Competitive Castle Wars Guide

Competitive Castle Wars Guide

By: Raiderej

Contents

• 
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]1.0 Introduction
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]2.0 Common Castle Wars Vocabulary and Techniques
   
  2.1 Castle Wars Dictionary
   
  2.2 Basic Techniques
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]3.0 Offense
   
  3.1 Scorers
   
  3.2 Offensive Mages
   
  3.3 Base Offense
   
  3.4 Out of Base Offense and Route Running
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]4.0 Defense
   
  4.1 Pkers
   
  4.2 Defensive Mages
   
  4.3 Base Defensive Barricading and Positioning
   
  4.4 Out of Base Defending
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]5.0 Conclusion
   
  5.1 FAQs
   
  5.2 About the Author
   
  [*:2ooqpx3b]6.0 Credits

0.0 Before Reading:

- I suggest you first read the Tip It CW Guide.

- I also suggest you play a few games of Castle Wars before reading further.

- I also recommend you have about 5 million gp (to purchase gear) and the following stats:

70 Attack and Strength

70 Defense and Hitpoints

70 Ranged

70 Mage

43 Prayer

99 Patience (Ya, this guide is long!)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Castle Wars is a combat based team "capture the flag" style mini-game that requires strategy, skill, experience, and a bit of luck to master. Although the rewards may not be quite as valuable, Castle Wars is a lot harder and more fun than any other PvP part of Runescape. Castle Wars is highly competitive, resulting in high-action and fast-paced games.

Personally, I've played Castle Wars competitively for 3 years, going through 10 Castle Wars clans (leading one) and countless Castle Wars clan matches. I've met over a thousand Castle Wars players just as competitive as myself, and they have been some of the best people to play with on Runescape. Without them, I would not be playing Runescape today.

With this guide, I hope to introduce you to the world of competitive Castle Wars so that you can play Castle Wars with as much fun as I have.

--------------------------------------------------------

In Castle Wars, we use some unique terms and basic techniques, so it's best that you learn them first. After all, it's a team game, and you need to be able to communicate. :

2.1 Castle Wars Dictionary

[hide=Actions]Brew - Tanking

Cade - Set a Barricade (Usually a call from the defense to the offense to place barricades in the opposing base when the flag escapes the defense.)

Clear - Clear the Barricades (Usually a call from the offense to the defense to clear the defensive barricades in their base in order to let their scorer enter.)

Cull [Player Name] - Use the Seercull Bow special attack (on a particular mage)

Drop - Pass the Flag

Heal - Heal the player with the flag

Pass - Pass the Flag

PK [Player Name] - Kill this player

Recade - Replace the Defensive Barricades

Safe - Go to a Safe Spot

Spear [Player Name] - Use the Zamorakian/Dragon Spear special attack on this player

Spec - Use your special attack

Stair Spam - Repeatedly going up and down a staircase or ladder to avoid damage.

Tank - Tanking

Tindercade - Light a Barricade using a Tinderbox

Trade - Pass the Flag[/hide]

[hide=Directions]

Big - Big Door

NR or NS - Northern Rocks or Northern Stones (Referring to the Stepping Stones)

Mid - The middle island (Aboveground)

Spawn - 2nd Floor (Where you respawn)

Rocks - Stepping Stones

Small - Small Door

SR or SS - Southern Rocks or Southern Stones (Referring to the Stepping Stones)

Stock/Supply - Stockroom or Supply room on the Ground Floor

Under - Underground

Under Mid - The middle of the Underground[/hide]

[hide=Items]

Aid - Bandage

Band - Bandage

Brew - Saradomin Brew

Cade - Barricade

Ghost Cade - Glitch where a set barricade can be walked through by all players; result of 'spam clicking' to set up barricades.

Med - Bandage

Res - Restore Potion

Tinder - Tinderbox

X Pot - Explosive Potion[/hide]

[hide=Players]CW Pker - Player who kills useless players (Negative Term)

Def - Defender

Def Mage - Defensive Mage

Escort - Offensive Players who do not have the flag

Loafer - Player who does not contribute to the team (Negative Term)

Off Mage - Offensive mage

PK Def - Defensive Pker

Score - Scorer

Spam Mage - A defender who only casts spells (Negative Term)

Spear Unit - A group of players who repeatedly spear a single player (Negative Term)

Stacker - Player who imbalances teams by joining the stronger team (Negative Term)[/hide]

2.2 Basic Techniques

[hide=Flagholding]Flagholding is holding your team's standard to prevent the other team from scoring.

In the past, everyone and their mom complained about flagholding; however, its still a useful technique that you need to learn.

Flagholding is really simple. You just pick up your flag off the ground when it's not in a safe spot, either by killing a player or intercepting a flag pass.

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(Picking off predictable passes is an alternative way to start flagholding.)

"Safe" spots are areas where, if the flag is dropped it will immediately return to correct base when dropped or when picked up by a player on that team. The known Safe spots are anywhere from 2 spaces inside your team's wall, either stepping stones, and any of the falling rocks (if not mined out fast enough).

Note: :exclam: If you kill a player holding a flag via the falling rocks underground, if you clear the rocks before the flag drops to the ground, the flag will appear a space away from the area.

The real trick to flagholding is how to play keep-away from the other team without losing the flag. Along with help from teammates, you need to use the terrain.

Stepping Stones

The stepping stones are the most common place to flaghold. You can hop around on the stones to avoid melee attacks since they can only hit you from exactly one stone away. This is also a "Safespot" so if you die, the flag returns to your base.

(This is a picture of a player standing on the stepping stones. If he dies the flag will "Safe.")

Note: :exclam: The Zamorakian or Dragon Spear special attack does not move players on the stepping stones.

Open Fields

The open field is not a safe spot, but there are some obstacles you can use to dodge melee attacks. The main advantage to using the open field is to continue flagholding after a flagholder dies.

(This is a picture of a player using a barricade in the open field. A barricade can be used as an obstacle to avoid all attacks from the other sides of the barricade.)

Middle Island

The Middle island is good for flag holding in that you can run around the island to lose attackers and go up and down the ladders to avoid damage. A few barricades and Dragon Spears, however, can ruin your fun.

(This is a picture of a player standing behind the trapdoor. Players will need to go around the island to get to him; however, they can still use magic or ranged attack to hit him from across the trapdoor or river.)

The Big Door

The Big Door is also great since you can go in and out the door and they cannot get in from the outside. However, Zamorakian/Dragon spear special attack can push you in the base and safe the flag.

(This is a picture of a player holding his own flag behind his big door. Enemies will have to break down the door or go around to reach him. If he takes a step backwards, the flag will "Safe.")

Underground

Holding the flag underground can be productive, for there are many spots to barricade underground. The downside is the passages are very narrow, making a group of players defending the flag holder are prime targets for multi-target attacks. The best place to hold the flag in the underground is at the ladder to your base. You can hug the ladder to avoid melee damage, or you can set up a barricade and avoid damage all together.

(This is a picture of a flag holder using the ladder to his own base and a barricade to protect himself against enemies. If he goes up the ladder his flag will "Safe.")[/hide]

[hide=Passing]Passing is giving a teammate the flag in order to score faster or retain possession of the flag.

This is done by un-equipping the flag or equipping a weapon or a shield so that the flag drops to the ground, and a teammate click on the flag.

A successful flag pass

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This is a common situation to pass the flag: You have the flag you get frozen. You have a healthy, unfrozen teammate next to you. He's sending trade signals to alert you that he's ready for you to pass to him. The opposing team is about to catch up to you for a death blow. You drop the flag, he picks it up, while you and the rest of the team block the pursuers from getting in the way.

If you have your in game mouse input set to two buttons, you can use the right click feature to increase you chance of accepting a flag pass. To do this, the passer drops the flag then quickly picks it up, while the teammate right clicks the flag. When the passer tries to pass the second time, his teammate will have a greater chance at picking up the flag. This is very useful if you have to pass in large crowds of players.[/hide]

[hide=Rebounding]Rebounding is when a player steals the opposing standard as soon as it returns to the opposing base before the defense is set.

This is done to maximize scoring speed and to catch the opposing team off-guard.

(This is a picture of a scorer trying to get a rebound. Communication is crucial to timing the rebound. Rebounding should minimize the time between scorers, while hitting the defense when they're weak.)[/hide]

[hide=Spearing]Spearing is using the Zamorakian or Dragon Spear's special attack on opponents.

The special attack for this spear has 4 uses which stun your opponents for 5 seconds, deals no damage, and moves them 1 space away.

The Spear special attack can't:

- Deal damage.

- Stop running players.

- Break a mage's autocast.

- Move players who are standing on a barricade.

The spear is the Castle Wars player's best friend because of its variety of uses. (Don't leave home without it. B-) )

To pick up a flag

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The most common use of the spear is to use it on other players as a flag drops to the floor. Stunned players cannot grab the flag, allowing your team to have a greater chance at picking up the flag.

To move players

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The spear can be also used to move players one space from where they are standing.

Such as:

-Under the collapsible rocks to be crushed.

-Away from stairs or ladders to disable use for preventing damage. (See Video)

-Into a Safe Spot to return the flag to the standard.

To assist in killing

Stunned players cannot heal themselves making the spear valuable in killing opponents. During the stun time, damage blots cannot be seen, making it difficult for opposing players to gauge their stunned teammate's health.[/hide]

[hide=Tanking]Tanking is a tactic that greatly improves your chances of surviving intense damage. You need high melee defense armor, Saradomin Brews, and Super Restore Potions.

Successful Tanking

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First, when you are frozen with the flag, identify what stopped you and how long you will be stopped. Keep a count of the time in your head while you start to tank.

Next, equip armor high in melee and ranged defense and use prayer as warriors and rangers are going to catch up to you and try to kill you.

Then, start healing via bandages or Saradomin Brews until you reach or exceed your maximum Hit Points. This will increase your defense against melee and ranged attack but lower your defense against magic attacks.

Finally when you near the end of you immobility, usually about two or three seconds before the end of your count, drink a dose of your Super Restore Potion (in order to regain your magic level and magic defense), equip your high magic defense armor, and place a barricade. By this time you can move again and continue scoring.[/hide]

[hide=Tindercading]Tindercading is simply using a tinderbox to set a barricade on fire. When a barricade is on fire, explosive potions cannot be used to destroy them. This is a common tactic used to delay players longer than just setting the barricade.

Barricades set on fire can still be attacked and destroyed. The barricade will burn for a full 5 seconds before it takes an addition 2 seconds of animation to fall apart.

To extend the tindercade, players can use a bucket of water to put out the fire during the animation where the barricade falls apart, then relight the barricade. This cycle can be repeated until the barricade is destroyed.

For players blocked by a tindercade, attacking the barricade when it is burning will eliminate the 2 seconds of animation where the barricade falls apart. Also using a bucket of water on the barricade will put out the fire so you may use an explosive potion on it.[/hide]

A good offense is important in Castle Wars matches. The overall goal of the offense is to score more points than the other team. In most competitive games, scores are very low so it is important for offense to work together to scrape up as many points as possible. To maximize efficiency, the offense is divided into two types of players: Scorers and Offensive Mages.

3.1 Scorers

Scorers handle the flag. As a scorer you need to be able to break through the defense and get to the flag. Whether you're holding the flag or not, you have to make sure it safely gets back to your base for a point. Although this is easier said than done in highly competitive games. :

[hide=Equipment]

As a scorer you want gear that gives high magic defense, but also reasonable ranged and melee defense.

Amulet: Fury > Glory

Torso: Morrigan > Armadyl > Karil > Dragonhide

Legs: Morrigan > Armadyl > Karil > Dragonhide

Boots: Infinity > Wizard > Mystic

Weapon: Master Wand > Zuriel Staff > Ancient Staff

Gloves: 3rd Age Vambraces > [bleep]ed Vambraces > RFD Gloves

Arrows: Onyx (e) Bolts > Dragonstone (e) Bolts > Diamond (e) Bolts > Broad Bolts > Jade (e) Bolts

Shield: Dragonfire Shield > Spectral Spirit Shield > Mage Book > Dragon Square Shield > Saradomin Prayer Book

Ring: Seers Ring > Lunar Ring[/hide]

[hide=Inventory]

Prayer: Piety > Mystic Might + Steel Skin > Protect From Magic > Protect From Melee > Protect From Range

- To easily activate prayer, set your prayers as quick-prayers before the game. Piety and Mystic Might + Steel Skin reduce the accuracy of attacks giving you less chance of being hit or frozen. Protection Prayers reduce the damage from the attacks by 40%. Swap Protection Prayers accordingly.

Backup Armor: PvP Melee Armor (Statius > Vesta) > Barrows Melee Armor (Torag/Dharok > Guthan/Verac) > Dragon Armor

- High Melee and Ranged Defense Armor is necessary for tanking.

Spear: Zamorakian > Dragon

-The Spear is useful for its versatile stunning special attack.

Familiars: Titan (Fire, Ice, Moss, Iron, or Steel) > Unicorn > Wolpertinger > Highest Damaging Familiar > Large Familiar > Terrorbird

- A healing familiar can provide timely health when fighting through the defense. A defensive familiar will help you when tanking. Wolpertinger cause mages to hit you less often. A high damaging familiar might kill some defenders giving you a short relief. Since Castle Wars requires lots of clicking, larger familiars can cause opponents to misclick. The Spirit Terrorbird is also a popular all-around choice for familiar so you will never run out of energy while playing.

KO Weapon:

Melee: Dragon Claws > Zamorak Godsword > Whip

Range: Rune Crossbow

- You also should bring a KO weapon for backup to kill defenders with low health or to kill the flagholder in case you lose the flag.

Other:

- Red Chinchompas provide a multi-hit attack great for destroying barricades from a distance.

- Saradomin Brew/Super Restore is a vital combination for tanking.

- The Castle Wars Bracelet (1) allows for 20% higher damage on players with the flag and 15% more health from bandages and disintegrates giving you an extra inventory spot.

- Potions increase your chances of hitting your target and allow you to recover from stat reduction such as the Seercull's special attack.

- The Rune Pickaxe is a handy tool to have, if the flag goes into the tunnels.

Stock Items

- You need about 4-6 explosive potions to break defensive barricades.

- You need 1-2 barricades to create separation between yourself and pursuing defenders.

- You need about 8-10 bandages to quickly heal yourself.

- 1 rope could be useful for climbing the walls to avoid some defenders.

- If possible, grab a tinderbox and buckets for 'tinder-cading.'[/hide]

3.2 Offensive Mages

Called Off Mages, for short, these players use magic to assist the offense in scoring. This is done by using ancient spells to destroy barricades, freeze and weaken defenders, and generally cause havoc among their defense.

[hide=Equipment]

Amulet: Fury > Glory

Torso: Zuriel > Ahrim

Legs: Zuriel > Ahrim

Boots: Infinity > Wizard > Mystic

Weapon: Master Wand > Zuriel's Staff > Ancient Staff

Gloves: RFD Gloves > Infinity > Mystic

Arrows: (Varies with bow, if brought)

Shield: Dragonfire > Arcane Spirit Shield > Mage's Book > Dragon Square Shield > Zamorak Prayer Book

Ring: Seers Ring > Lunar Ring[/hide]

[hide=Inventory]

Spell: Ice Barrage > Blood Barrage > Miasmic Barrage > Shadow Barrage

-Spells that hit multiple targets are required to destroy groups of barricades. Ice Barrage is good for catching defenders out of position, Blood Barrage is good for self healing (Useless on barricades), and Miasmic Barrage and Shadow Barrage are to weaken Pkers.

Prayer: Mystic Might + Steel Skin > Piety > Protect From Magic > Protect From Melee > Protect From Range

- To easily activate prayer, set your prayers as quick-prayers before the game. Piety and Mystic Might + Steel Skin reduce the accuracy of attacks giving you less chance of being hit or frozen. Mystic Might also increase the accuracy of your spells. Protection Prayers reduce the damage from the attacks by 40%. Swap Protection Prayers accordingly.

Backup Armor: Armadyl > Karils > Dragonhide

-You also need armor with high Magic Defense bonus so you can run around in case the flag escapes.

Spear: Zamorakian > Dragon

-The Spear is useful for its versatile stunning special attack.

Familiars: Titan (Fire, Ice, Moss, Iron, or Steel) > Unicorn > Wolpertinger > Highest Damaging Familiar > Large Familiar > Terrorbird

- A healing familiar can provide timely health when fighting through the defense. A defensive familiar will help you when tanking. Wolpertinger cause mages to hit you less often and the scrolls can help you hit defenders more often and recover from seercull attacks. A high damaging familiar might kill some defenders giving you a short relief. Since Castle Wars requires lots of clicking, larger familiars can cause opponents to misclick. The Spirit Terrorbird is also a popular all-around choice for familiar so you will never run out of energy while playing.

KO Weapon:

Melee: Vesta Longsword > Dragon Claws > Armadyl Godsword > Dragon Dagger

Range: Morrigan Axe > Zanik Crossbow > Dark Bow (Dragon Arrows)

- You also should bring a KO weapon for backup in case you have to help kill the flagholder in case you lose the flag.

Other:

- The Castle Wars Bracelet (1) allows for 20% higher damage on players with the flag and 15% more health from bandages and disintegrates giving you an extra inventory spot.

- Saradomin Brew/Super Restore Potions are vital to tanking and allow you to recover from stat reduction such as the Seercull's special attack.

- The Rune Pickaxe is a handy tool to have, if the flag goes into the tunnels.

Stock Items:

- You need a bunch of bandages (12+) for quick healing.

- A few explosive potions (1-2) are useful for destroying single barricades.

- 1-2 barricades are helpful to block defenders.

- A rope could be useful to climb to walls to avoid defenders.[/hide]

3.3 Base Offense

[hide=Ground Floor (Entry)]

The three basic routes:

- Across the middle island through the small door.

- Across the stepping stones through the small door.

- Underground.

The big door is normally closed and it is very time consuming to break down.

The underground is usually the safest route into the base, but you can still run into trouble.

The small door is usually heavily guarded; however, you can use a rope on the battlements of the wall to bypass the door.

The staircase to the second floor is also a common spot for defenders to tindercade. If you want to wait out the tindercade or are frozen by the staircase to the wall, climb up the wall and wait. Defenders inside the wall can't attack you from the ground floor.

Once you have made it inside the opposing base, you can either gather more supplies in the opponents stockroom, or head to the second floor via the ladder or the staircase.[/hide]

[hide=Second Floor (Entry)]Congratulations on making it to the second floor, but don't get too excited. This is where you and most players will die.

As you enter the second floor, be prepared to destroy some barricades. You want to move in the path with the least amount of barricades to the next staircase. Quickly destroy barricades with your explosive potions until you get frozen. If you immediately get frozen upon entering the second floor, go up and down the ladder or staircase to avoid attacks until you get unfrozen.

If you managed to move away from the staircase or ladder before getting frozen, start tanking because you are about to take a ton of damage. While you are frozen and tanking, you become an escort your teammates who are also scoring.

As an escort you should:

Clear Barricades

If you are a scorer, throw your Red Chinchompas at clusters of barricades to clear a path for scorers, or use an explosive potion if you are nearby.

If you are an offensive mage, cast your spells at clusters of barricades to clear a path for scorers, or use an explosive potion if you are nearby.

(Don't you just love watching the defense's entire barricade defense fall at once?)

Attack Defenders

If you are a scorer, spear defenders if they are close to you or attack them with your ranged weapons if they are far away.

If you are an offensive mage, freeze defenders with ice spells, heal yourself with blood spells, or weaken pkers with miasmic or shadow spells.

When you become unfrozen, you will be immune to the freezing effects for roughly 2-5 seconds. You should use this time to clear more barricades and make your way to the next staircase.[/hide]

[hide=Third Floor (Entry)]Once you have made it to the third floor, you will have a short run to the top floor. There may be one or two barricades in your path; however, many pkers tindercade and use Zamorak Godsword special attacks to make up for the short distance. The common place for defenders to tindercade is right in front of the stairs to the top floor. Unfrozen players usually hide behind the staircase to avoid damage while they wait for the tindercade to burn out.

If you get stopped, continue tanking, destroying barricades, and attacking defenders. Remember, if you get frozen by the staircase, go up and down the staircase to avoid damage.[/hide]

[hide=Top Floor (Entry and Exit)]The top floor is very small, but there are still two places defenders can barricade: in front of the standard (on your way up) and in front of staircase to the top floor (on your way down). If you get stopped here, remember you can use the staircase to avoid damage.

Also, if you get frozen while holding the standard, you should drop the standard because defenders wearing the Castle Wars Brace will do 20% more damage to you. In addition, continue tanking, destroying barricades, and attacking defenders.

[/hide]

[hide=Third Floor (Exit)]Scorer

On the third floor again, common barricades used against you include right in front of you going down and at the top of the stairs to the second floor. The barricade right before you as you go down the stairs can be easily missed by defenders standing on it, but it is also easily avoided by running around it or taking the back route around the entire floor. The back route can move attacking defenders out of position and create an easy path to the stairs; however, alert defenders can cut you off and stop you easily.

The barricade at the top of the stairs is commonly tindercaded. A risky move to avoid damage while the barricade burns out is to hide in the small room with the trapdoor; the downside is you could be tindercaded inside there too!

If the flag is taken and you do not have it, you immediately become an escort to the scorer. You must still destroy barricades and attack defenders, but you also have to be ready to take the flag in case of an emergency.

Escort

The escort's main responsibility on the third floor is to get rid of the barricade at the top of the stairs leading to the third floor. This is where the defense usually tindercades, but they usually start the tindercade as soon as the scorer makes a move toward them. You need to use an explosive potion on the barricade before then and keep destroying that barricade as soon as they replace it. Timing is the key to doing this. If your scoring teammate is frozen you need to keep track of his freeze time. Count it off in your head. You want to make sure that the scorer gets as far as possible during his immunity period. As that time approaches, you will need to beat the defender to destroying that barricade. If you're late and they manage to tindercade, attack the barricade to destroy it faster and get rid of the 2 second "fall down" animation.

Offensive Mage

On the third floor, the offensive mage's job is to catch the defense out of position and freeze them there. When the defense goes to barricade in front of the scorer by the stairs to the top floor, you need to freeze them. This prevents the defender from cutting off the scorer at the back route and from getting into position to tindercade the top of the stairs.[/hide]

[hide=Second Floor (Exit)]Scorer

At this point, you've successfully made it to the staircase to the second floor. If the defense is prepared, the barricades will be reset and defensive mages in position to tindercade them and freeze you. Quickly find the least barricaded path to either the staircase to the ground floor or the ladder. Then repeatedly use explosive potions on the barricades to proceed. It is highly unlikely you will get through without being frozen. If you get frozen by the staircase, go up and down the stairs to avoid damage. This is also a good time to pass the flag if it's safe to do so. Go up the stairs and if there is an unfrozen teammate willing to take it, pass the flag. If not, continue stair hopping until you get unfrozen and try again. Remember to tank and attack tindercades (yes, with the standard) so you can make the most of your immunity time when it comes. Pay attention to where the barricades are placed especially ones under defenders. If you know that you are going to die, passing the flag can throw off the defense's timing of the flag drop.

As you break through the initial barricades you need to pick either the ladder or the staircase to exit the second floor. The ladder is often less barricaded than the staircase, but the distance to travel is much greater.

If you made it past most defenders to the exit, set a barricade to create separation.

Escort

This is where you could possibly be a hero. Keep destroying barricades and attacking defenders, but stay close to the scorer in case he dies or passes. Clear a path as if you were the scorer. Remember timing is important to keep track of your scorer's frozen time. A timely explosive of a barricade or spearing of a defensive mage can really break open the defense.

However, sometimes you must make a decision to leave your scorer and go for the rebound when he dies. Rebounding is sometimes better if you time it right so that the defense isn't prepared for it.

Offensive Mage

You're job is to destroy the barricades with magic. Keep doing it until the scorer breaks through. Once that happens, cast ice spells on the defenders to prevent them from catching up to him.[/hide]

3.4 Ground Floor Offense and Route Running

[hide=Here are the routes]

Key:

- The common routes are shown in thick primary colors.

- Paths to switch routes are shown in secondary colors.

- Detours to common routes are shown in thin primary colors.

Pick routes that avoid defensive mages and barricades and lead to teammates. As the defense changes positions, change your route.

Scorer

Depending whether you took the ladder or the staircase, this will differ.

If you took the ladder, you want to set a barricade here:

If you have a clear path, take the underground route.

If the defense is waiting in the stockroom, turn back toward the staircase either through the narrow entrance or by going back to the second floor and down the staircase.

--------------------------------------------

If you took the staircase, these are your options:

Out the Small Door: In this case, this is the worst option because of the ancient mage waiting outside.

Out the Big Door: This is part of the quickest path back to the base.

Into the Underground: This is usually the safest path back to the base.

If you want to go out the small door, your barricade spot is here:

If you want to go out the big door, your barricade spot is here:

If you want to go underground, your barricade spot is the same as the big door or here:

If you want to cross the middle island, your barricade spot is here:

Use your mini-map to avoid defenders and follow teammates and rotate the camera angle to easily maneuver around barricades and open closed doors. Remember to tank when frozen, pass when it's safe to do so or you're about to die, and swap prayers accordingly. It is important to run routes with your teammates leading the way, and avoid routes guarded by defenders. Sometimes that means changing your original route choice.[/hide]

[hide=Here are some common route changes]This is to go from the underground back to the base. If the defense gives really close chase into the underground, it is best to go underground and wait a few seconds and go back up the ladder and set the barricade shown. Then choose a new route (which is usually toward the stepping stones from my experience). It'll really throw off the defense.

Marked by the thin red line on the map, another change is to go around the middle island rather than through it. This can be used to avoid defenders and barricades while giving you a barricade spot and a ladder (orange line) to the underground as options.

(This is a picture of a scorer's routes when crossing the river through the middle island.)

Straight ahead is fastest but easiest to defend.

Underground is usually a safe choice.

Around the towers is preferred when the middle of the island is packed.

The two route changes marked by orange lines inside the base are common for scorers who get frozen inside the base. They provide ample barricades spots to make separate when you become unfrozen and change direction.

As you approach your base, tell your defense to clear the barricades so that you can easily pass without getting caught from behind.

Escort

Hope you're enjoying your role as personal bodyguard because you have a long way to go. If you can run ahead and lead the way for the scorer while eliminating barricades and defenders, then do so. However, if you get frozen behind the scorer, you should either kill defensive mages (they usually don't bring many bandages) or stall them by spearing or barricading/tindercading. You should still be close to your scorer in case he gets into trouble. If you die, return to the action and continue, or get ready to rebound.

Offensive Mage

This is where you can cause havoc. Get ahead of the scorer and freeze defensive mages to keep them from jumping your scorer's route. If you get frozen behind the scorer, freeze defensive mages to prevent them from catching him.[/hide]

[hide=After all of that...]you got yourself one point and are on the move for a rebound, or you lost the flag.

If you lost it, find the flag, get out your KO weapon, and recover it like this:

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(Although it's much easier if the offensive mages freeze the flag holder, everyone attacks together, and you spear the defenders out the way.)

Pick up the flag if it drops and continue to score or rebound if it was in a safespot.[/hide]

Now that you know a little bit of offense :anxious:, you'll need to learn to defend against it my next section.

A good defense is the key to winning Castle Wars matches. The overall goal of the defense is to make sure the opposing team does not score points at a faster rate as your team. In almost all games, the team with the better defense wins the game. To maximize efficiency, the defense is normally separated into two types of players: Pkers and Mages.

4.1 Pkers

Not to be confused with CW Pkers, Pkers are also known as the Pk Defense. Often underrated in defending, pkers use ranged and melee attacks to kill other players who try to score or help score points. By killing other players, you send them back to their home base, greatly slowing the rate at which they score.

[hide=Equipment]

As a Pker, you want to bring gear that will kill players as quickly as possible.

Amulet: Fury > Glory

Torso: Armadyl or Bandos (If only range or melee) > Karil > Dragonhide

Legs: Armadyl or Bandos (If only range or melee) > Karil > Dragonhide

Boots: Dragon/Ranger > Rune/Snakeskin

Weapon:

- Melee: Vesta Longsword > Zamorak Godsword > Abyssal Whip

- Ranged: Rune Crossbow > Karil's Crossbow > Obsidian Rings

Gloves: RFD Gloves > [bleep]ed Vambraces

Arrows: Dragonstone (e) Bolts > Diamond (e) Bolts > Broad Bolts

Shield: Zamorak Prayer Book > Rune Defender > Dragonfire Shield

Ring: Warrior/Berserker/Archer[/hide]

[hide=Inventory]

Spell: Humidify

-To quickly fill up buckets with water

Spear: Zamorakian > Dragon

-The Spear is useful for its versatile stunning special attack.

Familiars: Highest Damaging Familiar > Large Familiar > Terrorbird

-A high damaging familiar will combine with the damage from your attacks, leading to more kills. Since Castle Wars requires lots of clicking, larger familiars can cause opponents to misclick. The Spirit Terrorbird is also a popular all-around choice for familiar so you will never run out of energy while playing.

KO Weapon:

Melee: Vesta Longsword > Dragon Claws > Armadyl Godsword > Dragon Dagger

Range: Morrigan Axe > Zanik Crossbow > Dark Bow (Dragon Arrows)

- You also should bring a KO weapon for backup to kill scorers with low health.

Other:

- The Castle Wars Bracelet (1) allows for 20% higher damage on players with the flag and 15% more health from bandages and integrates giving you an extra inventory spot.

- Potions increase your chances of hitting your target and allow you to recover from stat reduction such as the Seercull's special attack.

- The Rune Pickaxe is a handy tool to have, if the flag goes into the tunnels.

Stock Items

-You need many (8-12) barricades as they aid in slowing opponents.

-Explosive Potions (1-4) are also needed to destroy 'bad barricades' or to kill yourself in order to recharge prayer and quickly return yourself to the starting room.

-Bandages (0-4)are not really necessary as you will spend most of your time near the starting room; however, you can take a few if you wish to be safe.

-If possible, grab a tinderbox and buckets for 'tinder-cading.'[/hide]

4.2 Defensive Mages

These players are considered by many to be the backbone of the defense. With spells like Ice Barrage at their disposal, mages can create low scoring matches. The purpose of the mage is to freeze scorers with spells to make it easier for Pkers to kill the opponents.

[hide=Equipment]

As a mage, you want to have gear that gives you the most Magic Attack bonus you can obtain.

Amulet: 3rd Age > Fury > Glory

Torso: Zuriel > Ahrim

Legs: Zuriel > Ahrim

Boots: Infinity > Wizard > Mystic

Weapon: Master Wand > Zuriel's Staff > Ancient Staff

Gloves: RFD Gloves > Infinity > Mystic

Arrows: (Varies with bow, if brought)

Shield: Arcane Spirit Shield > Mage's Book > Zamorak Prayer Book

Ring: Seers Ring > Lunar Ring[/hide]

[hide=Inventory]

Spell: Ice Barrage > Ice Burst > Entangle

-Spells that hit multiple targets and have longer binding times are preferred.

Backup Armor: Armadyl > Karils > Dragonhide

-You also need armor with high Magic Defense bonus so you can run around in case the flag escapes.

Spear: Zamorakian > Dragon

-The Spear is useful for its versatile stunning special attack.

Familiars: Wolpertinger > Terrorbird > Large Familiar

-A Wolpertinger is ideal for Defensive Mages as the +7 Magic provides you with a much greater chance of freezing opponents, but the Spirit Terrorbird is also a popular all-around choice for familiar so you will never run out of energy while playing. Since Castle Wars requires lots of clicking, larger familiars can cause opponents to misclick.

KO Weapon:

Melee: Vesta Longsword > Dragon Claws > Armadyl Godsword > Dragon Dagger

Range: Morrigan Axe > Zanik Crossbow > Dark Bow (Dragon Arrows)

- You also should bring a KO weapon for backup in case you have to help pk other players.

Other:

- The Castle Wars Bracelet (1) allows for 20% higher damage on players with the flag and 15% more health from bandages and disintegrates giving you an extra inventory spot.

- Potions increase your chances of hitting your target and allow you to recover from stat reduction such as the Seercull's special attack.

- The Rune Pickaxe is a handy tool to have, if the flag goes into the tunnels.

Stock Items:

-You need many (8-12) barricades as they aid in slowing opponents.

-Explosive Potions (1-4) are also needed to destroy 'bad barricades' or to kill yourself in order to recharge prayer and quickly return yourself to the starting room.

-Bandages (0-4)are not really necessary as you will spend most of your time near the starting room; however, you can take a few if you wish to be safe.

-If possible, grab a tinderbox for tindercading.[/hide]

4.3 Base Defensive Barricading and Positioning

Barricades are huge in slowing down scorers inside your base with no luck required. However, your team only has 10 to use so they must be used efficiently. Few spots are always good places to put barricades, some spots are temporarily good places to put barricades (Put them up when needed then destroy them afterwards), and rest of the spots are bad places to put barricades (Destroy on sight). Tindercading should be used whenever possible.

Positioning is getting to good defensive spots to slow or stop scorers. Without good positioning, you're pretty much putting you defense entirely up to luck.

[hide=Home Ground Floor (Entry)]First, you should make sure the Big Door is always closed. Simply shutting the door eliminates one entrance.

All barricades placed on the ground floor should be temporary barricades. These locations vary; however, there are easy hints to guessing the correct positions.

Rock Status: If cleared, be prepared to move your position to block the underground entrance.

Mini-Map: The mini-map is your best friend. If you see white dots, move to block them.

Your character should be positioned on top or in front of the barricade, initially, otherwise you can't attack or freeze the opponent. (This defeats the purpose of the barricade really, since the objective is to stall long enough to kill people.)

On the ground floor, there are a few places you should always block:

The small door should be closed and barricaded. You can also close the door quickly after opponents open it to keep them out.

The bottom of the staircase to the second floor should be barricaded as well. However, don't try to 'spam' barricades to block scorers. The will glitch and become "ghost cades" passable by other players. These glitched cades should be destroyed as they count again your team's barricade limit.

The ladder entrance should only be blocked on a temporary basis as other defenders use is as a route to restock on barricades. Sometimes you'll find scorers and offensive mages restocking here too. Take the opportunity to freeze and kill them.[/hide]

[hide=Second Floor (Entry)]On the second floor is where most of your stops will come. You should always have a barricade blocking the top of the stairs as it is the quickest and most commonly used entrance by scorers. Standing on top of barricades gives the scorer an extra option to make a mistake and use the explosive potion on you instead of on the barricade.

Scorers also like to quickly go up and down staircases or ladders like this one to avoid damage. Spearing them can prevent them from doing this. Also right-clicking them when they go up the first time, will give you a greater chance to hit them with an attack when they come up a second time.

The core barricades of the defense lie between the boxes and the respawn room. Use these barricades efficiently and tindercade whenever possible.

The floor layouts are a bit different. In the Saradomin base you should use 7 barricades, forcing opponents to destroy at least 4 to get past.

In the Zamorak base you should only use 5 barricades, forcing opponents to destroy at least 3 to get past.

These barricades need to be replaced as soon as they are destroyed.

Many times offensive mages and escorts will destroy many barricades at once, making it difficult for you to reset the barricades fast enough. Instead you should kill these players first.[/hide]

[hide=Third Floor (Entry)]On the third floor, the key temporary barricade location is at the bottom of the stairs to the top floor. You can get here by following the scorers up the stairs or through your respawn room and up the ladder. Those scorers often think once they passed the bulk of your defense at the second floor that they can take a break and heal up before they go and grab the flag. Best teach them a lesson and keep tindercading, freezing, and pking them if they try to rest up.

[/hide]

[hide=Top Floor (Entry and Exit)]The barricades on the top floor should be set temporarily in front of the flag stand and at the top of the staircase.

Cool Tip: A successful defensive play made by 3 members of the former clan Forgotten Legends can be done here. With 2 Pkers (one tindercading with Humidify and the other with a Zamorak Godsword) and a Defensive Mage, they were successfully able to kill players trying to score for 5 minutes with relative ease. The keys to the success were the use of the entire combat triangle, the independent stopping power of each defender, the ability to focus on one player, and the bonus of 20% extra damage.[/hide]

[hide=Third Floor (Exit)]When the scorer comes down with the flag, set a barricade in front of him at the bottom of the stairs to prevent a quick trip to the next staircase. Try to get a couple of attacks on him before you drop back to the next position. If the scorer goes around the back of the floor, cut him off with a barricade and tinder it.

If the scorer sidesteps the barricade and continues straight for the staircase, try to get to top of the stairs and set a barricade. (Usually a teammate will already be here ready to set the tindercade. If not you should run to this position earlier or even omit the previous barricade position.) This is probably the most common place to set the tindercade.

However, you need to be aware of a possible pass from the scorer to a player climbing up the stairs. This will by pass over your tindercade. To counter this, you should freeze the scorer and spear him away from the staircase.

Another possible move against your tindercade is for scorers to hide in the room near the trapdoor to avoid attacks. You can move to barricade the scorer in the room and tindercade. However, you must do it quickly, otherwise the scorer can reverse the move and barricade in the room. Fear not, though. You can use the trapdoor to return to your respawn room.

If they manage to pass your defense on the third floor, move to the second floor. If you set the tindercade at the third floor, use to staircase to chase them down. If not, use the trapdoor to the respawn room and exit to the box side energy barrier. This will put you in better position for the next level.[/hide]

[hide=Second Floor]This is crunch time for your defense. If the scorer makes it past this floor, the chance of them scoring is HUGE! The main defensive barricades between the boxes and respawn floor should always be up, tindercaded, and replaced as soon as destroyed.

Defensive Mage

As a defensive mage, freezing the scorer and replacing the barricades are your first priorities. If you get a stop on the scorer, also freeze other escorts try to get to the scorer to help. Too often I see defensive mages just spamming the scorer with Ice Barrage only to see the scorer pass the flag to another player who swiftly sets a barricade and leaves them in the dust. If the other offensive players can't reach the scorer, then you should cast Ice Blitz on the scorer. This may create a combo attack with your Pkers for a quick kill. Oh by the way, if you die (which you probably will at this point with your low supply of bandages) remember to reset your staff to autocast your spell. This is my most common mistake when playing defensive mage as I miss a timely freeze and instead attempt to whack the scorer with my staff.

Pkers

As a pker, you always need to be in position to attack the scorer. The second floor is where the most defenders usually are located, so you've got a much better chance at landing a kill. Scorers are always tanking when frozen with the flag. They like to use brews when above half health and bandages when below half health for a quick recovery. Because of this you should let loose any KO special attacks at the halfway point to kill them before they can get to the bandages. Also, scorers stop tanking when they are about to become unfrozen, usually swapping armor or destroying a barricade and clicking ahead. You should count off their frozen time to unload a KO blow when they let their guard down.

If you get this kill on the scorer, make sure the other scorers don't pick up the flag on the drop or get a quick rebound. The defense needs to work together to target the scorer until he's dead, but also take action on the rest of the offense either with freezing, spearing, or pking. Remember there is a few seconds of animation when a player dies. Use this time to target those other players.

If they do make it past your main barricades, you should block off the staircase before the ladder, since scorers have much better options coming down the staircase. Most importantly, get ahead of the scorer before he gets down to the ground level. A few seconds of frozen time taken to get in position on the ground floor may seem like wasted time used for more pking, but I'd rather not play with the luck of damage hits and be prepared and in control of my defense.[/hide]

[hide=Home Ground Floor (Exit)]This is the part where the scorer usually beats about 99% of defenders. Lucky for you, I'm part of the 1% as this is my specialty. If you havent looked at the map of the scoring routes, you should do this now. You need to know them like the back of your hand. The scores best route is straight up (marked in red). You want to be on the route blocking it with a barricade, no farther away than the length of the staircase. If they do come out the staircase, they can either go out the small door or straight into your hands.

If they run to you, do the normal tindercade, freeze, and pk cycle.

If they go out the small door, there is no way you catch them by chasing from behind. You must either freeze them by casting spells from on top of the wall (not recommended) or through the wall, but that still relies on luck.

Playing with Luck

Ice spells play a huge part on the ground floor since a freeze could mean the difference between a stop and a score. However, since most players are high leveled (usually maxed) and have top notch equipment, it's all up to chance. This is where we tip the odds in our favor. A few things can help you increase your spell accuracy. The first is magic level which can be increased by Magic Potions and Wolpertinger scrolls. Using them right before an important spell can greatly increase your chance of a hit. The Mystic Might prayer also gets a 15% increase to magic and your chances. Finally, the spell that you use also affects accuracy. For a player with a high magic level, lower level spells are much more accurate than higher level ones. In most cases, using Ice Blitz is the spell used to get that timely freeze. Be aware that it freezes the player for only 15 seconds (opposed to Barrage's 20), but the accuracy is much more important than freeze time and damage when you're in a pinch. Also remember to adjust your count and actions accordingly.

If they decide to come down the ladder instead try to cut them off with a barricade at the stockroom-ladder entrance. This is a tough reaction to make on your own, so always talk and listen to your teammates.

If you can't make this reaction, then you certainly won't be able to cut off a scorer at full speed at the entrance to the underground (which I don't recommend either since they can change routes (marked in orange on the map). Personally, I have trouble with this move so I roll the dice with one cast of Ice Blitz and break back to my position and barricade if they change routes and come at me. Then I immediately head for the Big Door in case of another route change toward it (marked in orange) or an underground score.

However, not everything has to left up to your reaction speed and route guessing. You can be standing along one route and barricade a different route to be safe (see picture below). This is smart, but if you have reached the 10 barricade limit, you could be left without a barricade if they scorer comes your way, leaving you completely at the mercy of a lucky spell hit.

[/hide]

Still, I don't leaving my defense completely up to luck. If they flag doesn't come your way, get out of the base through the big door, jump their route, and cut them off.

[hide=If they go out the small door]Get out through the big door and cut them off at the middle island (This is the Red Path on the map). Chances are when you leave the walls of your base, offensive mages are able to catch you out of position and freeze you. This is where your backup armor comes in handy. Swap to the high magic defense armor to help protect against spells, and swap back to your magic attack armor when you are in range to cast your own spells. Jump the scorer's route and beat him to the bridge and the favorite barricade spot located here between the bridge and the spear wall.

[/hide]

[hide=If they go underground]get out the base through the big door and cut them off from either the middle island or the middle underground. Remember to don your high magic defense armor when running and have Ice Blitz ready. When going underground, spin your camera to face the oncoming scorer. If you ever seem to forget directions, remember Saradomin's base is South.

At this point as a defender, you are on your last legs. Defensive mages might want to be busting out that KO weapon after a successful freeze to try to get the kill themselves. Pk Defenders should be sticking to the scorer like glue and unloading any special attack (especially Zamorak Godsword) left. If you get the flag, use flagholding techniques get your flag back to safety.

Quick Tip: If they scorer is out of range of your spells when chasing them, right click them as you run. Sometimes when running around certain points of the map the distance will decrease and you can be ready to hit them with spells. This also working for players temporarily immune to the freezing effect. Have the right click option to freeze them ready as the run, then use the spell when their immunity wears off.

If you can't get the flag after this point, you may have to chase all the way into the opponent's base. There will definitely be a logjam between players from both defenses and offenses, but you will be outnumbered. The chances of getting a successful stop and returning the flag to safety are probably less than 5%. In game coming down to the wire, you have to get in there, fight for position, freeze players, score kills on whoever has the flag, and return it to safety. The barricade positions for the opponents base are pretty much the same as entering your own base; however, the opposing defense probably has many already set up if they didn't clear the base.

Sometimes, you just can't stop offense once they get past you on the ground. Either kill yourself with explosive potions or run back to your base to get in position and reset your barricades. You may feel like you're giving up, but it may be better to give up one point and get back in position rather than getting caught out of position if you fail to stop them in their base. If you don't get back, the opposing offense will just start rebounding for easy points. Both your offense and defense will start to lose morale and the game will start to turn into a blowout. Be smart with your decision and get to the right positions.[/hide]

Castle Wars is all about knowledge, timing, and teamwork. I've given you the knowledge; now you need to learn timing and teamwork. These can only be learned through playing the game itself.

[hide=5.1 FAQs]Q: Am I really supposed to remember all of this?

A: No, you should remember only some of it. Play Castle Wars, then refer back here occasionally.

Q: Why should I play Castle Wars?

A: It's a really fun mini-game and a great way to make new friends.

Q: This stuff is expensive. How am I supposed to afford playing Castle Wars?

A: It's actually not expensive if you use some of the cheaper gear I listed. You can play Castle Wars this way for about a month on less than 1 mil. I'm sure you can find a guide to make that much money for you.

Q: What's the easiest/hardest position to play?

A: In my opinion from easiest to hardest: Pker, Defensive Mage, Offensive Mage, Scorer.

Q: Ok, I read your guide. How can I get better at Castle Wars?

A: Play Castle Wars at least once a day.

Q: Where should I play Castle Wars?

A: The official Castle Wars worlds are 15, 24, 52, 82, and 166. World 24 and 82 are the most competitive of these. The Clan Chats for competitive players are "We Sara" and "Team Zam." World 157 is also a common world for competitive matches, but is only active at certain times.

Q: Where can I find some serious Castle Wars competition?

A: For the most competitive Castle Wars matches, you should join a Castle Wars Clan. The Castle Wars Community has a list of these clans and how to contact them: http://www.nasirtajik.com/cwc/cwc_cdb.htm.

Q: What is the Castle Wars Community?

A: This is a forum where Castle Wars players hang out. You can find some good competition here. You can join http://z10.invisionfree.com/Cwcommunity/index, or by clicking on my sig. You may also hang out at our IRC channel: #cwcommunity.[/hide]

[hide=5.2 About the Author]Hi, my RSN is Raiderej, but most call me raider or raid, for short. I've been playing Castle Wars for 3-4 years and CW has been the only reason I'm still playing this game.

I've been in 10+ Castle Wars Clans and was the leader of one of them. I've played in over 20+ Castle Wars Clan Matches, winning a majority of them. I'm currently clanless as I write this guide.

I mostly play defensive mage and my specialty is on the ground floor. However, I can play any position, besides scorer, well. My favorite position is offensive mage because I like causing havoc on opposing defenses.

I currently only have 1.1k CW tickets because I dropped some. Tickets don't matter to me as long as it's a fun game. I'd rather play an exciting match and lose by one than be bored and win by 5+.

I'm also currently a moderator on the Castle Wars Community forums. You can contact me there or here on the Tip It Forums.[/hide]

Raiderej: Wrote the guide, took the pictures, and made the videos.

Jardine: Helped me with a lot of the pictures. (She's the best <3)

Danqazmlp: Helped me with a lot of the pictures. (Hi Dan Dan )

Matt Hockley: Received the flag pass in the video. (R.I.P. Best Scorer Ever)

Josh3446: Intercepted the flag pass in the video. (Don't let it go to your head, chav)

Nasirtajik: For RSshare (image hosting).

Tip It Forums: Hosting my guide.

Ah you finally posted it here. It's complete i think, so, i'll see if i can get somebody to move it to the general guides section.

Hey, someone who actually knows how to cw. Dont see many others nowadays.

Nice guide. :thumbsup:

Thanks Dan :

Simply put, this guide is amazing, perhaps the most comprehensive, informational, and beautiful guide on the best minigame of all time. I love Castle Wars, spent many of hours there, just waiting for games to start. Since themed worlds, it has sadly lost its allure to me, but perhaps I'll start the ol' Armadyl machine back to catching flags.

This should be AoW, at the very least. Thank you for this wonderful guide, it has re-kindled my love of minigames.