RSorder OSRS: Which Skills to Train First and Why

Stellaol

Earning the Max Cape in Old School RuneScape is one of the most ambitious goals a player can set. Combining the perks of every individual skill cape into a single item, the Max Cape offers an unmatched collection of teleports, utility effects, and quality-of-life bonuses. From guild teleports and spellbook swaps to stamina boosts, faster health regeneration, and emergency safety mechanics, it truly lives up to RuneScape gold its reputation as the ultimate reward. On top of that, it's one of the best-looking capes in the game and a symbol of long-term dedication.

However, the road to maxing is long. For most players, it takes roughly 5,000 hours of gameplay. Because of that, the order in which skills are trained matters far more than many realize. Choosing an efficient progression can save time, RuneScape gold, and frustration-especially when it comes to the slower and more mentally taxing skills.

This guide focuses on a practical skill order designed to make the journey to maxing smoother, more efficient, and far less painful in the long run.

Start With Combat and Slayer

Combat skills should form the foundation of any maxing journey. Higher combat levels unlock better money-making methods, make questing easier, and allow access to high-level content that helps fund expensive skills later on.

Rather than rushing all combat stats to 99 immediately, a balanced approach works best. Strength is typically prioritized first, as it increases maximum hit and speeds up training overall. Attack improves accuracy, while Defence increases survivability. Magic and Ranged are just as important and should never be neglected.

The most efficient way to train combat early is through Slayer. Slayer is widely considered one of the slowest skills in the game, but it offers a huge advantage: it allows multiple combat skills to be trained simultaneously while generating steady profit. Starting Slayer early means combat experience is earned naturally over time, rather than grinding it later when motivation may be low.

If Slayer reaches 99 before combat stats are finished, alternative methods like Nightmare Zone or Gem Crabs can be used to round things out.

Always Be Farming

Farming deserves special attention because it is entirely time-gated. Progress depends on real-world time rather than pure playtime, making it essential to work consistently from early levels onward.

Daily farm runs-trees, fruit trees, and herbs-add up significantly over time. Even minimal effort each day can eventually turn Farming into one of the easiest 99s on the account, provided it's started early and maintained consistently.

Woodcutting and Firemaking: Efficient AFK Progress

After establishing strong combat stats, Woodcutting is a natural next step. It's highly AFK and synergizes well with Forestry, which offers small amounts of experience in Construction, Hunter, Thieving, Fletching, and Farming through various events. While the bonus XP is minor, every bit helps on the path to maxing.

Using an Infernal Axe also provides passive Firemaking experience, which reduces the grind later.

Firemaking follows naturally after Woodcutting. Whether through saved logs or Wintertodt, Firemaking is one of the fastest 99s in the game. Wintertodt also provides small amounts of Construction and Fletching experience and can even generate profit, making it an efficient stop along the journey.

Fishing Before the True Pain Begins

Fishing is another long but manageable grind. Barbarian Fishing is one of the best methods for reaching 99 without tick manipulation and offers passive Strength and Agility experience along the way. This helps chip away at Agility, one of the most dreaded skills.

For players who prefer profit over efficiency, methods like karambwan fishing are slower but provide consistent income.

Runecrafting and Agility: The Hardest Grinds

Runecrafting is unavoidable and notoriously slow. While painful, it does have a silver lining: methods like Blood and Soul runes provide excellent profit and offer passive Mining and Crafting experience. Completing Runecrafting earlier makes the rest of the journey feel significantly lighter.

Agility follows next. Sticking to Hallowed Sepulchre not only makes the grind more engaging but also provides passive Construction, Thieving, and Prayer experience, along with solid profit. While still slow, it's one of the most rewarding ways to train the skill.

Mining and the Turning Point

Mining is slow, but it's also highly AFK and profitable. By this stage, passive experience gained from Runecrafting helps soften the grind. Once Mining is complete, most of the worst skills are officially out of the way.

This marks a turning point in the maxing journey.

Utility and Profit Skills

Construction and Crafting are best tackled next due to the immense utility of their skill capes. Construction grants unlimited access to OSRS GP a fully upgraded Player-Owned House, while Crafting provides one of the most convenient bank teleports in the game.