OSRS Summer Sweep-Up Pet Improvements 2026: Gauntlet entry, death persistence, Z-buffer fixes and more

Pet system: the big QOL overhaul

The headline change of the Summer Sweep-Up Pet Improvements batch is that pets can now enter most minigames without being banked first. Previously, if you wanted to bring your pet along for a run through The Gauntlet, you had to bank it before entering, collect it outside, and then summon it again — a tedious process that broke the flow of every run.

The Gauntlet, Corrupted Gauntlet, and Impetuous Impulses now allow pets to follow visibly throughout the entire instance. For most other minigames, pets are invisible inside the instance but you no longer need to bank them. The only exception is Temple Trekking, which already has an NPC that follows the player, so pets are excluded there.

The technical reason for the visibility split is that most minigame instances spawn new NPCs internally, which can break the pet following system. The Gauntlet team was able to modify those instances to support pets natively, but other minigames could not be changed the same way — so the team implemented invisible pets as the fallback.

Pet death persistence: you no longer lose your pet

A long-standing frustration was that dying during a run would cause your pet to despawn, requiring you to re-summon it after respawning. The update fixes this: pets now respawn with the player on death and continue following. This applies to all pets except the 'Other (Generic)' category, which includes Dogs, Cats, Broav, Pet Fish, Hellcat, Pet Rock, Toy Cat, Humphrey Dumphrey, Spooky Chair, Mayor of Catherby, and Archibald.

The requirement is that the pet must be in a summoned status before entering any minigame or instance. Inventory item pets cannot be taken in — they must be actively summoned and following. If the player dies or drowns, the pet remains in a following state. Upon leaving the minigame, the pet becomes visible again automatically.

• Pets respawn with the player on death — no re-summoning needed.
• Applies to all pets except the Generic category (Dogs, Cats, Broav, etc.).
• Pets must be in summoned status before entering minigames.
• Inventory item pets cannot be taken into instances.
• On death or drowning, the pet remains in following state.

Hundreds of Z-buffer clipping and flickering fixes

The largest volume change in this update is a massive batch of Z-buffer fixes — visual rendering issues where objects overlap incorrectly (clipping) or flicker due to Z-depth sorting errors. These are quality-of-life improvements that do not affect gameplay mechanics but significantly improve the visual experience across Gielinor.

Clipping fixes span dozens of locations: drops on floors of Cerberus' Lair and Tormented Demon Dungeon, decorative tiles in Fortis Colosseum and Kephri Arena, idle states of The Nightmare in Sisterhood Sanctuary, and dozens of building interiors from Brimhaven to Shayzien. The list includes trees sticking out of Tree Gnome Village, crates in Port Piscarilius docks, banking chests in Ruins of Unkah, and the Combat Ring floor in your POH.

Flickering fixes address the Giant Anvil on Giants' Plateau, Arrav venom pools, King's Ransom dungeon walls, Sophanem Dungeon spike traps, the Balance Beam striped tape in your POH, and mushroom flickering throughout Gielinor. These are visible during normal gameplay and are a common source of frustration for players.

Other changes in this batch

Beyond pets and Z-buffer fixes, this batch includes several other gameplay adjustments worth noting.

Energy potion drops from Goblins, Banshees, and Crawling Hands have been reduced so they no longer dominate the loot tables — they still provide a useful supply but are no longer guaranteed. Perdu can now return the Arkan Blade, charging 350,000 GP for the convenience. A bug where certain Mortimer Partner Slayer scenarios locked players out of receiving tasks has been fixed.

Chambers of Xeric thralls now display distinct colours per combat style: Range thralls (Skeletal) turn Jewelled Crabs green, Magic thralls (Ghost) turn them blue, and Melee thralls (Zombie) turn them red — making it immediately clear which thrall type is active. The Medallion of the Deep now allows equipping capes and helms while underwater, since those slots are not used for diving gear.

Salvage sorting has been fixed so players eligible for clue boxes can receive them from salvage without being blocked by already-owned clues of the same tier. Inventory icons for Sunlight and Moonlight moth mixes now have distinct icons instead of sharing the Sapphire Glacialis icon. The Enchanted Lyre 'Play' option no longer requires Hard/Elite Fremennik Diary completion.

• Energy potion drops reduced from Goblins, Banshees, and Crawling Hands.
• Perdu can return the Arkan Blade for 350,000 GP.
• Chambers of Xeric thralls: green (range), blue (magic), red (melee).
• Medallion of the Deep: can equip capes and helms underwater.
• Salvage: clue boxes no longer blocked by duplicate clue tiers.
• Enchanted Lyre 'Play' no longer requires Hard/Elite Diary.

Gathering Efficiencies rolling out from September 30

The news post also teases the remaining Gathering Efficiencies QOL changes, which began rolling out earlier in the Summer Sweep-Up. Per Mod Yume (16 September 2026), the remaining changes from the poll are expected to start rolling out from 30 September 2026.

These changes include stackable net traps for Hunter, Celestial Signet's effect applying to Daeyalt mining, using logs from the log basket to make deadfall or pitfall traps, and knowing the compost state of a farming path without inspecting it. The full list of 18 QOL improvements spans Hunter, Farming, Mining, and other gathering skills.