OSRS Summer Sweep Up: Hunter & Skilling Changes August 2026

Hunter Rebalancing

The biggest changes in this batch are to Hunter. Birdhouses now give 5 rolls per birdhouse (down from 10) but the success rate per roll is tripled, resulting in approximately 50% more nests with more consistent output. The XP per roll was significantly reduced: regular/oak/willow/teak by 60%, maple by 55%, mahogany by 50%, yew by 40%, magic by 15%. Redwood is unchanged. The net effect is less XP per birdhouse but more consistent nest drops for birdhouse runners.

Deadfall traps were significantly improved. The trap limit increased from 1 to 2 (Maniacal Monkeys remain at 1). There's a 75% chance to preserve the log when placing a trap. The catch time dropped from 15 ticks (9 seconds) to 8 ticks (4.8 seconds). Wild and Prickly Kebbit catch rates were significantly increased. XP per catch was reduced by 20-27%, but the faster catch time means overall XP/hr is still significantly increased.

Falconry was also improved: you are no longer held in place while the falcon chases a kebbit. You can catch kebbits with a full inventory (excess resources discarded). Furs are only discarded if both the fur pouch and inventory are full. Bones are crushed for Prayer XP if a bonecrusher is equipped. Walking to Matthias is no longer interrupted.

Guardians of the Rift Changes

Guardians of the Rift received two major additions. The Abyssal Needle is now purchasable for 750 Abyss Pearls from the Temple Supplies shop. The Abyssal Lantern now functions outside GOTR when lit with Willow, Blisterwood, Magic, or Redwood logs. The rune-boosting effects apply only to base runes — they do not boost runes crafted from Scar Essence or Blood Essence. The Guardian's Eye now unlocks permanent Rift Guardian metamorphosis, which is retroactive (duplicates are refunded). Other colour variants can be unlocked at Runecrafting altars.

Tempoross Changes

The Fish Barrel and Tackle Box can now be purchased for 6,000 Spirit Flakes each from the Spirit Angler at Tempoross. This makes these items more accessible to players who prefer Tempoross over other content. The Fish Barrel is particularly useful for storing fish during fishing trips, and the Tackle Box stores fishing equipment.

Wyrmscraig & Jeweller's Chisel Buff

The Jeweller's Chisel was significantly buffed: bolt tip cutting speed reduced from 5 ticks to 2 ticks per gem, a 1 in 10 chance to cut 2 gems into bolt tips at once, and the high-alch value increased to 60,000 GP. Alchemy spells can now be used on the chisel. Other Wyrmscraig fixes include: Aggy and Mr McGroot now follow without getting stuck, Aggy's shadow removed, Hallowfell attack direction fixed, and the Cathedral staircase misclick fixed.

Mortimer Partner Slayer fixes: players cannot partner after rolling tasks without selecting one; if a partner is offline when tasks are rolled, they are no longer considered a partner; Mortimer tasks cannot be shared with players who haven't unlocked Mortimer.

Other Changes

The Energy potion was buffed from 10% to 15% per dose. 1- to 3-dose Energy potions were added to the loot tables of early-game monsters: Dark Wizards, Goblins, Molanisks, Desert Lizards, Banshees, human NPCs, Cave Crawlers, Cockatrice, Crawling Hands, and Killerwatts. Completing a quest now fully restores run energy and cures poison/DoT.

The Giant Squirrel pet drop rate was increased for the Colossal Wyrm Agility Course. The Venator Bow was updated to find targets more reliably. The Slayer tasks interface now auto-resizes vertically. The PvP Rota moved to Period B with 1 Def Pure loadouts in the PvP Arena.