The Tip.It Times


Issue 199gp

Double Feature!

Written by and edited by Tip.It


That Dragon Feeling
By: DarkDude98

Ever since the first Dragon drops were introduced I have always wanted to get one for myself, the rarity of them, the price of them, the prestige of getting the rarest drop in the game at the time was something I wanted to experience myself.

However, 6 years or so down the line has this feeling changed? Is there still a certain “magical” feeling to getting dragon drops? Does seeing that crimson red colour on the ground and the text “Take Dragon _____” make your heart skip a beat? Or have we as players been spoiled by the amount of “rare” drops now in the game that we actually get disappointed when we receive one of these rare drops?

I remember always reading about other people who had received a dragon drop and the picture made me want to get one. Each time I wanted it more and more, however at the time I really wasn’t a high enough level to kill anything that dropped dragon medium helmets so I thought I’d have to get lucky and get a shield left half or a dragon spear.

I then decided to start training range, having heard that Fire Giants are known to drop dragon medium helmets and being able to range them without being attacked back, I thought this was would be an ideal place for me to train. So I took my 50 range self to the waterfall and started ranging away. Sitting at my computer just having just reached level 53 and while half paying attention to Runescape and talking to my brother I looked back at the screen and saw this red lump on the ground, I put my mouse over it and saw “Take Dragon Medium Helm” I shouted out to my brother who didn’t believe me at first, I picked it up and immediately put it on and proceeded to make sure EVERYONE on my friends list knew what had just happened. None of them couldn’t believe it and neither could I, after would could have only been a couple of hundred fire giants at most I had just got a drop which has drop odds over 1/16,000. I paraded my new item around for the whole world to see before selling it a day later for a nice sum of 2.4M GP.

My second dragon drop came in the form of a Dragon Spear from greater demons on Entrana. It was a quiet Sunday morning just sitting there killing greaters, minding my own business when the drop appeared, the reaction I had here was entirely different to that of my first drop. It was more amazement then anything this time; I wasn’t over the moon like with the first drop, sure I was still delighted with it but it was just more puzzling than anything. I picked it up and continued ranging away then sold it later that day for over 1M GP. Were the dragon drops already losing their touch? The first one will of course have been special and none can compare to that. These thoughts also continued when my next three dragon drops came in quick succession in the way of Dragon Medium helms from the King Black Dragon, two of them solo.

It wasn’t until my 6th dragon drop when I had realised that dragon drops still had that magical feeling. Boxing Day afternoon 2004, sitting in the Ogre Enclave with my cannon and green party hat on ranging away at the demons trapped in the cave. I glanced at the green and saw a red moon-ish shaped item lying on the ground; my first thoughts were “Oh, strange it just dropped the bottom half of the Zamorak robe”. It wasn’t until a few seconds later the penny dropped, “Wait... these don’t drop those... wait... that means... O_O”. I telegrabbed it as fast as I could. My heart was beating fast, I was in amazement while being ecstatic at the same time, it felt exactly the same as my first dragon drop.

Since then I have gone on to receive a total of 43 dragon drops (not including boots) and the only ones that have really felt special were my first drops of each, first chain from Kalphite Queen, first dragon leg drop from Steel Dragons and first dragon axe from the Dagannoth Kings. The first 20 or so of them all had a certain amount of magic to them but nothing like those of the first few. The later ones all have seemed like “that’s cool I guess.” Some of them were even a disappointment, my very first Abyssal Demon dropped a dragon medium helmet, I was annoyed as I knew how much rarer it was than an Abyssal Whip but also how much less it was worth. A similar thing happened at Dark Beasts when I got a dragon spear about 50 beasts in, worth next to nothing, I would much rather have got a Dark Bow.

Has the feeling completely gone out of dragon drops now? Is that feeling a thing of the past? Do new players have similar feelings towards god hilt drops as I did towards dragon drops or have I just been spoilt with my 43 dragon drops and people still find dragon drops special?



A Grainy Christmas
By: ForsakenMage

As an adventurer from the northern lands, I have often wondered what Christmas was like for those in the deserts of Al Kharid. It’s very unlikely they’d have a white Christmas, let alone a green Christmas. It’s also very unlikely a pine tree could last in such heat, so I doubt they have Christmas trees. So what is Christmas like in Al Kharid?

I decided this year to go to Al Kharid for Christmas, rather than stay in Falador and enjoy the Rising Sun Inn’s Asgarnian ale. I’m sure the patrons won’t miss me too much.

I sorted through my inventory, taking out my water flasks, desert robes and sandals. My old Santa hat stared at me, asking to come along. Not this time, dear old friend. You’d be buried in a sand dune faster than you can say Kris Kringle.

Soon I was on my way with a quick reading and uttering of a spell, taking me to Lumbridge. There, I quickly maneuvered my way past other adventurers to the east towards the gates of Al Kharid.

It had been many months since I last visited the city. The last time I was here, I was smelting silver ores for quite some time. My clothes reeked of the burning coals in the furnace for a week.

I shielded my eyes as the winds kicked up some of the sand. It took a few more minutes before I arrived in the city, quickly taking temporary shelter in the kebab shop. As I brushed off the sand from my robes, the shop owner, Karim, whooped in horror.

“You again! Don’t you get near my stove, you hear?” he cried as he pointed a hot skewer at me.

“Um, Karim, I’m-”

“I don’t want to hear it! I don’t want you bringing your smelly fish here again! It’s almost ruined my finest meats!”

“Karim, I’m not here to-”

“Get out! Out!” He threatened me with the skewer again.

“Er, Merry Christmas?”

“OUT!”

I hurried out of the store before Karim decided to skewer me after all. A few other adventurers brushed past me into the store, and I heard Karim shriek again as the smell of roasted lobsters wafted out of the window. Poor man…

I made my way towards the palace, deciding maybe I should go see how Prince Ali and the family were doing. On my way to the palace, I met with Osman the Spymaster.

“Merry Christmas! How are you? It’s been a while since we’ve last spoken.”

“It’s been well, Osman. How are you and the royal family?”

“Wonderful, though I could not say the say for our warriors. It would appear they’re still being targeted for fighting experience by your fellow people.”

“I’m dreadfully sorry.”

“Are you on your way to see Chancellor Hassan?”

“If it is possible.”

“Of course.” Osman led the way towards the Emir’s palace, then parted ways, stating he had some important business to attend to. With another holiday greeting and good bye, I headed inside the palace.

At first, I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming or I had somehow arrived at the wrong palace. The throne room had an odd appearance to it. Some of the pillars were wrapped in tinsel. Others had a large, red ornate bow. A few of the servants ran past me with small potted palm trees, followed by more with boxes of Christmas decorations. I was so wrapped up in my confusion that I had barely noticed Chancellor Hassan coming up behind me.

“Merry Christmas!”

“Oh! Merry Christmas, Chancellor! I see you’re doing some redecorating.”

“Ah yes… The Prince had requested that we try something different this year to add to the festivities.”

I looked around and watched as the servants decorated the palm trees with tinsel and small ornaments. The palm trees leaned ever so slightly from the weight and I couldn’t help but stare in wonder. It just looked so strange and out of place. The Chancellor chuckled.

“We had to make do. Pine trees wouldn’t last a day in our kingdom. Come, you must have Christmas dinner with us.”

“If it pleases the Emir and his family.”

“Any friends of Al Kharid are welcome to feast with us.”

I suppose the Prince really did want to make it look as “Christmasy” as possible. The tables were set with red, green, and gold tablecloths and napkins. The dishes, imported from Varrock, were white with thin gold trimming. The silverware gleamed brightly in the candlelight. The Emir, who sat at the head of one table, remained hidden under the shadow of his robes, apparently still ashamed with what happened with his son. The prince, Ali, sat at the other end of the table, smiling as the family and friends gathered around the dining hall. The servers quickly went around, filling the chalices with wine.

“Friends, family, strangers from afar. Welcome to Al Kharid’s Christmas Feast!” The prince raised his chalice in a toast. Everyone raised theirs in turn and cheered. Once everyone was settled, the food came. Large covered platters with fresh-made kebabs (courtesy of Karim, despite the fact his stove was kept busy), roast geese imported from surrounding kingdoms, and a variety of vegetables came. I was thankful that having a roast camel wasn’t a part of the dinner under the prince’s request, although I still worried what kind of meat was in the kebabs.

As I feasted, I listened to many a curious tale from my fellow adventurers, who had travelled far to come to this year’s feast. Many of them spoke of lands quite wild and beyond some of the Al Kharidian’s imaginations. At one point, the prince exclaimed a desire to come along with some of them, but with a quiet stare from the Emir, Prince Ali quickly stopped.

Soon, the time came to leave. As I got up, I noticed that the servers were handing small packages to each of the guests. “Christmas gifts,” the Chancellor explained. “In thanks for your coming here to celebrate with us.”

Drat! I forgot to bring gifts to the royal family! I quickly went through my satchel and pulled out a worn diary, filled with tales of a certain dungeon underneath the Barbarian Village. I handed the diary to Prince Ali.

“Your Majesty, here is a journal written by an adventurer of the barbarian people in the north. I hope it pleases Your Majesty.”

The prince took the diary into his hands and flipped through the pages, his eyes growing wide at Litara’s brother’s tales of the depths of the Stronghold. The Chancellor looked over Prince Ali’s shoulder, frowning slightly, before guiding me out of the dining hall and out of the palace.

“I fear you may offend the Emir and have our friendship revoked if he finds out what you have given his son.”

“What do you mean?”

“He wants his son to stay and help rule the land. He cannot afford to lose him again, this time to the Barbarians, and if not them, their hell dungeon below their village.” The Chancellor sighed. “Well, we cannot take it away from him. I’ll do my best to have the diary hidden from the Emir.”

“I wish you and the royal family all the best this coming year. Perhaps the Prince will not go there and have one of the servants go instead.”

“Perhaps. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, adventurer.”

Did You Know...
... that it is a good idea to have 2 identical bows on you while Firemaking in Barbarian Style? If you accidently click it to wield the bow, you still have the exact some one in your inventory. (Thanks to The Tal Shiar Alliance!)

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Will you use Menaphos to train your skills?



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