RuneScape

Queen Black Dragon Guide

Guide Links
Overview
Attack Summary
Getting There
Equipment
Tactics
Rewards
Credits

Related Links
Song from the Depths

This boss has been rated as EXTREMELY HIGH-RISK. You should never attempt to fight the Queen Black Dragon with items you are not willing to risk losing, and while there, you should expect your death as a possibility at all times. Your gravestone will appear in front of the Summoning portal.

Overview

The Queen Black Dragon (abbreviated as QBD) is the product of a Dragonkin project, consigned to a cursed slumber in the depths of the Grotworm Lair. Extremely powerful and intelligent, the QBD is a monster that can only be fought alone, making it quite the challenge for keen monster hunters. You will need a Summoning level of at least 60 to enter the QBD's lair, and having completed the quest Song from the Depths will grant a passive damage reduction buff when taking it on.

Queen Black Dragon Basic Facts (Bestiary Profile)
Combat Level: 2100	Hitpoints: 75000	Maximum Hit: 300+ Ranged and Melee, 650+ Dragonfire, 250+ Special Dragonfire	Attack Style(s): Ranged, Melee, Dragonfire + Special
	Experience Summary
	Combat with the QBD awards four times more combat experience per damage than other monsters. However the difficulty and time taken to kill her does not make it an effective training method.
	Drops Summary
	After putting the Queen Black Dragon to sleep, rewards are taken from the Dragonkin coffer in another room. These include the Dragon kiteshield, Dragonbone upgrade kit, and the four parts of the royal crossbow (frame, sight, torsion spring and bolt stabiliser). In addition the coffer always includes some Royal dragonhides, Royal bolts, and other miscellaneous items such as dragon bones and dragon items.
	Special Notes
	Completion of the Song from the Depths quest awards a passive damage reduction buff against the dragonfire of the QBD.
	Recommended Levels
	90+ Attack 90+ Strength 90+ Defence 90+ Constitution 90+ Ranged (if ranging) 70+ Prayer (74+ if using Rigour) 67+ Summoning 50 Agility

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Attack Summary

QBD Attacks
Apart from several standard attacks, the Queen Black Dragon possesses a vast repertoire of special attacks, and uses more of them as the battle progresses. Additionally, these special attacks grow in power through each consecutive phase. Some of these attacks have cooldowns to prevent the QBD from using multiple powerful attacks at once.
Standard Attacks
	Melee: The QBD can use a powerful bite attack if you are standing close to her (about up to four map tiles away). This attack can be negated with Protect from/Deflect Melee.
	Ranged: The QBD swings at you with her massive head, regardless of your location. This attack can be negated with Protect from/Deflect Ranged.
	Dragonfire: The QBD breathes powerful dragonfire, which can hit you regardless of your location. This attack's damage can be reduced by using dragonfire protection and completing Song from the Depths. This attack also has a 10 second cooldown between uses.
Special Attacks
Image	Description	Progression
	Fire Wave "The Queen Black Dragon takes a huge breath." The QBD breathes a wall of fire. This wall has one open space which you can stand facing to avoid taking any damage. Getting caught in the fire is the same as being hit by her Dragonfire attack. If you cannot reach the opening in time, it is recommended that you run through the fire wall instead to reduce damage taken.	First used in phase one. The number of fire walls increases to two in phase two and three in phases three and four.
	Spit Grotworms "The Queen Black Dragon's concentration wavers." The QBD spits out giant worms every three seconds. This continues until you activate the respective dragonkin artifact and move on to the next phase.	Used at the end of each phase.
	Summon Tortured Souls "The Queen Black Dragon summons one of her captive, tortured souls." The QBD summons a Tortured soul into the battlefield.	First used in phase two. The number of souls increases to two in phase three and four in phase four.
	Arcane Waves This attack has no chatbox notification; instead, it occurs when the Tortured souls are summoned into the field. It also occurs when the souls teleport around you. Each Tortured soul releases an arcane wave, which moves towards you. If you are caught by the arcane wave, you are hit for about 200 damage. This wave continuously follows you, but can also hit the souls or worms on the battlefield.	First used in phase two. The amount of arcane waves released each time are the same as the number of Tortured souls on the battlefield.
	Siphon Life "The Queen Black Dragon starts to siphon the energy of her mages." The QBD rapidly siphons energy from the Tortured souls, damaging each of them for 20 damage and restoring 40 lifepoints for each hit. This attack continues until all Tortured souls have been killed, either by you or the QBD. This move has a 30 second cooldown between uses.	First used in phase two. The QBD's healing rate increases as the number of Tortured souls on the battlefield increases.
	Crystal Form "The Queen Black Dragon takes on the consistency of crystal; she is more resistant to magic, but weaker to physical damage." For a duration of time, the QBD takes reduced damage from Magic attacks and increased damage from Ranged and Melee attacks.	First used in phase three.
	Hardened Carapace "The Queen Black Dragon hardens her carapace; she is more resistant to physical damage, but more vulnerable to magic." For a duration of time, the QBD takes increased damage from Magic attacks and reduced damage from Ranged and Melee attacks.	First used in phase three.
	Forging Fire "The Queen Black Dragon gathers her strength to breathe extremely hot flames." The QBD launches a consuming fire, which deals three rounds of damage. The damage dealt per round is based on your proximity to her; standing right in front of her causes hits of over 300 damage, while standing at the edges of the battlefield reduces the damage to around 60.	First used in phase four.
	Time Stop This attack has no chatbox notification; instead, a random Tortured soul on the battlefield will teleport to the eastern or western edge of the battlefield and pronounce “Kill me... mortal... quickly! HURRY! BEFORE THE SPELL IS COMPLETE!”. You then have roughly 15 seconds to kill this soul to prevent the Time Stop attack. If you fail to do this, you will be unable to make any actions for a period of time, and any damage sustained during this period is dealt to you once the Time Stop wears off.	First used in phase four.

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Getting There

The Queen Black Dragon resides past the Summoning Portal in level 3 of the Grotworm Lair. There are several quick ways to reach the lair:

Use the Port Sarim lodestone and run north-west
Use the daily teleport of Remora's necklace
Teleport or use a chipped tablet to the Rimmington house portal and run north-east

Once in the lair, make use of the shortcut on level 1 to quickly get to the end of level 3, and then enter the Summoning Portal to face the QBD.

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Equipment

Melee Ranged

Helmet: Torva full helm > Helm of neitiznot > Berserker helm
Amulet: Amulet of fury > Amulet of glory
Body: Torva platebody > Bandos chestplate > Torag's platebody
Legs: Torva platelegs > Bandos tassets > Verac's plateskirt
Boots: Steadfast boots > Dragon boots
Gloves: Goliath gloves > Culinaromancer's gloves 10
Cape: Completionist cape (Max cape) > Spirit cape > TokHaar-Kal > Fire cape
Ring: Berserker ring (i) > Berserker ring
Shield: Divine spirit shield > Elysian spirit shield > Dragon defender = Dragonfire shield
Weapon: Chaotic rapier > Chaotic longsword > Abyssal vine whip (Abyssal whip)
Aura: Vampyrism

Special Weapon: Dragon dagger (p++) > Dragon claws
Familiar: Steel titan > Unicorn stallion > Pack yak > War tortoise

The melee approach to fighting the QBD enjoys a higher damage output than the ranged approach. However, you will suffer much more damage when using this method, as you will be exposed to both the melee and ranged attacks of the QBD. Additionally, you will have to spend more time out of combat avoiding her special attacks or activating the artifacts, which lengthens the battle and the overall damage taken.

A melee special weapon is used to deal with the Time Stop attack, which allows you to deal more damage in a short burst of time to quickly take out the tormented soul charging this attack.

If you are using a Steel Titan, consider charging a Helm of neitiznot (e) with scrolls and wearing it. These trigger randomly and can cast the titan's Special Move for free, increasing damage output and speeding up kills.

If you have ventured through Dominion Tower, it is worthwhile to bring dreadnips. These inflict more damage, speeding up kills further.

A spirit cape can be worn to reduce the Special Move cost of the Unicorn Stallion and Steel Titan scrolls. This especially helps in the latter case, speeding up kills by increasing damage output. You can also bring summoning potions to restore Special Move points, allowing you to use scrolls more often.

Helmet: Void ranger helm* (with Void melee helm switch)
Amulet: Amulet of fury > Amulet of glory
Body: Elite void knight top* > Pernix body > Armadyl chestplate > Royal d'hide body
Legs: Elite void knight robe*
Boots: Glaiven boots > Ranger boots > Snakeskin boots
Gloves: Swift gloves > Void knight gloves*
Cape: Completionist cape > Spirit cape
Ring: Archers ring (i) > Onyx ring (i) > Archer's ring
Shield: Void knight deflector*
Ranged Weapon: Royal crossbow (with Royal bolts) > Chaotic crossbow (with Dragonbane bolts)
Melee weapon: Chaotic rapier (on slash) > Chaotic longsword > Abyssal vine whip (Abyssal whip)
Aura: Vampyrism

Special Weapon: Dragon dagger (p++)
Familiar: Steel titan

The Void approach to the QBD trades in the defensive values of armour in favour for the boosted attack strength of Void equipment. This set-up only allows for a ranged method, as your low defence makes it much harder to survive when facing two attack styles.

Using Swift gloves in combination with a Void deflector improves damage output more than using a Ranged body with Void gloves, due to the QBD's low defence.

This set-up makes use of a melee special weapon to deal with the Time Stop attack, which deals more damage in a short burst of time compared to your ranged weapon. This allows you to quickly take out the tormented soul charging the Time Stop.

If you have ventured through Dominion Tower, it is worthwhile to bring dreadnips. These inflict more damage, speeding up kills further.

A spirit cape reduces the Special Move cost of Steel Titan scrolls, speeding up kills by increasing damage output. You can also bring summoning potions to restore Special Move points, allowing you to use scrolls more often.

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Tactics

When you first enter the QBD's lair, she will take some time to stir from her slumber before facing you. Use this time to drink your potions and prepare your familiar, if necessary.

The battle against the QBD is a short, intense fight, with your goal being to put her back into her cursed sleep by activating four dragonkin artifacts. The battle is divided into four phases, with each phase ending when the QBD loses a quarter of her lifepoints (shown on her lifepoint bar), leaving an artifact unguarded. You can then activate this artifact to proceed to the next phase.

To fight and defeat the QBD successfully, you will need to be in combat with her as much as possible while simultaneously dealing with her various special attacks. It is also important to prioritise certain special attacks over others, as they deal more damage or have relatively more dangerous consequences.

Fire Wave
The fire wave special attack always has a safespot in one of three possible locations, to the west, east, and the centre of the platform. When you receive the notification for Fire Wave, move to the centre of the platform, directly west of the first dragonkin artifact - this is the first possible safespot. From here, regardless of where the spacing appears in the coming wave, you will be able to make it to the appropriate safespot in time by running diagonally southward to the safe column. In later waves, where you have to take on multiple fire waves in succession, you should run diagonally southward to the edge of the platform when getting to the next safespot. For instance, if you are standing at the west safespot after a fire wave sweeps pass and the next wave's safespot is on the east side, you should run diagonally south-east to the centre, and then directly east to the eastern safespot. If you are unable to make it to a safespot in time, run through the fire wave towards the centre - this reduces the damage you take directly from the wave, and sets you up in a more advantageous position to take on the next wave.

Movement example to avoid multiple waves - note the timing in relation to the wavefront

Grotworms
You should do your best to minimise the number of grotworms spat out by the QBD at the end of each phase. As a melee user, this will be much more difficult as you will have to run long distances between each artifact. As a ranged user, however, you can reduce the grotworm threat significantly. To do this, stand as close as possible to each dragonkin artifact as far as your range allows. For the first phase, you can stand right next to the artifact in the centre and activate it immediately when the QBD loses her concentration. For the second and third phases, you should stand on the west and east sides of the platform respectively, in line with the first artifact. When the QBD's concentration wavers, run to the respective artifact immediately - this reduces the grotworms spat out to only one.

Ranged positions for phase one, two and three - get as close to the artifact as possible

Once you've pushed the QBD to the next phase, kill off any grotworms already on the field. Move into melee distance to reduce their usage of their magic attack and kill them with your melee weapon, before continuing the battle against the QBD.

Tortured Souls
Tortured souls are easily the most frustrating special attack to deal with when fighting the QBD. The trick to dealing with them is to lure their arcane wave attack into them, damaging the soul instead of yourself. When the QBD summons souls into the battlefield (or when they teleport on their own volition), note the time they appear. You want to click to move on the exact same moment when they speak, which is exactly 1.2 seconds later. If done precisely, the arcane waves will be lured onto the soul, saving you from dealing with extra damage. This is easily achieved with repeated practice and a good connection.

Sample lure for phase two and three - note the same timing of the click and the dialogue

In phases two and three, you will want to move directly to the west (at least 2 squares) to pull off this lure. In phase four, when dealing with four souls at once, you should move in a diagonal in any direction (again, at least 2 squares). Note that sometimes, the souls will not be aggressive to you immediately, and the lure will fail - to prevent yourself getting killed by this, make sure that your LP is always above 800 in phase four. If you are meleeing the QBD, you must take at least one step back first to be able to pull off this lure; if not, the tortured souls will not spawn in this matter and you will be unable to lure the waves onto them.

Sample lure for phase four - move diagonally from a soul to lure the waves onto it

If the QBD chooses to siphon the life of her souls, you should attack them instead of the QBD, as any damage done to them is worth double the health that the QBD would restore. Otherwise, you may wish to leave them alone and tank out their attacks while focusing damage on the QBD instead.

Alternate Forms
This special attack should only change how you spend your combat scrolls (Steel of Legends/Iron Within). To increase damage output, you should spend as many scrolls as possible on her crystal form, and not use them at all on her hardened form.

Forging Fire
This attack is extremely avoidable - you simply need to move to the west or east sides of the platform, out of her blue flame. Even if you are meleeing her, you will have ample time to get out of the flame's hit area. If you are attempting to forge the royal crossbow, be sure to heal yourself above 900LP first, and then use the brandish option when standing in her blue flame.

Time Stop
Immediately identify the soul charging the Time Stop attack. Switch to your special weapon and start using special attacks on it. If this fails to kill it within one or two 2 specials, focus your attacking familiar onto it also. In the event that it still does not die, which should only happen very rarely, immediately start healing yourself above your maximum LP and move out of the centre to the east or west side to give yourself the best chance of tanking out this attack instead.

Prioritising Special Attacks
Each of the QBD's special attacks is relatively easy to deal with individually. In the event, however, that you find yourself dealing with multiple attacks at once, you should attempt to deal with the most damaging attack to give yourself the best chance at survival. This may include adapting your techniques - for instance, if the QBD breathes a Fire Wave while a soul begins charging Time Stop, you could focus your attacking familiar (if any) on the soul, and attack it with ranged attacks while weaving through the safespots of the Fire Wave, switching to your melee weapon when you get a chance to get closer to the soul. Arcane Wave special attacks should always be dealt with immediately on casting, as they can be dealt with very quickly and doing so avoids heavy damage. If all else fails, repeatedly drinking brews to tank out special attacks is always an option.

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Rewards

Upon activating the fourth artifact, the enchantment on the QBD will be restored and a staircase will emerge. Proceed down, and you will be taken to a small chamber with a dragonkin coffer to claim your reward from. This coffer always provides you a specific stock of items, including dragon bones, royal dragonhide, some restorative items, and a final reward drop. You can then take these out of the coffer into your inventory, or move them magically into your bank. Note that you cannot retrieve any loot not claimed from the coffer if you leave the area prematurely. Once you are done sorting out your loot, you can use the exit portal to return to the Summoning Portal if you wish to challenge the QBD again, or back to the surface.

If you are particularly lucky, you may find some crossbow components, which can be used to assemble the royal crossbow, snarling draconic visages, starved ancient effigies, vicious adornments packed in dragonbone upgrade kits, or even the fabled Dragon kiteshield. You might also find ancient journals left behind by the dragonkin, which shed some light on the existence of the powerful QBD herself.