In Old School RuneScape (OSRS), Smithing is one of the most rewarding yet challenging skills to level up. Whether you're creating high-level weapons, forging armor, or producing valuable bars to sell, Smithing plays a vital role in the game's economy and progression. However, many players struggle with the time-consuming nature of leveling this skill. This guide will walk you through efficient methods to level up Smithing quickly, providing you with tips, strategies, and useful resources to make your journey smoother.
Understanding Smithing in OSRS
Smithing in OSRS gold is the process of using bars of metal (such as bronze, iron, steel, mithril, adamant, and rune) to create a variety of items like armor, weapons, and tools. As you level up Smithing, you unlock the ability to create higher-tier items, and with the right methods, you can make a significant profit as well.
Smithing is often viewed as a money-intensive skill because of the high cost of ores and bars. However, with the right approach, you can level up this skill efficiently without burning through your bank too quickly. Here's how you can do it.
Best Methods to Level Up Smithing Fast
There are several training methods available in OSRS that vary based on cost, speed, and efficiency. Some methods are better suited for high-level players who have access to better resources, while others are accessible to beginners. Let's break down the best ways to level up Smithing.
- Using an Anvil and Hammer for Bars (Traditional Method)
At lower levels, the most basic method to level up Smithing involves creating bars and using them at an anvil. This method is ideal for early training since it's simple, affordable, and relatively accessible.
Key Bars to Smith:
Bronze/Iron Bars (Levels 1-15): These are the most basic and cheap options. You can use a bronze or iron ore to create bars at any furnace in the game, and then forge them into low-level items like bronze knives or iron kiteshields.
Steel Bars (Levels 30-99): Steel bars, made from a combination of iron and coal, can be used to make more profitable and efficient items like steel platebodies and steel full helms.
This method requires you to mine or purchase ores, smelt them into bars, and then forge those bars into useful items at an anvil. As your Smithing level increases, you can craft higher-level items, which give you better XP per hour.
Advantages: This method is easy to start and cost-effective at lower levels.
Disadvantages: It's slow at higher levels and lacks the efficiency of more advanced methods.
- Blast Furnace (Levels 30-99)
The Blast Furnace is a highly efficient method for training Smithing from level 30 onwards. It allows players to smelt ores into bars much faster than traditional furnaces. The Blast Furnace offers a 50% reduction in the amount of coal required to smelt bars, making it ideal for high-volume training.
How the Blast Furnace Works:
Players use ores (such as iron, steel, mithril, adamant, and rune) alongside coal to create bars at the Blast Furnace.
The Blast Furnace provides a double speed for producing bars compared to traditional furnaces, allowing you to level up faster.
The best method for training Smithing here is using Iron Bars (for Iron Plates) and Steel Bars (for Steel Platebodies). Since platebodies give the best XP per bar, they are an excellent choice.
Advantages: Extremely fast, with less coal required.
Disadvantages: It requires some upfront investment, including a membership to access the Blast Furnace and a small fee for using it.
- Making Platebodies (Levels 50-99)
Once you reach level 50 Smithing, a great method to level up is to craft steel platebodies. Steel platebodies give one of the highest experience rates in the game for Smithing. After reaching level 50, players can make steel platebodies at the furnace or Blast Furnace.
Here's how it works:
Steel Platebody requires 5 steel bars to make. While this method is a bit expensive, the rewards are worth it.
After crafting the steel platebody, you can either sell them or keep them for future use. Steel platebodies sell for around 1,200-1,400 coins each, so even if you're losing money while training, you can make some profit through high-level alchemy or by selling the items.
If you want to maximize efficiency, consider using the Blast Furnace method with steel bars.
Advantages: This method offers excellent XP per hour, especially at high levels, and is relatively profitable.
Disadvantages: Steel bars are expensive, so this method can get costly.
- Cannonballs (Levels 35-99)
One of the most cost-effective methods to level up Smithing from level 35 onwards is by making cannonballs. This method has become increasingly popular for Smithing training, as it allows players to profit while training, though it requires access to the Cannonball Furnace (available in the Blast Furnace).
Here's how the process works:
Cannonballs are created by combining steel bars at the Blast Furnace, where the steel bars are converted into cannonballs.
This method is ideal for players who have access to the Blast Furnace and want to OSRS gold buy profit from their Smithing experience.
While the experience rate per hour is slightly slower than making steel platebodies, the profit and lower cost make it an attractive option for many players.
Advantages: Profitable and efficient for mid-level training.
Disadvantages: Slower than other methods, and you need to manually collect steel bars.
- Making Gold or Mithril Items (Levels 68-99)
At level 68 Smithing, players can create mithril and gold items. This method requires a fair amount of gold bars (usually for crafting things like mithril platebodies or mithril plates) and mithril ores (which can be smelted into bars). Gold bars, while offering a decent experience rate, can be an even more effective option.
Gold and Mithril training can be combined with methods like power-mining (if you want to collect ores), which allow you to focus entirely on crafting gold and mithril items.
