Fossil Island


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

Fossil Island is a recent update to Old School Runescape. It is an ancient, unexplored island currently being investigated by the researchers of the Varrock Museum, which is the main focus of the Bone Voyage quest. The island lies north of Morytania and unveils a unique uncharted environment where players can train the mining, farming, hunter, crafting, agility, fishing and thieving skills.

Transportation

Fossil Island can only be accessed after completing the quest Bone Voyage. During the quest, the player must steer the barge to the island - after completing the quest, travel to Fossil Island is instantaneous.

The fastest way to travel to Fossil Island is to use a Digsite pendant, which will teleport the player next to the barge at the Digsite. After completing Bone Voyage, a pendant can be used on the strange machine at the house on the hill, north of the Museum Camp. This will allow your Digsite pendant (and all future pendants) to teleport directly to Fossil Island.

Museum Camp

Full article: 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, a hammer, and some materials to build improvements within the camp. These improvements include:

A bank chest: 2 Oak planks, an iron bar, and 5 nails
A cooking fire: A tinderbox, 2 logs, an iron bar and 3 soft clay
A water source: 2 Oak planks, an iron bar, bucket, rope, and 5 nails
A loom: 2 Oak planks, rope, and 5 nails (requires 29 construction)
A spinning wheel: 4 Oak planks, 5 nails (requires 28 construction)
A fossil cleaning station: 5 regular planks (several are laying scattered around), 5 nails

After building every camp improvement, players can speak to an NPC called Peter just west of the rowboat for a reward of 5 unidentified fossils.

Underwater Area

Full article: Underwater (Fossil Island)

Dev Blog- Fossil Island (12) — The underwater area of Fossil Island

Fossil Island has a large underwater area that can be accessed by travelling to the north coast - there are various rowboats around the island, including the one at the base camp. Travelling with the rowboat brings you to a small island with a bank chest, where you can then travel back or right click on the rowboat to enter the underwater zone.

When in the underwater zone, a small bar indicating your oxygen level appears at the top left of the screen. This bar will continually drain while you remain underwater - if it runs out, you'll 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.

Mushroom Forest

Full article: Mushroom Forest

The northwest section of the island is the Mushroom Forest. There are various activities here that allow you to train a variety of skills.

Tar Swamp

Full article: Tar Swamp

The southwest section of the island contains a large swamp. There are various mushrooms that can be chopped down for Woodcutting xp within, but only one of them will be grown at a time, forcing the player to run past various threats in order to continue to chop the mushroom.

House on the Hill

Full article: House on the Hill

Located on the northeast side of the island, the House on the Hill can be travelled to by climbing a hill on the south end of the Mushroom Forest. It contains various strange machines, one of which can enchant your Digsite pendant to allow you to teleport directly to Fossil Island.

Located within the House on the Hill 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. Once you have inserted 301 numulites you will receive Scribbled Note. Upon reading the Scribbled Notes you will get the following message: "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Similar to that observed in the birthing pool, the spore on this island have the potential to inhabit the host, creating a symbiotic relationship between fungus and creature." Possibly alluding to what's broken out of the Strange Machine...

Volcano

Full article: Fossil Island Volcano

The volcano can be found on the southeast side of the island. Many minerals can be found here, along with the Volcanic Mine.

Features

A new quest, Bone Voyage.
An above-ground and underwater area.
Uncover the history of the Wyverns and God wars.
- Two new types of wyverns: Normal and Ancient Wyverns, which require 66 and 82 slayer respectively to kill as well as completion of Bone Voyage
- New unique drops from the Wyverns such as Granite boots, Granite longsword and the Ancient wyvern visage which can be used to create the Ancient wyvern shield, a shield similar in function to the Dragonfire shield yet for Magic.

Skill expansions as well as dual skilling methods.
- The Volcanic Mine, requiring 180^{[Dev Blog]} Kudos and 50 Mining and offering experience rates comparable to some of the best existing methods in game. In addition to this you will receive small amounts of ores and fossils. It is a new group skilling activity which focuses on the mining skill, in which players can contribute to the success of the team by performing one of several activities:
  - Controlling the flow of lava.
  - Removing rocks from the walls.
  - Solidfying the floors.
  - Mining and depositing minerals.
- Hardwood Farming, allowing players to grow Teak and Mahogany trees.
- Tracking and Herblore, in which the player tracks a plant-like animal similar to kebbits. Successful capture will allow the player to harvest herbs from its back.
- Bird House Traps, which require Crafting and Hunter to create, can be placed on Fossil Island and offer the best experience from 5 to 35 hunter, whilst also rewarding Crafting experience.
- Ultra Compost, a new type of compost, as well as volcanic ash which can be added to a harralander potion in order to create a compost potion, requiring 21 herblore.
- Underwater, Agility and Thieving with no set courses which allows players to freely parttake in activities which will grant Agility and Thieving experience. Experience rates are approximately 30k XP/hr at 99 agility and 110k XP/hr at 99 thieving. Activities include swimming around while looting treasure chests as quickly as possible while holding your breath.
- Seaweed Farming, in which Giant Seaweed can be grown at 23 Farming and provides two soda ash when burnt.
- Underwater Fishing, where the player can use drift nets to catch passing fish or chase down their prey with a harpoon or trident. Estimated experience rates of 50k XP/hr in Hunter and Fishing at level 60. However, Fishing this way will offer the player the chance to gain Hunter or Agility experience.
New PoH room^{[citation needed]}.
New PVM boss, Deranged Archaeologist. Use your best mage gear and pray range when attacking him. ~~He can be safe-spotted. See video guide here~~. He can no longer be safe-spotted.

Fossil Island

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