Staff of the dead

Item

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Staff of the dead
Released17 October 2013 (Update)
Also calledSOTD
MembersYes
Quest itemNo
League regionAsgarnia Asgarnia✓
Properties
TradeableYes
EquipableYes
StackableNo
NoteableYes
OptionsWield, Drop
ExamineA ghastly weapon with evil origins.
Values
Value1,000,005 coins
High alch600,003 coins
Low alch400,002 coins
Weight1.5 kg
Grand Exchange
Exchange5,337,135 coins (info)
Buy limit8
Daily volume155
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Advanced data
Item ID11791
LinkMOID

The staff of the dead is a one-handed bladed staff that requires 75 Magic and 75 Attack to wield. It is dropped by K'ril Tsutsaroth, and counts as a Zamorakian item while in the God Wars Dungeon and in the desert Bandit Camp. It is one of several one-handed staves which boost magic damage by 15%.

When a combat spell is cast with the staff, there is a 1/7 (~14.2%) chance that the staff will negate the rune cost for that spell.[1]

The staff can autocast Flames of Zamorak, Crumble Undead, Magic Dart, elemental combat spells from the Standard spellbook, and combat spells from the Arceuus spellbook. It is not, however, able to autocast ancient magicks.

Being a bladed staff, it is notable for its offensive melee stats, which are unusually high for a Magic weapon. Its stats slightly surpass that of a dragon scimitar while having the same attack speed when using melee. However, when using magic spells, it offers an attack speed of 5.

The staff may be upgraded into the toxic staff of the dead, the staff of light, or the staff of balance.

Combat stats

 Attack bonuses
StabSlashCrushMagicRanged
+55+70+0+17+0
 Defence bonuses
StabSlashCrushMagicRanged
+0+3+3+17+0
 Other bonusesSlot
StrengthRangedMagic damagePrayerOne-handed slot table
+72+0+15%+0List
Combat styleAttack typeWeapon styleAttack speedRangeExperienceLevel boost
JabStabAccurate4 ticks (2.4s)1 tileAttack Hitpoints+3 Attack
SwipeSlashAggressiveStrength Hitpoints+3 Strength
FendCrushDefensiveDefence Hitpoints+3 Defence
SpellMagicDefensive Autocast5 ticks (3.0s)10 tilesMagic Hitpoints DefenceNone
SpellMagicAutocastMagic HitpointsNone

Special attack

A player using the staff of the dead's special attack, Power of Death.

The staff has a special attack, Power of Death, that halves all of the opponent's melee damage, consuming 100% of the player's special attack energy. Upon activating the special attack, a message will appear in the player's chatbox: Spirits of deceased evildoers offer you their protection.

The effect lasts for one minute after using the special attack, but will instantly end if the player takes damage while the staff is not equipped. In addition, the effect stacks with the PvP damage reduction effect of the Protect from Melee prayer. The effect does not stack with itself should the player manage to cast the effect more than once before the initial cast expires.

The special attack cannot be used in legacy duels within the Emir's Arena if magic is disabled.

This special attack is also shared with the staff of light, staff of balance, and toxic staff of the dead.

Upgrading

Players with level 59 Crafting can attach a magic fang to the staff using a chisel, creating a toxic staff of the dead. This enhances its magic attack bonus by +8, and has the ability to infect a target with venom. However, taking advantage of these benefits requires using Zulrah's scales to charge the staff. Targets can only be afflicted with venom while using a magic attack, but using both melee and magic attacks will consume Zulrah's scales.

Alternatively, players can use Saradomin's light on the staff of the dead to create the staff of light, which inherits the effects of the staff of the dead. This process is irreversible. The only differences between the two staves is that the staff of light is able to autocast Saradomin Strike instead of Flames of Zamorak, is unable to cast Arceuus combat spells, and it counts as both a Zamorakian and a Saradominist item while in the God Wars Dungeon and in the Desert Bandit Camp.

Players can bring a Staff of the dead and Guthixian icon to Juna to upgrade it to the staff of balance. This process is irreversible. The only differences between the two staves is that the staff of balance is able to autocast Claws of Guthix instead of Flames of Zamorak, is unable to cast Arceuus combat spells, and it counts as a Zamorakian item while in the God Wars Dungeon and in the Desert Bandit Camp.

Products

Item sources

SourceLevelQuantityRarityLeague region
K'ril Tsutsaroth650 11/508Asgarnia

Comparison between other magic weapons

Magic weapons comparison table [ ]
Name Level(s) required Magic attack Magic damage Price Notes
Tumeken's shadow

Magic 85

+35 N/A 784,560,084
  • Requires 5Chaos 2Soul per charge of the built-in spell.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 34 at Magic 99 without any magic damage bonus.
  • Has a passive effect which triples magic attack bonus and magic damage from the player's worn equipment. The magic damage increase is capped at a total of 100%.
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Eye of ayak

Magic 83

+30 N/A 43,001,642
  • Requires either 1Chaos 2Death or 1 per charge of the built-in spell.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 27 at Magic 99 without any magic damage bonus.
  • Is the fastest Magic weapon in the game with an attack speed of 3 ticks.
  • Has a special attack which consumes 50% of the player's special attack energy and drains the target's Magic defence bonus.
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Harmonised nightmare staff Magic 82
Hitpoints 50
+16 +15% 444,486,738
Volatile nightmare staff Magic 82
Hitpoints 50
+16 +15% 70,054,795
  • Can autocast both Ancient Magicks and standard spells.
  • Has a special attack which consumes 55% of the player's special attack energy and deals a high amount of damage with 50% increased accuracy. This attack does not consume runes.
  • Otherwise possesses identical bonuses and benefits to the Nightmare staff.
Eldritch nightmare staff Magic 82
Hitpoints 50
+16 +15% 154,799,611
Sanguinesti staff Magic 82 +25 N/A 18,139,722
  • Slightly stronger than the trident of the swamp, with the same stats but able to hit two damage higher.
  • Requires 2Blood per charge of the built-in spell.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 33 at Magic 99 .
  • Has a 1 in 5 chance to deal 8 additional damage and heal the wielder by half the damage dealt.
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Holy Sanguinesti staff
Kodai wand Magic 80 +28 +15% 61,200,341
Trident of the swamp Magic 78 +25 N/A 3,179,570
  • Has the same benefits as the Trident of the seas, but with +10 more magic attack bonus.
  • Requires 5Fire 1Chaos 1Death and 1 Zulrah scale (instead of coins) per charge of the built-in spell, and can hold up to 2,500 charges. The enhanced version can hold up to 20,000 charges, but requires 10 kraken tentacles to create.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 31 at Magic 99 .
  • Has 25% chance to inflict venom on the target.
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Trident of the swamp (e) 5,348,960
Purging staff Magic 77 Attack 50 +37 +10% 30,776,983[n 1]
Toxic staff of the dead Magic 75 Attack +25 +15% 8,819,693
Staff of light Magic 75 Attack +17 +15% 5,262,338
Staff of balance Magic 75 Attack +17 +15% 29,888,309
Staff of the dead Magic 75 Attack +17 +15% 5,337,135
Trident of the seas Magic 75 +15 N/A 39,895
  • Has its own built-in spell, requiring charges which cost 5Fire 1Chaos 1Death runes and 10 coins per cast. Can hold up to 2,500 charges. The enhanced version can hold up to 20,000 charges, but requires 10 kraken tentacles to create.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 28 at Magic 99 .
  • Has a weapon speed of 4 (same as scimitars/whip), while all other forms of combat magic only have 5 (same as longswords).
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Trident of the seas (e) 2,823,003
Slayer's staff (e) Magic 75
Slayer 55
+12 N/A 25,871[n 2]
Blue moon spear Magic 75
Attack 70
+30 +5% 368,032
Nightmare staff Magic 72
Hitpoints 50
+16 +15% 32,313,810
Ahrim's staff Magic 70
Attack 70
+15 +5% 149,202
Ancient sceptre Magic 70
Strength 60
Attack 50
+20 +10% 60,687
Accursed sceptre Magic 70 +22 N/A 3,258,266
  • While charged, an additional 50% magic accuracy and damage boost is applied when attacking any NPC in the Wilderness. This effect will stack with a Slayer helmet or a Salve amulet and their variants, but not both simultaneously.
  • Has a special attack which consumes 50% of the player's special attack energy and deals an attack with 50% increased damage and accuracy. Upon a successful hit, drains the target's Defence and Magic by 15%.
  • Standard version:
    • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level.
    • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
  • Autocast version:
Accursed sceptre (a)
Dragon hunter wand Magic 65 +16 +10% 8,675,576
Warped sceptre

Magic 62

+12 N/A 89,479
  • Requires 5Earth 2Chaos per charge of the built-in spell.
  • Built-in spell damage scales with the player's Magic level and can hit up to 24 at Magic 99 without any magic damage bonus.
  • Because the spell is built-in, the player does not need to carry its runes in their inventory and can use Arceuus spellbook, Lunar spells, or Ancient Magicks while wielding this staff.
Master wand Magic 60 +20 +10% 4,289,821
Thammaron's sceptre Magic 60 +15 N/A 3,222,350
Thammaron's sceptre (a)
Twinflame staff Magic 60 +12 +10%[n 3] 6,438,992
  • Can autocast standard spells, but at a slightly slower rate than other staves (6 ticks/3.6 seconds instead of 5 ticks/3.0 seconds).
  • Provides unlimited fire and water runes.
  • Grants a 10% accuracy and damage boost for combat spells on the standard spellbook.
  • Will automatically cast the appropriate elemental spell for an NPC with a different elemental weakness that what the player is currently autocasting, assuming they have the runes and Magic level to do so.
  • All Bolt, Blast, and Wave spells casted fire a second spell that deals 40% of the damage dealt by the first, rounded down.
God staves Magic 60 +6 N/A 80,000
  • Required to cast god spells, but cannot be used to autocast them.
  • Those who have Magic 80 and the respective God cape can use the Charge spell, which increases the God spell's damage by 50%.
Iban's staff Magic 50 Attack +10 N/A 200,000[n 4]
  • Only staff able to cast Iban Blast.
  • Can autocast Iban Blast and standard spells.
  • Has 120 charges (2,500 if upgraded). One charge is used when casting Iban Blast on an NPC and two are used when casting it on another player.
  • Iban Blast has a max hit of 25.
Iban's staff (u) 400,000[n 5]
Ancient staff Magic 50 Attack +15 N/A 60,687
Slayer's staff Magic 50
Slayer 55
+12 N/A 24,257
Void knight mace Attack Strength Defence Hitpoints Ranged Magic 42
Prayer 22
+8 N/A Untradeable[n 6]
Mystic smoke staff Magic 40 Attack +14 +10%[n 3] 1,829,526
Smoke battlestaff Magic 30 Attack +12 1,746,834


Salamanders Attack Ranged Magic 30
(Green)
N/A N/A 168
  • Unique and versatile two-handed weapons that facilitate the use of all three combat styles.
  • Cannot autocast spells, but instead have their own unique magic attack, similar to how powered staves have built-in spells.
  • Damage done by salamanders is calculated by a unique formula using a hidden "magic damage bonus" unique to each lizard type.
Attack Ranged Magic 50
(Orange)
160
Attack Ranged Magic 60
(Red)
38
Attack Ranged Magic 70
(Black)
272
Attack Ranged Magic 80
(Tecu)
249,716


Croziers Prayer 60 +10 N/A 2,749
Skull sceptre Magic 1 +10 N/A Untradeable
Skull sceptre (i)

Elemental staves Magic 1
(Basic)
+10 N/A 904
Magic 30 Attack
(Battlestaff)
+12 8,725
Magic 40 Attack
(Mystic staff)
+14 24,785
  1. ^ Untradeable; price is of the tormented synapse, iron bar, and battlestaff used to create the staff.
  2. ^ Reverts to standard Slayer's staff when it runs out of charges, and needs to have a Slayer's enchantment reapplied.
  3. ^ 3.0 3.1 Is not shown on Equipment Stats, and applies only to the standard spellbook.
  4. ^ Cost to repair the broken staff.
  5. ^ Cost to repair the broken staff and upgrade it to Iban's staff (u), which holds 2,500 charges instead of 120.
  6. ^ Costs 250 Void Knight commendation points.

Development history

In response to player requests for a magic weapon with the same functionality as the 2010 version of the staff of light from RuneScape, the weapon was offered as a new reward from K'ril Tsutsaroth in a Developer's Blog offering the God Wars Dungeon. The weapon passed the poll with 78% of the supporting votes.

Though the weapon had passed the poll, it had not been given a name or design yet. Another Developer's Blog was released two weeks after the poll ended, giving players insight on the technical limitations that the team had in terms of graphics, such as being unable to take models from RuneScape to use for a staff of light model, and only being able to use six colours for item models. With the limitations in mind, the team then offered six designs for the weapon:

The designs were then polled; the design with the most votes was Necrovarus' staff of the dead (25.6%). The other designs, in order of popularity, were:

  • Staff of Darkness (22.5%)
  • Staff of Light (19.7%)
  • Staff of Wrath (13.2%)
  • Wand of Darkness (9.9%)
  • Staff of the Damned (9.1%)

Changes

Date Changes
23 May 2024
(Update)

The staff's special attack effect is now cleared when using a rejuvenation pool.

8 January 2015
(Update)

Toxic Staff of the Dead, a lvl 75 Attack/Magic Bladed Staff has been added to the game by adding a Magic Fang onto it.

21 November 2013
(Update)

The Staff of the Dead's special attack code was occasionally reading a bit of memory that hadn't been initialised; this could potentially have caused the special attack to malfunction. This is now fixed.

7 November 2013
(Update | poll)

Trivia

References

  1. ^

Source

Content from the Old School RuneScape Wiki (operated by Weird Gloop), licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.

Source siteOld School RuneScape Wiki
Canonical sourceStaff of the dead
Content licenseCC BY-NC-SA 3.0
License statusdeclared
PictureStaff of the dead · file details

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