Mining

Mining is a skill that allows players to obtain ores and gems from rocks. With ores, a player can then either smelt bars and make equipment using the Smithing skill or sell them for profit. Mining is one of the most popular skills in RuneScape as many players try to earn a profit from the skill. On the map, mining areas are identified with a regular pickaxe icon and the mining shop with a gold pickaxe  icon.

Members-only items on this page are written in italics.

How to mine
To mine, a player will first need a pickaxe, which are sold in a number of shops. New players are given a bronze pickaxe while completing Tutorial Island. When a player has obtained a pickaxe, they next need to find a mine. Upon locating a mine, the player can then select a rock in the mine. Players can identify any mineable ore by right clicking and selecting "Prospect Rocks". Left clicking on it will cause the player to begin mining the rocks as long as they have a pickaxe that the player can use. As a player is mining a rock, they will eventually obtain an ore (or a gemstone). This ore can either be used in the Smithing skill or it can be sold. Selling ores can give players a good profit.

Mining is a skill largely based on a player's luck, which is random in RuneScape. Luck affects Mining in this way: the player will mine the rock, but when they hit the rock, it might take eight to twenty hits to obtain an ore. Another player may mine the same rock and get an ore in just one hit. Using a pickaxe of a higher metal will allow players to obtain ores faster.

Pickaxes
Pickaxes, or "picks", are needed to mine rocks. They can be equipped as a weapon, giving players one extra space in their inventory. However, pickaxes cannot be made using the Smithing skill. Pickaxes can be bought from either Nurmof in the Dwarven Mine or Tati in Keldagrim, or from other players. Nurmof's Pickaxe Shop in the Dwarven Mine is labelled on the minimap as a gold pickaxe.

A player's Mining level determines the type of pickaxe they can mine with. The higher a level needed to use a pickaxe, the better it is than the ones below it. For example, a rune pickaxe will mine rocks faster than an adamant pickaxe.

Mineable items
Ores are obtained from the different types of rocks. These rocks can be found in mines. On the minimap, mines are labelled with a grey pickaxe. The colour of a rock corresponds to the ore's colour, so a black rock will yield coal, a blue rock will yield mithril ore, etc.

When players click on a rock, they will hit it with their pickaxe and try to get the ore out. The higher level rocks, such as mithril and adamantite, take longer for players to mine an ore out of them, making the player require patience.

After the ore has been mined, the rock will turn grey for a while. Eventually another ore will respawn and the rock will regain its colour. Players can only mine a rock when ore is available. Ore respawn times differ with the difficulty of the rock. For example, runite rocks can take over 20 minutes to respawn while iron rocks take about 3 seconds.

Mines
Mines are areas where players can mine their ores. These may be on the surface or underground and are scattered around Gielinor. Some of these locations are accessible only after certain quests are complete and some are members-only.

Gems
When mining players have a 1/256 chance of finding an uncut gem in the rock. A player's chances of finding gems are increased to 1/86 when wearing a charged amulet of glory. There also seems to be a positive correlation between a player's Mining level and the frequency of gems they receive while mining. In other words, the higher levelled the ore, the more likely it is to receive gems while mining it.

Gems that can be found in rocks are uncut sapphires, uncut emeralds, uncut rubies and uncut diamonds.

Rock golem (discontinued)
While mining, a rock golem may appear and will begin attacking a player. The combat level of the golem depends on the player's combat level, but it will always be stronger. The rock golem's combat level varies from level 14 to 170. The player can either kill it or run away from it. If a player kills a rock golem, it can drop ores, stouts, pickaxes, uncut gems or nothing.

Exploding rock (discontinued)
When a player mines a rock, smoke or gas bubbles may emerge from it. If a player continues mining this rock as this is happening, the rock will explode, dealing minor damage to the player and destroying the head of their pickaxe. To repair it, for a price, players have to bring it to Nurmof, the dwarf who sells pickaxes in the Dwarven Mine.

Lost pickaxe head (discontinued)
While mining, the head of the player's pickaxe might fly off. The head will land somewhere nearby, usually 3 to 10 squares away. When this happens, the player has to find the pickaxe head quickly before someone else sees it and grabs it - who might attempt to extort it from them. When the player has found the pickaxe head, they can use it with their handle to put the pickaxe back together.

Tips
Here are some tips to help a player mine.

Power mining
Also known as drop mining, this is where a player fills their inventory with ores, drops them all, and repeats. While this method of mining allows players to raise their Mining level quickly, dropping a whole inventory of ores can take some time. Also, by using this method, a player would be missing out on Smithing experience. Some locations useful for drop mining:
 * Al Kharid mine - The scorpions will be aggressive if you have a low combat level
 * Bandit Camp Mine - Located in level 32-35 Wilderness
 * Dwarven Mine - Not as good, but safer than the others
 * Bandit Camp Quarry - Players will be susceptible to damage from desert heat

To save time while using this method, a player can hire runners who take the ore to their bank as payment for running, saving time for the miner.

Busy world vs. empty world
As of 2014, Old School RuneScape has implemented a static respawn rate. This means that regardless of the population of a server most things will respawn as if there are 2,000 players in the world (ores, trees, etc).

Wielding the pickaxe
Players are recommended to wield their pickaxe. This way, they'll have more inventory space to allow them to carry more ores. To wield pickaxes players must have the appropriate Attack level, as the pickaxe is considered a weapon.

Wear light items
Players are strongly recommended to wear few items or nothing at all other than their pickaxe. Members are advised to wear the boots of lightness, obtained in the Temple of Ikov, so that their weight is lower. Also, wearing the spotted cape or spottier cape from the Hunter skill can be very useful, as well as Penance gloves from the Barbarian Assault minigame. The Graceful outfit is also recommended if you have access to it. ​Wearing fewer items allows a player to run longer. If they are wearing armour, then their weight would be quite large, making them lose a large amount of energy in a short amount of time.

Wilderness mine tips
Having a high-level Defence and wearing stronger armour gives players a much stronger defence against player killers that attempt to try their luck for some ores. Leather/Dragonhide armour also offers fairly good protection against both magic and melee. Players could either only bring their pickaxe to the Wilderness, or bring full leather, a wooden shield or an anti-dragon shield, and an amulet of defence. Fortunately, if a player dies with all these items, they'll keep their pickaxe, the amulet, and the leather body or an ore, depending on what kind it is. A good portion of food is recommended. Saradomin brew may prove essential in life and death situations, as it gives a 25% Defence bonus and a 15% Hitpoints boost.

Switch worlds
For higher level rocks such as adamantite or runite, it is sometimes faster to switch between servers rather than waiting for the rocks to respawn. This is not recommended for any lower level rocks as they respawn much faster.

Temporary boosts

 * Dwarven stout - Drinking this will raise a player's Mining and Smithing levels by 1 for a short time. Dwarven stouts can be bought in Falador one at a time, or members can buy them in Burthorpe in quantities up to 12, at which point the stock is expended and the player must wait for the shop to restock. They are also a common drop from dwarves, and can be bought in several places in members' areas, as well as brewed using the Cooking skill.
 * Mature dwarven stout - Drinking this will raise a player's Mining and Smithing by level 2 for a short time. Players receive two mature dwarven stouts as a reward for completing the Forgettable Tale... quest, but they can also be brewed using the Cooking skill.
 * Dragon pickaxe - Using the special attack will temporarily boost Mining by 3 levels. The special uses up 100% of special energy.
 * Brown Spicy stew - May raise a player's mining by up to +5. Requires partial completion of Recipe for Disaster.

Coal Trucks
The Coal Trucks are located west of Camelot and north of Ardougne. There are 18 coal rocks and handy carts for storing coal in. The carts can store 120 at a time and it is also recommended to take 28 coal when leaving as well. There is a quick way or a slow way to get to and from the coal trucks.

Quick way: With 20 Agility go across the log that is on the east side of the coal trucks. The Camelot Teleport spell can also be used for quick access to the Seers' Village bank

Slow way: Walk all the way around the lake, past the Fishing Guild, to Camelot.

Once in Camelot go northwest from the bank and there are more coal trucks in the shed. Remove all the coal and bank, repeating the process until all the ore has been taken.

Mining Guild
There are 37 coal and 5 mithril rocks in the Mining Guild. It is a short walking distance away from a bank. Level 60 Mining is required to enter. There is one especially efficient place to mine, in the southeast corner, where there are 6 coal rocks in very close proximity. Mining mithril is not recommended in the guild unless there is no-one else at the rocks. An anvil is available outside of the guild in the north end of the mines. The anvil, in combination with the Superheat Item spell, allows the player to smith the ores they mine. The smithed items can be turned into coins with the High Level Alchemy spell or sold at the nearby shop avoiding trips to the bank.

Motherlode Mine

Motherlode Mine

Blast Mine

Blast Mine