What You Need to Know About OSRS’ Guardians of the Rift

Guardians of the Rift is a fresh Runecraft-focused minigame introduced by Jagex in the March 23 OSRS update. Runecraft is the skill responsible for converting various types of essence into runes at different altars, a process that has long been considered one of the slowest and most monotonous grinds in Old School RuneScape.

So, why bother training Runecraft at all? Plenty of in-game content is gated behind specific Runecraft levels, but more importantly, there are three major account milestones that absolutely require it. You’ll need level 55 Runecraft to earn the Quest Cape, 91 for the Achievement Diary Cape, and 99 to achieve a maxed account. Even if those goals aren't on your radar, you may still want to level Runecraft for GP or for the slim chance of unlocking the adorable and incredibly rare Runecraft pet.

Before Guardians of the Rift arrived, the community relied mostly on methods like the high-attention lava rune crafting meta, the low-effort Ourania Altar method, the occasional Tears of Guthix run, the niche Arceuus Library strategy, and the high-level Blood, Soul, and Wrath rune routes. Guardians of the Rift adds a refreshing alternative: a more engaging way to earn Runecraft XP while offering a suite of helpful rewards that make the skill more enjoyable overall.

What Rewards Can You Get From the Guardians of the Rift Minigame?

Guardians of the Rift includes a reward structure similar to Tempoross. When a round ends, you receive separate Catalytic and Elemental points based on your performance—these function much like reward permits from Tempoross. You’ll spend these points searching the rift through the reward guardian, mirroring how players redeem their Tempoross permits at its reward pool.

The reward guardian can grant standard loot such as runes and talismans, along with a range of unique items. Unlike Tempoross, this minigame introduces a special currency called Abyssal Pearls, which can be exchanged with Apprentice Felix for various upgrades.

Most of the unique drops from Guardians of the Rift are exceptional—and whether you dread Runecraft or enjoy the grind, these rewards genuinely improve your experience. Here’s what you can find:

• Abyssal Needle – Enables you to create a Colossal Pouch by combining the existing pouches. This requires 85 Runecraft and 56 Crafting. The resulting pouch holds 40 essence and degrades after eight uses.
• Elemental Talisman – Grants access to all elemental altars.
• Catalytic Talisman – The elemental talisman’s counterpart, but only obtainable through Guardians of the Rift.
• Abyssal Lantern – Exclusive to the minigame; its bonuses depend on the log type used to fuel it. It requires ten logs to charge, and your Firemaking level determines which logs you may use.
• Abyssal Dye – Lets you recolor your Runecraft outfit.
• Intricate Pouch – Usually contains runes or a tarnished locket, which can be used to acquire the Amulet of the Eye from the Lumbridge Guide.
• Abyssal Pearls – A currency used to purchase exclusive cosmetics and items from Apprentice Felix.
• Atlax’s Diary – A lore-filled book that becomes accessible from your player-owned house bookcase.
• Abyssal Protector – The coveted Guardians of the Rift pet.

Here’s what you can purchase using Abyssal Pearls:

• The Ring of the Elements – A teleport ring for elemental altars. Each charge consumes one of each elemental rune plus a law rune. Costs 400 Abyssal Pearls.
• The Blood Talisman – Grants access to the Morytania Blood Altar for 100 Abyssal Pearls.
• Raiments of the Eye – A Runecraft outfit consisting of four pieces. Each piece provides a 10% chance to craft extra runes, and wearing the entire set boosts this chance to a total of 60%.
• Guardian’s Eye – A cosmetic item that transforms your Runecraft pet into a Greatish Guardian, resembling the Great Guardian itself. Costs 3000 Abyssal Pearls.

If these rewards have sparked your interest, note that you’ll need at least 27 Runecraft and completion of the Temple of the Eye quest to access the minigame.

How to Play

Your mission is to help the Great Guardian gather enough energy to seal a dangerous rift in the abyss. You’ll rely heavily on Crafting, Mining, and Runecraft throughout the match. Each round consists of three phases, and your contribution involves the following key actions:

• Mine guardian remains to collect guardian fragments (these stack).
• Use weak, medium, strong, or overcharged cells to power up the defensive shields. You can only carry one at a time, so energizing shields early is crucial.
• Use cells again to create Guardians.
• Convert your guardian fragments into Guardian Essence (non-stackable), which also awards small chunks of Crafting XP.
• Fill your pouches, create additional essence, and prepare for altar runs.
• Travel through portals to specific altars to imbue your essence, producing either Elemental or Catalytic Guardian Stones and generating runes appropriate to the altar.
• Deliver your guardian stones to power the Great Guardian.
• Continue charging the Great Guardian until it has enough energy to close the rift.

Until you unlock the Raiments of the Eye, it’s recommended to wear a mix of the Graceful set, Varrock Armour, and a pickaxe. Bring a chisel and your pouches, and deposit your runes after every round inside the minigame.

If a match is already underway when you arrive, you must wait for it to end. Additionally, the game has a player cap—if too many people are already behind the barrier, access will be blocked until space becomes available.

These are the fundamentals, but players can experiment with different strategies to maximize XP rates or prioritize profit, depending on their goals.

Have Fun With Guardians of the Rift!

Guardians of the Rift is genuinely one of the most rewarding additions to OSRS. In fact, players who jumped in within the first hour of release briefly enjoyed a bizarre bug that allowed them to pick up untradeable items directly from the ground—leading to some lucky adventurers snagging their first infernal cape before the servers were rolled back. Whether for XP, GP, pets, or cosmetics, the minigame is a fantastic way to breathe new life into your Runecraft journey.