Fossil Island

RS

Location on World Map
Northern Sea
↑
Wilderness	←	Fossil Island	→	Unknown
↓
Morytania

Fossil Island is a members-only area located north-east of Morytania and unveils a unique environment where players can train a variety of skills. It is an ancient, uncharted island currently being explored by the Varrock Museum.

The island itself is surrounded by seven other smaller islands. However, these cannot currently be reached by the player.

In order to reach the island, players must have completed the Bone Voyage quest.

The island was released on September 7th 2017.

Transportation

The fastest way to travel to Fossil Island is to use a digsite pendant, which will teleport the player near the barge at the Digsite, where they can board the barge by speaking to the barge guard, then the Lead Navigator, and lastly the Junior Navigator.

A map showing the locations of the Magic Mushtrees.

The digsite pendant can be used on a strange machine inside the House on the Hill, north of the Museum Camp, which will unlock an option on the pendant to teleport to the House. Inside this house, there is also a Magic Mushtree, which unlocks the Mycelium Transportation System. This system of Magic Mushtrees allow transportation around Fossil Island, but in order to access them, they must be discovered by walking to their locations first and attempting to use them.

Areas

Museum Camp

The Museum Camp.

After arriving on Fossil Island, the player will be just west of the Museum Camp. At first, the camp will not be very useful, but players can utilise their Construction skill and some materials to build improvements within the camp. Building the utilities requires a hammer.

In total, players will need the following items to build everything: 10 oak planks, 2 iron bars, 25 nails, 1 tinderbox, 2 logs, 3 soft clay, 1 bucket, 2 ropes and 5 planks.

Utility	Level	Materials	Experience
Fossil cleaning station	5	5 planks, 5 nails	100
Bank chest	21	2 oak planks, an iron bar, 5 nails	250
Well	22	2 oak planks, bucket, rope, 5 nails	500
Cooking fire	24	2 logs, tinderbox, iron bar, 3 soft clay	800
Spinning wheel	28	4 oak planks, 5 nails	1,000
Loom	29	2 oak planks, rope, 5 nails	1,000

Mushroom Forest

The Mushroom Forest.

The north-west section of the island is the Mushroom Forest. There are various activities here that allow players to train a variety of skills. Players can slay Ancient Zygomites as part of a Zygomite slayer assignment, track down herbiboars throughout the Forest, plant teak and mahogany trees in the three tree patches in the south-east corner, and calcify fossils in the mycelium pool.

In addition, the Wyvern Cave can be found in the Mushroom Forest, beneath a trapdoor. The wyverns within can only be slain if players have been assigned Fossil Island Wyverns as a slayer task.

Tar Swamp

The Tar Swamp.

The south-west section of the island contains a large swamp. Traveling through the swamp requires a rake to clear vines in addition to an axe to chop down thick vines. Sulliuscep mushrooms can be found throughout the swamp, but only one can be chopped down, forcing players to traverse the hostile swamp, while avoiding aggressive Tar Monsters, to find the choppable sulliuscep.

In the southern end of the swamp, players will find the Deranged archaeologist, who fights similarly to the Crazy archaeologist found in the Wilderness ruins. However, he is much more dangerous, as his special attack can hit over 70.

Volcano

The volcano can be found on the south-east side of the island. Many ash piles can be found here, along with the Volcanic Mine.

Underwater

The underwater area beneath Fossil Island.

Beneath the waters of Fossil Island lies a large underwater area that can be accessed by using the rowboat at the north-east corner of the Mushroom Forest - travelling out to sea with the rowboat brings the player to a small island with a bank chest, where they can then travel back or right click on the rowboat to enter the underwater area.

Unlike other underwater areas throughout the game, a small bar indicating the player's oxygen level will appear at the top left of the game screen when they enter the area. This bar will continually drain while the player remains underwater - if it runs out, players will drown and reappear at the surface. You can refill your oxygen by collecting pufferfish, which can be consumed to refill your oxygen. However, if the player has a fishbowl helmet and diving apparatus equipped, their oxygen level will stay at 100%. The helmet and apparatus can be safely removed and re-equipped while underwater, and if you have an oxygen level below 100%, it will slowly fill back up once both items are re-equipped.

House on the Hill

The House on the Hill, an ancient dragonkin structure.

Located on the north-east side of the island, the House on the Hill can be traveled to by climbing a hill on the south end of the Mushroom Forest. Located within the House on the Hill are various strange machines, one of which can enchant a digsite pendant to allow players to teleport directly to the House. In addition, one of the four Magic Mushtrees on the Island can be found here, allowing quick access to other parts of the island by teleporting here via digsite pendant, then using the magic mushtree to travel.

The House's basement. In the centre lies a strange grid with missing pieces.

In the basement of the House, accessible via a trapdoor in the south-east corner, there are several stone chests with a search option. Searching the stone chest will ask for a numulite. After inserting the numulite, the chest will give the search option to insert 100 numulites into the hole. The chests have a chance of having nothing happen, dealing damage, or giving one of various notes. The notes can be added to the player's Fossil island note book. In addition, behind the ladder, a pile of books can be searched to obtain an ancient diary.

Concept art

Artwork of Fossil Island.

Volcano Mine artwork.jpg

Artwork of the Volcanic Mine.

Artwork of the underwater area.

Concept art of "Skrooms".

Concept art of the "Grim Lily".

Work in progress models of the Pitcher Plant and the Grim Lily

Work in progress model of the Spine tree

Work in progress model of Spine tree with wireframe

Another image of the Pitcher plant model, further along into development.