Penance | OSRS Index

Penance are a race only found within and fought through the minigame Barbarian Assault. According to Captain Cain, the Penance were created by the gods as punishment for humanity's sins.^[1] They are lead by the deadly Penance Queen, also only fought during the minigame.

The Penance have a survival mechanism that allows them to protect themselves against various forms of attack.^[2] This mechanism differs depending on the type of Penance: for example, fighters can defend themselves against certain attack styles,^[3] while healers can render themselves immune to certain poisonous foods.^[4] All Penance have one eye, and are able to communicate and coordinate with each other through telepathy.^[5]

Penance creatures all start out as Queen spawn, and receive communication from the Penance Queen who determines what type of Penance creature they should grow into. If a Queen spawn receives no communication from the Penance Queen, it turns into a Queen itself.^[6]

Types of penance

Known types of penance include:

Trivia

In RuneScape 3, it is revealed that the Penance are led by the Penance King, also known as Duke Cacus, a chthonian demon and one of the 12 Zarosian dukes. He was mutated by the Abyss, becoming the Penance King and later creating a portal back into Gielinor underground beneath the Barbarian Outpost.

References

^ Captain Cain in Barbarian Assault tutorial. Old School RuneScape. "The Penance have been created upon this planet by the gods. You see, we have performed many dishonourable deeds over the years and it's for this that the gods have created these creatures on Gielinor."
^ Captain Cain in Barbarian Assault tutorial. Old School RuneScape. "These monsters have an intuitive defensive system that allows them to protect against different types of attack. This is good for them, but bad for you."
^ "Penance Fighter statue". Old School RuneScape. "Sharing the telekinetic trait of the other Penance monsters, the Penance Fighter can anticipate and adapt to defend itself. Bearing this in mind, it's important when fighting this monster to change attack style periodically to ensure damage is dealt."
^ "Penance Healer statue". Old School RuneScape. "The Penance Healer is partial to food, which it uses to create its own chemicals for curing and poisoning. As a result it has to be very careful what it eats, and has a mechanism by which it will be immune to certain types of poisonous foods at different times."
^ Captain Cain in Barbarian Assault tutorial. Old School RuneScape. "The Penance use a form of telepathic communication, which one of our elders has managed to tap into and relay to anyone."
^ "Penance Queen spawn statue". Old School RuneScape. "All Penance begin their lives in this form, mutating into the seperate classes of Penance depending on the lack or abundance of other classes in the local environment. Through telepathic communication, the Queen is able to determine the number of each class of Penance (Fighter, Ranger, Healer or Runner) and communicate to her spawn the form they should take on to fill any gaps in numbers. If the spawn receives no communication from a Queen, it turns into a Queen itself, because of the evident neccessity of such a role."