The Barbarian Assault minigame is one of the most dreaded activities in Old School RuneScape, so much so that there are teams of players who get paid tons of GP to boost other players inside this minigame (which is a perfectly legit activity since you trade an in game service for in game currency).
However, if you want to do it yourself, it can be quite easy, though a rather long grind, if you know a few basics.
Why do Barbarian Assault
There a few big reasons why you should go through the Barbarian Assault minigame:
- The Fighter Torso
This is the best mid game melee gear chest piece you can get and it is free. The torso will be with you until you upgrade it to the Bandos Chestplate, which you should only after upgrading many other gear pieces.
- Achievement diary
For late game you will need level 5 in all of the four Barbarian Assault roles to complete the elite Kandarin Diary, which will give you perks such as unlimited teleports to Sherlock so you can solve clue scrolls more efficiently, or an increased yield for the Catherby herb patch so you get even more profit with each herb run.
- Resources and pet
Another reason that is more relevant for ironman accounts is that you will be able to obtain loads of resources and potentially a pet from gambling the Barbarian Assault points.
Gameplay
The Barbarian Assault minigame is a group activity and you cannot do it alone. You will need to play one of the four roles and you rely on the other team members to do their roles to earn points and successfully complete each wave. If one role doesn’t do well, the whole team won’t do well.
Unless you are a healer who needs to prioritize their team staying alive in life-or-death situations, always prioritize calling by using the horn. To do this check the displayed information to know what to call then right click the horn and select the message you need to call.
The higher your combat level is the easier the Barbarian Assault grind will be, and the higher level you have in a specific role, the easier time you’ll have in that role, and this is specifically true for the healer role, the hardest of the four Barbarian Assault roles.
Team composition
You will need at least one of each of the four roles: collector, attacker, defender, and healer. The fifth one should be either a healer in case the first healer is not a level 5, or an attacker, especially if the primary attacker doesn’t have a high combat level.
Ideally, go from wave 1 to wave 8 with two attackers, and wave 9 and 10 with two healers. For the final round it’s better to have two healers, one to heal and one to handle the eggs.
Collector
This is the easiest role, so if you’re new to the Barbarian Assault minigame, it is the recommended role.
RuneLite setting for the collector role
Go to the plugins and search for the *ground items* plugin and click on the wheel to open the settings. Under hidden items type “red egg, blue egg, green egg”. This will make it easier for you to see the eggs and will be easier on the eyes.
Waves 1-9 as Collector
Start by going to the dispenser and grabbing the egg sack. You will only have to do this on the first round as you keep it between the waves. Use the horn to call and head west and then North and go to the North West corner with the attackers. Start collecting eggs and then load the cannons. Do not pick the wrong color of eggs.
Wave 10 (Penance Queen wave) – Collector
Call and collect the eggs and load the cannon as usual, but do not pick Blue eggs. When the Penance Queen arrives collect the golden eggs and give them to the healer (green circle player) then, when you get back the omega eggs from the defender, load the cannon. You should load and shoot a minimum of 6 omega eggs since the queen can restore her hp and you should aim to kill her in one go.
Defender
The defender role is also extremely easy if you use the indicated tiles and correct bait. If you’re new to the Barbarian Assault minigame and you don’t want to play the collector role you should pick the defender role.
Defender Items
An Imcando hammer is the defender’s best friend in the Barbarian Assault minigame. You can do without one, but you will have to run less if you bring your own.
RuneLite setting for the defender
Since you are responsible for the Penance Runners, on your first wave shift-right click one and select the “tag-all option”. Shift click again and select the blue color. This will also help you spot the runners on the minimap.
Shift right click the following tiles where you’ll need to drop good bait only.
Open the ground items plugin settings and add “logs” to the highlighted items list, and hide “red egg, blue egg, green egg”.
Waves 1-9 as Defender
Take bait from the dispenser, call, then run to the tile marked as 1 (north of the trap) and drop 3-5 good baits on it, run to the tile marked as 2 and drop 1-2 good baits, then finally run to the tile marked as 3 and drop a few more there. Grab the two logs then head back to the trap and repair it when it breaks. Call and add more good bait to those tiles as needed.
Wave 10 (penance Queen wave) – Defender
For wave 10 mark the tiles in this image and drop good food there.
When the queen arrives, receive the golden eggs from the attacker, dip them in the lava pool, and then hand them to the collector (yellow circle player). When low on hp go near a healer so you make it easier for them to heal you.
Attacker
The attacker role is slightly harder than the defender. For this is best that you bring an elite void ranger set which you can obtain from the Pest Control minigame, alongside an imbued magic shortbow. You might also want to bring a few divine ranging potions that you should consume while you are in the lobby since your hp restores to full at the beginning of every BA wave. Bring your bet range boots like blessed d’hide or Pegasian boots, and your best neck and ring.
RuneLite setting for the Attacker role
As the attacker you will have two kill two types of monsters, flying rangers, and penance fighters. It is best to shift right click them and select the tag all option, then shift right click them again to change the tag color to red for both monsters.
Wave 1-9 as Attacker
When the round starts head to the dispenser to obtain the ammunition, then call using the horn and head to the north west corner. Use the arrows that are the same color as the elements: like wind – white or earth – green, fire – red, water – blue.
Focus the ranged monsters since they can deal damage over time.
Wave 10 (Penance Queen wave) – Attacker
Do the same until the Queen arrives. When the queen arrives start picking up spikes and when you receive the egg from the healer, add the spikes to the eggs and hand them to the defender (click on the egg and then on the defender – blue circle)
Healer
The healer role is by far the hardest role in Barbarian Assault. You should play and understand every other role before picking the healer role. You will have to call, keep yourself and the other players alive, and kill the penance healers by feeding them poisoned food. This becomes much easier as you level up because you will heal for more, deal more poison damage and have to run and click less.
RuneLite setting for the Healer role
Shift-right click and tag-all the penance healers, and shift right click them again and select the color green for their tag so they are easier to spot.
Wave 1-9 as Healer
Go to the dispenser then to the pool to the west to fill your vial. Call then run north. Prioritize keeping your team alive, then calling, then killing the penance healers.
Wave 10 (Penance Queen wave)
For the last wave you should do the same, as for the previous ones, and once the queen arrives take the egg from the collector, dip it in the poison spring, and then give it to the attacker (red circle player). Hopefully if you’re not a level 5 healer yet, your team will have a secondary healer, otherwise your job will be really difficult.
Cannon
Any role should use the cannon to speed up the kills if they’re done with their targets. Keep in mind to not use blue eggs on the queen round.
