OSRS RuneFest 2026: Discord events, contests, prizes and how to take part from home
For RuneFest 2026, Jagex opened a Discord-only programme alongside the in-person event. The official giveaways run throughout the RuneFest livestream via the Discord #giveaway channel, entered by reacting to the bot post. Two volunteer contests run in parallel: the Discord Banner Competition, open until 23 September with a bond prize plus server display until mid-October, a contest winner role and a name colour; and the RuneFest photo contest in #rf-photo-contest, worth one of five bonds. There are also a mods-hosted watch party with a community-made Summit predictions bingo board and eight new RuneFest channels.
Key takeaways
- The Discord Banner Competition closes 23 September 2026 and pays out one bond, plus the winning banner stays in the server until mid-October.
- The photo contest is entered in #rf-photo-contest and pays out one of five bonds.
- Official giveaways run throughout the livestream in #giveaway; you join the server and react to the bot post to enter.
- Eight new RuneFest channels are open, including #rf-announcements, #runefest-2026, #rf-archives and #rf-goldengnomes.
- The banner contest winner also gets the contest winner role and a custom name colour.
What RuneFest is in 2026
RuneFest is Jagex's annual RuneScape event, bringing players, mods and creators together for a week of streams, announcements and community content. 2026 is being treated as an anniversary year, which the new #rf-archives channel makes explicit: it exists specifically for sharing photos and memories of RuneFests past, framed as RuneFest through the ages.
The important change for most players is that the biggest RuneFest participation surface is no longer the venue itself. Jagex has put the contests, giveaways and watch party on the Official Discord server, which means you can enter every live contest without attending in person.
Official giveaways and how they work
Official giveaways run throughout the RuneFest livestream via the Discord server. You need to join the server and watch the #giveaway channel, where a bot announces each giveaway. Entering is a single reaction to the bot post.
The prize line-up has not been published yet, and Jagex pointedly says they cannot wait to show it. Treat every giveaway announcement as a live event during the stream rather than something you can enter later.
The Discord Banner Competition
The banner contest is one of two contests hosted by the volunteer team. The brief is to design a RuneFest-themed banner, and it is open until 23 September 2026. Entries go in the server events thread linked from the announcement.
The prize is a bond from the Mod team. Beyond the bond, the winning banner is displayed in the server until mid-October, and the winner receives the contest winner role plus a name colour. That means the win has visible credit in the community, not just an in-game reward.
- Brief: design a RuneFest-themed banner
- Deadline: 23 September 2026
- Prize: one bond from the Mod team
- Winner's banner displayed in the server until mid-October
- Also awarded: contest winner role and custom name colour
The RuneFest photo contest
The second contest is aimed at players attending RuneFest in person. Take a photo, whether it is funny, cosy, a first meeting with a clanmate or a JMod, or a long-time friend in person, and share it in the #rf-photo-contest channel.
Winners take one of five bonds. If you are at the event, the #rf-meet-ups channel is the entry point for arranging to meet other attendees, and #rf-gallery is where the year's event photos end up.
Watch party and the eight new channels
The mods are hosting a Discord watch party with a community-generated Summit predictions bingo board, so you can check whether your Summit predictions were right alongside other players. You join through the RuneFest Stream Watchalong Stage channel, which opens nearer the time.
Eight channels were opened for the event. #rf-announcements carries all RuneFest news and notices, #runefest-2026 is the general chat for people attending or watching from home, #rf-attendees-lounge is for those at the event, #rf-photo-contest collects photo contest entries, #rf-meet-ups helps attendees find each other, #rf-archives is the anniversary-year channel for past RuneFests, #rf-gallery holds this year's photos and #rf-goldengnomes is for sending virtual golden gnomes to shout out a player, community or group. The last one explicitly has no physical gnomes or prizes, only positivity.
- #rf-announcements, all RuneFest news and notices
- #runefest-2026, general chat for attendees and home viewers
- #rf-attendees-lounge, for people at the event
- #rf-photo-contest, photo contest entries
- #rf-meet-ups, arranging in-person meetups
- #rf-archives, past RuneFests for the anniversary year
- #rf-gallery, this year's event photos
- #rf-goldengnomes, virtual golden gnomes, no prizes
Questions players ask
When does the RuneFest banner competition close?+
23 September 2026. Entries go in the server events thread, and the prize is one bond from the Mod team plus display in the server until mid-October, the contest winner role and a name colour.
Can I enter RuneFest contests without attending in person?+
Yes for the banner competition and the Discord giveaways. The photo contest is aimed at people actually at the event, so it is the one that does not make sense from home.
How many bonds are available in the photo contest?+
Five bonds across the contest, entered by sharing a photo in the #rf-photo-contest channel.
How do I enter the official RuneFest giveaways?+
Join the Official Discord server, watch #giveaway during the livestream and react to the bot post announcing each giveaway. Prize details are not published in advance.
Is there a watch party for RuneFest?+
Yes. The mods host a Discord watch party with a community-generated Summit predictions bingo board, reached through the RuneFest Stream Watchalong Stage channel that opens nearer the time.
What are the new RuneFest Discord channels?+
Eight channels: #rf-announcements, #runefest-2026, #rf-attendees-lounge, #rf-photo-contest, #rf-meet-ups, #rf-archives, #rf-gallery and #rf-goldengnomes.
Sources and verification
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