

• Consistent XP in all combat stats.
• High GP/hr with drops like whips, keys, and totems.
• Bossing Tasks for elite Slayer monsters like Nihils or Ripper Demons.
• Slayer masks and VIP tickets speed task selection and bonuses.

Recommended Slayer Masters:

• Chaeldar (lvl 75+)
• Duradel (lvl 100+)
• Laniakea (lvl 120 Slayer or with boost)

Slayer integrates XP with GP, Reaper tasks, and comp requirements.

What are the best weapons and armor for Melee training?

Top-tier XP requires strong gear. Here's the gear progression by level:

• 1-50: Steel → Rune weapons, Ironman options.
• 50-70: Dragon weaponry → Barrows gear.
• 70-85: Bandos armor + Abyssal Whip or Godswords.
• 85-99: Chaotic Weapons, Drygores, then T92 like Zaros Godsword or Masterwork Spear of Annihilation.
• Tank vs Power: Power armor gives more XP; Tank offers survivability.

Perks help too:

• Aftershock and Precise boost DPS.
• Equilibrium and Biting increase crits and base hits.

Use Invention perks, Adrenaline urns, and Adrenaline potions for rapid kills.

What boosts should I use for faster Melee training?

Boosts greatly accelerate combat XP gain. Stack these for max speed:

• Brawling Gloves (Melee): Double XP in Wilderness.
• Bonus XP + DXP: Stack for massive returns.
• Wisdom/Maniacal Auras: XP boost and/or crit chance.
• Aggression Potions: Auto-aggro mobs for easy AoE clearing.
• Penance Aura: Regenerates Prayer during fights.
• Scrimshaw of Vampyrism: Great for healing during AFK.
• Salve Amulet (e): Huge boost vs undead, esp. for Vyres/Barrows.

Training Dummies also provide passive XP while doing other things. And don't forget to use combat familiars like Steel Titans when active.